Andy and Lisa's Adventures

Christmas videos

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 21:19:00 +0000

We have lots of pictures to go through but I thought I'd start off with a couple of videos we took last night and this morning.
Fish song by Laurie Berkner. Lisa made the tu-tus and the rings and bought the wings.

Pop Fly song by Justin Roberts. Lisa made these tu-tus also.

Quick video of the girls riding their new ponies. Please ignore the mess...we're still recovering from Christmas.

Christmas Eve Gift!!

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 08:20:00 +0000

Merry Christmas from the Browns!! All of the presents are wrapped...well, at least the ones that I bought...and everybody is in bed...well, this guy will be soon. Unfortunately, I have to work tomorrow morning so there won't be any running out to presents first thing in the morning BUT...I will get home before they wake up from their nap so the plan is to have Christmas morning right after their nap in the afternoon (so it's the same effect).

So here are a few pics of dinner and the girls tonight. Dinner was an amazing crown pork roast. Wow! Lisa's dad can COOK!! And then they opened up a present that was a little Santa ornament that lit up. It was hard pealing them away from those to go to bed tonight. I bet tomorrow's going to be infinitely worse!

Merry Christmas again everybody!! I can't wait until tomorrow. The girls are going to be so much fun!

Katy is doing better

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 08:57:00 +0000

Thanks for all of the well-wishes. Katy is doing much better. That night, her fever finally broke around 4am. She ended up in bed with Lisa while I slept on the couch. Last night wasn't any better eventhough they stayed in their beds all night, Lisa was up sniffing and sneezing so she only got a couple hours of sleep. I'll post some pictures when I get a chance. Lisa's Dad and stepmom (Terri) are here for Christmas. We had a GREAT first day and are looking forward to celebrating Christmas with them.

Now stay with me...I was watching the A&M basketball game tonight. They were playing University of Washington at UDub so it was actually televised up here. Please say a prayer for A&M player Derrick Roland. He broke his leg tonight during the game and likely ended his collegiate career. It was pretty gruesome.

I only bring it up because unlike football or baseball, you get to know the basketball team. There are 10 players or less that really contribute so you get to watch them and get to know them...and route for them their whole career like they are part of your family. It broke my heart to see him lying on the floor in pain like that and especially to see his teammates (somehow apart of my extended family) also in tears...crying for him, for his suffering, for his future as a basketball player. I saw the true family on the court today and it made me want to give each one of them a hug. That's the sensitive guy in me, I'm sorry, but I really wanted to reach out tonight.

Anyway...say a prayer for D-Ro.

Seriously sick baby...

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 08:50:00 +0000

So sad. Both girls started showing signs of getting sick late Thursday night and had low grade fevers Friday. Saturday, it was bad enough that we cancelled our plans and stayed home to take care of them. Then, last night was pretty bad. Katy's fever wouldn't go down even with Motrin. She was up and down most of the night so we made an appointment first thing this morning.

At 1, we got in to see our doctor and he was unimpressed. The fever thing didn't concern him...even if she had been throwing up he said it was just a thing going around...so he sent us home with little ammo except to ride out the storm.

Well, that's when things got ugly. As we were getting in the car at the hospital, I noticed one of the tires was a little low. I stopped at the first gas station I could but of course "Air Pump Out of Service". So we continued on as planned to Sears to run in and pick up something real fast. As I turned into the parking lot, we both heard the sound of a true flat tire. I stopped and looked out to see the tire was coming OFF THE RIM!!!

Here's when we realized somebody was looking out for us...we got a flat tire going all of 5 mph as we were pulling into the one automotive place that happened to be open on a Sunday afternoon! Also fortuitous, I forgot to put the car jack and tire iron back in the car so I couldn't just change the tire myself which would have been the natural thing to do. Sears informed me that since my spare is a different size than my winter tires that I have on right now, I could have done serious damage to the 4 wheel drive system!

SO...we just had to wait a while for our neighbor to come pick us up while the girls took their nap and simply left the car at Sears to be fixed. I got a call this evening (to the surprise of the mechanic) that said the tire and the rim were in good shape and I can pick it up in the morning. A Festivus Miracle!!!

Well...at least I'm trying to look on the bright side. We still have a very sick baby. Katy's fever spiked this evening up to 104.3 (although the under arm thermometer only read 102.6...she was definitely acting and felt like 104.3). Then she started having a hard time breathing after we gave her a tepid bath. So we debated on whether or not to take her back to the ER this evening. After our awesome nurse neighbor came over and listened to her for a while, we decided to let her sleep tonight.

Problem is...she can't breath and her fever is still up in the 101 to 102 range. So now she is out here with me on the recliner so she can be propped up a little. Lisa is trying to sleep in case I need to tap out later tonight. I'm also feeling like I'm on the edge of getting sick. I've avoided it all season so far...but this isn't looking good.

Well....so much for our grand anniversary plans. I did go overboard and promised Lisa ballroom dancing lessons. Yeah, that's right. I can dance.

And there was some talk about how the 10 year anniversary is the diamond anniversary...wink wink. Give Lisa a call or email, I've overheard her tell the story 3 times already. I think she liked her anniversary present.

Let the Fro-mance begin!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 22:02:00 +0000

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10 YEARS!!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 07:57:00 +0000

Do you know what happened 10 years ago today?!?! Lisa and I got together in front of our family and friends in Huntsville, TX to devote our lives to one another. We've come a long way in 10 years. We've had some amazing adventures and even managed to have two amazing additions to our family.

We have been so blessed in the first 10 years of our marriage. So many friendships, memories, and adventures...I can't wait to see what the next 10 years holds for us.

Unfortunately, I'm working an evening shift Friday so we can't celebrate our anniversary tomorrow...but we are taking advantage of our babysitters both Saturday and Sunday so we can get away and have some alone time.

Today, we took the girls to dance class and were treated to some of the cutest outfits yet! And thankfully, I think I have finally dialed in on perfect settings on the camera. I am SO happy with how these turned out!

Hope you enjoyed...

Happy Anniversary to us!!!! I love you, Lisa!!!

Christmas cards are coming...

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 08:32:00 +0000

Sam came over the last 2 nights and took pictures of us for the Christmas cards. I just ordered them so they will be in the mail on Monday. Sam took over 200 pictures so we had tons to choose from...and we had several that didn't quite make the cut but were still good.

Great face by Lyssa

I was going to save this for Christmas morning but I couldn't resist sharing my naughty Santa.

OH!! I downloaded a couple videos today too!

This second one is very similar but still pretty cute and worth showing.

one more time

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 09:24:00 +0000

I went up real fast for sunset again and took. Tonight, Mount Redoubt was steaming a little.

Amazing sunset...

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 03:29:00 +0000

We are going to have a great week of sunsets. Since the lower 48 is getting some nasty weather, we have the opposite...a big high pressure. After missing yesterday's awesome sunset, today I ran home after work and grabbed the camera and headed up to our favorite spot to view sunsets. I didn't have to wait long since sunset is around 4pm.

Same picture...but a different ISO

There's always time for a self portrait...

Now, time for a little "fata morgana".

I'm back BABY!!

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 06:54:00 +0000

I had a great week this past week. Unfortunately we couldn't pull off a way to take everyone down with me to Reno for a workshop. Lisa's mom was still in town to help Lisa out with the girls so that made it easier to leave...but still would have been nice. The workshop was phenomenal. I was paired up with a mentor who is going to help guide me for the next 2 years...and hopefully beyond.

My mentor is on the right.

So there was some scheming going on the weeks leading up to this past weekend. My buddy Tom in Sacramento, Lisa in Boulder, Brooke in Sacramento, and Treena (and her husband and 2 and a half year old daughter from Eureka) all met in Lake Tahoe at Brooke's parents house for a couple extra days of fun. Sweeeeet.

Master bedroom...

...and the view from the master bedroom.

Lisa and Brooke kissing one of the locals

Treena and her family had to head home on Friday, leaving the 4 of us to explore Lake Tahoe and have some more fun.

The beautiful Emerald Bay...

You might have to click on this next one to see tiny little ole me trying to push the giant tree over.

Time for a gondola ride up to the top...elevation 9156 feet.

Finally, one more dinner together before going our separate ways again on Saturday.

It was an amazing week. I lost some money in Reno but luckily won a few hands at blackjack when Tom and I hit the casino one more time before I left Saturday afternoon...so not a total loss. Honestly, my favorite times were the long conversations late at night with some truely amazing people. But it is nice to be back home. It was great to come home to Lisa and the girls. They seemed to have grown up a lot the last 6 days. I couldn't believe how well they are talking...taking their time and really trying to annunciate their words. Anyway, it's nice to be home. Lisa tooks lots of pictures too while I was gone so I'll have to catch up on those as well.

Thanksgiving: Part Deux

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 08:30:00 +0000

Thanksgiving evening, like last year, we went next door to have dinner with our awesome neighbors. I can't remember everything we ate...but it was A LOT! Steve and Lisa provided most of the staples like the turkey, stuffing, salad, etc while we (Lisa and Eileen) made some of our favorite sides including the green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, and a couple desserts (brownies and my favorite, pumpkin pie!). So much food! ...and it was all soooo good.

Here's the setting

I forgot to take a good picture of all of the food before we dug in...here's the best I had.

Playing peak-a-boo while the adults sat around and enjoyed each other's company.

Sam was able to join us too after he got off work.

Katy hiding behind the curtains...

Our neighbor girls eating some dessert.

Now for some more stuffing of faces!

Then Wrigley (the dog) started getting in the action. She found the easiest targets...the girls!

...and after watching Wrigley try to lick the table, the girls thought it would be fun too.

Awesome day. More pictures to come. It snowed pretty hard Friday morning and we all got outside and had a good snowball fight and made snow angels and a snowman. Today, we put up our Christmas tree...so lots more pictures to share before I leave tomorrow night for RENO!!!!

BUSY Thanksgiving!

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 21:42:00 +0000

It has been a lot of fun these last two days. I have to go to work in a little bit so I wanted to post some pictures from yesterday and today real fast.

Our friends from work came over for my favorite part of Thanksgiving...BREAKFAST!! Lisa and Eileen made quiche, Jan's Breakfast, and cranberry mini-muffins. Andy and his wife, Kendra, brought over a fruit salad that was to die for and their adorable 3 month old baby, Malena. The girls LOVE Malena. They were so excited to see the baby again.

So we played and ate and played and ate. We all took turns holding the baby, even the girls. And no, this isn't giving us any ideas!!

I like this one of the Dixon family and all the kids.

I ran out of time so I'll have to post the rest tonight. Here's a teaser of what the girls wore to go next door for the Thanksgiving feast.

Happy Thanksgiving and Beat the Hell Outa tu!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 09:47:00 +0000

I love it that the A&M game is on Thanksgiving again! Now if we can just WIN!!!!

Here's a quick video of the girls chowing down this evening. They say "my" instead of "I". You can hear Katy say it "my want to look" at the beginning of the video.

An emotional week

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 05:34:00 +0000

I've gone back and forth on whether or not I should say anything and if I do, how should I go about it? I decided to just mention it because it's affecting our lives. A very close friend of ours is going through a divorce. He doesn't deserve to be treated like this and it's heartbreaking to see such a great guy go through this emotional roller coaster. Keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

In other news, Lisa's mom arrived a couple days ago and will be staying through Thanksgiving. First order of business, cut the girls' hair and try to get it under control. I couldn't get any good pics of the actual cut but these aren't bad.

Too cold to go outside, Lisa brought some snow inside to the bathroom and the girls made a little snowman. I was impressed. It turned out really good.

November!

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 04:23:00 +0000

I can't believe how fast time is flying. So fast that apparently it affects my ability to sit down at the computer long enough to post!

What motivated me today to post? Well, I happened to check how many hits we had yesterday and was surprised to see that we're still getting 15 hits a day. That tells me that you guys haven't given up on us even if it has been forever since my last post. Thanks. I know I say this at least once a month but I'll try...

It's a shame too because the girls are growing up so freaking fast. They are even talking like little humans. They are able to tell us what's wrong (which is SO great!) and what they want. Of course that means when they don't get what they want, things can get nasty. They are definitely well into their terrible twos but we're managing. They respond well to time-outs and a stern voice...if that doesn't work, we just put them out in the cold.

They also have quite the attitude. Last night, I asked Katy if I could lay down next to her during story time. She said very decisively "NO Daddy. Go sit by door" and pointed toward the door. Lisa laughed at me as I was a little caught off guard. So I started to ask her why she wanted me to sit way over by the door and she interrupted me and just held up her index finger (to shoosh me) and then pointed to the door again. So I sat by the door during story time. :(

One reason we haven't been posting is we haven't been taking many pictures. Since our last fishing adventure, we just haven't been doing much of anything exciting. It has been a very dry October...we finally just got our first snow Sunday night and got our second storm today. FINALLY! It's been relatively warm and kinda strange without snow on the ground.

Halloween came and went...nothing exciting. No we didn't dress them up as anything. We really struggled with our parental responsibilities during a 2 year old's Halloween...but, meh. We just didn't think it was worth the effort. But they LOVED their pumkins or as they say "pumpins". Seriously, they loved them.

Their hair is getting SO long. They have never been too keen on keeping barrettes in their hair but lately, it's getting so long that they are asking for something to get it out of their face. It's still very curly.

I think we have more pictures somewhere...I'll have to go through and find some. I took this video this evening to show them doing their circle dance. They do this at their dance class every week when everyone sits in a big circle and they take turns running around. They like to pretend they are at dance class and get all of their stuffed animals and blankets and whatever, put them in a circle, and then run around. Good stuff.

Evening post!

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 02:41:00 +0000

I was going through some older photos and realized I never finished sharing pictures from our trip up to Hatcher Pass. We pick it up on our drive down the Willow Creek Valley. It was extremely scenic...the pictures just don't do it justice.

I especially wanted to share these pictures. I will cherish this forever...the first time I really took the girls fishing with us. We borrowed these backpacks for the weekend to see if it was something we'd like to invest in. We did not. Even though they can handle an additional 20 pounds more than what the girls weighed, it was PAINFUL to carry them up there. BUT...it gave us some great memories.

And yes, I caught a nice sized salmon but it was in spawning mode so not very appealing. We did a quick release where we didn't really touch it...just landed it and let it flop itself off the hook and back into the creek.

And a video. I just took this video this evening. The girls (especially Alyssa) have been showing interest in potty training. Today I was changing her diaper and she asked to sit on the big potty. I did what any good Dad would do and grabbed the camera. I almost can't wait until she's a teen-ager so I can go back and show her this on youtube.

well...hmmmmm

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 06:52:00 +0000

Not sure how to react. I posted earlier on Facebook that I didn't receive an interview for a position in the lower 48 that I thought I would be competitive for. First...no, we're not exactly actively looking to move out of Alaska. I applied for a position that is on my short SHORT list. It was a lead job in Portland, OR. It is somewhere we would definitely like to live but timing wasn't ideal for us.

So I didn't expect to get the job. Honestly, I didn't. It's extremely competitive and I knew some of the people who bid on it. They are fantastic people and I have a good feeling that one of them will get that job and excel.

BUT!!!! I think I am competitive...obviously or I wouldn't have applied. From day one, I have said that I just want an interview so I have a chance to get to know the MIC and for him to get to know me. It is very disheartening to learn that my references weren't even contacted. I know this is over simplifying a complex process...but to me that means that on paper, I'm not even worthy of a phone call. It is making me rethink my whole approach to my job. What do I need to do to make myself look better on paper? And that sucks because everything I do at work is because I believe in it or because I think I am helping the office or other people. It doesn't necessarily translate to the resume. Do I really want to be the kind of person that just does stuff that looks good on the resume?

Regardless, my approach is going to change. I'm going to be making some changes at work to insure that I am competitive by lower 48 standards. I am going to use this as a wake up call. I am going to re-evaluate my priorities. I am going to listen to advice from people outside my office that have a different perspective.

As you can tell, I'm a little frustrated...but motivated. This is going to sting for a while but I'll just have to use that to fuel the fire.

A WHOLE NEW WORLD!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 05:22:00 +0000

A whole new world
A dazzling place I never knew
But when I'm way up here
It's crystal clear
That now I'm in a whole new world with you
Now I'm in a whole new world with you

Unbelievable sights
Indescribable feeling
Soaring, tumbling, freewheeling
Through an endless diamond sky

It's the first thing that popped in my head as I was driving home this evening wearing glasses. I can see things I've never seen before! As I was walking through the mall with my new glasses, I almost missed two stairs because I was in disbelief how well I could see far away now.

So why now? I had a few embarassing moments at my workshop in Boise where I had to ask for help to see things. It was a wake up call. My vision could be better. I decided to give it a try and since I know I can live without them, if I don't like how I look or if the improvement isn't great enough then I'll go back to my pre-HD vision. We'll see how it goes. I have 30 days to decide.

Just the two of us

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 06:22:00 +0000

I wanted to title this blog entry FISH ON but not surprisingly after the summer I had, I've already used that title. More importantly, it was a trip for me and Lisa away from the grind. I wanted to give Lisa something special...something away from the girls and out of the house. After my trip with Dad and Sam a couple weeks ago, I knew this is what she needed. Even though most people stop fishing the Kenai River in October, the second run of the silvers is going strong and there are plenty of dollies and rainbows to be had...all gorging themselves on loose eggs before the winter.

Problems leading up to today...the girls are sick. Katy has had a fever off and on for a couple days and Alyssa has been getting slowly worse. Their noses are becoming faucets and they've been pretty cranky...BUT besides that first day that Katy was sick, they haven't really been lethargic. So our awesome neighbor was fully aware of the situation but recognized how bad we wanted to get out of Dodge for half a day. She was on board.

Second problem...the river is extremely high. If I'm reading the River Forecast Center's website right, today's level was the 19th highest on record going back to 1970 and the highest it's been since 2004. All that meant there was lots of debris being picked up and moved downriver and fish wouldn't be in their normal hideouts. It was going to make for an interesting day of fishing. Yesterday, I called a couple of other guides to get their impression before I got ahold of Mike (our guide)who said he'd been out fishing and there were plenty of fish to be caught. So...we went for it.

Sorry, enough background. Time for some fish tales. We left our house at 6am, drove through the dark and arrived at 7:35. The river was impressive and a little intimidating. We both weren't sure what to think but Mike assured us we were good. He paddled hard to get us across the river to a good holding spot where he could give us a few tips. After Lisa threw in her line a couple of times, I grabbed my rod and gave it a go...not really expecting anything. Remember last time I was the last to catch a fish and it was probably an hour and a half into the float before I finally did. Not today. On the second cast, my bobber disappeared and I yanked skyward and immediately felt that incredible tug at the end. Oh, how I LOVE that feeling. So 5 minutes into our float, I landed my first fish...a BEAUTIFUL dolly!

Because it was still pretty dark, we didn't realize for a while that the auto focus wasn't on so our first several pictures weren't very good.

So we moved on. Not too much later I was able to land an average size rainbow. It was a beautiful fish but it was so early on, we did a quick release and didn't take a picture.

But today wasn't going to be about the dollies and rainbows. Today was all about Lisa and her silver salmon. Maybe 30 minutes later we stopped at our first hole to switch to casting rods and try our luck at the silvers. The water was so high and cloudy that we couldn't see them like before but Mike knew they were there. He told us how it would feel when they hit but it's just not something you can explain, you need to experience it. Luckily Lisa was paying attention and knew when she had her first hit. She yanked back hard and set the hook and the fight was on!! I couldn't believe it. Just like Dad, she pulled in this BEAUTIFUL silver salmon. But unlike our first trip, these salmon were fresh from the ocean. They were still bright and fresh. Lisa fought it into the net and the high fives started flying!! I think all 3 of us were grinning from ear to ear. Even Mike, who does this every day, was giddy with excitemet for Lisa. It is why I came back to him for this trip. He is genuinely excited for us when we catch fish. So he asks if Lisa wanted to hold it...I don't know if he was surprised when she said "YEAH!" but it made me a proud husband.

We didn't get anything else out of that hole so we moved on downstream. We found another hole that I wouldnt' have thought would have been very active but the salmon were in there THICK! It didn't take but a few minutes and Lisa hooked up with another. BUT this time she didn't set the hook and it shook off before we could get it in the net. A cast or two later and FISH ON! But AGAIN, the hook wasn't quite set and the fish got away. Now it was getting kinda funny. Mike joked that she needed to set the hook like it owed her money. It couldn't have been one or two casts later and she hooked ANOTHER!!! This time there wasn't any way this fish was getting away. Besides, it owed her money!

Alright, now it was just getting rediculous. At this point I had landed two average fish, a dolly and a rainbow. But Lisa had landed two silvers and hooked 2 more! About this time we were wondering if her green spinner was the way to go but I wasn't going to give up on my orange one yet and good thing. In the exact same spot, I finally hooked my first silver of the day. She was a beauty.

I think Mike was still stringing that third fish when Lisa hooked ANOTHER ONE!! But, unfortunately this one got away from her again. Now it was my turn! There was definitely a hot spot of where the silvers were lined up so I cast just past it and focused on the retrieve when WHAM!!!...actually it felt like a bump but whatever (I'm telling the tale)...FISH ON AGAIN!!! I could immediately tell this one was bigger and when it gave us it's first jump, all three of us shouted out. We had only seen hens (females) so far and this was a big buck. It was definitely the fight of the day. It took a while...going back and forth from one side of the boat to the other and diving deep but we were finally able to get it in the net.

What a freaking monster!! We all know the guides trick of pushing the fish out a little bit toward the camera...evenso, that is a big fish!

Since we were having so much fun and the fishing was so great, we actually decided to let the big guy go and continue fishing. A few casts later and Lisa hooks a big buck too!!

We initially were going to keep this one because it's color was a little better than mine but we noticed he had already been through a pretty tough patch. Check out the battle wound in the second picture. Mike thinks it was a seal that did that to him in the ocean before he made the run up the river. Pretty amazing stuff.

So finally, it was time to move on. All of that happened in 30 minutes or so. The adrenaline was PUMPING!! It was one of the most exciting fishing experiences I've had.

Things slowed down after that. We each had several more hits on the fly rod while we were floating down river but were having a hard time setting the hook. I was able to land one more GORGEOUS fish. After several near misses, I was able to set the hook quickly on this guy. As much as I loved landing those silvers, this was a special catch. I am such a huge fan of rainbows. They are gorgeous fish and this one took the cake. It's a shame we couldn't get his colors on film. I wish everyone could see a fish like this in person. Mike was certain it was an old fish...probably pushing 20 years old. You could tell by how heavily spotted and dark he was. The contrasting color down his side was amazing. This picture doesn't do his size or color justice at all. You'll have to take my word...it was a beautiful fish.

I took this picture at one point just to try and capture our settings. Such a cool experience.

We hit several more holes on the way down the river but just couldn't get any more fish on. That was fine...we had more than our share of fish (and fun) at this point. We landed at our final destination about 5 hours after we started (a whole hour more than what I fished with Dad and Sam) and posed for a few pics with our 3 keepers. Let me tell you how much I LOVE this picture. I'm pretty sure I'm going to enlarge it and frame it. Just so freaking cool! What a day!

I thought this was great too. Mike cleans and filets our fish for us right there.

This time we had a cooler ready to go. I called Sam when I got home and he came over and he helped me grill a half of one filet for Lisa and vacuum seal the rest for the freezer. We have SO much fish now. We gave some of the fresh salmon to our neighbor as a thank you for watching the girls. I can't tell you how good it makes me feel to be able to go catch this fresh salmon and give it away!

So what a trip!! I didn't even mention this but we saw probably 20 bald eagles (not exaggerating at all), an angry beaver that tail slapped the water near the boat, and then a few dall sheep on the drive home. It was truly an amazing day to live in Alaska.

quick post...well almost

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 08:22:00 +0000

It's getting late and I have to be up at 5am...4 hours and 40 minutes from now. I've been wanting to post about our night at the March of Dimes event, "Fund the Mission". We were completely overwhelmed with how many people were involved and how many of Anchorage elitists showed up. We didn't get to see many of the different items that were up for auction but one that got my attention was 2 roundtrip tickets donated by Continental to Houston where you would watch either 2 or 3 Astros games of your choice from the box suites. Also included was an autographed bat and jersey from the team. I'm probably wrong about this but I think Sam said that went for over $9000 (I'm doubting myself, that might have been another item). There were LOTS of amazing trips and items up for auction not to mention I believe the cost per person just to get in the door was $150. We made a rough estimate that there was over 600 people in attendance!! That's a lot of money.

Here is a picture to give you an idea of the setup. On the stage were the best chefs from Anchorage. One of them came up and talked to us before our portion of the evening. He was very thankful and very nice to us. We felt honored.

So we arrived at about 8:00 knowing that our short part of the evening wasn't until almost 9:00. That was our big dilemma in whether or not we were going to attend, how late it was and what that meant for the girls. Certainly, it got rougher as the night wore on but they were troopers.

We made our entrance and were announced along with 2 other families (one more couldn't make it because of a sick baby). Immediately, we could feel ALL eyes on us. The girls are just so darn cute...it was obvious all 600 people were watching every move they made. We could hear the constant "oooooo's" and "aaawwwwweeee's". What was great was we asked Sam to come with us and take some pictures. He did a phenomenal job but as a bonus, the girls are in love with Sam. So when we got to the stage, we told them to look for Sam in the back of the room and blow him kisses and wave.

I don't know if they ever saw him way back there but they were blowing kisses and waving like they meant it! The crowd ate it up.

We stood off to the side with the other families while one of the local doctors told everyone about each family and what we went through. As loud as the crowd had been minutes leading up to this and during the auction...you could hear a pin drop. It was amazing. It brought tears to my eyes to see our family and even moreso, Lisa and the girls, at the center of attention. It made me so proud to think of how far we've come and inspired by the thought that we might have helped raise a little more money that night.

Now unfortunately, they got a few facts wrong. Lisa delivered 9 weeks early, not 7. And somehow, they reversed their names!!

After everyone's stories were told, one of the mothers got up and went into specifics about her boy's tough entry into the world. It was very emotional and powerful. As designed, they used the emotions and went straight into some of the big ticket auctions. We slid away to the back of the room where we started to gather our things to head home. A camera man came up to me and asked if I would hold the girls for a picture. I thought he meant a "still" photo. Not exactly. He was running the video camera so he put me and the girls up on the big screen while the auctions were going on. Brilliant strategy but I saw a flaw...it was after 9 by now and the girls were READY TO GO!!!

Solution? I found Sam who happened to be on the other side of the camera man. The girls found him too and resumed blowing kisses and waving. To the audience, it looked like they were blowing kisses and waving to everyone so again we could hear people laughing and awe'ing. I have to admit, it was pretty sweet.

That lasted for a few minutes and it was go time. Since the auction was still going on and it was obvious the cameraman liked using us, we let the girls play around while the guy filmed them for everyone to see. That was tough because...well, everything the girls did and we did was on display for a very large group of people to see. I never knew when I was on camera and when I wasn't so it made for a weird 10 or 15 minutes. Anyway, by 9:30 or so the girls were DONE.

We made our way downstairs and fought with them to get their coats on and in the car. All things considered, they did GREAT! It made us feel great to help this worthy cause, even if they were just using us for our cute babies!

Thanks to Sam for getting all dressed up and attending with us and being our official photographer. Without him, we'd have none of these great pictures to share. Plus he took several videos that I need to edit down so they will fit on youtube. Hopefully I can finish that soon.

Alarm goes off in 4 hours now. Lisa and I are going fishing...the same trip that I took my dad on a couple weeks ago. The weather is going to be perfect so it should be a BLAST!!

can't resist posting what's going on right now

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 04:41:00 +0000

I thought about doing this on Facebook...but thought I would post here instead. I've been posting a lot on Facebook lately, starting to wonder if people are getting sick of me.

We had some DELICIOUS grilled chicken this evening. We did a half and half of some KC BBQ sauce; one was Arthur Bryant's Sweet Heat and the other was Fiorella's Jack Stack BBQ original sauce. Both of them were SOOOO good. I would have taken a picture of the chicken to make you jealous but we ate it too fast.

But afterwards, Sam was entertaining the girls with some Mana Mana. I got a couple quick good pictures...

No words...just random cuteness.

I couldn't wait

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 21:08:00 +0000

I was going to wait until later to share some of the pictures and videos from this morning but just couldn't. They are SO freaking cute. Both of them are becoming more independent which is met with mixed emotions from me and Lisa on the sideline.

There was more of us sitting on the side than ever and the girls occasionally running over to make sure we were watching and give us a hug. Lisa eventually went out and helped which is always HILARIOUS! I believe there are some pictures (and maybe videos) of me doing just that last week when Lisa couldn't make it to class. I'll have to dig those up....maybe.

There were also more girls than I've seen before so it was hard for Teresa to give everyone attention.

This was hilarious. Teresa told everybody to lay down. Amazingly, all the girls did this on their own...except our girls who needed some help from Lisa. Teresa was astonished when she turned around and saw everybody already laying in a perfect semi-circle.

My little soldier baby girls waiting patiently for their turn.

Now for a couple videos.

They both used to just stand there and watch. Look how much Alyssa is participating. Makes us so proud!

late night post

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 08:50:00 +0000

I am currently sitting on my favorite recliner watching Top Chef with my buddy Sam. It is now 12:55am and there may or may not have been a few beers involved tonight. Regardless, Sam and I are having a good time and no doubt, I will be tired tomorrow.

So what better time than to share a couple quick photos?! I don't think I've posted these before. It is scary how old my babies girls are looking! They really look like little ladies. What am I going to do?!

Sorry for the nudity but they are just so darn cute! These were taken while my parents were here last week.

How bout some cute pony tail pics?

I have a few more I wanted to share tonight but it's laaaate.

Tomorrow night, we are going to a fund raiser for March for Dimes. We are going to be out late with the girls...I believe they will be talking about us just before 9:00. We also have dance class in the morning so it should be a full day.

Fishing trip for the ages

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 07:07:00 +0000

...and the aged!

I treated my dad to a very unique experience today...floating down the Kenai River in the fall while all the trout are gorging themselves for the upcoming winter. What that translates into is great fishing! I thought about just going down and fishing form the shore but I took some good advice from an even better friend and decided to splurge and just go for it. It was WELL worth it.

We drove down and met our guide Mike at 8:30 and were in the water by 9. Unfortunately, the only day we could go was a very wet day. It was also only about 40 degrees so it made for a cold adventure. We were relatively prepared so our clothes held up and we stayed pretty dry. And as Mike said, "The fish don't care. They're already wet!"

After a few first lessons, we were drifting downriver and Sam was the first to catch a dolly varden. It was on the small side but still very beautiful! I think Sam caught the next fish too but we didn't get a picture of it.

Then it was Dad's turn to get in on the act. BUT this time was VERY special. We stopped and anchored at this nice hole where Mike saw a few silver salmon...a bit early for the second run the season. We traded in our fly rods and started casting toward the shore for 15 minutes or so but with no luck. At one point Mike told us just one more cast and we'll move on. About 5 casts later, he yelled at Dad to set the hook and when Dad yanked up, he had hooked a VERY nice size silver salmon. The fight was on and it was a dandy. The salmon (a blushed buck) was happy to give us a show and jumped out of the water several times trying to shake the hook loose. Dad kept the line tight and before long, Mike was able to net this beauty...

I like this one Sam took of Mike holding Dad's silver. We estimated that it was probably close to 15 pounds.

Well at this point, I was happy to call it a day because Dad was as giddy as a schoolgirl and Sam had caught his fish. ....buuuuttttt....I kinda wanted to catch a fish too and the thought had crept into my mind ...."what if you don't catch a fish?" Certainly Mike wouldn't let that happen, right?

Well, not much longer we pulled up to a GREAT spot again and were working it hard for any trout or dollies. I got the strangest hit on my fly and I tried to set the hook and the only way I could describe it was it was like I had snagged a fish in the tail. It just didn't feel right or fight ...initially. THEN the fight was on. I knew it was a big fish. It only gave me a few small jumps but before long, we got it in the net and Mike looked at it for a while and finally said "it's a SILVER!!!"

Well, now I felt like I found my groove. It wasn't long after that that I had my next big hit and the best fight of the day (for me at least). I landed a BEAUTIFUL dolly varden! This first picture is Mike doing the typical guide photo-op...holding the fish way out in front, close to the camera to make it look as big as possible. Be sure to click on one of these pictures. It really is a beautiful fish. You can also see that it's had a hard life by the obvious scars on its back.

Well now I was just showing off. Again, I was the next to land a fish with a rainbow! It was a not the huge beast I was hoping for but by this point, I was MORE than happy with what I had already been blessed with. I happily reeled in this nice fish and posed for a few pics.

Not to be outdone, Dad quickly landed another rainbow.

an the end, we each had caught 3. I caught one of each; a silver, dolly, and a bow. Dad caught the biggest silver, 2 rainbows including the biggest bow of the day. And Sam caught 2 bows and one dolly...plus a couple more quick releases. ;)

We decided to take our salmon home for dinner for the ladies. Lisa was EXTREMELY jealous that she didn't get to go. I am going to try and get her out on the Kenai sometime this month. It is DEFINITELY worth the money.

The salmon was a very pleasant and delicious surprise (so I was told). Sam came over and helped us prepare and grill my salmon. Dad is going to take his home to share (and show off) for his friends. We had a fun night of grilling and laughter...a perfect ending to a perfect day.

2 weeks!

noreply@blogger.com (Andy and Lisa) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 07:08:00 +0000

That's a long time to go without posting! This isn't much of a post either, just to let you know that I've been away the last week. I went to Boise, ID for a week long workshop. It was an AMAZING week and I met some AMAZING people.

My parents are visiting now so we're keeping them busy this week. Today we went to the zoo and tomorrow we're heading over to a museum. I'm looking forward to Wednesday though...I'm taking my dad down to the Kenai and we're going to do some trophy trout fishing. More pics and videos later. Just wanted to share that we are alive and will be getting back into our normal routine soon.