Hagan's in Alaska

nerf war

2010-04-02T21:28:00.000-07:00

So the sun is shining and the road/driveway are clear of snow......

Time for nerf wars

William taking advantage of Dad refilling his bullets lol
Everybody reloaded on bullets and it is on!!!

Okay 20 sec. of fire 10 mins of finding bullets and reloading.

Just gotta love that face

Mid March and look at all that snow

2010-03-15T21:13:00.000-07:00

Marley so wanted to get into the game but the boys where not having it lol

And really this accident is on a post on a road that the speed limit is 35mph so seriously what the heck must they have been doing lol you just cant be to careful!!!!

Anchorage Museum

2010-03-13T20:32:00.000-08:00

So trying to catch up on my posts so here we go

We went to the Anchorage Museum and really like the Alaska side of it, Here is a neat Totem Pole

Here are the boys except William looking at it up close

But the main reason we went to the Museum was to checkout a a traveling exhibit....

there where costumes from actual movies, and lots of the models of the different ships.

(alot of my pictures didn't turn out very well since I was trying to figure out my new camera)

Steven had brought along a mini Darth Vador and held it up when we saw the life size one!!!

Yoda!!!

Spring only 2 wks away Yeah Right!!!!

2010-03-09T10:57:00.000-08:00

Okay so we went to bed last night expecting about 4 inches of snow and ended up with more like 8-10 inches instead. We also had some very high winds that caused some seriouse snowdrifts.

Here is a pic of Marley on the back porch which is 2 1/2 feet off the ground as is and the snow is now about 2 foot higher than the porch.

Today happens to be trash day hope they actually make it out, here you can see how high the snow berm on the side of the driveway is and it would be worse if David had not leveled the snow berm that had accumulated over the winter a week ago.

As you can see there are two levels to our snow berm not Marleys not a small dog and loves the snow and even she looked like she was ready to go in.

Ugh snow snow everywhere

Newest threat Snow falling off the roof

Thank GOD our doors are raised or we would be in so much trouble.

YAY!!! The snowplows and snow eaters are finally out the only bad thing is the wind is blowing so strong and good portion of the snow is not even making it into the trucks ugh.

This would be a snow removal crew traffic jam and there is another truck I could not get a picture of lol.

We love our snow removal crew they are the best!!! May actually be able to get out of the neighborhood by the end of the day.

Random since David came home

2010-03-09T10:42:00.001-08:00

Okay so my wonderful husband came home and by the endof the next day I had this. No really he was tired of me begging for a mommy car. Love my new Tahoe!!!!

As you can see I am not the only one that likes the new SUV lol.

We had a small get together with some of the neighbors which was supposed to be a game nite but turned into a site and chat and shoot the breeze instead still had a great time with our great neighbors. (In this one Kate got a hold of my camera lol)

Just a visual fact that gaming does run in the genes. They where so ingrossed they didn't even notice me take about 4 pics.
Yes David has had this weird blonde growth since he got home we are going to make him a doctors appointment to see if we can get it removed.
Any of you that have actually meet my husband the Good Ole Boy from Alabama should be shocked at this pic of David out not only in the snow, but carrying a snowboard and if you look closely actually smiling and having a good time.

William after coming down the hill, and that snowboarder in the back right corner on their butt is David.

So my two big boys had such a good time snowboarding we have since gone out and spend around $500-$600 to get them both decked our with boards, bindings, boots and helmet for William. Pluse what we had to get for David in snowgear alone since he didn't even have snowpants yet.

So hopefully will have some better pics of snowboarding outtings soon. All I had on this day was my Iphone just didn't do the moments justice.

Iditarod 2010

2010-03-06T14:15:00.000-08:00

Still so hard for me to believe we have already been here over a year but another sign of that is that it is time for the Iditarod again!!

So we headed downtown to watch the start of the race and found a great spot before the start line to watch the dog sled teams go by.

David took a min. to adjust his head gear and Williams head made for a good spot to hold everything til David was ready for it again lol
Dad, Dad look look the dogs the dogs go by really Dad are you looking do you see them????

Met up with our friends Caitlin, Paul and lil Natalie... I swear Natalie is in there somewhere!!!

So the Iditarod brings dog sled teams from all around the world to Anchorage for this race. This team is from Scoutland and YES they are wearing kelts wow. It was really cold out there I was shocked when I saw this team. There is also a team from Jamacia of all places lol.

The team from Scotland also had there bagpipes band. It was great to see!!

To anybody that thinks this race is abusive to the dogs you should see how excited they are to run. They really love their lives and their jobs. Back before the start line all you hear is the dogs barking and they have handlers to hold them back til they are ready to start the race!!!

We where parked in a car garage which is a great place to get a birds eye view of the race!!

The boys watching a team go by.

Homecoming Surprise!!!

2010-02-19T08:14:00.000-08:00

So instead of flowers for Valentines Day I got a 4:45 am call from David that he was on his way home 2 flights earlier than expected... I will take that kinda of Valentines Day present anyday!!!

Thank goodness the house was good from having the FRG Ladies over the previous Friday for Bag making. And all the welcome home signs where already made.

So I had to do a quick pick up and hang the signs and we where pretty much ready for for his return.

The sign out front thanks to Buildasign. com which I highly recommend they make the vinyl signs for Military homecomings for free and you only have to pay for shipping which is great!!!

So I figured how many other places would I get a chance to have a snow pile this big enough to spray paint for a Welcome home lol.

There is a great blogger on Facebook for our unit and was there taking pics the night of Davids Welcome Home Ceremony which I am very thankful for since they where able to get some great pics of us as a family.

Oh and there he is and only moments from being in our arms again!!!

Wish this one was bigger it is a great shot of the troops!!

Finally our family is all totherther again!! After the boys got there hugs it was my turn lol.

Single Soldier Goody Bags

2010-02-13T20:14:00.000-08:00

So my FRG wanted to do something for our single soldiers and decided goody bags with snacks would be the best thing to do.

So we had some donations of snacks and several donations of money. After a trip to Costco to load up on goodies ($220 worth). We got some volunteers together at my house to make up the bags. We had to make 62 bags. Used doubled up commisary bags. And filled up the bags with sodas, water, monster drinks, chips, granola bars, gum, cookies etc.

We where even able to get the kid in on the action lol they where great lil helpers.

Here is Steven and Hope putting in waters.

Yes we where tripping over each other but the job got done lol

LaShanda, Kerri, Brandyn, and Hope filling up the bags
Today I layed down on the floor just to relax and stretch out my back. This great idea didn't last long as I was attacked by the boys and the dog even got in on the action.

Random/Very Late pics

2010-02-10T17:35:00.000-08:00

So I was on the ball this year and started bugging David to get me a christmasy pic to put with ours in christmas cards at the beginning of Oct. By the end of Nov. I actually received this pic. Which really turned out great!!

His pic went with this one of the boys, dogs and I in our Christmas cards

Ms. Thea from the gym daycare that Steven absolutely loves here on post doing kiddie yoga you just had to be there to appreciate it lol.
Yes folks that says -15 and it felt even colder than that the moring I took this pic.

Just showing some Wareagle pride lol I am starting him young.

Deployment Ending

2010-02-07T22:27:00.004-08:00

So finally we can see the end of this deployment. We are about 2 weeks away from the end. So the boys and I have been working on Welcome Home signs.

I started by painting the above sign for the Battalion then realized I didn't put the specific Company lol minor blonde moment what can I say.

So I made another one with the company on, just after getting it up the gym then informed us that we could not put up our company signs and leave them til all the soldiers are home so this sign got moved to our companies main office instead. But atleast the soldiers will still see it.

So then it was on to the sign for David specifically, this was the first time we had to make signs since David became a warrant and I had a moment where I had no idea what I should put infront of his name, WO1 Hagan, Chief Hagan (which technically he isn't til he get his W2 lol) or what. After some consultation from my mom and a prior military friend I can up with Mr. Hagan.

Then this is the sign the boys are going to hold it says it all lol And yes I have fixed my grammar of you're not your but don't have a new pic of it yet.

Hopefully will have pics of Davids actual homecoing soon!!!!

Been a Slacker

2010-02-07T22:27:00.001-08:00

Sorry I have been a slacker lately and not adding pictures will try to do better lol

Sledding

2009-11-15T18:49:00.000-08:00

So this afternoon we headed out to the sledding/ski hill on post and meet up with Angie, Deanna, and Damien to have some fun in the snow.

William made it up the hill first and by the time I got Steven and I up the first time he was right behind us getting ready for a second run lol
I wish the strings on the sleds acutally helped you stir but no such luck but we still had a blast.

Steven was ready to go down

I made the munchin walk up the hill because I just couldn't drag him up the hill on the sled

Will catching some air on his sled, he quickly figured out if you lay down on sled you go way faster..... aswell as cutting down on the amount of snow that flies up in your face

Damien and Deanna running to go again after going down fast than I thought to kids under 5 yrs old could go lol

After an hour in the single digit degree weather Steven had, had enough and it was time to go home and get some coco.

I figured I wore the kids out I need to wear out the dog too. So we headed over to the big park and just happend to catch some our neighbors over there with their dogs too. So the dogs got a impromptu doggie playdate in .

Here Courtney is making the dogs all sit and focus before throwing the ball for them (Cesar Milan would be so proud lol)

Don't they look good

(r-l Thor, Marley, Papi, and Lexy)

More fun in the snow

2009-11-11T19:27:00.001-08:00

So it tried to snow all day and then all of a sudden it was like a mini blizzard outside.

Then just as fast it was clear again. Thank goodness William is big/old enough now to actaully help with the shoveling.

After we got done with the drive and side walk it was time for some fun.

So we made some snowangels!!!
So didn't think Steven was going to get into making snowangels and of course he surprised me and really enjoyed it lol.

I couldn't get out of making one too lol

After snowangels we tried out Ms. Alisons snow brick mold and started making a fort on our side of the street. Got up to three layers. Got to wait for some more snow and will build it up more.

Evan and William started another fort across the street so we can have snowball fights at some point.

The moose is back

2009-11-10T22:04:00.001-08:00

So the moose came back this morning and hit up the neighbor on our other side and ate 2 pumpkin and left one for breakfast tomorrow lol.

YES FOLKS ITS BLURRY

BUT IT DOES SAY 4 DEGREES!!!!!

And just think it is only mid November ugh.

Very Eventful Snow Day

2009-11-09T22:29:00.001-08:00

So we woke up this morning to about 4 inches of snow yeah!!!

Along with the snow comes and extra 10-15 mins in get out the door for school routine in the morning since we have to get all our snow gear on.

So mom we got my boots and snow pants on.....now what???

The boys 1/2 way ready to get out in the about 21 degree weather
trying to get everybody together for a Family Snow Pic didn't quite workout lol

After dropping William off at school I headed out to get him some new snowboots since his where too small which we discovered this morning when he was putting the old ones on for school ugh. But I got to see this great view on my way back tot he school.

Thankfully my neighbors trust me on their 4 wheeler cause getting the snow plowed is sooo much easier and way more fun than shoveling it lol.

The dogs had a blast and look at that sidewalk doesn't it look nice and clean.

Well I meant to get some pictures of the boys sledding but left the memory stick at home so scratch that. On our way back to the house this is what we found two doors down from us. My neighbor Caitlin had the best view and Baby Natalie was very focused on Ms. Moose.

The moose was actually eating my neighbors pumpkin off their porch. Steven thougth it was pretty neat too.

The moose was so occupied that we where able to get some great picts.

The plow went by 3 times and never bothered the moose but the snow removal truck did it and she was out of here lol.

Snow!!!!

2009-11-09T00:15:00.001-08:00

Yeah we have been waiting for the snow to start since about mid October and it is finally here!!!!! So glad I got the Christmas Lights up this week (which is normal for Alaska to have them up just after Halloween).

Can't really tell in this pic but there are lights in the windows too.
She was still so little the last time she saw snow she was kinda just checking it out at first.

Bring it on Alaska I am ready!!!!

Took Marley all of 3 mins to remember she loves the snow we spent about an hour out in the dark playing fetch, run around like a crazy puppy and rooting around in the snow lol.

Can't wait to get the boys out in the snow tomorrow and to see their reaction in the morning!!!!

We already have about an inch and still coming on strong.

Will also be testing my skills with the neighbors 4 wheeler with a plow on the front to shoveling the driveways on our end of the block and then the sidewalk for most of the street.

Halloween 09

2009-11-02T10:13:00.000-08:00

So I had to get some pics of the boys before we suited up to go out Trick of Treating.

So William was a Ninja

And Steven was a not so excited Elmo lol
So you could barely make out what the boys where once they got suited up to go Trick or treating in 30 Degree weather. But I was so proud of Steven the lil squirk actually walked the whole time, so apparently candy is a great motivator lol.

Me headed out with the boys

Ending our evening of Trick or treating at our friends Caitlin and Pauls house.

Davids Kayaking Trip

2009-10-23T10:37:00.000-07:00

So David kinda fell into a great Kayaking trip on the day before he was headed back after R&R. He went with a couple of our neighbors and had a blast and for David to come home and say he and I would have to go out next summer and do it together you know he had to have liked it.

One of the many waterfalls he saw

Left to right Ken and Jason in the front Kayak, then their guide following behind
Another one of Ken and Jason

The went up a creek outlet and wondered around some

Jason checking it out

While stopped for lunch taking sometime for some pictures to make the wifey happy lol

After almost 5 hours out they headed back

Artic Playground

2009-10-23T10:28:00.000-07:00

On Davids last full day in Anchorage he went Kyaking* with some of our neighbors. Which left Kate and I on kiddo duty. So we loaded everybody up in her minivan and headed to Arctic Playground.

They had a great time playing dressup....

Steven calling Dad for a rescue from all the girly stuff lol

Thats my lil Pirate Princess lol Which is what he was calling himself

Rachelle the girly girl

Or Rachelle the turtle lol

Some of David's R&R

2009-10-23T09:23:00.000-07:00

So we got our pass to go to the gate and pick up David and his flight was delayed just enough to give me time to go a lil crazy of course lol.

But finally his flight landed and oh oh there he was it was so great to finally see him again!!!
The next day we kept William out of school and headed to the Alaska State Fair which was pretty good actually. We started out in the barn and the boys loved checking out the different farm animals. Here Steven is telling Daddy that they are looking at a cow like David had never saw one before lol.

Okay it is a fair you got to get on some rides right!!!!

Steven on his lil kid ride

The boys and I cheesing it up waiting for the lumberjack show to start.

David saving Steven's ears from the loud chainsaws.

The big boys waiting for another ride to get started

Yeah got to love having your favorite gym home asleep in his favortie chair!!!!

David brought some great weather to Alaska with him so we took advantage of it and headed to the lake. We got a canoe and paddled around the lake.

David getting drooled on during a major wrestling match lol.

On the rainiest day of Davids visit we decied to go to the zoo for Moose gone Wild day.

Flying "binkie" during a loll in Will's soccer game.

Out to breakfast just having some fun

Taking David up to the over look of Anchorage during a nice clear day

Headed out to take David to the airport taking one last pic

We are so sorry to see him go but atleast we are half way thru this deployment and on the downhill side of it. So he should be home before we know it.

Misc. Alaska stuff

2009-08-16T19:42:00.001-07:00

Just some random pics

Steven out at the lake watching the ducks

this mushroom was behind our neighbors house and is huge and the weirdest thing I have seen in awhile
Male moose on the way back home from the PX

I wish I had got video of how slow he was walking accross the road like he owned the place lol

berry pic'n

2009-08-16T19:15:00.001-07:00

Okay it berry pic'n time in Alaska and due to bear issues we decided to out with a large crew of people and kids and I brought Marley for good measure.

William, Maddie, and Avery leading the way with some help from Marley
The view from the top of the mountain we where pic'n on it was totally breath taking.

William really got into finding blueberries

Steven really got into sitting in the bushes picking every berry within reach of him till they where all gone and then moved about four feet in any directions and started all over lol

Marley loved running all around the mountian side till she wore herself out and found a tall bush to lay under in the shade.

Steven loved the blueberries and crow berries we picked

Driving back down the mountain there was a great view of Anchorage....

and our house/neighborhood on post

Water fun with Marley

2009-08-16T19:08:00.000-07:00

So after giving Marley a couple of baths I realized she has webbed toes and a coat like a lab so I figured we would take her out to the creek and see how she liked the water.

She walked all over the water at the creek and loved it.

Marley's version of going down river lol

After the success at the creek we took her out to the lake. She loved it but still didn't attempt to swim once the water was up to her chest that is as far out as she would go lol. But she still loved the water and chasing the bugs. And watching the couple of ducks that figured out quickly that she was not going to swim out and get them lol.

William Soccer

2009-08-16T19:03:00.001-07:00

So William started soccer recently and here are some pics

Steven and I hanging out during a practice

Will and some of his team waiting to take the ball to the goal
Will all decked out for his first game they are the BUMBLE BEES lol

Bore Tide

2009-07-29T21:52:00.000-07:00

The bore tide is a huge wave or series of waves that advance down Turnagain Arm in a wall of water up to 10-feet high. It’s a dramatic show of nature’s power that’s easy to see.

That is the info we got on a "Bore Tide" so Kate and I thought we would take the kids down and check it out. Well the tide we saw was only about 3, maybe 4 ft tall. But it was still kinda neat getting out there.

Will and his friend leaning against the wind scarying the stuff out of me cause we where pretty high up on the rocks.
yes it was totally this windy

me and the boys

Will feeling like a kite

Softball Championships

2009-07-29T21:42:00.000-07:00

me playing third base

Okay not sure what William was doing during the game but I didn't get any picks of the acutual game

So here is us givingthe winners high fives after the game

us doing the "Go Geronimo" round-up

Getting my trophy
Group Pics with everybody
Just the Lady Geronimo's and we are headed to state next month!!!
Me with mine and the team trophy!!!

Free Skating

2009-07-29T21:35:00.000-07:00

So MWR had another free event skating, have tried to take Will before and it never turned out well. So did not have very high hopes for this event but was pleasantly surprised.

As you can see Will actually gave it a try and figured out that he liked it, the practicing in the street on his roller blades payed off.

Okay there where still falls but that is to be expected right?!?
Ahh... took me back to middle school and early high school ha ha.

After about 30 min this is where the boys ended up while I skated my butt off

Will and I wrapping up a great outing

Combat Challenge

2009-07-29T21:17:00.000-07:00

So my neighbors roped me into doing the Combat Challenge which is a team event between the Army, Airforce and the Protestant Women of the Chapel (the bible study group) consisting of a two person Canoe team and three people rucking with 35lb ruck for a mile then doing a paintball target shoot.

Me, Kate and Alison pre race

the two PWOC teams

My canoe partner/ neighbor Ashley

look at me trying to be a powerhouse lol
only like three yards left to go stroke, stroke, stroke
after going to cheer on the ruckers walking back down the hill to the finishline with Kate B. and her girls

Since the boys where so good we rented a paddle boat and cruised around the lake
Better pic of us taken from another paddle boat

Will Swim lessons

2009-07-29T20:30:00.000-07:00

That is the can I get in yet look

Quick family photo
Learning to dive

Potters Marsh

2009-07-29T20:21:00.000-07:00

We where on the other end of town shopping and it looked like a thunder and lightning storm was rolling which is rare for here so Kate and I took the kids to watch the storm come in. The storm never materialized (like a side they are unusual here).

But the kids had a blast running on the board walks and looking at some of the different birds.

Steven running like a crazy kids with his tongue out

Sydney and Kaitlin just being silly
Kate chasing Steven my way

some of the marsh

the kids posing

On the way home we saw this pretty lady moose

Glacier Cruise

2009-07-29T19:40:00.000-07:00

So MWR had a free Glacier Cruise for families of Deployed Soldiers so the boys and I jumped on it quick. Come to find out it would have cost us about $300 just for boys and I.

So we had to drive the 30 min down to the Whittier Tunnel which is the longest tunnel in North America kind cool once you get over the fact that you are inside of a huge mountian.

Yes, I was hanging my arm outside the truck window to take this and I took about 5 and this is the best one lol.
To start off our day we saw this great pair of bald eagles as soon as we got into Whittier

The boat we rode on for the tour

Doesn't get much better than this does it.

Yes his face is squashed up again the glass to see not much of anything yet.

This is one of 46 glaciers we saw during our trip, and yes the glacier ice really is that cool shade of blue it was so neatThe crew pulled some glacier ice out of the bay and let the kids check it out. Will is such a good big brother he showed it to Steven too.

When the glacier breaks and falls into the bay it is called "calving" it is something that the tour company can not predict and is rare to see we where lucky enought to see two different sections calve. It was pretty cool to hear the ice pop and then woosh the ice falls in a makes huge waves.

Will with his new friend "Buddy the Sea Otter"

Steven cuddling up with his sea otter (still unnamed lol)

During our tour we saw lots of Seals

Families of Sea Otter that are so much bigger than you can expect

And my personal HIGHLIGHT of the trip a pair of Humpbacks

One of which gave us a great tail shot

By the time we got done with the 4 hr tour that ended up being more like 5hr. And we waited to go back thru the Whittier Tunnel the kids where whooped. And after a short 15 min wait in line Steven bite the dust lol.

On the way home we passed this campsite that had this view that the photo below so does not do justice too.

2009-07-29T14:06:00.000-07:00

So I have been seriously lacking in my post lately so lets catch up.......

Drive home from Denali

2009-06-12T00:38:00.000-07:00

So driving home the best picture I got of Mt. McKinley was while driving probably not so smart but would you pass up this picture lol

At the north lookout point for McKinley
Will using the telescope to look at the mountian

At the south lookout point we would have gotten pics of the boys but this is what Steven was doing

Another view of the mountain

Kate and her girls

Denali Day 2

2009-06-09T00:00:00.000-07:00

Day 2 we head over to the campsite next door to have some pancakes and sausage cooked on a camp stove it was super yummy!!!

Us waiting for the start of the very popular Denali show lol
Kaitlyn and Steven checking out a Moose Skull
Will playing with a computerized magnifying glass

Us on a neat old wagon

the boys checking out the coolest display

Okay it is so time for lunch pull out the sandwichs

AAAA Yeah mom I am trying to drink here

At the 15 mile turn around point there was this great rock formation

Will and I decided to climb it and left Kate, and her girl and Steven down below at the truck
Kate looking for Dale sheep on the mountain

the view of one side of the valley from the top of the rock formation

the view from the otherside of the valley I can't explain how pretty it was

Down at the river Will and Sydney looking for some cool rocks

Headed back to the campsite

sooner or later I am going to find the train taht goes over this bridge

We went 30 miles round trip into the park and didn't see much wildlife. Then 3 miles from the campsite there was a baby moose and mamma moose eating right on the side of the road

go figure right

these where post all over the campgrounds kinda scary huh

The kids posing by the creek we got to fall asleep listening too

Just beautifulSteven action shot lol

Camping @ Denali Day 1

2009-06-08T23:30:00.000-07:00

Following Kristie's RV trailer on the way the mountians where just breaktaking!!!

I wish I could have slept during the 5 hour drive north lol
Leave it to me to find the only construction on this hwy and have to get stopped for it.

Kate stuck behind me

The valley about 30 miles from Denali, it was everything I thought Alaska would like the mountains the flat beautiful valley and the huge river running thru it all.

Once we got there I had to get the tent set up

Not so bad if I do say so myself"Bob" the squirrel trying to sneak into the RV trailer

Yeah the best part of camping making Smores

Will chowing down

Okay so it is midnight and the sun is still out got to get the boys settled down for bed so time for a bedtime story right.

Me settled down for the night

And finally at about a quarter til 2 they fell asleep YEAH

Will doing his one eye opened sleeping which he has down since he was an infant kinda creepy

Talkeetna

2009-06-08T23:00:00.000-07:00

So on the way to Denali we stopped in Talkeetna this lil town that is just a cute lil place

(nuf said)

the kids posing with one of the many moose statues in town
Kaitlyn and Steven with a moose that is just there size

With a mini tour Plane in front of one of the shops

Kissin a moose

Me helping Steven Kiss the Moose

Just another great place to take a pic

Picnic @ the park w/ Caitlin and Paul

2009-06-07T00:29:00.000-07:00

So another beautiful day in Anchorage lets go have picnic!!!

Paul and Caitlin cheesing it up

umm yeah mom I am eating here
Anytime he can eat is a good time
After running wild, chasing squirrels the girls chilling in the shade

Aren't they cute

yeah the mosquitos are crazy here Will scratching a bug bite

Such a pretty girl

Crazy kid with his new hat

Saturday Downtown

2009-06-06T22:51:00.000-07:00

So it is Saturday what to do??? We called Ms. Kate, Madylene and Eva and headed downtown to wonder around.

Marley not so excited with the ride in the truck

Kate and the kiddos in front of the Eisenhower State Statue

Down at Shipcreek watching people King Salmon fish

A river otter we watched fishing alsoStopping for Lattes and muffins yummyOn the way home we saw the Bald Eagles hanging out at the Fish Hatchery near the house

And a moose munching on some grass (I know not the best pic ever but I swear it is a moose lol)

Just a picture of a very dirty boy after softball practice

Nightly Rituals

2009-05-30T22:44:00.000-07:00

So in the land of the midnight sun it is 8pm and the sun is still out what do you do let the kids play themselves silly and wear out the dogs.

thank goodness for Ms. Caitlin and her dog Dona or I would never get Marley's puppy hypernise* wornout enough so she would settle down at night.
Meko acting like she was going to play too but she was only fooling.

The girls wrestle....

They run.....

And generally just run themselves ragged!!!!

ITS GREAT!!!!!

Softball

2009-05-25T20:03:00.000-07:00

So its spring in Alaska and with the warm sunny weather comes outdoor activities like the FRG Softball league. My FRG didn't get it together so I got on with a neighbors team. Never was very good at softball but I am having a blast and actually doing pretty good.

Me lining up for a hit.

Playing short stop
Kate my neighbor running to get the ball

hitting as close to line drive as I get lol

Will is acutally getting pretty good with the camera, he took all of these pics.

Say cheese mom!!!

Our first game is tomorrow night wish us luck!!!

Memorial Weekend

2009-05-23T20:17:00.000-07:00

Another weekend another BBQ in the "Hood" as we are starting to call it lovingly.

So due to the Memorial weekend and talking to some of the neighbor nobody was doing anything so we all got together in my driveway to hangout. As you can see it is a fun party with parents, kids and lots of bikes, trikes or wagons.

Will after chowing down on a hamburger and two hotdogs not to mention lots of the yummy sides that everybody brought got to enjoy Ms. Heathers great layer cake dessert.
Steven could not miss out on the cake either and dug in with both hands while Rachel watched enviously.

Kate cheesing it up for the camera

Kyle helping himself to what was left of the dessert his mom brought.

Even after getting caught he was so proud of himself.

Kylene and Amelia enjoying the party

Katelyn doing her whats up face lol

Ms. Caitlin riding Stevens trike and getting a lil helpful push from Steven. Don't ask me how we got her back up off that thing lol.

Fun in Alaska

2009-05-18T14:05:00.001-07:00

It rained almost all day on Friday but after the rain it was very pretty outside got a great pic of this beautiful rainbow.

Sunday the boys and I went and checked out one of the main biking trails in town. It was fun except for one ginormous hill that was a blast to go down but hauling a bike, bike trailer and a 36lb kids back up that hill was crazy!!!

Stopping in a sunny spot for lunch, and Steven saying enough with the pictures mom gimme my sandwich lol.
After our ride enjoying the scenary
After hanging out at the park I let William take Marley and about two seconds after I took this pic Marley clothed lined William and they landed in a pile in the dirt lol

Random Pictures

2009-05-15T00:30:00.000-07:00

Will learning how to take a "myspace" picture lol
They really do love each other sometime I forget that lol

I am not sure who is wearing who out but they where both tired by the time we got home.

Me trying to fix a kite for the kiddos to fly

Look at my cutie kid

The boys and I trying out our new swing

BBQ

2009-05-03T20:26:00.000-07:00

So I decided to have a BBQ at my house with most of my street on Saturday. It turned out great as you can see we had a great turn out. I had to take two pictures to get everybody in!!!

Everybody brought their own meat aswell as some sides and I manned the grill. It was alot of fun hanging out with everybody.

Hey am I good or what everybody was out for the BBQ and the ice cream man drove by!!!

My Big Will hanging in the yard having a Rocket Pop while lil Will looks on in envy lol!!

Steven loving his popcicle.

So after everybody got fed and had some dessert. I finally sat down and enjoyed my company and had me a Corona.

All of the kids had a blast playing on every bike, trike or scooter with in a mile radious lol.

I had heard about the Alaska mosquitos before we got here and it was not a lie. They are crazy big and scary. So I ended up having to light several bug candles and hand out the bug spray too.

Steven playing on somebodies trike.

Beautiful Day in Alaska!!!

2009-04-28T13:36:00.000-07:00

This morning it was absolutely beautiful so we decided to walk to school.

After dropping William off at school Steven and I continued to walk to the family zone for one of my Toning Classes. Before class got started Steven decided to get is workout into. First with the tension bands ....
then using the BOSU (both sides up) ball

Once we walked back to the house to get the dogs to go get them a walk into we got ready to leave and where else but Alaska could you see a bald eagle flying around while standing in your driveway it was so cool.

After wearing out the girls (dogs) Steven and I went over to the park to have a picnie lunch and play a lil before naptime.

Just playing around

Biking & Carnivals

2009-04-25T21:37:00.000-07:00

I got Jason from next door to fix my bike for me yesterday and the weather was nice enough today for the boys and I to get out and ride. We decided to go over to the Military Child Month Carnival that was about 2 miles from the house. I was sciptical that William would make it the hole way without complaining. And what did the lil snoot do but totally surprise me and made it the hole way with no complaints and laughing and joke with me all the while!!!!

(Don't I look happy...at this point I was just trying to get everybody loaded and headed out of the house)

thats my bike riding boy

Steven taking it easy sitting back chilling in the bike trailer

Once we got to the Carnival William climbed up in the Firetruck on display and had a blast looking at all the buttons

Steven had a great time playing on the lil kids bouncy course

A great action shot of William in the Big Kids bouncer

Blow baby blow and he still didn't get any bubbles made lol

After Steven got freaked out by I am not sure if it was the D.A.R.E. Lion costume person, Macruph the Dog, Sparky the Firedog or Macruphs side kick. But he really does not like the costume people so we headed over to the shopette for Subway and I noticed while we where eating that the Barber was not busy so they boys went ahead and got haircuts.

Steven's before (I didn't realize how tired he looked lol) but he was acting great anyway lucky me lol

Will with crazy hair and for some unknown reason crazy eyes too

Didn't get an after of Steven but you got to love bribery here. He doesn't even mind the hair that gets on the lollipop ewwwww. Had to rinse it in the sink before we left.Will after he got his ears lowered. It make a world of difference

Well after we got done with haircuts we headed the 2 miles back to the house. By the time we got home Steven was slumped over as far as the 5 point harness would let him with the lollipop barely hanging in his mouth. He was still awake but I am not to sure he was conscious lol.

Day to Day life

2009-04-23T15:55:00.000-07:00

So life has faded into a pretty normal schedule. We get up get ready for school. Drop Will of at school then Steven and I head to the Family Zone aka the kid frendly Gym. Tues and Thurs mornings is toning class and in the evenings is Spin. Wed night is Zumba aka Dance Cardio which is so much fun you don't even feel like you are working out. After just short of two months of doing this crazy workout schedule I am finally starting to see some results lost a couple inches off my middle and starting to lose on my hips. WOOHOO. The top in the pic below is one I have had for no joke like two years and never could wear out because of my muffin top. When I realized I could fit into it it really made my week!!!! Along with the working out I have signed up for some fun Run/Walks one is a 5k and the other is a 5 mile so I am trying to turn myself into one of those people that enjoys running for any of you that really know me you know that I used to think hey if I can run there I would much rather walk. But I am motivated and going to keep up the training and see if I can become a runner all the same.

(fuzzy pic put you still get the idea)Very boring post but that is what has been going on with us here.

will try to post some random pics later.

I may become a Runner yet!!!

2009-04-20T16:59:00.000-07:00

So with the beautiful weather that comes after a very cold winter all you want to do is get outside, which has motivated me to start trying to Run. Plus with a bigger dog in the house it is a great way to wear her out lol.

Steven helping mom walk the girls not sure how Meko feels about this but she followed him all the same.

Hey look mom I Run more than I walked two miles worth and I am still happy lol. And feeling great!!

While we were outside we watched the visiting Jets on the Air Force side doing maunevours.

Later in the afternoon we where outside and I helped one of the neighbors with her daughers bike and left the tools out the next thing I knew Steven was adjusting his bike to his prefrences lol.

Doc. Appiontments and Playgrounds oh my

2009-04-19T16:49:00.000-07:00

I had to get William in for a sports physical due to the upcoming soccer season that he wants to participate in. While we where waiting for the Doc I snapped some pics of my boys.

After the appointment we went by the Artic Chill and the boys played around.

Here Steven is inching his way accross the bridge still not to sure about the way it moves underneath him he he.
William playing Hide and Seek with some of the other kids.

Easter Sunday

2009-04-19T10:30:00.000-07:00

Okay so with both of the boys being sick this last week I had no gotten on to post a new blog about Easter. So we started out the day having brunch with BJ and her kids at Denny's. All the kids filled up and then we hit Kohls before the easter egg hunt.Steven and I waiting for the toddler hunt to start
William waiting patiently for the older kids hunt to start.
Go babe go get them eggs!!!

As you can tell Steven was so not impressed with the Easter Bunny.

After the egg hunt and a nap for Steven we headed over to part to play. Will is the king of the playground lol.

He is just so cute sometimes!!

Everybody say cheese.

Steven telling Marley to get down off the play equipment.

WOOHOO 40 Degrees

2009-04-06T20:59:00.000-07:00

So it finally hit 40 degrees here today and I never thought that 40 degrees could feel so warm lol.

So what do you do when the weather is no nice, you get out and take the dogs for a walk twice, take the kids out and wear them out playing.
And breakout the grill for the third time since we moved here. Yum the grilled chicken was so good too.
Just a random picture of the girls they where sitting so good I had to get a hardcopy memory of it lol.

Its SATURDAY..Lets get out of the House!!!

2009-04-04T18:07:00.000-07:00

So we got up and got motivated today. We headed to the Zoo for an Easter Scavenger Hunt. We were ahead of schedule so we headed up to Flattop aka the Anchorage overlook it was as beautiful!!!! You could see for miles and miles. It was a great day for the overlook to it was so crisp and clear.

Will headed to the top of the overlook ahead of Steven and I.

Downtown Anchorage

Elmondorf Air Force Base/the airstrip

The boys with the the view behind them

Looking at the city this was the view behind us if you like nature views Anchorage/ Alaska is definitely the place to be.

Same view with William in it.We made it to the zoo just after it opened. Let the animal tour begin.This baby seal was just as curious about us as we where of him. lol

The otters are so much bigger than you think they would be.

The tigers where huge I think one of there legs was as long as Steven is tall and probably weighed as much as he did.

This wolf kept looking at Steven like he was the appitizer before lunch. And the intensity of the look freaked me out.

Due to the holiday (Easter) the Zoo Keepers filled balloons with berries, apples, juice and water and then froze them. Along with these fruitcicles they hide hard boiled eggs all over the polar bear exibit. It was alot of fun watching the bears sniff out the goodies. And one of the bears really does not like to get in the water in the winter time so it was funny to watch here try to get to the fruitcicles that had been thrown in the water.

Thanks to a fence post we even got a family pic lol.\

After the zoo we where already on the other side of town so I figured we would head out to Balugia Point to see if the whales where around yet. They were not but it was still just nice to look at the view. The climb up the hill was steep but definitely worth the view.

William again headed out with Steven and I bringing up the rear.

At this point Steven had, had enough of the picture taking and was very ready for a nap.

William looking for whales.

Steven tried to.... but was not quite tall enough.

Me and the view

After all the fun stuff I figured I need to do something I had been putting off for awhile.

CLEAN THE YUCKY TRUCK

Due to breakup season ie spring I was not the only one with this on their to do list for the weekend. We waited for about 20-30mins.

WOW the truck really is green under all that mud, dirt, sand and probably some ash from last weekend.

Okay I am pooped and this was the last of the things to do before I chill out the rest of the day!!

Potty Training and House Training.... yes I am CRAZY!!

2009-04-01T14:17:00.000-07:00

So everything with house training Marley is going so good I figured why not move on to Steven.

We went on Monday and picked out a potty chair that may not be the coolest one out there but it had all the fitures we needed and Steven liked it which is a plus. So we came home and he sat down on it I didn't expect much to happen and it really didn't we peepee'ed just a lil bit and I made the approriate big deal out of it lol.

Well Tuesday he pooped and today he pee'ed alot!!!! So we are making great progress. I will continue to update!! Wish me luck lol.

Ashfall

2009-03-29T13:24:00.000-07:00

So yesterday around 6 in the evening we got the warning that Mt. Redoubt had errupted yet again. But unlike all the other erruptions we found out that there was a Ash cloud headed our way and we were going to get some ashfall out of it. So I took the dogs outside to wear them out before the cloud got here and get them a last potty break outside since they would have to use the garage til the ashfall was over. It was very strange you could see the ash cloud coming up the valley. Thank goodness we already had the neccessary supplies ie water and food. I covered up the tvs at bedtime. As well as putting damp towels at the bottom of the doors. It has been a very interesting going thru this volcano thing.

I just thought this was a cool pic. The white of course is the snow under the ash. I thought it would look more like snow falling and it just was not like that. The particals in the air are so fine you don't see them you can smell the sulfur in the air but you don't see it. Then all of a sudden when you look out the window the snow has this weird grey tint to it. All our pretty white perfect snow now looks just gross. Oh well atleast it is Alaska and we should be getting more snow soon lol.

Just another Saturday

2009-03-28T12:36:00.000-07:00

So we started out the day by going out to breakfast. The boys really enjoyed their smiley face pancakes.
Steven downed his milk and three good sized pancakes. He must be getting ready for another growth spirt.

Okay so I have realized that getting a puppy that is going to be good sized is that I have to puppy proof my house kinda like kiddie proofing a house when you have lil kids lol.

So.......

The boys and I went out shopping for a kiddie gate w/ a swing door in it that Will could open. Aswell as being extra tall to keep Marley out as she get bigger we also had to get a extra wide one to fit the doorway. I am so glad a semi handy this thing was kinda pain to install but it is very sturdy and keeps everybody on their side of the gate.
Sorry girls no puppies in the playroom.

Well anyway after that the boys both went down for a nap... Steven because he needed it and William because he was just not feel so great. I took the moment of peace to hang with the dogs or rather Marley outside since Meko is not into the outside lol. It was not so chilly and as you can see sooooo very bright out.She is so pretty!!!

Anybody that has dogs, you know that Kongs are the coolest dog toy out there. If you don't have dogs a Kong is a big hard rubber toy that you put treats into and they dogs have to work hard to get to the treat. Marley really liked hers even if it got all filled with snow.

Stevens New Ride

2009-03-24T14:05:00.000-07:00

So I ordered a new Peg Perego Plinko 3 mid Feb and it finally arrived today. I really like it!!! And we are going to test drive it on the walk to and from school this afternoon. It is the Mode Blue style and didn't think I would really love the black from but it makes it look very boyish.

So Steven woke up from his afternoon nap just as i finished putting it together and of course he wanted to get in it.

Doesn't he look happy and ready to ride out lol.

Side view
I took him out can we say unhappy kid!!!!

So to pacify him I let him push it all over the house.

Puppies and Volcanos Oh my!!

2009-03-23T20:50:00.000-07:00

So after a weekend with Marley I am so pleased with my choice of dogs. She is so fun and smart. She pretty much has house training down. Then she got sit and working on down and shake. She does well on the leash and with some pratice will be an ace. We walked to the school to pickup William today and back to the house without any major problems. Marley loves the snow she literally puts her nose in the snow bank up to her eyeballs then runs around like a crazy dog lol. She retrieves when playing fetch about 3x out of 5. What can I say I am loving my second doggy lol.

And now to the pictures....

Such a pretty puppy!!

I promise this blurr really is Marley running all out in the backyard

(notice I am a really good dog owner I dugout a playspace for her and Meko by the way

yes it is as deep as it looks)

Here she ventured out in the deep snow.

She literally puts her face in the snow up to her eyeballs.

What happens when you walk a puppy to school and back then take her in the backyard and run her silly. They pass out and I wish you could hear her snore.

I got a call from David early this morning asking if we where okay. In my fog of sleep I was like of course why wouldn't we be. I then was informed by my husband who is half way around the world that the volcano here had errupted. After getting up and watching the news, I found out that the Mt. Redoubt had errupted not once but five times during the night and spewed ash all over the place. Thank goodness all the ash went north of us so it didn't effect us so much.

Meet the Newest Hagan

2009-03-20T15:33:00.000-07:00

So I convinced David that we "needed" another dog. I know we really didn't but I still wanted another one. So I have been looking online and got out today and went to some of the shelters here. Ended up at the Animal Control place and looked at the puppies.

And........

Meet Marley she is 4 mths old and a cutie as you can see she looks like a small German Shepard w/ something else mixed in because her chest is white. So far she is listen pretty good and already gets the concept of sit. She is hyper aware of what Steven is doing which makes me feel good. She likes to play in the snow and chewing on rawhides.

As you can see her paws are not very big and she is and she is only a little taller than Meko and of course somewhat heavier.

This is Meko watching Marley play and she just gave me this Mom what the heck have you done look. lol

Having Fun

2009-03-19T13:17:00.000-07:00

So what do you do in Alaska when it is 1 whole degree above freezing (32 Degrees). You go outside and enjoy the sunshine and so called warm weather. The boys and I got home from picking William up from school and it was just too darn nice to stay inside. So we hauled the bike, three wheeler and push car out. When we go bored w/ all that I got the kids shovels out, still not too sure what they where trying to accomplish but they had fun doing it lol.

Steven is so happy that we found the driveway under the ice.

Will is doing great w/ riding his bike but he is still a little iffy w/ the icy street.

Steven chasing me down on his three wheeler.

They are having so much fun I wish I could teach them how to really shovel the drive and sidewalk lol.

She's so pretty. But I got the okay to start looking for another, bigger dog so her world is soon to be turned upside down. Hopefully she will see this as a plus once she gets used to the idea of a puppy lol.

1st Day we see more Sunlight then darkness

2009-03-18T12:09:00.000-07:00

Well I heard it offically on the radio this morning today is the first day that we see more Daylight then Darkness. The sun comes up at 6 something and will go down at 810pm. Along w/ that it stays twilight here for about 45 min to a hour. So needless to say I have got dark curtians for both of the boys rooms and we are starting the rule of "I don't care if it is light out go to bed anyway!!!!".

Along with that, Steven and I have started our new schedule of get up take William to school. Go to the community center where there is a playroom/cardio room in one, mom works out for a hour and Steven plays. Then we go over to the padded gym and Steven runs himself wild lol. Head over to the coffe shack (which there is one on every corner no joke). Head home eat a quick lunch and Steven goes down for a nap.... Yeah!!! Then it is about a hour a 1/2 to 2 hours of quict time and off to get Will from school and do the homework and end of the day stuff. Sounds like fun huh.

Oh, well not very interesting but it is what is going on with us lol.

Playdate at our House

2009-03-17T13:32:00.000-07:00

So Steven and I hosted a street playday at our house. I didn't get any pics of our friends over at the house but here are some from before the get together.Say cheese mom!

Come on Meko I will help you escape over the kiddy gate.

Indoor Playgrounds Rock

2009-03-10T19:22:00.000-07:00

So first off let me say that the so called "lost" 50" flat screen finally made it back to us...Yeah!!!

Well today we got out and went to see Ms. Julie at the PX where I bought some of her handmade jewelry very nice!!!

After that I took the kids to the indoor playground to wear them out. We all had a blast running around and the boys love climbing on the playset.

Well after we got home I caught Steven taking the nobes off one of the TV stands yet again so the Hagan Household has reinstated the Naughty Set you can see how much we like it at my house lol.

Just Hanging Out

2009-03-09T19:00:00.000-07:00

So this week is Spring Break for William so we spent Monday just hanging around the house. After a very slow morning we needed to get out of the house and it was absolutely beautiful outside so we went outside for a lil bit.

Steven loved having his cars and 3 wheeler out of the house and garage for the first time. And look at all that clean sidewalk (may not mean much to anybody else but I worked very hard on finding that pavement lol).

Didn't get any pics of Will he was busy playing w/ friends down the street.

Iditorad

2009-03-07T16:42:00.001-08:00

So this morning when I got up and out of bed I came back to find this lump in my bed. Well after getting up and out the door the boys and I went to the start of the Iditorad Dog Sled Race it was very interesting and fun. The boys enjoyed watching and cheering for the sledders as they went by.We started out in the parking garage where we parked the truck and watched several mushers go by from up there the view was great.
Will waiting for the next musher to go by.

Down at street level a pic w/ both the boys Will is always ready for a pic but Steven is going threw a stage where he doesn't want his picture taken but he wants to see himself on the camera screen go figure?!?

Will taking Steven & I's pic

Me taking Will & I's pic

Will w/ a big bear downtown

Shopping & Construction

2009-03-06T20:28:00.000-08:00

So the boys and I went shopping this morning.

While we where out we found a Kids Consignment shop

and Toys R Us. While at Toys R Us we found a train table

the boys enjoy the one at the bookstore so much I figured

it would be a good buy.

So this is me hard @ work

and this is what the boys where doing lol

EUREKA

2009-03-04T17:40:00.000-08:00

Ah hah, I finally figured out how to put that cool header on my page thanks to my Blogger Guru Chele for all the helpful hints!!!!!!

Sick Day @ Home

2009-03-03T18:07:00.001-08:00

So today Will was home, due to having a temp. yesterday so just some random pics.

This one is just for my mom(who is from NM), saw this T & couldn't leave it on the rack.

And Steven w/ crazy bathtube hair.

What Will did most of the day, but his temp is back to normal so back to school tomorrow.

Bald Eagle Feed

2009-03-02T22:38:00.000-08:00

So the boys and I headed over to Eagle River where I had heard about a place where they feed wild Bald eagles every Sunday. It was very awesome!!!

We where so close to them it was crazy!!!

And there where no joke like 20-30 birds flying around.

All in all it was a really cool experience that we all enjoyed!!!I just wish I had remembered to replace my memory stick in the camera so I could have gotten more picture. Oh well just means we will have to go back next weekend....Oh darn wink wink!!!

Only 6 more days

2008-12-28T20:53:00.000-08:00

So David and I head out on a great Alaskan adventure six days from now I am now in packing hell as I like to think of it now. I am trying to pack up six month worth of stuff and get it loaded up in Davids truck. Then we get to get in that truck and drive for 3 or 4 days depending on the weather. Then onto a ferry for 2 1/2 days, spend the night in Juneau, then back on the ferry for another 1 1/2. When we finally get off the ferry we still have a 50 mile drive into Anchorage. Keep checking in for pics of our trip.