Iditarod Re-start

Beautiful Mt McKinley as the back drop for this years race.

Puppies!!!

Look at how excited the dogs are to start.

And Jazzie is only dressed to look like a fool, poor puppy.

Wolf man...only in Alaska.

Mr. Alaska in his donated Dave Green fur of the year.



Jeff King posing for the camera.

Deedee Jonrowe off to a great start.

Lance Mackey's a tough lookin' dude.

Martin Buser getting his race on.

Linwood Fiedler, a local Willow favorite.

We went out to the Iditarod re-start in Willow this last weekend. What a blast! I don't remember EVER going to a start or re-start growing up. We have friends who own a cabin on Willow Lake, the very place they hold the re-start so we were able to just walk over with our VIP passes and roam freely about the place. There were vendors selling paraphernalia like fur hats and yummy alaskan treats like reindeer sausage at the community center. There were dogs and sleds and mushers everywhere getting ready for the big start. I went around with a friend of Jonie Thackers from Montana that had never been to Alaska or the Iditarod before where we wandered aimlessly enjoying all the festivities, food and fun like kids in a candy store. It was good to get reacquainted with an exclusive Alaskan tradition like the Iditarod.

Winter Fun

Pictured here is our new snowmachine! We figured if we're going to live in the frozen north we've got to have a way to get outside and have some fun. We purchased it from craigslist for a great deal and have been enjoying it ever since. Gerry says it's my machine but he's riden it more than I have. : )

It's a funny thing. I grew up in Willow my whole life until I turned 18. We didn't have a snowmachine but I rode on many a friends machine during those years and yet had NO IDEA how many trails there were in Willow. It is a meca for snowmachining! Trails everywhere! Who knew....many people, except me I guess. It sure has been fun discovering another side of the place I grew up. I love discovering new things/places. I thought by moving back to Alaska I wouldn't have many more of these discoveries but once again I am pleasantly surprised.

End of the 1st Trimester

We're on to week 14 which means I'm done with the first trimester. Funny thing too, just like the text books say I'm feeling great now and have energy again. I'm back to my old self. The blah days are gone (hopefully for good), Yeah! I ballooned out almost immediately and havn't gained a pound in the last two months. I'm sure that will change here quickly though as baby is already the size of a lemon.

Where to register?

Calling all women...

I need some help from any gal who's had a baby and registered for baby stuff before. Where do I register that is most convenient for people in Alaska and out of state? Are there specific items that you wished you would have registered for and used/use all of the time? Now's the time ladies. I need you help!

On that note...

A nice bonus of being pregnant and having a "sugar daddy" to take care of me is that I have the option to work or not to work after baby is born. Now don't get me wrong, two paychecks is REALLY nice but with my demanding work schedule I've decided to take the summer off by quitting my job May 29th. We'll decide what to do after baby is born and we get used to the idea/schedule of being parents. Likely I'll be looking for part-time work come next January. In the meantime I'll be enjoying this summer with my baby-bulge. I can hardly wait.

Activities that I can't wait to endulge in this summer are: blueberry picking, fishing, hiking, kayaking, camping, running (albiet slowly), picking farm fresh veggies at the Palmer You-Pick Farm, saturday markets, having a reindeer sausage-dog downtown Anchorage on a sunny day and the list goes on.

Yeah for summer! You can't come quickly enough. :)

Excited about summer!

Alaska is a hard place to live for most people. It's not the crazy moose that walk through your yard causing all the dogs in a mile radius to start howling, It's not even the ruralness or isolation of being up here by our onesies (without the rest of the Lower 48). No I'd say it's the cold temperatures and most of all the darkness that gets to you after awhile. I never noticed it before I moved away and was exposed to normal light from 6am to 9pm or so everyday and LOTS of sunshine. Now I am acutely aware of it and find myself giddy with more light everyday and sunshine to boot. It doesn't matter if it's still 20 degrees out. It doesn't matter if there's no green on the trees yet. No, what matters is I have sunshine shining in my face at 8:30 in the morning now. Life is coming back into my veins and I can't help but be VERY EXCITED about this upcoming summer. Bring on the fishing folks!

Introducing Poe Baby #1

Although the picture quality is not up-to-par, you can tell where the head and belly are. It even has little arms and legs that were dancing all over for us during the ultrasound. The hand is up by it's mouth and the legs were crossed at the time of the picture. We will find out in about two months what "it" is and then off to the store to shop, shop, shop! :)

Bumped up to 12 weeks!

We had our first prenatal appointment on wednesday and found out that we are ACTUALLY 12 weeks along based on baby development. Because we weren't able to hear the heart beat with the normal probe, we had the pleasure of doing our first ultrasound. What did we find? A perfect, healthy little "it" dancing around in my belly. The little poenut is about two inches long and was already as active as a two year old. Wow, do we have our work cut out for us! J/K :) It was truely amazing to see our little one for the first time and really hit home that we are going to be parents the beginning of September. This is definitely the most WILD ride I've ever been on despite my many previous life adventures. When I get a chance to scan in the picture, you'll to be able to see our cutie patootie as well. :)

What to do!!?!?

Since finding out that there's a little poe-nut on the way, it has stirred up all kinds of chaos in our house. So many question, too few answers. Should we buy a house? (cause I'd really like to nest) Do we stay in Anchorage or move to the Valley? (cause housing in Anchorage is VERY expensive) Do we stay in Alaska or move back to warm, sunny Colorado Springs? (cause I'm going nuts in all this darkness) How long do I work before I quit my job? (cause it really helps having two incomes to save for a down payment on a house) When do I go back to work after baby comes? (cause I'm not eligible for the FML Act to receive 12 weeks paid vacation) Do I still try to do the Mayors Marathon in June, not run it of course but walk a 1/2. There's all these things scrambling around in my brain causing choas with my delicate emotional state (besides my raging hormones). PLEASE PRAY with us as we face so many HUGE life decisions in such a short amount of time. I am convinced God has it all figured out but we need to be attentive to his voice and get a clue too.

8 weeks along

As of yesterday I am 8 weeks pregnant and counting down until the BIG DAY (September 10th ish). Here's what are little poe-nut looks like.

I've got lots of reading to do!

Now that I am embarking on this new adventure of pregnancy and motherhood, I thought it approriate to start reading up on things I honestly have NO CLUE about. You know you learn these things in a textbook and learn the anatomy of strange parts of the body but the actual experience of it is completely different. It seems all kinds of things are up for grabs with what to expect with pregnancy and you just need to know how to deal with them. Anyway, here is a list of books that have been recommended to me for reading:

1) What to expect when you're expecting
2) Baby Whisperer
3) Baby Wise
4) Girlfriends guide to pregnancy
5) Children's Vaccinations
6) Another box of books sent from Jean Clemens that I just received! Yeah!

Any recommendations as to which one(s) you felt were the most helpful? Least helpful?

Sincerely, Need Help :)

Surprise!

I don't know how else to say this but...We're Pregnant!!! This is a surprise to many a people (including us :) ) but are happy all the same. We kept waiting for that perfect time to start having children but come to find out humans don't seem to think there's a perfect time so God plans it for them. Am I right everyone? Tell me how many of your kids were ACTUALLY planned? :) Well we've joined many a couple and are now going to be parents. I am officially due September 10. Funny thing too, that's my brother Aarons birthday! :)

Running in Alaska

Winter running isn't for everyone, even me from time to time when it is 20 below outside!!! Jasper was driving me nuts so I knew I had to brave the cold weather and get on the trails with him. This is how to dress when it's super cold.