March = FUN!

March was a great month! Not only did several friends come through the valley, but I had the opportunity to travel out to Unalakleet for the ECCAK (Evangelical Covenant Church of Alaska)'s annual meeting. There I was able to see and spend time with friends and fellow CYAK workers from across the state - not something that happens every day in this huge state! I had a GREAT time, and so instead of writing much more, I'll just share some pictures :)

Kara and David and I took a little trip to the Palmer Hayflats.

And sat in the snow for a while. ha!

David and I went skiing at Alyeska - this was at the end of day two as the clouds cleared up - so great.

Up to Unalakleet! Unalakleet Covenant Church at sunrise.

We were given the job of digging through a snowbank to find some caribou meat that was stashed there earlier this winter. Ribs anyone? Only in Alaska :)

It was chilly -15 or so. Sue's ready for work!

A group of us snowmachined up to Bible Camp - David and Matthew hanging out after the ride.

Mary heading into the welcome cabin - you could say there was a bit of snow.

On the way back to town.

We got to stop at the dog lot where Mary works - and snuggled with this little guy for a bit.

Lots of games of ERK!

Laurel and Amy! Such a fun visit!

The Northern Lights

One of the many perks of living in Alaska is the opportunity to see the Northern Lights. In my experience, there is simply nothing like it. I have been fortunate enough to see these dancing beauties a total of five times now - once in Sweden, and four times since I've been in the great state of Alaska.

While seeing them for the first time was (at least to me) absolutely incredible, each time still leaves me in awe. They're just stunning. The first time I saw them was in Sweden, and I posted some pictures form that night here:  http://www.laureninsweden.blogspot.com/2009/03/northern-lights.html. I've seen some beautiful shows since being in Alaska, and I am sure I'll be seeing more before I leave!

My best memory of seeing the lights here was last fall in the village of Elim. I was there for the weekend at a CYAK High School Retreat called Fall Blast. On Saturday night, we were playing a game called Mission Impossible - running through the village with our teams collecting clues and trying not to get caught by the ever-sneaky flashlight holders - all the while watching the northern lights dance in all of their glory above us. They were beautiful. And bright. And plain awesome in the truest sense of the word. I didn't have my camera with me, but I definitely took plenty of mental pics that I won't be forgetting any time soon.

Fortunately for you, last week my friend Robyn texted and called me in the middle of the night telling me, "THE NORTHERN LIGHTS ARE OUT!" I quickly (or as quickly as I could considering I was pretty sleepy still) ran to the window, and sure enough, there they were. I piled on my snow gear, grabbed my camera and a bucket (who needs a tripod?) and headed out on the back porch. I got a few pics - but mostly just enjoyed sitting outside and soaking it in. After 30 minutes it was getting pretty chilly and so I headed back in. But I went to sleep once again filled with amazement at God's creation and feeling so blessed to be able to experience it in such a cool way yet again.

Such a bright green streak - I didn't do a great job of focusing the trees at first, but alas, the lights are still bright!

All throughout the sky.

Arigaa!!

Iditarod

Last Sunday was the official re-start for the Iditarod - the Last Great Race. Every year, mushers from all over the country - and the world - head out with their team of dogs to make the 1,000 mile trek through the frozen Alaskan wilderness from Willow to Nome. I went to the restart last year, and it was really fun to be able to experience such an Alaskan event! But this year gave me even more reason to be excited about being there.

My friend, Mary Helwig, has been living in Unalakleet this past year working as a dog handler at Siku Kennels. This means that she was at the start, helping Pat Moon (Siku Kennel's Iditarod musher) with everything that goes into getting a dog team ready for such a big race! Despite crazy traffic and parking difficulties, my friend Robyn and I got to the chute just in time to see Mary running the dogs up to the start. So exciting - and awesome to see my friend living her dream! It's pretty fun to track the different mushers as they make their way to Nome. You can follow the action here: http://iditarod.com/ Enjoy a few pics!

Who is that running with those dogs up to the start line?!

It's MARY HELWIG!!!

And Pat Moon!

At the start :)

And hello Fur-man.

Jake Berkowitz from Big Lake, AK

Kristy Berington from Kasilof, AK.

Mary's official Musher Handler 2012 Badge. It's legit.

So fun to see and cheer Mary on!