afternoon images

I think there's something I'm supposed to be doing. I wonder what it is. I keep getting images of boxes, huge trucks, sharpies, and chaos. I'm ignoring those, though. Instead, I focused on these for the afternoon-

I know there's something I'm supposed to do. I don't think it's scrapbooking, though. I could be wrong.

Please send help.

Untitled

A man was wondering through the woods that had become his new home. He had The North Face vest on ,that when purchased, the cute girl at the register assured him that he needed. He wasn't sure how true it was, but what he was sure of now was that he needed to start looking for a place to stay. A tent in the winter just wasn't going to cut it. The swift breezes coming off the crystal blue glacial water reminded him that winter wasn't far away. With his outgoing, stubborn best friend in tow, he set out on an adventure. He wasn't sure just where his feet may wander nor did he understand just how much land his buddy's paws could cover, but he felt prepared for whatever Alaska would throw at him. He was ready for just about anything- anything but her...

Ok so maybe none of this is true, but this is my blog and I do what I want! ;) Do you ever just look at photos and wonder what is going on in them? If you're like me, you begin creating a story for the images whether it's factual or not. I took a photo journalism class my freshman year in college. That wasn't the given title of the class, but we did more of that than anything. To this date, it has been one of my favorite classes. My guess is this is because I got to use my imagination freely. As I started out on this NaNoWriMo journey, I wanted to write down my stories. You know, the one my grandkids' grandkids could read many years from now to learn about how their family tree had come about all those years ago. My hope is that it isn't boring, although I have my doubts. I have over 11,000 words now, but I find myself being drawn to the more creative writing styles that fiction could offer.

Maybe I'm just tired of the truth. Maybe I need a little fiction in my life today. Unfortunately for you, this blog will pacify my need for that right now.

In the words of Gaylord Focker, "Can you deal with that?"

 

Wouldn't you like to know

I hesitated writing on this blog today. I haven't really written much at all anywhere actually. As I sat down to write some book notes, I realized I was in no mood to do so. My mind is out in left field, on other things. There's so much on my brain and I can't seem to focus on any one thing. I've literally done absolutely nothing today. I had plans to finish the laundry, deep clean the kitchen, and write a couple thousand words but I have done none of these things. I did accomplish writing my deepest concerns, secretive thoughts, and most interesting desires in my journal, though.



Wouldn't you like to know what's in that? ;)

When I joined the blogosphere, my journaling declined greatly. It has only been in the last few months that I've picked up the pen and paper again. Having that one release to be able to go to at any point in the day and say whatever I want is something that keeps me sane. If anyone were to read it, they'd find prayers, secrets, irrational thoughts, passionate feelings, prayer lists, bible studies, flaws, happiness, despair, and love.

There are excellent benefits to journaling. Check them out!

Inside my journal, I wrote-

"The unexamined life is not worth living."- Socrates

There's my stance! How do you feel about it? Have you ever kept a journal?

Read, Write, Repeat

I've been writing like crazy the past few days and enjoying every minute of it! Not only have I been keeping all of you updated on this blog, but I've also begun my project of writing an entire book in the month of November! Lofty, aye? Well, it all started when I read about this project, NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) a couple of months ago. I though to myself, 'What a great way to kickstart writing! I couldn't possibly be involved in something with such a ridiculous name, though.' So I went on about my day as if I hadn't read anything of the sort. I kept seeing it, though- nagging at me, bidding me to start something. I blame this girl for posting the final big sign to jump onto the bandwagon! So what if I'm moving across the country this month? So what if I have to pack? So what if I'm busy saying my goodbyes, driving for ten days, and getting settled in a new town? I'm going to do this! You know what? I've already got 9,000 words and you betcha I'm still counting. I'll be sure to let you in on this process as it develops.

In the meantime, I've been reading a lot. I have so many reviews to write, but I have a feeling those will be very late. If I'm not writing my new brilliant novel mediocre nonfiction, I'm snuggled on the couch reading another book. I was looking around at Barnes and Noble the other day and I found so many new (or new to me) books that I can't wait to read. These are on my list (although I probably won't purchase any because my birthday and Christmas are coming up!):

What a variety, huh? Lately, I've read Choosing To See, Taking Charge of Your Fertility, and Skeletons at the Feast so be sure to look for those reviews in the coming weeks. What are you reading these days?

A Dog Day Birthday!

Guess who had a birthday?! My little D-Nugget did. Drifter is moving into his adult years. We celebrated his first birthday on October 31, 2010. As a Halloween puppy, we should have known what kind of mischief we were in for when we adopted him. There have been many days that I wanted to throw in the towel, but I'm so glad I didn't. He has calmed down so much, but we still have a long road of training ahead of us. Just the other day, I let him outside to relieve himself and when I came downstairs five minutes later to let him in I found him eating Arctic Melt. In a panic, I called the vet to see if he would meet an untimely death but she assured me that he would be fine- just uber thirsty! It's moments like those that make me realize how much I love that little dog.

We got him a huge bone that he found quite challenging to maneuver. Here's a video (especially for Miss Tiffany who suggested I post a dog vlog) we took before we handed over the enormous birthday treat. The other cutie patootie in the video is our older dog, Holly.

Here are some photos of them in their Halloween garb-

Poor souls.

We did take them to the dog park to play in the snow, though- an activity a little more up their alley than playing dress-up. I like to take them as much as possible now because they might not see snow for a long, long time when we move to GA. Enjoy some more photos!

My sweet Holly- always checking in.

Drifter-always running off to his next adventure

Holly's quick, too!

The best of friends!

If you've made it this far in this post then you must be an animal lover (or just really bored) so allow me to recommend a blog for you. You should definitely check out Where Spirits Walk blog if you love dogs or are interested in dog mushing. This lady has a whole slew of huskies that she works with, mushes with, and rescues!

Also, if you're in the Fairbanks area and need someone to take care of your furry friends while you're away, call up Holy Dog Pet Boarding. They are so sweet and very helpful and convenient! We always leave Drifter and Holly with them when we go out of town.

 And now for one last picture-

Happy Birthday, Drifter! You'll always be my first kid before a kid, my Braxton Hicks, if you will. ;) Hopefully, if we ever do reproduce, our son or daughter won't be half the handful that you were to us that first year.

Last October (NZ Style) Part 2

In case you missed my post from last week, you're going to want to check that out before proceeding: Part One.

Anyway, the second half of our trip was doubly fun. The four of us woke up on Day 5 and drove to Whakatane where we boarded the Pee Jay, a boat that would take us on a tour of an aquatic volcano. The journey to White Island took about two hours by boat, but I didn't mind because the ride was so beautiful. The tour of the island was informative and interesting, but actually getting there was quite the challenge for me. They anchored the boat a ways out and then dinghies shuttled us on land. That was a task in and of itself, but when I was deposited on land, I looked up and found myself surrounded by huge, white birds. In case you missed this little quirk of mine in an earlier confession, I'm deathly afraid of most birds. Trying not to freak out, I take a few steps forward. They're surrounding me. They're near my precious head. They're landing inches away. It was a terrible scenario for me and I'm quite sure I didn't escape the island without letting my freak flag fly really high- everyone knew what a scaredy cat I was. Anyway, after moving away from the congregate of birds, I really began to enjoy learning more about this volcano. There are probably lots of people reading who have been to see a volcano, but who among you have walked on an active one? What an experience that was!



[caption id="attachment_1751" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Photo Copyright @ Joshua Reed"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1752" align="aligncenter" width="223" caption="Isn't this beautiful? Copyright @ Joshua Reed"][/caption]

And here's a short, uneventful video of Don, Josh, and me at White Island while Captain J is recording-



Our next and final stop was Rotorua where Captain J insisted on zorbing for the first time. This fun activity originated in NZ so it was a must do on the list. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to partake. I did partake in drinking some "Dracula Juice" at our hotel bar that night in the spirit of Halloween. I mixed up a few for this past Halloween weekend, too! The next morning, Captain J and I woke up early to do a little kayaking in a nearby lake. It was my first time so I found myself quite nervous until I realized how easy it was on calm waters.

There were a lot of firsts on this trip for me. Experiencing New Zealand, a place I have always wanted to go, was surreal. I want to go back so badly and see the south island, too. I want to scuba dive in the beautiful reefs and bum around the country for a solid month before heading back to the states. It's a lovely place to visit. And gosh, darn-it, it would have made a wonderful setting for a proposal!

Hear me out, though because I wouldn't change a thing. Half way through the trip, I realized it wasn't going to happen...and I wasn't sure I even wanted it to at that point. How weird would it have been to be so excited and the only people I could show the ring to would be his buddies-like, "look guys! I'm taking away your pal." I didn't want them to hate me!

The reason I brought up this entire story is because, for awhile ,I was convinced that he was planning on asking me to spend the rest of my life with him while we were there. Thank God I was wrong! He asked me later on, in Alaska- our new home we'd established ourselves in. It truly was perfect and I was completely surprised, but when I came across this post from Gwen In Love , I couldn't help thinking about my nonexistent overseas proposal. (Please go read and watch that video to see what I'm referring to as it is the whole reason I wanted to write this all out!)

Looking back to a whole year ago, I can see how far we've come. I can't believe we're nearing one year of marriage already. I suppose time flies when you're having fun...and we really are. I love my husband more and more every day and I count him as one of my greatest blessings. I still cannot believe how lucky I am. I don't deserve such an awesome individual, but I'm super duper glad that God gave him to me anyway.

*Special thanks to Josh for allowing me to post his photos to share with all of you! Happy November!

Love,

Spooktacular!

Did you all have a spooktacular Halloween? I did! I'll tell you all about it, but first I would like to mention that my computer is working now so the second part to my New Zealand post will definitely go up in the next couple of days. And now back to our regularly scheduled programming...

Whew! This weekend was a lot of fun, but boy (or girl), am I tired! We kicked off Halloween watching scary movies on Saturday with friends. In the afternoon, Michelle, Ashley, and I went to see Paranormal Activity 2 (it was okay). The previous day, Ashley and I saw Let Me In which was just okay, too. I was glad I went to both of them, though! Anyway, Saturday evening we piled up on Michelle's couches with our husbands and watched Freddy Krueger, Zombie Land, and Final Destination.

The next day we decided to get all dressed up and go out bowling and trick-or-treating. As you probably recall, I had decided to be Cindy Lou Who, but in a last minute costume change I went with something a little more fun- my interpretation of KISS-



As you can see, this was a pretty drastic change. Easily one of my favorite costumes to date. I picked up this jewel all for about 25 bucks. The best place to go for costume ideas, props, and clothing is your local thrift store. Goodwill, or in my case here- Value Village- has unique items so you won't be showing up at whatever function you're going to looking exactly like someone else in an identical costume. Isn't that the worst? I always attempt to make my costume or at least piece it together to avoid this at all costs.

Now, I'm speaking of Halloween as a very important time and to me it is! Ha! Captain J had no plans of a costume and it was driving me bonkers. I mean, was he completely unconcerned? As promised, he pulled it together and came up with what he called his alter ego:



Don't you think I should put this photo in a Christmas card and send it out to everyone? Drifter and Holly were my little reindeers. They went along with my Cindy Lou Who costume quite nicely, but not so much with the Gene Simmons/Ace Frehley look. Oh, well...maybe one year we'll all have coordinating costumes.

We definitely weren't the cutest trick-or-treaters around though. Just take a look at my niece and nephews-

And the most beautiful witch I've seen. Cousin Aster-

I can't wait to be around all the young'uns next year and see them dressed up in their Halloween fun. Until next year, this motley crew is signing out-