Alaska Life

After pouring ourselves into planning for so long, and then two weeks of high activity and exploration, we now find ourselves in the inevitable adjustment period of settling into everyday life. We've reached that "Now what?" point. Back home we were used to a certain rhythm and our individual schedules. Now it's time to create a new rhythm and schedule- together. Fortunately, the setting couldn't be any more beautiful and the company more choice.

My husband has gone back to work, which means waking up for conference calls and finding a quiet spot in the house to work on his laptop all day. This is easier now that the kids are older and can entertain themselves, but I'm sure it's been weird for him. He's used to having a creative environment where he enjoys impromptu brainstorming sessions in the hallway and a dedicated space to do his thing. I'm sure he misses the face-to-face interaction even though he loves his family. We've been exploring our new surroundings in the meantime, and have visited the local library and community, reporting our findings back to him.

I'm pleased to say that our kids exceeded our expectations in the cramped car during our travels and have joined forces (for the most part). Where I expected griping and arguing, they've been laughing and creating new games together (mostly). We are discovering things about them that give us new insight to just how much they have grown. Our older two are even capable of rowing around the lake next to our current house all by themselves. It's a wondrous, and sometimes scary thing to jump into the unknown and do something new but it's the unexpected discoveries that make it all worth it. This is our oldest rowing me around the lake.

The house we're staying at is perfect for us and, as I said, located next to a lake. We can hear Loons calling to each other daily. It's a beautiful sound and we've discovered that we're hearing two parents and a baby. I never knew that they dove for food. It's kind of like watching submarines, as they only pop their heads out of the water for short periods of time between their dives. Even the baby watches them from the surface with it's head submerged.

We can also hear roosters and hens across the water, which I love. Every morning a float plane takes off from the lake. It's a thrill to hear the engines rev up and see it lift off the water. We look for it when it takes off around 7:30am and again when it returns around 6pm. How cool would it be to have the ability to fly to work every day?!

There's new plant life to explore and the weather has been beautiful and warm, which for us is around the 70's.

"Our" house is located the Matanuska Valley, near Anchorage, which is in the southern part of the state. Now I know that Alaska is big business on TV these days, but none of the high-adventure shows we've all been watching really talks about the history of Alaska. Most of us only know that it was purchased from Russia at some point and that it has snow, glaciers, gold, the Iditarod, and all kinds of dangerous animals. So in the past week, we've been trying to immerse ourselves in "the real Alaska" to get a better understanding of the local history and culture.

Did you know that the Matanuska Valley was heavily influenced by The Depression? Struggling Farmers were brought in from northern states with harsh climates as part of President Roosevelt's "New Deal ." These settlers faced serious obstacles, which you can learn more about here: http://www.explorenorth.com/alaska/matanuska_colony.html Today, the MatSu Valley is regarded as "The bread basket of Alaska." Of course, one of our first things to do when we visit someplace new is to find the farmers market, which is a perfect way to get a peek at some of these farmers and what they produce locally. The Wasilla Farmers Market takes place on Wednesdays, so that was the one we visited. It's a small market but the vendors are worth the drive! There were all kinds of things like hand carved art, farm fresh eggs, baked goods, fragrant lotions, organic vegetables, one-of-a-kind clothing, and so much more!

One of our favorite goodies was the Fireweed Jelly from Jingle Jellies. Fireweed is that fuchsia flower in the picture above. It's everywhere up here! It grows in Washington, but definitely not as abundantly as here in Alaska. The one we bought was full-bodied and not flowery at all. It was almost grapey and hinted of tomato. I'm not talking about marinara sauce here, I mean like when you first pick a ripe tomato off the vine and get that fragrant aroma in your nostrils. Like that. It's fantastic!  I'm seriously fighting the urge to try making some myself because there's just no way I can haul it around the country with me. Plus, I love being able to support local small businesses wherever we go. We're looking forward to seeing what Willow and Palmer have to offer at their markets.

This week our new math and science curriculums arrived (is it weird that I'm excited about that- because I totally am!) so I've been organizing those for when we officially begin our school year. Our oldest son began an adventure of his own and had his introductory flight lesson last weekend. They flew over Knick Glacier and my husband was able to be a passenger. Talk about thrilling!

We also drove past the tide surfers in Anchorage http://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2014/08/surfing-alaskas-bore-tide/100787/ and visited Seward. I love small towns with a lot of character, and this is definitely one of them! Did you know that they are the mural capital of Alaska? It's a thing! We really enjoyed the SeaLife Center http://www.alaskasealife.org/ where we were able to see puffins swimming under the water and get up close and personal with them. The SeaLife Center rehabilitates Alaskan animals and then releases them (if possible) back to their natural habitats. Check them out!

I hope you are able to find the adventure in your own backyard wherever you are. It's out there! If you happen to take a picture, I'd love to see it!

- Jen

Out of the Wilds of Alaska

Did you miss me? Probably not if you follow any of my social media feeds. If you don't, please feel free to do so. I've been posting a picture a day to show the highlights of what we've up to (when we're on the grid, that is.) The links should be at the top right side of your screen.

We're now an hour behind Seattle and safely settled in to our Alaskan home for the next few months.

It feels like we've been riding the rapids since we left. Just when I was able to catch my breath, we were off again! Needless to say, blog writing took a back seat to exploration, and rightfully so. We've seen things we never expected and have been places we've only dreamed about. "Awesome" is the only word to describe it. The drive through Yukon Territory was especially amazing. Here are a few pictures of some of the sights we saw just driving the Alcan (Alaska-Canada Highway)- all taken by me. Please forgive the bug guts in some of the shots. It just wouldn't be a road trip without them...

Here's the mile marker from Dawson Creek I was hoping to get. My husband was sweet enough to indulge me.

This was the sunrise in Fort Nelson, BC at 4:00am. It was so amazing to see these colors in the sky. I swear this picture is completely untouched. Oh, and the sun never sets during this time of year in Fairbanks. Totally true!

My oldest spotted this solar halo over Destruction Bay, Yukon. It can only form when conditions are right in the atmosphere. http://earthsky.org/space/what-makes-a-halo-around-the-moon

All over B.C. you'll see these native Inuksuit monuments, which are symbols for "in the likeness of a human", which means that someone has been here and you are on the right path, according to a native person we spoke to and this website: http://www.inukshukgallery.com/inukshuk.html

We loved seeing wild animals in their natural habitat instead of a zoo. Here are some we were able to get pictures of:

Black Bear

Dall Sheep

Buffalo

A momma grizzly with her two cubs

 This is a close up of momma. Don't worry, we followed every safety precaution. They just happened to be walking next to the road.

Elk

Moose

These foxes were just out playing with each other on the road.

Snowshoe Hares

We also saw a few porcupines (which are about the size of a bulldog), deer, eagles, hawks, ground squirrels, a coyote, Sandhill cranes, bighorn sheep, ravens, seagulls, swans, Canadian geese, and more!

The scenery has been awe-inspiring. There's just no way it can be captured with a camera. We took a million pictures, and still, they just don't do justice to the majesty of the landscapes we experienced. The flowers in the first picture are fireweed. We have it in Washington but it's EVERYWHERE up here in Yukon and Alaska.

We learned things we didn't expect, like the Dalton Highway is actually pretty well maintained. In fact, there were even adventurous people riding their motorcycles and bicycles on it. We had to wait for pilot cars a few times when we hit maintenance crews.

We followed the Alaska Pipeline all the way to Prudhoe Bay and then took a shuttle to the Arctic Ocean. The Pipeline has posts to keep the permafrost under it frozen and it's built to move both up and down and from side to side in the event of an earthquake.

This is the camp we stayed at in Deadhorse. I love their logo...

Some of the other buildings in town. When we were there, we were told to watch out for the grizzly that was wandering close by. We also had to be quiet in our room because of the day sleepers. It was a great experience having a glimpse at what life is like up there for the workers- very communal. 

Pipelines in Deadhorse

The Arctic Ocean

The narrow strip we were able to walk to get to the ocean access from the oil fields.

I was surprised to learn that Arctic tundra is squishy and spongy. Also, trees in the arctic circle are skinny and sad looking because of the soil and the amount of time the sun is out for photosynthesis. http://tundralpine.weebly.com/soil.html

Mosquitos are insanely abundant in the arctic circle and the weather gets really warm. It was in the 70's when "crossed the line" and we were in sweatshirts in Deadhorse. No, we didn't see any polar bears or seals. They follow the ice pack, which happens to be further north right now. 

We also visited Wiseman and Chena Hot Springs. The renewable energy tour was amazing, especially the hydroponics and thermal energy use. Those people have some fantastic ideas which are being used right this very minute! Check it out at: http://www.chenapower.com/ I'd never been to hot springs before and was surprised at just how hot they were. The staff was excellent and I love how the campus creates almost zero waste. Amazing!

This is a glimpse of the springs. We took this right before visiting the Aurorium (where you can go during the colder months when "the lights are out.")

 The tomatoes and lettuce were perfect! What they don't use, they sell. What they don't sell, they donate to local communities. Fantastic!

I know I've given you an eye-full in this post but the adventure has just begun! Please send me your questions and I'll try to get them answered in a timely manner.

I hope you're all enjoying summer wherever you're reading this. Until next Friday!

- Jen

The Adventure Begins!

Today is the day we've been waiting for! At 5:30am this morning, we pulled out of our driveway, trailer in tow, kids and dogs secured, and headed for the Canadian border to embark on the great family adventure we've been preparing for.

We crossed the border without a hitch (Don't worry, we have a hitch. That was just a little trailer humor..) and traveled through rain, thunder, lightening, wind, and sun to get to our camp site. Now, at 6:40pm, we are safely tucked away and getting ready for dinner. The dogs and kids made it through in fine style.

We've been having fun spotting wildlife, including big horned sheep who were grazing at the side of the road, deer, a bald eagle, and many yellow signs warning us that a moose could cross the road at any given time. British Columbia is beautiful and I'm enjoying seeing merchandise in both English and French.

Tomorrow, we plan to continue our journey through B.C. toward Alaska. We will be driving through Yukon Territory and should arrive in Fairbanks on Tuesday. From there, we will leave the dogs and trailer to drive up the Dalton Highway (or the Ice Road, as parts of it become in winter) toward the Arctic Circle . Next week's post might be a little late because we will be in Deadhorse getting ready to travel through the oil fields to the Arctic Ocean.

Fun Fact: For security reasons, you need to submit your passport information ahead of time to buy a ticket to travel through the oil fields. Otherwise, the road ends in Dead Horse for civilians- no ocean access. We'll be sure to take a lots of pictures! Who knows? Maybe we'll see a polar bear...from a safe distance.

A big thank you to our wonderful friends and neighbors who sent us off with so much love and support. We look forward to seeing you again in 14 months! For now, on to Alaska!

- Jen

The Final Countdown

It's here! The final week before we leave for our big adventure! In all likelihood, the next post will just be a quick note to let you know we’re somewhere in Canada on the “Alaska Highway.” Did you know there’s an official marker for that in British Columbia? Me neither! You’d better believe I’m going to try to convince my husband that we need to take a detour to find it in Dawson's Creek!

We’ve been swamped with milestones and contractors this past week, which is why this post is a few days late. The school year ended. Our oldest graduated from eighth grade, which means he’s officially in high school now- Yikes! He also finished all the requirements to earn his Star rank in Boy Scouts. Our daughter performed beautifully at her choir concert and ended the year with a banquet. Our youngest moved up from Bear Cub to Webelos in Cub Scouts, and had his last fiddle and speech therapy sessions. We’ll miss our music and speech teachers. They're awesome! On that note, we also visited the WHO (Washington Homeschool Organization) convention. Our math curriculum for next year is ordered and will arrive when we're in Alaska. Did I mention I like checking things off my lists? ;-)

Other than that, the dogs are  now up to date on their shots and have their health certificates for the  Canadian border. Our wills are finalized. And last, but not least- our house is empty and ready for the renters to move in. I can't even begin to tell you how thankful I am for all the people who helped us with the final details in order for this trip to come together!

In spite of all the craziness, I actually finished something creative. This quilt is for a young man who is near and dear to our hearts. He graduated from high school a few weeks ago and is on his way to the Air Force. We are so proud of him! I hope he likes it.
 

It's backed with flannel, which won't do him much good during these hot summer months (He obviously doesn't live in Western Washington- our summer doesn't arrive until after July 5th- Really!) but it will be super cozy in the Fall when he's missing home. The picture below was taken before it was quilted by Vicki Stratton. She has been wonderful in helping me finish all these projects before our big launch!

Five days to go and we are SO REDAAAY!! 

- Jen