September

September started with lots of rain and clouds and 

ended with lots of blue sky and sunshine!

September 1st: Daughter Jami, Matt & Izzy were in Oregon to pick up a dog and my sister-in-law, Nancy (& Bruce) was visiting in the area from PA.  How awesome that they were able to connect for a few minutes.

We met the Martinson's new dog, Ben.....our new grand dog.  

Isn't he a cutie?

Dinner with friends (the Hulien's) in Healy at the 49th State Brewing Co.  It was a beautiful 1-1/2 hour drive down with yellow and golden scenery. Very good food and great company.  On the way home, we caught a glimpse of Mt. McKinley (Denali) with the pink sunset behind it. My iPhone camera didn't do it justice but it's a good reminder of a beautiful view.  

I love the fall colors.....

Nicole and I made our annual trip up to Murphy Dome. 

Mom and Dad's ashes are spread at the top of the Dome, 

so I enjoy driving up to "remember" and to view the beautiful fall colors.

 Our D-I-L, Nicole, celebrated another birthday.  

 These flowers are still hanging on even after several frosts.  

I enjoyed the neighbors impatiens by their mailbox.  

On the last day of September, my one sunflower got bit by the frost.  

I cut it and brought it inside....only to realize it was accompanied by LOTS of little bugs.  

Now I only have this picture.  

Three months until we start gaining daylight.  

August Highlights

August 1st:  The first day of August started with a walk to the river with the girls (Izzy and Maddy, granddaughters).  62 degrees, cloudy and breezy, fireweed still blooming.  

August 12th:  Our oldest grandson, Andrew, shot a caribou.  (He and his brother are out moose hunting today, September 2nd)

August 14th:  Favorite Craft Project this month - Back to School Pencils made out of Rollo's and candy kisses.  Just in time for school to start on August 16th.

August 17th - our 41st Anniversary of moving to Fairbanks, Alaska (from Anchorage).  The reason we made the move was because Dave was appointed to pastor the Fairbanks Church of God of Prophecy.  Geoff was 15 months old and I was 3 months pregnant with Jami.  Ahh, good memories.


August 19th: After retiring from the Alaska Railroad in 1994, it was fun to take a train ride with some of the family.  All Aboard for Denali Park.

• It was a four hour trip.
• We had breakfast in the dining car where we met our lovely waitress from Bulgaria.
• Everyone enjoyed the dome car.
• Matt and Kaiden saw a moose, but that was the only wildlife spotted from the train.
• The scenery was beautiful especially when we were on the side of a mountain looking down into the canyon just before getting into Denali Park. 
• Geoff (son) and Andrew (grandson) drove down (2 hours by car) to meet us at the Depot in Deanli Park.  We all had pizza in the Park and then drove home. 
• It was a lovely lovely day spent with family.  It certainly brought back lots of memories of working on the railroad.  I started working for the railroad in 1974 in the payroll office in Anchorage.  I transferred to Fairbanks in 1977 working in the Freight House and retired as manager of the Freight House.   
• If we had waited until the second weekend in September to ride the train the fall colors would have been beautiful.  We'll remember that next time.  

                             

                       
August 31st:  It was a brisk 41 degrees when I walked down to the river.....one of my favorite places to walk.  The fireweed has all bloomed out and fall is just around the corner.

Books I read in August:

• Several more books from the Cape Light series by Thomas Kinkade
• A few quotes from these books:
• "Is this place changed in anyway, improved in any way, after I've passed through?"
• "Life must be lived forward but can only be understood backwards"
• "The greatest wisdom is kindness.  Resolve simply to be kinder.  To be more forgiving, accepting."
• "Making a mistake doesn't make you a failure."
• The Atomic City Girls, Janet Beard
• The Turquoise Table, Kristin Schell   (5 stars)

Art work by Izzy Martinson and Maddy Welch

July Happenings.....

Things we celebrated this month:

• Our daughter Jami and her husband's 19th wedding anniversary.  
• 4 of July
• Our 47th wedding anniversary.  We spent two nights at Lake Lucille in Wasilla, Alaska.

The view of the mountains from Lake Lucille

We visited Santa Claus House in North Pole, AK and acted like tourists.

Jami with a giant Nutcracker

My new favorite Oreo:

Geoff, our son, visited the E.R. late one night and was diagnosed with a kidney stone.  He successfully passed it several days later.  

Our grandDOG, Ole, passed away this month:  

RIP, Ole

Books I enjoyed this month:

• Cape Light, Home Song and The gathering Place by Thomas Kinkade
• Then She Was Gone, Lisa Jewell
• The Light between Oceans, M.L. Stedman
• The Great Alone,  Kristin Hannah

I enjoy reading in the yard by the fountain and flowers!

Soccer season is over for our granddaughters.  Great job, Izzy and Maddy (left to right). 

My fuchsia loved the July weather!

This was the last of my lilac blooms.  The bush has been pruned and ready for more blooms next summer.

The fireweed is in full bloom.  An old wives' tale states that when fireweed blooms reach the top of the stalk, winter will set in six weeks later.  

My Favorite Things about June, 2018....

• Celebrating with family...
• Geoff & Nicole’s 21st wedding anniversary
• Andrew’s* 18th birthday
• Father’s Day

• Meeting Andrew* at the airport after he spent 10 days in Craig, Alaska working with a bear hunting guide. Yes, the clients got a bear.
• Izzy* and Maddy’s* soccer games....even when we needed umbrellas and blankets. (It was a short game the night we had lightning and thunder.) 

• Ice cream at the Knotty Shop (Huckleberry)
• Flowers!!!   

• The midnight sun (in Fairbanks, AK). The longest day of the year: 21:49:32 hours of sunlight. Picture taken at 12:14 a.m.

• Reading and spending time in the hammock & swing
• Eating dinner on the back deck
• BBQ ribs, corn on the cob and sweet tea
• Oreo lasagna & fried ice cream 
• Wearing flip-flops 
• Time spent at the river
• The smell of lilacs

*Grandchildren

May Highlights

May 1st brought us more snow, but it was the last snow of the season!
The month of May this year brought us only one day of 70 degree weather.  It seemed May had a terrible time warming up.         

School Choir and Band Concert

 Granddaughters Izzy Martinson and Maddy Welch - Choir 

Maddy Welch - playing trumpet in school Band

Happy 30th birthday to Date-Line (DL).   Our son Geoff has been a part of DL for 20 years.
This spring Geoff (pictured on the far right) became the sole-owner of Date-Line.  Congratulations!
Our grandson, Andrew, is pictured third from the left.

 Visitors this month:

Elsie & Patricia Graham from Anchorage.  

The Air Force transferred the Graham's to Eielson AFB (Fairbanks) in the early 80's, when we first met them. They later moved to Anchorage where they are now both retired.  It's always good to visit with good friends. 

John Farrar (left side of picture) from Virginia.  

John & his family were also stationed at Eielson AFB in the early 80's.

When the Graham's were visiting we mentioned John Farrar, wondering where he was.  A couple weeks later we got a phone call - - it was John Farrar and he was in town!  He was with a tour group and had only one day in Fairbanks.  It had been 36 years since we last saw him so we had a good time "catching up."  

Mother's Day

Remembering my Mom - Theresa Covey

Enjoyed spending time

with my "kids" - Geoffrey and Jami -

and their families.  

The annual Mother's Day basketball games (H-O-R-S-E)

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Our grandson, Andrew, graduated from West Valley High School.  

Congratulation to Andrew and his family.  

Andrew Michael Martinson

Andrew with the proud grandparents

Andrew with all his Fairbanks family

(Back row, left to right:  Geoff Welch, Kaiden Martinson, Andrew, Jami Martinson [Andrew's Mom who only cried a little bit], Dave Welch, Kathy Welch.  Front row, left to right:  Nicole Welch, Maddy Welch, Izzy Martinson, Matt Martinson)

Andrew's Graduation Party

Geoff celebrated his 42nd birthday in Maui.  

Time to plant flowers - Memorial Day weekend.

One of my favorite times of the year!  

Church Small Group BBQ

Thanks to the Benavides family for hosting!
Burgers, brats and fajitas with homemade tortilla shells.  Yum!

 Me and my buddy Luke fighting off the mosquitoes











Books I've read in May:   (It definitely looks like I spend too much time reading)

• Sandcastle Sisters, Lisa Wingate 
• The Noel Diary, Richard Paul Evans*
• The Christmas Box (The Christmas Box Series)*
• The Timepiece (Christmas Box series)*
• "I have said more than I ought and you Have clearly heard more than I have said."
• The Letter (Christmas Box series)*
• There is nothing so healing to oneself as to heal another
• It has been a mistake living my life in the past. One cannot ride a horse backwards and still hold the reigns.  
• The Broken Road *
• "The well from which we receive grace is only filled by sharing it with others."
• "One man’s holiday is another man’s root canal."
• "We all swim deep in the river of our ancestry."
• "There is nothing simple about simple kindness."
• "Without passion we are doomed to mediocrity."
• "It is that to which we cling that drags us to the bottom of the abyss"
• The Christmas List *
• The Locket *
• "Old age lends perspective and that leads to forgiveness."
• The Forgotten Road *  (The Road Home  - coming out spring 2019)
• Come Rain or Shine, Jan Karon 

* Books written by Richard Paul Evans. 

 I've been on a Richard Paul Evans kick. 

Favorite Bible verses this  month: