Couch Suprises

I was doing some tidying up around the house. Look what I found under the couch...

That's what 10 tennis balls looks like. Ten!!!

Just for the record, there are 12 pup toys in the picture above.

Roma didn't know which toy to munch on first...

Good thing she's cute...

I have big plans for this pest on our next hike.

Her backpack arrived today! Afterall, if I have to carry a backpack full of stuff, so does Roma. This should be perfect for the dog with endless energy. The pack is also water resistant, so when roma jumps in the water, her food will stay dry-ish :)

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Tire Lessons

Ross put Blizzak stud-less snow tires on my car for the winter, which means when spring rolls around it's time for a tire change- back to the regular rims and wheels. Did you know that it is actually unlawful to operate a motor vehicle with studded tires from May 1 to Sept 15 in certain parts of Alaska?

Yep.

I have stud-less tires, but the majority of folks seems to have the studded ones, which really tear up the roads after the snow has melted. Better get your car into the shop! I took my car to Ross's Tires. What a bargain!

The problem is that this Ross fella is a pretty cute guy, and it can be difficult to pay attention to him when he's giving tire changing lessons...

"Babe, you need to put your camera down and pay attention to what I'm saying"

So serious. There was a final exam. I sorta passed.

There we go, there's a smile!

Tire lessons are fun. :)

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Hiking Gear

The winter season and it's many recreational activities has come to a close. Ross had a bad snowboard fall and one of my cross country skis snapped... other than that, I would say our first winter in Alaska has been rather successful. I did have a couple "emotional moments" while trying to diversify my outdoor activity set, but I like to believe that's part of the breaking-in process. Next winter, I'll have a head start with the right cold weather gear. The shock (hopefully) will have worn off.  You'll have to check back with Ross for the full report a year from now. I'm optimistic, but I'm not betting any money just yet.

Needless to say, I am welcoming spring with open arms. I'm so ready for hiking, mountain biking, camping, fishing, running outside, and road biking. yay! However, new hobbies means new gear and that means $cha ching$ at REI all over again. On this trip our shopping basket included snow shoes, hiking poles, backpack, survival kit, bear spray, sleeping pads, sleeping bags, sleeping bag liners, first aid kit, bear bells. All in a days work.

Bear Spray

And just because... Here's my favorite dog:

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Egg-licious

Charles and Kelley had us over for an Easter Feast, which included a Honey Baked Ham (yes, they will ship to Anchorage- we learned that today!), green bean casserole, and potatoes au gratin.

Debating the finer points of Ham carving.

Hmm, something's missing...

Complete.

Chow Down.

The nights activities included egg decorating, which I had been looking forward to it all day. They had multiple dippers, colors, wax crayons, and stickers-- the whole 9. yay!

Kelley wins for the most egg decorating skills.

Ross was watching Kelley, trying to learn some technique.

Waiting for the egg to get really purple.

See the purple egg?? :)

We followed up dinner with a pup Easter Egg hunt. Kelley and Charles stuffed eggs with dog treats. We hid the eggs all around the house, then let the pups in to find 'em. It was HUGE hit. Great idea!

Waiting outside while we hid the eggs.

I found an egg!

Skeeter found one in between Ross's boots...

Roma thinks Easter might be her new favorite holiday.

Happy Easter!!

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Birthday Cakes

I like to think I'm an equal opportunity cake eater, but I definitely have my favorites. Red Velvet with cream cheese frosting, Boston Cream Pie (someone misnamed this-- it's really a cake), Caramel Cake, a plain yellow Buttercream cake with buttercream frosting is hard to beat... Yum...

Sprinkles? Definitely. The Rainbow ones.

Whipped Cream frosting is a big no no. It just tastes too healthy and airy. I'm not a fan.

I love Texas sheet cake, but it just doesn't have the birthday "feel" because it's so big and spread out. Same goes for a homemade cookie cake.  Carrot cake is debatable. I think the fact it contains a veggie throws me off. I've never been a huge fan of cheesecake, so I would ix-nay that one too.

Ross goes for German Chocolate, Dad Huebel would probably go for a pie, and Dad would go for anything fruity. Such as a Banana Cake with Caramel Frosting? Yep, that's what he choose last week for his birthday...

Before:

After:

 I'm in the mood for cake now...

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Aspen or Birch?

There are lots of things to love about Anchorage and one of my personal favorites is the TREES! We live in an older house, which means we have bigger trees in our backyard. But are they birch trees or aspens?? The main difference between the species is the shape of the leaves, but we've had naked trees since we moved in... I'm going to go with Birch trees after reading this article. The article says moose like birch trees and there was definitely a moose chowing down on one of our front yard trees. What's your vote?

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Weekly, Top Ten

A couple random thoughts today:

1. I wonder how many pounds of blueberries I consume on an annual basis?
2. I'm not sure how to catch a salmon, but I'm pretty sure I'm about to find out.
3. Did you know the cost of living is way higher in Alaska? Mainly because it's remote and harder to get to..  kind of like Venice, Italy... but not.
4. I have a quarter-sized blister on my left heel from our hike yesterday.  It hurt so much when I tried to stuff in a shoe, I had to wear backless sandals to work. It was 32 deg walking into the office. My feet were cold.
5. Mom is in Haiti right now doing mission work.  I'm so proud of her!
6. I got a Shellac manicure for the first time a couple weeks ago.  NO CHIPS! Amazing. Most notable flaw was the grow out from the nail bed. Here's what my nails looked like after 2 weeks:

 7. My brother takes the MCAT in a couple weeks. I am nervous for him.  I guess worse comes to worse he can be an engineer like R and I.
8. Roma loves popcorn. LOVES. Roma is scared of the vacuum. Still.
9. I heard about some bear sightings and to be honest, it freaks me out. We don't have to worry about snakes, spiders, or ticks BUT we have moose and bears instead. Pick your poison.
10. This Black Pepper Steak with  goat cheese and Ancho Red Pepper sauce is awesome.

Have a good week!

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McHugh Lake Trail

We went on our first big hike this weekend!

We climbed McHugh Lake Trail for a couple miles, then went "off-roading" in an effort to find a moose rack. Unfortunately, we didn't find a rack BUT we did climb over 2000 ft in elevation on a gorgeous day. Great time, great friends, and great views!

See the bear bell on Roma's collar?

Kris, Jolin, & Stone enjoying some lunch. I think we were sitting on a 40 degree incline.

 

So far off the path and so high up!

We finished!

Honas family-- I musta cut Chloe out!

I think this was Roma's favorite day since we've been in Alaska. She hasn't picked up one toy since we got home. Mission, successful. :)

Here's the Garmin stats from our hike:

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Broccoli'n'Cheese Soup

We get a new Cook's Illustrated every other month and it is interesting to compare what I think sounds good and what Ross thinks sounds good. About 60% of the time we agree and the other times we don't. So when I plan meals, I'll be sure and pick the ones I thought looked good and Ross does the same. Afterall, it's more exciting making food that you really want to try.  It's also comforting knowing that it's hard to go too wrong with Cook's Illustrated.

Ross earmarked "Broccoli & Cheese Soup." My first reaction was BLAH- why go through the effort to make that? But, he'd already picked out his meal and added the items to the grocery list.

I never thought this bowl of greenness could be so incredibly delicious. Broccoli, chicken broth, spinach, onions, cheddar, and Parmesan blended together make YUM.  I told Ross he'd have to make me this soup next time I get sick, because it would surely make me better.

I'm so thankful Ross likes to cook. He picks the recipes I wouldn't choose on my own. Afterall, variety is the spice of life!

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April 14th

Happy Birthday to my Best Dad!!

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Sunlight, the Cold Kind

I can't stop thinking about Hawaii. The idea has been running around inside my head for the past week. I can't seem to shake it. What to do?? Normally, I would start planning a vacation, BUT our house renovations are making me think twice. Did you know that renovations (on average) cost 40% more here than they do in the lower 48? I recently learned this bit of information too :)  To make a long story short, I'm glad it's gradually getting warmer here because I won't be in Maui anytime soon.

Luckily it's been gorgeous the last couple days... sunrise is at 6:30 and sunset is 9:30. So much sun! It's a good thing we just got our blackout curtains hung. You know who doesn't really understand this "Light outside during night time" thing?

Yep, the grey one is a bit confused with the daytime at nightime.

:)

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Whale of a Tale

Here are more pictures of the whale watching trip we took over the weekend. It turned into much more than whales!

Bald Eagles. We saw at least 4 during the trip.

Scotty and Ross on the lookout.

Do you see all the sea lions?

Sea lions bathing on a rock. They can be up to 2000 lbs each!!

Momma and Baby Grey Whales.

Diving down under to find food.

Spot the Mountain Goat?

Beautiful. I want to move there!

Done :)

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