Can this be Spring?

I freely admit that I am quite finished with the snow for this winter. Yep. I'm done. Go away. Sooner rather than later. Don't let the screen door hit ya.  And yet, it still comes down... Not that I've got the winter crazies, mind you. I'm perfectly fine, mentally, but the chore of cleaning up after going anywhere in all the mud and slush that the melting snow leaves in its wake is getting old. While the bad news is that I figure we're probably only about halfway through Mud Season, the good news is that the new snowfalls don't last more than a couple hours before they melt, and the snow is receding more every day.

Gardening classes have begun, but I've only been to one due to the flu that's going around here. There were lots of jokes during that one class, though, as a 6" accumulation of snow was falling at the time and the speakers laughingly told us what we should be doing for our gardens - just not today, haha. 

Here's Jim, after plowing snow during that particular snowfall, so I could get the car out of the garage and go to class. The man has pretty eyes.

My tomatoes have outgrown two sets of pots now, while waiting for warm enough weather to start hardening them off outside. I'm already pinching off the flowers on them. Not only have my three-feet-tall tomatoes outgrown their pots, but they've outgrown their five-feet-long windowsill and I've had to drag a table over so I can put them in double rows. I have a black thumb. I kill plants. How can this be??

Here they are on April 10:

And here they are again today, almost two weeks later. A bit leggy, as they're reaching for what sun they can find, but doing nicely otherwise.

The retreating snow has also uncovered more of the woodpile, much to the delight of Tate and Moya. Sticks are Mother Nature's chew toys, and it was so cute the morning Moya came running up the stairs with the best stick EVER.

In other, non-snow-related news, we saw this in the parking lot at Home Depot:

I think they made it, don't you? And although I forgot to take a picture of it, if I ever need a pest exterminator, I'm likely to hire the one whose license plate reads "DIEBUG." 

My fur venture is really on a roll now. The pattern I wrote for Arctic Designs' Musher Mittens should hit the store shelves by the end of May, and I'm working on the rough draft for a booklet on how to repair furs and pelts. Lee Martin, owner of Arctic Designs, is a wealth of information and is teaching me more than I could ever have possibly dreamed of learning on my own. Her partner, Leon Metz of Northland Furs and Artistic Taxidermy, has agreed to put some of my items on consignment in his store this summer. Now I just need to stop working on the writing part of it and work more on the sewing part of it! Speaking of that, though, I could use some help picking out a business name and would appreciate it if you'd weigh in. I'm considering a few different names but can't quite decide. Once I apply for a business license, though, I'm stuck with it and want to make it a good one. Tell me what you think of:

Treehouse Furs - because before we moved here (and even for a while afterwards) I told Jim we'd move to Alaska and we'd all go crazy and live in trees. Jim would prefer Treehouse Alaskan Furs.

Hairyman Furs - because Alaska's version of Sasquatch is called Hairy Man and sometimes, when Jim's decked out in his furs, that's what I call him.

Fox Pas Furs - sorta like faux pas, sorta like fox paw, only different. I might want to spell it Fox Paw Furs, though, because if you have to explain the joke, it isn't funny.

Of course, if you have other ideas, I'm more than happy to hear them.

For those coming to visit this summer (if you're still trying to decide, just come on up. You know you wanna), the guest room renovations have gone from a new coat of paint on the walls to the removal of a lot of sheet rock, moving of plugs and phone jacks, and the complete demolition of the closet that was once in there. We're planning to have it all finished by the end of May, in plenty of time for fishing season!

James Visits for Easter Break

James came home for Easter break from March 27 - April 4. My, it was good to see him again!

The first thing Jim and James did together was to pick up the ATV Jim had chosen earlier in the month. It's got a plow on the front! Of course we all had to try it, and Jim graciously let me drive the new toy first. It was nice to push that snow around! Then he and James gave it a go.

The rest of the week was pretty laid back, on the whole. Sunday we went to the movies to see "How To Train Your Dragon." James was introduced to my whole new fur venture, and he looks better in Jim's beaver trapper hat than Jim does. I made James a possibles pouch for his dice, and he made a chain mail insert for it. Here's James, wearing a beaver face pelt as a beard:

Wednesday was the long-awaited opening of the Kenai WalMart Super Center! Of course I wanted to go on opening day, so James went with me. I'm still basking in the glow of having that WalMart less than half an hour away! Before, the nearest WalMart was a four hour drive. I read that there are only eight WalMart Super Centers in all of Alaska. [update: I got that info from the local newspaper. According to WalMart's website, as of April 2010, there are six, not eight, Super Centers in Alaska.]

The dogs were very happy to see James. Moya was with us at the Kenai airport to pick James up, and she was in puppy overdrive most of the rest of the visit. 

"Put down that stick and play with me, James!"

"I has a James. I wanna keep him."

A rare puppy snuggle:

James went with us to Moya's obedience school on Saturday morning. Here he is working on "stay." James did very well, staying. Moya... well, this was not her best day of school...

James grouted the tile under and behind the woodstove while he was home, and so that's all finished now except for sealing the grout in a day or two. It looks great. I haven't taken a picture of it because the stove isn't hooked back up yet. 

All too soon, it was time for James to get back on the plane and head for college again. We'll miss him, but this time it's only a five-week separation, and then he's back home for the summer!

Keeping busy as winter winds down...

It's March, and all over the country, people are experiencing signs of spring. We are, too, but not like a Southern springtime. The temperatures are getting a bit warmer with highs in the upper 30s or low 40s. The snow melts during the day and freezes back up again during the night, giving us a good bit of ice that doesn't seem to be "right" for the long, mostly sunny days we've been having. There's still a generous amount of snow on the ground, but less new snow is falling, and that makes me happy. My brain still expects there to be green grass and daffodils, like back in Texas, and it seems odd to not have those things yet.

But there's still so much beauty around us. Remember this picture of Mt. Spurr from the Swanson River Bridge that Jim took back in September?

Here's that same view again, except it was taken last week on a bright wintery day:

Little Sweetie has also had his first taste of Alaskan snow. We drove around the storage unit parking lot to make sure everything was still working properly in the cold.

I've been working with fur since taking a fur sewing class with a local skin sewing instructor, and am working with another fur sewer to get her patterns published. I'm ghost writing the instructions. She also lets me do some of the tedious work for her in exchange for fur, which is nice, because fur can be pretty expensive. So far I've got three and a half hats finished, and a pair of slippers that I expect to finish tonight. Next up will be a pair of beaver mittens for Jim.

The dogs are doing well. Belle is still Daddy's girl and doesn't let him out of her sight much. She and Moya each have new pulling harnesses, and from what I've been reading, Moya should be old enough to learn to pull for real soon. We're not sure how serious we'll be with that, but she sure does love it.

Moya's started obedience school and has the teachers convinced she's a prodigy. She really is pretty smart, but if she doesn't want to obey, there's no way she's going to. She's the tallest puppy in her class, and her favorite part of school is recess! Six puppies having a free-for-all for ten or fifteen minutes before going home.

Tate has had a birthday. She's thirteen years old! Her health is deteriorating, but she's generally in a good mood and isn't letting life get her down. She survived to make the trip here and become a real Alaska dog, and we're proud of her for it.

Hm, it seems like there's something else big happening soon... What could it be?  Oh, I remember!

JAMES IS COMING HOME!!!

He'll be here the day after tomorrow for Easter break, and will be with us for eight days before heading back to college. We'll get to have him with us for Jim's birthday, too. I've been without him for a couple months now and I am certainly ready to have him back for a while.

New snowfall, new snowshoes...

Jim and Belle head out to get the mail through today's new snowfall. Lee's been by to plow the driveway, so Jim will be trying out the new snowshoes by cutting through the front yard.  

Belle isn't sitting down, she's trying to bound up out of the snow. But Jim is high and dry on top of the drifts.

Fur Rondy - Part 7?: Jane Finds a Video

Jane found this video of the women's Running of the Reindeer. She's running right towards the camera! LOL! The announcer is counting down the headstart the reindeer give the runners before they start off. There is a brief moment when the camera zooms in to a beige building at 1:15. The figure in black is Jim, and the one in blue just to the right is me.


Ah, good times!!

Fur Rondy - Part 6: Jane Runs With the Reindeer

Jane wanted to run with the reindeer, but since she was flying standby, it wasn't really practical for her to register for the race in advance, and once she got here, she was told that she wouldn't be able to register last-minute. That was disappointing... But, before the races started, the announcer made a last call for on-site registrations! Yahoo! Jane can run!

Here she is, trying to get our attention. I've got her circled in the next few pictures, but I think you can find her on your own in this one.    ;^)

Milling around, waiting for the race to start...

Getting into a better position to run:

On your mark..... Get set.....

GO!!!!!

Fur Rondy - Part 5: The Running of the Reindeer

The Running of the Reindeer is patterned (loosely) after the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona. Six reindeer (caribou) run two blocks down the road towards their trailer, which is scented like a doe in heat, while crazily-dressed people from who-knows-where run down the street in front of them. This was the third annual Running, with proceeds benefiting Toys for Tots. The crowds, both the ones running and the ones watching, were in high spirits and ready to see some action. I think the furthest distance someone traveled for this race was from Guam, and the oldest person racing was 63, I believe.

There were five races. The first was the celebrity race, the second was for the men, the third for women, the fourth was for couples and groups, and the fifth was a free-for-all where anyone who wanted to race a second time had a chance to do so. This was such a popular event, the spectators were crammed in as thickly as possible to get to see them. Jane's friends Rachel and Jeff graciously invited us to watch the race from the roof of his office building at the starting line, where we could easily see the race. Thank you, Rachel and Jeff, for giving us that opportunity!

These awesome butterflies were part of a group, obviously, and were certainly a crowd favorite.

The reindeer are being moved into position at the starting line behind the runners. Once the runners started off, they were given a few seconds' head-start before the deer were released.

Crazy costumes were encouraged. And given how cold it was, the less a person chose to wear, the funnier it was.

Here goes the men's race. You are definitely going to want to enlarge these pictures to get a better look at the costumes. While you've got the pictures enlarged, let's play a Rondy version of "Where's Waldo." Can you find the Easter bunny, people dressed like Pamplona bull runners, an anti-drugs sign, and Santa?

The deer are catching up with the men's group.

The women's group is waiting to start while watching the men run.

The deer are moved back in position for the start of another race.

The deer have caught up with this group and are right in the middle of the crowd already!

The couples and groups' race has just begun. THIS is where the really silly costumes were. Let's play "Where's Waldo" again... Can you find a package of french fries?

Can you find Sully from Monsters Inc, two bunches of grapes, an American flag shirt, and some Vikings?

How about Santa, some guys in red long johns, and and a guy in a pink skirt? The pink t-shirted women are The Happy Hoofers. And the stars of the show, the reindeer, are coming through the crowd, coincidentally in front of Santa. As it should be.

The butterfly group is coming through!

Run, people! Run! Those deer are way in front of you! Enlarge this one at your own risk, though. A group wearing fake bottoms was running, too. Pretty realistic from a distance...

After the group race, we bid our goodbyes to start home to pick up the dogs before the kennel closed. We were able to get a few street-level pictures of the racers as the free-for-all started. Chefs wearing sausage neckties, and a caveman:

The free-for-all has started! That guy in drag is about to catch up to the Viking.

Run, Sully! There's another Viking behind you!

That ballerina seems to be in no hurry...

And the deer catch up with the crowd!

I really had a great time all weekend, but this was the best part of the weekend for me.

Stay tuned for the next post, in which Jane runs with the Reindeer!