It is the end of the year!

I can hardly believe it, but it is here, the end of the year and the new year..... sigh...... I will try to quickly summarize since my last posting....

The boys are doing very well in school, the chickens are doing well even with this very cold winter... which make me think that  my beautiful peonies most likely will die from the cold and no snow to insulate them.. sniff, sniff...   Sister Moka (the dog) is getting old and I am back making stamping classes!!

I have had a terribly busy last two or three weeks with filling in for my husband at the office, Christmas gifts and small company party, boys' piano recital, visiting employee and client that got in an car accident, company at home, and a birthday party!...... Today, after I gave breakfast to the boys, I went back to bed until about 1 pm..... (smile). I had accumulated lack of sleep and relaxation.

And with it all, I am planning to make my January 2013 Stamping class in less that a week! ... I started a stamping workshop in December and all by myself..... For about 2 years, a lady and I used to have a workshop a month at the Hearts and Hands building, but since last February we cancelled it. This Fall a  dear lady asked me to start classes again, so I send a letter to see if there will be more than one lady interested in, and it happens that there is more than 10!!! That is a wonderful star for me for which I am grateful...

January 3rd is going to be the second workshop all by myself.  I am delighted that all the ladies that attended the December class seemed very pleased with the projects we made!!

Here are the pictures of those projects.... hope you also like them as well as they did!

This is a little tag for a wrapped Giradheli chocolate. A small, fast and easy project. We used the crimper at the end, giving the gift a "like from factory look"!

 Our "man" project... a bit of Alaska style... those are salmon swimming by in the Pacific, getting ready for a guy to catch them this coming summer!

 A close up of the next card. The main image has been raised for dimension, and glittered for extra beauty.

 Our "girl" card... flowers in winter are very much appreciated when we can not dig in the garden!

 This is a "get well, sympathy, etc". The birch trees are from a die, and the background made with strait to the paper technique!

 I love this winter tree with this almost like Aurora Borealis background.

This is not exactly what we made, but very similar... the most interesting part is the inside; a bunch of standing balloons in the middle of the card as it opens.

Well, that is all folks (smile). There is lots of stuff that has gone under the bridge in my life but that might make for another post...

Hope you have enjoyed this holidays thinking of the miracle of life, and your heart have new springs of gratitude for all that is yours today!!

Hugs,

Susana

Hello at the end of September

Now, I am trying to figure it out how to put pics on here from my iPad...

My darling little boys!

Hmmm, well ... that's not working, so my darling Hubby uploaded a picture from the iMac. This was taken last summer here in beautiful AK.

Well, since I am here, better update the posts.

Summer went and school year began. The boys are doing well and so is my Darling. I have not had much time for card-making classes, but here and there I've made a few. I will upload them soon.

I am making knitted and crocheted scarfs, hand warmers and head bands for a bazaar called "Make it Alaska"... soon to happen.

The chickens are doing well, though we are at the end of a "leg scales mites" epidemic.... LOL.  It has been so rainy this year that to keep the chickens dry I put some wood chips on the ground. Well, some old wood chips that I had must have been infested with mites, which produced growths on the chickens' legs, between the flesh and the scales.  They're all doing better, but the one that was looking worse I treated with too much tea tree oil, and it seemed like it burned the skin and she had two small cuts that were bleeding. Her name is Bob (that's another story), and she is spending a couple of nights in a box in our living-room. She is very docile and sweet, eats lettuce from our hands and stays in the box without complaint... I am sure she would rather perch, but she just lays in the straw patiently waiting until we let her out for a few hours during the day. The big boys have been real troopers and have done the  soaking, scrubbing, cleaning and dressing of the legs and feet of the affected chickens, in the garage. 

Schooling is going very well. We got several computer and iPad programs and they are sailing away through their lesson with very little nagging on my part Yay!

My Darling and I, we had our 15th anniversary last week. A friend came and stayed with the boys, so we had a nice little date!!!

Well, that will be for it for now.... 

Summer in Alaska, 3rd part

About the fishing, Jonathan and Benjamin had their first catch this summer. Jonathan had 2 fishes in his first net. He was just sitting on a small stool, when the net began to vibrate, he began to pull the long handle out and behold there were 2 reds!! Benjamin got 3 or 4 total, good for their first year. Nikolas was fighting some allergies, so he caught just a few this year~ I feel bad now,  I was really hard on him, because of not wanting to keep a net in the water, but his strength was not there, but I realized this toward the end of the trip.... Alexander was our hard worker, he and father did most of the fishing! It has began like a tradition that I go to the beach alone with the boys, and then Dad arrives late that day or next. I put a whole production of a house,  not only the tent with air mattresses, sleeping bags, extra clothe etc, but also a canopy with a kitchen area, and resting-shelter like area, camping chairs, were we warm up if the day is rainy. I do most of the cleaning of the fish. We bring wood, and keep a fire most of the day. Nikolas and Alexander's are in charge of making the fire!! 10 and 12 years old only!! They boys have such fun when we are not fishing... and when we fish too, of course. They make boats, dams, castles, new friends, they do not clean up much at all for about 3 days!, bonk fish, play with fish guts, make fish heads talk, eyes come out, etc. ~Family works together and have fun together~ 

School is approaching with giantic steps, and I do not know what to do yet. Homeschooling is what all they want to do, but Jonathan! Dennis and I are worry that I might not be able to keep up with it. I have been depressed for a couple of years, and last winter had been the worst, so though, I have been seeing a doctor and I feel better now, for about month and a half, this is summer only, so the worst is often to come in the winter... ~School or not to school, to be or not to be~  

Business is busy too, and successful, so we are not moving out of beautiful Alaska this year or next... I think-hope. 
Home is being fixed of some more old age sicknesses lol. Our house was built in 1950 or so, I like my old home, it is comfortable, quiet, away from the city, children - boys friendly. Dennis has his garage, my Mom have a little cabin to come and stay in; a little place to shelter friends  anytime. Lots of to do lists, that I seem never to catch up with. ~Normal life, good life.~

Well, now that I have almost catch up with updating my blog, I must add up some pictures... next in my list to do. You might want to come back and visit again in a few day, and see how tall these boys are growing!!

In all things we are to prove what it means to be One. One couple, One family, One focus, One End.  And in all things to prove our great calling: to be One with the One that love us best. Hope you are enjoying your summer too.

Summer '12 in Alaska~ 2nd part

My little Benjamin is making breakfast right this moment!! He set the table for his brothers and me. Cold cereal for the brothers and 2 fried sunny side up eggs for himself... Just on time I will make my own tomatoes and eggs. Benjamin is soon to be 8, in fact he is counting, only 18 days till his birthday!

All the boys and I have been making lunches for the clients. They add up their wealth and got some more lego-robotics for themselves about 2 weeks ago. It keep them busy and learning. Their father is soon to put them to work in the shop!! lol They know about suspention, gear ratios, U joints, independant suspention, live axel suspention, locking differentials, and a lot of stuff that goes above my head. ~Days are too long and years too short~

About my chickens again, their names: Red Rascal- soon to get in the pot, because she is a bully- Reddy, Raven, Whity, Lucky, Bob Funny, Roosty- soon to head the pot, since I do not keep boys, I have enough with 5 in the household, lol-, Bob Three (all Bobs are Jonathan's, pretty original ah) Baldy, Chickdeenee (as in the one that always was getting out of the box where we kept them) and two baby araucanas that we call Chicky, and Tiny. 

There have been bears around our properties for years, but only Black Bears, so I have not worry too much, since Moka Berry, our powerful dog can fight them... hemm.. or bark her head off and run away, and do it again and again.... wake up the whole neighborhood, made Dennis quite angry, and therefore run the bears away ~Fighsty girl, she is!!~ But now my neighbor has seen a Grizzlie around, and Moka is getting old to fight a Grizzlie, so our 14 chickens are going to go down to 7 or 8.

It is so hard to make a choise about who to keep since they are all individual to us. This spring we got 6 more chickens for a project for the boys, to have eggs of different colors. We have, differente shades of brown, white and green, but with the new species we are hoping to get chocolate brown and blue eggs. But who to put in the pot or fridge?? ~Too many choices that it is hard to focus~ One thing that makes the choise even harder, is that there is bear danger only 4 to 5 months of the year... so for 7 or 8 months we live care free of bears, .... but we will be eating a whole lot of eggs this winter if I keep them 12. ~Accepting recepies that use lots of eggs, here~

Frisbee.... but not only frisbee, but ultimate frisbee! The big boys began to do U. F. since Joel, our Portland nephew, was here last summer... he was a hit among the girls (he is a hit with his aunt too, he is such a jewel of young man!!) So he was acepted in all type of activities even if he would bring his small cousins along. So, this year, after Gospel Meeting, on Sundays we have to continue the tradition and here I am taking them to the park to meet teenagers that are delighted to have such good sports.... Last year was only Alexander and Nikolas, but this year, even youngers have been accepted.... perhaps it helps that they have to come along, and I bring food. Benjamin is being such a good player too, but Jonathan is often times coming to tell me that they do not let him catch it... he is only 6... the boys come and say that he throw the frisbee to the wrong team... lol ~Keep the boys busy with the right type of people and activities~

Better do a 3rd part, the pad is going crazy.~~~~~~~

Summer in Alaska. 1st part.

Well, summer is almost gone... and we hardly got it. It has been a lot of rainy and cloudy days. 
We finished up school sooner than regular school, since the teacher assigned said that the boys were doing so well in every subject! They were happy to have no school work. Jonathan did not learned to read fluently though... That is in a way a disappointment  to me, since all the boys learned to read while in Kindergarten or before. I still remember Alexander, the first one, realizing he was  reading in his mind, and not talking. Since then, all of them are avid readers. Benjamin, almost 8, he is reading some Hardy boys mysteries. So,  it might seem like Jonathan is a little behind, but I am enjoying that he is still needing my help, like not letting him grow too fast. He will even up to his pears too soon any way. ~More learning about enjoying the moment~


We had a quite summer, other wise. Our church convention came and went to fast. My Mom arrived at the end of April and left before convention, a day before Heather McDonald arrived from Chile for our church meetings. We had my american Mom for 5 days after word and her adopted Vietnamis grand daughter, who is a jewel. Dennis' sister, Patricia stay with us for a few days too, which is very special. I feel I have become more connected to her since we have had more time together. ~Blessings of wonderful people who live for the things that matters in life~


At the beginning of July we went to fish our yearly quota of Salmon!!! We did not got them all, but I have a salmon to eat for every week of this coming year!!! Oh! the bounty and  goodness of the land were we live!! ~Feel so much aware and grateful for the natural provision made for mankind while on the earth!!~


I have work a lot in the garden this summer, and the result are a real reward to me. The vegetables are so lush and fresh. I have not bought greens since the beginning of June!!.... though we had snow at the beginning of May! We have been eating fresh, multicolor and nutritious salads thanks too, to the rainy days that faithfully waters the garden. My flower gardens... it is in plural this year, since the plants have grown so much that have needed to be separated and made into new plants and new gardens. Now, besides the one all around the vegetable garden, I have 2 in the South side of the house... It seems to me almost too elegant for this simple country woman!.  I have 4 ligulares (??? I do not know the spelling) that are so elegant and bright in the middle of 3 of my gardens around the house. Monk Hoods, Columbines, Purple and Yellow clematis, Violets, Roses, Piones to mention some few. Oh, I am soo happy with all that this summer has provided... and the abundant amount of snow that winter provided!, All that rich nitrogen to put in the soil. ~So much to be thankful for in the shadow, that makes me so exited about the real things waiting in Heaven~


My chickens.... Oh what silly thing! I just love my chickens, Bob and Puffin need to be put in the pot, but I still do not have the heart for it. The rest 13 of them, all of them have a name... Bob is a girl, she used to be Bob Coffe, but since the late Bob Chocolate was eaten by our "not ours anymore" black dog, Max, then we talk about her just as Bob, even if it sounds masculine.
Our chickens produced between 7 and 9 eggs, when we had only 9 chickens, but not that is summer some of them are taking vacation and our silly Broode-greeny-Dummy is again going through brooding time... I took away all the golf balls and easter plastic, colorful egg, to take her off the mood, but she is still trying to hatch invisible eggs. She lays green eggs, she is an Araucana. The tribe of indian people that I have blood of, they were Araucanos.... funny ah!
More to read about my chickens in part 2, must go and make supper....~ I think that I will make Omellets!~

Jonathan

My little boy Jonathan, was down stair making something while I am working on paper work for the business. The boys know better not to bother much. So while I am entering info, I began to listen him whistling and then to mumble some words, then some few sentences .... It was "Your word is so pure and so precious  to me" .... It is so sweet to me that some godly work is being done in his little heart, though I am not always aware of it. So, when he began to cry out of frustration, I went down and helped him to build up his fort to sleep in tonight. There is a special reward in the little things of life!!

April is Spring in Alaska

It has been 4 month since my last update... time goes fast. I have been depressed, and up again, tired and energetic again, spring is in the air and I am anxious that all this snow goes away so I can dig on the earth!!! I have about 8 dozen of Petunias to plant, 12 dozens of pansies, around 16 dozen lobelia... it seems like a lot, but right now I have it all on planters little pots (a bit over crowded) on the little table by the South side window. This coming week end we are going to Seward... I think it is a little too cold yet, but my Darling has cabin fever so we must go... I will go as far as Millers Landing camping area, and he is planning to take the boys all the way to some public cabins 4 miles of a walk South of Millers Landing, over the beach... you are stuck there while the tide is up. My Mom arrives the day before, so I have a nice excuse to stay behind.... Mom and daughter time alone ;o) I have done little of crafting cards and paper projects. Mostly finishing some old stuff, left over of classes that I gave last year. I am enjoying going back to them and give them an update look. Also, I have been doing lots of knitting... a couple of hats, hand warmers, and a little doily. I will add some pictures soon. Now, Bemjamin is waiting to use the pad, so he can do Tap Fish, a little game that all the boys can play when they have at least 3 chores done... and one of them have to be "piano". They are sounding much better for the classes, since we got the little game in the pad and the rule established. Hugs for now. Until I post the pictures. Susana