sittin' the bench

I made a bench.

This is quite possibly the easiest project I've ever done.

This bench is for our beloved homemade kitchen table.  We've been talking about making a bench for about as long as we've had the table. The pro of a bench is that is makes for more effective clean up. So instead of sweeping around 12 legs you sweep around four.  Con is that two or three people sit on one stationary bench and can't adjust it to their likes.

We had some lumber in our back yard from a project that my step son deconstructed for me and I just went for it.  Now I can get rid of three chairs.  It's part of my minimalist movement. *snort*

low tide

 Brian sent some phone camera shots from this morning's low tide beauty.

After yesterdays rant I owe you that much... ;)

renting Alaska

So we're learning that finding a house to rent in Ketchikan AK is THE most frustrating and ridiculous experience so far in our Alaskan Adventure.

We've had two different parties turn us down because we have five children.  Well they are children, not animals.  It's hard not to feel discriminated against when they tell you "sorry you have too many children".

My husband looked at a place that was priced right, but is a crap hole run down duplex and when he asked about whether the owner was going to do anything about the black mold and water damage the realtor told him, he didn't know what the owner was going to do and, "well that's Ketchikan for ya."

Finding a place to live that we can afford is starting to be a nightmare...

I called a realtor myself and she tried two different ways to get me to look elsewhere to find places to live.  If you don't want my business, fine, we'll look elsewhere.  That's pretty simple.

I fully understand why there is a T.V. show called Buying Alaska.  It's so ridiculous it's fodder for a reality show.

Well, my peeps, this Alaskan Adventure has hit a major bump in the road and the alignment is now way off.

To Be Continued...

I can't believe it's butter

So before the hubby left for AK we were going to make butter, for fun, but the cream got lost and forgotten about in the fridge.

I saw the cream and got it out and started making butter and then realized that the expiration date was today's date.  Phew!  Nick of time baby!  Nick. Of. Time.

I have a Tupperware thingy that I've used before to make butter and it was working just fine...

cream, Tupperware thingy, salt

kid powering the Tupperware thingy

the beginnings of butter

... but then I got an idea...

alaska marine highway

The Ferry is booked!






Let me just say...gettin' to the land of the North ain't cheap.  But hey, we did say we were going to go on a cruise someday...
So at the beginning of next month we are going on a cruise. ;) Yay!

I wonder if they have a kids club...

No?

hmmmmm...

Well, this is what we get to look forward to ...

just what the doctor ordered

hooked

So, they say that if you are doing something you love, your blood pressure goes down .

road with a view

That's the view from the road.

I'd wreck.

Just a little Alaskan beauty for your weekend.

Fishing trip photo's coming soon...

explain it to my heart

With the last few sappy posts I bet you are expecting this post to be about missing my hubby or something like that.  He was in training all day yesterday and went to the movie with my sister and her hubby last night so there is nothing of a significant Alaskan nature (no pun intended) to report...

So I'll tell you what I did yesterday.

I took my son to the pediatric cardiologist.

He has SVT.  It, and other weird, but not uncommon, heart problems run in my dad's side of the family.  Mine and my dad's heart "skips a beat", but my son's heart "races".

Here, let Web.MD do the talking...

day 3--poor suckers left at home

So the photo's came rolling in last night... (finally)

oh my, oh my, oh my.

What a view!

Can you believe that view?

And that's from the parking lot of the grocery store!  Ha!  No seriously, it is...

AA--day 2

Just to clarify, AA stands for Alaskan Adventure--not, you know, A.A....ahem.

Anyway, so today I'm still missing the hubs, but I'm not an emotional wreck like I was yesterday.

Saying goodbye at the Shuttle I was a blubbering idiot.  Then I got home and saw the empty space on the bathroom counter where his things sat, and I puckered up and bawled again.

I'm an emotional person by nature, but I surprised even myself by how many tears I shed yesterday.  I'm sure the emotion was exaccerbated made worse by the fact that I had had about 2 1/2 hours sleep the night before, but still...