More Winter Fun

With Rachelle home for Christmas break and Brent taking a week of vacation, we have been having a great time together.

On Christmas Eve we had a nice dinner, read the Christmas story in the scriptures, and watched a DVD of "The Other Wiseman".

Christmas morning we opened our gifts.

Jacob loved the snowboard scooter, microscope, and games that he received.

Rachelle loved showing off the clothes that she received.

Everyone enjoyed giving gifts and opening the ones that were given to them.

Later in the day we went to the frozen lake by our house to try out our new snow shoes that Santa brought.

Those snow shoes really do work.  When we headed back home, I took mine off since we were walking on a well-traveled trail.  However, we came to a moose near the trail so we had to go get off the trail and walk through some deep snow.  With every step I would sink 12 to 15 inches in the snow.  I struggled with every step.  Rachelle was ahead of me with her snow shoes and she walked with no problem at all.

Since we have plenty of snow, we decided to enjoy some outdoor activities (even though the temperature has been between negative 4 degrees and up to 15 degrees.)

We started out sledding on the hill at Jacob's school.

Later we went to Kincaid Park and went sledding on a BIG sledding hill.  Jacob even tried out his snowboard scooter.

Now that the lakes are frozen, we decided to go ice skating.  Unfortunately, we found out that there are no outdoor skating rinks that rent ice skates.  Jacob has his own ice skates that he got for his birthday, but Rachelle had to just scoot along on her boots.

On afternoon we went for a drive along the Turnagain Arm.  We stopped and played in the snow and walked down near the ocean.

We also discovered some beautiful frozen waterfalls.

Not all of our activites were outside.  We went to the movies to see "Tangled".  We also went to a local hotel where the chef made a huge gingerbread village.

We have had a great time discovering all the winter activites that are here to enjoy.

December Activities

The last few weeks we have been involved with some fun Christmas and holiday activities.  The United States Air Force band puts on a free Christmas concert in December.  We really enjoyed listening to the  instrumental and vocal Christmas music.

We also attended a performance of "Babes in Toyland".  The play was very well done in a small intimate theater.  Not only did we enjoy a nice Christmas play, but it also helped Jacob fulfill a cub scout requirement!

 Jacob's school choir held their Christmas concert.  Jacob was one of the dancing reindeer for one of the songs.

 The choir also had a day of caroling around town.  I went as a parent volunteer as the choir went to several businesses and sang Christmas carols.  They sang at the airport, the mall, and three medical buildings. 
 When they sang at the Alaska Heart Institute, Brent came out of his office to listen. Since it happened to be Brent's birthday, I asked the choir teacher if the choir would sing "Happy Birthday" to Brent. Needless to say, Brent was surprised to have such a nice birthday greeting.



 
 A couple of days ago, Rachelle arrived home for the Christmas break.  We went to the downtown museum to see the display of antique toys.

 The doll house was darling.  Rachelle and I wish we had one to play with.  The furnishings inside were very elaborate.



  However, I don't think Jacob liked it as much as Rachelle.

 There were several displays of dolls.  Our favorite was the display of dolls from France.

Brent and I had a chance to dress up for Alaska Heart Institute Christmas party.  The prime rib dinner was delicious.  I enjoyed getting acquainted with some of the people Brent works with as well as their spouses.   There was a live band and Brent and I enjoyed dancing at the end of the evening.


We are looking forward to more fun activities before the month is over.

Thanksgiving Firsts

This Thanksgiving was a year of "firsts" for us.

This was our first Thanksgiving without any of our girls at home.  (Rachelle spent the weekend with Grandma in Salt Lake City.) 
This was our first Thanksgiving in Alaska (without family from California nearby.)  Thankfully we have cousins who live about 25 miles away.  The cousins invited us, as well as three other families, to dinner. 

The dinner was delicious with a lot of wonderful food.  However, this was our first Thanksgiving dinner without turkey.  Last year our cousins got food poisoning from the turkey.  Because of that experience, they served ham, roast beef, and chicken for dinner.

Jacob's favorite part of the day was playing with his six boy cousins as well as all of the other children who were at the Thanksgiving feast.

Not only did they play games indoors, but they spent a lot of time sledding in the snow outside.  For a short time they had to take a break from sledding.  Two moose came into the yard and so the children had to wait next to the house until the moose left.

The day after Thanksgiving, we had tickets to the Great Alaska Shootout.  This college basketball tournament attracts college teams from all over the country. This has been an Alaskan tradition for many years, but a first for us.   Since we had an extra ticket, Jacob invited a friend to come with us.

After the game, Jacob's friend spent the night and then all day Saturday with us.  The boys had fun playing games, watching movies, playing in the snow, and going in the hot tub.

I am not brave enough to go in the hot tub in 19 degree weather, but the boys had a fun time.  My first winter hot tub experience is just going to have to wait.

This Never Happens

When we moved to Alaska last February, several times the temperature was in the low 30's.  We were told that it was unusually warm for February and that "this never happens". 

We  looked forward to summer.  Everyone told us that Alaskan summers are unbelievably beautiful--and they are.  However, as we experienced the rainiest summer on record, we were told, "but this never happens".

I dreaded the first snow fall.  We were told that once it started to snow, the temperature never got above freezing.  The snow would continue to accumulate all winter and not thaw until April.

This is how our street normally looks in the winter.

However, in November we had several days that the temperature reached the high 30's and even 40 degrees.  Much of the snow melted.  We even had rain.  Yes, freezing rain--not snow.  The problem was all of that water froze during the night and the next day the roads were sheer ice.  Guess what people said?  That's right, "but this never happens".

Can you see how the street is one sheet of ice?

Because the roads were so dangerous to travel on, school was cancelled for the two days before Thanksgiving.  School cancellation does not happen very often, so Jacob and I made good use of the time at home.  He helped me do some cooking and we baked pies for Thanksgiving. He also spent time playing with the neighbor children.  (We tried to avoid driving on the slick roads.)

We have heard, "but this never happens" so many times that we are beginning to think that Alaska has never been the same since we came here.  One friend told us that we have now seen the worst of Alaska's summer and winter.  It can only get better from now on.  Hopefully we have heard the last of, "but this never happens".

Matching

Although many people find it embarrassing to discover that they are wearing "matching" clothes with someone else, my daughters and I love it.  Sometimes we will match on purpose, and sometimes it is just by accident.  Several times a week, when Rachelle was still at home, we would discover that we had chosen matching outfits that day.  Sometimes it would take us several hours before we noticed that we matched and then we would have a good laugh.

                                               

When Amy and Jeanine were here this summer, they wore coordinating/matching outfits to church. (I don't know if it was on purpose or by coincidence.)

One day during their summer visit, Jeanine, Amy, and Rachelle decided to make matching pajama shirts.  (Those of you who have read the "Twilight" series books will appreciate the logo they have on the front.)  They created their design on the computer (La Push Cliff Diving Team), copied on to fabric transfer paper, and ironed it on to the shirts.

On Sunday morning I got dressed for church and went downstairs.  Imagine my delight when I saw Olivia all ready for church--and we were matching!!  We were both wearing yellow with white polka dots.  It was completely unplanned.  I didn't even know that Olivia had a yellow polka dot dress.

Congratulations, Olivia!  You are now officially part of the "Fisher Matching Club".

Ice Cream

You may think that the only time the words "ice cream" and "Alaska" belong in the same sentence is when you are referring to Baked Alaska.  After all, who would think of eating ice cream in a place that is always cold.  However, we have learned that Alaskans LOVE ice cream.  In fact, we have been told over and over that people in Alaska eat more ice cream than people in other states.  I decided to look it up on the internet and I found the following:

"Alaskans eat a lot of ice cream. Several associations that keep track of that sort of thing have put their signature on that fact. Records show that Alaskans consume more ice cream than any other state in the U.S. The records also reveal that the average American eats roughly 4 gallons of ice cream a year and that Alaskans eat a bit more than the average. That could add up to a lot of ice cream. It's rumored that Alaska's record may even include the rest of the world but there's no evidence of that anywhere just yet."


 If the temperature is over 40 degrees, you will definitely find Alaskans enjoying ice cream.  The other day, Jacob and I went to Cold Stone for some ice cream.

            After all, it was balmy 40 degrees outside. (Notice the temperature reading in our car.)

It still seems strange to me to see someone dressed in a coat and a long sleeve thermal shirt eating ice cream.  I want to know if Alaskans still eat ice cream when it is 20 degrees below zero.  I guess we'll find out this winter.

Choir Concert

Twice a week Jacob goes to school an hour early to be in the school choir.  A couple of weeks ago the choir had their first concert of the year and Jacob had a solo in it.

                               He did a wonderful job.  He loves to sing and he loves being part of the choir.

                                                     Doesn't he look like he is having fun?

After the concert, we went to the church "Fall Festival" (otherwise known as the Halloween carnival.)    Although he had a couple of costumes he could have worn, he wanted to go as "a soloist in a choir".  So, he kept his choir shirt on and we went to the festival..

We had a fun time at the fesival/carnival and

                                     I am looking forward to attending the next choir concert in December.

Alaskan Meat

It is quite common to see moose in the neighborhoods.  However, usually we see young moose or female moose.  However, the other day we saw this big bull moose in someone's yard just two blocks from our house.

Because these animals just roam the streets, unfortunately, they sometimes get hit by cars.  That is when the men step in and take care of the "road-kill" so that the meat doesn't go to waste.  The other day, Brent got a call to go help butcher some road-kill moose.  Our freezer is now full of moose hamburger, stew meat, and sausage.

                  We are turning into real Alaskans with "Alaskan meat" in our freezer to prove it.

Please Remove Your Shoes

Alaska has its own unique culture. One of the traditions here is that you remove your shoes when you enter a home. I have even been to a doctors' offices where they request that shoes be removed at the entrance.

           Our home like many others has a bench in the entryway to sit on while removing or putting on shoes. Because most of the time we enter the house through the garage, we placed a shoe rack  in the garage near the door that leads into the house.

The laundry room is near the door that leads into the garage.  We find that the laundry room is a handy place to change from our shoes to our slippers.   We usually wear either socks or slippers in the house.

The first time we attended the Anchorage Temple, I was interested to note that not only is there a coat room for leaving coats, but shoes are removed and left in the coat room also.

This custom at the temple not only helps keep the floors clean, but you can also feel the warmth of the heated tile floors on cold days.

I think I like this Alaskan custom.  I don't have to clean the floors as often because our shoes aren't tracking in dirt.

Happy Birthday

This month Jacob had his 10th birthday.  (It is cool being born in the year 2000 because it is always easy to remember how old you are.)  We told him that turning 10 is a big deal because you move into the double digits.  Most people stay in the double digits for the rest of their life.  (My grandma was an exception.  She moved to the triple digits.)                                                

Jacob spent quite a bit of time deciding on what kind of cake he wanted.  He finally decided on a "crown" cake.  He even helped me decorate it.

To celebrate his special day, we invited his (third) cousins over to play.   The twins and Jacob had a fun time playing in the hot tub (even though it was only 40 degrees outside.)  They got the water guns and had a great time.

                                                       They then played games in the house.

Later, the rest of the family came over for dinner.

 As it turned out, we had TWO birthday boys.  Jacob's little cousin turned three years old that day.  We sang "Happy Birthday" to both boys and ...

                                 
                                             and let them each take a turn blowing out the candles.

 The birthday party with cousins was held a couple of days before Jacob's actual birthday.  On his real, he had a special day.  Each of his sisters called to wish him happy birthday.  He opened his gifts.  He LOVED the game his sisters gave him.   We went to dinner at Subway (his favorite place to eat).  And, we took him to pick out one of his present -- ice skates.  As we drove in the car, we told him some of the reasons we love and appreciate him. 
Jacob loves to learn.  He is willing to share his musical talents.   He is good at making new friends.  He is good with little children and babies.  He is preparing to serve a mission for the church when he gets older.  He loves to talk to his sisters and visit them when he has a chance.  He is not afraid to try new things.  He loves to read.  He is a helper at home.  He is good at remembering details. 

Happy Birthday, Jacob.  We are so glad you are in our family.