WHAT A GREAT DAY!!!!

WOW, SARAH PALIN for V.P.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! How exciting is this news!!!! I am floating on air. This is the best news I have heard in a very long time! McCain made an excellent choice! Most of you know, I usually am not that excited about politics and I usually am especially not that excited about women in power...mainly b/c they are usually way too liberal and abrassive for my personal taste or I feel that SOME...not all... (and please don't attack me for this opinion...I am making this statement based on what I see in the military...I witnessed another prime example yesterday when I went into Paul's work...err!!!...and what I have personally seen when I go into SOME businesses) have been promoted based purely on the fact that they are a woman...not their merits! I believe Palin appeals to a wide range of voters. I don't think people should vote for her simply b/c she is a woman...however, I welcome all those voters come election day! Hee.

Oh yeah, I forgot...

I had to tell you to go check out my friend Allie's blog...I just added her link. We went to her daughter's 2ND Birthday party. They did a Luau theme and it was so much fun. Watch the video's of her doing the hula...Wow...too cute!!!!

And then I also added our dear friends Thom and Joan whom we met while we were stationed at Ft. Greely. He just retired this year & they are spending a year traveling the United States via a HUGE motor coach. They are going to home school & try to catch some hops to Europe when they can. Check out their blog. They are an awesome family whom we miss & our kids miss theirs! They are making incredible memories!

We are alive...just very BUSY!!!

OK, So I thought I better at least blog that we are all OK b/c I have received many e-mails asking where we are & if we are OK. Since I last posted we just got so busy with the end of school activities, then summer came and we have been so incredibly busy.
Then this week I finally got all ready to start back to blogging & found out my computer is acting up trying to handle the thousands & thousands of pictures we have on here...b/c since last year getting our new Canon 30D & taking a million digital pictures instead of the "old" film pictures that I mainly had been taking up until that point...So, Paul is going to get me some more memory & then I will be ready to jump back in here.
This past week was registration for school...I can't believe how quick this summer went! I will tell you all about & share pictures soon...I promise!

Well, we had to wait until Paul's parents were here to tell them in person...they visited, we told, so now I can blog about it...Paul will be heading out of here the evening of the 2ND of September for a one year tour to Afghanistan. He will go to Ft. Riley in Kansas for training first & then head on over. His job will have him in small teams embedded with the Afghan Army. We go to a deployment briefing tomorrow...to make sure we get all our paperwork in order, etc. They are having a little class for Jakob & Rachel as well. There are only 13 of them going together and only about half are married & with kids. So, hopefully I can meet all the ladies tomorrow & we can form our little FRG and set up some activities to do together while our husbands are gone. I am so fortunate that I have the BEST neighbors in the world so they will be a big help while Paul is gone as well as the support of all my friends I have made in the Moms Club here in eagle River.
I am coming to terms with this...I have been in a little denial for awhile...thinking (hoping, praying) that things would change b/c we all know things change ALL the time with the military...you can NEVER really make any def. plans until the last minute. So, maybe next week Paul will say he really isn't going...FAT chance...but, I can always hope, right?!
I will miss him so very much!!!! I am hoping the time will fly by though since he leaves soon after school starts & we are SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO busy during the school year that I can't even think straight...so that should help! I just mainly am sad about how much he will miss of the changes that will occur with the kids...esp. with Baby Sam...I can't believe he will be 1 next month! He will be so different when Paul returns! All of them will change! I will take a ton of pictures & keep on top of this blog so whenever Paul gets a chance he can check out what we are doing! Then when we do get a chance to talk on the phone the kids will not have to fill him in on the details...phone calls are usually short and sweet when they do happen...so instead they can spend the phone call talking about how much they miss Daddy!
We are going on a little family trip down to Valdez this week...I LOVE it there...it is so beautiful. Our last trip there was 3 years ago, I can't to explore it again!
I will get back on here...sometime...I promise. Just need to fix my computer so I can access my pictures to post. Also, we want to spend our time doing family stuff this remaining few weeks. So, probably right after Paul leaves I will get back on here.

Mother's Day Hike Video

Doing flips...

The kids LOVE to play on this slide play structure! Every single day they climb all over, run up & down it, slide down it, do flips on it, push cars & trains down it, and go on MANY adventures..."flying" or "driving" somewhere exciting. I love watching & listening to them! And of course, as soon as any other kid comes in door the run over to it to play on it as well! One of the best purchases we have ever made!!!

Here's Jakob showing you how to do a flip!

A few favorites of Samuel from last week.

Here are a few of my favorites of My little Sam while we were playing on the floor. I just love his cute little face...I want to kiss his little cheeks all the time! See more in the May6 Album...

I told you Rachel liked puppies...

I forgot to take a picture of Daisy with her P.J.'s that Rachel picked out at Build A Bear. So here they are...a cute little T-shirt with a polar bear and an Alaska logo...too cute.
And here are a few of her friends. She told me all their names but I can not keep them straight. I truly think she will be a veterinarian when she is older :-).

The life of my little Ben...

So Ben had his friend Porter over for a playdate last week. They played hard for several hours. They played trains, dinosaurs, ran up and down the slide playstructure, and shot bad guys. They had a BLAST!!!
After Porter left Ben played outside for an hour with Jakob, Rachel & the neighbor kids. They mainly jumped on the trampoline. Ben was very crabby at dinner. He kept saying, "I'm not tired, I'm not tired."
Yeah, right, whatever you say little monkey :-).

More pictures in the May 6th Album.

My future ballerina???

Here are a few shots from rachel's ballet class last week. They were practicing hard for the recital coming up this weekend! See more in the May 4th album...

A few things that happened last week...

Here is Ben helping Daddy "fix" the old bike that Jakob & Rachel used to ride. Well, a few years ago Paul accidently backed over the little bike killing the training wheels.
Soooooooooo, here is Ben after seeing his early birthday present...his NEW bike!!! What a happy little boy!!!

see more pictures in the May 4th album...

Last week, my friend Kari stopped by on her way home from her new baby daughter's 2 week check-up. We had a great visit & enjoyed taking pictures of Sam & Jordyn together. I will have to see if I can find pictures I took of Ben & her daughter, Jenna together when they were just a few months old...I think I took them on the "old" camera with film...so if I find the picture...one day.



see more pictures in the May 4th album

Mother's Day Hike

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day! I had a great time with my family...but, I sure do miss my Mom!
I grew up hiking and camping ALL the time. I LOVE being outdoors...I want my kids to grow up with the same love and appreciation for the outdoors as I have. We have been able to go on several hikes the past few years but this summer I plan on doing MANY, MANY more!!! There are numerous trails yet to be explored! So, I wanted to go on a family hike for my Mother's Day present. Mother Nature was kind to us on Sunday & it was BEAUTIFUL...nice and sunny, just the right temp., and the mosquitos were not out on Sunday. So, we headed up to the Eagle River Nature Center that is just about a 15 minute drive. Here are a few pictures...see more in the May 11th family album. Here we are just after our wonderful picnic lunch.
Here's the mountain map. Click it to enlarge to see it better.
3 of my monkey's

One happy family!!!

Fun on the slopes video

What will Ben and Sam's relationship be like???

It has taken Ben quite a bit of time to come around to the idea that little Sam isn't going anywhere! He is still very jealous & pushes his way into my lap constantly! But, he is finally asking to hold him...although not as often as I would like yet...maybe a few more months??? I know Ben will have much more appreciation for Sam once he can play cars, airplanes, & trains with him...at least I hope so!

"Look, Mom, I am holding Sam so nicely!"

"Ok, Ok, I am DONE!!!!"

"Ribbit! Ribbit!"

"Cheese"

Jakob becomes a Webelo 2

Here are a few pictures from the Cub Scout Blue and Gold Banquet in Feb. when Jakob became a Webelo 2. First a Tiger, then Bear, Wolf, Webelo 1, and now a Web 2! Lots of time and hard work has made this happen!

We are so proud of him!!!

A few more favorites...

See what I mean by "ear to ear" smile?

I have a picture of Paul sitting in this same chair, in his uniform, holding each of the boys wearing this same outfit :-)! Yes, on purpose...I just had to! It is the only thing I did the same with all 3...at least on purpose.

We did not have a digital camera when Jakob was little so one day I will have to scan the picture & find the one with Ben & line all three up so you guys can compare :-). Now that I am talking about maybe I will do it in the next few days...I just have to find the print of Jakob...this may take some time...

Rachel is such a wonderful, loving, doting big sister. She is always wanting to help me...and I take any help I can get!!!

Check out these cute little digits...

This is one of many of my favorites...

I just want to eat him up...

Even in Alaska...

Paul had drill this weekend so while Sam, Rachel & I were at Build A Bear, Jakob & Ben played with their friends next door. All the kids were playing outside when we pulled up so of course Rachel wanted to join in the fun :-). Then about 5 minutes later guess who starts playing that famliar sound??? The Ice Cream truck...yes, even though it is cold up here, the kids still want ice cream!!!

"Can we Mom, Please, Please?"

"Thank you, thank you"

All the wonderful neighbor friends! We are so lucky to have all of them!!!

Views from the mall

So, after the Build A Bear fun, I drove up to the top of the parking garage at the mall so I could take some pictures of the incredible views of the mountains around Anchorage...