Let's Talk about Weather, Baby!

It is AMAZING here in Juneau today. It is downright balmy at 58 degrees. That's almost 60! In practically October! WOW! It has not been in the 50s in months here. I bet we didn't get up to 58 more than three or four times all summer. We are heading outside for some fun in the sun (and possibly a migrane) ASAP. Seriously, doesn't this day just scream for some bike riding and swing swinging? We're on it.

Meanwhile in other weather news, this morning there was a BLIZZARD ADVISORY forecast for Thompson Pass near Valdez. (Greg and I did a celebration dance in the bathroom this morning when we heard it.... as in "yay, we don't live there anymore"). Sorry to all our friends still in Valdez, but we are so happy not to have to shovel and plow our way through another winter. Of course, this is seriously jinxing us... I'm sure Juneau will now have the most snowfall on record this winter, but at least we'll have today.

UPDATE: The blizzard warning was cancelled. They are still expecting enough snow to limit visibility to less than a mile, though. I'll take our rain any day. OK, every day.

If I Could Save Time in a Bottle...

...the first thing that I'd like to do is to go back to last week and blog all this stuff as it happens, not inundate my loyal readers all at once. Nonetheless, I will proceed now to do just that.

Where has the week gone?

We've been quite frazzled around here since Greg returned from his sheep hunt about three weeks ago. It is a long story that Greg will gladly tell anyone who wants to call up here and get the details.

Gwen had a few field trips at school, with the seasonal tree and bark rubbings, and of course the obligatory leaf drawings and other autumn-inspired crafts. As a family, we have been enjoying the fall colors as well. In fact, we went for a hike out Montana Creek on Saturday and while we have no pictures to share, I can tell you that both girls got a closeup view of the creek. Gwen fell in as she was making her way out to Greg who was so busy casting that it took him a moment to help her up. Alas, not a fish in sight. So, as we were looking for some pretty rocks (OK, I'll admit it - I was looking for gold flakes! It's hard not to!), Amelia took a header right in to the frigid, glacier stream. Luckily, Mommy had a change of clothes for each girl and we were none the worse for wear. What tough Alaskan kids!

On Sunday after church, Gwen and I attended a birthday party for a classmate, Maille (pronounced "Miley", but with the traditional Gaelic spelling). Let the adorable pictures begin!!Yes, it was a fairy and pixie party! They played Fairy Queen Says (like Simon Says, but way more fun!)Fairy wands up, Fairy wands down. Oh and even though Gwen and I were completely ignorant in the ways of the pixies, we soon realized that fairies and pixies have to hide when a human comes close.... in fact, the fairies turn in to flowers and have to be really still until the danger passes. I'm still contemplating all the ways I can continue to utilize this fact for years to come....Pin the fairy on the flower... Gwen's fairy was the closest to the center!And here she is with about half of the girls in attendance. All of them are classmates at Gwen's preschool. They made their own fairy crowns and fairy wands.

Nothing else to report except that Greg and I have started on another 12 weeks of Body for Life. I lost two lbs in one day! Yeah, it sounds good now, but I'll let you know my total for the week - that is the real gauge. The last time Greg did a stint of BFL, he lost 50 lbs, FYI. We are in crunch mode now. Exactly 12 weeks from yesterday is the day before we leave for Hawaii. It is awful to have all the staring and pointing when you're on the beach - and not from the paparazzi, either. It's because all the spectators can all tell we big, white tourists are from Alaska. Anyway, I suspect we will still be fairly white in 12 weeks, but hopefully not quite so big. And do not ask, for I will NOT be posting any "before" pictures here.

Absolutely too cute!

The girls and I went on a little nature walk after picking Gwen up from school yesterday. I can't believe how adorable and amazing these girls are! We all had a fun time in the very crisp (mid-4os) Juneau day. It was the first time in weeks that the cloud cover hasn't been hiding the mountains and glacier, so I thought to grab the camera and it turned out well. Juneau gets about four days of fall before winter hits, so we try to enjoy it all we can.

In related news, I was on the national call-in radio show Chris Fabry LIVE yesterday, talking about my favorite memories of fall, and what fall means to me. If you go to "past programs" you can listen to the Sept 22 show yourself. The show is a favorite of mine and I try to listen every morning, but if you want to zip through most of the show, go to about 19:15. That's where my call starts and I yammer on for about three minutes. Spoiler: my comment involves football and napping.

By the way, in the above pictures, that's the Mendenhall Glacier and the Mendenhall River. Original, huh?

Happy autumnal equinox, everyone!

Bear Report

Since we moved, we have not seen any bears around in our new neighborhood. However, we did hear all about one of the cubs we had seen at our other house... here's an excerpt from last Monday's news from kinyradio.com:

Wildlife Troopers: Bear cub apparently crushed when sow tips dumpster
A black bear cub was killed in an unusual manner over the weekend. State Wildlife Trooper Nicholas Massey says it happened Saturday morning on Tongass Boulevard in the Valley. He says it appears a sow and two cubs were feeding out of a dumpster there when the sow tipped over the dumpster crushing one of the cubs. He says the cub was laying underneath the dumpster when he arrived. Massey says police were on scene and made sure residents were safe and provided support while he put the bear in his vehicle in the event the sow came back. He says the sow was very angry and disturbed.Massey says he's never run across such a case in the past. He thinks it's pretty unique. He says the owners of the apartment building have made arrangements to stabilize the dumpster so something like that doesn't happen again.

The big boar we had reported on a while back has not followed us over, and we have not heard anything from our old neighbors about his fate. I've got a message in to the local wildlife biologist, so I'll pass on any news. As you can see, anything could have happened to him. It's a tough world out there for bears.

And...... we're back.

OK, so during the move we didn't so much lose our minds as the camera. Yep, that's why we haven't blogged; we couldn't find the camera. We are in the new rental, and done with the old one aside from the matter of our deposit. We like and trust our old landlord (why do I think of an old SNL/Eddie Murphy skit every time I say "landlord"?) so we should be able to tidy things up in that department soon.

So, although we are 'in", we are so not yet "in" to our new place. I can't find a thing. Like forks. And baby wipes. And guinea pig food. Shampoo. Greg's pants.... The list is endless. Since we were merely moving across town, I just tossed stuff in willy-nilly wherever it would fit and now I'm having second thoughts about that tactic.

Nonetheless, we are pleasantly pleased with our new "home". It is about twice as big as the old place, judging from the amount of stuff we have crammed into it. Plus the yard is great, the neighborhood seems pretty wonderful. We're on a quiet (until you-know-who moved in!) cul-de-sac which dead ends into a park. We know several of our neighbors already, plus.... well, sorry to open an old wound for my friend Crystal, but I've got to tell this story... While we were moving in, four separate neighbors came over and asked if they could a) help us at all and b) welcome us to the neighborhood. What a place! There are lots of kids and I'm really looking forward to Halloween this year like I haven't in a long time.

The only minor negative thing I can drum up is that this place has been neglected. It is in need of paint, appliance repair, new windows, and plumbing. On the plus side, our landlord is very open to any work that needs to be done. She welcomes our input and is happy that I am home during the day to supervise any workmen that might appear from time to time. We're happy that this will be a good fit for us for a while.

OK, one more tiny issue: the lady directly across the street from us in the house that I have to look at from my (really cluttered) kitchen has her yard, mailbox, and house plastered with Ohio State stuff! She was the first neighbor to come over to meet us (as I was trying to back the boat into spongy, muddy ground over the top of the cap to the water main - that's a tale for another day!) and I just had to tell her "Go Blue." She laughingly replied, "Well, there goes the neighborhood!". Little does she know.

In any case, we are indeed back online. Until the house is less cluttered however, pictures will be scarce. Our new address will be forthcoming via email. If you think I may not have your current email address, please post a comment here (using [at] instead of @, to reduce spam and whatnot) and I will add you to our contact list.

Here's the one picture I've taken since we moved in:

This was taken from the loft looking down on Gwen who had apparently passed out from playing with her dollhouse so frenetically this afternoon.

Ooh- tomorrow's tale? Greg subbed for me as the work parent at preschool today because I was too sick to go. Gwen loved it! Greg, not so much.

Now it's personal

Well, as we were waiting on pins and needles for Greg to arrive back home from his hunting trip, I finally decided that the truth must be told. I have been sitting on these pictures for a few days now and I just must share them. It's outrageous, I tell you! But we'll get to that soon enough. For now, the build-up.....

Remember the bear who has been tormenting our bear-proof trash can? Well the documented case was not an isolated incident, my friends. He has been here several nights in a row, but suspiciously did not maul the can one day this week. Instead, I later learned that he had broken into our neighbors' garage and proceeded to eat all their trash plus some pantry items that were shelved just outside their adjoining kitchen door.... which was not only not locked, but also ajar during the entire time this cocky bruin was munching the treats he'd uncovered.

Yeah. This was at about 2:30am, and I heard nothing. We must've been snoring to beat the band here in our house while just 40 feet away a big bear sat stuffing himself.

Uh-huh. So this is where it gets personal.... I've really been abused by this bear. Here I am, alone with my two small daughters and this bear is just lurking about, wreaking havoc with my psyche, right? I mean, yes, sure, I know where the 44 is and the ammo as well, but that's not the point. We're just minding our own beeswax and he's strutting around as if he owns the place. I couldn't take it and I turned him into the Alaska Dept of Fish & Game. They unfortunately have a considerable backlog of problem bears and said they would get to our guy when they can. They have a lot of really aggressive bears this year that need to be euthanized.

Anyway, after this blatant break-in and vandalism to our neighbors, I was still a bit upset. I mean, this bruin seems to be toying with me. The next morning, as I was perusing our back lawn, what do I see? Look closely, just about 12 feet from my bedroom window...

Yes, it's a pile. Of. Bear. Scat. Well the gloves are off! This means war, Buddy Boy!

Hubbub be thwarted!

Yeah, so with all the packing and cleaning and bears and Gubernatorial VP's and hunting and moving, I completely zoinked on posting some pictures of Gwen's first day of school. She is at ABC Preschool again this fall, so there are some familiar faces and some new ones too. She seems to be loving it so far (after two days), but here she is last week on her very first day. Amelia seems kind of thrilled to see her big sis go off for the morning:

Ok, here's one of my big girl all by herself at our current dwelling. (Thanks to Brooke and Crystal for the lovely raincoat; we use it a lot!) Say "cheese"!Wait a minute... Let's get a close-up of that face, shall we? What does this look say to you?

Pensive? Coy? Exhausted? Resigned? Whatever that look is, I have a feeling it's being groomed to perfection and that I will see it often over the next 15 years or so. Nonetheless, she was a bit more spry and perky once we actually got to the school:
We have a great group of kids and parents this year and some wonderful teachers that we feel blessed to have working with Gwen. Here's to a great school year for all of you, too!

REAL Rental

Okey dokey, we're on the way in to our new place. I jumped the gun a bit and we are renting two places simultaneously while we transition. Not exactly a breeze for our budget, but the math guy is out of town, so I did my best.

Details about the rental, or as Gwen calls it, our "real" house... She seems to really like this new abode, however it is a bit alarming to note that she is already thinking ahead to the next time we move. She has suggested several time-saving techniques for using the shelves for her toys. One household hint involved leaving "everything in the boxes so we don't have to pack it up again when we leave." So then I counted all the moves Gwen has had in her 4 1/2 years.... this current adventure is her ninth move. It is Amelia's third. Man, we need to settle down!

Without further ado, the house. This is an attached or zero-lot-line home; we are renting just the right side and our landlady lives in the other side. The gate to the far right leads to some big, juicy raspberries.
And here's the most inportant room of the house.... the kitchen! It's kind of tiny, more of a galley really, but it is clean and has all the essentials. This is the only downstairs window that looks out the front of the house.The upstairs bedroom is actually a big loft with a huge walk-in closet and a cute window seat. It also has a 3/4 bath and lots of windows to let in all that bright Juneau sun. Yeah right.Speaking of windows, both bathrooms have these long narrow windows, which makes me so excited! I love having windows in the bathroom, so I can put plants in there. They help freshen the air, don't cha know?And at last, the piece de resistance, the HUGE backyard! I can finally unpack my garden gnome collection! Just kidding. The swingset will fit nicely though and I love that the fence is sturdy and tall. It's perfect!Unless I find more free furniture (two bookshelves and a paper sorter, cubby, filing shelf-thingy)at Juneau Freecycle, we should be all moved in by Sept 10; I'll email our address out shortly.

Lickety split!

Just a quick note with a little info...

• Greg and Steve hiked back out of the bush today and opted to fly in to a different area. The slopes were too shale-y and slippery for them to make it up to elevation so they are getting dropped off near a lake and hope to be successful. Also, in two whole days they did not see one ram. Plus, the area they were in had a lot of traffic. Usually when you are hunting, you like to see nobody for miles. Not the case on this trip so far. Greg was answering nature's call one day this weekend when an earthy girl almost hiked right up on him. Steve was giggling apparently as he watched the whole thing unfold in his binos.
• And, (dah dah DAH!!!!!) we found a new rental! Hopefully I will have everything packed when Greg gets back to Juneau Sunday and we can move right in. I'm hoping I can clean the new place top to bottom before we move anything over. Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, big deck, nice garage, boat parking, and in a great neighborhood near a wonderful playground and pond with year-round ducks! Huge yard for the girls and raspberries for me, too! We are so happy! Oh, and our new landlady Melinda said Lilly can live there too.

I will have pictures soon to share, and of course the new address for you all. Our phone number will stay the same.