(pretty sweet view huh? this is from our front living room)
finding a place to live was a headache! we had been looking at places to rent/buy online for months now thru
http://www.ahrn.com/ and other anchorage real estate sites. we found a few homes that we LOVED, but since we arrived in anchorage 5 days late due to the volcano, they were snatched up quick as we weren't able to meet with the realtor's as planned.
moving on base wasn't really an option, but after looking for a week and not finding anything we liked, we looked into that. BUT, the wait was 17+ months to get on with steves rank! so yeah, we didn't obviously get on the waiting list...
it was starting to get frustrating as mango was staying at our sponsor's house with two other cats and we were anxious to no longer burden them with our devil cat. we wanted to settle down in eagle river, which is about 10 minutes from base on the highway, as we had heard great things about this community and it's school's. so we kept looking each day (oh, and did i mention our internet stopped working in the tlf's?! so frustrating) and saw the place we ended up getting online. we ended up contacting the guy and arranged to meet with a neighbor who had the keys so we could check out the home as the landlord is stationed at a NATO base in germany. the outside of the home was NOT at all appealing as the paint was chipping/dull and the front stairs were a little creaky and scary. so, we weren't expecting much when we went inside as the outside was pretty ghetto. but we loved the inside! as we toured the home, we learned of the horrors of the previous tenants and all the work that was needed to be done to fix it back up. it was so disgusting! these people were absolute WHITE TRASH. i don't know how people live like that.
we learned that the previous tenants were medically retired army (or so that is what they claimed) and the first time our landlord rented to people who weren't currently active in the military. they moved in the end of summer/early fall of 2008 and right away the neighbors on the cul de sac didn't get any good vibes from them. the couple had 3 kids ages 10, 12, and 14 who were "home schooled" by their mom, but the neighbors began to wonder if any education was being given to these kids as they were always outside riding their bikes, even in the cold winter. what was also odd, is that these people had dogs, but no one ever saw them go outside. EVER! another thing people noticed was when it was garbage day, this family never brought their garbage down to the curb to get picked up. also odd, was that these people had a 2 car garage but never parked their cars inside it. nor did they ever open the garage door to the outside, almost as if they were hiding something inside it.
my friend shannon said the little girl who was her daughters age told her that her "mommy never washed her clothes". people started to get suspicious, but then one day, they were gone! totally up and left in the middle of the night leaving behind a mini van, all their furniture, and much much more...
our landlord (tim) was getting suspicious back in europe as the rent was always coming late, or not at all, and these people were ignoring his phone calls and emails. one of the neighbors on the cul de sac ending up tim to tell him of his concerns and how no one has seen this family in weeks. so tim took 2 weeks of emergency leave to come to alaska from the netherlands to check it out and what he saw was HORRIBLE. these people absolutely trashed his home. and im not talking about little holes in walls or dirty carpet in some places. im talking about dog crap/pee ALL OVER the floors, garbage all over the house/counters along with the garage FILLED up with it (that's why they never parked their cars in there. and they didnt want to pay the garbage bill so that's why they never had a garbage can out on trash days. nice), their 3 dead ferrets who they obviously left to die in their cage skinny and reeking up the place, food everywhere in the kitchen along with mold, empty jack daniels bottles, anti depression meds and cigarettes in all corners and drawers in every room. it was beyond disgusting. tim found his home like this, and obviously was pissed and overwhelmed. he didn't even try to hunt these people down as they were obvious scammers who he wouldn't be able to get a dime from. so he spent days hauling all the crap they left behind, tearing out all the flooring, replacing walls and doors, and cleaning up the filth that they lived in for 5 months. whats crazy, is they were only here for a short time, but managed to completely destroy everything! so so sick. i don't know how people live like that. especially when you have children you are responsible for taking care of and nurturing. sad to think that these kids don't know better and have to be subjected to this behavior when they are so impressionable.
so, this place has obviously needed a lot of work before he could rent it out again. lucky for us, we moved in with newly painted walls, new carpets and flooring. there were some things not yet finished when we moved in (light fixtures not up, broken hallway sliding doors, broken closet doors, a busted up dishwasher, no blinds in any windows, no screens, etc) and that has been a pain for us. Things are getting done tho and we're grateful for the future look of the place. we can't wait! for some reason unknown to anyone, the previous tenants had 2 truck loads of mulch dumped on the front lawn, so we were responsible for taking care of that. Steve needed to get a work out anyways, so he decided to cover the backyard with it (which looks awesome actually) as its mostly rocks and filled with trees by using a shovel and wheelbarrow. we thought we would have a ton left over, but actually we were able to use all of it. so the front yard looks a ton better! now all we need to do is get some fertilizer to help it grow and turn green again...
there was also over 400lbs of paint left in the garage from the white trash tenants that of corse we were responsible for hauling away. now, dumping paint is not so simple. it's a hazardous material so it's expensive to dump it at any landfill obviously. this past saturday (may 2nd) alaska had a "clean up alaska day" so prices were a ton cheaper at the landfills to encourage people to clean up their crap. so we were able to dump everything at a much better price ($70 bucks) and clear our garage out so we can start organizing it in there.
so we are finally getting this place cleaned up and comfy for our tastes and its starting to come along. its been very frustrating having one car, but this definately forces me to clean up around here and not hit the malls and target...we will post pictures later once the outside is painted and we have our stuff where we want it.
seriously...i'm having major body issues at the moment. it's rather depressing at the rate of how FAST i'm not being able to fit into my clothes. and yes, yes. i KNOW i'm pregnant and really don't want to hear "ahh lindsay! your pregnant! don't worry!". BUT I AM! i'm so sick of seeing all these cute pregnant girls who never have to worry what they eat, never work out at ALL, and only gain weight in their middle. i, on the other hand seem to be growing a baby in my butt, hips, and love handles and its not cool! i've been working out hard at this gym i recently started going to here in eagle river, and seem to be getter bigger quicker! i really shouldn't compare this pregnancy to my first with brynn, but i can't help it as it's all i know! its rather depressing to not be able to get a pair of pants on because your thighs and love handles are not allowing it. and being 19 weeks, i'm at that weird point in the pregnancy where maternity clothes looks a little ridiculous and my pre-pregnancy clothes are looking more like i basically painted them on my body. grrrrr! i use a bella band faithfully every day (i have 5!) to try and smooth out the love handles that are more obvious then the baby bump. so i'm always wearing a cardigan or jacket at all times to try and hide the busted can of biscuits that seem to be taken over my middle. this week i will post some pictures of me FROM THE SIDE as i'm much too embarrassed to have one taken from the front. i feel bad for all those who have to look at me! and did i mention i'm seeing family in 2 weeks that i haven't seen in 2 years?! ya. and going to my mom's graduation, a wedding, doing family pictures etc...its no fun being the FAT CHICK. and yes, don't remind me that i'm pregnant. i'm well aware of that! i just HATE all those skinny preggers girls who make me feel inferior and huge. can't you all just eat a friggin' hamburger or 10 and grow facial hair to make me feel ok? honestly. 
where he was parked, he saw a ton of people standing around so he approached them to see what was going on. the game warden told steve that they trapped a huge black bear in the cage, so they could track it. steve then witnessed the state biologist shooting it in the butt with a blow dart filled with some sort of tranquilizer so they could put the collar on it. poor bear!
*loves to stare in any mirror she walks by to admire herself. this is especially true when she dresses herself as she loves to see her work. 
ya, i should've put her hair up...maybe that's why she didn't grab more eggs as she couldn't SEE!