Moving Fuel

It was -40 degrees, we had about 9 inches of heating fuel in our tank to heat our house, and it was eight days before we could get a fuel truck to deliver heating fuel to our house, so Jerry took matters into his own hands. He took our three fifteen-gallon drums to the gas station to fill them up and then the hard work begins. Getting them from the garage to the tank is difficult when there is 15 inches of snow to go through. Jerry shoveled a path to make it easier, put two barrels onto our broken sled, and slowly pulled them to the tank. Once he made it to the tank, he hand pumped all fourty-five gallons into our fuel tank that is underground. We are proud to say we now have 13 inches of fuel which will, hopefully last til we can get out 500 gallons delivered.

Do I look different to you?

We had just gotten in the car from the Yukon Quest, when I looked back at Kassidy...she had a different, more grown-up look to her. I don't know if it was the bright, rosy, cold cheeks, or the waves in her 'hat hair', but she sure changed in that instant. As I look at this picture now, I can still imagine the way she looked that day. Please stop growing up Kassidy, it is way too fast and that makes me sad.

Yukon Quest 2012

Some play time while waiting for the next racer

One of our favorite winter activities...the Yukon Quest.  This is a great year because we get to see the start of the race right here in Fairbanks.  Temperature was about 12 degrees, so it was cold but bearable. It seems like it takes longer to get everyone dressed warm enough than the amount of time we are there.  This 1,000 mile dog sled race starts on the frozen river and will take the dog mushers and their team of 14 dogs over a week to make it to Whitehorse, Canada.  They claim that this race is harder than the 1,000 mile Iditarod race because of the terrain (which starts in March).

 Kylee was so excited to see the dogs race, but as soon as we got there and saw how close these dogs really are, she was pretty afraid.  Whenever a team ran by, she hid her face in Shayla and didn't even want to look at them.  She was afraid they were going to bite her, but these dogs have one thing in sight...racing!  We love dog mushing and these teams are amazing what they do, and they do it well

A Trip to the Moon

Addelyn was kind of disappointed that she didn't get to go shopping with Mom or have a play day at a  friend's house like some of the rest of the kids.  Anyway, Dad convinced her that it would be fun to stay home.  He had Addelyn list all sorts of things she wanted to do (anything in the whole world).  Rather than go sledding or snowmachining, or play video games etc. she wanted to go to the Moon.  She really thought she was going to the moon so Dad made it as real as he could.  Dad made her think through the whole trip including designing the spaceship.  Addelyn drew up the plans for the rocketship with where everyone would sit and everything and then they spent the afternoon building a space ship and flying to the moon.  They landed safely on the moon and had fun hopping across the moon.  Tyler repeatedly got out of the rocketship while they were flying back to Earth, but Addelyn had fun eating astronaut ice cream and food in a tube, and dodging asteroids.  She had a fun time after all, but at the end of the day, while taking apart the spaceship, Addelyn felt that she needed to inform her dad that they never actually made it to the moon.  Dad just explained it was because they didn't have all the right materials to build a spaceship strong enough to push them all the way to the moon.  She was satisfied with that for now but wants to make it all the way next time.

Another Tooth Fairy Visit

Addelyn sure does love loosing teeth...she is up to 6!

Dad's Helper

Tyler is watching closely so he can learn how to do it

He is a "quick" learner and really enjoyed using the drill

Here he is vaccuming up the wood sawdust after drilling

Jerry was working on a project in the kitchen to eliminate the squeaky wood floor.  As soon as Tyler saw the drill, vacuum, hammer, screws, he wanted to help.  Tyler was full of questions and Jerry was real patient with him.  Tyler was able to help drill the screws into place, but not too fast, vacuum up the sawdust, and use his own hammer to move the boards.  This was definately a boy afternoon and they were a great team and the floor "sounds" great...no sound at all.

Mom's Makeup

When you haven't seen or heard Tyler and Kylee in a while, it is usually a good idea to go find them and see what they are up to.  I went upstairs and my bathroom door was locked.  I knocked on the door and tell them to unlock the door when I hear Kylee say "Hurry, put it away."  (that is never a good indication).  I find the hidden key and unlock the door myself, and this is what I find...kids with makeup all over their faces, hands, counter, tissues in the garbage, and on the makeup packaging.  I ask them what they have been doing and Tyler says, "Mom's makeup is fun."  Well, it is not for kids, and they didn't like it when I had to scrub the mascara and eyeliner off their faces.  They did apologize for getting in my makeup and they remind me occassionally that makeup is not for them.  

TEENAGER!

We had a fun little family and friend party.

Shayla had a couple friends over from school:  Elcee (left) and Mariah (right).

It is great to catch the kids off-guard with a camera

Well, I can't put it off any longer...I HAVE A TEENAGER and what an amazing teenager I have.  I really don't feel old enough to have a daughter who is 13, but at the same time, a lot has taken place in the past thirteen years.  Shayla is growing up and it is fun to watch.  I don't like the attitude sometimes, but I do enjoy seeing her excitement as she tries new things because she is getting older.  She is great with Tyler and Kylee, is an INCREDIBLE student, we still have a great mother/daughter relationship, has chosen some wonderful friends, and is a great example to all.  

Happy 13th Birthday Shayla

Wow, look at all those presents

Shayla's friends Elcee and Mariah

We are all excited for doughnuts

Believe this or not, but Shayla is an official teenager (shhh, don't tell anyone, especially Shayla.  Just kidding, she has been counting down for a couple weeks and the last week she reminded me everyday).  We are so proud of the young woman she is becoming.  I can't believe I have a teenager...it just doesn't feel like it was 13 years ago I gave birth to my first child.  I can still remember a lot of details about that wonderful night.  She changed who I was and made me a mother.  I love you Shayla.

For her birthday, she had a couple friends over to spend the day with her and they listened to music, played with their ipods/phone, texted, laughed, and just hung out.  Later in the day, we all went ice skating, which is always a favorite.  And of course, we can't celebrate Shayla's birthday and New Years Eve without Jerry's firework display (even if it was -30 degrees).  Those of us who did go outside to watch, rather than stay inside our 65 degree home, were dressed in complete winter gear.  It was a lot of fun and almost everyone made it to midnight.

Happy Birthday Shayla and Welcome 2012!

Breakfast companions

Tyler eats oatmeal with applesauce and brown sugar for breakfast almost every day.  He absolutely LOVES any character from the Movie Cars (1 or 2) and was a lucky boy to receive Mack, Finn Mcmissile, Holly Swiftwell, and Francesco Bernoulli for Christmas.  He has not been seperated from any of them since.  They had to all be lined up just perfectly before he could eat his breakfast.