I'm pretty sure I just blinked at 2012 flew by without me even noticing....
It's so crazy how time speeds up as you get older. Ellis and I have now been married for 2 years and 4 months, and we just had our 25th birthdays a month or so ago. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact we have been on this earth for a quarter century! Panda is now 6 and Winston 10. Even our little baby boy Waffles is a whopping 12 pound one-and-a-half-year-old. A lot has happened this year for sure.
Going back and reading my last blog post is surreal. It was now 7 months ago that I left My Gym to follow my husband up to the frozen north. I miss California a little, but mostly I miss my kids from work. I'm fortunate to have my favorite kids' parents' facebooks so I can see how well they are doing these days.
May 20th, 2012 --> We packed up most our belongings (and thew away the rest) in a teeny tiny U-box and shipped it up to AK (little did we know we wouldn't see our stuff again for four months..) We loaded our Cube to the absolute brim, and drove us and our 2 dogs and cat up from Santa Rosa, CA to Anchorage, AK. We saw a lot of wildlife: 37 black bears, 15 bison, 6 moose, 3 bunnies, 2 doll sheep, 2 caribou, 1 wolf, 1 brown bear, and 1 prarie dog!
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| the U-Box |
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| packed to the brim! (we delivered Neo to my brother 2 nights later) |
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| Waffles sleeping on dads lap. |
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| Waffles sleeping between me and the door. |
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| We saw 37 black bears, and this is the one brown bear we saw. |
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| Liard Hot Springs |
June 1, 2012 --> This summer was one of the most fun time periods of my life. I did it! I spent over two months on 32' boat with 3 other boys, no bathroom, and one side of a twin size mattress, but I wouldn't trade it for anything! There is something about being on the water, when it just becomes a part of your life, that when you're back on land nothing seems to replace it. Every day I was amazed at the beauty surrounding me, as well as the strength and endurance one human can seem to muster out of the depth of nowhere when necessary (yes myself included!) I was evermore impressed by my husband. After 5 years together he still manages to surprise me with how talented and capable he is. I LOVE being out on the boat and I can't wait to go back as soon as I can.
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| Joe flew us to Naknek from Homer. |
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| one thirty am...the darkest it got that night. |
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| woo we caught fish!!! |
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| another beautiful sunset |
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| captain ellis |
September, 2012 --> So after the fishing season, Ellis went to Kodiak to fish with his dad for a month, and I stayed in Anchorage and looked for a house for us. I found one in Wasilla and was able to sign the lease and move all our belongings in before Ellis returned from Kodiak. He was very pleased and I felt like superwoman!
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| 300 Schrock! |
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| Our house in the summer...wow it's a lot different now. |
October, 2012 --> Now we've been living in our place on 7 acres just waiting for the snow. I was so excited a couple months ago when we first got a teeny bit. I thought the rest of it was coming soon. But of course, and ironically, Alaska is having a major drought year. They aren't even predicting snow before Christmas! And I was so excited for a "guaranteed" white Christmas too! Oh well, even though Ellis describes this as the ugliest time of year, I still am so amazed by what I see around me whenever I leave my house. The mountains are incredible, and I even got to see my first Northern Lights (a slight show anyways) this October.
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| First little "dusting" in October |
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| Looking out our front window, currently. |
November, 2012 --> Ellis and I are both working at Alaska Assistance Dogs. He is the Lead Trainer and I am the Executive Director. Right now we are working on funding through grants, etc... If you want to donate or home a puppy for a short period of time and help a disabled Alaskan email me! Kate@AlaskaAssistanceDogs.org. We need all the help we can get right now!
www.alaskassistancedogs.org
I love my life here in Alaska. The people are warm and friendly, there is plenty of space and hardly any crazy societal rules to follow. It's even dark most the day and I'm still happier here than anywhere else. Ellis and I are in a place in our relationship we've never been before and good things seem to be happening. I would love my friends and family to come visit me. We have a guest room and you would have the time of your life if you can just afford a plane ticket! Here's some more pictures of beautiful scenery.
Now I need to go prep for my Sunday night shows. :D Happy December!
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