Our dream has come true. We have only lived in Alaska for one month and we’re SOLD!! When we got here the ground was still frozen and trees were bare. The grass was dead and the mountains were brown. In the short time we have been here there has been an explosion of color. Slowly we saw the Birch trees sprout green buds and by the end of the month they began to unfold and fill the bare trees. We observed the grass piercing up through the soil in little sporadic clumps to say hello to the sky which has been stunning blue with white fluffy clouds. Dandelions are bursting up in groves and adding bright yellow patches on the ground. The mountains are now velvety green with the contrast of the lime green Birch leaves and the deep forest green of the Spruce and Black Spruce. The days are getting longer so for a night owl like me it allows me to stay outside longer than normal. The downside to that is nothing stays open longer even though it is light out until 11pm now.
We picked up Bullwinkle, my truck, from the shippers just after we arrived in Anchorage. The grill was damaged but everything else looked good. I am relived. I was told some gruesome stories about broken windshields and excessive body damage. I have a sentimental attachment to vehicles so it is nice to have him home :)
We are now in the market for a home (without wheels under it) so the search is on. We have been driving around looking at land and houses and we have come to a conclusion. Alaska is not like any other state we have lived in. You’ll be driving along looking at $500,000 homes with a meth lab trailer right next door that has been collecting trash (no lie) for YEARS!! We are looking outside of Anchorage in Wasilla, which is about 45 miles away. We knew it was our kind of town because you can ride 4 wheelers and snow machines to the store. Ya can’t get any better than that!
We have been getting together with our friends Kari and Lawrence and catching up while doing some barbequing. They have introduced us to some food joints they have found and fun activities to do. Lawrence is in the Army and just made Sgt. He asked Brad to pin him at the ceremony. This is a great honor and Brad was more than willing to do this.
We even got to go on a vacation 3 weeks after arriving in AK. The base gives out free tickets to ride the local train so we got 5 round trip tickets to Seward, AK. We made reservations at the Army resort down there for the evening. The ride was really awesome and we all enjoyed it. None of the kids had ever been on a train before so this was huge ordeal. The train cut between the mountains and followed the coast for about 120 miles. We passed a glacier and miles and miles of untouched land. Seward is a beautiful little town where LOTS of fishing takes place. It is nestled in between snow-capped mountains that are sterling grey. The weekend was 65 degrees and clear blue skies. We hiked all around after getting a Starbuck’s coffee. We practiced skipping rocks and all improved our skills. We hiked back to our room and Barbequed dinner. The next day we hiked down to the Aquatic sea life center. The kids had a blast touching the star fish and they finally got to see the puffins. The ride home was just a beautiful and relaxing as the ride there.
For Mother’s day we met up with Kari and Lawrence again and ate at Garcia’s. We used to go to one in Tucson so we were familiar with the restaurant. The food was delicious and the margaritas were great. So was the company.
About a week after we got here I picked up Brad from work to run some errands and I got pulled over on base. Not for speeding either. Guess I spent too much time in California as I was told I stopped like they do. The SP was really nice and just gave me a warning.
Late one night after leaving our friends about 1:30am I was driving back to the RV and noticed a weird glare on the windshield. I asked Brad what it was and we soon figured out we were experiencing the Aurora Borealis, or the Northern Lights. The show was only about 5 minutes but the unexpected change of colors and the gliding movement through the sky was breath taking. The pictures and postcards do not do it justice.
Our wildlife viewing has been exciting. There are moose every where to include just outside our RV door. Thor was out on his run frozen in fear when the moose came looking for the down trees in the site next to ours. Brad saw the first black bear across the street from FamCamp at one of the lakes on base. The next day the kids and I saw a mama and her cub playing in a grassy area. Bald eagles, porcupines and fox are sighted daily.
I love when Brad is on vacation as he can let his beard grow out. He looks like a mountain man as Kari calls it. I am saddened cuz I know it is going bye –bye because he starts work soon.
We found a homeschool group and attended their World Fair event. It was pretty cool. You got a passport and traveled to different booths that represented different countries and learned about the culture, language, yadda, yadda and for ten cents you could sample the food. Jeovaun and Diego (Kari’s homeschooled sons) went with us so the kids had a blast. The only downer was when Kaela and Diego popped whole chunks of brie into their mouths. They were not expecting such a unique flavor.
We have been riding our bikes all over base. No hills and low elevation compared to CO makes us feel like athletes.
We will be staying at FamCamp and volunteering as the assistant host for now. We are more than excited and hope we can stay here until we find our home. Brad is able to ride his bike to work as it is literally across the street. It takes him longer to drive and park than to ride his bike.
We picked up Bullwinkle, my truck, from the shippers just after we arrived in Anchorage. The grill was damaged but everything else looked good. I am relived. I was told some gruesome stories about broken windshields and excessive body damage. I have a sentimental attachment to vehicles so it is nice to have him home :)
We are now in the market for a home (without wheels under it) so the search is on. We have been driving around looking at land and houses and we have come to a conclusion. Alaska is not like any other state we have lived in. You’ll be driving along looking at $500,000 homes with a meth lab trailer right next door that has been collecting trash (no lie) for YEARS!! We are looking outside of Anchorage in Wasilla, which is about 45 miles away. We knew it was our kind of town because you can ride 4 wheelers and snow machines to the store. Ya can’t get any better than that!
We have been getting together with our friends Kari and Lawrence and catching up while doing some barbequing. They have introduced us to some food joints they have found and fun activities to do. Lawrence is in the Army and just made Sgt. He asked Brad to pin him at the ceremony. This is a great honor and Brad was more than willing to do this.
We even got to go on a vacation 3 weeks after arriving in AK. The base gives out free tickets to ride the local train so we got 5 round trip tickets to Seward, AK. We made reservations at the Army resort down there for the evening. The ride was really awesome and we all enjoyed it. None of the kids had ever been on a train before so this was huge ordeal. The train cut between the mountains and followed the coast for about 120 miles. We passed a glacier and miles and miles of untouched land. Seward is a beautiful little town where LOTS of fishing takes place. It is nestled in between snow-capped mountains that are sterling grey. The weekend was 65 degrees and clear blue skies. We hiked all around after getting a Starbuck’s coffee. We practiced skipping rocks and all improved our skills. We hiked back to our room and Barbequed dinner. The next day we hiked down to the Aquatic sea life center. The kids had a blast touching the star fish and they finally got to see the puffins. The ride home was just a beautiful and relaxing as the ride there.
For Mother’s day we met up with Kari and Lawrence again and ate at Garcia’s. We used to go to one in Tucson so we were familiar with the restaurant. The food was delicious and the margaritas were great. So was the company.
About a week after we got here I picked up Brad from work to run some errands and I got pulled over on base. Not for speeding either. Guess I spent too much time in California as I was told I stopped like they do. The SP was really nice and just gave me a warning.
Late one night after leaving our friends about 1:30am I was driving back to the RV and noticed a weird glare on the windshield. I asked Brad what it was and we soon figured out we were experiencing the Aurora Borealis, or the Northern Lights. The show was only about 5 minutes but the unexpected change of colors and the gliding movement through the sky was breath taking. The pictures and postcards do not do it justice.
Our wildlife viewing has been exciting. There are moose every where to include just outside our RV door. Thor was out on his run frozen in fear when the moose came looking for the down trees in the site next to ours. Brad saw the first black bear across the street from FamCamp at one of the lakes on base. The next day the kids and I saw a mama and her cub playing in a grassy area. Bald eagles, porcupines and fox are sighted daily.
I love when Brad is on vacation as he can let his beard grow out. He looks like a mountain man as Kari calls it. I am saddened cuz I know it is going bye –bye because he starts work soon.
We found a homeschool group and attended their World Fair event. It was pretty cool. You got a passport and traveled to different booths that represented different countries and learned about the culture, language, yadda, yadda and for ten cents you could sample the food. Jeovaun and Diego (Kari’s homeschooled sons) went with us so the kids had a blast. The only downer was when Kaela and Diego popped whole chunks of brie into their mouths. They were not expecting such a unique flavor.
We have been riding our bikes all over base. No hills and low elevation compared to CO makes us feel like athletes.
We will be staying at FamCamp and volunteering as the assistant host for now. We are more than excited and hope we can stay here until we find our home. Brad is able to ride his bike to work as it is literally across the street. It takes him longer to drive and park than to ride his bike.
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