The holidays are over, but the lights still shine

It's been a whirlwind these last few weeks.  Looking back, it's hard to believe where the time has gone, but in reality, the day to day has been more of a struggle.  Jose started working the night shift in the ER (8pm-8am).  For a small town, we envisioned maybe 4 or 5 patients a night, allowing Jose to perhaps get good sleep in (and spend more time with us at home during the day!)  We had high hopes of some quality time together during normal hours.  Boy, were we wrong!

For anyone who has worked the 3rd shift, you know you have to get into a rhythm of your own.  Right away, Dr. V was only clocking in 1 hour of sleep at night.  Poor guy, he would come home wanting so bad to hang out with Amaury and I, but we found him passed out on the floor.  After 2 or 3 nights of no sleep, I put my hubs straight to bed after breakfast.

As soon as we got Jose on a sleep schedule, our little guy started teething big time.  For those of you without kids, I'm sure you know this is not a happy time for little people.  You know a fire truck siren?  Think of that going off in your house off and on for like 4 hours a day.  You do everything you can to help them through, but sometimes earplugs would help a mama get through as well.  (note to self, bring back earplugs next time we fly out of Barrow).  His first tooth popped out mid-December, and his 2nd tooth came in a couple of days ago.  Whew, over that hump for about 5 minutes!

I am a creature of habit.  I like routines and lists.  These unexpected sleep interruptions have thrown me, but have also allowed me to stick to my guns on goals I've set for myself.  I know I need to socialize and laugh with friends, I need a creative outlet, and I need to exercise.  I've dragged Jose out of bed many days (and bribed him with Dominican coffee ready to go) for him to work out with me.  It's been a struggle, but we are always proud of ourselves for our accomplishment.

I'm working diligently on finishing Amaury's quilt.  I'm very happy how it's turning out, and I can't wait for him to use it.  One thing I have a bad habit of doing is thinking about the next quilt while I'm working on my current project.  I've promised myself (and my sweet boy) that I'm finishing this thing by Jan. 6th.  My next project is on my mind, and I'm excited my creative juices are flowing!

The weather in Barrow is cold.  But of course you know that already.  We are starting to see wind chills of -30.  I hear this will be the norm come January and February.  All I have to say is - The Valerio's aren't scared!  Seriously folks, it's cold, but who's outside for long periods of time?  Not us!  Ok, so my husband still walks to work (he is ridiculous).  I'm not so much afraid of the cold and dangerous temps as I am a polar bear sneaking up on him.  That is even more serious.

I believe we are in the final stretch without sun.  The sunrise is Jan 23rd at around 1:30pm.  Once it comes up, our friends here say light comes back pretty quickly.  One thing is for sure, WE ARE READY!

What Barrow lacks in sun, it makes up for in the Aurora.  I've seen the lights pretty regularly these last few weeks.  The most amazing light shows were on Christmas Eve and Christmas day night.  They were both around 11:30pm.  Jose and I agreed that we would text one another if we saw them.  With Amaury being up at random times, I was fortunate enough to catch them transform for over 30 minutes.  Jose had a break in the ER and walked out into the tundra behind the hospital.  He took some incredible pictures of a big sky filled with green light.  He only stayed out about 10 minutes - because it was negative 24.  I watched from the cozy confines of my bedroom window.  It was 70 degrees.

As we begin a new year, I've taken a lot of time to reflect on what 2014 and beyond will bring.  We continue to look forward to Australia.  People keep asking me what's going on with Australia.  Well, there's not much to report.  We've done all the paperwork, and we are waiting....and waiting....and waiting.  So while we wait, we are here in Barrow enjoying our time.  I know there are new adventures to be had here and friendships to cherish.  It's an opportunity not to be taken for granted.  Jose, Amaury and I ate our black-eyed peas today, so we know there is good luck for us in the new year.  Cheers!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

 Hi Friends!

Everything is going well here above the Arctic circle.  The twilight hours are turning into minutes, but the temps are strangely above normal for Barrow.  The other day I spotted the thermostat at 29 degrees!  A heat wave!

We finally got a glimpse of the whale bones.

I would have stood under them so you can see how tall they are, but it was waaaaaay too cold.

Jose and I have taken advantage of the above average temps and use it as an excuse to save on cab fare (and get more exercise!)  

Getting ready to head out!

The other day we walked to the Post Office.  Here is what happened:  

My eyelashes froze. 

Goggles would come in handy right about now!

Snow machine tracks

They should have a yard sale.

Jose spilled coffee on his mitten and it froze immediately. 

We also wanted to check out the sushi restaurant in town.  You might think, "there is sushi in the Arctic?!"  Why yes, there is!

Amaury's first time in a high chair!

Amaury loves rice and miso!

He couldn't get enough!

Forget the bottle mama! 

Delish!!!

We couldn't resist.  

It was tasty!

We celebrated Thanksgiving with 3 other families.  We all made side dishes and desserts, and Jose prepared the turkey.  I found a nice brine, which we got going the night before, and it turned out pretty good.  I'm not a huge turkey fan, but I love to help Jose prepare it.  It was a nice afternoon of getting to know the other families and watching all the kids play.  Amaury had a taste of just about everything on our plate.  I can't believe how much this kid likes pretty much whatever we give him.  (Picky eaters would not be allowed in our family anyway!)  Afterwards, we continued our celebration at our new friends, Cruz and Lilliana's house.  I was so happy for Jose to be able to speak Spanish!

There have been a number of craft fairs going on in town, but nothing beats the annual Rotary event last Saturday.  We arrived to find a parking lot full of cars and people walking out with large bags full of goodies.  They had everything from handmade fur hats, mittens and boots to art work and photography.  It was also a meeting spot of everyone in town.  We spent over 2 hours at the craft fair - mostly socializing!  I did get some cute mukluks for Amaury.

Amaury just loves all the social events in Barrow!

Yesterday morning, Jose got ready for work just as he normally would, then he got what I call a "magic text."

THE HOSPITAL IS CLOSED DUE TO THE BLIZZARD.

What?  How could this Arctic town close?  I was like a kid in elementary school - Snow Day!!!!  We put Amaury down for a nap and suited up to "take out the trash."  Yes, that was our excuse to go outside!

I could barely get the door open because of this!

It didn't snow millions of inches as you might assume.  This is from some serious snow drifting.

Taking out the trash!

And Finally.....

Greetings from the festive wall of soda in the AC Supermarket.
Merry Christmas, everyone!

Gearing up for the Polar Night

Hi Friends,

I hope this blog finds you well and warm.  I've been watching the news as the "Cold Arctic Blast" hit the Lower 48.  I heard NYC even got a little snow!  I hope all of my Illinois friends are doing ok after the storms that blew through over the weekend.

Things around here are great, even though the days are very short and cold.  Jose is working a ton, and Amaury is filling his days with giggles, rolling over and learning to crawl!  He loves to visit his friends at the hospital and the library.

Jose decided to walk home from the hospital the other day.  This is what he encountered!  

(P.S. I take a taxi in this weather - or stay home!)

Tomorrow, the sun will set for what is called the Polar Night, and we won't see the sun until late January.  As I understand, there will be twilight but also a time of total darkness.  Many have asked how I will deal with the darkness.  Well - Light!  I turn on all the lights in the house (which are full spectrum, so much brighter than the average lamplight).  I also make sure I spend time with friends, visit Jose for lunch a few days a week, work out and diffuse essential oils.  Amaury and I like to have dance parties too.  Barrow friends - you are welcome to join us :)  There is always something going on in Barrow, and we make sure we are a part of it!

Snowy Owl

Hello friends!

This is somewhat an unofficial update, so it will be a short one.

So I was slouching around the house today and noticed that it was snowing.  I know, I know... It's snowing in the Arctic, how unusual!  It was somewhat blustery out, and Pam informed me that it was a mere 32F.

I decided to open the window to feel the fresh breeze and look at the sideways snowflakes.  Pam has always said that I'm a dreamer...  But back to the story.  After like 5 to 15 minutes of looking and letting my thoughts wander, a tricked out pickup was coming toward the house.  Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed something.  At first I wanted to believe it was a plastic bag floating about, which made no sense, as it would have to defy the laws of physics to travel perpendicular to blustering snowy wind.

I fixated my gaze on a certain light pole and after a few seconds I saw white wings!  My heart started to beat faster as I knew this could only be one animal.  I called Pam excitedly, "BABY!  Come quick!"  After a quick update, she encouraged me to get the camera and try to snap some pics.  As I started to get ready, "it's flying away!"  I was truly pissed!  My first encounter with a Snowy Owl, and I managed to miss seeing it in flight.  Pam encouraged me to gear up anyway and told me which direction the Snowy took.  It wasn't even one block away!

I tried to battle the elements and keep the camera still.  It was too far and too dark.  I tried to walk towards the majestic snowy.  I knew that trying to sneak up on something with telescopic vision and a remarkable sense of hearing would be futile.  I walked straight at it and let it decide how close it would let me get.  Looking through my telescopic lens, I saw it's eyes fixed on me, and it spread it's wings and gracefully and soared away...  Back home I went.

We were looking out of the same window once more, and unbelievably I had a second chance.  It was there once again!  Pam pointed the way and I geared up.  This time 2 blocks away.  I got a few pics and was able to just stand under the light pole to stare and admire until my fingers went numb.

Excuse me....what's THAT up in the sky?!

I've been asking everyone I know here the same two questions. 

1. Have you ever seen a polar bear? 
2. Can you see the Aurora Borealis in Barrow? 

Last night one of our questions was answered and our dreams of seeing this incredible natural wonder realized.

Earlier in the day, Amaury and I went story time at the library.  I've been asking many of my new mom friends about how and when to catch the Aurora.  It typically happens between 10pm-2am.  It has to be a clear night.  It's best seen away from the lights of the city.  Jose had heard from a colleague that there had been an Aurora the last 2 nights.  She was asked to call us immediately if and when she sees the lights.

Jose got home from work around 5:30pm.  The following day is a holiday (Inuit Day) here in Alaska, so we decided to take an evening trip to the AC supermarket to stock up on some goodies for our day off together.  We were going keep an eye out that evening and make ourselves stay up past 8:30pm (well, for me anyway!)

As we stepped out of the taxi at our home with hands full of groceries....Jose looks at me and says, "Baby, look UP!"

And there it was!

It started out very faint, but we could definitely see the green hue.  As it began to fade, we headed inside (hands still full of groceries and an infant snuggled inside Jose's jacket).

We started to settle in and begin another lookout, when Jose says, "I see purple!"  This is when it got really bright.  We put Amaury to bed and suited up to walk outside our house (with baby monitor in hand!)  Here's a glimpse of what we saw.  Jose did an awesome job of capturing the lights.  It was really difficult given the bright lights of the town as well as the negative wind chill!  Also, thanks to our friends for texting us to make sure we knew it was happening! 

It was magical. 

Earth to Matilda

So everything with us here in Barrow is going pretty well.  However, this last week seemed like we were getting a few curve balls thrown at us.  All 3 of us ended up getting a horrible stomach bug at different times.  I guess it's better than all of us at the same time, right?  We are on the mend now, thank goodness!

Then our computer died.  I had a feeling this was coming because our little laptop is getting up there in age.  Luckily, I backed everything up before we left Vegas, so I'm not worried.  Our new computer is on it's way! (and more pictures up on the blog once we get everything set up.)

Jose and I both celebrated our birthdays in October.  But our celebrations were nothing compared to a 1 year old bday party we attended last week.  The food alone covered every square inch of the long tables for over 100 people.  I told Amaury not to get any ideas for his first birthday party. 

Check out our ride to the party!

Should I just hop in the back?

Whoa

Yes, those are crabs

Enter the birthday girl

All the family gathers together

This is where they put the kids when they pass out

Our little Pirate on Halloween!

Some progress on the Australia front - Jose was able to have his interview via videoconference at the library here in town!  This was something we've been looking forward to (and stressing about) for months now.  We originally thought we would have him fly to Fairbanks or Anchorage for this interview exam, but it ended up working out right here in Barrow!  Somehow all the people involved were able to calculate the time difference between here and Brisbane.....after the daylight savings time weekend too!

And let's talk about daylight "savings."  I know it technically ended for almost everyone in the lower 48 - and Alaska.  It doesn't mean much for folks in the Artic Slope.  Daylight is disappearing by 20-30 minutes everyday.  Today the sun rose at 10am and set at 3:30pm.  I hope I'm ready for the polar night.  Jose says, "November 18th, lights out!" 

Who wants to come visit?????

We'll frolic and play....the Eskimo way!

Hi Friends,

I'm back to give a little update on our life here in Barrow.  I've noticed just from being here over a week that the days are getting shorter (by at least 20 minutes every day!) and the temps are dropping.  One day last week it was 37 degrees and ice melting everywhere, and today it is 25 and snowing! 

10am sunrise

Afternoon sun peaking out from the clouds

Jose and I both try to get out and walk as much as we can before it gets too cold.  We went all out on high quality winter gear before we left, and I'm sure glad we did!  I've been able to walk to the library and grocery store (a 20 minute stroller walk) and have been quite comfortable.  If I take Amaury in the stroller, I make sure I dress him in a onesie with feet, a bear suit from old navy (with feet, hands and head coverage.  Then I put him in a cozy car seat sleeping bag thing.  I'd say he stays pretty warm, as I've caught him asleep many times during our treks out.  Our jogging stroller is awesome here too.  I lock the front tire and can scale big mounds of snow! 

Little bunny all suited up

The Tuzzy library

Here is a video of some kids as I walked by......

We celebrated Jose's birthday last night by opening up our pumpkin stout we bought in Anchorage.  Yummmmm!  Then we headed out to Arctic Pizza.  They serve pretty much any kind of food you can think of.  I wasn't expecting much, but to our surprise....the pizza was tasty! 

The cake I made for him was not....

An update on Amaury is that he LOVES eating like a big boy.  He sees Jose and I eat, and he can't help but grab everything!  A few of his favorites are butternut squash, sweet potato and pears.  He didn't like carrots too much, but he managed to eat a few (before making a gagging face.)  

We are also enjoying his ever-emerging mullet:

  Love to you all from Alaska!