Fishing

If the ice is strong enough to hold us, we will be on it fishing.

440 miles

The Kobuk 440 is a dog sled race starting and ending in Kotzebue.  It's 440 miles over some of the toughest terrain people have witnessed.  It's a great time for all.  The start is a Mass Start, where everyone goes at the same time. 

Happy Birthday

My daughter is a spring baby.  Happy 10th Birthday baby.  (She's the baby of our family too!)

Lucky for her, she spent the day out on the ice dog handling for Jeff King, the 5 time Iditarod Champion!  She had a great day.

Outdoor Fishing

April marks noticeably longer days for us above the Arctic Circle.  It also means we can start fishing through the ice for the mighty Sii.  A whitefish of the inconu family only found in the very polar regions of the world.

This fish is the treasure of Northwest Alaska, 99% of people who eat it say it's better than Halibut.  I agree.  The fish range in weight from about 20 to up to 50 lbs.  I fillet them right on the ice, and take them home to vac seal for the rest of the year.

Respect

Every Spring, all across Alaska a "Choose Respect" walk is organized for locals to stand up against Domestic Violence and Sexual Crimes.

Our walk was short, but sweet.  The weather was sunny and -25 degrees below zero.  I forgot to wear snow pants!

Outside Shots

February and March is when the sun finally wakes from it's winter slumber south of the equator and graces us with a few more minutes of daylight each day.  That doesn't mean it's warm though.  This is why there is a huge lack of outdoor photos.  All you'd see is cold, snow and frost!

Cheer Camp

Husky Cheer Camp is also another fun time the kids look forward to when the weather isn't too nice to us.  My youngest daughter attends any and all cheer camps, even though I'm secretly pushing her to play basketball!

Husky Basketball

February and March mark the days of high school basketball up here.  The Kotzebue Huskies are, obviously, my favorite team.  I graduated from there, my mom graduated from there, and my son (#22) will graduate from there too.  Go Huskies! 

First Dances

 My beautiful niece attended her first dance at the Middle School.  I "chaperoned" for them!

Wedding Fun

We were blessed to attend the wedding of our good friends Bryan and Geri in Anchorage this weekend.  It was magical.

Playing out.

There may not be a lot to "do" above the Arctic Circle.  But there is ALWAYS snow, and hills to play on.  And when you're a kid.  That's all you need.

Sunday Breakfasts

Up here, most Sunday breakfasts are the same.  Sourdough Hotcakes, Bacon and Eggs. 

Every time we make a huge breakfast like that, I think about how similar the Eskimos and the Amish are.  My parents still live "off the grid" in a huge log cabin he built, using solar and wind energy (with supplemental gas powered generator) for electricity, wood stoves for heat, and haul their own water.  They fish, hunt, pick berries, plant potatoes, etc.  They have a truck and go to Fred Meyers but it's mostly just living off the land. 

With hotcakes for breakfast on Sunday.

Weekending

Weekending above the Arctic Circle is pretty much the same for everyone.  Trapping, or hauling wood, or going to camp.  :)

In the high sun of 2:00 p.m.!

It's especially nice if your kids can drive for you.

Longer by the minute

We are gaining approximately 7-8 minutes of daylight per day up here.  Eventually our midnight and our noon will look the same.

But for now, I'll take that extra 7 minutes.

Donuts and Grief

Living above the Arctic Circle in a place like Kotzebue is a blessing.  You have an intricate pattern of family stitched into your DNA.  Everyone is family in one way or another. 

When someone passes away, the entire town helps.  People are allowed to leave their jobs for a few days to help the immediate family of the passed.  Even small details are taken care of. 

Grave Diggers dig through permafrost by hand, Cross Makers meticulously sanding the homemade cross, Casket Makers working on beautiful carved caskets, and more.  Like caribou soup coming to your door, like people working atikluks for the deceased to wear, like editing photos for the obituary.

And like making Donuts. 

It's always hard to lose a loved one, but when you live in a small town, you have a lot of support and people to lean on. 

Heat Wave

To ring in 2012, Mother Nature gave us temperatures hovering around -40 below zero.  And at that temperature, it doesn't matter if you're Fahrenheit or Celsius... it's all cold.  (but if you MUST know, we use F)

This year, we have enjoyed a massive heat wave.  It was 20 above zero (F).  Which means it was 60 degrees warmer when we watched our annual Fireworks show!

I'll take 60 degrees warmer anyday.  Kids are enjoying playing out with sweatshirts and snowpants.

Happy New Year

Part of the beauty of living above the Arctic Circle is that the minimal amount of sun that we do get is absolutely beautiful!