F R E S H

Nothing tastes better then fresh picked veggies, especially when they come from your own backyard. Well I can't take credit for the crisp sugar snap peas (they came from the local farmer's market), I can take credit for the plump juicy tomatoes. And my little picker helps me check each morning for more fresh "matos" to eat.

And you have to balance out all that goodness, with a little sugar every now and then. And an icy cool popsicle goes down nice and smooth when it's 95 degrees out. Yep, that's right, I didn't reverse those numbers, it hit 95 degrees here today in chilly ol' AK.

And while you're on that sugar rush, you can't let a huge sheet cake go to waste, right?

Somehow, even with his diet consisting only of veggies and sugar, he manages to keep things in line.

Another One Down

Our summers are short, wonderful, fiery, full of laughter and passion, but short. And before we know it, fall sweeps in with a crisp breeze that quickly progresses to a cold wind that nips our noses. And then in the blink of an eye, the ground is covered in a fine dusting of powdery white snow. Another summer come and gone.

The state fair has always been my warning bell. The hurry up and squeeze in every last drop of fun because school is about to start and winter's coming, bell. And that bell is sounding, ringing loudly even though I'm trying to ignore it, counting down.

Fair time, also means rain time. And even though the skies threaten with every step to explode over your head and shower you with rain, we tempt it. We pack up the car with one sleeping baby and one eager little boy and head on over to the fun.

You can smell the food from the very last row of the parking lot, the deep fried everything, the sugar, the spice, anything a hungry tummy might desire. We eat our way through the fair. It's the only way to do it. Hot yellow ears of corn on the cob, dipped in butter. Homemade Greek Gyros with cool cucumber sauce, funnel cakes with powdered sugar that sticks to your fingertips, only to be licked off seconds later.

Mmm Mmm, and my favorite fair time treat, elephant ears. Whenever Wyatt won't eat his lunch or dinner I ask him if he wants to eat an elephant. He always responds with a smile and head shake yes, so I knew he would have no problem when the opportunity presented itself to chow down on an actual "elephant."

And somehow we justify stuffing ourselves to the gills with all the walking that we do at the fair. And in between the walking we ride a few rides. Unfortunately the top of Wyatt's head falls below that magic line on just about every ride. So he got to ride the Super Slide, and the carousel. Such a trooper though he watched the big fancy rides looping and swooping with a smile on his face, and I promised him next year, he could do a lot more.

He did however have free run at the animals. Chickens, and cows and goats, oh my! The smell of who knows what in the barn was a little over powering, but it didn't bother that little nose one bit.

Well there it is, another one down. Another summer drawing to a close, and another birthday for Wyatt just around the corner. Sigh, where does the time go!?

Georgia On My Mind

There's something so comforting about walking into the arms of your Grandfather, feeling his embrace, and his kiss on your cheek. That is such a special moment, especially when he is 90 and I know, that those moments are quickly slipping away from me.

Wyatt, Ben and I, along with my Mom, made the journey from Alaska down to Georgia this past week. The flight down was one I wish to never repeat. We caught the red-eye which seemed like a great idea since Wyatt would in theory sleep the whole way. Well that theory didn't really pan out for us and Wyatt stayed up all night. And Ben, even though he slept the whole time, still managed to throw up all over me, I'm sure I smelled wonderful.

Finally after 13 hours of flying, we landed in Atlanta. A sticky humid breeze greeted us as we left the airport, and the wonderful smell of summer filled the air - a smell we have been missing in Fairbanks. Two hours and two very tired kids later, we pulled into the driveway at 1608, a turn that I've always looked forward to almost every summer of my childhood.

At Papa's house, time stops, it's a journey back in time, as nothing has changed in all the years, with the surprising exception of new granite counter tops. But the warm wood walls covered in pictures, and cool brick steps on which I've stubbed my toes many times, all remain the same. And my favorite, Papa's brown leather chair. Papa used to grab us by our ankles and pull us out onto the floor. And nowadays he has moved into the more comfortable rocking chair, which means at night after the kids are asleep, I can curl up into his leather arm chair and stay until my eyes get heavy.

Wyatt was cut out for life in Georgia, picking tomatoes ("Pick mato"), swimming in the pool, and visiting the farm, to Wyatt that is the life. Even when the temperature peaked over the 100 degree mark, Wyatt was still going strong. And Ben, while he just hung out and soaked in the scenes and the sun like Ben does.

We capped off our trip with a visit to the aquarium. I'm pretty sure that this place is Wyatt's version of Heaven. His eyes light up and his feet move oh so quickly. And somehow his little voice gets so loud and excited that you can hear it over the roar of hundreds of people milling about.

And then, it was home again. And every hour of our flight that passed my joy escalated a little more. I couldn't wait to be in the arms of my husband once again.

The sun in our part of the world sure isn't as hot as it is down south, but it suites me just right.

Our trip was wonderful, as any time with Papa is, but now it's home again home again, and I sure do miss his chair!

Sun and Rain and a Lifetime of Happiness

Yes, I love taking pictures, and would be happy to one day do it for more then just pleasure. But who knew spending all day photographing a wedding would be a workout!? Am I really that out of shape!?

Justin's sister Alyse got married in the Alaskan wilderness this past weekend, at Justin's Mom's cabin in Tenderfoot, Alaska. The wedding and the couple were both beautiful. But I learned one thing, being a guest and a photographer at a wedding, doesn't quite work. I had to abandon the guest title to take pictures. I heard that the food was excellent and that my kids and husband enjoyed themselves, but, I'll have to take everyone elses word for it. And then when I thought I could spend the next day at home relaxing, I instead woke up feeling like I spent the previous day doing squats.

We did get some wonderful pictures though, and I'm sure they will treasure them many years down the road, so the busy day was worth it in the end.

We were lucky to have sun on their wedding day, but overall we have had a crummy summer. The sun will maybe peek out for one day out of every 4 or 5. I'm really getting tired of gray! So on days when we have even the littlest bit of sun we have been taking advantage of it and playing outside, and making do inside when it's a little too soggy for us.

And even though today looked to be falling into that soggy category, it was the day of our town's "Golden Days" Parade, in celebration of finding gold here in the interior. I debated going or not, especially since Justin was at work, and the gray sky was letting down a little rain here and there. But at the last minute I decided that we could always bail if it got too cold. I'm glad we made the trip though. We happened to land a great spot, courtesy of my neighbors who we happened to run into. We were on the raised porch of the old state building downtown. So we were covered from the rain and a safe distance from the road so that I didn't have to worry about Wyatt. He was so thrilled to see all of the floats, and fire trucks and old cars. And old Mother Nature even held the rain off for a little while. So we enjoyed the morning, Ben wrapped snug against my chest, and Wyatt whooping and hollering at everything that passed by.

And Ben, oh my Ben, did I mention that in addition to not only being perfect, that he's a month old! Where does the time go!?

Comfy Cozy

From our tops...

To our toesies...