Farewell Alaska!

 

  We have made it out of Alaska! 

 What a crazy journey it has been.  Monday night we went back to the house to complete a couple more things before the tenants moved in this week.  We went to go leave and go figure... my car battery had died.  We had parked it in the garage so it wouldn't die. Thankfully a friend was able to come jump start my car.

Since my car had to be clean in order for it to be shipped, I had my best buddies at Lithia set up a car detail for me. By best buddies, I mean that I'm glad we're moving and I won't have to deal with these people again.   I can honestly say that they earned every penny. I don't think my car has really been "clean clean" since I bought it.  It's not that I don't care about it... it's just that the Alaska dirt doesn't come off when I go through the car wash and most of the year its too cold to wash it myself.  It sparkled by the time they were done! and I was frozen out of my car, but thats another story for another day. 

                                            

Tuesday evening we enjoyed a wonderful dinner with friends.  After we picked Begley up from the groomers we went back to finish packing.  We ended the night with some celebratory champagne.  After the week we survived, we deserved it!
                                               

I did have a minor panic attack Tuesday afternoon when I realized that someone (who shall remain nameless) had packed the cat's drugs in the jeep- which was currently on it's way to Seattle.  Thankfully our vet set us up with a refill.  Despite the fact that we were leaving in less than 24 hrs, I decided to do a test run on Hannah. Oh my word. It was absolutely hilarious.  Imagine your best friend slightly tipsy- has difficulty walking straight, slightly confused, probably doesn't have the best coordination.  Hannah made the time we spent packing our bags very entertaining.

Begley after his trip to the groomer!

Wednesday came too soon and reality set in-I was not ready to deal with Hannah and the flight. I guess Hannah figured out that this road trip was different.  She meowed the whole way to the airport.  I gave her the appropriate drug doseage and waited... and waited... and waited some more. She was feaking out. Thankfully, Hannah's drugged meow isn't as loud as her regular one. Hannah was quiet a majority of the trip (I was definitely counting my blessings). I was appalled when a lady approached me while we were heading to the baggage claim and told me she could hear Hannah the whole time during the flight. Mind you there had been a good 15 rows between us and I had a hard time hearing Hannah meow. I told her she must have mistaken one of the two babies on the plane for the cat, because the cat slept most of the time.

So as I'm telling this lady she is crazy sadly mistaken about the cat- officers are roping off the entire hallway with caution tape. And thats when we came to what apparently was a security breach closure.  We ended up awkwardly standing around for 10 minutes waiting for the officers to take down the tape so we could continue on our way.  Meanwhile, Hannah is proving the lady right by meowing the entire time. *facepalm*
Begley made the trip a-okay. He was probably the most excited  about the trip.  After I let him out of his kennel in Seattle, he didn't really want to go anywhere.  Best I can figure he was afraid he would be put back in his kennel.

I'm enjoying the warmer weather here in Washington, but I can't wait to be back in the south!

Best part of the day- Panera!!

Tomorrow we pick up the Jeep, return the rental, and hit the road! We are Idaho bound!

The End of Our Alaska Adventure

 Life has been a whirlwind! At this point I can't remember what Thursday and Friday entailed, but I know it definitely included housework!

 

Once the movers were done (and our grill mysteriously disappeared) we got crackin' on home repairs. Wednesday night we opted for sleeping bags on the living room floor. After a night of tossing and turning (which was a great reminder of why I hate camping) John remembered that we had foam pads we could have used >.< That's ok though...at least I didn't have to deal with pets trying to steal my sleeping bag :D

We have worked non stop on the house. We normally include Lowes' and/or Home Depot as part of our date nights. Sadly, we've had to visit those stores during the morning this week. It wasn't nearly as fun as going during date night- we were exhausted, sleep deprived, and borderline grumpy.

Our TLF (temporary living facility) has been an experience! Despite the fact that the temps have been in the teens, John and I have been sleeping with our window open. Why would we do something that crazy? Well, the master bedroom is a lovely 80 degrees (at least). We can't really tell because the thermostat is broken and the heater in our room is stuck on full blast. The cold temps outside definitely help because the fan in the room certainly doesn't.

We found a moose outside our TLF. He's huge! The hood of my car would probably fit under his belly. I will miss the moose sighting when we leave!

As far as the fur babies go... They are having a blast! Hannah has been busy breaking rules (jumping on all the furniture, etc). She has found one spot in the house that is of some concern. Hannah likes to hang out in a spot in the living room.  When she does, she ends up with a stoner look on her face. We have no idea what causes it, but it's hilarious to watch her.

Here she is cuddling with the heater

Oh Begley, the poor thing isn't used to sleeping on a tile floor. I think last night he decided we weren't worth the discomfort and went to sleep on the guest room bed. Before that...

Yep, while John and I were slaving away on the house-

 Begley stole the comforter from our bed. 

At this point- both pets qualify for Santa's naughty list.

This weekend we got over a foot of snow in Eagle River! It was perfect timing! We were having to do some stuff outside and since my snow boots got packed... I had to wear my normal boots.  Those things fill nicely with snow.

 Since we no longer have a dryer I had to be resourceful!

We have made some time for fun. There was the squadron holiday party which involved carefully placed bids so John wouldn't end up being Santa, an elf, or the Grinch. Saturday night we attended a lumberjack party. John won the flapjack eating contest (he ate 10 in 2 minutes) but it was close with our friend Dan eating 9. We wrapped up our weekend with dinner with friends and a stressful game of Settlers of Catan!

We have less than 48 hours until we leave Alaska and there is a lot of stuff left to do and people to see! A small part of me is ready to get on the plane- just so I can get some decent sleep!

Be sure to check back! I'll be blogging our cross country adventure! 

We are traveling with two pets... how bad can it be?? ;)

  

Times flies when you're having fun!

 It seems like only yesterday it was snowing on the first day of fall.  Fall in Alaska is absolutely beautiful!  The view in Alaska never gets old, and its one of the many things I'm going to miss when we move.

Life has been crazy busy.  September and October were full of work events.  That meant plenty of skipped lunches, weekends worked, and alarms slept through :) By the time October 13th had rolled around, exhausted doesn't begin to describe how I felt.  As exhausted as I was, I live for the craziness that comes with event planning.  There is something about the adrenaline rush of getting everything prepped the morning of an event that I can't get enough of.  Sure we had some hiccups (like when I accidentally stabbed myself in the leg with a pair of scissors) but over all I think everything was a success! Now, the planning for next year begins! :)

I have to give a shout out to my husband for putting up with my overly tired, slightly grumpy self for a month. He was so awesome and supportive (and made sure we always had chocolate in the house!)

We are finally down to one month until the big move!  It's hard to believe that John has been here for three years and I've been here for almost two.  Moving up here wasn't the easiest thing I've done.  I quit a job I loved, left behind some amazing friends and family, and started all over in Alaska. The move did provide a great opportunity for me to grow as a person, and I've met some amazing ladies who have helped me figure out this military spouse thing :)  Alaska has been full of a lot of adventures.  From hikes, to motorcycle rides to playing dodge the moose on the Glenn Hwy. I don't think there is a thing I would have changed about my time here. I survived Alaska- the good, the bad, and the ugly. If I can survive that, I can survive any place the Air Force sends us :)  I do have to admit... This Florida girl is pretty excited about California!!

We'll be driving across the country with two pets- twice.That should be fun, right?  The vet recommended taking Hannah on short car rides to get her used to being in the car. Biggest mistake ever! Within 10 minutes of a car ride, I'm silently trying to talk myself out of stuffing the cat in the trunk or pulling over and letting her out of the car.  Eventually, I cave and let her out of her carrier- then we have Hannah the curious cat.

                                       

We'll be visiting the vet very soon to get Hannah set up with some nice drugs for the trip. :)

We are still scrambling to finish up the basement.  The bathroom is 99% complete and we have a few things here and there to do in the main room. With both of us working full time, its been hard to find the time and energy to finish up these projects.  We are almost there!!

Today, John and I celebrate our 3 month anniversary!  If the last three months are any indication of what our life together is going to be like... we better buckle up because its going to be a crazy ride!

Photo courtesy of the  amazing Patsy Brown

Fall is in the Air!

I've been meaning to wrap up this post all week and now that I finally have the time- it's snowing. Go figure.

Having grown up in Florida, I remember experiencing about three days of fall each year. Three days of perfect crisp weather.  I loved wearing flip flops 9 months out of the year, but I didn't realize what I was missing out on until I moved to Alaska- true fall weather and snow :D

Fall last longer than three days... It's amazing. The backyard is full of color and it will only get better!

My days are filled with Pumpkin Spice Lattes and crisp weather.  My nights are filled with the fireplace going, the smell of cinnamon scented candles, and apple cider (courtesy of my husband).  :)  The sweaters, scarves, and boots are slowly beginning to make appearances. Soon there will be pumpkin carving! The best part about pumpkin carving- if we have a repeat of last year, you might find pumpkins still on our porch come December 1st.  :)

Termination dust- the sign that colder things are to come (little did I know how soon)

The mountains are absolutely gorgeous 

Last  week, Fairbanks got their first day of snow. I was beginning to count the days until snow hit Anchorage.  I didn't have to count for long! This morning I woke up and thought it was raining at first, but soon realized that it was snowing.  :) Hannah has been watching the snow all morning. 

This year has flown by- October is right around the corner! Hopefully fall will stick around a little while longer.  I'm not quite ready for waking up extra early to scrape snow off my windshield. ;)

What is your favorite thing about fall?

One month and counting!

Today John and I celebrate being married for a whole month! Woo hoo!  To celebrate, we did the adult thing- went to work, had leftovers for dinner, John brought home flowers, and I was FINALLY added on as John's dependant.  We have spent the first month of our marriage battling with an office on base as to what defines being an Alaska resident. According to them... its receiving a PFD.  For us, it's my DL, voter registration, fishing license, etc. Thankfully we won the battle :)

The past month has been a whirlwind of activity.  We got home from Florida and we jumped right into work stuff. I've been having computer issues at work, so I've been working through lunch to get caught up/stay caught up.  The IT department has been hearing a lot from me lately :(    I have missed going to the gym on my lunch break. I never thought I would say that, but I do.  Maybe once work events get on a roll I'll be able to start going to the gym again.

Life has been full of house projects.  Over the course of two weekends John and I got the outside of the house ready so we could get some photos.   The basement is close to being done!

I'll admit.. we did take some time to sneak out to the state fair :)  I have never been to the Alaska Fair and was pretty excited about the trip!  Of course I had to stop by and see all the super awesome 4-H stuff. :) (Yes, I'm a little biased)

Who doesn't like a good lumber jack show? ;)

(It's supposed to be a carved rabbit)

Thanks to all the wonderful Alaskan sunshine- the veggies can get pretty big! 

Yes, those are pumpkins in the back.  Unfortunately the largest one had to be disqualified since it had an imperfection on the outside. However, it comes in at a whopping 1,400 pounds.  The owner fed the pumpkin 300 gallons of water a day.  You can check out more of the story here. 

As fun as the fair was, I definitely paid for it.  Within a week I had a sore throat and really bad congestion.  I was kind enough to share it with John. (I did try to blame it on his co-workers, but unfortunately, no one else in the office had been sick).  I'll admit... I can be a big baby when I get sick. So a big thanks to my husband for putting up with me and making sure I was taken care of. :)

In addition to me having to go to the doctor, our fur babies had to go to the vet as well :(  Begley has a mass on his gum the vet wanted to recheck (thankfully it hasn't changed any).  The cat on the other hand... Oh boy- where to start!  The vet diagnosed her with kitty acne. Which is probably a result of the automatic cat feeder we bought, which is made of plastic (apparently cats are sensitive to plastic). This is the same "automatic" cat feeder, that I'm pretty sure close to starved my cat while we were in Florida.  The feeder was working when we left, but the cat seemed like she was starving when we got back.  After a little investigating I found that the feeder either 1) was feeding her late 2) wasn't feeding her at all  3) would feed her 6 or so pieces instead of 1/4 cup  or 4) would feed her a random 3rd time during the day.  Needless to say, I am not happy with Petmate right now and will more than likely be shipping that POS back to them very soon along with a nasty gram. I will NEVER recommend the Petmate's Infinity feeder to any pet owner. EVER.

 So we are all on the mend, all while working, busting our butts on the house, and John has started his Master's program back up. Yes... we often find ourselves asking each other "what's for dinner". I hate to admit it, but some nights I have resorted to cereal in a desperate attempt to save time and still feed myself. 

Oh the joys of adulthood :)

Talkeetna, Alaska

Due to my work events after the wedding and the fact that up until 2 days before the wedding, we had no idea where/when we would be moving- we never did plan a honeymoon. However, I did make sure we had a celebration of some sort- so to celebrate our one week anniversary we headed to Talkeetna, Alaska!

We really couldn't have asked for better weather.  

The drive up to Talkeetna was beautiful! It was the perfect fall day.

Since we left the house a little too early *cough JOHN cough* we arrived at the Talkeetna Air Taxi an hour and a half early.  We checked in and went to go check out the town! There were tourists everywhere. We debated grabbing lunch beforehand but opted to wait until after the plane ride.

After a crazy wedding week, it was really nice to sit, relax, and enjoy the sunshine.

                                

         

There was a slight delay due to fellow passengers running behind, but soon we were on the plane and ready to take off! Thankfully there was another pilot on board just in case anything went wrong ;)

The plane was tiny :(  I really don't know how John flies a plane of similar size.  During our flight out to the glacier, I thought the girl behind John was going to be sick. I don't blame her.  We all had "barf bags" (AKA 13 gallon garbage bags).  

  As rough as it can be to live in Alaska, the scenery more than makes up for it. 

Things I learned during the flight: 

Alaska has 35 species of mosquitoes

Alaska has 4 seasons: Winter, June, July, and August

After a gorgeous tour of Alaska we were ready to land on a glacier! 

Getting to play in snow in the middle of August was pretty awesome!  

       

     

My handsome hubby enjoying the sunshine :)

While we were hanging out on the glacier we had some mini avalanches. :)  

It sounded like the rumbling of train tracks. 

Sadly, play time had to end and we departed for Talkeetna.

You know... it really is a small world. It turns out that our pilot is good friends with one of John's co-workers who just moved.

If you ever find yourself in Alaska... I highly recommend doing a plane tour. It. Was. Awesome!

It really has been an amazing summer. Perfect, record breaking weather. Now winter is right around the corner. Brrrrr. I'll enjoy fall while it lasts :)

Until next time...