SNOW

Before you read this post, I have to say: If any of you have been in person with me when we've talked about snow, you know that this song has been, or has at least attempted to be sung by me. :) Just replace the word Vermont with Alaska, and the word Christmas with winter, and you'll have the perfect set up for this blog post. ENJOY! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AToEzwZSfk

As many of you may have heard or seen on the news, Alaska has had quite a snowy winter. As of a few weeks ago, Anchorage and the MatSu Valley had accumulated over 80 inches of snow, the most snow from July 1 to mid January since records have been kept. And if it continues, we'll be on track to have the snowiest winter yet - the last being in the winter of '54 -'55, when Anchorage got 133 inches of snow from July to June. Our neighbor to the southeast, Cordova, has gotten a whopping 172 inches. That's almost 15 feet! Hello SNOW!

Needless to say, Alaska would be a hard place to live if you aren't a fan of the white fluffy stuff, especially this winter. Fortunately, I love it. I do have to admit that I daydream from time to time of warm beaches and sunshine strong enough to give you freckles. But summer will be here soon enough, and for now, I am going to enjoy this!

A few things I like to do in the SNOW.

Cross Country Skiing. Thanks to some Christmas moola, a donated pair of xc skis, and a willing and cheerful cross country skiing friend, I've taken on a new hobby! I couldn't believe how much fun I had xc skiing with Shelley. (It was probably largely because of the fact that we had just gotten 6 inches of fresh snow, there were perfect tracks in place, I had an encouraging teacher, we went slow, AND the trail was flat. But I like to think I would have loved it regardless of those factors) :)

Hiking! I've also had the chance to go winter hiking recently with my friend/mentor/running buddy Julie (if you're reading this Julie, you know we've got quite a number of ways we could categorize our relationship - but these are a few at least!) We actually were able to go up Lazy Mountain on our lunch break one day. As usual, the hike up was tiring, but it was all made up for with the beautiful view up top, fresh mountain air, and the sheer fun that was sliding nearly the entire way down (Not to mention the fact that I had more energy that afternoon than I have had in a long time!)

Downhill skiing. To many of you, it is obvious that the first thing that always comes to mind when I think winter and fresh powder is downhill skiing. I guess that's just part of what happens when you grow up skiing in Colorado. As I mentioned a few posts back, I was excited to have the chance to go skiing at Breck when I was home in December, but I still have yet to go downhill skiing this winter in Alaska...which has been killing me knowing how much snow there has been at Alyeska! Fortunately though, I'll be going soon! A friend will be up in Alaska in March and we already have tickets. I. Can't. Wait. It'll be a blast for certain.

Snowmachining. Yes. Machine. Not Mobile. One of my best memories from last winter was from one afternoon when my friend and neighbor Nikki came over to my apartment and said, "I just really need to get outside. Wanna go snowmachining with me?" Something that is important to note is the fact that Nikki is from Unalakleet and GREW UP snowmachining. Basically, she is a total pro. So, despite the fact that I was a bit nervous about the whole ordeal, I geared up and we headed out. We had to stop to move the snowmachine by hand a few times (it may have had some trouble turning. ha), but I'll never forget it because we were back in the woods and it was snowy and beautiful. It was a winter wonderland. Well, I hadn't been out on a snowmachine again since that day, until a few weeks ago when some friends from church invited me over to go for a ride! It was -18 that day before wind chill, so not exactly the warmest day, but I had so much fun taking it out for a while!

See? Snow is fun. And I didn't even mention snowshoeing or sledding or winter trail running or dogsledding!

All of that being said, I do realize that winter would not be winter without some good indoor activities as well. I may have mentioned before, but I am playing on a co-ed indoor soccer team, and I am loving it. It's my second season with this team - and it is so much fun. We still are undefeated (woohoo!), we play once a week, and its good soccer. After every game, I leave so happy that I decided to join their team.

I've also been doing some good reading. A couple of my most recent reads: Crazy Love by Francis Chan, and Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross. Both great.

I went into Anchorage for CYAK's Arigaa ministry and hung out with some of the UAA students and friends in Anchorage last week - always a great time. This upcoming weekend is the Arigaa Retreat in Big Lake (only about 30 minutes outside of Wasilla). We'll have students coming from UAA (University of Alaska - Anchorage), UAF (Univerisyt of Alaska - Fairbanks), Alaska Christian College, and Amundsen Educational Center. I can't wait! (Keep an eye out for a post about that come next week). To learn more about what we do at CYAK, visit our website! www.cyak.org.

Lastly (or at least I'll make it lastly since this is getting long), I am house/dog sitting for a woman from church for two months. I know it's long, but after giving it some thought, I am excited! She lives in a beautiful house with incredible views of the mountains, is 5 minutes from church (hooray for saving on gas money!), has internet, annnnnnd (most importantly) has a great big cuddly, though somewhat intimidating dog named Lily. She is a great dane/mastif mix so she is....big. But I've only been here since Friday and we're already pals, so I'm thinking it will be a fun time.

Wow, well how's that for an update? I better sign off before it gets any longer. Sending much love from this great big snowy place I live - otherwise known as ALASKA! Enjoy some pics :)

Oh. One more thing! I've been hearing some exceptionally good music lately. If you're feeling like hearing some good tunes, click these links, lay down, and soak in the amazing-ness that is this music. (I'll just share two for now. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have!)

Bon Iver at AIR Studios: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9Tp5fl18Ho
Blind Pilot - Half Moon: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCuGBYirFQw

~ Lauren

Feeling pretty excited about this cross country skiing stuff.

My friend and coach Shelley!

This pic is from last winter, but it's on Lazy Mountain. Pretty beautiful, eh?

Woohoo Arctic Cat! Sooooo cold that day.

This pic is from Alyeska last year - looking forward to this in a month!

A pic from the Anchorage Daily News. If you can tell, it is of a moose on top of a car. Ha! The moose have been EVERYWHERE this year (seriously, I have been seeing over 5 a day), and supposedly it's because the snow is too deep in the woods where they usually hang out. So they've been joining the rest of us on the roads. Or on our cars!

Arigaa - Anchorage!

Sledding at the MatSu Cov Church Retreat at North Star Bible Camp in Willow. So fun!

Winters in Alaska provide MANY beautiful sunrises and sunsets. This is taken from the driveway at my apartment looking south.

Meet Lily. Haha, this picture cracks me up. I wasn't kidding when I said she was big.

And I also wasn't kidding when I said the house I am staying in for the next two months has incredible views!