Mama And Baby

It's really not much of a surprise to see a moose in Alaska. However, we see them in our backyard so seldom, that it is always somewhat exciting...especially for the boys. Today, as I came back inside from getting bread out of the freezer, I saw a moose feeding outside as close to our "backyard" as I have ever seen before. I got a couple pictures through the window (which didn't capture her quite as I wanted.) So I boldly ventured outside to try to get closer. I know the risks...if I got too close or threatening, she could charge at me inflicting great damage. I wasn't very far from my door...but I had slipped on my husband's sandals, which even if I had buckled them would have slipped off if I didn't step really carefully. So the sandals would have hindered a quick escape should it have been necessary.

So there I am, trying to walk stealthily through the overgrown weeds out back in sandals several sizes too big for me, to get a better view of the moose. My boys are inside, standing on the chairs, and making all sorts of racket knocking on the window trying to get the moose's attention! That is all I needed. After getting a picture of the moose, I turned around and saw, thoroughly hidden behind the overgrowth, the smallest baby moose I have ever seen this close. So I got a couple pictures of the baby too. I was so excited to see such a young moose. I wish that they were closer together so I could have gotten them both in the same picture. Of course, after seeing the baby moose, I realized what an elevated risk I was taking, as the mama moose would be much more aggressive if I showed to be any threat to her child.

Here, you can barely see the face of the baby moose peeking through the foilage.

I got this view after I went back inside (so it is through the slats of the blinds), and you can see the body of the mama moose at the far right side of the picture.

Aunt Megan Comes To Visit

(Let me just preface this post by saying that I had all of this done yesterday, and then gave Bug an opportunity to type his own message he was begging, in fact demanding, to do. In the course of his message he managed to highlight the entire post and press delete. Being overly distraught over the loss of all my hard earned thoughts (my brain connectivity is even weaker in pregnancy), I delayed trying to repost until this morning.)

We were delighted to have Megan come for a visit this weekend. We haven't seen her in nearly two years and she happened to be coming this way for a job opportunity, so she stopped in to see us for a couple days. The boys took to her right away; Nick kept whining at her on the way home from the airport every time she turned around to face front, he wanted her undivided attention. Nick made a permanent residence on her lap every waking moment....and Joey joined him if she allowed him to. I decided not to feel sorry for her for the attention bestowed upon her. If she didn't want the boys on her lap, I made her fend for herself! Megan got a glimpse of how difficult it can be to discipline Bug whenever he flashed her his winsome smile after hearing the word "no".
While at the park, Nick demonstrated his independence by climbing up the stairs to the BIG slide all by himself. You can see by the picture below that the stairs are quite tall and there is a very large gap between the last stair and the platform. I didn't really doubt his ability, but I was still a little concerned nonetheless. He did splendidly, and then spent the rest of the time repeating his remarkable achievement.

He loved the slide, and after reaching the bottom successfully every time, he clapped for himself as if to say, "Yeah Me!"
We have already had two wonderful visits, but we are now anticipating the arrival of our next visitors. In fact, Joey is so anxious he informed Megan that when we took her back to the airport we were going to pick up somebody else! When I got him up yesterday to get him dressed to take Megan back, he said, "Who are we picking up now to take me to the park?" I explained to him that Nanny and Grandma Dooley are the next visitors, but the weren't coming until Baby Ethan is ready to come out and meet us.

I am beside myself with excitement over the arrival of my Mom and Grandma, especially because it should coincide (hopefully perfectly) with the arrival of Ethan. It is sometimes hard to imagine that I am only a couple months away from delivering, and yet other times when I feel as if I can't possibly have any more time to wait. Hopefully the remaining time will speed by.

Have a blessed day.

I Wish

Joey brought me a flower, my favorite kind; a dandelion "wisher". So I showed him what you are supposed to do with them; make a wish and blow all the seeds off.

Now, every time he walks by one (or a hundred) he picks one up, closes his eyes and says, "I wish." Then he blows the seeds. He picks very special flowers, because he gets a wish for every time it takes to blow all the seeds off! Aunt Megan asked him what he wished for and Joey's response was, "I wished." That was it; he wished. I don't think he quite understands what a wish is or how to make one....but he went through the proper motions, therefore, he wished.
Here are a couple pictures of him making his wishes.

Last For The Night

Here is the bathroom in the Low Tide room of the Paddle Inn.
And here is the shower...I couldn't get a good view of the whole thing, but when I took a shower, I did not want to get out...it was so wonderful in there.
Here is the view from the front door...You can see the into the bedroom and the bathroom. To my left is a short bar with a couple chairs (not high enough for stools) facing out towards Resurrection Bay where you can sit and eat. In front, to the right is the kitchen area. It has a sink, microwave and mini fridge. They keep it stocked with dishes, cereal, waffle mix, a waffle maker, coffee and coffee maker, an assortment of oatmeals and teas, milk and orange juice. It was a fabulous place to stay.
This is the fate of the boys shortly after getting back on the road after the stop at Exit Glacier. I love this part of car trips!
Here is a picture that Mary and Chuck took while the were up in Talkeeta and Denali. It is a fox, right on the side of the road. They took lots of beautiful pictures while they were there, and I will share some with you at another time, but since I had never seen a fox before, I wanted to include it now.

That is it for now...I know, only forty pictures that I shared with you. But I feel that is enough for one night. I have to be up early tomorrow to get to the doctor's by 7am. They decided they would subject me to a 3-hour glucose test. I get to enjoy four blood draws and another dose of the sugary substance (only three times as potent) while sitting in the waiting room for three hours. Golly, could I ask for a better way to spend my morning? Have a great week.

Seeing Seward

I love this picture of Mary!
Joey's waiting so patiently for his pizza.
What a cheese-ball!
A view of the mountains across Resurrection Bay.
Mary and Chuck walked with the boys up the path to Exit Glacier. The boys were exhausted! I love this picture of Nick, barely staying conscious.

On The Road Again

Mary and Chuck's first moose sighting.
On our walk around the Homer Spit
Another view of Kenai Lake...on the way to Seward
This is the Paddle Inn, from the outside.
This is the view from the inside of the High Tide room.

Here In Homer

My boys...sleeping!
An eagle made his perch right outside our room for awhile.
Bubba was getting ready to go for a walk with Mary and Chuck. It was very windy and cold, so Mary lent him her hat.
Bug was sitting on Daddy's chest while Daddy took his picture. What a goof!
Family photo with Kachemak Bay and the Kenai Mountains in the background.

On The Road

Playing with new toys and games.

Kenai Lake; hard to tell from this picture, but it is an amazing turquoise blue.

We made a quick stop at the Kenai River (which of course is fed by Kenai Lake). You can see a bit more of the turquoise color. You can also tell how incredibly windy it was. Baby Nick loved the wind; loved how it felt blowing in his face. I love the look of pure rapture on his face in this picture, plus the look of pure discomfort on Nick's!

More Pics

Our own Li'l Cowboys

Cool Dude!

Park Pics

A Sad Day; A Great Visit

Well, today we took Mary and Chuck back to the airport. A sad day for us all; but we had a great visit with them. The boys thoroughly enjoyed being with them and were thoroughly enjoyed.

We picked them up early Saturday morning and Joey didn't stop talking from the minute he saw them until we made him go back to bed at 2am. I was already exhausted, knowing that Joey wouldn't stop going until Grandma and Grandpa went back home. Grandma and Grandpa were thrilled.

Grandpa Chuck came with a cowboy hat, and the boys fell in love with it right away. Seeing this (and being absolutely determined to spoil the boys to no end while they were here) Grandpa and Grandma decided to get each of the boys a hat of their own. I will share those pictures in a later post.

Saturday, we took our time making and eating a wonderful breakfast. Then we went to the park (which is what Joey has been talking about since we moved up here; going to the park with Grandma Mary and Grandpa Chuck.) After the park, we spent the rest of the day shopping for groceries during our trip and getting ready for the next few days.

Sunday morning, we were up by 5:30am so that we could hit the road by 7am. We drove down to Homer, where we stayed at the Land's End, a hotel right at the end of the Homer Spit. The scenery was spectacular, surrounded both by the Kachemak Bay and the Kenai Mountains. We arrived in Homer right around noon, but couldn't check in until 4pm. So we walked around the Spit, found a place to eat, and then dropped Nick off for an hour of fishing while the rest of us drove around the town of Homer. We finally came back and were allowed to check in about 3:30pm. Nick and Joey took a nap while Mary and Chuck went back out for another walk. We had dinner at the restaurant in the hotel (very good) and went to bed relatively early. Nick got up at 4:30am and jumped on a 1/2 day charter, catching his limit of 2 halibuts. Just as he was getting back, we were ready to leave Homer and head for Seward.

So, now it was Monday noon, and we were back on the road headed for Seward. The place we stayed at in Seward, the Paddle Inn, was fairly new, with a beautiful view of Resurrection Bay. This Inn was fantastic! The guy who owns it, built it; he's a general contractor. He has an amazing attention to detail, and he built this Inn as if it were a high end resort spa. It was beautiful, with a beautiful view. We went down to the Marina and walked around, then had a light supper of pizza. We spent the rest of the evening just enjoying the peace and quiet at the Inn. The Inn has just two rooms; the High Tide room upstairs, and the Low Tide room downstairs. So Mary and Chuck were upstairs, while Nick and I were downstairs. It was the perfect arrangement.

Tuesday morning, we packed up and headed back to Anchorage, getting in around 2pm. It was nice to be home, considering the whirlwind trip we took. We had lots of fun, but you could definitely see the toll it took on the boys. Wednesday morning, Chuck and Mary left to go up to Talkeetna and Denali, having a wonderful time. They came back Saturday evening to spend their remaining time with us. Then we brought them back to the airport this morning.

That is the general rundown of our vacation.....Now I will share the pictures.

Here are each of the boys in Grandpa Chuck's hat.

Baby Nick on the slide.
The infamous yellow slide! (To those who know the story, you will understand. For Mary's sake, I will say no more...except to ask someone who may know to tell you about it!)
Nick and Grandma playing peek-a-boo.