Bella is ONE!

Bella is one today! We have only had her for nine months, but her birthday is today! We LOVE having Bella to come home to, take care of and snuggle with. She has a really soft coat, she's smart and having so much fun in the snow.

We can't wait for all of you to meet her! :)
Just hanging out.

We Have SNOW!!

We now live in a winter wonderland! It began snowing on Sunday afternoon, tapered off, and finally began snowing for good that night. Monday we woke up to three inches of snow and off to work we went. The worst part of the snow is shoveling the driveway before work. We were unsure whether or not people shoveled for such a minimal amount so we decided to follow our neighbor's lead. Monday I woke up to skkecchhhh, skkecchhh, across the neighbor's pavement and out the door I went in my pink scarf, dress, brown tights and snow boats. At first it wasn't too cold, but my hands got colder as I shoveled along.

There is a posy of four trucks/plows that travel through the post roads to clear the roads. Here you can see them in the neighborhood across the street after school on Monday. You can also notice that the sun is setting and this picture was taken around 4:20.
The backyards around us.
The trees immediately behind our house.
Bella LOVES the snow. I bundled and walked her yesterday afternoon and she was just so excited ... we both were, but her especially. You can kind of see (sorry for the picture quality) the snow frozen on the whiskers under her snout ... so cute.

Sunday, Sunday

We've had a great weekend, but unfortunately all good things come to an end. Today Tyler tried on his new WFU jersey ... thanks Dede ... and has yet to take it off. We have spent the afternoon cleaning, making cookies for his platoon, studying and cuddling on the couch. Happy Sunday to you all! :)

Sweet Bells.

Tyler in his new jersey and with his new toy ... a computer that works! :)

Play Date!

Yesterday we hung out with our sweet friends the Dudleys. Molly, the mom, and I have become great friends and we truly love hanging out with her and her three children. Soon Matt, Molly's husband, will return from Afghanistan and we are excited to hang out with all the Dudleys upon his return! Recently they got a puppy who Bella plays with really well. It is really funny to watch them play!

We went to get pumpkins yesterday and then to the park with our four-legged friends. Below you will see pictures of Bella and her newest friend, Josey Paws, playing at the park. While the pups were playing we tossed a football around and just hung out.

Running, running! Josey tries so hard to keep up, but her little legs just can't do it yet.

Stand off.

Going for it.

Got her.

Sweet friends.

Sunset!

Below are some pictures of a recent sunset. Bella and I were playing outside and noticed this amazing sunset. Currently the sun rises around 9:15 am and sets around 6:15 pm ... yes, that is about 9 hours of sunlight. We are loosing about 5.5 minutes of daylight daily, which is decreasing by seconds daily.

We do have new furniture and I finished the curtains for our bedroom last night. Our slipcovers should arrive tomorrow and then I will post pictures of our newly furnished and homey-feeling home!!

Hanging In!

Hi all! I know I've been super slack on updating the blog lately, I apologize! :) Although you haven't gotten to see, we've been pretty busy. Fortunately, this week we will both be home every night this week ... woo hoo!

Tyler has been busy at work. I've been busy at work. We enjoy friends throughout the week and on the weekend. I've had meetings concerning the organizations I volunteer with, and I participated in the Spouse's Club Murder Mystery last week! We've worked hard to make our house a home by adding furniture, curtains, pictures on the walls, and fun, fall decorations. Many of our projects are still in the works, but I promise pictures will come soon.

The snow on the mountains has melted and we're really quite shocked that we haven't had our first snowfall yet. Don't worry ... I'll let you know when it gets here! We hope you are doing well and enjoying the fall weather!

Snow in September?!

That's right folks, it has snowed in Alaska! Last Saturday I was in shorts and a light jacket and then, it rained Sunday and the mountaintops emerged Monday morning covered in snow. This is referred to as "Termination Dust" in Alaska meaning that summer is terminated, but boy did it turn cold fast. Wednesday my car thermometer topped out at 41 degrees, yes, 41 degrees. Although it is cold, it doesn't feel like 41 at home; our bodies have most certainly adjusted to the cooler temperatures here.

On my way to work I stopped to take a picture of these mountain tops; pretty sure the MPs would not approve, but oh well.

The view from my house.
Other mountains from our house.

GO DEACS!!

GO DEACONS!! YAY for a win for the deacs! :) Tyler and I thought we were not going to get to watch the game today because it was only on pay-per-view for .... $135 PLUS taxes and fees ... we love you Wake, but obviously one football game is not worth that on TV. But then, my super computer-savvy hubby, found the game and a log-in for the ESPN 360 so we got to watch it on our computer. We enjoyed waffles, the wake game on the computer, the carolina game on tv, and our pajamas this morning!!

Bella in her Wake gear. She doesn't really appreciate football yet; she did not understand the random cheers and clapping to the fight song. Although unamused, she was dressed for the event!! :)

Bella, not too fond of the bandana, but we're working on it!

In other news ... Tyler built a gate for Bella! Now that I am at school all day we felt terrible leaving Bella in the crate all day. To fix this Tyler built a gate on the front of one of the knooks in our garage!! She loves her new space and I don't feel as bad leaving her at home each day.

The gate.

Bella's knook!