Berry picking at Flat Top

We went to Flat Top near Anchorage, Grandpa took all these pictures of us and entertained the kids while we picked low bush blueberries! The kids had so much fun! We got a streak of fairly decent weather and made the most of it!

This photo was taken overlooking the city of Anchorage, Maddy is such a diva!

This one will become our Fall family picture, be prepared to see this one as a post card soon!

Alaska is such a great place!

Grandpa and the girls, first day in Alaska!

John and I had a moment to pose together, this was at Beluga point in Anchorage. It was 60 degrees and sunny! Grandpa and the kids went camping with John while I was at work, they roasted marshmallows and made s'mores...what a memory!

This baby moose was only a few yards away, momma moose and a brother was close by too!

Here is a picture of our fishing spot, right on the military base! We all argue about who actually took this photo!

The girls at Alyeska ski resort, posing with the bear!

Mosquitoes are truly the state bird!

I had always heard people joke about a mosquito being so big it was the state bird..now I see why! These mosquitoes are so big that they are heavy enough for you to feel them land! You can swat at them like flies! Fortunately the weather is cool enough that we wear long sleeves and long pants and have not been bitten very much, but the season is still early!

John saw his first moose the other day, only about 20 feet away eating some grassy patches in the woods...it just looked at him and kept on eating...

Alaska at last!!

After several weeks of packing, decision making and preparing...we are here! Anchorage Alaska! The flight was long, and we are still in temporary lodging, but the weather is great and we are enjoying every minute of daylight! Even at 10:30 at night, the sun still shines! There are so many new things to see..

Today we went to Finger Lake in Wasilla and tried our hand at fishing! Not so much success, but a great memory! We gathered firewood and built a fire, roasted the biggest marshmallows I have ever seen (alaska size?) and cooked hot dogs over the fire. We fished using hot dogs as bait and beef jerky too...the fish up here are picky and wanted something else obviously!

Our biggest challenge right now is finding a place to call "home". Houses are pricey here, and a large home for a large family is not cheap. The closing on the house in SC had a closing date 2 weeks ago, but was moved back to the 24th...not such good news, but we are patiently waiting.

We are getting short on time because the lodging we are using (on the Air Force base) is ready to fill this room with someone coming home from Iraq. Our cars and household goods will arrive in a couple of days, and we will need someplace to put them. Right now we are living out of a suitcase, using a rental car, and eating pizza and anything else cheap we can find!

Seagulls! what fun!

While at the beach, we took a ferry to another island where the kids got to dig for their own shark teeth (they each found 5 to 10 tiny ones). A friend had told me to bring bread and we could feed seagulls...little did I know the seagulls would follow the boat, eat out of your hand and even eat off the top of your head if you placed bread up there! (yes, I am the goofy one who did that!) Grayson didnt seem to notice the birds as much since her goal in life was to jump in the water!

Waiting in line for the ferry, all the seagulls swarmed the car when we threw bread out.

We are building memories for our kids, one day at a time! So much fun to forget the stress of life and just enjoy being silly, and enjoy eachother. On this trip the girls were "best buddies" and never fought, they stayed up all night giggling and playing. Unusual for Savvy and Maddy, who are usually at eachother's throats! That made it all worth it!

Brassells and the Beach!

Grayson had her first experience with the beach!! She ate the sand in large clumps (I'm assuming she thought it was sugar) and then she was lying face down in the sand, then rolling around in it. I'm not sure what inspired this, but it was funny! Wouldnt it be nice if we were all as joyful as Madison in this picture? She just ran and ran...chasing seagulls, running from the water, and just running and screaming for no reason!

Even though we are pasty and white, the beach was fun! Those houses behind us were where we stayed for a fraction of the price of a hotel, and we had 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms! What a blessing!

All the girls on a log...little John avoids pictures at all costs, so you wont see him here!

The Brassell family needed a little break...life has been so stressful over the last couple of months....moving, school, work (and no work)..it has been exhausting.

We took a trip to Holden Beach which is 40 miles north of Myrtle Beach, and it was the first time we had ever been there. We were worried because spring break is usually so busy at the beach, but someone told us about this particular beach. Private, empty, cheap, clean...what more could you ask for? It was great!

Spring in Charlotte

Spring time is finally here, after weeks of Baxley asking "is it spring yet?" I can finally take her in the yard, show her the bees, the flowers, and the birds and tell her "yes" spring is here!
The daffodils I planted 2 years ago are up again, and the tulips will be here soon as well, it is sunny and warm (with an occasional t-storm and tornado warning) and the kids are enjoying the weather. The older ones have Spring fever and are constantly trying to make excuses to sleep in!

The birds in the yard are amazing, John built me a bird feeder and we now have bluebirds, cardinals, finch, sparrows, crows, woodpeckers, and every other kind of bird you can imagine! I have just planted some flowers especially for the hummingbirds and I am sure they will be migrating soon!

Grayson's first Birthday!!

Grayson had a cake tonight for her first birthday ! I made her a chocolate cake and while I was taking her picture she stuck her foot in the cake! Of course!Grayson enjoyed her cake but really made a mess, that was expected though! She got a bath right after and now is on her way to bed!

Little John...not so little anymore!

Little John, the only boy among the kids is growing too fast! The last summer, he joined the Civil Air Patrol (CAP) which is a lot like ROTC or a military club for kids 12 to 18 years old. John gets opportunities frequently to do things like go on a flight in a plane, wear his BDU's for drill and marching practices and next week he will be doing training on search and rescue. This entails first aid, search tactics and combat readiness training. John loves these weekly meetings and has demonstrated maturity by participating each week. In fact he loves it so much that Savannah has decided to attend a few meetings in order to see if she wants to join too!

At Christmas he got his BDU's and was all decked out (except for name tags) and looked so grown up! at 14 years old he is truly a "man". 12 1/2 shoe, and taller than me he is just growing too fast!