Boots

Winter has come with a vengeance this year. There is tons of snow on the ground and the berms piled up on the sides of the driveway are taller than Olivia. We have had double digits in our temperature readings here in Alaska...at least positive double digits. That wasn't the case right before Thanksgiving..those would be negative double digits then.

At any rate, this is not a post about the weather. It is a post about footwear.

I was talking with a friend of mine about the much needed real estate in my closet for a lot of shoes and wondered aloud about the row of sexy high heels that I own taking up a precious half shelf.  And silently I realized that with the onset of so much snow and cold I won't wear them from now until the pavement is clear and dry again.  What a shame, I thought.  I love my heels and the long pants that I can wear with them to give me the illusion of lengthy legs and higher heights.

But then I thought about the boots I own.  And on further discussion I counted 7 pairs of boots. I own SEVEN paris of boots. One for each dwarf, if you will. Or each day of the week. However, each pair represents a different function in my life and a different.

Here is the inventory:

2 pair of low heeled knee high riding boots (one black and one brown pair of the exact same style) to wear with knee length skirts to church.
1 very tall heeled black platform boot that hits mid calf that I got for $3. I wear these with long pants that will drag in the snow without the help of a 4 inch stacked heel.  They have a rubber sole so they work well in the winter here.
1 other pair of mid calf black boots that aren't as tall but pinch my toes so I never wear them. But my mother got them for me on our last shopping trip the Christmas before I got married so I keep them
1 pair of hiking boots.  But you'll never guess where I wear those :)
1 pair of sweater slouchy Uggs...I honestly don't know why I own them. But I do wear them when slippers aren't appropriate.

1 pair of Adirondack Uggs that are my all around snow boots.  Best boots ever. But very utilitarian (translation: not cute)

Oh and I guess it is actually 8 since I am forgetting my lace up Northface boots that I wear over leggings or jeans on snowy days that I have to run errands and want to look nicer.

And I am forgetting my cross country ski boots and my down hill ski boots. So now I guess the total is up to 10.

And a half...See I lost the mate to my brown mid-calf boots in the move. I have no idea where it went yet I refuse to get rid of it because then the mate will turn up.  I rather like the idea of someday finding it and keeping that option open.

So 10 and a half pairs of boots.

Upon further reflection I realized each pair of boots represents a different facet of my life and personality   My low heeled riding boots are a compromise from dowdy, sensible church shoes and lend to my sophisticated side, while my hiking boots compliment my sense of adventure.  Meanwhile my tall platform boots are indispensable for dressing up on the bleakest of nights for a special occasion. And necessary to keep my ever dragging hems out of the muck on the street.

All of these aspects of life are fairly new to me as I have adapted up here. I actually only owned the platform boots and both halves of the brown pair before coming to Alaska. So in 3 years (and it was 3 years on December 15 of this week by the way) life has expanded for me.  I have grown with it, changed with it, learned and stretched with it.

And so has my boot shelf.

lost files

I went to McDonald's today to get Carter a fish sandwich meal.  As is custom, the teller asked what would we like to drink with that.

"Rootbeer," I answered since I was ordering for my son.

"I'm sorry. Our soda machine is not working," was the reply from the speaker box.

"Well I guess we won't be having anything to drink then will we?"  I shot back. Apparently I am in a mood. It must be from the incompetence of the vet's office and my own stupidity at forgetting something at Lowe's, thus requiring another trip for me down there.

We got Carter a smoothie instead.

In the mean time enjoy some pictures from the lost files. I was going to title this post Better Late than Never, but I think I have at least one other post already titled that.

Olivia designed her own pumpkin this year and made a sweet diagram for me to follow to make the face.  Ethan did most of his himself.  And I loved the smell of the pumpkin. Carter did math homework while all this was going on.

Halloween Alaska style. Yep, we are in full snow mode here.  I lost track of how many times we have done the driveway since Halloween and we are in the single digits all this week.

Here is me loving on Buckwheat. He goes home Tuesday the 22, so I wanted a picture with him!

Carter skiing with me up Hatchers Pass.  This hill is a long slow 1 mile up but a sweet smooth 1 mile down.  

In October we rode the tram to the top of Alyeska (which is opening on November 22 for skiing BTW). I know of no other place on earth where you can sit on the chair lift and see the ocean at the same time.  Beluga whales are often spotted out there in Turnagain Arm.

Olivia was Hermione and Ethan was a Math Teacher.  This is what they look like before they get their snow clothes on.

She's a pretty cute Hermione huh!

And my math teacher.  All the kids said he was the scariest costume they saw all night!

at peace

The snow really came down last night. We got about 8 inches worth.  We are sure to not see the grass again until April.

And I couldn't be happier.

I got out my skis and rented a set for Carter and headed up Hatcher's Pass.  They had tons of snow! It was a long uphill and a then of course, a long down hill...not like my usual nordic trails which have lots of both. But the snow was perfect and it was cold and clear.  It felt good to be on my skis again. I can't wait until hopefully later this week the trails by the school open up.

My perfect days with Olivia in school have revolved around dreams of skiing every day.

And now they are here.