Goodbye summer, hello 2nd grade!

I think this is has been a record for the amount of time that's passed since I've blogged. If you've followed my posts over the last couple of years,  you know that even since I've been home, I've made an effort to post one or two things over a couple months span of time; however, that clearly hasn't happened since this past February! 

You also know that I enjoy these posts and I enjoy that I still, to this very day, have people telling me that they enjoyed reading this throughout my time in Alaska, heck, I enjoy going back and reading all my posts. It's like a scrapbook I have over those couple years. New people I meet that ask me about Alaska, I tell them they can come check out my blog and read all about my time and my experiences. Some of my 5th graders last year even read some of my posts because they saw pictures I brought in and had to know more! 

With that being said, I'll give you a small, quick, condensed version of my life since last February for all of you that care and may still be checking this... ;)

I spent last November through May in a 5th grade classroom at an awesome elementary school in the district that I grew up in and I loved it! Those kids stole my heart just as most do and we had a great year. I left them with their original teacher with about three weeks of school left and I did a few day to day subbing jobs here and there around my district. I was able to be back in their classroom on the last day of school to see them off to their summer and give them a big hug before they left for 6th grade!! It was great. 

Summer came and things got busy, fast! I had interviews and applications to send out and a whole lot of free time to enjoy with friends and family. I can honestly say that this summer was one of the best summers I've ever had. I may have even made a trip across the country...... but that's for another post when I have all my pictures to attach. ;) Hopefully soon! 

I ended up getting a job back at the same elementary school here in 2nd grade and I am VERY excited to start this new journey in a different grade. I've got a camping theme classroom going on and someone even told me it looked like I was channeling Alaska in my room. Hey, that's what I was going for. I guess it's just in my blood now. :)

I've got some pictures to attach for you to see! 

There it is - it's a panoramic photo so it's a little off but it gives you an idea! 

Bonfires are my favorite so I wanted to bring that into the classroom. What better way than to put it in my reading corner? :)

I know you're all wondering about Macy! Well, she's doing GREAT! She is healthy and happy as ever. She loves being able to run free and do laps around my parent's backyard and just be able to go. Other than walks, she's never on the leash like she was in Alaska. She listens so well and she's VERY spoiled by her grandma and grandpa. ;) She often even gets her own little plate after dinner..... with that being said, she's gained some weight and filled out a bit since we've been in the lower 48! Can you imagine? I'm actually working on getting her paw print tattooed on my foot soon. Some people may not agree with that but her and I have a bond/relationship that they may not understand and one that I will never have with another dog. She is MY first dog, my kids gave her to me and she's been my best friend since I got her. She was who I came home to everyday after school and she's who was with me while I was stuck in Chicago for 4 days. Her and I have been through a whole lot from one side of the country to the other and I am forever grateful that I have her! She's a crazy nut but I sure do love her. 

I've gotten to spend time with BOTH sets of grandparents who I am so fortunate to have. They each help me in more ways than they can even imagine. 

We're missing a few in this picture but this group has made this summer the best one yet and they're a constant reminder of how lucky I am. 

Mace has spent A LOT of time floating in the pool this summer.... rough life huh? She loves her raft and often would just float around while we were hanging in and around the pool. She's even gotten to the point where she knows how to get up and down the ladder on her own. She's too cute for her own good. Although, we're both ready for cooler weather. 

KASIE came to visit while she was in PA!! Her and I often say we're so glad our path's crossed a couple years back and they led me to Alaska and now here we are. I don't know what I'd do without her friendship! You'll hear more about her again when I post about my trip that I took..... stay tuned. :)

Well..... that one's sideways and I don't know how to fix it but you get it. :)

I also bought a kayak this summer and have used it numerous times! I love it and so does Mace. In the future (at this point, probably next summer) I'm going to attempt to take her with me but I have a feeling this girl will not stay in the kayak because she'll want to get out and play in the water the entire time... we'll see how that goes! 

School starts tomorrow and as I'm sitting here while I'm supposed to be planning for the week, I needed to take a mental break and after talking to my gram, I figured it was time for a new post. But with that being said and you all filled in now (again, whoever may still be following this) I'll get back to planning for tomorrow and this first week of 2nd GRADE! :)

Check back because I promise I'll post about my trip soon. :)

Some snow and some negative temps in PA

Much like my last few posts, this is a pretty random jumble of my thoughts. Things have not really changed since my last post and I haven't seen anything exciting but as I said before, sometimes I just need to write a post....

For those of you in Alaska and over on the West coast, I thought I'd share with you our weather that we've been having and those of you in PA and the surrounding states, well, you already know. It seems just like last winter, that Mother Nature is somewhat confused on where certain types of weather are supposed to be. My whole life we've gotten snow, occasionally some really big snow storms, but this weather has been pretty darn cold and full of snow days. I remember the first winter I was in Alaska, we got a significant amount of snow in Port Heiden and it also got fairly cold. The lowest actual temp that I saw, not including wind chill, was -7* and although that was really cold, it wasn't unbearable. I also clearly remember people telling me that that wasn't as bad of a winter as they usually get. Then, last winter in Manokotak, I'd Skype with my parents and they'd tell me that there was another stretch of snow coming through PA and I'd look out and there was absolutely no snow at all. So strange! Now this winter when we're having the same issue, I get some VERY strange looks when I tell people that PA had a worse weather than I did in Alaska last year. It's like people don't want to believe me! I have to promise them I'm not lying. Rivers didn't freeze very long last year and what's usually a very traveled few hour path from Manokotak to the bigger village, Dillingham, was not frozen and hardly traveled at all because it was so unsafe. Now here we are a year later and I've got negative temps and piled up inches of snow on the ground while parts of Alaska, including Manokotak, are getting rain. 

Completely changing the subject, I can now say that I am half way to 50. Last weekend I turned 25 and it was the first birthday in 2 years that I did not spend in Alaska. That made me sad and just like most things do now a days, it made me reminisce on my Alaska days. However, thanks to my wonderful friends here in PA - I brought in my birthday at midnight surrounded by all of them. After a good, crazy night of celebrating with my friends, I had a quiet dinner with my parents and some greasy cheese pizza! Not too bad of a start to 25 and I can't wait to see what this year has in store for me! I'm hoping for big things.

Mace is still a happy, crazy pup. She is enjoying civilization just as I am. We are enjoying the luxuries of having grocery stores down the road which relatively cheap food - cheaper than a village store - and of course restaurants. Mace is loving the treats that she gets often from her grandma. ;) Since we've been home she's gained roughly 30lbs. I know that sounds like a lot, which is it but she also turned 1 and has filled out. She's not too overweight, I promise. :) 

She's living the life, no matter what state she lives in. :)

A few pictures from my birthday! 

Mace & I hanging out by the wood stove on a snowy, cold day. I wish I would of had one of those in Alaska!! 

The picture on the left is one that I found the other day of one of her first days with me. The glass float was bigger than her head basically. Naturally, I made her pose with the glass float again so we could see the change in size.... just a little different in a year and a half! 

Our walk next to the frozen river today. Today it actually reached about 40* and felt so warm compared to our last few days of single digits, so Macy and I took advantage of it and went down to check out the river. 

If I haven't posted it already, this is my new Jeep! I love, love, love it and am so thankful for the 4 wheel drive. It's been so great to have this winter! If I already posted it, thought you wanted to see another photo of it. :) 

The other morning I woke up and checked the weather before I crawled out of bed. I wanted to know what I was getting myself into when I took Macy out. Yup...... that RealFeel was fun. Luckily, I love the cold and the snow so I don't complain. I pretend I'm in Alaska!

Well, until next time I get the urge to post. Take care and sending love across the miles! 

  

2 YEAR ANNIVERSARY & 10 degree weather

I feel like it's a good time to post an update on here given that yesterday marked two years since I first started my journey to Alaska. (And the fact that it's about 10 degrees and windy outside - much like a lot of my days in AK). Not knowing what in the world I had in store for me, I got on a plane - the first of many ahead - and headed for Anchorage. To refresh your memory if you've followed along for the past two years, I was supposed to go for a short three month stay. At that point, I thought three months was so long and I wasn't quite sure how I was going to handle it. Little did I know, I would extend that stay by many, many months and many more memories. 

My first thought about Anchorage was that it was amazing and I'll tell you that that thought hasn't changed. I'm not a city person, not at all, but being in Anchorage is different. It's unique and doesn't I've off the same "city" feel as so many other cities I've visited. The people there, whether visiting or living there, are unique and individuals... they don't care what people think, if they want to walk around with pink hair, they will. I'm not saying that everyone in Anchorage walks around with pink hair, I'm just using that as an example. The style is different, once again, unique. I love the feel of Anchorage and I always looked forward to going to "town". Not just because I needed some town time outside of the village but also because it's just such a comforting place to be. You walk out of Walmart and there is a breathtaking view. You drive down the highway and you have to stop for a moose to cross all four lanes. I would love to get back to Anchorage... I'd be ready tomorrow if I could make that happen. From my first experience two years to my feelings now, not too much has changed. Although, now, I could tell you some of my favorite restaurants, my favorite shops to visit, where the mall is and what hotels I've stayed in, etc. 

People still think it's crazy when I start talking about my grocery shopping while living in the village. What do you mean you have to shop for your food and mail it to your house? You can't eat fresh fruit and salad there? You paid how much for those grapes? It's definitely something you don't really understand until you're forced to do it. I got to be a master at packing totes to ship to my house. What different things can go together in a tote and not break, how much bubble wrap and grocery bags need to be wrapped around jars - if you have to have them, etc. I will tell you from experience, don't ever mix some cleaning supplies with certain foods, like bread. You will end up with bread that tastes like Clorox - not good when that's the only bread you have for months. Sometimes I still can't believe I did that... I really shipped a flat of boxed milk and a case of Coke in the mail? Sure did and I would do it again in a heartbeat. 

I know that there are a ton of different villages that I could have lived in and I am sure that I would have been happy in pretty much any of them, however, I think I got pretty lucky to be able to call two different amazing villages, home. Port Heiden will always have a special place in my heart. It'll always be my first home in Alaska. That's where I first fell in love with the state (well besides Anchorage). That's where I went on my first adventures, where I first got to experience native food (anyone remember the fuzzy looking caribou stomach?), and to avoid getting into a long list of sappy reasons, just know I love Port Heiden always will. :) The same goes for Manokotak... it may not have been my first home in Alaska but it's where I had my first classroom and experienced a lot of native things, even more native than in Port Heiden... ie. the Maqii (naked steam bath?). Once again and just like every where I went in AK, the people were amazing. My family away from PA. 

This post is pretty much as random as it gets. It's a ramble that has no sequential order and really does not make any sense... but I'm reminded of Alaska every day in all sorts of different ways, so I wanted to reminisce on some memories with you. :) 

 A look back at my first time next to the Bering Sea. A few months later and I ended up jumping in that with whales not too far from me. Yup, I swam in the Bering Sea. 

 My absolute favorite picture of my entire time in Alaska I think. I was lucky enough to see Caribou almost every day in Port Heiden but on this particular day it was -7 degrees out and we went outback from the school and I was able to snap this picture. We were so close to them. So peaceful and beautiful. Ever since I took it, I wanted to get this made into a canvas and I've just been putting it off, but I'm thinking it's about time that I do that.... 

 The view from the front of the Alyeska resort. So, so pretty.... 

My favorite animal - a moose. Lucky for me I got to see them every time I went to Anchorage. 

I learned a whole lot about myself during my time in Alaska. I know I've said it before but not only has my time living there taught me so much but also my time traveling to and from. I won't go into all the details again but man, if I reflect back on my time, I have changed so much and my thought process about certain topics are a lot different, too. 

One thing that sticks out to be tremendously is that I always want an adventure. I always am ready to travel somewhere. By leaving my small town (that I never thought I'd leave) I realized that there is so much more that this world has to offer and I want to see it all. I want to travel, travel and travel some more. 

I saw this the other day .... very true. :)

 And, incase anyone is wondering, Macy is doing wonderful. She's crazy, stubborn, energetic and just as happy as always. She is much chunkier than she was in Alaska - she's up to 50 lbs now!! She's still my little baby. :)

You never know when the mood will strike and I'll post another long ramble.... Until next time, missing AK.