Where YOU been?

Summer in the arctic has come to an end and for some reason you guys missed it all, so here are a few highlights:

July 3rd brought a beautiful high 70 degree day, perfect for the kick-off to the 4th of July festivities.

Dave was invited to be a judge for the burger cook-off.

Independence Day 2009

the high temperature for the 4th of July was 47 degrees!

But it was still a great day for sno-cones.

and lip-syncing contests.

Ben and his friend Max brought down the house with a hilarious, first place winning, dance/lip-sync number, the likes of which this community has never seen. It truly was awesome, and if my internet connection was a little faster I could download the video. Instead, you must just trust me when I say the white boys got moves!

The 4th of July celebration here was great hometown fun.

The only thing missing was the fireworks, which are reserved for New Years Eve due to lack of summer darkness.

Of course no summer is complete without swimming

and our swimming hole just happens to be part of the Arctic Ocean.

Rainy days had kids climbing wallsLiterally.

And let's not forget the softball.

It is huge here.

I played. Ben played. Dave played and helped coach.

The AC Cardinals took second place in the regional tournament!

and obviously Ben was having a lot of fun!

There was lots more to our summer including berry picking on the tundra and visits from Shaylene and Kris. There was also a couple of trips to Seattle for the boys and I, an overnight trip to Anchorage for Dave and I, and a quick weekend trip to Portland for the whole family.

But alas, all good thing must come to an end..........

Only to make way for another good thing:

THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!

My 4th grader

and

my kindergartener!

With his teacher, Mrs. Marcus

Oh, and not only has summer come to an end, but so has our time above the arctic circle!

We are on the move again.

And since I know how much you all love my cliff hangers, that's all i'm gonna say about that right now!