We picked apples today! What a great fall activity! The Park’s orchard on Robinson Loop, not far from our house.
Lil Mister was in charge of Panda Bear. She has a sweater because she gets cold.
A tree dweller.
Eating the fruits of her labor.
We have a new family member, Panda Bear. She’s 8 1/2 weeks old. She’s so adorable!
#alaskalife
#gottahaveadog
I have been blessed in my life with many a fine friend and some really special family members, it’s true. Some of which I get to spend infrequent time with but when we do it’s always over the top. Stevie was one of those.
Steven Michael, aka “Stevie” was my first cousin once removed on my maternal grandmother’s side, the son of my Uncle Cliff and Aunt Ella Belle. He was always jovial, had a smile on his face and something ornery up his sleeve.
He used to drive a flashy little sports car. In my teen years this was important. Who am I kidding, this is still important. When he would come up to visit his mother and we’d all get together, there were Scrabble and Yahtzee games and hours of funny stories and silliness. He and my Mother had a special bond.
He was an outspoken fella. But he would sit and dialogue with you, even if you had a different opinion (even if you were wrong he might say, lol).
Steve was a great guy. A kind heart.
He loved Jesus.
Believed in liberty.
A freedom fighter.
He crossed oven into his rest this morning at 12:50 AM CDT. He is missed already. He joins his parents, his daughter Jenni, numerous Aunties and Uncles, countless loved-ones.
He leaves us behind, those of us who loved him as family and friends. Those who will carry Steve in our hearts and share him with the rest of the world in a myriad of different ways, until we join him.
Blessed memory.
When All That’s Left Is Love
(by Rabbi Allen S. Maller)
When I die
If you need to weep
Cry for someone
Walking the street beside you.
You can love me most by letting
Hands touch hands, and Souls touch souls.
You can love me most by
Sharing your Simchas (goodness) and
Multiplying your Mitzvot (acts of kindness).
You can love me most by
Letting me live in your eyes
And not on your mind.
And when you say Kaddish for me
Remember what our
Torah teaches,
Love doesn’t die People do.
So when all that’s left of me is love
Give me away.
GoFundMe for Steve’s final expenses.
Photo credits: Steve’s friends, family and himself.
It’s been a while since I last posted. I’m happy to say that I recovered well from my surgery.
My birthday came and looked like it would be a non event but my dear friend Moira had other plans. She invited us over for spaghetti dinner complete with a delicious GF chocolate birthday cake. With her hubby and our 9 kids (together) we enjoyed a rather boisterous rendition of “Happy Birthday” and some cake & ice cream.
Would you look at that warming fire!
But that didn’t end the beauty of the night! A couple of great gifts, one of which is a lavender bead which contains ashes from the last eruption of Mr. Redoubt. This is very precious to me. Dad sent me ashes from that eruption. It is my Alaska bead and I wear it proudly in my locs!
Mt. Redoubt bead.
From there we had a blowout Hanukkah. The kids are totally spoiled and I should tell them no more presents next year. We enjoyed spending Hanukkah with our friends at MoAdim and with Moira. I had quite the busy holiday season with parties galore, including a big bash with all these children that I and Moira and Niki and Shawna have collected!! I lost count of all of them. We are blessed with friends for sure.
My pretty girlies.
Thing 2 reading the story of the Maccabees.
New Year’s came in and lots of bangs were heard. Alaskans do love their illegal fireworks on New Year’s.
And now here we are in February. Winter is still going strong with frequent snowfall and much colder temps than we’ve experienced since moving here.
My snowscape.
My job has been great with indoor work for the majority of the season. But that is coming to an end here shortly. Our commercial addition is near complete and we’ll be moving onto a new cabin build in Kenai.
20′ x 30′ commercial addition.
I’m looking forward to this build since I drew up the plans for inspection. It feels good to have your work complemented!
Cabin plans.
Well that’s pretty much it for the time being. Hope you enjoyed our little update.
Our third year attending the KRF. Lots of fun kid activities.
They all tried their hand at the archery booth. And learned how difficult it is to put a lifejacket on with cold hands
.
Thing 1 and I entered the Salvage Art show. She won two ribbons for her entries in the kids division.
My shaggy boys needed a trim. Here’s the results.
Things are greening up quickly. Picked a few rhubarb stalks and some chives.
Then the kids and I headed out to hunt some morels. They are quite abundant this year after last year’s fires.
We picked a nice batch. I cleaned enough to whip up some creamy morel pasta. Oh yeah, it is good.
Might have to have seconds… Is your mouth watering?
The kids had their first experience on the slopes today. So proud of them trying to learn something new and challenging on their own.
Boring lessons, I want to have fun!!
Lil Bit riding the “magic carpet” lift like a boss.
Thing 2 coming down the last leg of the lower mountain.
Last Thursday morning, early, we embarked in our journey to see family. It Has been 2 1/2 years… Too long.
Our first sunrise before 10 am in quite a while.
On our way to make a surprise visit to Grammy and Papa, my seester and lots of folks along the way. We’ve been going nonstop since.
A new calendar year! I’m not much into resolutions but there’s always room for improvement. I’m going for more joy in our lives. Mostly that means finding the joy in everyday mundane things. Each day I plan to post a picture of something that brings me joy.
I’ll start off with my munchkins. Although sometimes they make me crazy, these little people bring me great joy.
I hope your 2016 is full if joy!
Alaska on my mind... 