I love Halloween parties!

 Bridget, Jamie and I all hosted the 1-40 CAV women's coffee this month. (We are Scrabble letters in case you couldn't tell. I hope you could!)  We wanted to do something fun! So we made a yummy meal of gross things!

Are you hungry now?

I'm Awful....

I have been really bad about updating the blog. I think I am in a blog funk. I have had a lot going on this summer, so it isn't that I don't have anything to share. Who knows. I will try and do better!

Anyway, here is what I have been up to...

 Karen, Weston and Clay came all the way from Oklahoma to see us. Well, to see us and to explore AK. I met Karen at Fort Drum almost 7 years ago. She is a great friend! I was super glad they could visit while Aaron was away at JRTC. It helped the time go by faster! Unfortunately, he missed out on their visit.

Kinley and Weston eating at Humpy's Great Alaskan Alehouse downtown. If you are ever here, it is a must on the list of places to eat.

I took them to the 'beach' to see and touch the Pacific ocean. Weston loved it! He ran right in but with the aid of his quick dad, didn't get too soaked. 

Us hanging out in Talkeetna. I love this girl!

Kinley and Weston had fun playing together. It was awesome for Kinley to have a friend around. She really missed them when they were gone. She was all alone in the backseat again.

We couldn't make it to the North Pole to see Santa but we were able to go to the reindeer farm and visit his reindeer. Weston squealed at the sight of them. He had fun feeding them and loved chasing around the farm cat.Who cares about moose, reindeer, elk and bison when there is a kitty around! :)

The military has a lot of negative and positive about it. The huge positive for me has being able to meet some great women who I know will be in my life forever! Thanks again Huffman's! Love you guys!

Dyeing and Riding

This weekend was a busy one but full of fun! Saturday I went to the Salvation Army Trash for Treasure Auction/Luncheon. I don't know if you have ever attended one or if it is just an AK thing, but if you get a chance you should go. Every year people buy stuff from the local Salvation Army's and turn it into something amazing. I have seen jeans, bowling balls and garden equipment turned into the most beautiful things. I am certainly not that creative but it was a fun experience!

Later that day, we headed over to Tyler and Ginna's house to dye Easter eggs. I don't think I will ever be to old to dye eggs. Even at 33 years old it is still a lot of fun. And since we have Kinley now I can pretend we are doing it for her and not just for me! :)

 Averianna and Amanda getting started. 

 Cadence excited for her turn!

 Kinley not excited about bundling up to go outside.

 She is loving the blanket! She didn't dye any eggs but she had fun watching.

 Heather and Ian enjoying eggs and sunshine.

 Poor Declan just couldn't keep his hand out of the dye. We have been calling him the Hulk!

The finished product. Each kid got to dye a dozen eggs. Thanks G & T!

Sunday, Aaron and I went horse back riding. It was part of my early birthday gift. Aaron will be hunting bears on my real birthday. I don't mind. I figure how many people get to hunt bears in AK?! My day can be celebrated any time!  We rode for an 1 1/2 on a beautiful day. It was a lot of fun! I had almost forgotten how much I like to ride.

Me riding Duke. Appropriate right!?

Aaron is on Rusty. It was a lot of fun riding horses with the mountains as our backdrop. It was a gorgeous day! I would recommend Horse Trekkin Alaska to anyone wanting to ride horses.

Moose 1, Rosebushes 0

We have seen a lot of moose since moving to the great state of Alaska! We have however, only had two moose in our neighborhood.

This baby moose was born in my neighbors back yard Memorial Day weekend 2009.

My friends who live on post had a moose visit there house the other day. CLICK HERE to navigate to Ginna's blog. The pictures were too great not to share with all of you! You won't be disappointed!

Lots to post!

Aaron and I have been having a blast exploring AK since he has gotten home. I have lots of pictures to post but until I get time here is one for you:

Bella (Ginna and Tyler's little girl) is staying with us for the week. She and Boone are having a blast!

It is kind of fun having two dogs in the house! Bella is on the left, Boone on the right. They are sleeping in each others beds.

I'll always think of you and smile

"I fought the good fight. I finished the race. I kept the faith."
-2 Timothy 4:7

CPT Benjamin D. Keating
3-71 CAV
KIA 26 Nov 06 Kamdesh, Afghanistan

A day for Kirsten

This past Sunday I was honored to throw a shower for my neighbor, Kirsten. She has been such a great that I find it hard to believe we have only known each other since May. She and her family have taken me under their wing. I feel like a part of the family!

Here is Kirsten opening gifts in the 'Queen of Everything' apron we got her.

Remember me showing you the pop can treat craft awhile ago? I did it for her shower too! I filled them with Hershey Kisses. They were a hit!

I had a bunch of these little pink flower set around the house. She is due with her second little girl, Mikhail, in about 2 weeks.

It was a really great day! They have done so much for me, it was great that I was able to give something back and make her day special!

I love these girls!

Aaron and I flew to Columbus, OH last weekend to visit friends and family. Aaron went to visit his brother, Ryan, who lives in Columbus. He mom was there visiting too. I went to meet up with my gal pals in Cincinnati. It has been over a year and a half since I had seen the wonderful girlfriends I made while stationed at Fort Drum. I know you have heard me make mention of them a time or two.

This group of friends is very dear to me. We all met while our husbands were serving in 3-71 CAV at Fort Drum. We all survived a 16 month deployment together! And we were there for Briana to help her survive her second deployment with Ryan, Aaron's brother.

We hadn't seen each other in over a year and a half and we are scattered everywhere (GA, OH, NC and soon to be AK). There have been many texts, calls and e-mails since we parted ways but nothing compares to being together. A few months ago it was decided that we didn't want to let another year go by not seeing each other, so the reunion trip was planned. Fran was the gracious host this year. We hope to be able to rotate places to see each other throughout our life time.

I love these girls! We have been through a lot to together and the bond we share is amazing. The awesome thing about the group is that we are all pretty different. I guess that is why we have so much fun together. We had a blast talking, eating, getting makeovers, touring the city and of course shopping! Once we were all together it was almost like no time had past since we had last seen each other.

Here are some pics from the trip:

Me, Erin, Briana, Karen and Fran on top of the tallest building in Cincinnati. And if I could remember what it was called I would tell you! Even though the day was gloomy it was a beautiful way to few the city. It was awesome to be up so high. Although, not all the girls agreed. We were proud of Karen though, she went up there with us and even peeked her head over the side a bit.

Yep, those are roller skates you see! None of us had been skating in years and it sounded like a blast. I am glad we did it because it was a lot of fun! It was harder than I remembered. I have gotten pretty good at ice skating but 4 wheels on each foot was a chore for me. You can't move as easily as you can on a blade. However, I am glad to report that I only fell once and that's because I was trying something stupid.

We also had fun playing in Erin's Mary Kay samples. She did a mini show for us and was so convincing she even made some money off of us. It was a lot more fun than I thought it would be. For those of you that know me, you know make-up and I are not really friends. There are too many options and it is confusing! But it was cool trying random colors of stuff you wouldn't think of buying.

I can't wait until the next time we will all be together again! Thanks girls for such a great time!

To Maine or Bust

This past weekend my friend Elizabeth braved the winter weather here in Maine to come and visit me. She has been living in Charlotte, NC for the past few years so she isn't used to the snowy madness that is ME. She hasn't turned too spoiled though, she was excited to be in the cold and snow.

Anyway, she made the weekend trip up here to see me and I was so excited! We spent most of the time sight seeing. I took her to all my favorite spots! I realized this weekend that even though we have only been here 1 year, I have a lot of favorite spots here in ME! She probably got annoyed at how many I times I said 'Isn't that beautiful?'. But that is the only way to describe the coast around here.

We had a great time traveling around, taking pics, eating and catching up. But as usual time flew by too fast! Thanks Geibs for coming so far to see me! Love you!

Us at Five Islands

Happy Birthday Karen! (aka DB)

Can't wait to see you and the rest of the girls in 2 weeks!

Happy 31st Birthday Nate!

I am so glad we got to have a birthday breakfast!

Thanks Adrienne!

Saturday, the mailman brought me a fun little package. Inside was this cute heart garland:

The garland was made by Adrienne over at Some of A Kind. She picked me (or a random number generator picked me) to receive this gift. None the less I am very thankful for her kindness.

Thanks Adrienne for my heart garland and other goodies!

We Miss You

Ben's final resting place.

In memory of CPT Benjamin D. Keating 3-71 CAV
KIA Nov. 26 2006 Kamdesh, Afghanistan

The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul:
He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name' sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil:
For thou art with me;
Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies;
Thou annointest my head with oil;
My cup runneth over.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the House of the Lord forever.

The 23rd Psalm

New Friends

Sunday, Aaron and I had the pleasure of hanging out with the Keatings. Some of you may remember me talking about Ben. He was a great friend we met while stationed at Fort Drum, NY. Tragically, he was killed while deployed in Afghanistan Nov. 2006.

When we found out we would be moving to Maine, one of the first things Aaron and I thought of was that Ben would be so excited. He grew up in the Springvale/Shapleigh area of Maine. Aaron and I live less than and an hour and half away.

We had met Ben's parents, Beth and Ken, before but hadn't gotten to see them in quite some time. But Sunday was a great day to catch up. The day seemed to fly by as we shared stories about Ben. Aaron and I got to see where he grew up. We even got to see some pictures of Ben when he was little that if we could I am sure we would pick on him about!

We had a great day sharing with Ken and Beth. We are looking forward to seeing them again soon. When referring to them in the past they were always 'Ben's parents' but it is now also a privilege to call them friends.

Danbury Pumpkins

This past weekend I went to visit one of my best friends in Danbury, CT. I hadn't seen Nate in over 2 years! It doesn't seem possible that it has been that long. I guess I don't really get a chance to miss him when we talk multiple times every day!

It was great to see him and his man, Jay. They have the cutest little house on the rocks. It is the perfect little cottage to make you feel like you are on a permanent vacation. We didn't do much Friday because I got lost on the way. No, you don't want to know. All you need to know it that it took me an extra 2(+) hrs to get there. :o(

Saturday, we headed to the local apple orchard/pumpkin patch where we met up with their friends Sean and Heather. I have known Sean and Heather since Nate started working at Pepsi. It is always fun to hang out with them again. They have a beautiful little girl, Lexi. I think pumpkin patches are way more magical when there is a little kid involved. It was great watching her run from pumpkin to pumpkin gaining more and more excitement along the way!

Here are a few pics from the weekend:

Nate, Me and Jay.

Lexi and Uncle Nate.

Heather and Lexi. I think this is a great mother and daughter shot.

Nate and Sean sampling the goods.

I really like shots from different angles. And pumpkins are willing to sit still enough for me to try it out!

Nate is this tall!

I thought this giant metal pumpkin was really neat. We tried to get Lexi to sit on top but it was a little to high for her liking.

Uncle Jay helping Lexi pick some apples.

I had a great time this weekend but of course (like always) time went by way to fast. I can't wait to see them again. And hopefully, the next trip won't be another two years away!

Happy Birthday Erin!

(Fran, Erin and I)

I hope you have a great birthday! I miss you lots!