Now...that's what I call Camping

John and I have discovered the ultimate way to camp - in someones cabin! :) We love to camp - we have a great time setting up our tent, we're not afraid of sleeping on the ground, and we like a camp fire probably more than the average, healthy adult. AND - it was great staying at our friend's cabin and not having to pack all the stuff that has to go camping if you're in a tent, not having to think much about what we'd eat, not having to pack a year's worth of water, and knowing that we'd be warm (with running water) the whole weekend. Plus - a bonus of watching a movie if we so pleased!

We drove up Friday night and our friends met us to hike for a while. They brought their two little girls, and we brought our two little nephews. We had a great time on the hike and enjoyed a little picnic on the side of the trail. It rained on us some, but not too bad - so we looked for a dryish spot to eat lunch. It was funny - we found a weird little spot that was on a slope and kind of hard for the girls to sit on and we decided to just eat there. As soon as we were done with lunch and moved on down the trail about five minutes...naturally we found the perfect spot.

The trail wasn't very long - I think it must go in about 2 miles - but apparently it was a little much for poor little Pike. He tuckered out and John stuffed him in my backpack. He basically hunkered down and enjoyed the ride. What a funny little guy.

After the hike we hung out at our friend's cabin in Healy that they had rented and then headed back for dinner at our little cabin we were staying at in Cantwell.

Sunday morning we got up earlyish and headed back to Anchorage and our ever present rental to wrap up. Barf.

Dreams...not the Corrs! :)

I dream – a lot.

I usually remember the ones I have right before I wake up – probably because we push snooze about 100 times a morning and I usually have to go to the bathroom sometime in the night. So basically I remember a lot of my dreams. I thought it might be funny to share my three latest weird ones.

John and I went camping this weekend (I’m using the word “camping” loosely here – we were staying at our friends’ cabin) and the dogs decided to sleep with us on our blow up mattress in our sleeping bags. This was uncomfortable for all of us with the dogs getting up 1,000,000 times throughout the night getting in and out of our bags because they were hot or wanted to change positions. Normally we don’t let them sleep with us – but since were already in the wild we thought…why not? I have no idea why it didn’t occur to either of us to just get up and put the dogs in their kennel, but neither of us thought of it in our sleepy state.

I was in between one of the times when the dogs woke us up, and dreaming away. In my dream I was in a movie and it was about a cruise ship. The director (who was this guy that I barely knew in HS – Matt Foster – I knew his brother better…who knows why I was dreaming about him…so weird) was giving me some direction about how he would like me to say a particular phrase. He said “you’re saying it all wrong, you’ve got to say it like this…” and then he made a sound much like a growl “rrrrrrr…..rrrrrrr….rrrrrr” and then I woke up – and realized Harley was sleeping right next tome snoring. HA!

Okay, so the next two are funny too – hope you’re not bored. I dreamed I was petting Pike’s little head – I was petting John’s head – thankfully it did not wake him up!

I dreamt I was on a missions trip, and a woman from church was one of the leaders. She was passing out supplies for the camp and handed me a highlighter, I was really clutching it like I wasn’t ever going to give it up. I take my temperature EVERY morning – I was holding on to my thermometer – clutching it like I was never going to give it up!

You just got to laugh at some of this stuff or you’ll think you’re a little cuckoo!

Just Wonderful...

I can’t even describe the excitement I feel right now. After days and days of non-stop rain and overcast skies…we have sunshine today. I mean real honest to goodness sunny sunshininess. It’s wonderful. Just wonderful.

The nephews

Does this ever happen to you? You have to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night and then you can’t fall back asleep?

This morning I got up to go to the bathroom at 4:00 and apparently woke Pike up. I heard him get out of his kennel (which we got out of the habit of locking because he puts himself to bed between 9:45 and 10:00 and we forget to lock it …and it cracks us up) and get up on the couch (where Harley was sleeping). It’s like this, Harley falls asleep on our floor every night – then sometime in the middle of the night he goes and sleeps on the couch. Pike goes to sleep in his kennel every night and some time in the middle of the night, he goes and sleeps on the couch too. So every morning, we wake up to P&H on the couch usually under the same blanket fast asleep. Sometimes Harley is wedged between cushions on the couch because his blanket-hogging brother has pushed him out from under the blanket.

Anyway…so I get up and hear Pike wake up too. I hear him delicately tiptoe to the couch (something you have to see to believe – Beth and Phil know what I’m talking about) and he jumps up on the couch. I go to bed and lay there awake and the next thing I know – I hear Pike growling fiercely, I mean really growling. I get up and sneak into the living room and there he is hovering over Harley who is completely wrapped up in the afghan we let the boys sleep in – and Pike wants Harley to give up the blanket.

I give up watching them and go back to bed...and can't fall asleep...for the rest of the morning...boring.

Pike won – this morning when I got up “for real” there was Pike all wrapped up in the blanket, and there was Harley – cuddled up next to Pike – with no blanket.

One of those survey things...for fun!

The phone rings, who do you want it to be?
A family member

When shopping at the grocery store, do you return your cart?
I put it in the coral

In a social setting, are you more of a talker or a listener?
I am more of a talker, but I am learning to be a better listener

Do you take compliments well?
Not always, I try to talk my way out of them.

Do you play Sudoku?
The easy ones

If abandoned alone in the wilderness, would you survive?
I would probably do my best to figure out how to get out – and then sit down and cry so much I’d probably die of loss of electrolytes or something. I can tell you that I wouldn't try to find a bus in the middle of nowhere!!

Did you ever go to camp as a kid?
Yeah, I loved camp, I would be packed for it for weeks. It was the highlight of every summer.

What was your favorite game as a kid?
I still like my favorite game – Sorry! And I still like to wrestle around which we did as kids a lot.

Could you date someone with different religious beliefs than you?
I wouldn’t date anyone right now…duh. But I don’t recommend even dating someone with different religious beliefs as you – unless that’s all they are…religious beliefs. If you have a relationship with Jesus…I think you’d want your someone to share that with you.

Do you like to pursue or be pursued?
I still like being pursued…my husband does a fine job of that.

Do any songs make you cry?
Yeah – I’ve cried before over a song

Are you continuing your education?
Thinking about it

Do you know how to shoot a gun?
Yes – but I’d like to know more.

If your house was on fire, what would be the first thing you grab?
Make sure John was on his way out and then get the dogs…and our envelopes!

Do you think more about the past, present or future?
I mostly think about the future – I’ve never been very good about living where I am.

Favorite children’s book?
Where the Sidewalk Ends

What color are your eyes?
Blue..da da da

How tall are you?
5′7

Have you ever taken pictures in a photo booth?
Yep.

Where was the furthest place you traveled today?
Curves on Tudor!

Do you like mustard?
Yeah – but I never remember to use it

Do you look like your mom or dad?
I look more like my dad - actually pretty big time

How long does it take you in the shower?
About 10 minutes.

Can you do splits?
HA

What movie do you want to see right now?
Leatherheads

What did you do for New Year’s?
Hung out with good friends – went downtown for fireworks, had communion and played games.

Do you own a camera phone?
Yes, but I don’t get it.

Was your mom a cheerleader?
No – she was into drama club

What’s the last letter of your middle name?
A

How many hours of sleep do you get a night?
about 8

Do you like care bears?
I don’t really get into characters

What do you buy at the movies?
I eat some of John’s popcorn

Do you know how to play poker?
I’ve tried…

Do you wear your seatbelt?:
ALWAYS

What do you wear to sleep?
My jammies – they are cute!

Is your tongue pierced?
Nope - gross
Do you like Liver and Onions?
Never tried it but pretty sure I would throw up

Are you in love?
I am…and it’s fun

Do you like funny or serious people better?
I like most people, but I tend to be drawn more to funny people

Ever been to L.A.?
Yep – I kind of like it there, but would NEVER live there.

Do you steal or pay for your music downloads?
I don’t download music except from iTunes, and trust me I pay for it!

Are you a gullible person?
sometimes

If you could have any job (assuming you have the skills) what would it be?
I would be a traveling blogger and tell people what they should and shouldn’t do when they travel here or there.

Are you easy to get along with?
Ask John – ha! I think I am easy to get along with most of the time.

What is your favorite time of day?
The evening, when John and I are together

Would you rather sleep alone or with someone?
With someone

Would you give up the one you love/care for the most to become immortal?
Weird – heck no.

What animal are you most like?
Probably a dog – Harley and I have similar qualities!

What kind of tea do you like the most?
Earl Gray – oh yes. But I prefer coffee

Do you laugh at peoples’ stupidity?
I don’t really laugh, but I probably talk about it way more than I should…it’s sad. I need to knock that off.

Do you feel guilty for doing so after you’re done laughing?
I do for talking about people’s stupidity…then I repent…and do better for a time, and then it happens again….

Weekend Fun

Yesterday was a day of picnic (ing) We went to the governor's picnic out on the park strip and helped with the grilling for an hour or so. Then we headed out to the hillside for John's work picnic. We had a great time. The sun came out and we enjoyed the breaks of feeling warm, and we got to spend time with some good friends. Our friends had reserved time with the horseback riding outfit, so we went for a 30 minute trail ride. We had a good time - and our horses were all really good at staying in line and obeying their human. I have to say that my butt is still sore...it would be fun to go on a longer ride, but I think I would seriously have to think about investing in some sort of padding. You see John, our friend Jonathan, his wife Deborah and me in the photo.

When we got home, we got busy working on the rental. We are mostly done. Just a tiny bit of touch up paint and cleaning up the messes we've made and we're ready to get it rented out again. YAY! I think we'll be ready for sure by next weekend (just in time to be out of town!!).

My friend Rebecca and I went for a 6 mile walk today. We're trying to get ready for an 18 mile walk we're planning in a couple of weeks. I think we'll both put some time in separately walking this week for long distances, and then try again next week for an eight mile walk. We'll see how that goes - we'll probably be pretty sore after 18 miles...but we'll survive!

Just so everyone knows!

Here's a photo of the fabulous Izzy and Bella! They love to jump in the car and go for rides with their mom, Barb. They are way too cute...and they get along pretty well with P&H so that's good news!

We saw Hancock yesterday. I liked it - it was way different then I thought it would be and as far as super hero movies go, it was VERY different. I was pretty surprised at one part (I won't give it away, it's a huge spoiler) but sort of suspected something...anyway, I'd recommend it. There was a bit of profanity (but could have been worse) but over all just kind of fun.

We got a lot down in our rental yesterday so that's good - I painted the bathroom and wrapped up the painting in the bedroom. I noticed some more painting that needs to be done so I'll have some more painting to do- but we're getting close. John hung the doors back up and worked on cleaning a closet and the blinds. I think we should be almost ready after a few more hours. The big thing will be the new appliances. fun.

We watched some of the first season of Bridezillas in the "man room" last night. (the "man room" is John's space where he cleans his gun, the treadmill lives there, his work stuff lives there, etc. we call it the man room) If you haven't seen it - it's one of those shows that makes you feel like your little spurts of estrogen that come out with fangs engaged aren't so bad. I recommend it during your most 'fun' part of the month!

More stuff

So I did finally get around to painting yesterday. YAY! I only have a little bit left in the bedroom I was working on and then I hit the bathroom. I'm so glad that we're getting closer to getting that place ready - this weekend we should be really close to being done and then we can get it on Craigslist and get that thing rented out!

We're in a bit of a dilemma regarding buying a house. We'd like to move out of our duplex, and really now is the time to buy, but it's not the time to sell. And we'd rather not have to deal with two tenants when one is sometimes more than enough and we both work full time. So we think, it's not really the time to sell but having the equity out of our home would make it easier to buy our next home...and we' d really like to be mortgage free all together and sharing our mortgage with our tenants is the way to do it...blah, blah, blah. We looked at a house last night just a few houses down from a great friend of mine, and now I'm super tempted to just deal with tenants, buy that house and then sell ours when the market picks up again. But...then i don't want to do the work to get ours ready to sell...oh blast, I'm stuck in this circle. Did I just say blast?

We took our dogs over to visit with Rebecca and Tim and their kids and little dog last night. It was pretty funny - and chaotic. The dogs were running all over the house - their dog running from ours. Harley was trying to sniff Murdoch, and Pike was trying to...um...not sniff...I should keep this PG. Anyway...we got a laugh out of them, and Harley didn't attack anyone - except my friend's little boy - he put his little feet on Cade's chest and just started licking his face like it was going out of style...cute.

Then we headed over to John's cousins' house - who just happen to be the parents of our little godson, Matthew. We had borrowed chains from them for camping a couple of weeks ago and thought we'd better return them - so glad we had them! We had a good time visiting and P&H got another new house to sniff all over. The dogs had a big day!

Then we came home and unloaded our Costco stuff (Most of which was defrosting in a hurry) and went to bed! What an exciting day - eh? More exciting then what we've been doing all week - watching "Deadliest Catch" until 9:30 and then heading to bed. We're such old people - be warned, this is what happens when you both work at 7:00 in the morning!

I went to puppy class with my MIL Barb (more like a SMIL - Super Mother in Law!) last night. We had a good time – the puppies are hilarious. I supposed they can’t get the puppy excuse for much longer, but they were too funny at class.

I was in charge of Bella, and Barb was in charge of Izzy. They have a hard time listening, so I found myself rewarding Bella when she sat saying “good sit” even if I hadn’t told her to. The instructor was very clear that the best way to train is to enforce good behavior so you don’t confuse the dog…so I think that’s what I’ll try at home with P&H too. That and spraying them with water when they get in my face. The most important thing I learned last night is that poop eating isn’t such a bad thing!! Good for those girls…eat away!

This morning I had a little excitement. I went through my sock/underwear drawer a couple of weeks ago and threw out any sock that did not have a friend. So imagine my despair this weekend after matching all the socks to have one lonely shortie sock. What a bummer!! So this morning when I got dressed for work I felt a lump in my pocket – what in the world? Yep – you guessed it, my other shortie sock!! YAY! I’m easy to please!

We have ignored our little “clean up the rental unit” project the last two nights, I totally have to get over there and paint my little heart out tonight. Maybe I’ll skip the ‘gym’ and go home to the treadmill to save time…maybe!

On Waiting

Probably most people who read this know that J and I have been waiting for many years now for the gift of a child. Before you give advise on what we should be doing/eating/praying/thinking and how to relax, trust me when I say - I've heard it all and tried most. But today I'm not going to discuss the pain of waiting, instead I'd like to discuss the hope of waiting with my Lord beside me.

I recently read an article in Today's Christian Woman. There are times when I really like this magazine - and times when I think it's a bit too soft. There was an article in this past one all about waiting and how hard it is sometimes. Whether you are waiting for a husband, healing, life circumstances to change or a baby, the article spoke to each situation.

I thought the most profound part of the article was the way she compared waiting for something in this life to Mary and Martha waiting for Jesus to come and heal Lazerus. So using some scripture (from John chapter 11) I'll summerize here what was so interesting about this particular waiting period.

Jesus heard that Lazarus was sick, and yet he stayed where he was for two days - " 4When he heard this, Jesus said, "This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God's glory so that God's Son may be glorified through it." 5Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days.

When Jesus got to the family, he found that Lazarus had already been dead - DEAD - for four days. Martha, one of Lazarus' sisters told Jesus that had he been there, Lazarus would not have died. She was frustrated that she had to wait on him, and she met him outside of the village to tell him so. Mary also came to Jesus weeping over the loss of her brother, and here's the thing - verse 35 says: "Jesus wept." He wasn't trying to punish the sisters or trying to work on the sin in their lives, he comforted them in their pain and wept beside them. He too felt the loss of Lazarus and the pain they experienced, and wept beside them. He KNEW that he would shortly be raising Lazarus from the dead and yet he took time to comfort and mourn for what these women felt, knowing fully that his glory was about to be revealed.

I believe that God doesn't punish us by not bringing us our hearts desires or making us wait. I think sometimes there are things we need to work out or change - but not always. Sometimes it's life circumstances, sometimes He's waiting to reveal His GLORY - and always He's feeling your pain right along side you. He knows what is coming for you - what blessings he has in store, and how His GLORY will be revealed in you and yet he weeps along side you.

Here's the kicker - Lazarus didn't stay dead...that is good news indeed.

43When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" 44The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go."

Tenants...etc.

So while we were out on our fabulous Fourth of July fun trip - our tenants moved out without notice. It was such a special treat to come home to. They left us a huge mess...and so in the spirit of being landlords, we get to clean it up! how fun for us.

We hired a couple of people to help us with the general cleaning and painting, and I think we're going to have to replace some appliances...money money money! (mon -ey). And we're thinking we might get one of those washer/dryer "does it all" combos to put in our place so that we don't have to share the laundry room anymore. The appliances are super old (I think original) and needed to be replaced anyway, so now is a good time to do it. So - a new stove, a new refrigerator, new paint in the bedrooms, lots of yard clean up, lots of touch up painting, scrubbing walls, maybe a new bathroom vanity....blah, blah, blah. At least our summer's been crappy and I'm not missing out on sunshine to do this yet one more summer in a row.

You'd think it was Monday morning the way I'm complaining!

Tomorrow night is doggie class night with Izzy and Bella...should be interesting!

Natural Highs

1. Falling in love
2. Laughing so hard your face hurts
3. A hot shower (seriously - especially after camping for a few days...ever notice how long it takes to get the smoke out of your hair?)
4. No lines at the super market
5. A special glance
6. Getting mail
7. Taking a drive on a pretty road
8. Hearing your favorite song on the radio
9. Lying in bed listening to the rain outside
10. Hot towels fresh out of the dryer
11. Chocolate milkshake (vanilla or strawberry)
12. A bubble bath
13. Giggling
14. A good conversation
15 The beach
16. Finding a 20 dollar bill in your coat from last winter
17. Laughing at yourself
18. Looking into their eyes and knowing they Love you
19. Midnight phone calls that last for hours
20. Running through sprinklers
21. Laughing for absolutely no reason at all
22. Having someone tell you that you're beautiful
23. Laughing at an inside joke with FRIENDS
25. Accidentally overhearing someone say something nice about you
26. Waking up and realizing you still have a few hours left to sleep
27. Your first kiss
28. Making new friends or spending time with old ones
29. Playing with a new puppy
30. Having someone play with your hair
31. Sweet dreams
32. Hot chocolate
33. Road trips with friends
34. Swinging on swings
35. Making eye contact with a cute stranger
36. Making chocolate chip cookies
37. Having your friends send you homemade cookies
38 Holding hands with someone you care about
39 Running into an old friend and realizing that some things (good or bad) never change
40. Watching the expression on someone's face as they open a much desired present from you 41. Watching the sunrise
42. Getting out of bed every morning and being grateful for another beautiful day
43. Knowing that somebody misses you
44. Getting a hug from someone you care about deeply
45. Knowing you've done the right thing, no matter what other people think.

fourth of July fun

We had such a great time camping this past weekend with a great bunch of people. Our friends B&T and Bean! We drove out to Cantwell on Thursday night and spent the night at B&T's place. It was like a giant sleepover - staying up way too late talking, hanging out and discussing plans for the next day. We woke up to B cooking us breakfast and J jumped in to help! The girls got a break from cooking and the three of us sat around enjoying breakfast and coffee. We loaded up the truck with our gear and some logs and headed out for our big adventure.

If you haven't had a chance to trek across the Denali Hwy, I highly recommend it. It runs from Cantwell to Paxson and this year it was in great shape. Some years the washboard feel of the dirt road has been a little annoying, but its well worth the drive. This year we went in about an hour and then headed up a little mining road about 20 miles. All was well until...we got stuck in serious mud - over the hubs mud... I was so proud of J&B, they worked hard and steadily to get us out of the mud, using our logs and a jack to get the back tire out and then the girls gathered rocks to make a rock trail to back the truck out. It took about an hour - I have to say how impressed I was with my husband and B, they kept cool heads, never worried about getting the truck out, and never tried to hotshot anything. Way to Go!

Our camp site was beautiful. We had fun walking around a bit and taking in the scenery once we got there. I can't get over how Alaska is the most beautiful place I've been - the only way to describe it is extreme.

We headed up the nearest mountain and hiked around on Saturday. We had fun getting to the top and sweating it out. There were thunderstorms on the nearest mountains and we got rained on a little, but still had fun. There was plenty to see, including getting a godo look at Mt. McKinley from the top of our little mountain.On the way down we looked for Caribou sheddings and paid extra attention to the beautiful flowers. I've never seen so many forget-me-nots, no wonder they're our state flower!

So maybe more pictures to follow as they filter in and as I get better ones - these are so tiny!! Just thought EVERYONE would like to know about our fabulous weekend. Great people, decent weather, fun stuff...does it get any better?

Ode to Summer (finally here)

Ahhhh, summer how I love you
With your blue skies and beautiful views

It took you a long time to get here,
for one who knows they are held so dear.

I saw you try and come in May,
but you got stubborn and flittered away.

I saw you raise your head in June,
but you thought you had come too soon.

Now July is here and in full force,
please be a dear and run your course.


Seriously - thank you LORD for the beautiful days we have had this week. It is so nice to get out and enjoy your creation and the things you made for us to admire. Thank you for able bodies that get to run around and see your creation.