We have had a few sunny days the past few weeks and have enjoyed all of them. Heidi has developed a love for the outdoors and ROCKS. She walks a few steps (holding our hand), bends down picks up a rock, walks a few more, drops it and starts the cycle again. I can not figure out what makes one rock better than the other, but she acts like she has a system. My favorite part is that I no longer have to tell her "No, Heidi, rocks are YUCKY!" Now she keeps them out all by herself. If only "no" kept her out of the CD rack too.

Life here stays pretty much the same. Jared goes to work, he is still on days for the rest of the month. :) Heidi and I stay home and try to stay busy. I bake, workout, chase Heidi, feed Heidi and play with Heidi. See she is the center of MY world.

For those of you who were asking what it is like to live on an island, I will try to explain. It is beautiful. Right behind the homes, the National Park begins. Bald Eagles are more common than a robin down south and the ocean is always right there.The tree line begins where the tide comes in at it's highest. There are many trails and the forest service keeps them well-maintained. I don't think I've been on so many hikes where they are so well maintained before. There are a lot of small islands, but we live on the outside of the Inside Passage, so we can actually see the open ocean. There are so many small islands though, that the ocean looks like a lake in some areas. So it is beautiful.

Living on an island, especially one so disconnected has down sides though. First, it is super expensive to leave, and not always convenient. The ferry comes about 3 times a week and a plane about 3 times a day. Sounds like a lot, but during tourist season we can have up to 4 cruise ships a day and the planes fill up with tourists who want to fish and hunt. So in reality, this town exists for the tourists--people have to shop online or have friends send things up to avoid buying shirts with "ALASKA" on them or paying 5 times the cost for normal clothes. You have no idea how hard it is to go grocery shopping and see empty shelves. The one that is hardest for me is when there is no milk. It seems like cottage cheese runs out every time I am planning lasagna. For a while I tried to make a meal plan before I went shopping, then switched to making it while I was shopping and knew what was available. The best thing is that since all produce is expensive you don't feel bad about buying the more exotic fruits and vegetables.

What I like most about living on an island is that people are more relaxed and less judgemental. Everyone knows you only wear shorts a few times a year so if they happen to be 10 years old, who cares. Yard sale-ing is an island Sat activity and every day on the radio they have "Problem corner". You call in and sell items or ask for items. People are friendly and willing to help more because after all we are all in the same boat. :) When all is said and done, I do enjoy it here.