The End of Fall and Beginning of Winter Happenings

October and November have been busy months.  In mid-October we had a Fall Festival at the church that was hosted by the youth group.  Bobbing for apples was a surprising hit activity for the kids.  I always enjoyed the challenge of that activity when I was a kid too, but I did have to cringe at the amount of saliva that had to be left behind in the water bin after 7, 8, and 9 tries at it.  The kids didn't seem to mind, so that was all that mattered in the moment!  We also had pumpkin painting, a bean bag toss, board games, a cake walk, and lots of  sugary wonderful food.  The kids seemed to really enjoy it, and it was a good fellowship time for everyone there.

We also had one night where the Northern Lights were the clearest I have ever seen them.  It was amazing to watch the changing light show right before your eyes.  It is is definitely a cool thing to see.  The best part is that we didn't even need to go outside!  We were able to see the show right through the nursery window, so it's encouraging to know that we might get a few more good shows later in the winter when we're up at 2am in our little one's room.   

Toward the end of the month, Aaron attended a Pastor conference in Willow, Alaska for several days and enjoyed catching up with several other Covenanters as well as meeting some new ones.  Of course, shopping in Anchorage was a highlight of the trip, as well.  

On Halloween we watched Hocus Pocus like everyone else in our generation that remembers that movie from growing up, and we handed out candy.  There wasn't even snow on the ground yet, but it was a cold one for the kids to be out and about.

The weather has been different from last year so far this winter.  The past couple of weeks it has gotten really cold, but still no snow on the ground.  It's really strange because the lakes have frozen over and the river is well on its way to being completely frozen, but instead of  snow flying around, it's all dust.  The typical strong wind is still making its appearance, but it has created a terrible dry dusty air.  It's interesting to go out on the lakes and be able to see clearly through the ice for several feet since there is no snow cover.  The past couple of days it warmed up and even rained one night, but that created an ice rink throughout all of Bethel.  Luckily, I think the worst of that is over.  It's safe to say most of us are ready for at least a little bit of snow.

This past week we celebrated my birthday, and Aaron spoiled me with pizza from a new place, a homemade birthday cake, our "You Are Special Today" plate, and a little gift.

Slowly but surely we are also getting things ready for the baby.  Our latest endeavor...cloth diapers.  We are testing out different brands and methods for cloth diapering (there are more than I ever thought there could be), and Aaron spent a considerable part of our Friday night You Tubing and practicing how to properly put together cloth diapers.  It's a little different than disposable diapers, and there are so many options!

It was a little challenging and confusing at first...

but eventually he found a good method and had it down-pat.

Other than that, work has been busy for the both of us as usual, and we have gotten some things ready for winter, like the boat and all of our heavy outdoor gear.  We'll be getting ready for our Thanksgiving extravaganza soon with some friends, and it will be my first time trying a deep-fried turkey!  Much to look forward to with the holiday season and just after it too!

Baby's Growing!

We're at the third and final trimester!  Time has gone quickly.  We've put together a registry in case anyone is interested, but it's also a resource/list for us to figure out what's essential and what we can do without, so here it is:
http://www.target.com/GiftRegistrySearchViewCmd?registryType=BB&jsRequest=true&catalogId=10051&status=completePage&cumulativeTime=-1&listId=ebUFA5ThLkoQTVkK7DeRKg&noOfPings=&registryFirstName=roxanna&langId=-1&segmentGrpName=L&storeId=10151&registryLastName=anderson

We've also "documented" the growth of our little one, so for those of you who have asked, here it is!

6 weeks, aka doesn't look like much is going on

(Kiah likes to be in these pics too)

12 weeks

16 weeks

20 weeks

24 weeks

28 weeks, on the home stretch!

The excitement is growing along with the baby.

Highlights from this Summer and Fall

And just like that, summer is over and fall is quickly coming to an end as well! Winter is on the horizon as we have already gotten some snow. It is hard to believe. It has been a summer and fall filled with projects, family, fishing, hunting, berry picking, boating, and little blogging, so here is a quick snapshot of some our summer and fall just to catch you all up...

Projects

Filling in our lot which is always under water. We brought in  30  dump truck loads .

Building a new deck on our house with the help of my dad.

Progress!

More progress!

Finished!

Fall Hunting and Berry Picking

This fall, we took a hunting/berry picking trip. It was a beautiful fall day. We didn't find a moose which was our hope, but we did get some nice berries and some geese!

Scanning  a lake for some form of wildlife.

Our geese that we caught! Good start for our Christmas feast!

Hot on the trail of a moose, but this was as close as we got!

Our trusty companion!

This was a great day out!

Family

Beach Party

Berry Picking

The Berry Picking Master!

We also did some fishing!

More visitors! Spending some time with Kiah on the tundra.

A Fall Walk on the Tundra

Fall is definitely in the air.  Just like last September we have had some of the nicest days of the year.  The air is crisp and cool, even frosting for the past several nights, but the sun has been shining and it has been dry and calm.  Even after an exhausting day, we just can't pass up enjoying the beautiful days for at least a few minutes.  The tundra is changing colors, and it's so pretty and refreshing to be out and about.

This weekend if it's not raining we plan on going out on the boat (maybe for the last time before winter) to pick some cranberries and hunt some birds if there are any who have stuck around this long.  We hear that the cranberries are best after the first frost; it really sweetens them up, and there are many more cranberries this year than last!  

A Little Bit of Nesting

The nesting has begun!  I didn't plan on prepping a baby room so early, but a good opportunity came to buy a used crib from someone at work, and so it began.  I didn't want the house or a certain room to become cluttered with storage until we "get around to organizing."  That's not my style.  Since we have the space to do it now, we might as well do it.  So we took advantage of some visitors we had to help us move the bed out of our extra guest bedroom and began the set-up.

Kiah approves of the new crib

Finished product with the essentials-a crib complete with sheet and nursing pillow generously thrown in with the sale of the crib, our used IKEA chair that we already had, a bookshelf we got for free at a garage sale with new books from grandparents, and some African decor that happened to be in the room beforehand.

 We also refurbished an old dresser here in the parsonage, and it looks like new!

Before...

...After

I've really enjoyed being thrifty with acquiring things for the baby.  It's not the normal kind of thrifty, like buying lightly used products from a secondhand store.  Even garage/moving sales are sometimes a little out of hand when it comes to prices I have found.  A funny thing about Bethel is that people often try to sell used things but tack on a few extra (or 50 extra) dollars for the additional shipping cost to get it all the way here from two years ago.  Most of the time, people buying used things don't care if you paid a pretty penny to get a product here eons ago, but nonetheless the practice continues here.  It just gives me a little chuckle from time to time.  Thriftiness has come mainly from accepting the generosity of some people who are willing to part with their baby products or make something nice for the baby by hand and finding new use for things already lying around somewhere.

I also have not really gotten into the whole "we have to paint the room and buy brand new things and have every baby product out there" phase.  I think sometimes our culture goes a little overboard.  Sure, a baby takes a lot of stuff, but they could also care less about a lot of things that we adults think are so important.  And they change so fast!  When they are so little, it seems silly to have dozens of items they'll use for a month.  Even clothing-wise, I'm thinking lots of onesies and cloth diapers will do (of course with a few intense winterwear items).

As simple as we want to keep things, we also have a few things in mind to splurge on, like the BOB stroller we bought from REI with a convertible carseat.  We hear that a heavy duty BOB can make foot travel much easier on these bumpy, often muddy or icy roads of Bethel.

Essentially, gathering "things" is a way we humans prepare for some kind of journey, picturing and shaping that journey into what we want it to be, whether it's a vacation to a tropical place, a new school year beginning, or moving into a bigger home.  It's just one of the only things we can do right now in the excitement and anticipation of a new baby coming: gather things.

And there is definitely no doubt that a baby is coming.  The baby has been moving up a storm the last couple of weeks, reminding us everyday that he/she is their own being and will be needing their own space very soon!

Anniversary in Fairbanks

For our anniversary this year, we took a trip to Fairbanks to visit some friends who opened up their home to us and to see a new place in Alaska.  It's always good to take some time off, be in a new place, and come home refreshed.  On our anniversary, we spent the day exploring Fairbanks, shopping, eating some good Thai food, and enjoying a night at a hotel while watching the USA Women's Beach Volleyball final on the Olympics.

The following day we headed down to Denali National Park and Preserve with Mary and her parents.  

You can see it way off in the distance, the white peak.  Denali is the tallest mountain in North America, and it did look pretty grand upon first glance.  Sadly, this was about the only glance we got.  We found out that in order to actually see the whole mountain up close, you have to ride on a park bus with lots of other people for at least 7 hours.  We opted to pass on that.  We enjoyed the beautiful surroundings nonetheless.

 Friends

 Another good view.  So tall that it's still snow-capped in August.

  We really enjoyed the trip, knowing we won't be able to spontaneously get up and go in the future like we do now, remembering we will never celebrate a kid-free anniversary again, and realizing it's probably our last big trip in general before the baby comes in January.  It was a great babymoon and anniversary trip all wrapped into one!  And thank you to the Swansons for hosting us and letting us crash at your new house.  I'm glad we could finally meet up here in Alaska!