Eagles Eagles everywhere!!

We went out on Sunday to take some pictures since it was so beautiful outside. Blue sky and bright sunshine!! We were heading across the Buskin River and came across these three Eagles that hang out there. I got out of the car and quietly walked back to the bridge and shot some great pics. We took somewhere around 910 pictures and I had to sort through them all and find the "Best of the Eagles". LOL I know it sounds like a title of a CD. Anyway, I made them into an album so enjoy!! I will be adding more that we took yesterday later today!!!

Sorry this took so long to post!

On December 12th and 13th we made a surprise trip to Seattle via a C-130! Brrr! LOL It was a great flight up until we were landing at Boeing Field and it felt like we were being tossed all over the place. It was like riding a roller coaster blind! Anyway, we got to the terminal at Clay Lacy Field and rented a cute little car and headed to Tukwila to get the plan into action at the Olive Garden! With constant communication with my co-conspirator (Kim) we promptly got a nice secluded table for 10. Mark and I sat down and waited (very impatiently) for the rest of the crew to arrive. Here is the look on Darryl's face when they rounded the corner:

It took Ruth SEVERAL seconds to finally realize that the guy behind the camera was Mark. She gasp and said "ANNIE" came rushing up and gave me the biggest hug! I can not even tell you how thrilled I was that this all worked out according to plan!!! The tears of happiness from both my mom and dad in law told us both how great it all worked out! We had a great meal and great company. It was a fabulous dinner!! We then went to see Kim and Chris' new house....beautiful!!! After that we headed back to Ruth and Darryl's and Mark older brother Mike came by with his girlfriend Tina. The next morning it was a rush of quick Christmas shopping because we had to be back at the terminal by 11:30 am. We got what we came for and headed back in time to catch our flight home. Here is the picture of the four of us at the terminal:

We had a great time, too short, but it was wonderful to see the family again!! We are looking forward to our next "surprise" visit.

Fun in the sun & snow!

We were surveying the situation before heading down the hill!

Look mom...no paws!

I can not even tell you how cold it was up on that hill. The wind was blowing so strong that it literally took my breath away. We had such a blast today. Patrick got his new snowskate for his birthday (it was late because they were back logged) and so we went out to this place beyond the golf course. Oh my goodness what a blast we had. We even found a great back drop for our family picture. We took a ton of pictures so once I get through them all I will post them.

Wondering where they are?

Last night I asked Mark, "Where are all the Jan's, Ed's, Jenn's, Alan's, Jane's and Tommy's here?" I recently read this statement: "Friends are special people. We can't pick our family, and we're sorely limited in the number of them at any rate. Society and mores (and often our own conscience) dictate we select a single mate. But our friends can be as diverse and infinite as the adjectives we choose. Our friends, in a very real sense, reflect the choices we make in life." The last sentence hit home. I have alway been the sort of person that is there for you in thick and thin. I am one of those people that will ALWAYS listen to you, not necessarily give you the advice you need, but listen and try to be objective. I think back on the 20 years of Coast Guard life and the friends I have made, Sandy and Paul, Dave and Penny, Mary Ann and Fred, Barb and John, Dena, Susan, Debbie, Andrea and Dan, Brian and Linda, Ann and John, Beth,
of course Jan and Ed, Alan and Jenn, Jane and Tommy, Joann and Frank, Maggie and Ben, Jeannette, Katie and John, Lindsay, Amanda, Gail, Cyndi and Gary, Jennifer and Michael, Sherry, Michelle and Ed. These are people I still am in touch with whether it is via e-mail, telephone or just Christmas letters and cards. Some of these people we got together with for 4th of July BBQ's or game night or New Years Eve parties or came by while our husbands were deployed just to have spaghetti and a glass of wine to get through yet another lonely night. I am truly missing these people. These are the sort of people who are the honest to God "true" friends. No games, no bullshit, not those fair weather friends who are there when their life is tough and then kick you to the curb when it gets easier only to come looking for you a few weeks or months later when their life gets difficult again. So last night when I asked Mark that question, he hugged me and said to me, "they are here....somewhere."

Playing in the snow with the Murphy and Indy!

We had this huge drift in the backyard and as you can see it come to about my knees. Yesterday was a beautifully sunny day (not warm by any means please don't lecture me about not wearing a coat! ) Anyway, I walked into the drift and tried to convince my short legged bassett/rottie to join me. At first he just barked and barked and barked. Finally my decided that it would be ok to attempt to join me. He finally did. I was so proud of him knowing how cold the snow was on his belly! He didn't stay too long and made a beeline for the more packed snow and to his dad.

Here he is plowing his way back to saftey!

The snow could just swallow Indy up!

Here he is jumping around!

Hello Friends and Family

It has been so wonderful to have Mark back with us. It has taken some getting use to having someone else in the house. It is so nice to have my best friend home again. It has also been rather cold here in Alaska. Just a few days ago we had over 60 mph winds and snow and an actual blizzard warning in effect. They ended up closing the base down around 1:30pm that day. Crazy weather to say the least. Last night around 11 pm it started to snow again and we ended up with between 3-5 inches of very light powdery snow!! It is so beautiful. Mark and the boys went out straight away this morning and began shoveling the snow off the porch and sidwalks. Besides all the normal day to day stuff we are planning a nice quiet Thanksgiving here at home. We have invited Mark's new FS1 Omar Brown to join us. He recently got PCS orders to Kodiak and Mark is thrilled. Mark says Omar reminds him of his other most favorite FS1 Al Scales. They seem to be on the same page with the galley and that is a beautiful thing. We hope that all of our friends and family have a wonderful Thanksgiving and know that we are thinking of all of you during the holidays and wish we were with you or you were here with us in the cold, snow! LOL

At long last Mark is home!!!

Mark's Adventures

Mark recently sent me some pictures of the largest Buddha in Japan. When he finally gets back to Alaska we will put all his photo's to DVD and send everyone who is interested a copy. I know he took tons of pictures. I also know that he had a great time checking out yet another new country. Counting down the days until I get my husband home again! I can't wait!!!!!

Sunrise on the Mountains

The top picture is Pyramid. The second picture is the mountains to the left of Pyramid.

King of the Couch!

This was Indy's Halloween Costume! Of course it fits him to a T!!!

A Coast Guard Marriage

A Coast Guard Marriage

You stand at the dock watching his ship pull away,

You feel in your heart a little voice say:

'I Love You. I need You. I want you to stay.'

He stands on the deck, watching you too

His world falls apart, he wants to be with you.

He feels his heart breaking, his eye sheds a tear,

The only thing now he wants is you near.

The only thing that keeps her from falling apart,

Is the thought of her husband kept close to her heart.

Out on the deck he stands still in rain,

Praying for the ocean to swallow his pain.

A golden streak of heaven shines down from above,

But he remembers to be strong for the woman he loves.

After so many months his ship finally pulls in,

Her heart skips a beat when she spots his wide grin.

They throw their arms around each other in the tightest embrace,

Their hearts are free as they feel their pulse race.

Yours surely must have been a match made from above,

Because this Coast Guard Marriage is a test of true love.

WOW!!!

So the boys left for school at 7:23 am and I got a phone call from Patrick telling me that I needed to come outside and take a look at the moon next to Barmeter. I told him "no way was I going outside in the dark where it is a whole 34* outside...burrrr!" But curiosity got the best of me and I grabbed my camera and headed for my back deck. All I could say was WOW!!!!

Kodiak is a beautiful place.

Last Wednesday, I took my car into the shop to get an oil change and have someone look at my noisy breaks. My friend Kris was my transportation while we waited...over four hours!!! Anyway, we have had some beautiful weather here in Kodiak at this time and as we were exploring we came across this overlook! It was just too beautiful to pass up!

I took the above picture. I thought the way the tree was leaning and the sunshine was shining through....gorgeous!!!
Kris took this one and I think it is equally as beautiful!!

Nice Night Out!

Last night I went to a very nice dinner that Kodiak Camber of Commerce put on for the Coast Guard. It was an appreciation dinner. Very very good food! Local restaurants made things for this dinner! Oh my goodness! It was so yummy! It was a little hard to see all those Coasties in their Bravo's without mine next to me! Sigh! Soon, I keep telling myself soon! LOL Anyway, I won a really cool book that will be out soon. It is the Alaska's 50th Anniversary book. It is wonderful! Gorgeous pictures. They even have Kodiak in it! So my date for the evening was my friend Kris! We got all gussied up (which is a rarity here in Kodiak) and went to this shindig. Enjoy the pictures!!

Getting Colder in Kodiak

The above is Lake Margaret. There has been an eerie mist coming off the lake since the temperatures have now been dropping into the mid to low 30's at night.Brrrrr!!
Baramoter in the Fall!!
This is the route where the MUNRO will be making her final journey home. I am waiting very impatiently!!

My Handsome Boys!

Well it is that time of year when school pictures come out. It is hard to believe how quickly time flies. Patrick will be 15 in just about 43 days and Matthew will be...18 in May!!! Wow, that was hard to type! LOL Here are their pictures. Enjoy!!

First Impressions!

Being a Coast Guard wife for over 20 years, I have met a lot of people. First impressions, for me, are key. When I met my friend Jan, I knew right away we were going to be life long friends. I guess it was her whole demeanor. She is the kindest person I have ever met. She would give you the shirt off her back if you asked her. I am so fortunate to have her and her family in my life. I have been fortunate like this throughout our military career. I keep in touch with most of the people we have met throughout these past 20 years. It does, at times get difficult with all of them transferring every few years. Moving from Station to Station you hope to find people that would even measure up to the ones you have met before. You move to a new location and pray that there is even one or two that will now be your new “best” friend. I am again fortunate to have found one gal here in Kodiak that has fit that bill at least until they transfer next spring. Unfortunately, I have also recently met a person that has just rubbed me the wrong way. I am sure that deep down this person is not as shallow as she portrays herself to be. At least I truly hope she isn't. My outlook on things is rather simple. If you want to be my friend, be yourself. You don't have to come off as if you are so much better than the rest of us. You have no idea where I have come from, what I have done in my life, or even who I have met. I certainly hope that my first impression of this person is wrong. I am no better than anyone else, I believe in giving everybody a chance because you never know in this world where you are going to end up. First impressions tell me right away if I want to continue toward a friendship. I want to try and be this person’s friend, but each time we meet, she usually says something that solidifies the "first impression" of not wanting to have anything to do with her. Being the person I am, I am willing to look past her unsavory behavior in the hopes that she sees that we are all equal.

1. Annie Leibowitz exhibit 2. calories..., 3.Thomas Jefferson, 4. Autumn, 5. Baker, 6.Coffee 7. Pool at Dreams Resort, Cabo San Lucas, 8. Mudd Pie, 9. Animal Cop 10. Family 11. Loving 12. Sea Turtle

Here's how it works:
a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
b. Using only the first page, pick an image.
c. Copy and paste each of the URLS for the images into hhtp://bighugelabs.com/flickr/mosaic.php

Choose 3 columns with 4 rows.

*************************************
The Questions:
1. What is your first name?
2. What is your favorite food?
3. What High School did you go to? (or what year did you graduate?)
4. What is your favorite color?
5. Who is your celebrity crush?
6. Favorite Drink?
7. Dream Vacation?
8. Favorite Dessert?
9. What you want to be when you grow up?
10. What do you love most in life?
11. One word to describe you?
12. Your flicker name or favorite animal?

Homecoming 2008

It is hard to imagine my baby is finally growing up. It is sad. Patrick took his first date to Homecoming on Saturday night. He was so excited. We had picked out his outfit and bought new shoes, belt, slacks, dress shirt everything you need. He went the day of Homecoming and got his hair cut. It was so funny to watch him get all ready. Matthew decided last minute that he too wanted to go. So both my handsome boys went and they had a blast! I wanted Patrick to get formal pictures but Patrick said the line was "crazy" long. Thank heavens I was able to snap a couple before they went into the dance.

40th Birthday Weekend

Hello Everyone!!

It has been a good weekend. I turned 40 this past Saturday. It was kind of bittersweet. I really really miss Mark and wish he could have been home. Unfortunately, my birthday wish didn't come true! Of course I knew it wouldn't LOL. Anyway, my friend Kris and her son Ryan and my boys took me out to dinner at Henry's! What a fun time! I splurged and shared an ice cream sundae with Patrick! I have been dieting since August 3rd and am down 11 lbs, so I really wanted to be careful. But that sundae was soooo good!! After dinner we were going to go see "Mama Mia" but decided that it was such a great evening we would head over to Sergeant Creek and so some fishing. We were there for about five minutes before I noticed the bear poop on the river bank. Fresh & warm bear poop (Matt put his hand above it to verify the warm part!). Then I noticed a salmon flopping by the shore and it was all bloody. That is when Kris noticed the bear in the marsh not far from us. So we slowly left the area for the car. We drove down towards the Russian River and noticed some people looking out over the marsh land so we pulled off and got out and there he was!! Our first Kodiak bear!!! He didn't seem that big from far away. But as you can tell, as he got closer to us, he got bigger. All in all it was a fun evening, I truly wish all of my family had been here for it, but as my Grandma Gray would have said, "if wishes were pennies we would be rich!"

The scarf you see above and to the left is one I had been working on for about three weeks. I bought the hand dyed wool yarn in Ketchikan when mom had come for her visit. I finally finished it last night! I think it turned out beautiful!

The crock pot above is my birthday present! 5 Qt crock pot!! It is really nice and I love it!!!!

The birthday cake, I made from scratch! I was going to put an nice fattening butter cream frosting on it, but opted out of that for a nice sprinkle of powdered sugar. I have only eaten a very thin slice! LOL