Jax Art

Here is his drawing, that's the neighbors house behind the moose with leaning trees between our houses in view.

Jaxon's Moose Study

When he got home from school the moose was still there so he got the binoculars (which he only needed to see detail he informed us) out and a pencil with paper to draw the moose. Jaxon is quite the artist. It was cute, he got very into it.

the moose nap

That moose hung out next to our house all day! He layed down for a nap and just stayed for hours right outside the window. Around dinner time he walked off past the house next door and was gone, we will see him around later...

just a corner in our house

The batik to the left is one of mine from last year "Raven Valley". The photo holders I made with a glue gun, stick, 2 clothes pin clips, some small river rocks and a couple small containers I had around the house. The pictures were black and white versions from our photo shoot with Michelle, "Crows View Photography"(see previous posts). The lovely little carving of a mom with her two little boys was a b-day gift from my mom a couple years ago and I love it (thanx mom:0) The other earthy things to the right are a couple things I also put together, glass moss globe and birch covered vase with sticks. The little corner shelf was made by Andy with a burl and some scrap wood a few years back, just because.

crafts with kids

I've had this 3D handprint kit around for quite some time and finally used it! (Use it or Loose it is my new motto for the year, more on that later it's a blog in itself).  Love the boys hands together like this. We will look back at it when they are grown men and try to remember when their hands were this small. I only painted the edge so I couldn't mess up the prints or cover a single line in their cute little hands. The kit was just a powder gel mix that looked alot like what our preschool teacher calls "gak" when mixed with water, then a plaster powder that mixed with water as well and when you poured it over the "gak" after imprinting their hands into it, the plaster dried, the gel peeled out and walla, 3D Handprints.

Moose & Northern Lights

Every now and then I'm reminded of why we live here in Alaska. Like this morning when I woke up at 4 am to use the potty, looked out the bathroom window and went, WOW. The northern Lights were out in full force. A sky full of waving green ribbons, disappearing and reappearing every few seconds. If you have never seen them it's hard to imagine and if you have it's hard to describe. They have been far and few between for quite a few years now but I've heard they run on an 11 year cycle. Which makes sense to me because 12 years ago when I spent my 1st summer up here (1999) working at Denali I was lucky enough to end up with the really early breakfast shift the last month I was there. Normally I wouldn't feel luck to have to be at work at 4:45 AM but that year in Aug. & Sept. the Lights were out just about every morning and the walk up the hill from my employee housing to the restaurant was magical. This awesome green curtain, it's called a curtain because it fills the sky with wavy lines  hanging and rippling like the curtain of an open window with the wind flapping it around. I woke Andy up, he had to see it. I mostly enjoyed them through the window since it was like -28 degrees below zero out but had to go outside and see the whole sky for a couple minutes. Wow but Brrr... Then this morning we had a moose in our side yard, actually not had, he's still out there. After an hour or so of browsing (that's what they call it when they eat) trees in our yard, he just layed down for a nap and is still there soaking in the sun, now that it's out. There have been alot of moose around lately because of all the deep snow. They come down from the high country to get out of it. Wish I had some aurora photos but I don't, here's the moose though.

A Very Nice Story, not by me...

The Wallet

As I walked home one freezing day, I stumbled on a wallet someone had lost in the street. I picked it up and looked inside to find some identification so I could call the owner. But the wallet contained only three dollars and a crumpled letter that looked as if it had been in there for years.
The envelope was worn and the only thing that was legible on it was the return address. I started to open the letter, hoping to find some clue. Then I saw the dateline -- 1924. The letter had been written almost sixty years ago.
It was written in a beautiful feminine handwriting on powder blue stationery with a little flower in the left-hand corner. It was a "Dear John" letter that told the recipient, whose name appeared to be Michael, that the writer could not see him any more because her mother forbade it. Even so, she wrote that she would always love him. It was signed, Hannah.
It was a beautiful letter, but there was no way except for the name Michael, that the owner could be identified. Maybe if I called information, the operator could find a phone listing for the address on the envelope.
"Operator," I began, "this is an unusual request. I'm trying to find the owner of a wallet that I found. Is there anyway you can tell me if there is a phone number for an address that was on an envelope in the wallet?"
She suggested I speak with her supervisor, who hesitated for a moment then said, "Well, there is a phone listing at that address, but I can't give you the number." She said, as a courtesy, she would call that number, explain my story and would ask them if they wanted her to connect me. I waited a few minutes and then she was back on the line. "I have a party who will speak with you."I asked the woman on the other end of the line if she knew anyone by the name of Hannah. She gasped, "Oh! We bought this house from a family who had a daughter named Hannah. But that was 30 years ago!"
"Would you know where that family could be located now?" I asked.
"I remember that Hannah had to place her mother in a nursing home some years ago," the woman said. "Maybe if you got in touch with them they might be able to track down the daughter."She gave me the name of the nursing home and I called the number. They told me the old lady had passed away some years ago but they did have a phone number for where they thought the daughter might be living. I thanked them and phoned. The woman who answered explained that Hannah herself was now living in a nursing home.
This whole thing was stupid, I thought to myself. Why was I making such a big deal over finding the owner of a wallet that had only three dollars and a letter that was almost 60 years old?
Nevertheless, I called the nursing home in which Hannah was supposed to be living and the man who answered the phone told me, "Yes, Hannah is staying with us. " Even though it was already 10 p.m., I asked if I could come to see her. " Well," he said hesitatingly, "if you want to take a chance, she might be in the day room watching television."
I thanked him and drove over to the nursing home. The night nurse and a guard greeted me at the door. We went up to the third floor of the large building. In the day room, the nurse introduced me to Hannah. She was a sweet, silver-haired old timer with a warm smile and a twinkle in her eye. I told her about finding the wallet and showed her the letter. The second she saw the powder blue envelope with that little flower on the left, she took a deep breath and said, "Young man, this letter was the last contact I ever had with Michael."
She looked away for a moment deep in thought and then said Softly, "I loved him very much. But I was only 16 at the time and my mother felt I was too young. Oh, he was so handsome. He looked like Sean Connery, the actor."
"Yes," she continued. "Michael Goldstein was a wonderful person. If you should find him, tell him I think of him often. And," she hesitated for a moment, almost biting her lip, "tell him I still love him. You know," she said smiling as tears began to well up in her eyes, "I never did marry. I guess no one ever matched up to Michael..."
I thanked Hannah and said goodbye. I took the elevator to the first floor and as I stood by the door, the guard there asked, "Was the old lady to help you?" I told him she had given me a lead. "At least I have a last name. But I think I'll let it go for a while. I spent almost the whole day trying to find the owner of this wallet." I had taken out the wallet, which was a simple brown leather case with red lacing on the side. When the guard saw it, he said, "Hey, wait a minute!
That's Mr. Goldstein's wallet. I'd know it anywhere with that right red lacing. He's always losing that wallet. I must have found it in the halls at least three times."
"Who's Mr. Goldstein?" I asked as my hand began to shake. "He's one of the old timers on the 8th floor. That's Mike Goldstein's wallet for sure. He must have lost it on one of his walks." I thanked the guard and quickly ran back to the nurse's office. I told her what the guard had said. We went back to the elevator and got on. I prayed that Mr. Goldstein would be up. On the eighth floor, the floor nurse said, "I think he's still in the day room. He likes to read at night. He's a darling old man."
We went to the only room that had any lights on and there was a man reading a book. The nurse went over to him and asked if he had lost his wallet. Mr. Goldstein looked up with surprise, put his hand in his back pocket and said, " Oh, it is missing!"
"This kind gentleman found a wallet and we wondered if it could be yours?" I handed Mr. Goldstein the wallet and the second he saw it, he smiled with relief and said, "Yes, that's it! It must have dropped out of my pocket this afternoon. I want to give you a reward." "No, thank you," I said. "But I have to tell you something. I read the letter in the hope of finding out who owned the wallet." The smile on his face suddenly disappeared. "You read that letter?" "Not only did I read it, I think I know where Hannah is." He suddenly grew pale.
"Hannah? You know where she is? How is she? Is she still as pretty as she was? Please, please tell me," he begged. "She's fine...just as pretty as when you knew her." I said softly. The old man smiled with anticipation and asked, "Could you tell me where she is? I want to call her tomorrow." He grabbed my hand and said, "You now something, mister, I was so in love with that girl that when that letter came, my life literally ended. I never married. I guess I've always loved her. "Mr. Goldstein," I said, "Come with me."
We took the elevator down to the third floor. The hallways were darkened and only one or two little night-lights lit our way to the day room where Hannah was sitting alone watching the television. The nurse walked over to her. "Hannah," she said softly, pointing to Michael, who was waiting with me in the doorway. "Do you know this man?" She adjusted her glasses, looked for a moment, but didn't say a word. Michael said softly, almost in a whisper, "Hannah, it's Michail. Do you remember me?"She gasped, "Michael! I don't believe it! Michael! It's you! My Michael!" He walked slowly towards her and they embraced. The nurse and I left with tears streaming down our faces.
"See," I said. "See how the Good Lord works! If it's meant to be, it will be."
About three weeks later I got a call at my office from the nursing home. "Can you break away on Sunday to attend a wedding? Michael and Hannah are going to tie the knot!" It was a beautiful wedding with all the people at the nursing home dressed up to join in the celebration. Hannah wore a light beige dress and looked beautiful. Michael wore a dark blue suit and stood tall. They made me their best man. The hospital gave them their own room and if you ever wanted to see a 76- year-old bride and a 79-year-old groom acting like two teenagers, you had to see this couple.
A perfect ending for a love affair that had lasted nearly 60 years.

*this was an unsigned story off the web, not sure if it's true or where it came from but, wow. I hope it is... That is love.

Jeep

Not too long ago we needed a back up car while my 4x4 wheel drive  was busted. We shopped around on Craigslist and found this, cute huh? Now we have his and hers Jeeps. Andy can't wait to take this one (his) up the trail to his favorite fishing hole. He wanted to take "mine" last year but it was our only good vehicle and I wouldn't let him so he hitched rides there with friends. Mind you I called it a "trail" for a reason, it's no road that's for sure. Probably photos of that to come this next summer...

Long Alaskan Shadows

me & my boys...

OK, I've had some complaints from friends and family that I'm not in many photos on my blog. Well, there are two reasons for this. I'm not a huge fan of pics. of me and I'm always the one taking the photos. But I will try to jump "in front" of the camera more this year instead of hiding behind it... That being said, this is for you, you know who you are. And I will add "you asked for it"... A lot of them will be like this, sorry best I can do, ha ;0)

Cold Sun...

I say "cold sun" because when you look out the window the sun is out, the sky is blue and it's a beautiful day. When you go out (because the kids are stir crazy from all the cold below 0 temps. and not much outside time this weekend) it's 12 degrees with a wind chill of -10 below. But we had fun anyway, for about 20 minutes, cruising down our road. There are a few Icelandic ponies a block away so we went that direction. Jax starts ski club tomorrow and I wanted him to get out on his skis for a bit. I went for a nice x-country ski the other day on one of our local lake trails, the snow was deep but it was "gorgeously cold" out; sun, blue skies ,crisp air and no one in sight. Perfect. Then at the car my ski binding broke, so I'm going to need to shop around for one in town. Until then I will watch Jax ski...

Brothers

 Photos by: Michelle Crow of "Crow's View Photography" (907)733-6706 Talkeetna AK.
love these photos of the boys! Thanx Michelle...

my boys

My friend Michelle is a very talented photographer and during a playdate at her place the other day she took some awesome shots of the boys. She specializes in really artsy pregnant mamas, bellies and newborn photos but can do portraits of anyone. She moved here to Talkeetna about a year and a half ago. We have become good friends and she has two boys as well, one is 3 and Hawk's best bud the other is just crawling and starting to stand up. The photos are so cute, as you can see and here's her info. here in Talkeetna. She also travels down to Anchorage, Girdwood or Palmer/Wasilla area to do photo shoots for people. Photos by: Michelle Crow of "Crow's View Photography" (907)733-6706 Talkeetna AK.