Over 2 Weeks Already?!

Holy cow I cannot believe its been over 2 weeks already since we moved into our home.  This entire month has been so incredibly busy! We've pretty much been consumed by fixing the house and escaping when we can on the weekends.  Here are some more pictures as we've progressed through the days of remodeling!  

the garage

ohhh goodness...

our Master bath before

 

the hideous mirrors...

progress!

will add trim around mirrors eventually!

Master bedroom before

Master bedroom after!

this project took ALL DAY! Layne rocks

kitchen progress...

 So as you can see I'm slowly getting there.  Nothing is decorated really and I lack the creative ability to make my vision for each room really shine through- and lack the wonderful resources (oh how I miss my Hobby Lobby and Big Lots!) Oh well, it'll get there eventually!

            Last weekend we set off with our friends Andrew and Lisa to fish for salmon (reds) on the Kenai River!  While driving on the Turnagain Arm (the only hwy in and out) we came to a dead halt.  We were waiting in 25 miles of stopped traffic due to an armed kidnapper on the loose! How crazy is that?! After over an hour of waiting, we were finally driving again  and 3 1/2 hours later we made it to our "campsite"; an overflow parking lot due to the actual campground being full. Unfortunately we weren't able to fish any since the holdup took so long, but we set up camp, went to dinner, and made a campfire in our fire pit.  The next morning we woke up to rain- and it rained pretty much the whole time we were there.  *sigh*  Andrew and Lisa went dip netting, or "dipping" that morning and Layne set off to fish while I ran to the store for breakfast!  I eventually made it out to the river with Layne, and the trail there and back was not for the average joe (i.e- if you don't like nature, this would not have been your cup of tea...!). The trail took us maneuvering down a very steep (and now muddy) hill, through trees, stumps, and TONS of mud.

the steep hill. this picture doesn't do it justice...

 Let's just say that since we've moved out here, my fashion sense is
off the charts! Check out my lovely PINK waders... I mean,
its practically runway model material... ;)  Under those bad boys
I had 2/3 layers on and then a raincoat over everything else.
Standing in 40 below water up to your waist (or in my case my stomach/chest at times!) gets very very cold. 

ready to go!

fisherman lined up in the river...

My first steps in the river were crazy.  There were too many people in the river so we had to wade down a bit... well wading down river a bit was not a good idea.
I asked Layne if he was testing me by taking me through the death rapids as my first experience out here! It was seriously scary, and I could barely stand up due to the strong current and slippery rocks under my feet.
  I had no clue how the others were calmly fishing (aka "flipping") when I was barely standing, until we waded back to where we came in originally and it was MUCH calmer.  Phew! After many hours in the water and many exciting fights with the salmon that turned into disappointments, I finally was able to land ONE big salmon.  Layne did much better than I and caught 6 total for the two days.  (though we technically caught over 15 each!) The rain was a drab, but in all it was a very fun weekend.  I FINALLY got to eat some real, wild Alaskan salmon that we personally caught.  Now that's one for the books! ;)