Russian River

So...do you recognize this background? You should if you've checked out our blog. If you scroll far enough down, you will see Shayne and I in this exact same spot...but with some added green foliage, and a little more warm looking sunlight. :)

On Wednesday the 2nd, Bob Malvin (a nurse in the ER w/ Shayne), Shayne and I snowshoed into the Russian River Falls. It was about a 6+ mile round trip hike, but was a blast. It was a little colder than the Lost Lakes hike, but was still fun. We hiked in, ate some lunch, explored around the river (while Shayne practiced his nymph drifting), and then hiked back out.

Can you tell that Shayne is a die-hard fanatic when it comes to fly-fishing?! He didn't catch anything, and he knew he probably wouldn't. But, how could he pass up the chance to cast a fly in the Russian River...even with all the snow and ice?! Crazy!! That's all I have to say!!

This will be the last fun outing for a bit for us...Shayne went back to work tonight, and I go back to school on Monday...ugh. Between work and basketball, our next adventure will probably be our Mexico trip over Spring Break in March. I'm hoping we can do some small snowshoeing hikes, but we'll see...I have a feeling I'm going to be doing a lot of sitting on school bleachers for the next two months! Yeah for me! :b

Hey...did I mention we are getting more light everyday now?! Just wanted to make sure you all knew! :)

p.s. Happy Birthday to my Mom today!!! I can't believe you're only 29!!

Lost Lakes

So, there's been a little tradition among Shayne's friends since he's been up here to hike/snowshoe up a trail near Seward just after Christmas. We did it last in 2004, but have all been busy with different things and haven't gone for 3 years. However, this year I told Shayne I wanted to go. So, this year we reserved the public use cabin the Forest Service has at the top of the winter trail and spent the night. We went with Tyler Zollinger, his wife Liz is 7 months pregnant so she couldn't come, Jeff Dahlstrom (Shayne's old roommate), and Leanna, Jeff's girlfriend.

It is about a 2 mile trail up some pretty steep terrain. In fact, you don't hike this particular trail in the summer, because it's too steep. However, in the winter with the snow pack you can snowshoe and snowmobile up it quite a bit easier. It really is a workout.

I just have to tell you that Shayne is awesome!! He worked Wednesday night, and we left Thursday morning to start the hike. He got zero sleep, and ended up pulling all our stuff in a sled and a carrying a pack up the hill. I had a smaller pack as well, but Shayne did all the work. He's my hero! The fun part about this hike is that after hiking all the way up, you can sled, or ski most of the way down. So, since Shayne pulled that heavy sled all the way up, I told him he could ride it back down the next morning. We took our dogs, and they had a blast! Bo, the retriever, loves snow!! He ended up gaining about 10lbs in snowballs that attached to his long fur...pretty entertaining watching him pulling them out.

Anyway...the view from the top was incredible! You can see the town of Seward below with the mountains of Prince William Sound surrounding it. The ocean is beautiful!! So...if any of you are brave enough to visit during the winter time...there's still some super fun activities and incredible views to be seen!

And by the way...winter solstice was December 21st, so we are getting more light every day!! It might be only 10 seconds a day, but it's getting lighter!! Yeah!!

Shayne's Christmas

Since Shayne has to work the nights of Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and the day after Christmas...we decided to have our Christmas this morning...on Christmas Eve.

I had been working on Shayne's main present for two days. I painted the wall on Saturday night, and then put up the vinyl lettering and hung the pictures on Sunday. I ordered the frames from http://www.allbarnwood.com/. They are pretty cool frames, just don't have them shipped...they charge outrageous shipping prices!!

The picture in the middle was taken by another nurse in the ER, Bob Malvin, and it's of Shayne's favorite river, the Russian River. The other pictures are a collection from the past year or two. The saying is the last line in Shayne's favorite book, A River Runs Through It. It's very appropriate for him.

Anyway...he got to see his room this morning and loved it. It has been his room since we moved here, it's got his massive pine fly-tying desk, and all his/our fly rods (notice them in the corner in the basket), but the room was pretty plain. So...I fixed it up a little. I love finding that present that you would never expect, that takes some time to put together, and has some sentimental value...giving those kinds of presents are the best! Makes my whole Christmas!!

My Horse!!

Yeah!! I got my Christmas present early! Shayne bought me a horse...kind of. About 3 weeks ago, Shayne went steel head fishing and I stayed and helped a friend with cleaning a house they were getting ready to sell. I got a phone call from the girl who I'd been riding horses with this past summer. She had found a horse and she was sure I needed to buy it. After asking some questions about it, I told her I was interested in buying the horse. So...I called Shayne and left a message on his phone, informing him I had just bought a horse! :) Does it really matter that Shayne is actually the one paying for it?! At least now he can say he bought me a horse!!

Anyway...he's not quite two years old, and still a stud colt. His registered name is Yucojo Cash, but I think we'll just call him Cojo. He's originally from Oregon, and has only been in Alaska for about 3 months. He's very tall for a not quite two year old...he's about 14.2-14.3 hand horse. He's got some great bloodlines (double bred Dash for Cash on the bottom, and all kinds of Hancock on the top) considering what's available in Alaska. I've very excited about him. He was delivered two weeks ago, and I've loved having him. It's been a little cold to do very much with him, but we've been over and handled him, changed out his halter, and groomed him. He's had absolutely no handling whatsoever! But...he's been a doll. He's got a great mind set, doesn't spook, kick, bite, or strike even when we are doing stuff he's uncomfortable with. I'm hoping to be able to maybe ride him by this fall...he should be plenty big to ride as a two year old! :)

Shayne is very excited. Anything he can do to put the roots a little deeper here in Alaska, he's willing to do. So...if having a horse will make me less likely to want to move...then he's all over it!! :) He's actually excited to do/learn about something that I really love and enjoy doing. Ever since we've been married I've picked up or learned all the things he loves, so now he figures he can return the favor.

So...there's my exciting news!! I have a horse...in Alaska!! :)

Christmas 1996

So...I've been terrible about keeping up with my Christmas memories, but I figured that I'll put up as many as I have time to do. The funny thing is that this memory is the same as Trish's...she's the one to my left in the pic. (The pic was taken in 2004 for our used-to-be-annual get together. From L-R: Jamie, Me, Tricia, Tara and her little boy McCoy.) I had been thinking about this memory for over a week now, but haven't had time to post it. Then yesterday, I checked Trish's blog and found she had written about the same memory. Too funny!! However, I have some different memories about the same Christmas. So...if you want to read Trish's version of the memory go to her blog, you'll find her website under my friends list. It's a pretty funny story...but maybe you had to be there! :)

Tricia was right that the four of us were 4 peas in a pod. We got along better than any other group of roommates I've ever had. We had some hilarious times in that apartment that year...sleeping outside on the lawn when the sprinklers turned on, or sleeping on the golf course when the sprinklers turned on...kind of a recurring theme huh?! :) Had I not moved to Alaska, we would still be getting together every year. I absolutely loved those roommates!!

Anywho...Christmas that year...so many memories that I'm not sure where to begin. One of us (I'm not naming names!!) had received a huge beautiful poinsettia from a boy. We loved it, until that "boy" turned into a jerk...then we put the poinsettia right by the door so it would die a long, slow painful death from the cold air coming from the opening/closing of the door! :)

Then there was the tree. I don't remember all the details about getting the tree...I'm pretty sure we had to enlist another boy to get the tree from the tree lot to our house...we were really good about getting boys to help us with all sorts of "projects". But decorating the tree I can't forget. We had to make at least 3 runs back to the store to get more and more lights for Tara to put on the tree! We seriously had 10 strings of 200-300 light strands on that tree...do the math...yup there were ~2000-3000 lights on this little tree! I say little, b/c we were poor and had to pool our money to buy the tree in the first place. I'm seriously not exaggerating!! Then we all went and found an individual ornament to put on the tree...I'm pretty sure Tricia had received a Hallmark ornament from Susan that she ended up putting on the tree.

Anyway...we were so excited about our "Vegas" tree, that we decided we had to sleep by the tree. So, we ALL hauled out our little twin mattresses into the living room where the tree was. Of course we couldn't sleep on the floor! We had class in the morning! :) Now...we had to document our little slumber party by the Christmas tree. So we all grab our cameras and set them up on timers to take pictures of the four of us in our pj's on our beds by the tree. Well...in one of the pictures my lovely roommates made me look at the wall, b/c I'm blind as a bat without my glasses or contacts. They thought it would be hilarious if in one of the pics it looked like I couldn't see where the camera and instead stared at the wall. I can blame them all I want, but I'm the dork who actually looked that the wall!! I still have that picture somewhere! :) If I explained in entirety the reason they were so insistent of making me look so blind, you would be reading this blog for days!! Just know that it's hilarious, involves one of the sprinkler stories, and I still get called Velma b/c of it. Tricia, I'm sure is laughing so hard there are tears rolling down her face! :)

That was seriously one of the funnest Christmas's I ever had while living with roommates. I still have the same little laminated scripture card that Tricia mentioned in her blog. I'm so grateful I had the wonderful opportunity to have such an incredible year with 3 of the most amazing, fun, intelligent, and spontaneous girls ever!! I swear I have more crazy stories about us four than any other roommates I've had...and I've had a lot of roommates! :) So...Tricia (and Jamie and Tara if you ever read this), I love you to death!! Thanks for the awesome memories!! :)

Christmas Memory #2

This Christmas memory will probably be the hardest to write about. This memory is from Christmas of 1997...ten years ago.

I was on my mission in the Arizona, Tempe mission. Before I had left for my mission I had challenged my Grandpa Price to be in the temple when I went through. My grandpa and I were pretty close. Most of the family acknowledged that I was one of his favorite granddaughters, and he had a few granddaughters. Anyway, he hadn't been back to the temple since he had taken his own family through to be sealed when my dad, who was the youngest of six, was five years old. He accepted my challenge, but because of different health issues that came up, was unable to be in the temple when I went through.

I was able to talk to my family earlier on Christmas morning, and then went to dinner at some members homes, and then went to the Bishop's house of one of the wards we were covering for the evening. My dad had asked me to call back in the evening, because my Grandma and Grandpa Price would be there, and they wanted to talk to me. I talked to my grandma, and then my grandpa got on the phone, and the first thing he did was tell me that he had gone back to the temple. He had done so about 2 weeks previous with my dad and my uncle, both his sons. He was so excited and proud to tell me that he had accepted my challenge and been successful. I was so happy! I can't even describe the feelings I had when he told me he had gone back. I still consider it one of the most spiritual experiences while on my mission.

It was the last time I talked to my Grandpa. He died two months later. It was like Heavenly Father waited for him to get back to the temple. I stayed on my mission instead of going home for the funeral. It was one of the hardest decisions I've made, but I knew my grandpa wanted me to stay.

Of all the Christmas presents I've ever received, I'm pretty sure hearing my Grandpa tell me he had gone back to the temple, was the greatest present of all.

Christmas Memories

I told my friend Tricia I would join in her great idea of posting 12 Christmas memories. I'm a little slower getting started, but it's better late than never right?!

I've been thinking of what I would put for 12 Christmas memories...and the first memory that comes to mind was last Christmas. Maybe it's because I have a terrible memory and this was the easiest to remember, or maybe it's because it really was memorable. Either way...here's my memory from last year's Christmas, and man it was kind of a crazy one.

My youngest sister Shancy decided to get married on Dec. 22nd. Shayne and I had just moved down here to Soldotna about 2 months earlier, so Shayne was low man on the totem pole at work. This meant he had to work Christmas Eve, and Christmas. So...Shayne told me to go to her wedding and stay and spend Christmas with my family. I went and Shancy's wedding was wonderful, and it was really nice to see a lot of my extended family as well at her reception.

I was also able to drive to Shayne's parents and spend a day with them and have a small Christmas party. Looking back on it now, I wish I had spent another day with them. They are so wonderful. I could not have chosen better in-laws.

Christmas Eve was on a Sunday last year, so I was also able to bring my flute and accompany the ward choir that my mom directs for their Christmas program...which was a lot of fun. Then, the whole family went to my Grandma Price's for dinner and the Christmas party. I was again able to see a lot of my cousins that I hadn't seen in over a year...or more. It was so much fun. But...the best part was going back home and having our own little Christmas party back at my parents house.

In order to save some money I actually ended up flying back to Alaska on Christmas day. So, we decided to have our big family get together on Christmas Eve. We all sat around and opened presents, and had a really good time. I loved watching all my nephews open their presents and to see how excited they all were about Christmas. In fact the pictures are of Maestin and Addler in their new chaps...they were in love! Ruxton was so excited about his new hat and boots, and Gavin loved his rope. They truly are a bunch of little cowboys.

Anyway...I had a great time with my family. I hadn't spent a Christmas with them in about 3 years, because of being in Alaska with Shayne. But...the most memorable thing about that Christmas, was how much I missed Shayne. I came to realize how important our own personal family is. My extended family is wonderful. I'm very close to my parents and siblings, and I love Shayne's family as much as I love my own. However, even though I was surrounded by my brothers, sisters, nephews, and parents...the person I would have wanted to be there the most wasn't. I remember trying not to cry as I sat there and watched all my family there with their spouses and their own families, and not being there with my own.

I actually didn't spend any time at all with any of my family on Christmas day. I drove by myself to Boise to catch my flight back to Anchorage, and spent the rest of the day either on a plane or sitting in an airport. Shayne and I ended up talking on the phone as I drove the 4-5 hours to Boise. I was supposed to have a long lay over in Seattle, but after checking to see if there was an earlier flight, the lady doing the scheduling booked me for a flight 7 hours earlier and in first class...which I had never flown before. I still didn't get into Anchorage until later that night, so didn't start driving to Soldotna until the next morning. Shayne ended up waking me up the next morning to make sure I was up so I could start driving sooner. He wanted to see me as soon as possible. It was so nice to hear him miss me as much as I missed him.

When I got home and laid down next to him...because he had worked the night before and had been sleeping...I realized how much I loved him, and how much I had missed my home and my family, even if my family is just the two of us. I hope I don't ever forget the way I felt in that moment. That's why last year's Christmas was such a memorable one for me.

As I read back over what I wrote, I wish I could convey better what those five days in Idaho were like for me. And more importantly, what coming home to Shayne was like for us.