News from the Top of the World

Bye Bye Beach House

2012-02-04T22:55:00.000-09:00

And here are the last of our crazy beach house days.

Digging a hole to China.

Amy and Christian on the chilly beach.

Fondue night.

Making rice krispie square messes and eating icing.

Christian whips up a seafood pasta lunch one day when my parents come for a visit.

Check out that fancy straw that the bartender gave him!

Nana getting a good long cuddle!

Making traps for the seagulls.

Snacks with Papa.

Bodyboarding in the cold.

The waves were great. We were trying to teach Christian how to ride them. BRRR!

Baby in a Bag

Grammer's Christmas photo

Winter! Ikea! and Christmas #3

2012-02-02T22:29:00.001-09:00

Winter, the dolphin with no tail from Dolphin Tale lives a few minutes from the beach house. Carolyn got the movie for the boys to watch and we went to the aquarium the next day. The aquarium saves and takes care of marine life that can't be returned to the ocean. It was almost bankrupt when the movie came out. Now they are doing well. The boys loved all the stories and meeting Winter and her friends Panama, baby Hope, and Nicholas.

Off to see winter!

Secret they don't tell you in the movie- she can swim without the prosthetic tail- uses it only for therapy.

There she is!!

Cuddles at lunch after the aquarium.

There is an Ikea in Tampa. Jeff and I wanted to go, but I think the boys had the most fun.

They crawled into every bed... and we let them.

Grammer took the boys shopping for Christmas. Jack got an ipod to play games on.

Will had a terrible time deciding which baby to pick. He decided on the one in the lower right-hand corner... she came with a stroller. He named her "Baby Mangy".

More fun times at the beach house...

2012-02-01T21:26:00.000-09:00

The boys hit the high seas.

Auntie Amy soaks up some sun.

One of Grammer's many family photos. We lost no opportunities!

We are building a pool, on the beach.

Making a mess with all of Grammer's toys.

Beach house project.

Stories with dad.

Saying bye to the sun???

Wow, where are the kids?

Everyone gets into the painting project.

Christian catches a shark.

I like this sandbox.

Beach House Part 1

2012-01-30T22:08:00.000-09:00

We spent a week at Clearwater Beach! What fun. Lots of room for all of us, and just steps from the sand and water. The boys loved it.

The house!

Christian and Glenn got straight to fishing.

And a haircut for Christian!

Julie and Amy shopping for fondue cheese... we had lots of good meals planned!

Amy and Christian test the pool.

Will wastes no time getting busy in the sand.

Jack learning to make all kinds of drinks!.

Grammer and her kids.

Will climbs up this structure at the playground.

Trying to catch a shark!

Cold Pool

2012-01-30T21:26:00.001-09:00

Jack was determined to swim in Grammer's pool. It didn't matter that it was only 65F out or that the pool wasn't heated. Brave boy jumped right in but he wasn't in for long!

AHHHH!

I'm not going in there! I'm not crazy!

Time for the family meeting. Jack's job at the beach house: bartender. Will, I'm not sure!

North to Grammer's!

2012-01-29T22:23:00.000-09:00

Cheers! We made it to Grammer's! Celebrating with lunch at a crazy wing place.

Grammer and her boys.

Happy and full of wings.

The boys pose after checking out some artifacts at a crazy sportswear place.

We picked up Amy and Christian from the airport and the next day took a trip to Ybor City.

We had supper at a crazy pirate restaurant where you can bring your dogs on Fridays. Potsy was not impressed by the big dogs!

Cuddle at dinner.

Come on Potsy! Let's go make some friends!

Shell Factory

2012-01-29T20:44:00.000-09:00

The Shell Factory is this crazy store near my mom & dad's place with a wild animal display, pirate room, bumper boats, petting zoo... all sorts of wild things. Margaret took us all down there one day.

Alligator kids.

Why are these things so fun?

Nana and Will take a ride through the desert.

Aargh

I love driving heavy machinary.

Nana and the boys get eaten by a shark.

Ahhh! He got Jennie and Shaun and the baby too!

I could sit on Santa's lap all day!

We are just having a little nap on this two headed llama.

I'll get him dad!

Let's go deliver presents! Christmas never ends at the Shell Factory!

Sweet! I can play Dukes of Hazard.

Checking out a fire truck. This place is great!

Happy New Years!

2012-01-28T21:58:00.000-09:00

We had fire works!

Jack was cautious but Will got right in there!

I'll hang out with Mangy!

But the chipmunks partied harder than we did.

Grammer came down to visit and brought cake.

And it was warm enough for a swim with Papa.

Swimming with Auntie Julie!

And my cousin!

The Beach!

2012-01-28T20:57:00.003-09:00

We had a great time at the beach one day! The weather was nice and hot. We had to take Will away from the sand kicking and screaming, just like when Jack was little. We had Greek salads for lunch and popcicles on the pier. In the afternoon we all started coughing and got out of their lickety-split. Red tide!

The boys love the beach. They could play for hours.

Bury me dad!

Shaun and Margaret!

The girls.

Making a lake.

I'm Mr. Cool in these glasses!

At Papa and Nana's House

2012-01-27T22:01:00.000-09:00

We spent the first week of our vacation at my mom and dad's house. My sister and her family visited from Vancouver, B.C. The boys love their little cousin! Margaret is 5 months old. Will calls her Mangy, so that is catching on.

Meeting Mangy again.

Mauled by baby Margaret.

An alligator print as big as Will!

The boys hunt for golf balls...

And find alligator bones!

Hangin out with my cous.

Will and dad at the big boy table.

Shopping trip! The outlet mall is always a favorite activity.

The weather wasn't very warm, but the boys swam as often as they could.

Papa had the pool really warm before a cold front moved in. Family photo in the pool!

The boys were trying magic potions to turn this guy alive. His accessories were all messed up one morning... it must have worked!

Snuggling in Papa's bed.

Another project... Jack's office.

Will's fort.

Margaret's 5 month birthday party.

Jack made an intricate pop-up card.

Is this for me or Mangy?

Buzz Cuts

2012-01-26T22:02:00.002-09:00

Papa took the boys for haircuts at Joe the barber's place. Jack visits Joe every time we go to Florida but this was Will's first trip.

Taking the golf cart down to Joe's.

Jack when he was little! Getting his first star.

Dad. What are you letting him do?

What about me?

That is better!

Oh boy! Who knew they had so much hair??

And the best part, an ice cream sandwich!

Christmas #2 With Margaret!

2012-01-26T21:44:00.000-09:00

Merry Christmas #2! This one was extra special because Margaret got to share it with us!

Cars Two toys! Yeah!

I want the toys! Not you!

Two Maters!

Any more for me?

I want more presents.

That is better.

Yeah! Bean bags!

These were fun to get home on the plane!

HARRY POTTER!!!!

2012-01-25T11:09:00.001-09:00

Our first stop on vacation was to Harry Potter World at Universal Studios. It was crazy busy right after Christmas, but the boys still had fun. Especially spending their money!!

Having breakfast at the coffee shop.

We find out we can't go into Harry Potter World until noon... what should we do until then?

The rest of Universal is pretty mediocre and most of the lines were too long for us to wait. Here we are playing in Dr. Suessville.

Then a trip to a pirate ship.

Some lunch with Rocky and Bullwinkle.

Then to the castle!

A two hour line and then we were there!

In the castle! The portrait gallery.

Hogsmeade.

Should we go in the 2 hour line to see the wand shop?

Some butter beer makes the time go by a little more quickly.

Olivanders!

I want this one!

This one looks good.

Have you seen this Wizard?

Gronko's joke shop.

Trying Bertie's Every Flavor Beans..

Some of them are disgusting!

Bye bye Hogsmeade and the Hogwarts Express!!

Off to Florida

2012-01-24T21:35:00.003-09:00

Baby Margaret steps off the plane in Florida.

Meanwhile Jack and Will having breakfast in Seattle.

My baby!!

First a dip in the pool!

Then straight to the bar.

Made it to Florida, got our spy car! Watch out here we come!!!

Merry Christmas 2011

2012-01-18T20:25:00.000-09:00

Ho ho ho! Santa came! and the reindeer ate the carrots again. Jack dug right into his stocking. He was fast in the present opening business this year. Will poked along, getting presents for other poeple and trying to play with each toy as it was opened. We had to hold Jack and Jasper back.

Stockings with Angry birds and tiny pandas. One had a pacifier, Will was impressed by that!

Santa brought games and playmobile, and a shopping cart for Will.

Nana and Papa watched some of the festivities on Skype.

Jeff spent several nights making this special secret book with a hidden compartment. It was a hit and now hides Jack's Christmas candy.

Taking baby for a ride to the grocery store.

Felicia joined us for breakfast and brought more surprises.

Yeah! Lego!

I'll open these for you "Feesha".

Felicia brought a cool fort making set- it has life size tinker-type toys to make your own forts with.

Enjoying some play time.

My big boy can finally put lego together all by himself!

Ben came over too and had brunch with us.

And got caught in jail!

Later we had some friends over for Christmas dinner. We forgot to take many photos, but the kids had fun running around and then watching Elf during dinner.

Jeff made a nice roast and we had Yorkshire pudding and tons of deserts. Yum!

Just a couple of other after Christmas moments... mom was at work one day. Jack and Will were dad's helpers at the museum.

Santa made a huge impression on Will. One day the kids played Santa and reindeer all by themselves. Jack suited them all up. The boys playing together is one of the best inventions of 2011!!!

Christmas Eve

2012-01-02T18:51:00.000-09:00

We had a surf and turf Christmas Eve... crab was super expensive so we had steak and scallops. And one crab leg. Jack ate most of the crab. He is a crab monster.

Jack stacks our wood for Christmas!

Eating.

More eating.

I am not going to eat that!

Ok Brother, I will!

We let the kids open one present on Christmas Eve... Jasper was so excited! I think he is more excited about Christmas than the kids are. He was eying us with excited anticipation all week when we were wrapping presents.

Jack unwrapped spy gear and Will unwrapped tiny cars.

After presents we got wild and crazy and went out to visit all the neighbors and wish them Merry Christmas. It turned out to be a long journy. They all invited us in and there were many drinks and snacks had along the way. Wild! Then cookies for Santa (no photos) and bed for two excited boys!

We Wish it was Christmas Time All Year!

2011-12-23T23:57:00.002-09:00

Last weekend we got busy on Christmas! We set up the Christmas Village to the delight of the boys. They know it is not a toy, but they just can't help themselves.... On Sunday it was really warm out (above freezing)! We set out in search of our Christmas tree. It didn't take long to find one up the hill. It was the first year that our search didn't end in tears! We had lots of fun decorating trees. Tonight we made more Christmas cookies and ate a few too!

Setting up the Christmas Village. The boys are adding snow.

Can I live there?

Where is the tree dad? Believe it or not, this was at about 10:30 am!

This one looks good.

I can do the cutting!

While waiting for dad to bring the tree, the boys decorated the tiny trees they brought home.

Will was pretty impressed with himself.

Then came the decorating! The boys were into the lights but lost interest fast.

I think tree decorating is really a mom job. Go figure.

Here is our finished masterpiece. From this distance you can't see how lopsided it is! Not bad. Our stockings are hung from the window sill with care.

This week for work I went snow machining down the Tanana River to see some of our training lands. We got to go right by our house! Here is the view of our house from down on the river.

This was cute. Will was carrying Papa's bear around in a make-shift sling. They were both wearing jeans.

Tonight we got into making Jeff's families traditional pizelle cookies.

We rolled them into tubes to harden so that we could squirt whipped cream into the middles. Yum!

Not sure if any will be left for Santa!

It is the night before the night before Christmas! We are two excited boys!!!

Getting Ready for Christmas

2011-12-19T22:14:00.000-09:00

The countdown to Christmas is on.

Our first big project was making our own Advent calendars. It cost me a million a million dollars to fill. Next year I will be going for the playmobile calendar! The boys have been having fun though. There was a mommy panda in one door with a note saying that the panda was going to have a baby a few days later, the boys made little panda homes for the baby and Jack was so excited the day it was due. It was almost as good as Christmas!

Next was gingerbread houses! I got all of the supplies ready and then left the project for dad one night!

Jack made his all by himself.

Will was happy just to eat the icing and candy off of the table. He even made bear noises.

Will's beautiful creation.

Jack's factory.

Mom's gingerbread house. I made it at work during the Christmas party. I brought it home for the boys. They loved it. Dog sled and dog team, if you can't tell!

This weekend we were on to sugar cookies! The boys wanted to make 3-D blobs.

Or just eat the dough.

Will went to first grade on Friday. He made a snowman.

Santa came to Ice Puppies! Jack forgot what he wanted and Will just smiled.

After dinner wrestle. I hope Jack stays bigger than Will. Will is tenacious.

Road Trip

2011-12-18T21:18:00.001-09:00

Last weekend I took the little guys and we went on a road trip to Palmer, Alaska (north of Anchorage). I was playing in a hockey tournament. We stayed with my friend and her little boy, just a few blocks away from the rink. We ate at McDonald's and shopped at Target. What fun. The boys were angels in the car both ways (6hr drive each way!). Thank goodness for that, the weather was terrible. Jeff was busy doing Archaeology family day at the museum that weekend. It was the best museum family day ever... He had all the agencies around town with archaeologists put on an activity... there was ulu making, a pretend dig, pot making, coloring, projectile point necklaces and lots more!

Movies in the car.

Thank goodness for the smurfs. They really kept the boys busy.

My friend had Christmas out already so the boys had fun checking out all the decorations.

Snowball Family

2011-12-18T21:17:00.002-09:00

A couple of times this month the weather has gotten really strange! Above 0F in December! It is horrible for the roads, but fun for playing outside! It is usually impossible to build snowmen here because our snow is really dry, but when it gets warm we have our chance! We snuck out after dinner one night and built snowmen.

Jasper likes to chase snowballs!

Will and I got the Christmas lights up!

Yeah! Snowballs (will calls snowmen snow balls).

Snowball family, Jack made the tiny angry bird snowball to the left of the snowman on the right. Will calls them "Mommy snowball, Jack snowball, Wilson snowball, and Daddy snowball!".

Yeah! Fun in the snow. Even in the dark. We just wear our head lamps.

December Adventures

2011-12-18T21:10:00.001-09:00

We have been getting creative with projects this winter! Jack loves projects of all kinds. Will loves to do anything that Jack is doing. Here they are helping dad build the tallest lego tower ever.

Jack has been playing Angry Birds on my phone. One day we made our own Angry Birds out of Fimo, towers out of lego, and dad made a sling shot. It is harder than it looks!

Jack had a field trip to the museum with his class. He was happy to have dad there to show the class around.

Jack was helping dad make supper one night. Cutting is fun!

Mmm! Tastes better when you make it yourself! Will and Jack ate the whole tray!

I help cook too! Rice Krispie squares.

A cold November

2011-11-25T23:07:00.003-09:00

Well, fall is over. November has been seriously cold. January cold! We are starting to look forward to our winter getaway to Florida over the Xmas holidays. We had a lazy Thanksgiving- had lunch at my bosses' house and went to see a movie with the boys. Here are some photos from November.

Dad is home!

Left over from Halloween-visit to the museum.

Trick or treat!

This is easy! Put me on the ice!

Bouncing on my new bedspread.

Water play.

Snuggling with my brother when dad was out of town.

Wild man on the zip line at the play gym.

Making ulu blades.

This is a project we were getting ready for Archaeology Family Day at the UAF museum December 10th!

Mom doesn't have the patience for this!

Happy Halloween

2011-11-02T11:39:00.004-08:00

Wow, Halloween is a busy exciting time in our house. The boys (well, Jack) really gets into the fun. And I must admit, I do too! The sewing machine comes out once a year and I do all the costumes and mending at once. This year's theme was Harry Potter. Jack was Harry (of course), Will was Hagrid (he came up with it- but wouldn't wear the costume when push came to shove), and I was Prof. McGonagall. We went to the Watershed School carnival on Saturday, pumpkin carving bright and early Sunday morning, then the Museum spooky lab tour on Monday, and finally trick-or-treating Monday night. The boys were worn out with all of that fun.

Let the fun begin. Jack was impressed that I had such a good cloak too.

Fun games! Spray the fire in the pumpkin out.

Harry.

Fishing for candy. That was fun.

Jack did this game 4 or 5 times.

Wait, what am I doing here! There were 4 Harry's all together.

Jack's teacher did a photo fundraiser. I think she raised over $200 for books for the class.

Jack works on his picture frame.

Will draws pumpkins. He is really good at circles right now.

8 am Sunday, we had better get these pumpkins carved!

Jack didn't want to head to the hospital again this year so the boys drew and we cut.

This design was surprisingly difficult to carve.

So proud of his little pumpkin. Littler is better with this kid.

Scary faces on "mom's and dad's" pumpkins.

I want to put the candle in!

Our spooky ensemble.

Monday! A cold 12 degree F!

Will was a little nervous to ask for candy but got into the fun eventually.

I can't wait to get back home to count and sort my candy!

Grand Nana's 90th

2011-10-31T22:05:00.002-08:00

Last weekend we took a trip to Edmonton for my Nana's 90th birthday. It was a wonderful get together and we all got to meet my 3 month old niece, Margaret, or Margot for short, like Grand Nana.

I'll go underneath the plane!

Jack fits in the overhead compartment.

Big boys sitting together.

Finally in Edmonton! Look at Nana and Margaret! Both doing wonderful!

Will and Jack loved their baby cousin.

Showing boys around town. The Funky Pickle, one of my old favorite haunts.

We had a big party with all of the family one night. Jeff served up the burgers.

Shaun, Margaret's father and Native Scot, came in with the bagpipes to Grandnana's delight (also a Scot!).

This kid can dance to anything.

My dad and his sister (Grandnana's kids).

My sister Jennie and baby Margot.

Dad and Nana and Mom.

Our little family minus Jack who was hiding in the basement.

The next day there was a big party for Nana and her friends. jack was forced to get in some photos.

Auntie Pam brought stickers to keep the boys busy.

Cake helped too!

Shaun, Jennie, Margot and Margot!

My whole family! Only my brother and his wife were missing!

And, last but not least, we spent the night with my friend Erin and her boys. Fun! The kids were old friends in no time.

The rest of September...

2011-10-16T21:52:00.007-08:00

Guess what! We had a fall this year! September was beautiful. We just got real snow today (Oct 17). Here are a few photos fro the rest of our fall.

Having a snack in his stool.

Grammer visits the visitor's center with the boys.

Mud pies for sale. Grammer will buy one.

How about you guys?

Mom and Kate went to New Mexico. Here we are visiting some petroglyphs outside of Albuquerque.

Best buddies make crafts.

James Bond drawing.

Grocery shopping with dad.

Scary and dangerous.

Fort building. A favorite pre-dinner past time.

One weekend we went to the Fairbanks Children's Museum's museum without walls event. There are some enthusiastic people in Fairbanks trying to start a museum. The kids had fun but it was geared towards the little guys. We love their mascot! Mammoth!!

Baby mammoth.

A tower taller than me.

A colored rice box. That was fun!

Bubbles!

A great art project! Our boys love art projects.

Visit with Grammer and Amy

2011-09-25T21:47:00.004-08:00

Carolyn and Amy came for a visit. We all had colds but the boys loved the non-stop grandma time.Out for dinner. Jack refused to sit nicely for any photos.

Exciting trip to Sam's club. Amy was having fun doing a bit of US shopping.

Personalized bed time stories. Grammer writes her name in everything.

Amy faking not being sick.

Breakfast with Grammer!

Grandma escorted the boys to a build-a-bear birthday party.

Yikes. Do we always look this tired?

Back to School

2011-09-17T13:07:00.005-08:00

Jack has been back to school for a couple of weeks and fall is quickly turning into winter. We really have 2 week falls here. The leaves go yellow one week, fall off the next, and then it snows.

We plan on posing by this tree every school year to see who gets who is growing the fastest!

I want to go to school so I can play on the playground!

New swings.

Jeff is working on a big drainage project under the house. The boys are a big help.

Jack is way into science these days so we removed the tools and food from our tool bench and kitchen and created a lab.

Our budding little scientists love to make a mess. Will only gets in there when Jack isn't home.

My garden at the end of the season. Too much zucchini as usual and the sunflowers are still going into September.

The guys at a cold end of summer party.

Will makes pizza at a buddies house.

Kickin back, relaxing, and eating a marshmallow.

Cozy like a bug in a rug. We made a little bed on the floor of Jack's room for Grammer and Amy's visit.

I love Jack's drawings. He is into the smurfs right now. He always wants to be brainy.

While I was at work...

2011-08-31T21:27:00.006-08:00

Apparently Nana was taking all the photos.... these guys look like they were having a good time!

The boys spent an hour looking at the dioramas in the river boat.

Doing some exercises with Papa.

Gotta golf with the grandparents.

Playing at the Park.

Up to no good.

Ride on the carousel.

Smurf movie! That popcorn was a hit!

Ice cream for a grand finale!! Yum!!

The Fair

2011-08-22T19:14:00.002-08:00

Ah, the yearly fair. We spent $1 million. First the food. Giant corn dogs!

Then the rides! This one was fun until we got off the ground.

Will loved the train.

Jack loved the obstacle course!

Fuzzy chickens, or giant guinea pigs, or something!

Visit With Nana and Papa

2011-08-19T22:36:00.002-08:00

My mom and dad came to visit for two weeks. They babysat the kids while I was at worked, painted, reorganized my drawers and had a good old time. I hardly got any photos. I was either at work or in bed with a stomach bug, but we had a great time and they boys miss their grandparents already!

Celebrating Nana's birthday.

We miss you guys!

Papa was great for playing with. He had all sorts of crazy imaginative games going on all the time that the kids loved.

Will helped Nana fix mom's kitchen drawers.

Mmmm... and our favorite treat., this yummy Spanakapita!

YUM!!

My Little Niece!

2011-08-11T20:40:00.003-08:00

Welcome to the world little Margaret! My niece was born on Friday, August 5th. Weighing in at 8lb 60z. Look how chubby and cute she is. She even has a dimple. I can't wait to see her all grubby in cute little dresses. Congratulations Jennie and Shaun! You guys did great.

Tired but happy mama and the little cutie.

Are you my daddy?

Big Stretch!

Cute little sleeper.

Happy grandparents arrived on her birthday!

A little bit of summer.

2011-08-10T21:35:00.003-08:00

We have had a tiny bit of summer weather this summer. Now that it is August, winter is in the air. It won't be long until the snow falls! Here we are celebrating a picnic at the lake.

Woo hoo! Marshmallows.

Jeff and Greg enjoying the rays.

Jasper and Will both got wet.

Perfect.

Jack ready for a camping trip with dad (I will have to find those photos).

A week at Camp Habitat. Jack LOVED it this year.

Celebrating mom's 36th birthday. Yummy spaghetti dinner and cake!

Mr. No Front Teeth

Rainy July

2011-07-14T22:47:00.002-08:00

We are having a very rainy summer! The sun has poked out a couple of times so that we can get exploring or take a trip to the beach.

Jack investigates the insides of an old digital camera.

Will measures.

Rainbow after a shower!

Outside picnic despite the rain. We have a tent next to the fire.

These friends came to the picnic.

Happy 8th birthday Jasper! We had a party. Jack made a doggie scavenger hunt.

Sunny afternoon at the beach with a friend and squirt guns.

Lots of construction.

New tent umbrella provides some shade, and a base camp.

The best part- junk food!

We also went on adventure to the Dry Creek site, one of the oldest archaeological sites in the Nenana Valley. We took my whole crew from work. Everyone had a great time.

Jeff and Jack look for obsidian pebbles in the creek bed.

A little back dirt construction.

There may be some artifacts here!

Goofball.

Jack excavating at Dry Creek.

The boys could have spent all day in the back dirt pile!

Dad's Days

2011-07-01T20:48:00.004-08:00

Jeff is spending more alone time with the boys now that I am working. They have some fun adventures.

A special picture of Dad and baby steppe bison for Dad.

Zonked out.

Silly kids.

We finally found the train! Cool!

Bad boys blowing milk bubbles.

Picture of Will taking a picture with his new camera. Jack uses his mainly to play video games. Poor kid with no DS (modern game boy).

??? Not sure what happened here.

I put on my own sunscreen!

Happy Father's Day!

At the park.

Double Tantrum!

Dad's new (old) foosball table!

Mini golf afternoon. Where did that ball go?

I can't find it either!

Can I just push it through???

Missing From May

2011-07-01T09:00:00.003-08:00

Jeff's iphone was hiding some photos from May:

Playing in the mud by the river at a work potluck.

Biking with friends.

Cotton candy at summer solstice.

I did it!

Tacos with Elsa.

Peek-a-boo!

Cozy with my brother.

Engorgio!

Brother Birthdays

2011-06-23T22:11:00.003-08:00

Jack is 6 and Will is 2! We celebrated their real birthdays a little more casually.

Dinner and family presents on the deck of the Pump House for Jack.

Rootbeers all around!

It wasn't hot but the sun was a nice break from the rain.

Look who is 2!

Will had 2 parties too. Cupcake on his real birthday and Felicia, presents...

and an ice cream cake!

Harry Potter Birthday Party

2011-06-12T10:47:00.011-08:00

Last weekend Jack had a Harry Potter birthday with just a couple of his friends. We had a great time with the planning. The whole yard was transformed.

The kids arrived and got their money at Gringott's Bank.

They then went to Diagon Alley to buy school supplies.

Wands and cloaks!

And don't forget the candy!

Left to right: Harry, Ginny, Ron, Fred, and Hermione.

Everyone got into the theme!

Wand decorating.

Potions class.

Creating potions with spices and sprinkles. They all successfully made the potion that made them run at twice their normal speed.

Will woke up from a nap to join in for this part. Potions are fun!

The sorting hat put them all in Gryffindor!

Hooray for the feast!

Cheers!

Quidditch Game, Wands up!

And away! We pelted them with water balloons from the deck.

Will!

Olive

Owen

Maya

Jack

Ezra

Spooky cake.

Finally, yeah presents!

Summer fun.

2011-06-10T21:32:00.002-08:00

A trip to the park with a bunch of my buddies!

I like the park too!

Jack and Caleb

Young wizards testing out new wands.

Help with the first window washing of the summer.

The Fairy Houses

2011-06-04T16:36:00.003-08:00

Jack poses by his.

Jesse's compound.

Sod hut made by Jack and Jesse.

Beautiful lean-to made by Ann and Elsa.

Will and I made this little camp.

Kaya made her fairy house on top of a big rock.

Camping on the Nabesna Road

2011-05-30T08:19:00.006-08:00

Last week we drove down to Glenallen Alaska and went camping with some friends in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. We stayed in a little cabin off the Nabesna Road. The dads went to work looking for obsidian sources during the day. The rest of us played in the creek, hiked to the lake, and made fairy houses. The kids love camping! Stay tuned for the fairy houses!

Wrangell-St. Elias National Park

Playing with our friends on the frozen lake!

Our little cabin.

Cooking hot dogs on the fire.

Elsa and Jack making forts.

Ann and Kaya read by the fire.

Jack and Jesse explore the creek bed.

Will and dad exploring too.

We celebrated all the kids birthdays with presents and cupcakes.

Our last breakfast.

Ann and Julie watching the kids make dams in a stream.

Is it Spring Yet?

2011-05-15T21:11:00.004-08:00

Trees were budding today, but spring has been slow in coming the last couple of weeks! Today we had our first cookout- hotdogs over the fire pit. The boys have been shoulder deep in dirt, in the sandbox and the loess bank. It is so nice to enjoy the yard again!

Sled or stroller? There is still snow!

But it is warm enough to ride bikes naked on the deck!

The dust maker!

Look dad, poop!

Putting more treasures the special treasure box that Glenn made for the boys.

I don't want my brother to touch this stuff!

Wiped out.

Not sure I like the trampoline!

Yummy caribou! Dinner with friends.

More plant seeds.

These are the mammoth sunflower seeds that Glenn sent from Florida. I am sure we can grow them big up here!

Break Up at Tribulation Trail

2011-05-01T13:04:00.008-08:00

The boys were in the sandbox before the snow was out of the yard (it is almost all gone now).

We babysat some pugs. The boys loved their cages.

Flint knapping with dad next to the wood pile.

Will helping dad move wood off the deck... just last weekend. We don't have any of that snow in the background now.

I'll take care of the rest of that snow!

Boys drawing a birthday card. Such concentration.

Will and his buddy Leo cook beans in the new kitchen.

Will beating up his big brother at Felicia's house a couple of weeks ago.

After snow comes mud!

Jack's class singing at the school talent show.

My little chef.

Exploring at the university.

Having a tantrum.

Sorting sea glass that dad found on his trip to Kodiak.

Movies if you are interested!

Blue Babe (short)

Jack's Talent show (2:42 minutes)

Will talking (2:10 minutes)

Meet the Pugs

Will Paints an Egg

Will Beats Up his Big Brother

Little Chick

Will Finds an Egg

Bunny Leaves a Note

Bunny Brings Camo

Cooking

Lego Will's Way

Wands

Easter Events

2011-04-30T21:03:00.005-08:00

The count-down to Easter was on this year. Jack has really figured out which holidays bring gifts. We went to an egg decorating party at Landon and Kalena's house. Jack always loves this party because of the decorative "sugar eggs". The boys put little scenes inside and iced the eggs closed. Will just ate the icing.

Will concentrated on icing his egg... at first!

Jack loves this project.

Painting hard boiled eggs was fun for a minute.

I'll do one.

Hanging out in an Egg!

Early Easter present from Nana and Papa.

Easter morning the boys came down to see baskets, find 50 hidden eggs, and bunny footprints leading to a special present.

Bunny gifts, and clothes from Nana and Papa behind.

Special presents- a new kitchen for Will...

And Harry Potter chess for Jack.

Hunting for eggs outside on the deck.

Hey guys, you missed one!

The best part! Chocolate bunny!

Catching up!

2011-04-17T08:19:00.006-08:00

Wow! Spring has come to Fairbanks! We are expecting sunny weather and temperatures in the 40s for the rest of the week. Hopefully that will mean the end to our snow! We only have 4 weeks left of school. By this time of year we have settled into a routine. Will and I stay at Kindergarten for a little while a few mornings a week to read with kids in Jack's class. Will loves Kindergarten.

Skiing days are over for the year. Jack's class went cross country skiing 2ce a week. Can you imagine getting 22 kindergarteners together with boots and skis? I can't believe they can manage it.

Building blocks in Jack's classroom.

Will outside at Jack's school in "sticktopia". The kids build forts in the brush there.

Peek-A-Boo!

Jack is back in swimming lessons now that hockey season is over.

Hey, what about me?

Haircut! Jack loved his shaggy hair. We told him he could grow it back for his birthday so that he could be Harry Potter.

Eating ribs.

Who needs a toilet?

Harry Potter and mini Harry having breakfast.

I went to Anchorage (BY MYSELF!) a couple of weekends ago to play in a hockey tournament. This was my team.

March

2011-03-31T10:57:00.004-08:00

Not much going on around here! Regular activities of school and work. Jack is reading up a storm and Will is learning several new words a day. He is super fun. Temperatures are getting into the low 40s and the roads are clearing and everything is getting dirty. Yeah spring!

The big boys in a silly pose.

Will's first haircut. The photo makes it look like he was sitting so still!

We had to get rid of the rat tail he was growing.

Playing outside on the deck. The boys love to run out there without coats or shoes on, several times a day. They just run back and forth down the length of the house.

I love this photo. The boys wearing snowsuits and eating Popsicles. Only in Alaska.

Mr. Funny!

I was working on the computer and Will came out from the laundry room saying "hockey, hockey".

Ice Park 2011

2011-03-18T14:53:00.005-08:00

We spent a sunny afternoon at the ice park. Jack, Will, and my daughter Olive (I wish!).

The big kids put Will in an ice spinner. He loved it.

We also met Ezra and Eli, here the boys are trying a slide.

Will caught in a maze.

The big kid slides! Jack went once and that was enough. Will would have gone down many times!

Jack and Olive take off on the snow machine.

Will and Leo take a break in a big ice chair.

Train ride! Krista and her boys.

Will loved the train but soon fell asleep and didn't wake up until we got home.

Happy Birthday Grammer!

2011-03-14T00:11:00.000-08:00

In honor of Carolyn's birthday, we have a whole bunch of videos!

Here is Jack reading his birthday story to Grammer (it is in the mail Carolyn!)

Part 1. The story begins...

Part 2. Still reading...

Part 3. The exciting conclusion.

And here is what Finn has to say today! Not much. He is a man of action rather than words. He was calling the tractor "golf cart" today all day. Not sure where that came from!

Happy Birthday from your favorite boys!

Family Science Night and Hockey Season Wrap Up

2011-03-03T12:35:00.000-09:00

Last Friday we went to the spaghetti feed and family science night at Watershed. We brought a rock art project. The kids got to make their own pictographs on little pieces of slate. I am not sure if anyone learned anything, but it was fun! We entered the spaghetti sauce context too, but we never heard the results so I guess we were not the big winners! We also finished up Jack's ice party season this weekend. Everyone gets a trophy so it is a big hit!

Kids busy making their pictographs. Jack is in the hat.

Jack was annoyed that they "weren't doing it right"... i.e. the kids were drawing rainbows instead of circles, bison, and stylized human figures.

Back at home making cupcakes for the hockey season windup party. Will really got into that. I think he only ate sugar for 3 days straight.

Jack lined up to receive his award. That is me behind him.

It is BRONZE this year mom!

Starting to Talk!

2011-02-28T17:04:00.002-09:00

Here is our little talker!

The Blizzard and other Events

2011-02-27T22:06:00.001-09:00

Jack missed Olive when we were in Hawaii.

We came back to freezing (-30F) temps and then things warmed up and we got dumped on! Almost 12".

Will tries to negotiate the snow, it was half his height!

But it is getting lighter! We are up to about 12hrs a day!

Jasper bunny.

Day 17 & 18: Heading Home

2011-02-19T08:54:00.007-09:00

Sadly our vacation had to come to an end. We spent the last full day at the beach and petroglyphs in Puako, near our condo. There is great snorkeling there. We forgot the camera, but Jeff and I got to swim with a sea turtle.

Climbing during the hike to the petroglyphs.

Get off of that rock carving you monkey!

Acting out the petroglyph people poses.

The morning that we were going home the boys were up EARLY. We went outside to collect flowers off the ground to make a lei.

What is this thing, really?

Our flight didn't leave until 8pm, so we packed up, left the condo and explored some places on the way to the airport. Here the boys are discovering the fountains at one of the resorts.

They eventually got soaked!

One last beach stop! This was a cool place because it was also an archeological site with ancient fish traps.

A natural play pen.

Dinner at Lulu's before heading to bed on the plane.

We put our names on a dollar bill and stapled it to the wall. We wonder if it will still be there next time we come to Hawaii!

Day 15&16: Hunting for Obsidian and Dad's 40th

2011-02-16T21:34:00.007-09:00

On day 15&16, we went for a hike, went shopping, celebrated dad's 40th birthday, and explored the resort areas north of Kona. Within their walls are great archaeological sites and areas with hundreds of petroglyphs.

Will was up early making breakfast on the bbq, mmm, salty.

One morning we hunted for the only known obsidian source on the island.

Found it!

It was also the 100th day of school. Jack's classmates were bringing in baggies of 100 objects. Jack counted 10 piles of 10 obsidian pebbles that we found in the road.

Lunch in the car!

We stopped at a farmer's market to stock up on Hawaiian necklaces. Fish hooks and shark teeth.

Checked out the Kona library. We will have to get a card next time.

We bought a ukulele in hopes of grooming a rock star.

I can rock out too!

Copying ancient petroglyphs at the Puako Petroglyph Preserve.

My favorite. Mother with 4 children.

Jack was very inspired and made great copies!

Another beautiful day, another beautiful beach. This one was at the Waikoloa resort.

Dad gets buried alive on his birthday... at least it was in Hawaii!

I'll bury dad's head.

Off to check out another heiou.

Throwing pennies into the fountain after a Popsicle.

A baby turtle at this petroglyph preserve!

Mmmm birthday dinner at Huli Sue's... a great little place in Waimea.

YUM! Those french fries were awesome and the meat was great too!

Birthday cake back at the condo! We ate cake at every meal for 3 days straight.

Day 13 & 14: North Point and Boogie Boarding

2011-02-14T20:30:00.004-09:00

More adventures in Hawaii! We had a great day exploring the north shore of the island. There is a great archaeological site off the beaten trail and it is a great spot for whale watching. We also had another wonderful beach day. Do the Hawaiians know that they have PERFECT WEATHER every day???

This archaeological site was a Heiau next to King Kamehameha's birth site. We were excited to find some artifacts on the ground.

Will wanted to climb all of the ruins. Jeff scooped him up in time!

Jeff is showing the boys a broken adze blade.

I am showing the location we discovered the adze blade. Maybe we will mail the photo to the park's archaeologist so he can go find it!

Will just climbed up the whole fence!

A whale showing off.

Rinsing off at the condo pool after the long day hiking.

There was a Jack sized pool in addition to the Will sized one. Can you believe that we only swam once? Too busy!

Steaks on the grill one night. Will says "hot".

The next day we went to Hapuna beach. One of the most beautiful beaches on the Big Island. Soft sand, great waves.

Will gets comfortable inside the sand castle!

Surfer dude. Boogie boarding seems just like surfing to a 5 year old!

Off to catch a wave.

At the playground in Waimea again at the end of the day. This photo is funny to us because of Will the copy cat. Jack had a rock in his crock so Will sat down beside him to remove an invisible rock from his shoe too!

Blue eyes!

Day 12: Another Beach and Archaeology Day

2011-02-12T15:28:00.005-09:00

We like to do the beach and archaeological site combos. Today was Kekaha Kai park and an old fishing village.

We met our friends at a rocky beach.

Jack and Owen did some surfing in the waves.

Will keeps busy in the sand!

Lunch at the picnic table was definitely a good idea. We had a lot of sandy diapers on this trip!

Jack was happy to get a Junior Park Ranger badge here!

Pizza dinner, yum!

Hmm, good stuff!

Day 10 & 11: YPO Valley and Superbowl

2011-02-10T23:09:00.006-09:00

We went on a major hike on Day 10- Waipio Valley and then it was Superbowl day! We ate nachos with some friends and swam in the pool at their condo. Jack's drawing is our only record of the event. That is Jack and Owen together in the pool.

First stop, the Farmer's market... we were on a search for a shark's tooth necklace.. no luck.

But we did find a big plate of meat for breakfast.

A beautiful hike. It was only a mile or so down to the beach but it was straight down.

This is a 2 wheel drive car that tried to go down the road that we hiked on.

Jack wanted to plant this coconut to grow a tree.

We didn't bring bathing suits because of the long hike, so Jack improvised.

I think going back up was easier than going down.

Ice cream cone treat after the big hike.

Playing at an awesome park before the football game.

Will was into climbing and the swings. Jack was trying to read all the graffiti.

Day 8 & 9: Farm and Beach Day

2011-02-10T22:27:00.003-09:00

We left Hilo and headed north to Waimea where we were staying in a cottage on a little farm.

It was a nice little set up. They had an orchard and garden and some chickens.

Jack and Will loved picking fruit off of the trees. These are loquats. They were really sour but the boys ate them by the dozen.

Jack gave all the hens crazy names.

The next day we met our friends at Spencer Beach. Ah, you can't beat 81F every day! Jack and Owen spent a lot of time making a crystal ball factory.

Will is so busy digging and digging.

Clara and Lisa and I went snorkeling but it wasn't very impressive here.

We checked out an archaeological site next door to the beach. There was a big Heiau and Lily and I played the ancient Hawaiian checkers game.

Dinner at the farm.

The boys zonk out together after a long day.

Day 7: Busy Black Lava Day

2011-02-09T22:57:00.006-09:00

Day 7: we went and saw the hot lava! Wait, did I skip day 6? We didn't take any photos yesterday. We had a slow morning so that Will could have a good nap and then hung out at a pretty little black sand beach south of Hilo. On to the hot lava!

We got up at 5 am to go see the hot lava at sunrise. Unfortunately, we couldn't find the car keys and missed sunrise, but we still had a great show.

We walked over new lava that covered the road we drove on 2 years ago.

As we approached the freshest lava, the ground began to steam as raindrops fell.

Check out the glow right beneath the surface of the hardened lava!

We finally found some fresh flow!

Check this out!

Wow! You couldn't get too close because of the heat. Jeff poked a long stick (6ft) in the flow but could only stand close enough for a second or two. The stick immediately burst into flames where it touched the lava.

The surface cooled really quickly making this ropey pahoehoe lava.

Jack says, check this out!

This guy didn't get out fast enough!

After the hot lava we hiked to the "new" black sand beach. It was formed over the last couple of decades. This island is always changing!

Then off to tidal pools to do some snorkeling. The boys made some fortresses in the shallow pools.

Then a hike to Champagne Pond, a warm spring in a little cove.

Nice little spot. Jack and I swam while Will snoozed on dad.

Day 5: Rambling Around Hilo

2011-02-07T22:00:00.006-09:00

On our last day with Grammer we did some sight seeing around Hilo.

Hilo has had a couple of devestating Tsunami's. This little park had a bridge that has been wiped out by every one. There was a record of tsunami wave heights on one of the trees.

I was trying to show Will Hawaii's cool sleeping grass, but he was too sleepy himself!

Grammer and Jack picked Macadamia Nuts on the way to the Mauna Loa Macadamia nut factory.

Chocolate covered ones are the best!

King Kamehameha lifted this rock when he was 14, saving his life and proving that he would be future King!

Will says, no problem!

Thank you beautiful lady!

Will snoozes through the Farmer's Market.

Next stop, Akaka falls!

Carolyn and her boys!

Next stop Kaumana Cave.

The boys had head lamps and flashlights and were very impressed with the lava tube cave!

In the hot tub at our second accommodation. It was a mother in law suite attached to a beautiful home on the water. We got lucky there!

Day 4: Black Sand and Volcanoes

2011-02-06T22:22:00.005-09:00

We had a busy day traveling from South Point to Hilo. One of Jack's favorite stops was the black sand beach.

Bye Yurt! We had fun here!

Sitting in a tree at Whittington Beach Park.

Grammer always takes great photos with the boys!

Special instruments at the end of this pier measure the growth of Hawaii's newest island, Loihi. This island is scheduled to break the surface of the ocean in 100,000 years!

Off to the black sand beach and making our own volcanoes! There is no coral off the shore here, so the black sand from broken down basalt is not mixed with any white sand.

After a nap, Will decided to go snorkeling.

The water is colder than it looks!

Turtles love this beach. It is an important nesting spot. The turtles are an endangered species so you have to keep far away to prevent scaring them.

We stopped for lunch at the Lava Rock Cafe in the town of Volcano before going to see Kilauea. The boys were very impressed with this Kitty lying on the side walk.

The Kilauea caldera steams in the background.

Day 3: Traveling with Grammer

2011-02-05T22:31:00.006-09:00

Day 3: Adventures with Grammer.

We spent our first 2 nights at South Point in a yurt. It was neat, but it got cold at night and the rooster's in the yard woke us up EARLY!

We went to an old Catholic Church, thinking that Jack would be into it because of his love of all things Catholic in Italy, but this he thought was boring!

Off to the Place of Refuge. An ancient Hawaiian Village. Legend tells that if you committed a crime or were being chased by enemies, if you ran away and made it to the Place of Refuge, all sins would be forgiven.

Grammer has a quick cuddle with her boys before exploring.

The boys play an ancient Hawaiian game similar to checkers.

Jeff checks out a Hawaiian God.

Cooling off in the tidal pools after the hot walk through the archaeology site.

Just kid sized! Nice.

Dad found a little crab.

Will is impressed. This is fun!

Jack set up a "museum" in the lava rock behind him.

Our second set of shave ices. Jack would not share with his mom.

Will slept through the shave ice. Instead he put a bucket on his head.

Before dinner we went to the very southernmost point of the island to watch the sunset.

Jack and Will played in the sand, as usual.

Very pretty. You can see the wind farm in the distance.

The only restaurant open was a little pizza joint. Pizza is always a hit!

Day 2: to the Big Island!

2011-02-04T21:46:00.003-09:00

Before heading back to the airport the boys tried the unheated pool. Jack was brave but the rest of us didn't dare go in!

Zonked out.

Lunch while we waited for Grammer to come in 2 hours later!

Got Grammer, lets go to the beach! We had some big "shave ices" here and snorkeled in the bay.

Dinner at the Monago hotel in Captain Cook.

And off to the YURT for a 2 night stay.

Day 1: Hawaii here we come!

2011-02-04T19:26:00.006-09:00

We are in Hawaii and having a great time. We will torture you day by day on our trip because we have had many adventures and because I make these blogs into our photo albums and have to include everything!

We are on the Big Island of Hawaii. Jack is filling out a scrapbook day by day that his K teacher gave to him. What fun. For us and him!

Day 1: Flight to Honolulu

The boys have to carry their own backpacks of activities for the plane.

Keeping busy on the plane with lego and playdough!

Will's first impression of Hawaii when we got off the plane. He was pointing at a big tree. Very cute.

Airport hotel (we were flying to the Big Island the next morning). Jack LOVES "jumping bed to bed" in hotel rooms. Will tried to but needed a bit of a boost.

Jack Videos

2011-01-18T21:38:00.003-09:00

My Pig

My Picture