Fall Fest '07 A festivus for the rest of us!!!

Fall fest went off last night... It was a smorgesborg of great food and great friends. We all ate until we were thoroughly uncomfortable, drank and then ate some more... Too many good dishes this year to pick a favorite... See everybody next year!

The pumpkin carving.

A little foos was had before we dove head first into the pumpkin gutting.

The start of the 2007 Fall fest pumpkin carving contest. It was fast and furious.

Zach up to his elbows in inner peace.

An artist at work revering the soul of the pumpkin.

The supervising security staff for the event.

Lisa stabbing things with knives. Boy what a blast!

The winners perfecting their 35 pound entry.

The lineup.

Nicole and Zach's creative entry.

Corinne and Andre's masterful masterpiece.

The purely alaskan entry from Lisa and I , it's a salmon, a mountian, a cloud and the moon. I thought we should have won, but everybody liked the scary tree!

Belated Lau post

Laura came up from San Francisco to visit and eat. We cooked like 5 gourmet meals while she was here. Ate like kings.

I have always wanted to open champagne with a machette, so what the heck!

Lisa going at the crab legs like a pro, a hungry pro.

It was a bonanza that ended in a 2 hour nap followed by desert.

The finished project!

We were amazed to see it done, quite a transformation. We just hang out in here now.

REally wasn't too bad, I wish all the rooms in the house were this size so that we could have finished them this fast.

The original demolition crew got their pictures on the walls courtesy of V. Hohn, to commemorate the begining of the remodel.

Halfwayish done...

Here are some shots of the progress... took us about a week to finish. You can still see some evidence of the puppy massacre.

Flooring is next!

Our Last House Project!!!!

Ben and I have begun the final project that will complete our house! Its the half bathroom that we kept the puppies in when they were younger.....needless to say, they didn't like it very much. Here are the before shots of their terror :) Stay tuned to the finished pictures!

Notice that not only is the linoleum ripped up, but the subfloor beneath it too!

Had to get a taste of the insulation I guess...

Really tore up the walls, AND the door trim.

Wreaked havok on the sink cupboards too! Fun eh?

Fall Backpacking on the Kenai Peninsula

We decided to get one last backpacking trip before the snow fell, we were too late, most of our hike had a wet dusting. But still, we found a epic adventure, filled with primative trails, blueberries, bear tracks, weird cabin visitors, and two beautiful lakes only accessible by a 7 mile hike or float plane. Check out our photos by clicking the picture below!

Crescent Lake cabin trip

Preparing for Winter

Last week, we took the opportunity of great weather to prepare for our winter of "not using the heater so damn much" to save money. So, we're gonna use the good ol' fashioned fireplace. We rented a U-Haul and drove on down to the Kenai Peninsula to lumberjack some nice seasoned wood for us.

Laura came to help.....

And to play dress up with nature.....

and to help save a birds nest that we almost destroyed when we cut a tree down! Good job Lau.

Kenai beauty

The Fall colors were definitely in full swing. It was great to stop to take a look every once and awhile from wood gathering to take in the scene.

Another beauty on the Kenai....Laura! Trying to conquer an old trunk!

YESSSSSSSSSSSS! "I am She-ra, hear me ROOOAAAARRRR!"

Firewood gathering

And finally, the chainsaw had it. The chain had come off 4 times, and on the last time, we figured we had enough wood so we packed up. Laura and Lisa, U-hauling and packing queens! See us at your local arm-wrestling bars.

A beautiful scene on our way home.

The end result! The layering is because some wood was a little more damp, or seasoned. Pretty good stack eh? And this isn't even all of it, just what we could fit on the porch. We're ready for winter, so bring on the snow!!!