The Jones Family Here & There..........

We have officially made the BIG move to Washington!!! It only took 2 trips to get everything moved down. We got everything packed and loaded, thanks to good help, and left Alaska on August 1st with our first load and our little convoy, a U-haul truck & car hauler, motor home and Xterra. We left the Expedition to pull the trailer on the second trip. The kids had finished their summer jobs and we were all able to travel together. The drive down took us 5 days and 5 new tires for the motor home.......long story. We had a fun adventure and no matter what the kids say I did not launch the motor home off a frost heave!!!!! There were TONS of frost heaves, cracks, loose gravel and construction going into the border crossing at Beaver Creek Yukon Territory and for quite a few miles after. The roads were a bit of a challenge but we all survived. We saw lots of beautiful country, some critters and took out several million bugs. Gregg had a mishap with a "Stupid Chicken" zigged when it should have zagged and came rolling out from under the car hauler like a bowling ball in a cloud of feathers. Sad to report there was a mishap on the second trip too, a Ptarmigan flew right into the side of the U-Haul trailer.
We arrived in Washington late on Aug. 5th, got the kids laundry done on the 6th, loaded a U-Haul for them on the 7th so they could head for Utah later that evening. Gregg and I packed bags and flew out on the night of the 8th for Anchorage and trip #2. We landed at 1 a.m. on the 9th and caught a flight for Kenai at 4:25 a.m. slept for a few hours , picked up the U-Haul trailer at 9 a.m. loaded the last of the stuff and was on the road headed for the border by 11:30 p.m.
I was able to take a few more pictures coming down the second time. I was a busy driver the 1st trip down watching out for bumps in the road!! Gregg and I had a fun trip together. The only challenge was finding places to stay. There was a large forest fire near Watson Lake and all the spare rooms were being used for the fire crews leaving only a few for weary travelers. It didn't get much better the further south we went. August is a busy time for Fairs and Rodeos all along the Alcan, but We lucked out and always had a place to sleep. Gregg and I made the second trip down in four days and spent our first day in Washington MELTING!!!! It has been in the 90's today, WAY too hot for me!!

I have too much to catch up on and I will just hit the highlights. After Brandon, Gregg and I had a fun Spring Break get away Brandon and I came home to Alaska and waited for the snow to melt and for spring to arrive. Brandon geared up for his senior year of soccer and was chosen as one of the captains. The first two games of the season were cancelled due to snow on the field. Not too surprising we do live in Alaska but the snow finally started to melt and the games began the end of April!!! Brandon played awesome his first game and during warm ups the following week severely sprained his ankle and tore a ligament and his season was over. He tried giving it 2 weeks to heal in hopes of finishing the season but it wasn't to be. Lots of things happened in May. Brandon sung the National Anthem at his Graduation and walked across the stage as High School Graduate. We also had a wedding, Brady and his fiance, Samantha (we call her Sam) were married on my birthday. We are so happy and excited for them!! Gregg and I love having a daughter and Dustin, Daniel and Brandon finally have a sister. We also had a baby moose born in the wooded area of our backyard. The Mom and baby stayed in the backyard for two days. We had so much fun watching the new baby wobble around our yard!! We still see them in the neighborhood from time to time. The Mom is easy to identify cause she has a huge scar on her side. We are loving summer!!! The wildflowers are everywhere, Lupine, Chocolate Lily's and Arctic Daisies. I have seen the Caribou on the river flats several times this summer too. Never a boring day in Alaska! Mixed in with all the fun I am still packing boxes for the move to Washington. We are all going to miss Alaska but look forward to the new adventures for all of us.

Have you ever heard someone say, "Let me give you my two cents worth"? I guess it use to only cost 2 cents to give someone some advice. Wonder what it costs now? Or maybe it was just that the quality of the advice was not so good and it only was worth 2 cents. Not sure how the saying originated.
At least a Penny is still worth something and if you've got 2 you are prepared to give someone advice of some sort, they might not want it but at least you'll be ready. I've heard that it costs more than 1 cent to manufacture a Penny but it is still only worth 1 cent. Let's not forget "A Penny Saved is a Penny Earned". When the kids were little they loved to get Pennies to put in their "Piggy Banks" especially Brady. He would push aside Quarters, Dimes and Nickles in search of the shiny Pennies. Then when his chubby little hands could hold no more, off he would run to drop them in the slot of his little bank.
Over the years the look of the Penny has changed a bit but the value is still the same and they are not as much fun for the kids. They prefer "Paper Money" as to the shiny, copper coins now that they are older.
Just thought I would throw in my "2 Cents Worth" old and new.

Thought it would be nice to put up a few pictures of pretty flowers, just something nice to look at besides the snow. It was quite shocking to wake up to 4 inches of snow just the other day but then again we do live in Alaska. Spring will arrive when it is ready but I would just like to mention that I AM READY FOR SPRING!!

We had some very nice and mild days in February and rumors of an early "break up" a term used by Alaskans referring to the melting snow and the arrival of spring. A week ago we only had about 4 inches of snow on the ground and the potential for an early spring seemed possible, but after 3 back to back March snow storms we now have over a foot or more of the white stuff!! In addition to the snow, the cold temperatures have returned too. The past 2 mornings we have been -15 or colder and only teens for daytime high temps. Spring soccer started on Monday so I guess we know why winter came back. I told Brandon to get used to indoor conditioning cause Mother Nature didn't want them enjoying the great outdoors just yet. I can't complain too much about the snow cause it did bring moose to visit the back yard and allow me to snap a few photos. I love the backyard wildlife!! Simply amazing!!

Just got to brag a little on Brandon.......clear back in November he comes home from school and tells me he is going over to Kenai and I thought he was probably going to see a movie with friends and when I asked what he was going to do he ever so casually tells me he is going to try out for a part in a community play. He told me a teacher from school was in charge and the play was "Grease". I thought it was really awesome for him. I had no idea he was interested in theater type stuff. He did his tryout and got a part in the play as a Rydell High School singer and dancer and he was so excited and Gregg and I were so proud!! I was a little concerned because he had just had major surgery on his shoulder in October, but here we are a couple of months later and many hours of rehearsal, hard work and dedication under his belt. Gregg, Brady, Grandma Jones and I went to watch Brandon on opening night and he did AWESOME!!! I couldn't believe that was Brandon up there on stage singing and dancing and having the time of his life!! He had a great dance partner and they were a hit!! I think you can tell by the pictures that it was a fun community event, lots of talented people!!
Gregg and I went to see the dress rehearsal the night before the official opening and Brandon was hoping I would take my camera to get some pictures on opening night. I was a little nervous about taking photos in low light with no flash. I figured all I would get was a bunch of blurry pictures but after a little practice and trial and error I got it "dialed" in and was able to get some fun shots of Brandon and Marquee, his dance partner.

I spent the day cleaning an army of angry dust bunnies from behind the
fridge and under the stove and vacuumed the dead bugs out of all the lights
and then Brady says " Hey Mom, there's a little moose out in the front
yard." So I grabbed my camera and big lens and went out on the front porch
thinking he was back in the trees a bit and I took most of these pictures with the
moose being about 20 ft. away and as close as about 8 ft. I was on the
porch and he just started right for me walking real slow and not bothered at
all that I was out there. Talk about being at one with nature, totally
staring into this little guys eyes was amazing!! He never once showed any
aggressive behavior and I could have jumped inside at anytime but choose to
stay and take his picture as long as he would stay. He was way to close for
my big lens. I almost needed a different one on my camera but I had no clue he was going to stroll on over so close. The squirrels were out running around today too but
they were too ADHD to take their picture, just wouldn't hold still!!