Memorial Day

Today in the United States we celebrate Memorial Day. It is a day to remember the military men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice for this country.

My family and I attended a ceremony yesterday at the Alaska Veterans Memorial at Byers Lake. I'll post more about it tomorrow, as I am also attending a ceremony in Anchorage with a friend today.

Today I just want to post one picture that just really says it all.

Thank you to all of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. Our great nation would not be what it is today without the lives that have been given in its defense. My family and I thank you.

10pm in Southcentral Alaska

I decided to take a little walk around 10pm last night. These photos show what it looks like right now at 10pm in southcentral Alaska.....we currently have 20 hrs and 45 mins of visible light. Fairbanks, a couple hundred miles north of us, has 22 hrs and 55 mins of visible light!

My backyard:

 Standing on the front porch, looking across the street. Pretty soon the leaves will fill in and we wont be able to see the lake:

 My youngest and our kitty Calliope:

 Evidence of moose in the woods:

 Coming out of the woods:

 Cloudy sky, but still plenty of daylight:

 Moose remains:

 This is what the Parks Hwy looks like at the end of my street, all torn up. It doesn't matter what state you live in, summer = construction season.

Jaunt to the Palmer Hay Flats

On Monday my oldest had graduation practice in Wasilla, so after we got him settled in at that his dad and I headed to the Palmer Hay Flats to walk around and get some fresh air. The Flats is 45 square miles of wetlands, forest, lakes and tidal sloughs, and is usually filled with all kinds of wildlife. On this particular day we spotted some moose as we headed to the trail but they were too far in the distance for me to get a good picture. I was on the lookout for eagles but never did see any, unfortunately. The morning started off cloudy but the blue skies started to peek out as we had to leave and head back to pick our son up.

The snow on the mtns has been melting, but last weekend storms brought a fresh dusting, as seen on the lower elevations of the peaks....

When the snow melts all kinds of things become visible, such as these moose remains:

Looking across Reflections Lake:

 The Chugach Mtns:

 The Talkeetnas as seen from across Reflections Lake:

 Back to looking at the Chugach Mtns:

 Knik River:

 I loved this little Charlie Brown tree:

 Leaves are popping out on trees:

 I love the snow covered peaks:

 The Talkeetna Mtns as seen from across The Palmer Hay Flats:

 Pioneer Peak in our view as we head back to the car:

 Black bear prints in the mud!

Proud Mom Moment

I just have to share....

Our oldest son is 18 and today was his last day of high school, with graduation being on Tues the 15th. Its been a long road...he is deaf and has some other stuff going on so most of his school yrs I've had to battle teachers and administrations, and he has had to prove to people he is capable of everything a hearing person is.

He stepped off his bus for the very last time this afternoon and my heart just burst. I know that the real world will present different struggles but he did it...he showed everyone what he was made of and how tough he is.

I am so proud!

Storm Clouds, Blue Skies, and Bright Nights

The past few weeks I've spent my afternoons at my daughters soccer games and I've been able to enjoy the changing skies. The last 2 days(Mon and Tues) the skies had multiple personalities...storms clouds in one direction, blue skies and puffy clouds in another. Yesterday we even had 2 eagles circling the skies above the field but darnit, I didn't get my camera out in time, grrrr!

The last 2 pics show how long our days are getting. I took the pics at 11:30pm, as I was leaving work. The night sky is getting quite bright and it wont be along until daylight is with us for most of the day and night. Right now we have 19 hrs and 17 mins of visible light.

I See Something New (to me)

This blog has been neglected lately, I know. With my oldest graduating, the middle child in soccer, prom,kids getting out of school in 12 days, work, etc I just haven't had time to go out wandering with my camera. Next Friday I start a weeks vacation, and then in June I am off work for a month so I should be able to post more.

Not much of winter remains...for the first time since the first week of November my front yard is free and clear of snow, although a few very small piles still remain in the backyard. Our nighttime temps are still below freezing but the trees are budding and in 2-3 weeks the leaves should all be popped out. Summer in Alaska is making its way here, slowly but surely.

Today I had to go into Wasilla to pick up Avengers movie tickets for my husband and boys. Wasilla Lake is still covered with ice(although I don't think that's going to last) and so I decided to stop by another lake that's right off the Parks Highway, Lake Lucille. My husband had come home yesterday and told me that Lake Lucille was free and clear of ice. All the lakes and rivers are rapidly opening up...the lake across the street from us now has large open areas of water and my husband and youngest are talking about trying to go catch some rainbow trout this weekend, yum!

Anyway, I was walking along the edge of the lake trying to get some decent shots of the mountains although its quite overcast here. I decided to move further down the shore and all of a sudden there was a huge splash and I see something in the water, swimming away from me. I am not going to lie...the splash and motion scared the daylights out of me and I about jumped out of my skin! Everything had been very quiet and serene up until that point, LOL.

The animal pops up in the water again and I am trying to get a good look at it....it definitely wasn't a beaver but I couldn't figure out what the heck it was. Then it hit me after I got a good look at the tail....a muskrat!! I have never seen one before so I was pretty excited. I love nature and any animal sighting, especially a new one, is a good one to me!

Cool clouds:

Looking at Pioneer Peak and the Chugach Mtns from across Lake Lucille:

First boat I've seen on the water this season:

 These are red- necked grebes. Its not a great picture, I didn't have the right lens for me, but these guys were talking like crazy. They seriously did not shut up the entire time I was there, LOL. Want to know what they sound like? Go to this link: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-necked_Grebe/sounds

 Muskrat!

 Swimming away from me....