We climbed Bear Mountain

*there are 2 posts today - scroll past this one to see Jon's birthday post.
We climbed Bear Mountain. Our friends the Myers live on a lake at the bottom of Bear Mountain and it was decided at Jon's birthday that it would be fun to hike it on Sunday. So at 2pm on Sunday we started the trek up the mountain. They tell us it is a 2 mile hike up the mountain. About 1.5 miles into the hike I was having some questionable thoughts about our sanity and my ability to finish but I DID the first .5 miles down Jon was questioning his ability to get down the mountain without hurting himself or Molly but HE DID. Our group of 4 girls, 2 guys, 2 dogs, 1 preschooler and 1 toddler made the trek in close to 3 hours with no major injuries.

Molly getting ready with a big breakfast - after eating her meal she came and let Jon share his breakfast with her.
Getting ready to start the hike. William and Molly got free rides up the mountain.
WE MADE IT
Ashley, Jon, Molly, Ashley, Valerie, William, Rachel and Duke - Moose was taking the picture and Titan was probably running around. The hike was hard for the humans but the dogs must have climbed the mountain 3 times each with the amount of running around they did.
We were viewing the Myers house at this point - if it wasn't so foggy there is supposed to be an amazing view.

On the way down instead of walking we sat on our butts and slid most of the way (on purpose) and I must have hit a rock or two and torn my pants. Didn't realize this until we were in the flatter spots and having to walk again - luckily I had on long johns underneath.
Molly and I post hike - some amazing hat head going on here. We are so thankful for adventurous friends who let us join them. I don't think Jon and I would have thought to do this on our own!

Jon's Birthday

This week we celebrated Jon's birthday by going on a family hike and then having a party on Saturday. Here are some pictures of the fun Thunderbird falls Hike and the Mexican food /game night!

Our friend William earned a reward and brought his new racetrack to the party. I don't know who had more fun- the "big boys" or him?
Our snowball fight. It might not have snowed for a week or two but we have had snow in our yards since November so there is always plenty around for a fight or two.
Molly watching the fight from the safety zone - after one near miss we moved her close to the house since she doesn't understand DUCK yet.
Moose and Ashley - coming up with our strategy.

Jon talking to his mom on our hike - Molly is trying to get over to say HI grandmommy but she wasn't allowed off the bench. We were also geocaching which is why he is on the wrong side of the railing.
Molly enjoying the view of the falls and the beautiful weather out. It was a blistery 44 out that day and it really did get hot in the sunny areas.

McP/Roten Visit

This past week we had the McPherson's and Roten's in town and we took them on some fun adventures. We ate, hiked, ate, drove, ate, went sight seeing and ate some more! Molly got some great time with her grandparents and aunt and uncle - with only 1 small one around she was pretty spoiled. Jon and I started the week out with a marriage conference and his parents watched Molly then we picked up the Rotens and hit the ground running. The last few days we just chilled around the house and played games. It was a great visit!!

Geo caching on the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail way with Kaitlin and Thomas

On our hike around the lake we found a random set of bowling pins and ball - so we bowled a few rounds on the mostly frozen lake. Ashley thought it would be a fun adventure to walk from one side of the lake to the other - we found that the warmer days had caused a few spots of the lake to be not as frozen as it used to be.
Strike!! OK more like a split but there were no bumpers.
Thomas setting up for the next person
Thomas and Kaitlin in Talkeenta - we had a view of Denali as the clouds moved.
Molly enjoying the view from Grandmommy's shoulders.
I was a little slack on the camera since Grandaddy had his camera and so did Aunt Kaitlin so we will just have to get a few pictures from them.
Molly and her most favorite person in the world - DADDY! After being gone for a year Molly can not stand her dad to be gone for even a few minutes of her life and she lets it be known each morning as he leaves for work. The video below is what those first 5 minutes are like until I can get her distracted. Then it is out of sight out of mind and she doesn't worry about Jon again until he comes home and she races towards the door as he takes off his boots.

100 caches

Sunday March 21 at 16:20 we found our 100th cache on a hike in Eagle River, AK.Molly and Jon in front of our 100th find!

During our geocaching days we have run into some pretty fun things and this weekend was no exception.
Bullwinkle the moose
and a pot-bellied pig. It was funny to watch the dogs around the pig, at one point there were 6 all smelling it. I know they were thinking bacon!
Why in the world someone would bring a pot-bellied pig to a dog park I will never know. I guess it is because there are no pig parks.
While Jon and I walked back from our 100th find we reminisced about are finds over the years.
Jon's favorite - During a layover in the Atlanta airport we rushed outside of security and found a cache that was one of the coolest pieces of art. We then rushed back to security and got on our flight with a few minutes to spare - this was pre-Molly so we traveled extremely light.
Ashley' favorite - Probably one of our first caches around Baylor at the Harrington house - it was a nano hidden on a pole and it took us forever to find!!

Jon's least favorite - All the ones we have never found. We have probably searched for 200 but we have only found 103.
Ashley's least favorite - We were with the Sealey's on a multi-cache and Lisa and I both got a BAD case of chiggers. We were both on prescription medicine by the end of the week because of that adventure. Why my least favorite : 1. Lisa was none to happy to be drug around in random places and then end up itchy, 2. we didn't find the stupid cache 3. Neither guy got a single bite!! (never did Aniyah who was a few months old at the time but I was glad for her) 4. I was put on steroids for my chiggers.

Molly's thought on geocaching: Mostly we get the look like seriously again why am I with these crazy people as we put her into the carrier and start our hikes.

Our Fun Weekend

We are getting ready for St. Patrick's Day here. Molly has been wearing all her shamrocks and we have partying all weekend long. While sledding Jon sprained his MCL so he is on crutches for a few days.
Molly and Jon relaxing on the ground - notice the crutches in the background!
Molly sporting her shamrocks - she was happy until I took her pen away and I got this face.
Molly getting ready to do some repair work around the house.
Jon and I went geocaching - it was freezing!!! The wind was crazy and it was in the single digits. I was in my waiters because we were walking on mud flats and the ground gave out on us a few times. This was before the sledding injury.
Since Jon came home I have attempted to cook something at least once daily. Saturday's meal - DONUTS!! We had homemade toppings- vanilla, chocolate, cinnamon sugar and powdered sugar
The final product. Molly got the donut holes while Jon and I got the donuts. Notice the amazing plating - I have been watching the food network and learning a few things - I know they would be pleased with star wars and veggie tales plates!!

Back to reality

This week has been an amazingly normal week. Jon has gotten up at 5:30 to go to PT everyday and come back for breakfast then gone to work. Nice thing is most people aren't excited about going to work after being deployed so most days he is off by lunch. We have spent our afternoons playing around the house, playing band hero and geocaching. Also since Jon is back we have set up a dinner menu and I have actually cooked this week. Desserts are my favorite but I also make dinner.
Jon and Molly enjoying Grandma Rumbaugh's everything in the cupboard cookies and fruit salad. Word to the wise when you get great-grandma's recipes ask her how she tweaked it. The first two times I made it the salad tasted nothing like hers - minor details like use vanilla instead of banana pudding, don't add marshmallows and bananas but we have gotten it to where we don't have to throw it out. Actually this salad didn't make it 24 hours before Jon and Molly had eaten most of it leaving me only a few spoonfuls.

Bad thing about Grandma's fruit salad - Molly loves to wear as a styling product in her hair - YUCK!

This is what happens when you think you are going out for some nice normal geocaches and it has snowed a bunch. Yes the snow was up past my knee.
Right before the hill below me gave out and I was knee deep in snow
One cache was on a "frozen" lake. My boot went a little low a few times and water seeped up. I guess the lake was not so frozen - glad we didn't drive out on it!
Walking back to the car from the island.
The view from the cache.
Jon found the one on the island.
I found the one at the school.

North Pole and other fun things

This past week Jon had a few days off so we drove up to the North Pole for some adventures. We figure we will never get any closer and what is 352 miles? On the drive up we stopped in Denali National Park for a picnic lunch and got to see the ice sculptures from Winterfest 2010. While in Fairbanks (where we stayed 10 miles away from the North Pole) we went to the World Championship Ice Sculpture Contest and drove 50 miles to an Ice Museum/Hotel and hot springs. The theme as you might have guessed is ICE! You have to make do with what God gives you and up here that is cold weather and ice. I laughed just the other day when watching a tv show and it said the spring season finale was coming - had to think and realize that yes it is spring even if we are getting 3-8 inches of snow today!!
Denali before our picnic (indoors)
The North Pole. We were geocaching - but yes all the poles where painted this way and the street names? Donner, Blitzen, Mistletoe, etc.
Ice slides!!! These were so much fun!!!!
Jon going with Molly and a smaller slide
Me getting stuck in an ice bowl. It was in the kids park - you climb over the side and slide in. The tricky part is getting out - it took me awhile with a few falls. I was laughing so hard especially when a little kid came over to give me advice on how to get out!
Eating at 1 of the 3 places that Guy F from Diners, Drive-ins and Dives told us to. If you ever go to the North Pole make a stop over at Elf's Den - the other 2 we went were not our favorites.
Jon preaching in the coldest place on earth. It is a real chapel inside the Ice Hotel. A lot of people get married here so they tell us.
Taking a moment to relax on the ice bed. I don't know why someone would want to sleep in the cold!
Molly enjoying the swing and nice warm weather.
All of us at Chena Springs - it is a natural hot spring with water that is 80 degrees. We didn't pay to swim in it instead we just stuck our hands in the water flowing out from the bouldered up swimming area.
I told Jon I want to ride a snow machine before we leave - this was his compromise.

Here starts other fun things- last weekend I ran with some friends in the Running of the Reindeer. You run with a bunch of people as reindeer chase you 3 blocks - once again you have to make do with what God gives you. He gave us plenty of cold weather, reindeer and people in need of entertainment. I was happy to entertain!
Molly with Tina getting some hot chocolate while they waited for my group to run.
Army Wives FUR Real - Me, Dana, Ashley, Kama and Valerie. We all wore our husbands combat boots - made for some fun times running on snow/ice in shoes that do not fit.
Post running celebration. We had a fry night. We made crab ran-goon and hot wings while celebrating the fact we all survived the run and only two got touched by reindeer and survived.
Molly playing with one of her many new toys! She is starting to warm up to Jon and has even reached out for him a few times now.