Winter's Arrival

Yesterday winter arrived with a blast - 30 mph winds and snow. I think the garden may be fnished! But I don't mind. Winter always seems to take forever to arrive. Now instead of hunting trip pictures it will be lots of ski pictures.

This view of our house is from near the cliff looking towards the Field's house. A good one to compare to the archive photos on the blog below.

From the Archives - 4002 Cliffside 1971

This view of our house is from the cliff looking towards the living room. Today there is a kitchen added to the right and our new addition is to the left, and we now have a huge picture window (also the trees in the background have been largely replaced by the Field's house). Last year Louise Jackson, the lady who built the house and who moved to the lower 48 in the 1980s, inquired what the house looked like today. So we sent her some pictures. Louise headed up the Kodiak Garden Club and the house was surrounded by gardens. But her biggest concern was that we had torn down the chimney and the mantle piece her husband had built. She was very reassured that we had not done so - and sent us a bunch of photos of her own (that we are sharing with you). Zoya and I looked closely at the mantle and found her husband's signature and the date he built the chimney! Needless to say, but now the chimney is never coming down. And our house has a history we know - very reassuring.

From the Archives - 4002 Cliffside 1971

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This view is of the end of the house where we added the addition last year. The net with corks that you can see along the top of the cliff actually lasted until 2003 when we replaced it for safety concerns (my mom said it had to go before the wedding). We replaced it with another net and new corks! (PGS)

From the Archives - 4002 Cliffside 1971

Hard to believe but this is what our house looked like in 1971. This view is of what was the front door, standing near the cliff looking towards the driveway. Last year we added the addition to this end of the house. I always thought the raised area on the lawn was an old septic or garden plot. I only realized it was the parking area after seeing this photo. Our house was the first in the area. Now we are surrounded by neighbors and a lot less trees.

Zoya & MaryJane

Last Sunday we all went for a walk at Fort Abercrombie Park with the dogs. We are very lucky to have such a great place to hike within walking distance of the house. Since this picture was taken it has snowed. We now have about an inch or so on the ground. I even went for a cross country ski on top of a small pond in the park, I did 20 laps in 22 minutes - definetly 'desperation skiing', good thing more snow is in the forecast! (PGS)

Nora & MaryJane

It has been a while, and it is time to post some new pictures of Nora. She is still not walking (barely), but is extremely mobile. She has even figured out how to open the front door to the house and we worry that she may make her way to the Mecca on her own. Generally she seems to just enjoy rolling about the house pushing her stroller for balance. She even takes a few steps on her own. (PGS)

Winter is coming!

These days it seems that every night we get a hard frost. Nonetheless the Garden is still kicking, and producing. The frost actually makes the swiss chard and collard greens taste better. We also still have onions, carrots and brocoli. I ripped out the last of the romaine last Friday, but not because it was dead. It finally just got too bitter to use in salads.

I can't wait for winter! I think we already may have ice skating out on the small ponds in Bells Flats. (PGS)

Last Gasp of Summer

Not all of my garden is dying. This snowpea got a late start (it was only a foot high at the end of August) and still seems determined to reproduce. All the other snowpeas that produced pods have died already, but not this one! (PGS)

Sheratin Bay at Dawn

Len and I camped in the trees on Friday night and hiked up to the snowline at dawn. We were treated to a spectacular sunrise. Our boat is anchored in the bay in the foreground and Whale Island and Afognak are in the distance. (PGS)

Yogi on the prowl

Here are some tracks Len and I found while hunting. These are the tracks of a small bear. Probably a three year old who just got abandonned by his/her mother. These bears are often the most dangerous because they have not yet learned bear etiquette - and do not know about avoiding humans. PGS

Elbow Creek Flats

This weekend my neighbor Len Schwarz and I went camping in Sheratin Bay. After a chilly night camping (friday night) we hunted all day yesterday. This is the view of the tide flats as we walked back to the boat. The coldest part was the 1 1/2 hour cruise back to Anton Larson Bay - needless to say, the seagull 3 horse engine does not push the dory up onto a plane! (PGS)

A Few More Halloween Photos...

Ray Robinson and Julie Prigge dressed up for their Halloween party in Anchorage. Julie is sporting quite the beautiful pineapple belly! Ray and Julie live in Seward together and Julie is due in a week.

Julie Prigge's Pregnant Pineapple Belly! 37 weeks pregnant and Ray had a chance to show his artistic abilities with the pineapple.

Newest member of the Pack!!!!

We took the plunge and got another dog!! Jake is a 4 year old black lab who had been through 2 families and was at the local dog shelter. No, we're not crazy. :) Roxy is in HEAVEN. :) And Patrick has always wanted 2 dogs romping around the house. Its kinda fun!! Nora laughs at them as they play together.

Jake has a very sweet disposition and seems quite secure with himself. He even made himself at home on the bed last night (right next to me!!!). I think he must have been used to sleeping on the bed at one of his prior homes.

It feels like such a good fit....and having another dog around makes Roxy less "needy". She has someone to hang out with and pay attention to her. (Zoya)

Halloween Party 2006

What a fun evening it was! Around 60 people attended in costume!
Patrick was a cowboy and I was a cat in a litter box. The tootsie rolls in the box were a big hit.

Nora was an american idol contestant, but she didn't make an appearance at the party. She opted for beauty sleep at a babysitters house and did great! I picked her up at midnight from a deep sleep.

And Roxy celebrated the evening with her friend Otis in the back yard chewing on deer bones. Lucky dogs.

The Preece/Cummiskey family as the Four Seasons! Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall all made an appearance.

Adelia's costume is quite the contrast from the skimpy mermaid costume from last year! Philip is quite the seamstress (male version)....he made his "little man" costume!!

Jeremy Councellor, Mary Jane Pediangco, April Councellor and Kelly Longrich...Quite the variety of costumes! From flight attendants to rafting guides....

A Future American Idol Contestant....

Watch out Bucky and Taylor (past contestants)!! Here comes baby Nora! Oh how Nora loves her mom's sunglasses!! (Z)

Yet Another Hunt

Gregg, Mike and I got up early and hiked in the dark to reach the high country before sunrise. Our reward was a spectacular sunrise. The sky turned purple long before the sun came up and the snow on the ground made it seem much lighter than it actually was. At sunrise all the deer were soaking up the sun on the south facing slopes. (PGS)