Under the Tucson Sun

Let me start off by saying "I LOVE being a stay at home mom!"  Brad had a three week training for work in Tucson, AZ in March, and since I had no job tying me down, Kadlin and I packed up and went with him.  We had a fabulous time lounging in the sun and taking in some of the sights.  We walked several miles each day and just enjoyed soaking up all that Vitamin D.  Unfortunately, we were only able to stay for about 10 days, but that was long enough.  We actually looked at changing my ticket to stay a bit longer, but after the sticker shock of 500+ dollars, we decided it would probably be best if I just went home as scheduled.  Kadlin did as well as any 5 month old baby would do flying all day.  The only major issue we was in Denver on the way back when the plane had some mechanical issues before take off and we were stuck on the tarmac while the plane quickly heated up to a very uncomfortable temperature.  With the help of the flight attendants, I was able to get her cooled down and calmed down and then she slept the rest of the flight.  Waking up the next morning in Anchorage to snow was a slight slap in the face, but as I made my way down to the peninsula, the weather cleared up and the sun was shining.  I was actually really surprised to see how much snow had melted while I was gone.  The other big surprise was how long the days are.  It is now 9:30 at night before it begins to get very dark!!

We celebrated Brad's birthday on the 9th.  We had a wonderful day just spending time as a family with a quick trip of taking me to the ER for what Brad calls "an incident with an apple slicer."  Turns out those Pampered Chef apple slicers are REALLY sharp.  Fortunately, I didn't require stitches and we were in and out in about an hour.

Today it is snowing a heavy wet spring snow.  It is a little depressing, but I know that green grass is under there and it will only be a short time before it is back.  Miss Moose has been back in the neighborhood enjoying the spring by eating all the tender new grass and resting under the trees.  It is still an odd sight to me to see these huge animals nonchalantly hanging out in my front yard.

There isn't much else going on in our lives right now.  We are just anxiously awaiting summer to see if it is as wonderful as everyone claims.  At the very least, we have quite a bit of company planned for throughout the summer, so that will be nice.  So without further ado, here are some new pics.

Soaking up some rays poolside

Brad has been wanting to take this picture since Kadlin was born.  He finally got his opportunity!

Trying out the swimsuit for the first time.

First time in the pool.  She loved it!!

Little Lolita sitting in the window of Rosa's Cantina at Old Tucson Studios

First carousel ride.  She loved it too!!

Brad's birthday cake

Catch Up!!

It has been quite awhile since I have last posted, so here is a quick rundown of what has been going on with the Alaska Humbracht's!  Kadlin is coming up on 5 months and is continuing to grow, which is a good thing I guess, but it is kinda sad.  But it is also a lot of fun to watch her develop.  She is finally getting big enough that she is starting to figure out how to jump in her jumperoo, which makes her very happy.  She has also started solids, and is eating like a champ.  It is kinda like feeding a little bird; she has her mouth open and squawking at me if I don't keep it coming fast enough.

We went to Anchorage at the beginning of March to take in all the festivities of the Iditarod and the Fur Rendevous.  Of course, the real reason I wanted to go was to go shopping!!  We had a lot of fun and wound up buying a new camera.  The store was warm and conveniently located near the start line of the Iditarod and it was a little cold that morning.  Bad combination!!  So now we have a nice camera, but don't really know how to use it.  I guess a Photography for Dummies book is probably in order.

We continue to take frequent trips out to the Spit to check things out.  Coming from where we come from, seeing the ocean is just fascinating.  This weekend is the Winter King Salmon Derby, so I am sure we will be out there again watching the boats come in.  Since it has been warmer, we have been able to take the dogs and Kadlin out on the beach.  Wallace LOVES it, and runs all over like a crazy man.  Gracie, on the other hand, would be happier on a white sand beach where she could just lay around in it! 

On one of our trips out on the Spit we found the Time Bandit, the crabbing boat from Deadliest Catch.  That prompted a quick walk on the docks to get pictures.  It was really cold and windy, and Brad's ugly hat that I hate flew into the water.  I was pretty excited, but Brad decided it was "littering" and that he needed to get it out.  So as the hat slowly made its way to the dock, I was holding on to hope that it would sink, but alas, it did not, and Brad was able to rescue it.

We are headed to Tucson next week as Brad has a training.  He will be gone for 3 weeks, and Kadlin and I are going down for the first half.  I am excited to have a break from the winter landscape and to soak in the sun.  Kadlin will also have her first experience with a pool, so we will see how that goes!

Well I guess that is about all for now.  Here are some pics and I hope you all enjoy!

All dressed up for church

1st and last big snowstorm

Miss Moose-I heard snow crunching and looked up thinking someone was pulling in the driveway.

Snug as a bug in a rug

Happy St. Patty's Day

Finally...Alaska Weather

We have been here for about 2 months now, and have been a little underwhelmed with the weather (not complaining).  The temperature hangs out in the 20s to high 30s, and there has been little snow.  So while the rest of the US was getting hit with terrible blizzards and bitter cold, we were graced with snow.  Three days of snow to be exact.  The temperatures have been around freezing, so it isn't cold, but we have snow.  I wore Brad's irrigation boots (which come to my knees) out to take these pictures thinking they would be tall enough.  I was wrong.  The snow was up to my mid thighs, which isn't saying much, but still, it seems like lots of snow to me!  Anyway, the important thing to notice in all these pictures is how level the snow is.  That's right, no wind equals no drifts.  In fact, I think the snow is rather pretty the way it lays heavy on the trees.  And it is nice to not see a 10 ft drift right next to a bare spot.  And the snow is still soft and fluffy, not wind blown into hard pack.  So after our dose of snow, I can say I am still truly happy to be here even though I am a little happy that the snow has stopped for now.  Hope you enjoy the pics.

That gigantic blob is our car.  Notice how much darker the sky is over the bay.

Disclaimer-Her snowsuit is very warm and we were only outside for about 5 minutes :)

Her Bumbo chair is such handy helper for taking pictures.

I love this picture!

It's HOMERoid, not Hemorrhoid!

Since my last post, I have received some "fan mail" from a certain someone (ahem, father-in-law), who made some valid points.  First off, the title is Homeroid, as in someone who lives in Homer.  Not hemorrhoid.  This certain someone thought that calling myself a hemorrhoid was not a very good title :)  Secondly, he pointed out that there were no pictures of the most important lady in Alaska (was disappointed to find out he wasn't talking about me), which I did point out that there was one.  But he was right, there weren't very many, so here are some more.  These are her 3 month pictures, that I took.  We are lacking friends with photographer skills up here, so I am left to my own devices :(  Might have to take her somewhere for the rest of them.  Anyhoo, I hope you enjoy the pictures.  Special thanks to Charlotte and Grandpa Kalstrom for the clothes and Amber of Peekaboo Bowtiques and More for the bows!

Life as a Homeroid

Since I am officially a resident of Homer now, I thought I would share some tidbits about what makes Homer so unique.  First, for a town that is very dependent on tourism, you will experience some of the worst customer service ever.  PERIOD.  I don't understand it, service people for the most part are horribly rude and grouchy.  But, everybody, and I mean everybody loves babies.  I have literally been followed through the store by people who are wanting to look at Kadlin.  Of course, with her being as cute as she is, I can't hardly blame the people :)

And then there is the wildlife.  I mean moose, they are to be expected.  Moose in the yard, no big deal.  But pheasants??  What are pheasants doing in Alaska?  I thought that was just a South Dakota thing.  We were surprised to look out the window shortly after arriving and see a small group of pheasants helping themselves to whatever they could find to eat in our yard.

Back to the people.  Nobody lets a little snow stop them from doing any of their outdoor activities.  They have special bikes with big fat tires they ride all winter.  They go surfing, if you can call standing on a board with a paddle while a puny wave goes by surfing.  I mean, I don't know much about surfing, but I have seen the movie Blue Crush, and that is what I expect to see when someone is surfing.  And then there are the people who do extreme sports!  Sea kayaking, parasurfing and my favorite one yet, paraskating.  All of those look very appealing to me.  Not sure if it would be a good idea for me to try them or not, but it looks like fun.  And last but not least, the favorite past time around here is driving your car as fast as you can and putting it into some sort of slide or spin on Beluga Lake.  Someone told Brad that it was good training for the kids to learn how to drive on the ice.  This lake is right in town, but apparantly none of the local law enforcement agencies have jurisdiction over it.  I would like to go ice skating, but I am scared I might get run over.

Driving in town can be a little daunting.  Everyone drives fast, but the worst are the taxi drivers.  I am not sure who they drive around, but there are a lot of them, and they are always going fast.  And some of the vehicles here are just as interesting as the people.  Today Brad saw a car where they had replaced the bumper...with a piece of driftwood.

One other thing that is unique to us is all the boats.  Big ones, small ones, fancy ones, crappy ones.  You name it, they are here.  Some don't even look seaworthy, but everyone has one.  Instead of seeing horse trailers and campers in people's yards there are boats. 

Finally, the weather.  It is seriously paradise here.  The wind hardly ever blows and that in itself is wonderful to me.  And the temps stay fairly warm compared to Montana and South Dakota.  It gets in the single digits occasionally, but for the most part it hangs out in the upper 20s lower 30s.

Oh, I almost forgot the Russians or Old Believers.  They wear long shiny skirts with scarves on their heads.  They do not wear wedding rings, but can have several piercings in their ears.  And they drive some of the nicest vehicles around.  There are several little villages around here, and they seem to do a lot of their shopping in town.  I hope to be able to learn more about their culture and beliefs as I find it very interesting.

View from top of the hill looking out across the bay

End of the Spit looking across the bay

Sea kayakers launching

Paddling across the bay

Our Home

Even with all the differences, we are loving it here.  The people Brad works with are simply wonderful and the scenery and location can't be beat.  I drive out on the Spit every chance I get.  We miss our family and friends and hope that we get some visitors this summer.  I can't wait to show off our new home!

Pictures of Kadlin

Since some of you may not have Facebook, where I post most of my pictures, I thought this may be a simpler way for you to view them.  Our little baby is growing up so fast.  She is 10 weeks old today, and is starting to wear her 3-6 month clothes.  Of course, we are a little biased, but we think she is just the cutest baby and awfully neat too!  Anyway, here are some updated pictures of her.  Hope you enjoy!

One of her first true smiles.

Her Santa hat was a little small and left her looking a bit like a sailor.

Really getting the hang of the smile now.  She has even started adding in a giggle and laugh every now and then.

We love going to the beach!

This was a great Santa and he was awesome with Kadlin.  She didn't even cry!

Headed to the New Year's party.