This week funnies

We have had a pretty good week. My plan of packing a little at a time had worked. I haven't felt overwhelmed and have got so much done. 

The kids are always cracking me up. Here are just a few funnies from the week.

Lexie thinks any day the sun is shining is a "SUNday"

Lately Lance had been adding "able" to the end of almost every word. It's pretty cute. It works for most words but not all.

Lexie is still checking all the eggs to see if there is a baby chick inside.

My little boy is growing up! He now takes a shower all by himself, drys himself off and dresses himself. He doesn't need me as much anymore. I loved watching him walk out of the bathroom with his towel on, dry his hair then pick out his clothes. He is such a little man. 

Lexie farted and I go "what was that?" She says "my butt! I farted!"

Last night out of the blue, Lance said he wanted to put up a Lemonade stand. He said he was going to make a sign too and put "Lemonade Lance" on it! How stinking cute! So, I think next week, after we get settled a little, I'm going to help Lemonade Lance set up a lemonade stand. I think between 3 and 5 should be the perfect time! 

While going through the cabinet last night, I found a Hershey's chocolate bar. Lance quickly said, "let's make brownies and we can put chocolate in them!" So I got everything we needed and the kids took turns adding the cocoa, flour and so on. They did SOOO good!!! While lance broke up the candy bar and placed chunks into the batter Lexie licked the bowl. They were such big helpers and listened so good with no fighting!! They usually aren't too good at taking turns helping, but I think they are quickly learning that momma won't let them help if they can't take turns.

Andrew has spent the last couple of days in Ruby, Alaska. A little history about Ruby:  The largest gold nugget ever found in Alaska (294.10 Troy Ounces) was found near Ruby in 1998.

Ruby had a population of around 150 with 82% being natives.

 He stayed at a Bed & Breakfast rite on the Yukon River. The family that owned the B&B gave Andrew a bunch of silver salmon to take  home. 

He will be home sometime today on a plane the company chartered to come get him. This is amazing to him, because when he worked out of the Anchorage branch they could care less about him. He would sit for days in small villages waiting for the next scheduled flight. He is really liking the Fairbanks branch. They seem to take care of their guys.

Tomorrow we load up and head to Fairbanks!!God has given us soooo many opportunities! It's so exciting! 

Crazy kid

Lance is such a smart boy. I often wonder "where does he come up with stuff?" He will even tell me, "I'm always thinking!" 

Since daddy left Monday morning, lance has been being pretty awnry! He is upset his dad is gone and just doesn't understand why he has to be gone. 

Monday he put his thinking to use and made a bed all by himself. He used our two camping chairs, Lexie's old crib mattress, and his little table for his bed. 

Seriously, allot of thought went into this. 

Yesterday was a good friend's birthday. We have known Mrs Long since high school back in Missouri when she was Andrew and mine's teacher. I had a gift card to a super nice restaurant, Glacier Brewhouse, and had already made reservations for two since Sarah was supposed to be here. I decided to take Mrs. Long. 

Her daughter, Becca, came over to watch the kids. It wasn't 5 minutes after I left when Becca called. I knew something was up! She asked "do you know where Lance is? I have looked everywhere for him!" I just had this feeling about something so I quickly said "Lance Robert Conway, are you in here?" At first no answer. I said it 3 more times and then finally a little head poked up from the very back with this look on his face. He knew he had been busted! 

I told him to flip over the seat and buckle up. I took him back home and then was off to enjoy my dinner. 

Seriously I don't know what he was thinking! 

I'm praying the rest of the week goes by smooth. Today I am planning on taking a break and doing something special with my kids. 

State Fair

It's Fair time again in Alaska!! Friday the kids and I went to the fair during the day while most people were at work and most kids at school. It's the perfect time for moms with small children to go. We didn't have to wait in any lines or worry about getting lost in the huge crowds. I loved that we were able to take our sweet time at each exhibit. 

Lance loved seeing the police cars and the National Guard with their hummers and tanks.

You know what Lexie's favorite part was, The animals!!! Lance & Lexie were in love with the baby chicks that had hatched at the fair.

I loved showing the kids the hatching eggs. The kids couldn't wait to get home to crack a few eggs to find a chick ha.

We spent tons of time visiting the animals. The kids had to pet each and every one of them from bunnies, chickens, ducks, sheep, cows, pigs, goats, llama, to even the reindeer. 

We spent over 3 hours at the fair on Friday and didn't visit even half of what the fair had to offer. We made sure to save some for daddy to explore with us.

Andrew got home Friday night. The kids go nuts when daddy walks in the door! They are climbing all over him with tons of hugs and kisses. When daddy gets home I don't exist anymore. It's fun to just sit back in my recliner and watch the kids with their daddy. The kids don't want any help from mommy either. If Lexie wants to change her clothes or get a drink she yells for daddy. When I try to help she will sternly say "No, daddy do it!" 

Saturday, we had a few things we needed to get rid of so we did a dump run. Andrew has worked on equipment at the dump numerous times so he knows his way around and all the equipment operators. Andrew loved showing lance all the working equipment and Lance loved watching!!! 

We relaxed most of Saturday and then went fishing Saturday evening. The silver salmon are pretty tricky to catch. We still haven't learned all the tricks. Even though we didn't catch any we still had fun. The kids just love being with daddy.

Sunday after noon we headed to the fair with daddy. He missed the fair last year, because he was out of town working. 

The traffic was nuts!! It was backed up for several miles. 

We made it to the fair just in time for the start of the rodeo. Lexie was in love with all the horses!! She would see one tied up and beg to go ride it! Remember Big Fred from our sleigh ride this past winter? Well, he was there too!! The kids loved riding this gentle giant.

We walked around the stables and petted each horse.

Lexie would say "me cowboy Lexie!" We watched the cowgirls warming up on the barrel racing horses. She kept saying "I wanna ride fast!" One cowgirl rode up to Lexie and let her pet her horse, Shooter. Lexie was in love with the cowgirl and her horse. 

Daddy & Lance found a buddy to talk to, Hans from the TV series Wild West Guns. 

We all loved the rodeo! Lances favorite part was the bucking broncs and bulls. 

After that we watched a show with some horses, of course. We were all impressed with the skills of the horses and their trainers. 

The fair had so much to offer. We watched bits and parts of everything. Everything to do with animals, that is. A little of the horse show, part of a dog show and part of a reptile show. 

The fair was so crowded yesterday. The nice weather made everyone want to get out and enjoy the fair. I was so glad to have Andrew with us! We all loved spending time with him. 

We made the long trek back to the car and before we were back on the highway the kids were asleep. 

Daddy left super early this morning to head back to Fairbanks. He will be back next weekend to help load up then we will all be headed to Fairbanks together!

Growing up

Lexie is doing wonderful counting. She can count to 20 now! Lately she has figured out what counting means though. I can place a few items in front of her and she will count how many there are. 

Lance is into pirates these days. He watched a Disney movie at our neighbors house called "Jake and the never land pirates" and is in love with it. We were playing blocks last night when he said "scurvy". I asked him what that was and he said "it's someone that the pirates have captured and they make do things." I said "like what?" He then said "you know, like fold laundry and stuff". I laughed then ask him if I was a scurvy. He said "No! Pirates aren't around anymore".  my little boy is too funny!

Less than one week till we move to Fairbanks!

We bought a set of bunk beds for the new house. We want to make sure that the kids have their new beds rite from the beginning in the new house. This past year the kids have been sleeping in our bed, since Andrew is always gone. We want to get them back into their own beds rite from the start. Lance has been wanting bunk beds for quite a while. Anytime we go to someone's house and they have bunk beds that is all I hear about. He is super excited about the new bed. We even went and picked out new bedding. He picked out dinosaur bedding and a triceratops night light. I'm hoping that Lexie won't be hard to move back to her own bed if she is on the bottom bunk in bubby's room. 

My sister was supposed to be arriving in the morning, but wasn't able to handle the stress of flying alone. 

I've been looking into gymnastics classes for Lance to start in Fairbanks. Also, we have been looking into preschools a couple days a week for him. I know this will help with the transition into kindergarten next year...... But,  we are also looking at other possibilities like homeschooling and a couple Christian schools. 

It's crazy to think that Lance is old enough to even be thinking of school!

Lexie is still my pretty princess! But this girl is wild about animals. She reminds me so much of me; She isn't afraid of a single one and begs to pet or ride each one she sees.

My kids have grown soooo fast and I have loved each stage of their little lives, but I can definitely say that I love this stage the best. I love exploring each new thing with them. I love their independence. I love that they still need mommy when they are tired or hurt. I love they are big enough to communicate everything they need, want or to  just having silly conversations. I love seeing bits and parts of Andrew & me in them! I love these little goobers God has blessed us with and who they are becoming! I'm sooo in love with them!

Rainy DayS

August is Southeast Alaska's rainy season and the start of fall. We have had so much rain constantly. It has made the kids a little stir crazy. 

Saturday during a break in the rain we ran outside to play. Lance wanted to practice casting his fishing pole. I told him that would be ok as long as he stayed to the side away from everyone. Well, he was away from everyone but Happy decided to run rite through the line which pulled it tight and hooked her belly. Play time was over! I tried to get the hook out myself, but Happy wouldn't have it. I loaded up the kids and the dog and took her to the vet. The Doctor took a look at it while Happy sat in the car. She felt very confident that she could have it out in no time at all. She ran in to grab a few utensils. I car pulled up so fast and a young lady jumped out screaming hysterically "someone shot my dog!" Her dad was sitting in the passenger seat holding a very bloody dog. It was nuts! Just like that our quick trip to the vet turned into an hour long. Once the doctor had everything under control she took care of Happy. The hook was barely in, so she was able to get it out with no problem. Goodness what an ordeal this turned out to be!

This week I have been at a stand still with packing. I still am using everything so I can't pack up anymore. I have just been doing some deep cleaning so the house is spotless when we move out. I have had lots if last minute things to get done though, which included a trip to the vet for happy's vaccines. 

Happy was pretty nervous this time going to the vet. She kept wiggling when she was getting her vaccines. My poor little lance thought they were hurting her. He was crying and wanted to kick the doctor and her helper. This sounds awful but I was laughing. It was all just funny to me. Sometimes though you just have to laugh. Even on the way home he was saying "I'm gonna call the police on them!" I explained to him that she need stud shots or she would get bad sick and die. 

Remember how I said the kids have been getting a little stir crazy. Well, yesterday they were extra crazy. Or maybe I was just a little bit irritable after Having my wisdom tooth pulled first thing in the morning. They kept fighting which is not the normal for them. I knew we had to get out of the house and burn up some of that energy. We decided to go the gym. The kids always love the play center there plus momma can get some alone time. 

After they burned up some energy and calmed down we went to one of the kids favorite place, the library. 

Lance quickly went to the Curious George section. He loves George!

Look how big my baby girl looks standing on a stool picking out her own book.

We are enjoying our last few days here in Eagle River. Daddy should be home this weekend to spend some time with us. The Alaska state fair started today so hopefully we get a chance to go with daddy this weekend. 

Whiney Butt

This weekend life hit me. I have such a full plate and am having a hard time handling it.

This is just a quick glance at what I'm dealing with:

I have two little kids who miss their dad terribly. So they are both being extra clingy and whiney. I miss Andrew like crazy too. Packing. My Pampered Chef stuff. Getting a wisdom tooth pulled. Taking Happy to the Vet... Again! (We went Saturday to get a fish hook that was stuck removed.... Don't ask) plus the regular cleaning and cooking and taking care of the house. Andrew bought a trailer so now I will need to go get that titled and what not. Getting our address changed on everything! All utilities scheduled to be off or out of our name. PACKING etc....

This weekend everything just hit me and it hit me hard. I felt like everything was dependent on me and I have no room for error. I decided to try to relax and just enjoy the weekend. I took the kids to see Planes and it helped some. It was a really cute movie! Then it was back home and back to reality. I seriously can't even talk on the phone without the kids climbing all over me or needing some attention. I just felt like I can't do it all, at least not by myself. 

You know what? I don't have to!

Tonight I realized something.... I am trying to do it my way and well... It isn't working. I had forgotten one HUGE thing: I am never alone. God always helps me through each situation. I quickly found a few verses that really gave me peace. 

The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. Psalm 28:7

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Phil 4:13

And my favorite

But they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

See! I don't have to face the day alone! God gives me strength and help! I just have to ask and accept it (Don't worry about anything, but in all your prayers ask God for what you need, always asking him with a thankful heart. Philippians 4:6)

 I am feeling so much better. I am ready to face the day tomorrow not alone and not as a whiney butt, but with God and joyfully! Thanking Him for the strength and all the blessings He gives to me! 

Free shipping + $20 off on Toms

Get FREE SHIPPING and get $20 off your order on TOMS shoes when you use this link

http://friend.toms.com/x/PxTloU

Did you know that for every pair of toms purchased they donate a pair of shoes to a child in need. How awesome!!! 

I got me and Lexie a matching pair of toms. 

What's up

Tuesday Andrew left bright & early for Fairbanks. He is officially in his new position there. They did paperwork, he put in for vacation time for November & was given his new service truck. We were pleasantly surprised with a $5 an hour raise. 

We signed the lease on our new house. We will be moving out of this house and into the other on Sept 1st. 

The kids and I have been spent the week slowly packing and going through things, we have also made sure to have some fun too. Tuesday we met some friends for a 2 mile hike to Thunderbird Falls. It was quite interesting having 7 kids ranging in age from 8 weeks to 6 years old. 

Last night we met a friend and her kids at the splash park for a swim. It was a great way to wear the kids out and get them ready for bed. 

The kids had fun using the blow dryer at the pool.

My sister, Sarah, will be arriving the 27th. We are excited to have Aunt Sarah visit and take her to the Alaska State Fair. 

Our garden is doing good. We got it in kind of late, but I think everything is doing wonderful, especially considering it all started from seeds that Lance randomly planted. 

Every since Lance turned 4 he can't wait to turn 5. Every couple days he will ask me," am I 5 today?" Or he will say things like, "next week I'm gonna be 5!"

Lately Lance's artistic side is really showing up. He loves to draw and each day he gets better and better. 

He drew this picture of daddy 

And this triceratops 

Lexie is wanting a little puppy sooooo bad. She loves Happy, but this little girl wants a tiny dog so bad. Everywhere we go she is obsessed with puppies or little dogs and has to stop and pet them. She has even asked a couple people if she could take their dog home. Andrew is determined to find his little girl a small dog. This momma isn't so sure about that. Rite now we are so busy with the move. I'm not sure I want to throw in potty training a puppy too. Plus, finding a small puppy in Alaska is proving to be quite difficult and VERY expensive. We have thrown around the idea of finding one when we go back to Missouri in November. But, I don't think that will work either. It would be so hard to potty train a puppy in below zero temps. I am not familiar with puppy pad training nor do I like the stinky things. 

We have attended a few birthday parties lately. Lexie loves the parties. She is too funny because she insist that it is her birthday party too. Sunday we attended a little boy's 2nd birthday. Lexie excitedly told everyone in a high pitched voice "It's my birthday too!!"

We are loving life and enjoying each opportunity God has given to us. He is so good to us and always gives us just what we need. 

A couple funnies from the kids this week

There was a squirrel on our deck an Lance told me he was going to catch it. I said, "you better not, he could bite you.

Lance replied with, "nah, squirrels only eat nuts!"

Lexie asked me for a "piggy bank ride"

Biker chic

This summer Lexie has been slowly figuring out how to pedal her bike. She gets on Lance's tractor all the time and pedals a little bit forward and a whole lot backwards. This weekend she got on her bicycle and started pedaling all over the garage like she had been doing it forever. Just another sign that my little girl is getting so big!

She is now ready to trade in her tricycle for a big girl bike! 

A berry good time

Last year we went to the Alyeska blueberry festival and had such an amazing time. I knew we just had to go this year so months in advance I wrote it on our calendar. It worked out perfect too because daddy was home this weekend.

Saturday morning when Lance woke up the first words out of his mouth were "today is the blueberry festival!!!" It was poring down rain all morning but we decided to take the kids anyway. I am so glad we did because South of us the rain had already passed over and the sun was coming out. 

Alyeska is such a beautiful resort (and very expensive). It offers world class skiing and snowboarding. Famous people like Shaun White and Lindsey Vonn are frequent visitors to the slopes. Hidden beneath the slopes are blueberry bushes that are loaded this time of year. 

We had so much fun riding the ski life to the top of the hill. This year Lexie was tall enough to ride the ski lift (barely). The kids loved the ride up.

Once to the top we began our search for a patch of blueberries. Lance and daddy got rite in the middle of them. 

Lexie was mainly interested in exploring. She found several mud puddles to hop in

Lance and daddy picked a big bucket full of blueberries, but Lance fell and dropped all of them in the mud lol. O well, we were just there to have fun. Lexie and I found several, but lexie ate them all. 

The blueberry festival was tons of fun. We enjoyed some yummy food and some fun music. One thing we did that was the highlight of our day was the tram. The tram took us all the way up to the top of the mountain where we had the most amazing view of some glaciers, mountains and the cook inlet. It was absolutely breath taking. On the way up we saw a black bear laying in the sun napping. On the way down he was enjoying some blueberries. 

We have really enjoyed daddy being home all week after work and having a weekend. I can't wait for this to be our new normal!! 

Little things

This time of year in Alaska is seeming more like Fall then the end of summer. It's starting to get rainy and cooler. The leaves aren't changing yet, but they soon will be. This time of year Is berry season. There are blueberries and raspberries everywhere. Andrew found a nice patch of raspberries by a construction site he had been working at that were super easy to get to for the kids and not far from the house. Lance loved picking the berries. I don't think he put too many in the basket though, he ate tons! Momma was in a contest to get more than daddy.

 Even though daddy won't admit it, I won, barely, but I won lol. Lexie had fallen asleep on the short trip and wasn't going to wake up, so she slept in the car.

Andrew and I laughed as so many people speeded by on the road "I bet they are wondering what we are doing, they don't even know all these berries are here." 

It was such a beautiful evening and the moose were out everywhere. We drove super slow and would stop, roll down the windows and let the kids watch for awhile.

We passed so many people who never even hit the breaks. I wonder if they just didn't see the huge animal rite by the road or if they just didn't care. 

Lance is always sure to have his fishing pole with him. He is always looking for a chance to throw in a line. He doesn't care if he doesn't catch anything, he just loves being with daddy.

 I love this picture of Lance and Andrew walking together. It reminds me of the opening scene of Andy Griffith. It makes me want to start whistling.

 Lexie woke up hungry. I told her that we had picked some raspberries and she got super excited. She loved eating the berries. Maybe, a little too much. I had to take them away, because I was afraid she would get a bell ache from eating so much. She was not happy one bit about that.

As we were driving on a little side road we came upon an old guy with his flashers on and hood up. Andrew quickly stopped to help him. You could tell the guy didn't even know why to look for. Andrew quickly noticed a loose spark plug wire, fixed it and had the guy on his way. I love that about my honey. He is so loving and caring even to strangers. 

It really got me thinking. How many times in life are we too busy that we miss out on God's blessings. I'd like to think that we aren't the type of people that rush through each day and miss out on the little things. 

I know there are times that I get in such a  frenzy trying to hurry and clean the house, run errands, or get dinner made that I keep putting off the kids when all they want to do is show me something or tell me something. The times that I enjoy the most are when I stop my 'o so important' stuff and get down on their level and just enjoy the moment. I love seeing the world through their eyes, exploring things for the first time and just enjoying the little things. After all, they're what matter most. 

Salmon fishing

This week has been amazing having Andrew come home every evening!! Yesterday, he got in early so we loaded up the fishing poles and headed to the stream where the salmon were running. 

I knew it was going to be muddy so we came prepared with our boots on and a change of clothes for when we got done. The stream we were fishing in was rite off the cook inlet so it's best to be there when the tide is out. We had quite the track through all the mud getting down to the stream. 

First cast and Andrew caught a chum salmon. He quickly handed the pole to Lance and let him real it in. Both kids were super excited to see the fish.

Then Lance started with his little pole. It didn't take long and he had caught one all by himself. It was priceless seeing the smile on his face as he reeled in a nice humpy. He had never caught a fish that big before. He is used to small bluegill and bass, so the salmon put up quite the fight for him.

The whole evening went like that just one rite after the other. It was awesome! Lexie was mom's helper for awhile but she got tired if reeling in fish and just wanted to play in the mud. My little girl isn't afraid to get dirty at all. 

After a couple hours the tide started coming in. We didn't even notice until we seen Lance chasing our floating tackle box. It was pretty funny. I'm glad he was paying attention. That was our sign it was time to go. We started making our way back downstream to the path. I turned and looked where we were standing and not far from there was a brown bear. 

He was pretty cool to watch. He or she quickly grabbed a fish and went back into the woods. 

Our first salmon fishing trip was a huge success. We all can't wait to go again!