Halloween Haunting

We opted to have our annual Halloween Bash on the 25th instead of the 31st. That way it's on a Saturday - more time for prepping, don't have to worry about work, etc. It's fun to see how creative people can be with the costumes.

I never have good ideas, and this year had to rely on the "grab bag" for mine... a bright pink boa, feathered indian headdress, and bowtie that was supposed to flash but the batteries died. (I missed a couple people when I was taking pix - myself included.) Maybe next year I'll come up with something fun...

Greg picked up an astronaut jumpsuit while we were in sunny Florida, visiting the Space Center. It would've been *really* cool if we'd had a helmet for him. =)

It was great to have friends over, have a chance to visit, eat yummy food, and visit some more. I always look forward to this shindig. =) It's a bit like the "last hurrah" before we really settle in for winter. (I know that's not "officially" until December but since day-time temps are in the 20's, I'm thinking winter is here already.)

I missed having Sara here to help prep and party with - she's in Seattle for the winter (yay Sara! boo Penny!)... maybe next year. =)

3G Sunday

I've learned that all a person has in life is family and friends. If you lost those, you have nothing, so friends are to be treasured more than anything else in the world. --Trey Parker & Matt Stone

Making it to 3G Sunday was a near miss for me... tardy, but I made it (and my teeth were brushed, to boot!). We made plans for Thanksgiving, talked about etiquette, looked at pix of friends' new baby, tried some texting... making progress on the World Domination thingy.

3G Sunday

There isn't much better in this life than finding a way to spend a few hours in conversation with people you respect and love. You have to carve this time out of your life because you aren't really living without it. --RealLivePreacher.com weblog, August 27, 2003

We could add another G for today... Glasses. =) It was good to visit again - discussing the vagaries of life and making plans for World Domination. I think the domination part will take a few more get-togethers... okay, maybe lots - but that gives us something to look forward to as we're planning.

3G Sunday

And in the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter and the sharing of pleasures. For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed. --Kahlil Gebran (1883-1931)

Grandes, girlfriends, and a get-together. Could it get any better?!? =) A small group today, but we used our time wisely... checking the sales and planning which stores to hit first. Here's to organization! (Heath couldn't make it, but we're doing lunch on Tuesday to make it up!)

1st Snow

Well, I knew it was coming... and at least it wasn't September (just barely).

Coffee Time

There was a definite process by which one made people into friends, and it involved talking to them and listening to them for hours at a time. --Rebecca West

21 September

28 September

5 October

Heather and I found that life has become busy (busier?), and we're not seeing each other as often as we used to. Because it's important not to lose touch with the ones that are close to you, we decided to meet for coffee on Sunday mornings. It's a Girlfriend Date. Some weeks I don't see or talk to Heath at all, but I know I'll see her and get a chance to reconnect on Sundays. Ahhhh, sweet Coffee Time. =)

Fall Visits

I've been looking forward to Sara visiting for... practically all summer! She normally stops in the end of September and stays through the beginning of November. We visit a lot, shop, cook, clean (for the Party), and she comes to our Halloween party. (We've even done some quilting classes in previous years - but I still haven't finished my projects like Sara has.) Unfortunately for me, she had to leave early this year - I got barely a week with her. And didn't take pictures like I would have if I'd realized our time was so short.

While Sara was here, Jeannea came up on her way to King Cove, so we got a long weekend with her. Sara left while Jeannea was still visiting, and now Jeannea is gone too - so I'm sister-less. Until sometime in November, when Jeannea comes back through. And Sara has promised to spend a bit more time with me on her way up to Valdez next Spring.

While they were here, we got in some good visiting, some shopping, a girl's lunch, a get-together at the house, a movie or two, some gym-time (go, Sara!), and lots of hugs. I think I'd go crazy if I didn't know some of my sibs were going to be stopping in throughout the year to visit. They ALL know that if they're up this way, they'd better add in as much time as they can for a visit with me... and I LOVE it! Even if it's just long enough to collect them from the airport, grab something to eat, and take them back. That's loads better than knowing they were through and not getting a chance to spend some time and collect some hugs! But mostly, they add in a couple days so we get even more precious time. Yay!

Girl's Lunch

The Three of Us

Winter is going to be long and cold. It's Alaska - that's just the way it is. But at least I have some memories and a couple pictures - and the promise of more visits!! =)

Fall Fantasies

Fall is a beautiful time of year. Unfortunately, in Alaska it's short and it's a precursor to Winter - which is long and cold. (Which then begs the question: Why do I live here?!? But that's an issue for another post...) The leaves are changing and we can look forward to daytime highs of 40-50 degrees. At least it hasn't snowed yet...

Fall Colors

Sleeping Lady in the Morning

The shot of Sleeping Lady we got after we dropped Sara at the airport. A crisp Sunday morning.

What is it? --Part III

There's something going on in my backyard...

Could it be a stage?

Or a playhouse?

That's no final curtain...

Welcome to our new shed!

Growing Things

Our neighbor is new (he moved in this past Spring), and he works in construction over the summer - which means he is really busy. I don't think he mowed the lawn at all this summer. As I was on the deck this fall, I noticed that he has some extra growth.

Rain Gutter Baby Trees

Since we don't have rain gutters (yet - it's in the plan for the future, when we paint the house), I never thought about it. Apparently we're going to have to clean things out so we don't get little trees...

Climbing Chickweed

This particular weed (I know it as chickweed) is very prolific - it'll take root anywhere and crowd out whatever is growing. I didn't realize it also grows like ivy - here, it's climbing the stairs to the neighbor's deck. Fortunately the fence and some Weed Be Gone kept most of it out of our lawn...

'Do Rag

When you're going on a long trip on a motorcycle, you need certain gear. Rainproof pants & coat are a good start. Helmet (of course). Gloves & boots. But you also need something to help keep the neck protected - as the helmet doesn't quite do it. Greg found a 'Do Rag sewn in a tube to work for his purposes, and modeled several different ways to wear it.

To keep the sweat out of the eyes

Pirate Style

For cold/wet weather - to protect the neck & chin

Hopefully he doesn't wear it this way while driving...

Stack 'n Slash

It's Baby Time!! Not for me, of course. For a friend of ours. I've made lots of baby quilts - primarily the Trip Around the World pattern (examples here). This time, I wanted to try something new, but easy - since we didn't have a whole lot of time before the shower. I'm great at procrastinating...

We picked the Stack 'n Slash quilt. Basically, you take 10" squares of a bunch of different fabrics, stack them up, cut them, rotate the top of one side to the bottom, then sew them back together.

Repeat that process two more times, then trim the squares to 8" and sew together. Next add the border. Then layer the backing, batting, and top and sew together. A little top stitching, and voila!

Nita did all the sewing, and I did the cutting and ironing. Teamwork! A nice bonus is that you can hardly tell (unless you look really hard) where I wasn't paying attention and didn't trim the squares up right (I blame it on America's Got Talent). Could have been a real problem with another pattern, but it turned out fine for this one.

The entire process took about a week of evenings. There's another baby due soon - I think I'm going to do this one again, but change some of the angles of the cuts to see how it comes out. Should go a little quicker, since we've got some experience.

Fair Time Again

I would like Fall better, if Summer hadn't been so cold & rainy. It also is the harbinger of Winter, which lasts entirely too long and is cold and snowy. Sometimes I think I live in the wrong place. But thoughts of Winter were far away a couple weeks ago, when we went to the Alaska State Fair. We happened to get good weather, and spent an enjoyable day eating (fresh donuts), visiting, eating (freshly battered corn dog and fried pickle chips), seeing the sights, and eating (cotton candy, corn on the cob, fresh kettle corn, funnel cakes, fresh pretzel (the frozen ones just don't compare), and having fun.

We spent the morning wandering around and doing some geocaching. Spent time in the exhibits looking at the beautiful quilts and art work. Then, when the dogs were barkin', we took a break to rest for a bit.

Stacy & I decided to visit the face painting booth while the boys ran around getting more caches. We also visited the animals and got to see cute baby pigs and a pygmy goat (it's so tiny!).

As always, the veggies are a huge draw. Most of the big ones weren't out yet - we would have had to come the next weekend, after they were weighed and judged. But there were a couple fine specimens to see. I've never seen a Giant Puffball before...

And there are always loads of gorgeous flowers. I really like the floral depiction of the state flag - and (of course) sunflowers are a huge draw for me.

So, another fair has come and gone. The leaves are falling and Winter is fast approaching. At least I have some fun pictures to ease the disappointment that Summer is gone...