I can't wait to be able to see Russia from my house

Did you know that right now in Anchorage it's 34 degrees? According to Alaska.com that's the temp. This only matters because in a few months our family will be calling Anchorage home. YIKES.

We got the news about a month or so ago. It wasn't a complete surprise. We were the dummies who put Anchorage as our number 4 spot on our "dream sheet." Numbers 1-3 were for Chesapeake, VA. We really wanted to stay in this house for a few more years. Plus this is a nice city, nice people, and close to home. This is the closest to home we've ever been stationed, and it's been nice to be able to drive only 7 hours to visit family.

I cried as soon as I read the email informing us of our new station. It was such a shock. I think mostly because I just don't want to leave. I just don't want to deal with being so very far away. I have nothing against Alaska, actually. Well, maybe I'm just a little afraid I'll morph into Sarah Palin. Aside from that, Alaska seems awesome. All the books we have are super informative and everyone we've spoken to who's been stationed there has loved it.

Bonus: When we move in I'll be able to post "I can see Russia from my house" as my new FB status.

We plan on driving the entire way, avoiding a 3-day ferry ride. Mostly the ferry would suck for the animals. Pets have to remain in your car in the car parking bay, and you can only check on your pets twice a day. Can you imagine the amounts of pee and poop we'd have to clean up? We were encouraged by a couple people to do the whole trip in the car, and this way we can perhaps see some sights. I'm thinking Mount Rushmore should be on the list. And some corny stuff too. Any tips on places we should see in the upper northwest would be totally welcome! We hear the "alcan" highway is awesome, and I'm looking forward to driving through the Yukon.

For now I'm looking for homes in Anchorage. I found a public Montessori school that operates on donations and volunteering that I think Eleana would do great in, so we're trying to find a place within that school's district. Otherwise the only way Eleana could go to that specific school is through a random lottery. Most apartments aren't giving me much info since they won't know vacancies until a month before our move-in date, so there isn't a whole lot I can do right now. I'm contacting a realtor this week...you never know, maybe someone has something opening up in July because they are moving away. It's such a headache.

So, we're in prep mode for Alaska. I'm planning on having Eleana's birthday party sometime in may or June so she can have a party with all her friends from school. She's going to miss them so much. She's already insisting that her friends from school are coming to Alaska to play in the snow with her, and I don't have the heart to tell her they aren't coming with us.

Eleana's got her passport in the mail and I'm applying for mine this week. Stupid passports are super expensive....but at least they last a long time. I think they should last forever personally. We've mostly gotten our medical clearance done. We had to be approved by our doctors because Alaska is out of the continental US, which means it's considered being stationed overseas.

The only light at the end of the tunnel (aside from all the awesome stuff we'll be able to do while in Alaska) is that we will probably only be there a year. All this money they're spending to move us outside of CONUS and the station Joe is going to is set to close in 2011. Whatever. I'd rather be as close to WV as possible. This is a point in our lives where a lot of health issues are coming up in the family. My grandma has said goodbye to two sisters this year, and I feel the need to be close. Just in case.