Once every summer Usually July, but this year August We pull weeds Mostly horsetail and grass A few nettles, pushki, and a bit of angelica We call in a backhoe A gentleman donates his time and machine And has each year for 15 years Then we add water Usually from a hose But this year, […]

High Winds blow sea water up the beach and onto the sea wall. Frigid Temps freeze the salt water in layers. Temperatures warm, revealing icy layers. Leaving a windswept appearance, of sorts. Photos taken on the beach in Ninilchik, Alaska. February 2024 Pic & a Word Challenge: Windswept

Each spring, the lesser sandhill cranes arrive. They spend their summer raising their young and enjoying the rich food sources around Kachemak Bay. They tend to be pretty solitary, staying mostly in small family groups. They’ll return to the same nest location year after year. Towards the end of August, we’ll start to see the […]

Fall is finally starting to show here on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula, so I decided it was finally time to switch away from the lovely spring flowers that have been gracing my desktop for months. (I do love that lilac photo, and I suspect it will find its way back to my screen a time or […]

Late start to autumn, but it is finally here! Frosts and changing colors. Love it! We saw this lovely high-bush cranberry bush on a recent hike. Such a beautiful red! How’s autumn in your neck of the woods? (Or spring, if you’re down under!) Share with us at Terri’s Sunday Stills Challenge!

Lunch break, on a beach made of stones. Yukon Island, Kachemak Bay, Alaska. Pic & a Word Challenge: Stone!

Back when I lived in Colorado, one of my favorite not-to-far-away places to hike was Mount Falcon Park. It’s one of many parks in the Front Range, specifically in Jefferson County. (As much as I love where I live in Alaska, one thing I do miss is the ease of access of SO many hiking […]

We finally had a hard frost a few nights ago! As I was outside doing something or other, I took a few minutes playing around on my cell phone with the light, and the frost, and the lilac leaves. I had to laugh when I saw that this week’s Pic & a Word challenge was […]

After a long week A walk in the yard To clear my head Fall is in full swing But a few pansies Still peak from beneath The protection of the raspberry patch Nature provides a pocket of unexpected of color And a big smile on my face Pic & a Word challenge: Nature

Last week the aurora forecast was high. I peaked out the window before heading to bed – (I’m often sleeping when the best northern lights are out) – and all I saw with my naked eye was a slightly brighter area on the horizon. On a whim, I decided to see what my cell phone […]

And now for something different…. (Back to photos and Alaska stories tomorrow!) Those of you who’ve been around for a while know that my kiddos are homeschooled. They are involved in many different “extra-curricular” activities and sports as part of their schooling. This year, my eldest decided to try participating on a high school sports […]

A summer class – learn to make fleece kuspuks! My daughter chose a black and white fleece at the fabric store. Cutting out the pattern pieces: {Imagine a photo of her sewing the pieces together here. I apparently didn’t take one.} Wearing the completed kuspuk as she cuts out pieces for matching mittens! The black […]

I took a more literal definition of the challenge word this week, but I’m going back in time a number of years….back to the August before we moved to Alaska. Back when I was 6+ months pregnant with my eldest kiddo. We took a planes – trains – automobiles trip around the mid-west & western […]

Beluga Lake in Homer, Alaska. October 2024 It’s a man-made lake, created when they essentially dammed the watershed to put in a road to connect the mainland to the Homer Spit. Now, it is used heavily in the summer by float planes. (Most of those buildings over there are businesses catering to tourists. The planes […]

These past few months I’ve been spending a lot of time driving to and from sports practices, at sports practices, chaperoning sports trips, volunteering at sports events… You get the idea. (We decided to try out school sports this year – instead of rec or league sports – and it has been an experience!) Two […]

Kids are at their various activities. I have a few minutes to occupy. Read a book, walk the beach, breathe. Take in the view. Mt. Redoubt on the horizon never disappoints. What’s on your horizon? Pic & a Word weekly challenge: Horizon. Join in!!

Going back in the archives this week, to a boy and his water vessels. He could spend hours pouring water between containers. Still can, as a matter of fact! Pic & a Word Challenge: Vessel

Pic & a Word challenge: Listen Listen Frozen river, all is quiet. Heavy snow dump. River ice cracks Water flows over Listen Flowing water, not so quiet

We had a surprise dump of snow on my eldest daughter’s birthday recently, which made her extremely happy! (Having a December birthday in the northern hemisphere, you’d think she’d get snow birthdays frequently, but alas, often it is rain!) We spent lots of time outside playing and shoveling. My son decided to build snowmen. Then […]

Sometimes you have to reach to put up those lights! (Seen at the Bear Creek Winery Garden of Lights, Homer, AK. December 2024) Reach for more photo fun!