Holiday Moments

Since we decided to stay in Alaska this year, Kyra and Ethan enjoyed a Grandma Auxilia (my Mom) style Christmas, which involved staying in your pajamas for most of Christmas Day openning present, after present, from Santa Claus to Stocking Gifts to Beneath the Tree surprises with long snack breaks to stretch out the mystery of what treasures lay hidden beneath the shiny wrapping. Thomas, who claimed he was lucky if he got one present from his parents on Christmas, felt it was probably not a good precedence to set, since my Mom believed that each child should have at least ten extravagant presents that would make their eyes widen in magnificent surprise and I'm talking about bikes with gigantic red ribbons and puppies pouring out of a gift box. We did NOT go that far, but here were some of our favorite moments from the holiday:Sledding on our driveway was faster, scarier, and more exciting than any other local trails we tried.Before Kyra went to bed on Christmas Eve, she left three cookies and a glass of milk out for Santa. A few minutes later, the plate was empty, cookie crumbs sprinkled Kyra's chin. So, I replenished the plate with candy, cookies, and caramel popcorn. Ethan spotted the treats and made a mad dash, shrugging Kyra off along the way who attempted to tackle him down and shouts from Daddy, "Nooooo, Ethan." We had to placate him with some milk and cookies of his own. In the morning, both kids headed straight for the plate and cleared the remains. They didn't even notice the Santa presents.Kyra and Ethan participated in their first Christmas pageant. Mom and Kyra compromised on "wise men" outfits since she wanted a very ugly dog costume. Kyra and Daddy made a gingerbread train while Ethan licked on the frosting.Ethan got his own car for Christmas, since Kyra kept stealing his firetruck ride.

Help Momma and Daddy

When Kyra turned four, she decided her main chores in the house would be: putting silverware away and making sure we pray at dinner. Kyra's prayers begin with "Dear Jesus...help Momma and Daddy and Ethan and Kyra. Then, she names something specific for each of us. And ends with a roaring, "Amen." Normally, she asks that Jesus help her with letters and numbers and sign language for Ethan. But this night, she asked for...

The knight and dragon

This is one of my favorite photos from Halloween this year. The shadows and angles and a tender father, daughter, son moment. Thomas came home with a pumpkin and another one arrived in our Full Circle Farms Box...so he carved a Lightning McQueen face (with a little help from me) for Kyra and a happy face for Ethan.Kyra donned her knight costume again, so she could practice sword fighting with Ethan the dragon. Little did she know that he was more interested in gnawing on her pet dragon than the sword Kyra kept jabbing into his very padded belly.Our warmest Halloween so far, we decided to take the kid's to the Alaska Zoo Boo. No snow on the ground...see?

But Thomas bundled himself and the kids in gloves and hats and by evening's end, I allowed him to drape an extra fleece he brought for me over my costume. The kids talked about this event for days....how the polar bear, mountain goats, and snow leopards gave them candy. The snow leopards normally sleep when we visit, but that night, they put on quite a show, leaping off cliffs and prancing easily up the steep mountain sides. Kyra talked about a whale giving her candy, but we have no idea what she meant because there are no whales at this zoo. Thomas and I hope the kids don't think trick-o-treating is all about being pushed around in strollers and having candy waterfall into their laps!

AFN

Attending the Alaska Federation of Natives annual convention is one of the many blessings to living in Alaska. Every year, with the exception of 2007 when AFN for the first time was held in Fairbanks, I have donned my Aleut traditional dress (which I purchased in 2004 when I first moved here), made to look like the seal gut waterproof parkas they used to wear out on the ocean and trimmed with dangling beads, or my kuspuk (which I purchased in 2005 as a matching set to Kyra's) and immersed myself for at least 2 days with my "family." Without fail every year, the Native artists and leaders I meet always make me feel loved and treasured. Mostly, my heart and brain is saturated and overstimulated with writing ideas. Many of the indigenous leaders spoke of the importance of telling stories and how only by telling stories do we heal.

This year, Thomas and the kids (see how cute they are in their kuspuks!) joined me for Quyana which is AFN's dance performances in the evening.

Mt. Baldi

Who knew that right in my neighborhood, there were peaks to climb? Peaks that could satisfy the craving within that longs to summit Denali or Everest even though the possibility seems quite remote as you bounce your infant on your hip. I'm standing on Mt. Baldi in Eagle River. For the locals, it's not much of an accomplishment, since your car takes you up most of the way and then there's a steep hour or so long scramble to the top. Keilah, Katy, and I left at 9am and were back by noon. But it sure felt alive to inhale the chilly mountain air and see Denali, Anchorage downtown, Sleepy Mountain, and the valley that I live in.Check out these slivers of ice standing straight like hair or grass at the top of Mt. Baldi. If I pick them up, they come loose. Does anyone know what it is?

Blizzard

I sit in my writing room in the corner between two windows protecting me from slanting white angry rain or is it hail? A blizzard creaks the logs and trembles my desk. And I feel excitement. Winter's coming and I can't wait. Yesterday, I drove the kids home in a sea of fog and today, I bounced teething Ethan in my arms and pointed out the terminal dust on the ring of mountains around our cabin. It's coming. Later than usual, I think. The river still echoes in our valley, pounding strong.

Summer Review

Ethan explored our porch for the first time with his own two feet. We breathed in the crisp mountain air and happy gurgles from Eagle River getting its last word in before winter sets in.

After a sweltering two-month long trip in D.C. where we all had to buy shorts and tank tops and hunker down indoors, I can't describe to you how good it feels to lounge on my porch in fleece, curl up on a camping chair beneath a quilt, or warm up my toes in my furry boots. Maybe, it's simply something about Alaska that has me smitten to its roots. We had an unforgettable time in D.C. hanging with family and friends and watching the kids grow tremendously (Ethan turned one and started walking!), but Alaska with it's glorious summer sun and luxious trees and twisting rivers tugged constantly. We've been home a week and Kyra still squeals with delight when she returns from school each day, running in circles around the kitchen yelling, "I love Kyra bed! I love Kyra house! I love my Alaska!"

Highlights of our D.C. summer include:

Riding a Harley (Teresa's husband Bao took me to a Biker Bar on his bike one night after the kids went to bed!)


Ninong Mar and Ninang Les helped us throw a joint bday party for Kyra and Ethan. Kyra squealed in delight for finally (after three years of demanding it) experiencing a Lightning McQueen party and Ethan dug into his first bday cake (a tradition started by the Conaboys for Kyra's first). He was very dainty with his cake (unlike Kyra). The boy does not like to get dirty.

Thomas' family threw a Doljanchi which includes a ceremony where Ethan must choose between several objects (such as rice, string, pencil, money, and anything else the parent's might hope their child will be blessed with in the future). Ethan selected a pencil (which means he will be a scholar), snowboarder (yes, that was mommy's addition), and rice (which means he will never grow hungry). Above is a photo of Ethan in a hanbok and below is a photo from 2006 of Kyra in hers.

Thomas took the family on a date to the Maryland Renaissance Fair. It was wierd for me to see the kids in this setting where Thomas and I hung out before we got married.

Kyra's favorite part of that date was riding an elephant with Daddy and Ethan.

"On a Roadtrip" with Mom Kyra memorized the lyrics from the Cars movie. Now, she won't let us drive unless we play the CD and sing along too.

Much to Daddy's delight, the kids passed the test (more than passed it, I'd say, Ethan was so hungry and Mommy took too long to get the crab open, so he grabbed one himself and tried to gnaw through the shell) on whether they can handle a Maryland crab feast.

Mom and Dad enjoyed Al and Alexus' wedding san kids. Kyra was a flower girl for Chi and Hyun's wedding!

The kids loved chilling at the pools.

Ethan hated the beach or maybe, it was the getting wet part that he didn't like (Mommy's getting worried about this kid and the outdoors).

At least, he's strong (yes, he is hanging from the rings on his own!)

Janis gave Kyra a Clifford Goes to Washington book. Once she saw Clifford climbing to the top of the Washington Monument, Kyra insisted that we take her there. Too bad, it rained the day we visited. We all got soaked and the monument was closed.

In case you haven't noticed, Ethan learned how to walk on his bday. Here's one of his first attempts.

He thought he could do whatever his cousins and Kyra did.

And he discovered meat! Oh boy, does he love meat. He eats twice as much as Kyra now.

Kyra turns 4

On the same day that I nearly ran over an enormous black bear bounding across Hiland Rd, a lynx snacked on a rabbit on our driveway. It kept an eye on Kyra and I as we snapped photos on our deck. Took his sweet time. Even licked his paws clean, before nonchalantly padding off (Have you ever seen the paws of a lynx? They seem disproportionately large).
Our summer is passing in this spontaneous manner. The Driskills arrived a few days before my birthday. Thomas threw a Brazilian barbeque for me at our house and the Fricksons filled my belly with strawberry diaquiris until it is no longer my favorite drink. The next morning, we had to make it to Seward in half the normal driving time in order to make a noon cruise departure to Fox Island. Kyra insisted on riding at the brow of the ship where we both got seasick. Ethan loved the spray of the ocean.

For dinner, we ate at the only crepe place in Alaska. The cook is a fascinating man whose daughter is on the Olympic swim team.

Michelle took these incredible photos for us:

By the time, Kyra's bday rolled around, Mommy and Daddy were exhausted. Thomas actually had to leave for Vegas for Al's bachelor party that night. So, we promised Kyra we would officially celebrate her bday in DC where we will be spending two months of our summer. However, we did manage to get her a strawberry ice cream cake decorated with a hotwheel (they didn't have Lightening McQueen).

It is not without a bit of sadness that I see my baby girl turning four. Everyday, as she sips on her milk, she tells me, "Mommy, Look I'm growing!"

And she is growing, more and more like my mother. Fiercely independent and brave beyond her years, she shocks even my own fairly lose reins on what she can and can't do (afterall, I'm still hoping she will become a professional snowboarder...this is not apparently what Thomas prefers). Just yesterday, she insisted on riding the craziest rollercoaster at the Bear Paw Festival, alone. She kept standing at the foot of the entrance, giving her best puppy look (which she learned from the movie Bolt) to the ride administrator. As I bounced Ethan in my arms and tried my best to entice her in other more age-appropriate rides, the ride administrater told us that she couldn't ride without an adult. I managed to get her on a carousol and Kyra just looked so depressed. She said, "Mommy, I don't like this" meaning..."OMG, this is so boring."

The more I tried to dissuade her. The more she appealed to my emotions. "Mommy, I want the dragon," she said.

What could I say to that? Yes. Mommy does too. I felt partially responsible for her partiality to dragons.

Eventually when nothing could get this girl to smile, the ride adminstrator finally agreed to allow her to board with another adult....yes, a stranger. I asked Kyra, "Are you sure you want to ride this without Mommy?"

She nodded excitedly.

"Are you sure, you won't be scared?"

She said, "I not scared, Mommy. I won't cry."

So, I let her go . The ride looked pretty scary from my vantage point. It repeated itself 5 times. I could barely see her little head poking out from behind the protection bars. The first time around, Kyra had the biggest smile spread across her face, hair flying madly about. The rest of the times, she looked bored. After the ride, she said, "Mommy, see. I not scared."

I said, "You're crazy."

She said, "Mommy, I not crazy. I'm happy."

Ice Climbing

I fell in love with Alaska all over again while strolling upon a rush of glacier melt on Matanuska Glacier. My crampons dug into a mess of ice, snow, rock, mud, silt, and water, constantly changing, unlasting. Like life. There's so much to learn on a glacier. Black ice, for instance, is camouflaged beneath all the water and mud and rock and white ice. If you happen to step on it, you could slip and fall. You never know what might lie ahead in the field. Glimpse of hope or fear. Beautiful, yet deadly.
The past week of my life has been much the same. The day after Thomas' surgery, I drove with Signe to Homer for the Kachemak Bay Writers' Conference. For those of you who have never heard of this quaint little town on the southern tip of Alaska, it is famous for a spit of land that juts out into the ocean. Many published Alaskan writers live here. Li-Young Lee spent four days with us and then led a post-conference retreat with a dozen writers at the Kachemak Bay Wilderness Lodge (which I had no idea was a private resort ranging from $1750-$3750 for 2-5 nights). The food was amazing and I was lucky enough to stay in an attic room in the Goosepoint cabin, which the owner had built for his wife. It is perched on the lip of a cliff overlooking China Poot Bay. I felt totally guilty savoring these few precious days of indulgent writing while Thomas had a rough recovery from his injury, the kids got sick, our 7th year anniversary (6/16) blinked by without celebration, and pretty much the house fell to ruin. And then to rub it all in, I had made plans to take Signe ice climbing the day after I returned. I rolled in from Homer on June 19 around midnight and then took off by 6am for Matanuska...I had very little energy to climb since I barely slept the past eight days and I was infused with guilt: Thomas didn't look well (he normally gets stressed out in June and July because of our anniversary, my bday, Kyra's bday and now Ethan's bday stacks on in Aug), Ethan wouldn't look at me, and Kyra I kissed in her sleep.
I had more fun exploring the glacier than climbing it. Love the gear...the ice picks, the crampons, the harness, rubber gloves, ice climbing shoes. Love how two prongs on the front of each foot can hold your entire weight or that you can hang off the tip of your ice pick barely protruding into the ice wall. But it's not as easy it looks. I had a hard time getting my ice picks into the rock hard ice. My friend, Signe, who hates the outdoors by the way, scaled the ice three times (without hardly trying...see video below)!

Ethan hates camping & Thomas gets injured

Our summer began in a rush. Thomas' right hand was crushed by a heavy dresser. We didn't even know he was injured until Kyra asked, "What's that?" and pointed to splashes of blood across our double glass doors and porch. He wouldn't let me see his injury. Insisted on going to work. Refused to go to the E.R. That night, I finally saw that the fingernail on his third finger had actually been torn out from underneath his flesh. The fourth finger nail looked swollen too with blood pooling beneath the nail bed. We were supposed to go camping the next day. So on the way to the campsite, I drove him to the E.R. As it turns out, he broke the bone in the tip of his finger. The bone had actually punctured through his flesh and nail. (He will need surgery on June 11 even though he still denies that he is hurt).

These videos pretty much sum up how Ethan felt about the whole camping experience.

Hiking

Summer in Alaska always engenders plenty of outdoor activities. After work one evening, Thomas decided to take us for a short hike. While it took a frustrating two hours to get the kids ready and a long windy dirtroad drive to Resurrection Trail (which we couldn't hike because it was buried in snow) and another long drive back to our neighborhood to discover at the Eagle River Nature Trail parking lot that we didn't have $5.00 for parking and a big fight between mom and dad where we almost decided to forget about the hike and Kyra complaining that she was hungry and another long drive out to the closest grocery store to get change for our $20 and a picnic dinner, we are proud to announce that Kyra finished her first trail in Alaska! Thank God for long daylight hours...I think this photo was taken around 9pm.
Kyra learned that not all bugs are called "lady bugs" especially the scary ones called "squitos.

Did you hear Daddy ask Kyra, "Dragon protecta you?" Every night, she goes to bed saying, "Dragon protecta me." When we were nearly at the end of the trail, Kyra gives up...but with a little encouragement from Mommy, she ran to the finish line.

By the way, Ethan spent most of the hike dozing on daddy's back.

And finally, our favorite video of Kyra feeding the "lady bugs" apples and ketchup!

Swimming

Kyra and Ethan learned how to swim on Elmendorf Airforce Base.

Why I love Alaska

Southfork Eagle River is alive again...it's the first day I'm able to hear the river from my porch. Yeah, my days for writing beneath the sun and the wind gently brushing my hair are back...just a brief month in a year before the mosquitos. This summer we will only enjoy half of Alaska's best, as we will be in D.C. for Al's (Thomas' old roommate) wedding and Chi's wedding (Thomas' cousin).

Recently, the two baby moose that were born around Kyra's birth hung out on our lawn for an afternoon. One even came right up to my first floor window (we call this floor our basement) and I got a chance to touch his nose (through the glass). Mom would've loved this!