Spring

Peter and I had 3 wonderful weeks on the Isle of Wight with family, overlapping with Liz for 10 days. It was spring in England, and we had wonderful family-time together. Lots of dog-walking, bird watching, gardening, and biking. Peter grew in many ways with all the grandparent-time, it was incredible to watch.

Mum and dad live about 2 mins walk from this old mill on the estury. It's a great place for shorebird-watching, and a fun place for Peter to feed the ducks.

Yarmouth high street. I love Alaska, but I also miss the old buildings and feeling of permanence in Britain. The Isle of Wight has a wonderfully soft, peaceful landscape. Nothing jarring, nothing extreme, and criss-crossed with wonderful hiking and biking trails. Maybe I'm getting old, maybe I'm tired of dealing with a toddler in the snowpocolypse, but I admit that I loved how easy it was to be outside and still have wonderful adventures.

Auntie Lizzie and Peter feeding the ducks. Liz was a super-hero with Peter's jet-lag, up at 3am with me (and solo!) for a few nights.

We had lovely visits from (Great) Auntie Christine (below), and Beth, Helen and Stephen.

Only a granny can give Peter hot chocolate!

Peter's first fish and chips.. picked up by bike, and eaten on a bench by the sea

Peter's hiking took off! We figured he walked at least over 2 miles each day. The short grass of the downs is perfect of little legs.

Cliff-walking... the place where I feel most free and alive!

Puddle-jumping after a night of rain

Puddle-jumping.. English style!

I had some wonderful solo hikes and bike-rides while Peter had adventures with granny and grandpa. A real holiday for all of us (... well, at least Peter and me!)

Peter meets cows and sheep for the first time

The trip highlight for Peter... riding the double-decker bus with Granny! Mum rides free as a pensioner, and Peter is free also... so, they crossed the island a couple of times just for the fun of it. Peter now has a toy bus, and will act out the whole adventure for you!

Spring flowers

I took Peter's bike seat, and we managed to do most of our travel by bike (thanks Louke!). Peter LOVES the bike, and is super-excited to put on his helmet at the first talk of biking. It's a great way to see the island and talk about all the things we're passing together.

Perfect biking lanes and trails

Then, we returned home! Peter did better than I on the travel- I started to cry about 24 hrs into the 48hr trip with no sleep! But, we made it home in one piece.

Back to a home where spring is in the air.. but, nowhere near land yet...

Our house looks like something out of disaster story!

Luckily, John was there! John came up for 2 weeks, working super-hard painting the interior of the house while Peter and I were away. THANK YOU John!! The house looks soo much better, it's incredible. And, it made such a difference in light and outlook-- especially when we couldn't see out any of the windows!

Our hiking kit included a step-ladder to access the beach!

The beach is still paradise, and a wonderful place for Peter to walk and paddle

Peter and John had some wonderful time together, reading, playing with trucks, painting, paddling.

Dustin and I were able to catch up on some longer hours of digging while John was here with Peter. Here's the view from our house roof, looking down to the sauna (roof..)

The trail

Dustin and John took Peter to the downhill ski hill for the first time. And, he LOVED it!

Cross-country skiing has been wonderful on the Delta.

I had a lovely couple of solo skis with Peter (sleeping). I think these are some of my most treasured times as a stay-at-home mum. I love having the freedom and time to have outside adventures with Peter, even if he is sleeping!

And, probably our biggest news... we have a new addition to the family. Meet Maggie... a 4 month old lab cross ? I picked her up after meetings in Anchorage about a week ago, and she's settled into the family perfectly. She has an open, loving heart (and big feet..) just like Peter, and the two of them are already good friends.

Structural digging done, we could turn our attention to some more cosmetic work... getting our view back. I've planted tomato seeds, but we have alot of work/melting to do before we see any glimpses of soil..

Note Maggie on the roof!

And, Dustin has enjoyed some lovely sunny days on the ski hill... we still marvel that you can ski and walk on the beach in the same day.