Rain, Rain, go AWAY!

Back in Alaska. The temperatures are much cooler. Work awaits us each day. Dorinda is no longer here. Wes is drawn but adjusting. I am back to teaching Primary, Valiant 9. The kids have already been baptized. We are studying the Old Testament also. Life goes on. And it rains and rains here this summer.

Brian and David finished going through the boxes in the basement from China. They found the Vietnamese dresses I had bought and sent two to Abby that they thought would fit her. Abby liked them but thought they were too big. Waiting still to find out how they fit. They also found KT's China dinner plates that had been missing from her China service. She is happy! They were in with a quilt and "other junk". Then David and Brian moved to the garage and unpacked our Norske boxes. And found Elizabeth's silver in a box that said Elizabeth's silver all over it! I did not think I had the mover's pack it up! Dangerous!! Especially with all the boxes that were damaged or lost on their way to AK. Although Elizabeth had already packed it and was heading out the door back to AZ, David called me to make sure she could take it... What was lost has been found and is returned to their rightful owners. According to David and Brian, the Chinese packed a lot of paper. They were surprised that the boxes were full of paper and there weren't that many things (except even I agree there are lots of quilts). Now the Norway stuff didn't have as much paper and things (glassware) was broken. The paper does make a difference.

Our garden pots are blooming. The broccoli needs picking. You can see the tomato plant but probably won't get any tomatoes off of it as it is still too small. I miss having lettuce like we had last year. The cauliflower/broccoli plants are beginning to flower so I think we should have picked them last week.

The cat still likes us and sleeps on us. My company had its annual picnic the 17th of July and it went over well. Kent and I helped set up, cook, played with kids and helped to clean up. And it was the last sunny day. I think Abby would find it cold here too.

One day (two weeks ago?) Kent received an office-wide e-mail: The sun is shining. Everyone is dismissed at 2:00 to go enjoy the sun.

One of my co-workers is retiring at the end of the month. I'm wishing we could retire too and go back to Idaho... I like working but I like being in ID... I like wandering the hills of home and wonder when the sun will come out again... And in case your wondering, Kent is still happy I'm alive. After I got the baseball bats and balls for the grandkids, he wished I'd gotten a t-ball stand. I had. And he was happy! Wonders will never cease.

Idaho

We met David's flight at the airport in SLC. Keys had been left hidden for us to drive the silver car home. Unfortunately the steering wheel key is not the same as the door key. We ended up having the airport security come and open the door for us. It wasn't even easy for him, who had lots of experience breaking into people's cars...

Then we were at "Smith'aven" also known as our Idaho home... And we got to see Tyler Joe and Brian! And see the basement finished! And see Mo (the dog)! And see Dell's peonies blooming! And see the porch steps sliding down the hill! And smell Idaho! And see the wildflowers blooming! It was nice to be home. The wild flowers (sego lilies, lupine, sunflowers) were beautiful. We played ball with Tyler too. But he later got a cowboy hat and a lasso and had much more fun with them!

We had fun at Riverdale's hot springs swimming pool. Tyler at first didn't want to jump off the edge of the covered seating area in the pool but then got the hang of it and wanted to do it over and over.

We enjoyed our days with Tyler while Katie and Brian catered in CA. He missed his mom and dad though. David and Kent didn't give KT the info she needed. They gave such answers as everything was fine... So she called me to get the real scoop. What we did, how many times Tyler made it to the potty, blowing bubbles, working outside, helping Uncle Dave move cement pieces over the hill, helping throwing the weeds away. Grandpa got him a wheel barrow just his size. Made working so much easier for him. Tyler really is a good worker! He helped me clean windows too! He also enjoyed getting paid for doing it... (He likes dollars better than coins...)

Tyler was rewarded for "pooping in the pot" with some fruit snacks. He liked toys instead. Just little ones. And after we had gone through the little ones I had brought for him from Alaska, he found some in a bag in what used to be David's room but is now the crib room. I think they were left over stocking surprises? Anyway, he found them. And he decided what he wanted the next time he pooped... One toy per day, the fruit snacks the rest of the time.

Abby came up with her parents for an Orton family reunion. They were able to stay with us a couple of days. I was able to do our Valentine's Day Treasure Hunt and our Easter Egg hunt with Abby and Tyler. Abby is good at hunting. Tyler just had too much fun finding the confetti eggs and hitting them over his Mom's head! Besides, Grandma had lots more candy so you didn't need to waste time getting the eggs that had candy in them...One day Katie found him and Abby in the crib room opening cards (Old Maid, Crazy 8s, etc) and toys. They were so very quiet... and they were having so much fun!

As the Butlers had the crib room, David had his room, Kent and I shared our room, we put up a bed for the Ortons in the basement. Our basement is wonderfully cool in the summer. It was COLD for the Arizonians. Abby told me, "Grandmama, it's too cold down there!" After we left, the Ortons stayed in our room, and it was too hot up there...

We even made some zucchini relish with the zucchini Eliz brought from AZ. Lots of pints! Then Ortons left for Yellowstone.

4th of July: we went to the Preston cemetery, the farm (took pictures of granary, tore the ladders down as people were climbing up and tearing things apart, and walked the fence line, most of the fence is still in good repair that was done in previous two summers) and did fireworks. We started lighting off fireworks but then the candle lighter ran out of juice, the candles kept going out, too, and then we ran out of the matches from the kitchen and couldn't find anymore...until Brian found the 72 hour kit in the laundry room. There we found some waterproof matches and were glad we were prepared. The sparklers were still hard to light and we had to use the propane stove/grill.

Monday, after finishing up some work around the house, we packed, Elizabeth, Andrew and Abby arrived just in time for a Prime Rib dinner (prepared by Brian) from our portion of the cow, then Eliz and Andrew took us to the airport. We left ID with farmer's tans and lots of pictures-that are still in my camera...I'm wondering when I'll get the pictures downloaded to share.

A Mini-Reunion in June and July

We made all our flights and got to San Diego without problems, other than our luggage was large and awkward...

Mother picked us up at the airport. We drove to her home, packed what we needed for AZ leaving the rest in her basement and then drove with Joanne Robertson to Maricopa, AZ where Elizabeth, Andrew and Abby live. Joanne met up with Tamara and stayed with her and Jack. Tamara was finishing up some of her classes for her degree. Tamara was driving with Joanne back to San Diego to be with Mike for Father's Day.

There were some miscommunication about who was actually staying with Andrew and Eliz , so Mother stayed there, sleeping with Abby in her room while Kent and I stayed at a hotel. AZ is HOT! Eliz and her family are used to the heat. Our Alaskan blood wasn't. We were glad we had our hotel room where we could crank the AC up way down low... Poor Elizabeth. The air conditioning was on so low in her house (74 degrees F) that she actually got cold and had goose bumps. 74 to Kent and I is HOT! 103 is unbearable. I don't know how they do it!

Daniel and his family were able to come Friday and stayed with Elizabeth while Katie and David flew in Friday noonish and stayed at our hotel. I didn't know if they would want to share rooms but we only had reserved two rooms. They decided they'd rather sleep in the same room (two beds) and have the AC turned down low, fan up high.

And I forgot about picking up David and KT up... Mother, Eliz, and I were shopping at Wal-Mart when we got the call...did you forget us? YES! We hurriedly paid for our things (Andrew's graduation cake, t-ball equipment (including a pink bat and ball for Abby and yellow balls and a black bat for the boys) and picked them up at the airport. They were hot and hungry. So on the way back to Eliz's home we stopped for In & Out burgers for them. There's a secret menu which KT and David were well versed in.

Then Andrew's family came and later we had a nice lunch and took pictures of Andrew in his robe. He left, we cleaned up and then all FOUR of my children attended Andrew's graduation! I am sorry that Tyler and Brian weren't able to come (they had already bought tickets for a visit to CO) but I never really thought all 4 were going to be there... So now, Andrew has his Bachelor's Degree! He and Elizabeth are glad!

We were able to get nails done, get some family pictures, play games, nap and eat. (See KT's blog for pictures.) The boys actually liked playing t-ball with the pink bat and ball...it was easier to see the ball and the bat was liked by all. It was fun to see Kent teach Kyle how to choke up on the bat. Kyle had seen enough baseball that he would swing at the ball and run the bases. Grandpa had thought they would just practice swinging at the ball. No, you got to run the bases Grandpa. Abby did surprisingly well at swinging the bat and hitting the ball. As she is two years younger than Kyle I thought it might be hard for her to "get it" but get it she did. She must have some of her Mom's athleticism. We know she didn't inherit her ball throwing ability from Grandma Smith...

Kyle is social, still loves being with Grandpa. He loved playing ball with Grandpa. Aaron is listening to people and beginning to interact with people. His eyes landed on Great-Grandma Cowles and stayed a few seconds while they flitted right past me. Understandable. It is easier to understand Abby when she is in front of you. Verbal language isn't one of her strengths yet but she definitely communicates, especially if it's pink. We heard lots of "Abby's" when she wanted something or was asking if it was hers. She was easy to entertain. I have a great picture of Mother playing dominoes with Abby. Mother lined them up and Abby pushed the first one over. They did it several times till I got the "perfect" picture (which is still in my camera) of some dominoes up and some falling over. Abby is a happy girl.

All three grandkids painted their hands and left a hand print on a board for Kent for Father's Day. Kent laughingly told me that the kids had gotten into some paint not knowing that it was done on purpose. He was surprised when he saw the grandkids' hand print board and realized the paint on the hands wasn't kids getting into mischief. (A space was left for Tyler's hand print and was completed in ID). The board hangs proudly over our fireplace mantle in Anchorage.

Then Katie left on Sunday. Mother, Kent and I left early, early on Monday when it was cool. It is nice weather in AZ ... at 4 in the morning... Safe journey home. Kyle, Aaron and Christina came up for lunch. Kyle stayed with us while Christina took Aaron home for his play therapy. Kyle enjoyed playing at the Mary Ann Park in Crest. He played some soccer and hide and seek with us (Grandpa mostly). We tried a dart game (ones that land in circles on the ground) but it didn't go over well. Then back to Grandma Cowles' home. Kyle picked a grapefruit that was so sweet, even I did not need sugar on it. A family dinner with Dan's family, Robertsons and Eileen later to celebrate Kent's and my birthday. WONDERFUL Chocolate and peanut butter cakes!

Then after packing, having lunch with Mother, Daniel and his family at the Spaghetti Factory, Mother took us to the airport to go to SLC. I wonder when we'll have another reunion again.

June and the death of a friend, Dorinda Van der Martin

As I read and enjoyed Katie's new posts and then turned to Elizabeth's only to discover nothing new yet...I realized nothing new from me either... I will split posts up since I know David doesn't like long posts.

June was busy. I spent too many hours getting ready to leave my work in good order before going on our trip to San Diego, Phoenix, and ID. I got everything done but I worked pretty late Wednesday evening (7:00isn) when Kent and I had decided to leave work around 2:00ish. So yes, that was an additional 5 hours... But the t's were crossed and all i's were dotted... Kent picked me up, upset with me.

One of our friends, Dorinda Van der Martin, (actually my only one in Anchorage) had a brain aneurysm on Monday evening. We heard about it on Tuesday. Kent took some flowers to the hospital on Wednesday but she was in ICU and he could not leave her flowers. We thought she was still alive and so might make it... We took the flowers to Wes so he could take them to Dorinda later as we were flying out that night. Her family was there, including her sister from southern China (Shekou?) and her parents, along with Missy (going to BYU-ID) and Nathan and his family (live in our ward). We were told Dorinda was brain dead and tests were being done for organ transplant compatibility before the lifelines were turned off. We were heartbroken--for Wes and their family as well as for us.

A friend we had gone camping with, shopping with, laughed, eaten and played games with (just the Saturday evening before), and was several years younger than us, had died. It has left us with a hole in our hearts.

This is a picture of Wes, Dorinda and Missy on our trip to Valdez last September. We stopped and hiked to one of the glaciers. It was a little more strenuous hike than I thought it would be but we were all glad that we did it. You could hear rocks dropping and rolling down while you were in the space created between the glacier and the earth. Dorinda wanted to get the picture over with quickly! She was afraid something was going to cave-in on her. The glacier is blue but the wind picks up the dirt so it is "dirty" unless you wipe the dirt off.

Well, it was hard for Kent to stay mad at me. At least I was alive. I hurried, packed and cleaned house. And yes, I was ready to go to the airport on time and we made the plane. Although we were looking forward to seeing our family, we were sorry to leave our friend behind, not being there to support Wes and Missy or be at the funeral. I wonder how long Kent will be grateful that I'm still alive and not get so upset with me when I'm late picking him up, or buy something he thinks is useless.

May is Almost Gone

It is surprising how fast the months go by! I am trying to write a new post once a month being as not much really changes so there really isn't much new to write.

Kent and I finished up the fly fishing seminars. I actually learned how to cast! One class was a casting clinic with experienced people helping the newbies. One mentor got me started in the right direction of stopping between the back and forth motion (this allows the tip with the leader to gain speed) while keeping my wrist straight, elbow close to the body and the arm raised. Another mentor got me so that my fly will land where I want it to...and I did it! YES!!! Kent had other mentors helping him also. It was a great opportunity.

Before we went to the casting clinic, we practiced in the "overflow" water/pond by the church parking lot. One man stopped to see if someone had stocked the pond. No. It has no in or out for keeping the water fresh so it wouldn't be good for fish. It is great for frogs however...

Other news is that Kent has been called to be the ward clerk. This means he will be released from Sunday School, which means they are also releasing me. I was enjoying the class and am sorry they are releasing me just because Kent will no longer be teaching it. I'm not sure why they didn't think I could do it on my own... But I will be moving to Primary soon...and I do enjoy Primary.

We are looking forward to going to San Diego to visit my Mom, Daniel, Christina, Kyle and Aaron and then going to Andrew's graduation with them! Hopefully KT and David will also be able to come and we can get everyone together!!! It's quite an achievement in my book for Andrew to graduate with all the time he has spent in the Army, getting married and supporting a family while in school. I am impressed!

After Phoenix and San Diego, it's off to Idaho to see how the basement has turned out. While Kent and I were in Costco the other day (yes, we finally broke down and got a membership) we saw a great tool chest/work table. I think it would be a great counter with drawers in the basement kitchenette. I really think someone like KT or Eliz could make it work and look fantastic. I'm thinking like put red appliances on top... Kent could see it but...we're in Alaska, the house is in Idaho...

Well, other than the above, it's still work, work, work. I'm ready to go to the Idaho home to live and work on retaining walls, and make my home MY home. I'm left wondering when retirement will actually arrive...

April Sunshine

The run-off hasn't been too bad this year. The snow has been able to melt between snow showers this month. I can finally see leaf buds on the trees. Spring is coming to Alaska!

Our kitchen window looks out on our back yard, which isn't fenced so you can see a grove of trees behind our house. I've always wanted to look up from washing the dishes to see a moose. Well, I got my wish! A big old cow was out grazing on the trees. I love to see the moose! Another time we watched a moose in our back go through a neighbors fence gate to wander in their yard then turn around and go out. I would have thought that gates were new to them but no...you go in and go out through them. Fortunately the gate was open...

Work is going. It is busy. I have over 90 people that I watch over. Lots of visits, lots and lots of paperwork! Next week I get to go to Missoula to do some cross-training...be a liason between MT and AK. Kent gets the car for the week and gets to teach Sunday School all by himself! Isn't he blessed? He is a good teacher. And I. I get to sleep at a hotel with a TV by my bed (so I can go to sleep with the TV on...), eat out at restaurants, see another part of the world and maybe get a manicure and visit a fly fishing shop...

Kent and I went to the Great Outdoors Sportsman show. I was coughing away and Kent was getting over pneumonia. It was a nice time. We got a 8 wt fishing rod and reel which will go well with Kent's 5 wt rod and reel. We enjoyed seeing all that AK has to offer and put in our names in all the drawings for free stuff. Obviously we didn't win anything because no one has called...

Then the next Friday was the Fly Fishers Club auction. We found some nice flies to buy and "won" at some things with a silent auction. BUT the regular auction was something to behold. Now I know prices are higher here in Alaska but...the opening bids were out of our price range! How do people do it?

Then the past two Monday evenings we've been learning more about fly fishing. The Fly Fishers Club holds a seminar each spring. The first Monday was an introduction about the basic gear for fly fishing and learning some of the knots. Last Monday we watched people tie flies. I was glad Kent and I had attended a fly tying class last February because I understood the hows and whys things were done. Next Monday is the monthly meeting so the next seminar will be the 10th of May where we will learn where to fish with a casting clinic on 17 May. Good way to spend FHE, eh?

The sun is rising earlier each morning and setting later and later. Abby would love it here. The sun is up almost all the time now... The weather is warming. It's in the 40's and maybe today will even be in the 50's with the nighttime temperature above freezing! My tomato and green pepper seedlings are up and growing. I've got to get the other seeds planted before too long as we have a short growing season here. I'm wearing my sandals once again. Sometimes I've gotten snowed on too...but spring is here!

So I'm off to wander for a bit before returning to this land of the last frontier.

March Madness

I really have nothing new to say. We work, we work, and sometimes we play...

But here are some funny things that have happened at the office.

On Monday, it had snowed, I had blown snow off the driveway and then gone in to shower and dress for work. After brushing my hair and not liking the result, I set it with hot curlers...not once but twice. My hair was not cooperating. Finally, I gave up because I needed to get to work. I thought, my hair will be "fashionably wild" today. I hair sprayed it and left. The weather was still snowy, the wind blowy, and my hair suffered. Even though I have a mirror in my office, I do not look into it often. Around 4:00 one of my ladies that comes in to turn in her timesheet came by. She is a wonderful Alaskan Native, always positive, always has a twinkle in her eye, always gives me compliments. Today? This is what I got: "What happened to your hair?" After explaining that it was a bad hair day, she looked at the clock and said, "Well, it's almost time for you to quit. You can go back to your office and hide." That was just too good to not share with the temp front desk admin assistant, who then beat me to the Program Manager's office to share the story...

At our office, we are looking for a new front desk admin assistant. One interviewee had a great title at a previous job: Director of First Impressions. Another interviewee, after being asked why she would possibly be absent and how often she had missed work from her previous job said she hadn't missed a day of work...then did add that she had taken the day off when her Mom had died (2 years previously). Admittedly I didn't think through the next comment as I said, "Well, you can't use that excuse again now..." (In my defense, we've had some pretty flimsy excuses for not coming to work and that is where my mindset was.) We have had many, many applicants. It is heart wrenching to look at the resumes and see over-qualified people just wanting a job and willing to do whatever it takes to pay the bills. However, we have the opportunity of picking and choosing who will be the best person for the job, and unfortunately, over-qualified people will want to move on.

Our ID home driveway is still tough to get up or down in the snow. We have had it reworked but it hasn't helped. The guy hired to plow the driveway hasn't been as reliable as needed. David has been stuck sometimes at the top and other times hasn't been able to get to the house. With our 4-wheel drive Explorer in AK, we have also have a problem needing a 4-wheel drive vehicle to use for the farm. Last year Brian let us use his 4 Runner for hauling the trailer full of fencing material to the farm. This year? We needed a truck...for the farm, for David getting up and down from the house. Kent was able to go last Thursday morning to SLC via Phoenix. Elizabeth and Abby were able to greet Grandpa during his layover while Katie was able to finish up with her job and meet him at the SLC airport and drive him up to ID. And then the hunt was on. Do we get a "better" used truck so that we have it when we retire or do we get one that will do the job until we retire and then take our time to find the "perfect" one? Kent and Katie looked high and low and found a cherry of a truck...a 1997, F-250, 4x4, cherry red truck with 114,000 miles. It even has a bed liner and sideboards... But it is red...and old... David was hoping for a reprieve from red cars and something "newer" but I think it's a good looking truck. Course, I haven't seen it up close and personal yet, just the pictures from the dealer's online site. But now we have a truck.

I came home from work during the day last week and found a cow moose in our front yard chewing on the prickly tree we don't like. Go moose! She even stayed long enough for me to get some pictures, then eyed me, turned her back to me, sprayed her territory and walked across the street. I love Alaska!

We've had some days in the mid-30's for the snow to slush and melt a bit. Then it snows again and ices everything up. Thank goodness St. Patrick's Day is coming for a bit of a "fun" break. We're talking of having a St. Paddy's day potluck at work. I've got Andes mints and Hershey's mint M&Ms (green of course) in my office along with lots of greens and clover decorations to break-up the dreariness of dark days. The days are getting longer though, 5 min a day right now. And we are still living in winter wonderland, only wondering when the spring thaw (break-up) is really going to happen.