Yeah right.....spring is not here

Just when we thought Spring was around the corner...it threw us a couple of storms. Needless to say, we still have about 2' of snow on the ground with intermittant dry roads. The last month has been full of sun and much longer days. Today we have 14 hours of light from 0700- 2100 hrs. You would think that with all of that daylight....the snow would go away? But no...it is staying until May!!!

The picture above is not a recent one but is representative of the snow on a January day. Required shoveling rooftops of sheds and constant clearing of the driveways. We are pretty lucky to have friends with equipment to move snow.

We have made use of our snowshoes. Terry and Arlene led us across the Susitna river on our snow shoes to Talkeetna. Kind of wierd to be walking across the frozen river on snow shoes and crossing snowbridges across running water. We wandered a bit and it took us quite some time to find the crossing. The snow was deeper than anticipated and Terry punched out the trail. The reward was a trip to the local pizza joint for one of a kind sandwiches and pizza in Talkeetna. the way home only took us about 90 minutes one way since we had a trail. Great exercise and what a view of the mountains!! We seemed so small compared to the land/river/skies around us.

The house project list is getting shorter...nail holes filled, windows washed inside, touch up paint here and there. Our blackout blinds have been ordered/installed and just in time as the days keep getting longer with full bright sun reflecting off of the snow.

I am getting antsy to get into the dirt!! In Seattle we had so much time to garden in the April/May months. Here it is not even close to that time of year. What I wouldn't give for bright azaleas and rhodies right now. Instead it has been snowing and blowing all day!!

Oh well....I have been to Lowe's and purchased pots, dirt and seeds. I will get them started for a June transfer to a garden! Can't wait until it really is spring but maybe we just go from snow to summer without a real spring.....we shall see soon!

Dripping Ice Carvings

We think we have had our final snow. It was so wet and slushy with big flakes, so different from past snows. The snow would build up on the roof and then just slide down. The snow berm outside my office windows was taller than me for one day. It was so warm while it was snowing- it was just wierd. The rain came and melted it away very quickly. Almost felt like a Seattle snow- here today- gone tomorrow.

Hate to tell you all this but our weather in Alaska has been much nicer, warmer and more pleasant than the Midwest! This last week has been over 35-40' with sunny skies on most days. Rumor has it that this may be "it" for the winter weather. The rivers are starting to show ice melt as well so it may be true.

Consequently our outing to the Fairbanks International Ice Carvings was a bit drippy!! Unfortunately the ice carvers' creations were subject to very warm temps (35-40') and had "issues" or melt down! Usually this time of year, it is at least below zero. The temps were good for viewing the show but bad for the ice itself.

Even so...we were able to see their great work and detail. The work that goes into these carvings is just amazing....detail and dimension (very big). They are also so precise that it is hard to believe it is ice and not glass. At night the ice is lit up with colored lights to further enhance their art.

To entertain the kids- there are a lot of interactive Ice Carvings that include slides and "ice bowls". The slides are pretty and very slick. Ice bowls are ice carvings that you climb into and someone spins you around really fast.

That's it for now...gotta get back to the workings of Spring!!! I think it is really here!

The Honeymoon is not over!

So far we have survived the Alaska winter and the honeymoon is not over! We have invested in snowshoes so we can tramp around the neighborhood and follow the moose tracks. Really it is fun and a great workout that works your entire body- arms, legs and core!! There is nothing like sinking up to your koochi koo and trying to get the boat shaped shoes up and out of the snow!! Needless to say- I have started to double up on my clothing- it helps to prevent the invasion of snow in my lower extremities.

January has been an interesting month. I had a business trip planned and then a side trip to visit Justine. I was gone for two weeks but before I left.....things got a bit interesting. Mike remembered me saying that if I got married- it had to be in the month of January......I'd always wanted to be married in January. So the week before I left, he started to ask when I was leaving for my trip (1.19) and when I would be back (1.31)...then he proceeded to tell me that if I was getting married in January- I'd better get on the stick and get the paperwork in order!!!!! WOW- Now that's a marriage proposal that is to the point!! No beating around the bush at this house....so I faxed our marriage application to the courthouse. The next date we could be married was 1.16.08 and Terry (Mike's brother) would be the officiant. On 1.16.08 we drove to the courthouse to pick up the paperwork. We went straight home and got ready for the "kitchen table wedding"! Mike cooked and made me a cake as I cleaned up the house. But we still needed a second person as a witness (Arlene was mine). SO at 3pm...Mike called his buddy Steve to ask a favor (be his witness) and to invite he and his wife to dinner that night. We had a great gathering of friends and family...got married in our bluejeans and it was a simple sincere wedding. No big prom, no big white dress, just simple stuff!!

Of course- My mom could not believe that anyone could marry anyone!!! That's just not the way things are done in the lower 48!! So to prove that it is the real deal....I have scanned a copy of the official document and here it is!!!

While in Iowa, I was able to visit with Justine. She has been working hard at painting and furnishing her new home. She bought a townhome in Des Moines in November and it looks great! It is so nice....decorated smartly and with style. I guess she is a chip off the old block. I think it is great that she has been doing all the work herself and with the help of her boyfriend. It is a great way to learn how to do things yourself.

The house projects continue here....while I was gone, Mike finished up the stair trim and attached all of the stair treads. When I arrived back home- I discovered that he had built a big bench to store all of our boots and winter gear!!! It is six feet long x 21" with a deep interior for storage. The joke is that he could go into the casket building business!! It is so nice to have a place for all of that stuff as well as a place to put on your boots/shoes.

It is getting to be daylight at around 0830 and dark by 6:00 pm...the days are getting longer. It is time to order blinds for the bedrooms. Soon it will be light until late at night making it difficult to sleep. Anyway- that's the update for the month.

New Year- 2008

Wow- it is already January and it seems like just yesterday we were in Seattle. Time flies when you are having fun. Christmas was a quiet holiday with the best gift of all- a warm house! We pinch ourselves often at the amazingly daunting task we had in front of us in May 2007. Now that seems far away as we sit in the house watching the moose pass by the door.

For Christmas- I made a ton of cookies and candy. Our intention was to make "goodie" plates for all of those in the area that we had met. After 25 plates being delivered- we were out of all that fattening stuff. It was pretty amazing to watch people's faces as we delivered our gift- they were surprised and speechless. The post office guy, landfill guy and all the girls at the Trapper Creek Inn were privy to our talents as well as others who we have coffee with or who helped us with the house.


The week before Christmas we worked in Fairbanks and Delta Junction. I have never been so cold in my life. You know...I made a big deal on my last post about it being 25 below? Well.....that was just the start of things going very negative. It has been documented that it was a negative 40 degrees on our truck's thermostat but what's worse is that it was really 47 below in other area of town. I have never had the inside of my nose freeze up- even in Iowa- that never happened. My long underwear certainly helped out but I could have used a second layer but they wouldn't fit under my clothers. Note to Self- get Winter fat clothes to accommodate for two layers of long underwear.


After Christmas- we have been back at getting the house trimwork completed. Mike has been busy with baseboards, closets and mounting the hood pipe above the stove. My only job was to completely unpack my clothes, find a place for everything that had been moved a dozen times and get the countertop/stove backsplash done.


Consequently we found all of our Japan artifacts and gifts- they have been displayed on the stairway wall. We figure that the house decorations will move a couple of more times as we get more stuff unpacked. I am really missing those bookshelves that we had in Mukilteo. We have no shelves and have to figure out a way to store all of our "stuff", books and albums.
The backsplash only took me two days once I got going on it. Like all detail work- the preliminary masking and cleaning takes the time. Mike attached the hardiboard and then I could get the mortar slapped on the tiles.

The next day- I grouted all the seams. I thought it would only take me a couple of hours but three hours later- I had all the vertical seams done. VERTICAL seams is the key word- it takes more time to do these than anything else. The end result looks great and will be much better than the sheetrock. Easier to clean as it has also been sealed.


Before we get started the hardiboard must be attached to the walls.

Almost done with tile setting- my arms are killing me.

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All Grouted and moved back in- Mike is back in the kitchen!

I am so glad that job is off my list!!!

Just the simple life

Sunrise/Sunset Update:

Sun comes up around 10:10 am and goes down around 3:30pm. This will change soon as shortest day of the year approaches Dec 21st. The shortened days haven't bothered us much- we just keep doing what we do best- work.

Star Update:

Oh my Goodness!!! The stars look like you could jut pick them out of the sky. They are so bright and close. We have not seen the Northern Lights yet- just can't seem to stay up late enough. Sometimes the moon is out, the stars are out and the sun is almost up- all at the same time!!!

Weather Update:

As we were traveling North we made a bet on how cold it would be at Clear AFB which is just south of Fairbanks. My bet- negative 13'- Mike's bet was negative 20'. Mike was the winner with a winning temperature of -22' (YES that's a negative 22). His prize: Making me whiz outside (no bathrooms around in that part of the country) BUT that did not happen. I waited until the next gas station!! I wasn't going to literally freeze my behind off. This was a 37' difference from Trapper Creek. It was only 15' at home.

Garage Update:

We are really glad we put heated floors into the garage. It is so nice to get into the truck and it is warm. As Mike says "You would freeze your ornaments off" if we didn't have a heated garage. We also don't have to worry about icy stairs (their inside) or sidewalks. The trucks melt off and the water evaporates.

Wildlife Update:

We've had moose in the yard- I kept seeing tracks right across the drive. After coffee yesterday morning- we discovered moose (2) eating tree branches just across the pond. They could hear us and as we watched them from the windows- they acted like they could see us. Later they bedded down and slept just yards from the house. You can see the two black spots in the above picture- Right in the center - that's our moose.

We have been busy with work and the house has taken a back seat for a bit. BUT we are getting alot of small projects completed on the weekends. Mike has the closet doors on one guest bedroom, the trim out is getting done in bits and pieces as we have time. We have taken our old boat cleats and created a coat rack in our entry and the office has been cleaned up. The office no longer looks like a pile of projects but rather a real office. My furniture has been installed and now I feel like it is really an office.

We had Thanksgiving at our house- guests included Terry, Tyler and Levi (Arlene was in Wisconsin), Ron, Kelli, Louis and Zach (Arlene's Brother's family) and neighbors- Pat and Mary Walsh. Quite a house full and lots of food!!!

NEWS!!! The cat has been kicked out of our bedroom. For some reason she has taken to meowing and pawing at us in the middle of the night- consistently. I was tired of being tired and the cat hair was getting a bit much. Now she is off the bed and kicked out of the bedroom all the time!!! Nightly she roams the house howling and yee-owling and paws at the door but at least I don't have a 20 lb cat attacking me in the night. She has calmed down a bit. She has gotten better about all the ruckus but almost every night at 3am you can bet she is in the stairway howling.

Cookin' going on!!!

The kitchen is now finished except for the hood pipe. In the last week, the final appliances were installed- stove top, sink (now classified as an appliance to us) and dishwasher. The countertop has been laid- ceramic tile and grouted. For once I was able to put my skills to use and grout the tiles, seal them and clean up the area.

Mike installed the stove top and is shown below with his stove top, pot filler and hood (which still has to be hooked up. The stove top came with all kinds of accessories such as a wok stand and griddle.

The sink was installed after the tile countertop was finished. Of course "PLUMBING" is a dirty word to Mike. It is always a struggle and does not come naturally like all the other things he does. BUT he got it completed without much pain- only one big scrape on his bare head.

Picture of completed area- all moved in.

View of countertop and sink area- back splash to be installed soon.

Mike said that there were requests for better pictures of the living room floor. Well- here it is....the furniture accentuates the colors in the floors and vice versa. It is one of those floors that changes with every color that you put with it.

Now the days are getting shorter. We have about 18 inches of snow on the ground and each day it gets deeper. Today we walked the neighborhood and it was a real workout walking through the deep fluffy snow. The snow is so dry- you cannot make it stick together.

We are the only people moving on our road and then only by foot.

Snow on the rooftop!!

WOW! Cool! I can't believe all the work you've done!

After three weeks- Finally I am home.
Mike picked me up from the airport on Thursday. We stayed in Anchorage as we had alot of Friday shopping to do- Groceries, furniture and details. Consequently I was picking out furniture and countertop blindly as I had not seen the finished floors, trim or cabinets.

Friday night we get home after a long day of picking out stuff, getting groceries and all of those things to make a house run smoothly. We arrive at 10 pm and have to unload all of the food- it is too cold to let it sit in the truck overnight- it would freeze our fruit and juices. So still I have not been inside the house- it is my job to get into the truck box and hand out all of the Costco boxes to Mike. After about 30 minutes, we are finished with that chore and I finally get to see the house.

I could not believe how finished it had become in the three weeks I was gone. The stone floors has been laid, doors are hung, trim is on, cabinets are complete and waiting for a countertop. Appliances have been installed as much as they can be without a countertop (stove and sink are next). Bathrooms are complete.

The Freezer (left) and refrigerator (right) are full of meat and food. The Hood (to the right of the refrigerator) still has a pipe to be installed.

The bedroom with alot of light!

Our towel warmer is installed! What a needed tool in this part of the country! Our towels are always warm and dry. It is also a great way to dry off mittens, sweaters and hats.

My "door" bell (from the Pickard farm) is installed under the deck and ready for ringing. I just need to attach a rope so it can be used as a door bell.

Mike and the Lily cat have found their respective places on the couch and loveseat. Both have enjoyed the new TV. We have been busy unpacking the kitchen stuff, doing laundry and getting caught up.

The snow is about 12" deep, fluffy and barely wet. It is weird to see it stacked up on top of everything. Where ever it stops is where it stays- we have no wind so it just gets taller and taller- inch by inch. .

Today the decks were scooped off in anticipation of more snow. It is warmer here than in Anchorage but we have all the snow. The sunrise is about 8:30 am and sunset is around 4:30 pm. While we have daylight- it is a very low level of light.