Day trip to Homer.

In case you're curious where, exactly, Kenai is on the map, it is located on the Kenai Peninsula in "south central" Alaska.


Here's the Kenai Peninsula. See that little road connecting Anchorage to Kenai/Soldotna to Homer? So, when we first moved to Alaska, I was informed by our high school counselor that we were "lucky" to have moved to the "bigger cities" (Kenai and Soldotna each have between 6,000 and 7,000 people) that have roads in and out. True enough, you have to fly in and out of many towns in Alaska. So yeah, yay for the highway!


But, I digress. Yesterday was such a pretty day. The sun was out and the air was cool and crisp (about 60 degrees). Since the weather was so pretty, we decided to drive to Homer, hometown of Jewel and my co-worker Ryan.


On our way out of town, we stopped at the most incredible bakery in Soldotna called The Moose is Loose. It has the most amazing cinnamon pastries.


The drive to Homer is a little over two hours. Mom, Josh, and I piled into Doug's truck, since Mom's car is still parked somewhere in Old Town Kenai, waiting for the tow truck.


I think Homer may be the prettiest city on the Peninsula. It has the most spectacular mountain and lake views, and during certain times of the year, there are as many bald eagles around as sea gulls on a California beach.

There was a fog on the lake around the mountains. Pictures just do not do it justice.


Josh and me.


This time of year, there is fireweed, a purply wildflower, everywhere. Supposedly, once all the little buds have fallen off, winter will begin. Looks like we have a little time left ...


We stopped at Fat Olives for lunch. Lunch was absolutely outstanding! We started with the fondue as an appetizer.


Then, we ordered the Mediterranean Pizza (pesto, mozzarella, kalamata olives, tomatoes, capers) which was delicious!


I think Josh could eat pizza for every meal.


Yum!


Our next stop was the Homer Spit, a long boardwalk with little shops and restaurants. One of the most famous stops is the Salty Dawg Saloon.


My mom in front of the Salty Dawg.


A fishing charter that had just come back. (Side note: If you're wondering why you haven't seen any pictures of me fishing yet, well that's because after working in a fish cannery, I cannot imagine catching and cleaning a fish "for fun." I mean, I will float in the boat and drink a beer, but I do not even want to see another fish gut as long as I live.)


Our last stop was the Homer Brewing Co.


This bear + banjo greet you as you walk in.


We tried all six of their beers and walked out with a growler for later.


This bumper sticker made me laugh.


We got home and called Makenzie and Ashley, two of my very dear friends from high school. Stupidly, I didn't take any pictures, but I'm sure I will see them today or tomorrow. We went to Ashley's house, met her little boy, Ben, (who is absolutely adorable!) and dog Annie (whom I want to steal).

This morning, I was on a conference call, but now that that's done, I think it's time to get dressed and go do something fun.

Kaptivating Kenai

(Yes, I know "captivating" is not spelled with a "K." Our high school spelled everything with a "K" to match "Kenai." For example, our mascot? The Kardinals.)

So, it is such a pretty day here, and I am sipping coffee and looking out at the beautiful Kenai River while typing this from my parents' office. I could get used to this.

Here's what we have been up to ...

Monday morning, I woke up, did a little work, blogged a little, and then got dressed for the day. My mom and I went to the Soldotna Mall to get pedicures at a new mani/pedi shop that has opened up, and Josh took Doug's truck into town to meet up with PJ and his brother, Bryce, at Short Stop. Short Stop is essentially a gas station in the middle of Soldotna, but it has a very small, indoor miniature golf area and some video games. Josh and I spent countless hours here in high school. Josh was always trying to beat some kung fu video game and held the high score for who knows how long (he reported, sadly, that it is no longer there), and eating a ridiculous amount of joe joe potatoes. What can I say ... there's wasn't a lot to do around here. :)

Mom and I arrived at the Soldotna Mall. Now, "mall" might be generous. The Soldotna Mall is more like an indoor strip mall attached to a grocery store and a Gottschalks (the only department store on the Kenai Peninsula).



Um, so ... I saw this shirt in the mall. I remember seeing it after 9/11 in the Soldotna Mall, and I was equally shocked and appalled to see it again. Seriously?



The pedicure was great. Although, my mom, in typical pushy-Italian-mom fashion, insisted the lady sanitize her tools (not that I blame her) and then wear gloves. The lady scrubbed the hell out of her feet (my mom is pretty ticklish), and I cracked up, later telling her it was revenge.

Our pretty toes.



The rest of Monday was pretty low key. My mom cooked the most amazing salmon for dinner. Then, we met up with PJ, went to Dairy Queen (also a staple from back in the day), and then back to our house.

Tuesday, we got up, got dressed, and headed into Kenai to pick up Doug's truck (he is at work until Friday). Josh wanted to drive around Old Town Kenai for a bit, so we did.

Here's a picture of Kenai Joes, one of the oldest bars in town. It's for sale. Josh wants to buy it. Haha.



We walked along the bluff for awhile. It was so pretty, and I took a gazillion pictures. Here are a few ...











Mom and Josh.



The next stop on our walk was the Russian Orthodox Church. It is a Kenai landmark and as pretty and quaint as I remembered it.





We walked from the church toward Veronica's, the coffeehouse we used to go to and my favorite hang-out spot.



Flowers in front of Veronica's.



The outside of Veronica's. We used to go for the live music where local musicians played acoustic guitars and sang what probably could best be described as folksy indie music.





As we continued our walk, we passed this law office. My mom joked that I should work there. There was a time I would have been annoyed at the thought, but it doesn't sound so bad lately.



Further along the bluff.



Flowers.



Josh.



We stopped at a little pottery shop/art gallery in Old Town and poked around. We got ready to leave, and the car died in the middle of the parking lot. Josh volunteered to walk to the pick-up truck (yes, Kenai is that small).



Mom and I stayed behind, and she called Doug to see if she could fix it. But, no luck.



Josh arrived with our ride, and we were off.

We headed back to Soldotna and ate dinner at a new restaurant called The Crossing that opened up since we were last here. It's owned by the parents of our friend from high school, and my mom and Doug gave it raving reviews, so we were excited to try it. I had the bacon-wrapped filet, and it was terrific! I think it is, by far, the best restaurant in Kenai and Soldotna! Two big thumbs up!

Back at the house, I lazed around, read a book, and vegged out. Josh and PJ went out to Hooligan's, and I stayed home to spend time with my mom. It was very relaxing.

Today, we are headed to Homer. I am supposed to be ready in 45 minutes, so I should probably get it in gear. More soon.

This and that.

Ahh, life has been boring and slow, and I have been loving every minute of it. All of the folks I work for are on vacay, and my hours are done, so life is pretty good. Here's what's been happening...

Wednesday, I worked from home and then met WeeMo and Sarah for dinner. The food (I had spring rolls, filet mignon, and creme brulee for dessert) was delish, and of course, the company was fab! WeeMo always manages to crack me up, and it was great to finally get to hang out with Sarah.

I worked from home again yesterday (ahh, I could get used to this). Josh and my step-dad managed to get the plumbing working in our guest bathroom, which is almost complete now! Oh, and our new garage door was installed. Okay, so maybe not that thrilling, but I warned you it had been a (wonderfully) slow week!

Today, I dragged my lazy butt out of bed to leave the house by 7 a.m. to make sure I got to Newport Beach by 9 a.m. for a witness interview. It ended up lasting forever, but I got some good info. I then headed to Carson for another interview for the same case. Running around talking to people is one of the best parts of my job, so I was a happy little camper. Plus, I avoided the office another day and managed to make it home by early evening.

My step-brother and step-sister arrived from Nor Cal this evening. Guess where they're staying? You got it...Hotel de Weatherfolk. Hey, what's a few more people, right? So, current occupancy in our humble abode includes my mom, step-dad, the two step-siblings, my mom's two dogs, our two dogs, Josh, and me. Le sigh. I am ready for an empty house. Soon, soon.

This evening, we went to Sagebrush Cantina where I had some splendid mahi mahi fish tacos. Yumm. Then, the fam decided to go rent a movie, and Josh and I snuck away to grab some Golden Spoon. Double yum! So, it looks like I have a hot Friday night date with my family and a DVD of Robin Williams' stand-up. Oh yeah, good times. Anyone have a spare room? :)

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.

Well, another Christmas has come and gone. I hope you all had wonderful days with your families, that you made away with some good "loot," and that you are nowhere near as stuffed as I am!

Christmas Eve, we drove out to Corona to have Christmas dinner with my uncle and extended family. We had our traditional Italian sausage and homemade pizza. We headed back in the late afternoon and went to "Midnight Mass" at 10:30 p.m.

My sis, mom, step-dad, and PJ spent the night at our place. We woke up in the morning, ate breakfast (thanks, A, for the recipe), and then opened presents. We made away with some great stuff, including a new garage door from my mom and Doug, help remodeling the guest bathroom from Josh's folks, and a treadmill from my dad. (Pictures of the home improvements to come!)

We had fourteen people over for Christmas dinner, including my grandparents, mom, step-dad, dad, sis, PJ, and a couple family friends. We had to pull out our dining room table into the living room (good thing we have not furnished that room yet!), add two leaves, and set up a smaller table in the dining room to accommodate everyone!

Our living room with our dining room table, extended with two leaves.

A close-up of the place setting.

The beautiful flower arrangement my uncle sent.

My grandparents, and Ella in the background.

For dinner, we served prime rib, yorkshire pudding, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, salad, and rolls. It was the first holiday meal I cooked, and I was a little nervous, but it turned out really well. However, with all that was going on, I forgot to take pictures (dammit).

Also, it's a family tradition to have crackers at each table. Inside each cracker, there are paper crowns, and most of our family pictures through the years have us in these ridiculous hats.

Gathered 'round the table.

The crackers also include little toys. There were little cars and a couple people opened their crackers to find mini squirt guns! (My mom and grandma had a little too much fun with the squirt guns!)

My mom and Doug were nice enough to help clean up. Jackie and her family came over and had dessert with us.

Homemade apple pie, pumpkin pie with walnut crust, and pumpkin ginger cheesecake.

Phew. It was a wonderful, wonderful Christmas filled with our wonderful (albeit slightly crazy) family, food, wine, and lots of laughing. Good times.

I hope you all had wonderful holidays, too! I think I am going to go take a nap!