More Snow on the Mountain

These days I have a tough decision every day - what type of skiing will it be?  Classic cross country skiing, skate skiing or downhill?  Really with the snow we now have you can't lose.  Today I went up Pyramid with my downhill skiis and found pretty good powder and light winds on the southeast facing slopes.  High winds up on top had scoured the west facing slopes.

Now I will watch the kiddos while Zoya and Mary Jane go to Fort Abercrombie with their classic skiis.  The skiing on Lake Gertrude is pretty darn good.  Tomorrow I think Zoya and I might try a ski tour across Buskin Lake and up the valley.  So many lovely options.  Patrick

  

Daycare Days

This week nora began day care at Miss. Shannon's house. When I dropped her off on the first day, she gave me an "air kiss" good bye and had a great time with her new friends (Isabella, Maya, Tasha, Christa, Eilidh, Avery...). I went to work thrilled that she wasn't crying when I left. 

 That evening, I would talk about her going to Shannon's house and she would break out into a chorus of "Booooiee" with fists to her cheeks (her sign for more!!! for more info-see Nora word of the week....mid december). Day care is a big hit with her.  I'm working 12 hours a week at the clinic...just enough to remind how much I LOVE being a physical therapist. Thank heavens for flexible work hours-being home with the kids is even more rewarding after a few hours away. 

Stuey  is dropped off with Audra while Nora is at Shannons and he is thrilled with the one-on-one attention Audra showers on him. 

Today Nora got to ride in Patrick's truck for the first time and boy was she thrilled! Patrick said that she loved being able to look out the window and wanted to play with the radio, vents, etc...As you can see in the photo, Nora was trying to play with the door. Obviously its time to find out where the child safety lock is on his truck!!! 

Zoya

Oh-and Ella-yes thats correct- there is NO binky in her mouth...  :) 

Impromptu Ski Tour

While lately it has been raining in town it has been snowing in the backcountry, and we now have A LOT of snow.  Today I went for a ski after work and took both cross country and downhill skiis because I did not know what sort of ski conditions I'd find out the road.  I arrived at the golf course and the snow was still too wet and mushy for cross country skiing - so I headed up for the pass and some downhill skiing.  By the time I got to the switchbacks the snow was already getting too deep for my truck and I decided to park and skin up from there.  No sense in trying to get to the pass just to get stuck, or get stuck up there because someone else's car got stuck and blocked the way.

So I pulled off and parked, and then one of those Kodiak moments happened. A truck pulls up and out pops my friend John Barklow and his buddy Jared (A.K.A number 40).  perfect timing - someone to ski with.  Then another car pulls up and out pops Andy Schroeder and his dog Gage.  Now we got an impromptu ski get together - no calls, no plans, no nothing.  Impromptu.  The best kind of ski tour.

So we headed up and the skiing was fabulous.  What I call 'Hero Powder' - light on top but solid deep down to keep you from sinking too deep.  We skiied from the top of the South Bowl down to the three crosses that marks the spot where a float plane crashed close to the road.  From there we skiied down the road to our cars.

The top photo was taken on the way up and shows Sheratin Mountain in the distance with fog and snow covered spruce trees in the foreground.  The next photo is of Jared near the top of the South Bowl with the south face of Pyramid in the background.  Finally, the bottom photo is of John, Andy and Jared climbing back to the road at the bottom of our run with Pyramid behind.  That's the 'three cross run' behind us.  Patrick

New Years Resolution

After much consideration, I resolve to cook 2 new recipes a week. I LOVE cooking and spending time in the kitchen and this will ensure that I get my much needed time at the stove. Get ready cookbooks, here I come!

(and Nick-we'll still work on getting you a good date for 2008!! But the jersey may have to go....)

Zoya

2008 comes crashing in!! (to Mill Bay, that is. .. )

2008 is off with a bang here in Kodiak! Strong winds last night stirred the oceans up and this morning we have the pleasure of the unusually large waves rolling into the bay in front of our house. 13 seconds between wave crests (Patrick tells me that in wave science world, this is an important calculation.)

Mother nature rocks. 

Zoya

My Little Guy's Guy

Stuey is such a little guy. Amazing how the guy in him permeates his activities. He loves banging objects HARD, throwing objects FAR, playing with wheels on our stroller in the house, playing with a little truck, etc. Everything has much more force than it ever did with Nora.

I tell people he is such a mamma's boy and that is the truth!! I can't get enough of the feel of his hair against my cheek, his smile, the way he waves his arms in big circles with excitement, his little cry-which is such an innocent-help-me-cry.... He is 100% plump, cuddle-bug-baby yet such a mamma's boy at the same time. 

Nora is such a daddy's girl and Patrick completely recognizes this. Both kids are accounted for-Mamma's boy and Daddy's girl!

Zoya 

Photo Credits

(Cummiskey-Preece Family top photo, Patrick bottom photo)

Adrenaline Girl

A movie is worth 10,000 words.  That girl can squeal. Patrick

Our Adrenaline Junkie

Nora loves sledding.  In fact she loves it so much that she never wants to stop.  We generally quit either when I get too pooped from dragging her up the hill or when she looks like she might lose her nose to frostbite.  But whatever the reason - she screams for more when we quit.  Our neighbor Claudia tells us that we are very lucky our girl likes to be outside, and I agree.  I remind myself how lucky we are every time I bring her inside and she screams for more. This is better than her screaming because she wants to go inside.  Patrick

(Photos: Nora on her sled which Megan got her last week. BIG HIT!!!)

Nora Word of the Week - Up-up

Nora Word of The Week:

This week's word is Up-up-

Translation: Up

Often repeated, in a series of Ups. 

When used in a sentence "...up, up, up, up..." with frequent looks to the top of the cabinet, she is asking for her binky back. (we put her binky on the top of the kitchen cabinet when she wakes up in the morning. As the day progresses if her mood worsens or if she gets tired, she knows just how to ask for her binky back...up, up, up) 

Another context it is used is when talking about airplanes going up. Nora rather enjoys talking about airplanes taking off and going up...up...up... Now we're working on the word down, down, down... :)

A third meaning is as we drive out the road and she sees mountains with snow on them, she says Up,up,up...  I say "Do you want to go skiing with dad?" and she exclaims "Yeah!". She knows that daddy has to go "up" to go skiing.  As you can imagine, Patrick CAN'T WAIT to take Nora skiing. 

Zoya

In the photo Nora chews on an elk rib. Nora loves her meat! Our little carnivore.

My "Holly Hobby" Craft-Quilting

I never imagined I'd be a quilter-I thought I wasn't enough of a perfectionist to master the art of cutting and aligning fabrics.  When I saw quilts, I was sure that I didn't have the necessary talents in me. However, I was searching for a hobby. Not sure why-as Nora was 1 year old and I was pregnant with Stuey. Not like my life was slowing down any. 

My friend, Karen, calls quilting a "holly hobby" activity and I think I saw it as that before I became a quilter as well. (I suppose anything that involves a trip to the craft section of Walmart, a sewing machine or is out of Martha Stewart could be deemed "holly hobby"....) 

But then I saw some quilts which really inspired me and perhaps my mind changed...

A year and a half ago my good friend, Alexis Jackson, taught me how to quilt and I've been hooked ever since. I'm not sure what it was that made me want to try it. 

I think she said something like, "Zoya, just try it. You don't have to buy anything except for your fabric. You can use my tools....you have nothing to lose." She sold me on it. Alexis has been quilting for years and years and does such gorgeous work. She has amazing patience-always takes her time to explain things to me and loves to talk quilting on the phone. It has brought another rich dynamic to our friendship!

My first quilt was a small baby quilt-which is for Nora and currently hangs on our wall. When I saw how easily it came together, I was estatic to make more and I quickly became addicted. For years I tried to make myself a knitter, only to be disappointed with unfinished project after unfinished project. (Last year I gave my whole bag of unfinished projects and needles of various sizes to my friend Erin. She was estatic as was I!! I am done with knitting!!)

My favorite part of quilting is picking out the fabrics and I always feel like a kid in a candy store as I choose colors and patterns which blend well together. It is a like a feast for my eyes! So many beautiful patterns of fabrics to choose from. 

My latest quilt is for my babysitter, Megan, who is home from college in Arizona. (see photos above). She was our mommy helper when I brought Stuey home from Anchorage and got us through those tough months. She went to the fabric store and showed me different fabrics she liked and I incorporated a few of those into her quilt. 

What a fun adventure quilting has been!! When the kids are in bed-I pull out the fabrics and sew away. Its so fun to see the pieces come together into a quilt-like a story unfolding!!

Zoya

Swampy Acres

This morning Zoya and I burned off some of the Christmas feast with a cross country ski in Swampy Acres.  Two feet of new snow had turned it into a winter wonderland.  All the spruce boughs bowing down under their load of snow.  Best of all - some one had already broken a trail for us to follow.  Deer tracks in the trail.  The deer also like a broken trail  when the snow is so deep!  Gliding along, working up a sweat, and feeling the rhythm of the skiis in the track.  Glorious.  

Now it is evening and another storm is rolling in.  Mill Bay is all roiled up and snow is slapping the windows.  I made some more gravy and we'll have it on the turkey and stuffing leftovers.  Zoya, Nora and Stu puttering about, the occasional squawk.  Post Christmas domestic scene. Nothing like a good storm to make it all warm and cosy inside!  Patrick

Christmas Feast

Christmas began yesterday with the landscape full of snow (it snowed 15 inches yesterday! -interjection from Patrick) and Nora enjoying her dollhouse from Granny. A mini jumbo plastic airplane was also a hit-with Nora making the plane go up, down...putting all the people in and out "....daddy, me, wa-wa-wa-wa..." (Nora enjoys imitating the crying that she and Stuey do on the airplane!)

Dinner yesterday afternoon was so pleasant with many friends joining us. We enjoyed a turkey (brined by Mike), Elk Roast (brined by Patrick), wild rice, sweet potatoes, yams, mashed potatoes, stuffing...britney cake (shortbread cake) by Karen, Carrot cake. Lots of laughter and great conversations filled the evening as well as some crying by Stuey and Nora. Everyone hung in, however and Stuart fell asleep in my arms at the end of the evening. I was able to relax in the recliner and enjoy watching the group and seeing Nora and Cecilia play with Christmas toys. Zoya

Stu is on the move!!

Stuart is on the move! He began crawling 2 days ago. He did commando crawling (where he pulled himself forward with his hands and his belly against the floor) for only a day and progressed right to crawling. 

He is quite cute and tenative with the whole process. Slow and steady. 

Little rear end in the ear and small little inches forward with his leg. So cute. I love that he is now on the go. 

Zoya

Looks Like a White Christmas

I woke up to quite the storm this morning (see forecast from weatherunderground below).  I love it!  It has to be about the best forecast I've seen in a few years.  I almost did not post about it for fear of jinxing  it.  I have my fingers crossed.  Can you imagine the news if a storm like this hit Manhattan or Boston?  Patrick  

Forecast for Kodiak Island Show | Hide

Updated: 5:00 am AST on December 24, 2007
Blizzard Warning in effect until midnight AST tonight...

Now
Blizzard Warning in effect until midnight AST tonight... in the next 6 hours expect an additional 5-10 inches of snow. Northerly winds are expected to increase throughout the day to 30-40 mph with gusts to 50 mph.

Today
Snow...mixing with rain at times along the Gulf Coast. Visibility will be reduced to one quarter mile or less at times in snow and blowing snow. Snow accumulation 4 to 10 inches...lowest amounts along the Gulf Coast. Highs in the upper 20s to lower 30s. Northeast to northwest wind 25 to 35 mph with local gusts to 50 mph through channeled areas. Northwest gusts to 70 mph developing in the afternoon south end of island.

Tonight
Snow in the evening...then scattered snow showers after midnight. Visibility will be reduced to one quarter mile or less at times in snow and blowing snow during the evening. Additional snow accumulation 4 to 10 inches. Storm total snow accumulation 8 to 20 inches. Lows in the 20s. Northwest wind 35 to 55 mph with gusts of 65 to 80 mph through channeled areas.

Christmas Day
Partly cloudy in the morning then becoming mostly sunny. Highs in the 20s. Northwest wind 35 to 55 mph with gusts of 65 to 80 mph becoming west and decreasing to 25 to 35 mph with gusts to 45 mph in the afternoon.

Buskin Ski

Today the stars were aligned for Patrick and I to go skiing together-no kids! Our friends Rose and Dr. Wolf watched the kiddos and we took a beautiful cross country ski in the trails in the buskin lake area.

It was a VERY windy day, but where we were skiing was protected so we weren't as impacted by the wind. The conditions were good and Patrick said I've come a long way with my skiing abilities. He said, "Zoya, if I took you on this ski when we first started dating, you would NOT have been happy!". I agreed.

There were moments of "bush-whack" skiing....climbing over and under things. I rather liked the challenge today, however!
Zoya

New Years Resolution & Survey

I'm a big New Years Resolution fan. For as long as I can remember, I always have some goal I work towards during the first few weeks of a new year. Thats right-its usually just the first few weeks. Until last year.

Last year I vowed to keep the kitchen free of pile ups of paper. What usually happened was I would dump mail, packages, etc on the counter and it would stay there indefinitely. It was so unsightly and unorganized. I resolved to keep the counters clear of my clutter and to file them away into my organized containers. Patrick was very skeptical when I announced my resolution plans 1 year ago.

"Ummm....hmmmm. We'll see about that one. I don't think you can do it." I vividly remember him telling me.

That made me resolve to accomplish it even stronger. And I did it! One year later, I organize my papers into my neat bins and the counter doesn't get covered with papers! Yeah!

This year I thought it would be a fun twist to see what other people think I should make my New Years Resolution be. I see getting Nick Sandin a date is in the lead. Oh boy. Zoya

Cross Country Skiing and "Happy" Visit to Dentist

SKIING ON LAKES
Patrick is about to levitate off the ground with excitement about the snow this morning. Time for an entry about the fabulous cross country ski conditions we have.

Yesterday Patrick, Mary Jane and I went cross country skiing on Lake Gertrude in Fort Abercrombie. We did it in two shifts-Patrick went skiing then came home and watched the kids while Mary Jane and I went right before dark. Works out perfectly. Mary Jane's two friends, Micah and Dave came along as well! The conditions were fabulous-crisp gorgeous snow and beautiful evening light. Lake skiing is so simple- easy to get to...no hills to contend with, easy to do sprints and the scenery changes as you move around the lake-changing directions helps too!

More snow in the forecast today-yeah!!!

HAPPY VISIT
Nora's visit to the dentist yesterday went fairly well. I sat in the chair while Nora sat on my lap. The only problem was that I think I had a chococlate/sugar hangover- when she brought the chair back up to the sitting position from the recline position, I felt lightheaded and the room felt like it was spinning. It quickly passed but made me realize I needed to drink more water and cut back on my holiday sugar intake!!

Nora cried when we had to leave, as she liked the waiting room. There was little tooth chairs for the kids to sit on and a bunch of fun new toys.

Zoya

Photo: Lake skiing-Gregg and Patrick in 2002 on Island Lake.

Nora's First Ice

Yesterday we went ice skating on the small ponds in Ft. Abercrombie park. The ice was so thick and clear-you could see several inches of bubbles down.

We decided to make Nora's first ice skating trip a "Happy Visit".
(Note: Today is Nora's first dentist "happy visit". The hygenist said that they do several happy visits with toddlers to get them used to sitting in the chair, the people, etc...Patrick and I decided to try to make ice skating a 'happy visit' where we leave happy-not too many bumps and bruises from falling!)

And it was quite happy, until she had to leave. Nora LOVED going around the ice with Patrick holding her. Stuey and I sat and watched as Nora's feet danced around the ice. She smiled and squealed loving every minute of it.

Then it was time to go. Patrick's back was hurting from leaning over and helping her around and Stuey was starting to give preliminary cry noises. At the suggestion of leaving, Nora started to cry and didn't stop for several minutes until she was strapped into the stroller and on our way out of the park. Then I think she gave up.

Yesterday afternoon after we returned, Nora pretended to ice skate in the living room. She walked around in little circles, keeping her feet on the ground. I asked her what she was doing and she said, "Daddy." I said, "are you ice skating with daddy?" and she said, "Yeah!!!". She did that for several minutes. She can't wait to go back. Zoya

(And yes-Ella-that is a big plastic binky in her mouth...) :)

Walk Like Daddy-Blog's first video

When Patrick returned from his (attempted) goat hunt several weekends ago, he had a characteristic limp. This was after he fell and landed on what he and John called "Baby Matterhorn". Nora adopted his walk-without our prompting. This video captures it.
(And yes, Ella-that is the binky in her mouth.)
Zoya

Mission: Cookies for Cliffside

Every year, except last year, I make plates of cookies for the neighbors and deliver them with holiday wishes.
Over the weekend I went to a holiday cookie exchange which was a perfect chance to get a wide assortment of holiday cookies without doing a whole lot of work! I made some fudge, and white chocolate blondie bars (choc full of choc chips!). Yum, Yum. Found some new recipes that are keepers.

Yesterday afternoon I dropped the kids off with our friend Rose who watches Stuey several times a month. She has grown kids of her own and enjoys the baby time! Bless her heart- While the kids were away I put the plates of cookies in a bag and bundled up in preparation for delivering them to the neighbors. I was amazed by how many people were at home (their cars were in the driveway) but did not answer their door. This was the case HALF of the time! Quite surprising.

I would only knock loudly once, so I wasn't annoying.
I'd think, "well, they just missed out on a plate of cookies." Do people think that its someone trying to sell something? One guy down the road-a neighbor I"ve never met, opened his door very cautiously (but hey-at least he opened it!!).

I said, "hi! happy Holidays! I"m Zoya from up the road. My husband is Patrick, with the two black labs that he walks."
A smile came over his face and he said, "Oh, yeah!! I know him from the dogs!"
I said, " Here are some cookies for you. Have a great holiday season!"
He said, "Whats your name again?"
I said, "I'm Zoya. Whats your name?"
He said, "I'm Dave.Thanks so much! And Happy Holidays to you too!"

He was so very thankful and it felt great to actually meet someone new who lives on our street. There is something about having small kids that makes me like knowing who our neighbors are. Increases the safety factor of Cliffside road. (especially when I have a daughter who likes taking walks down to Rezanof...ahem, ahem.") As Nora and Stuey get older, it will be fun to continue this tradition with them along-making cookies and spreading holiday cheer to the neighbors!

In the photo Nora talks to Da Dee on the phone while Roxy illicitly enjoys the couch (Zoya grudgingly allowed Patrick to Invite her up). Zoya