Braden decided to go out and help his uncle Devin with the Jeep. He vacuumed, while Devin sprayed and cleaned the seats and dashboard. It was one of those special moments for Devin. He can't wait to have a son some day!
Tuesday, June 30
Just some pics of what's to come....
I still can't believe that this is what I get to look at everyday when I live in Anchorage, Alaska! Someone pinch me!!!
My friend Sarah took these while on a hike!
These are pics from the winter time, Sarah and Matt's drive to Alaska!
Alaska...
So, I took this from my friend Sarah's blog, who lives in Anchorage right now with her husband Matthew. I love this...
1. Alaskans consume more coffee and ice cream per capote than any other state in the USA.
2. When someone asks you if you have “studs on your car”, they are referring to a kind of snow tire.
3. Seeing a moose in a neighbors yard is not an unusual occurrence.
4. The majority of the streets in Anchorage change names at least twice in the course of the 8 miles across the city.
5. You carry mace to protect yourself from bears, not people.
6. People are welcoming and friendly like Texans! J
7. When you call time and temperature they also tell you the amount of daylight (in hours and minutes) that you are going to have that day.
8. In the winter the sun stays over the south mountains the majority of the day…so you have a beautiful sunrise/sunset for about 5 of the 6 hours every day.
9. Many of the thermometers in town have different temperature readings…we assume this must be from the extreme cold damaging them.
10. Having a heated garage is a must!
11. When you go running in the winter you have to get dressed as if you are going skiing (I wear 4 layers on the bottom, 5 layers on the top, gloves, 2 pairs of wool socks, and a toboggan).
12. Carrying emergency kits (water, food, blankets, toe warmers, etc.) in the car is a necessity.
13. You are never supposed to let your gas tank get down to less than a quarter of a tank in case you get stuck in bad weather.
14. You can still have cookouts when it is 15 degrees outside…we’ve done this!
15. There are little mini coffee shops on almost every corner.
16. It is customary to take your shoes off at the door in the winter to keep from tracking snow and mud into everyone’s house.
17. Instead of worrying about raccoons getting into your trash…you have to worry about bears and moose getting into it!
18. Many trucks drive around with snow plows and/or ridiculous amounts of driving lights on them!
19. People fish elbow to elbow (literally) in the summer time during the Salmon runs.
20. Having a heated blanket on your bed is completely necessary.
21. Spending the afternoon snow skiing, snow shoeing, snow machining, or cross country skiing is very common.
22. The malls look like abandoned warehouses from the outside...but they are completely normal looking on the inside. Not sure why this is!
23. Everyone has blackout curtains on their bedroom windows because in the summer it is still daylight at 1:00am.
24. You quickly become a hot coffee or tea drinker because you need the warm fluids to keep you warm!
25. When the temperature dips below zero and your car is sitting in the hospital parking lot instead of your heated garage...your poor little Hyundai Tuscan's battery just can't take it and it will die.
2. When someone asks you if you have “studs on your car”, they are referring to a kind of snow tire.
3. Seeing a moose in a neighbors yard is not an unusual occurrence.
4. The majority of the streets in Anchorage change names at least twice in the course of the 8 miles across the city.
5. You carry mace to protect yourself from bears, not people.
6. People are welcoming and friendly like Texans! J
7. When you call time and temperature they also tell you the amount of daylight (in hours and minutes) that you are going to have that day.
8. In the winter the sun stays over the south mountains the majority of the day…so you have a beautiful sunrise/sunset for about 5 of the 6 hours every day.
9. Many of the thermometers in town have different temperature readings…we assume this must be from the extreme cold damaging them.
10. Having a heated garage is a must!
11. When you go running in the winter you have to get dressed as if you are going skiing (I wear 4 layers on the bottom, 5 layers on the top, gloves, 2 pairs of wool socks, and a toboggan).
12. Carrying emergency kits (water, food, blankets, toe warmers, etc.) in the car is a necessity.
13. You are never supposed to let your gas tank get down to less than a quarter of a tank in case you get stuck in bad weather.
14. You can still have cookouts when it is 15 degrees outside…we’ve done this!
15. There are little mini coffee shops on almost every corner.
16. It is customary to take your shoes off at the door in the winter to keep from tracking snow and mud into everyone’s house.
17. Instead of worrying about raccoons getting into your trash…you have to worry about bears and moose getting into it!
18. Many trucks drive around with snow plows and/or ridiculous amounts of driving lights on them!
19. People fish elbow to elbow (literally) in the summer time during the Salmon runs.
20. Having a heated blanket on your bed is completely necessary.
21. Spending the afternoon snow skiing, snow shoeing, snow machining, or cross country skiing is very common.
22. The malls look like abandoned warehouses from the outside...but they are completely normal looking on the inside. Not sure why this is!
23. Everyone has blackout curtains on their bedroom windows because in the summer it is still daylight at 1:00am.
24. You quickly become a hot coffee or tea drinker because you need the warm fluids to keep you warm!
25. When the temperature dips below zero and your car is sitting in the hospital parking lot instead of your heated garage...your poor little Hyundai Tuscan's battery just can't take it and it will die.
Our Special Day with Braden!
Our nephew, Braden, is so close to our hearts. He is 4 years old, he will be 5 next month. He lives in Camp Verde with his mom during the week, and comes home to Surprise to stay with his dad on the weekends. We LOVE spending time with him. Since he was going back to Camp Verde on Monday night, and we won't see him again, Devin and I decided to take him out for a special day just the three of us.It was Sunday, so first, we took Braden to church with us... Braden says he loves our church because you get a slushy! He also got a welcome bag full of goodies!
For lunch we went to Peter Piper Pizza. When we got there, Braden said he didn't want pizza, he asked if they had any lettuce! So we got a salad to go with our pizza (which he ended up eating!) and he ate his lettuce plain, like our little bunny! Then, while we waited for the pizza, Devin took Braden to play some of the games. After lunch, we played some more games. His eyes lit up when he saw the games dispensing hundreds of tickets! He selected his prizes and then we were off to Wal-mart, to pick out a toy. Braden's bir
thday is next month, so we decided to give him his gift a little early
since we wont be here! He chose a remote control dune buggy, but when we got home, it broke! SO, uncle Devin took him back the next day to get a different toy. This time he chose a toy shot gun that actually dispenses shells as it shoots the nerf bullets! He was very happy with his selection.
While we were at the store on Sunday, helping Braden find a toy, Devin, with a BIG smile from ear to ear, said "I can't wait to have a boy!" Hopefully someday in the future, we will be blessed with a son. We can't wait for that chapter of our lives!
Things we look forward for our trip...
1.) Being just the two of us : )
2.) Seeing new places like...
Utah- Wyoming- Montana- Idaho- Washington- British Columbia- and of course, Alaska!
3.) Hiking, and doing outdoor activities.
4.) Getting a tan from being outdoors so much : )
5.) Seeing our best friends!
6.) Starting a new chapter of our lives.
7.) Learning new cultures.
8.) Learning how to fish.
9.) Learning more about Devin.
10.) Taking pictures!
Saturday, June 20
Devin fixed the Jeep! (Huge answer to prayer!!!)
It was a long three weeks, but with some help, he did it! He is working really hard on finishing the trailer now, and soon we will be on our way! We hope to leave on Monday, June 29th. A little later than we anticipated, but HEY! Everything happens for a reason. God may have kept us here a little longer for a specific reason, I'm not really sure... maybe to teach us patience and how to depend completely on Him! One thing I am sure of, and that gives me complete peace, is the fact the my Heavenly Father is in total control of every step we take!
We are having a farewell party on Saturday, June 27th! We look forward to being with all of our friends and family one last time! It will be a bittersweet time... it's hard to believe that they will not be a part of our daily lives. Our hope is that we are able to make many new friends in Anchorage, while maintaining close relationships in Arizona. We have been so blessed with an amazing church family! We will always consider wvBc our home church. Our gratitude goes out to all of those who have poured into our lives, especially as a young married couple. God is so great, and has worked in our lives in incredible ways. We can't wait to see what He will do when we get to Anchorage! Our hope is that we are used for our good and His glory! We can't wait to be with Matt & Sarah! Our close friends, that we will be living with for a couple of months. We are so blessed to have them in our lives. We hope that our friendship grows even stronger!
Well, thats all for now. The next time I write, we will probably be in Utah, making way to Alaska!
Thank you for your continued prayers as we make all of the needed
preparations for our travels!
Wednesday, June 3
Well, we're out of our beautiful appartment in Verrado! It was hard to leave, we really enjoyed living there. It took three long days of packing and moving, but we're done! We're staying with Devin's sister, Janan and her husband Travis, and the cutest nephews ever, Rylan and Braden! We will stay here until we're ready to head to Anchorage. We discovered that shiping costs a whole lot more than we bargained for! So, its time to go through and sacrafice more things to sell at the garage sale! We hope to be outta here on the 20th, but it all depends on if everthing is ready! The Jeep broke down a couple of days ago...still trying to figure out whats wrong. Once that is fixed, Devin will keep working on the trailer, and we are home free! We are so anxious to leave, but are having a great time with family! Please keep us in your prayers as we continue to make way to Alaska!
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