Goodbye Sitka Alaska

There are places....that are beautiful, due to the fact there untouched by man!
Sitka is one of those places. We thought we would be here 2 years...but instead it was only 60 days!

When one See's Sitka for the first time...it feels like a quaint European town.
Sitka was a lead Russian Trading post for Fur's.

 The Original Russian church was burnt to the ground...it was then reconstructed to look the same...it is located in the heart of this Town.

 

With the Russian flavors and Natives and then a American way of life...its a very small town with big flavor...only 20 miles of roadway on this island but known for being one of the best fishing ports...and all along the Inhabited part of the island fishing boats. This pic really shows what the town looks like. and then there is the beauty of nature....

 

Sitka is a Island, a rain forest, in the north pacific, with big snow covered mountains and islands thru out the Sitka sound...

And there is also a wonderful dormant Volcano Mt, Edgcumbe.

The beauty of this place also holds the beauty of wildlife. And in the 60 days we were here...I got to see the wildlife we had hoped to see....

while traveling to the job site..and were our 5th wheal was going to be parked...down this side of the island....and around ...the bend...

Was this beautiful bald eagle..and I was lucky enough to catch him in flight...it was in this area that we also go to see ....

Humpback whales! there were 2 pods. I am only posting the pic's that show, the show we got to experience...humpbacks rarely breach...so this is basically what you see...them coming up for air..and then...

 one went for a deep dive :) aaaaa so fun!
across from the job site...I got to meet...this fella...

A big black bear! isn't he cute! he was waiting for his dinner. The bear sanctuary was right across the street from the job site. This is wear the injured or baby bears go until they can be let loose in the wilds....so even tho...I didn't meet this guy in the wilds (something I don't think would be so thrilling) I enjoyed watching him in his sanctuary.

 This I found on a bench...right before a hiking trail...and this sums up..the beauty, of Sitka...so small and so much of the island uninhabited by man......and this is why..I am a country girl....

This was taken outside my 5th wheal one morning.... on Herring Bay...........
and Hubby got to do...his favorite thing...with the guys....

Fishing on our boat!

I think... our 60 days...were filled with the Sitka, Alaska experience. As always, what I will miss most are the people I met, knowing I may never see them again, and yet in these 60 days, our paths crossed..our lives met and forever they will now be a part of my life...my memories...
Tomorrow we fly out. We are back in the Hotel....

Our things are being loaded on the barge's....and we say goodbye to this quaint little town...
and we leave behind these memories to a new adventure ahead..... and that is what makes life exciting. Its filled with so many possibilities..... 

loving Valentine's day Prayers for families

I just went to a blog of a beautiful woman who has been fighting breast cancer. she is now a blog I will follow. And it made me realize that I know so many people that will have a difficult Valentines tomorrow, or people fighting cancer that just need prayers. and love. 

Several weeks ago on FB I came across this family 'Praying for the Nevil's' http://www.facebook.com/PrayingForTheNevils?ref=stream 
This family had a tragedy on there way to Texas for Thanksgiving. There car was hit by a alleged drunk driver. The mother was killed instantly. The father writes on this page for his daughter who is 12 and still in the hospital. check out the link above.

What a beautiful family. And what a heartbreak. Keep them in your prayers. Tomorrow is another Holiday and for this man his first without his sweetheart...his bride.

Then there is this beautiful family;

  The Whaley's they lost there Lil girl last march. She had a brain tumor that was discovered Aug of 2011 and they had her on a carrying bridge page. She was being treated at St Jude's.

The holidays have been hard...well every day is hard..and tomorrow is there first valentines with out there Lil girl...

 

 

This is there sweet girl with My grandson. That is how I came to know them and felt this journey with them...

Then there is this beautiful woman below! She is my 'Mom' She was diagnosed with Pancreatic cancer already to her liver stage 4 on June 18th 2011. She was given 3-10 months to live..and well. My mom is still with us a doing well...Many prayers have gone up in her behalf...

These pic's was taken last April on her 70th Birthday by a good friend of hers (meadowbrooke photography). She was at the 10 months then. At the time of this pic the cancer had started growing again.... She is on a new trial like medication that has been working real well. Her cancer numbers are down...but the cancer is still there. for this 70th birthday...all 6 kids wrote on a balloon as well as her making a wish on a balloon...and it was a windy day...then end result??? the balloon's got all stuck together...and that had been her wish..that no matter what...us kids will be stuck together...Because she is doing so well, I think sometimes people tend to forget she is not cancer free. she just has a rarer slower growing pancreatic cancer..a endocrine tumor... and like everyone else mentioned above...needs love and prayers.

Its why I call this 'Love Month'... valentines day can be hard, when you have lost someone you loved, or are alone without a partner...or are going thru illness that can be life threatening.....Love day, love month...means just share the love everywhere..and send prayers to those who are struggling...I do have a father that loves me.... this I know...and I know he loves us all :)
My prayers and love to all!
 

About My Banner :)

I thought I would share....why my banner is what it is.

Last february I owned a Boutique. All womens fashions... we had casual, career, evening, shoes, boots, handbags, scarfs, jewlery etc etc. Then the Bridal shop in town, that had been in business for 25 years went out of business. (I was heartbroken for the owner) so the last couple years we also carried bridal and formalwear, tuxedo rentals and all sorts of accesories. (there was an exspansion to be able to do this in 2010). We were kind of like a one stop shop!

I sold my business last February to be able to go on the road with my Husband. YES, I felt very blessed in this economy that I was able to sell. My business is what I called 'My God gift'. A idea that took and grew during a very hard economic time. 6 years of working 24/7.

By April last year, I choose to help out a woman that has the most wonderful bubbly personality. I became her silent partner...SHHHHHHHHHHHH :) in a home decor side line to her wonderful Crepes, lattes, smoothies and all things healthy Lil restaurant.  Kinda of like a mini 'Cracker Barrel'..were you can order and roam and buy pretty things. 

The above banner, is one corner of our shop. Basically everything you see is for sale. And I have upsycled alot of wonderful furniture pieces.

  The chair to the left in this pic, was just a jumble of brass metal. There was 2 off them..I fell in love! A retro piece that I painted white and then created seats for and covered in a rose fabric.  For a cottage look. The Lil table was a antique that needed some help and was painted yellow with antique stain. And the old door...(don't you just love old doors??? I do!) had to be totally air blasted and then was sealed with a white wash stain.
  

This shows the bottom of the table. It was wired in place, I choose not to change that, because it was so sturdy. Instead I decided to rag the wire with Matching fabric!

 

Here is another view of one of the retro chairs.

 

 In the Banner pic, to the far left you will see a hint of this table. This table was headed for the dump, when I rescued it. The top had to be belt sanded, I choose a red cherry stain for this table, and sage green paint. I wanted the top to pull out the red in the fabric of the chairs.

Oh how I wish I had a before of these chairs!!! they came from a long standing old restaurant in our neck of the woods. They were dark stained, with a dark green Vinyl seat. Because of all the scrolling, sanding them down completely was not a option. To paint them a solid color...they still looked old. So I realized a sage green wash worked best. They look new with that old flavor as bits and pieces of these unique chairs shine thru! Due to this being Montana I choose a western fabric with horses...I love this set, one of a kind and Unique!

Here is the set, when we first put it in the shop!

 

This is another set I did. Notice that there are 2 different chair styles?

I figured....why not?

2 wooden chairs and 2 wonderful vintage metal chairs! I choose black for all these chairs!

Fell in love with the scrolling, I did a fun tuxedo back in Vintage lace, with a big black button!

  

The top of the table is crackled...giving it a elegant/ rustic look.

when I do these kind of things, I have to look at all the pieces and then I pick the style that would work best for all the pieces in-volved :) sometimes the end results, even surprise me.

  The shop carries, real vintage, up cycled vintage and reproduction vintage!

don't you just love this pail and shovel?

 It has a bit of this and that....a homemade feel :)

whimsical and unique....

another area of the shop.

Remember that song, 'I was country when country wasn't cool'? well I was up cycling when up cycling wasn't cool! there was no one to discuss it with, no pics to look at....I was just a mom, with 5 kids 6 and under...a very tight budget, and a desire for beautiful things. I took attic furniture and made them into bedroom sets...I didn't even realize I was onto something...*big grin* and then people started asking me, 'where did you buy that set'?

My husband is very handy and he made picket fence headboards for the kids.

someday I hope to get into my archives and share.

I think somehow I new, being on the road...my desire to create, would overcome me..so I had to invest in a side business.

the dream is to have a Vintage shop...No, not a flea Market..a beautiful Vintage shop...I think the name will be 'L'ame Du Vintage' or 'The soul of Vintage' and that time may be sooner at hand then I thought.

owning a boutique was a 'god gift' owning a vintage shop...Is a dream.

(I now have to get back to packing before Hubby decides blogging is cutting into packing time :)

to the ladies who found me yesterday and posted comments.

THANK YOU!

since I have been trying this since 2010...to finally get contact

WOW!

Have a wonderful day before 'Love Day'

Our old Farm house I loved!

I love things that are old....old houses! old furniture/Vintage! But I am on the road so I don't have access to pics and things from all the years I have been doing this....I have some fun amazing before and afters...but alas..they are packed up in the archives... The lap top I am writing from is a Lil over a year old. So today I went through my pics... to see if there was ANYTHING...I could share.

I found a pic of our first home! The Farm house I fell in love with. I painted this pic for my husband long ago...It is what the farm house looked like before we did anything to it!

It had a wonderful long driveway. Old box elder tree's. some fruit tree's and huge lilac bushes. The irrigation creek ran threw the front of the property. It was only a 1 bedroom, 1 bath home..and we were a family of 5 full time and 7 part time. There was no porch in front. and it had a wonderful old country kitchen. with windows that swung inwards....but I fell in love....

  This a closer up of the painting. and even tho I am not a artist in this sense. In this one painting I captured out farm house pretty darn well! The rolling hills you see are the east side of the Bitter root Valley in Montana. if I would of painted the west...you would have seen the Gorgeous Bitter root mountain range!

 This pic was taken in the evening. It shows just how beautiful this valley is.  In my next post I will share some of my favorite Montana pics. But for now...I am sighing over blogs with old homes...before and after pics...vintage things...and I dream for that day...I have a old home...once again :)

Still tryin to figure out HOW to blog!

I am still not satisfied with the way my blog looks. I am just not computer/blog savvy! Any suggestions on how I can make the colors and widths work?...would be wonderful...how I add blogs i like...all those things other blogs have that mine doesn't seem to want to do.  I think I have my font picked and my colors..and the next thing I know...I am back to the boring. SOS to anyone who has suggestions!

Traveling and Grandbabies

Being on the road...with my husband since July has been a exsperience !  We were in Port Angeles, Washington till the first of Dec. Then the company loaded us up and we have been in Sitka, Alaska since before Christmas. We were lucky to be able to visit with all 5 children and grandbabies and parents before we came to Sitka. Even tho this was suppose to be a 2 yr job...and it is! They are sending 'us' to another job. So once again we are loading up...and headed to the lower states by Saturday. To be 100% honest. I am so greatful that prayers are heard! Sitka was just a lil to remote for me. My mom was diagnoised with Pancreatic cancer already to her liver June 18th 2011. She was given 3-10 months! she is still with us and doing well. But I dont want to be so far away! then there are my in-laws and there health...and then the kids and grandbabies. So I am thrilled that I will be closer...not on a island way North...but car driving distance.... And then of course there are the grandbabies...and they grow way to fast, so being closer to them...well...babies are everything that lights up the world. Its still LOVE month and I want to share..these babies that we love!

The oldest is this young lady. She is NOT a baby anymore. But a utterly delightfull, opionated lil girl! full of curiosity and questions.
She ruled the roost and then its seemed it was raining babies :) we will get back to this lil lass in a moment :)

The next one to come along was born in England. Our only lil man. His Daddy is in the airforce and soooo that ment his mommy and him were far from the states when he came into the world. But they have been closer for some time now..and I had a real fun photo shot with the lil man. Letting him do what lil boys do!

 And when he realized...'Nanna' was seriouse about puddle jumping! he had the time of his life!

Then we added colorful ballons to the mix! and the lil man ran and ran....

I decided I would just let him do his thing....and would try to capture the moments...

He is 'all boy' and did what lil boys/ big boys do everywhere!

I had so much fun, doing this photo shot with him!

we just love this lil man....our grandson! and just like the others...it seems he is growing way to fast!

The oldest of our grandchildren...(the lil lass at the beginning of this post)welcomed a baby sister in 2010

here she is...the lil blonde headed my way! with her big sis in tow! I was able to get a bit of a photo shot with these two cuties, right before Christmas. it was a 'winne the pooh' blustery day...but we all needed to go for a walk and get our wiggles out!

sisterly love! this i believe, is my favorite on our blustery day photo shot!

Notice grandbaby number 3's ruby red slippers? she is sassy and sweet, in that wonderful toddler stage.

later that evening we brought Papa along, so we could take a pic with the lil small town christmas tree. when Papa and i went to kneel down..grandbaby #3 did too. we love these lil girls!

That brings us to the last grandbaby. grandbaby #3 and grandbaby #4 are only 2 weeks apart! two lil girls we were blessed with. But as blonde as grandbaby # 3 is....grandbaby #4 is dark!

 here she is! #4 and even tho this pic was takin a year ago..I couldn't resist because she looks to cute in it. with her brite pink Nike's!

I did a photo shot with her and her momma! in the fall. the colors and paths we found, were so fun!

darling baby girl...dont grow to fast!

we gave her a red umbrella. boy did she love that! and she took of running with it! Like 3# she is sassy and sweet...a toddler!

Did I tell you???.... I just love babies :)

It was nap time...and she finally slowed down...and so our photo session came to an end......

It's 'Love month' and I am excited for answered prayers and being able to move closer to those I love...for time waits on noone. And babies grow up to fast and families are so WHAT'S important!