Striking it Rich

In July, we had the chance to have a truly Alaskan experience--panning for gold. We took a day trip with our neighbor Dan, his son Devon, and friend Daylinda down to Hope, AK and spent the day searching a river for gold and silver. The boys loved playing in the water, even though it was awfully cold, and while we didn't find anything, it was a fun to do something out of the ordinary. My favorite part was on the drive down, I told Anthony that before we left Alaska, I really wanted to see the Dall sheep on the mountains that run right next to Turnagain Arm. It's a beautiful drive that we love taking whenever we get the chance, and you're supposed to be able to see the Dall sheep right from the road, but we'd never been lucky enough to do so. This time, not more than two minutes after I said how much I wanted to see them, we passed a row of stopped cars where people had gotten out to see two sheep that had come all the way down the side of the mountain. I wasn't able to get any pictures, but it was still neat to see. What a great day!

Ethan panning in his own water

Will was mostly interested in throwing rocks in the water.

Not a surprise.

The Professional

The Pet Experiment

For a few weeks, we got to experience what it was like to be pet owners. We were asked to watch both a dog and a cat by two different friends, so we thought it would be a great chance to see if we'd like to get a pet of our own. The boys loved it, and it was kind of nice to have animals around again, but we also realized that our life is full enough right now without adding that extra responsibility. But it was fun while it lasted. It even worked out well that the dog's name was Gus, so Ethan was all ready (see the previous post about Psych). Even now, all dogs are named Gus in his mind. He also loved running up to the animals to tell them, "Hello!" Thank goodness they tolerated it, but I can only imagine what they were thinking.

Will liked to read books to Gus

Psych Fans

We've decided that maybe we have watched too many episodes of Psych with the boys. Is it bad that Ethan, who doesn't say a whole lot of words just on his own, can identify the characters? Any time we put a DVD in, he immediately thinks it's Shawn and Gus.

Growing

I guess this is late in coming, but for those who don't know, we are expecting boy #3 in November! I figure, at this point, how much more trouble can another boy add, right? Right? I'm a pro at using the steam cleaner on the carpet, I've pretty much locked down everything that can be accessed, and it's only when we slip up that there's a problem. Like leaving my deodorant on the bed and finding Will painting our sheet and pillows with it. Or leaving the bathroom door open ONE time and finding Ethan wiping soap all over the mirror. I can't think of many more things they can surprise me with, but I'm pretty sure they see it as a challenge.

So boy #3 will be here around November 27, two days after Thanksgiving. I'm still deciding on whether to buy a turkey because I know if I do, I'll start having contractions the second I put the turkey in the oven, and if I don't, I'll go several weeks past my due date. Anthony suggested we get Cornish game hens, so we might be trying that out this year. We also can't decide on a name. A few we can't agree on, but mostly it's that nothing sounds right. I keep hoping that perfect name will appear somewhere, so I'm scouring lists of baby names. The only one that jumped out was Fernando, but only because it made me start singing the ABBA song. I promise our baby will not be Fernando Corbin. Hopefully something will jump out at us in the next 3 months. Maybe I should start a contest? Anyone who can come up with the perfect name will win a great prize, to be announced later. We like pretty standard names, not Jacob spelled like Jakub, or anything like that. Any suggestions are appreciated!

It's just that cold

I've seen so many posts from family and friends about swimming, air conditioning, and unbearable heat, and it makes me laugh to think how very different our summers are now. A few Saturdays ago, we spent about an hour outside chatting with our neighbor, and by the time we came in, we were all so cold that we made hot chocolate to warm us up. Only in Alaska would we make hot chocolate in July.

The Beard

Will received a Buzz Lightyear doll from Grandma Corbin while we were at home. He was looking at it one day and asked me what was on Buzz's chin. I wasn't sure if it was supposed to be a beard or a cleft, and I wasn't sure how to explain what a cleft chin was, so I said I thought it was a beard. Then a few days later Will ended up developing a small bump on his own chin. He came up to me and said, "Mommy, I have a beard!" It took me a minute to figure out the connection. Now anything on his chin is a beard.

Vacation!

We had a wonderful trip to Indiana and South Carolina in May. It was great to see family and friends, and in a way it felt like we'd never left. Warm weather was also a bonus, especially since Alaska has had such a blah summer. We're VERY close to breaking the record of consecutive days of rain--27 currently! It's not as exciting as it sounds. It's nice to look back at the pictures and remember a time when we could wear shorts outside. I'll let the pictures do most of the summary of the trip.

 Playing at the park

Driving Daddy's Jeep

Visiting the Indianapolis Zoo

Will didn't care for the shark petting tank.

Ethan wanted to help Aunt Katie push the stroller.

The Butterfly Garden

Great-Grandpa Burger, Grandpa Biehl, Anthony, Will & Ethan

The Children's Museum

The boys were intrigued by these funny things called Barbies.

They LOVED the Carousel.

I went in to get Will up from his nap one day and found him with a piece of the coat rack stuck in his pacifier. 

He told me he was an elephant.

Then he found an old swimsuit and decided he wanted to be a zebra.

We spent the last week of our vacation in South Carolina and Georgia, which is where Anthony and I went on our honeymoon. It was wonderful to introduce the boys to a beach and ocean where it's warm enough to go swimming. A tropical storm threatened us for a few days, but luckily it blew over and we had lots of sun and great weather. The boys loved digging in the sand, running into the waves and looking for shells. I'm sure we'll be heading back there as soon as we can.

Hilton Head Beach, South Carolina

Making holes occupied a lot of their time.

They were brave until the waves came in, and then they usually ran right back to us.

Ethan always wanted to sit in the holes.
He's our little "Fragile" Frankie Merman.

He wasn't so happy when the tide came in.

We spent one day touring downtown Savannah. I was most excited about eating lunch at Paula Deen's restaurant, The Lady and Sons. It was the restaurant she started before she became famous, and I'd heard so many good things about it. We had to get there first thing in the morning to make a reservation for lunch, and then we took a trolley tour around town. Since we finished a little early, we decided to go by the restaurant's gift shop, and as soon as we stepped through the door, I couldn't believe who we saw--Jamie Deen, Paula's oldest son, was signing autographs and taking pictures. Anthony's mom and I were a little hesitant, but Anthony finally convinced us to get in line, and we were able to catch him just before he left. 

Once we made it to lunch, we were very impressed with everything. Our waiter was awesome, and the food was absolutely delicious. I was so glad that I had bought a cookbook with all of the recipes from the restaurant when I was looking for something for Jamie to sign. Now I can recreate the meal anytime, as long as I stock up on butter.

 Will regaled us with his impression of a walrus while we waited for our drinks.

I love visiting the South. We always have such a good time. You've got to love Southern hospitality.

On our way home, we made a detour to see the Angel Oak, which is believed to be 1,500 years old and the oldest living thing east of the Mississippi. How often do you get to see something like that? We were a little nervous about our directions because even as we got close to our destination, we never saw any signs. I know it's just a tree, but you would think that something that historic would have at least a billboard or a road sign. We ended up at a church and it seemed like a dead end until we noticed a dirt road and a small sign on a tree in front of us.

If I was the Angel Oak, I'd be offended. We were all glad we found it because it was definitely neat to see.

 Ethan & I felt tiny next to it

 The boys had the most fun looking for acorns as a souvenir and finding a tiny frog.

 Will was trying out a new smile while showing off his frog.

Overall it was an awesome trip and hard to head back to Alaska. Thanks everyone for some great memories!