Happy Halloween! (Oct. 29-31, 2010)

On Wednesday I felt my first earthquake. Jon had felt a couple before but this was the first that I had noticed. Sitting at my desk at school, talking to a parent, my desk and back wall began to shake and my windows began to rattle. It didn't last very long, just a couple of seconds, but I immediately knew what it was.
After parent-teacher conferences on Thursday and Friday we took a relaxing Saturday. We biked down to the beach and walked along the shoreline. We came across a good sized jellyfish that had washed up. On Sunday we hiked the Upper Kenai Trail to the Lower Kenai Trail. We did not see much for animals but we had a few flurries. The ground is now frozen solid. If we get a descent amount of snow soon, it will more than likely be sticking around for the winter. Halloween night was very blustery. We joined a friend at her house for supper and watching of the trick-or-treaters. While there a tree fell down on the corner of her house. It didn't appear to have done any damage but it definitely made some noise. Happy Halloween to everyone! And Happy All Saints Day tomorrow!

Bocce and Caching (Oct. 22-24, 2010)

It was a busy weekend. We had a school activity night for the students on Friday evening and Jon coached two pee wee hockey games, one Saturday and one Sunday. We also attended a benefit dinner for the Kenai Community Library. The food was delicious, deep fried halibut being our favorite part. While we ate, we enjoyed some bluegrass music from a local band and conversation with another teacher from our school and a former teacher from our school. Through the conservation we heard many stories about hunting across the bay for moose and caribou. Jon is hoping to get out this summer and fall to participate in some of this true Alaskan hunting. I'm hoping to go along to take in the beauty of the tundra.

The sun peeked out on Saturday afternoon so we took advantage of this and went for a walk down to the beach. We found five jellyfish washed up on the shore, decent size. I would say about the size of a dinner plate. After our walk we took in a game of Bocce Ball. Jon won, 21 to 13. On Sunday we took in some geocaching. We went out in search of three and were able to find two.

We have a short week with the students coming up, Monday-Wednesday, then conferences on Thursday and Friday.

Cold Weather Has Set In (Oct. 16-17, 2010)

After having spent the past weekend in Minnesota enjoying warm, sunny weather for Joe and Danielle's wedding, it was hard to come into Anchorage on Monday night to temps in the 30s. Every morning on our drive to school this week we were down in the 20s and unfortunately this weekend was clouded over. After running errands on Saturday we decided Sunday was time to get away for awhile. We drove down to Homer where we walked around the Carl E. Wynne Nature Center. This was our first visit to the nature center without snow. It looks quite different. Many of the tall shrubs and smaller trees can't be seen in the winter due to all the snow. After that we headed down to Bishop's Beach and walked along Beluga Slough and the Cook Inlet. There were a few different species of birds but mainly Northwestern crows. There was a flock of them moving down the beach together searching for food. Once a crab or clam was found they would fly up into the air, drop it, and go back down to feast on the crab or clam whose shell cracked open from the fall. We watched them for quite some time as one right after another dropped their meal. Tonight Jon plays his second game with a local men's hockey league. So not only is he busy helping coach a pee wee team, but he's playing a little hockey of his own.

Friday was the last day of 1st quarter for us at Kenai Middle. It was a busy one but it went by fast. We're hoping that 2nd quarter goes fast too so that we can be home for Christmas!

Hat and Mittens Kind of Weather (Week of Sept. 27- Oct 3)

We had some beautiful sunsets early on in the week followed by some depressing weather. The clouds have been sticking around for the past 5 days with rain off and on. Not only was it a rainy weekend but a windy one too, requiring the use of hats and mittens. I would say a good majority of the leaves are now on the ground. On Friday we went to a small political gathering at the house of a woman that we teach with. While there we got to meet Alaska U.S. Senator, Lisa Murkowski. Alaska truly is a state where you can get to know those in office. It was another weekend of getting things done. As I worked on two continuing ed classes, Jon made whole wheat chips, tortillas, meatballs, and spaghetti sauce. He was a cooking machine! We are celebrating Jon's 26th birthday today and looking forward to coming home to Minnesota for Joe and Danielle's wedding in just 4 days!