Bird to Gird

Dear Family and Friends,

We are getting into a good routine. We still have two weekly meetings and a monthly meeting. Kitty, after getting a little frustrated, prayed, and received inspiration on how to more quickly label all the pictures we take for the project and our weekly reports. We are still learning and getting better organized. We really enjoy the workers and have had lots of visitors. We love to hear where they are from, why they are in Alaska, and about their families. Now that the weather is warmer we are trying to get outside more. Kitty walks over to the site most mornings. The crew had Saturday and Monday off for Memorial Day weekend. We are all trying to enjoy the few short months of warmer weather.

A wonderful couple in our ward went to the current Anchorage Temple and were sealed as a family this week. They have three cute boys. They all looked so happy afterward. It was fun to peak out of the visitors' center and see them taking pictures in front of the temple. We love the feeling of peace and that all will be well when we attend the temple. It gives us immense comfort to know Heavenly Father has a plan for each of us and He is in the details of our lives. He wants us to get and stay on the covenant path and return to him and live with our families forever. Our Savior Jesus Christ made this all possible thru the atonement for our sins and his resurrection. He lives! I will forever be grateful to Him.

Since we drove up to Alaska last fall, we brought our bike hitch and ebikes. We enjoyed a long bike ride Saturday called the Bird to Gird. It was Kitty's first bike ride of the year. It made her homesick for her dear girlfriends back in Mapleton. We finally opened our bear spray that we bought at Costco in SLC and attached them to our bikes. We pray we never have to use them. We started at Indian Creek in Chugach State Park, passed thru Bird Point, and rode over 13 miles to the Girdwood turn off. That's 26 miles round trip with a 300 ft. elevation gain, so quite a few hills. 

Farrell wore a shirt, sweatshirt, and a raincoat to keep out the wind. Kitty wore an undershirt, wool shirt, down jacket, and wool neck gaiter. If you want to stay warm here silk, wool, and down are your friends. Sometimes she had to pull the neck gaiter over her ears, mouth, and nose to keep warm. She also had on bike shorts under her exercise pants and wore sunglasses which helped keeps the occasional flying bugs out of her eyes. Farrell only ate one bug. It was quite windy at times. It varied between nice and wish I had worn warmer gloves. We passed several groups of people on the trail. A few were in shorts and t-shirts! We also passed several baby bike trailers and families with children on bikes. We will definitely do this trail again.

Farrell equipped our helmets with 2-way speakers since we often need to go single file on most bike rides and it's hard to communicate. The batteries ran out about 3/4 of the way thru the ride. Kitty, of course, had to stop several times to take pictures. Farrell was worried that his bike battery would run out so he didn't wait for the last few pictures. Pushing a heavy ebike uphill is a real pain. Luckily no bear sightings today. It's not a problem right along the highway because of the noise, but much of the trail is off the road aways. Kitty wondered why someone had loud music disturbing the peace and then she remembered the bears. We may have to bring a battery charger. She wants to take pictures, but a phone playing music might be a safe idea. Then again, maybe we wouldn't hear someone trying to pass us.

There was some water running across the path in places with a few areas heaved from tree roots, but most of the trail was very nice. We had a good view of the mud flats on Turnagain Arm, lots of waterfalls, snow covered mountains, trees, green vegetation, and beautiful flowers. The Lupine was blooming and it smelled wonderful. Some say the sweet scent is reminiscent of grape soda. It was a good workout and we are only mildly sore today. 

We made it back in time to shower and make it to dinner & game night at the Swenson's. The company is always wonderful, with delicious food, and great stories. There were about twelve of us. Farrell isn't a game player, so he visited while the rest of us rotated between tables. We played Alaska Alaska and even though we left at about 9:15 it was still light out. The Swenson's have a huge garden divided between 48 rectangle pots. Food prices are high here and home grown is always wonderful.

Farrell raked twigs and mowed the lawn this week. A young man in our ward takes care of the lawn, but Farrell wanted the exercise and to get out in the yard. There are still some twigs on the front lawn and weeds are popping up in the beds, so we can still keep him busy. Farrell is keeping an eye on the strawberries and Nasturtium seeds he planted. He covered the two small square beds with plastic wrap and we can't tell if it's weeds or seeds growing yet. The cooler climate has changed what we usually grow. The ground takes a long time to heat up. Hot weather vegetables don't do well here in Anchorage. Root crops and cooler weather crops do great here like cabbage, carrots, radishes, potatoes, beets, and kale. 

We love the two hanging baskets on our front porch. The red fuchsia matches the front door and the blues and purples compliment the house. Kitty feels happy every time she sees them. We don't have automatic watering set up here, so hand watering is necessary. They don't need watering everyday like in Utah, but they wilt fast if they get too dry. Again, it's a bit of a learning curve. One gallon weighs a little over 8 pounds, so more exercise! The two gallon watering can in the shed had a big hole in it, so Farrell is going to pick up another one. So 17 pounds... That will be good exercise for him:)

We honor all those who gave their lives so we can enjoy the freedoms we have in this great country. We appreciate the freedom to worship God and meet in congregations every week. We enjoy the opportunity to express our ideas and travel freely. We enjoy so many freedoms. We wish we could tell each and every one of them, Thank You! Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. 

We hope you are enjoying the beauties of nature and know that our Heavenly Father loves you and hears and answers your prayers. Stay in touch. We want to hear what you are up to. #ThinkCelestial

Love, Elder & Sister Badger