Grocery shopping. I despise going to the store. The mister does our shopping. He follows the list very well, thank you. However, the Alaska shopping list fell to me. How does one plan for four people to eat for three to four months at a time? Well, we're working on that one.
We have struggled for months with making out menus, planning every morsel and then we also thought about just buying by going down the aisles. I've looked at a couple of online grocery places and compared and such. We finally decided on Spansalesalaska.com. I even made "purchases" just to see how much it was going to cost. I would put things in the cart but then skip out. It gave me a sense of what to expect. Today we made it all the way to the checkout. I cannot begin to say how many hours I've put into this project. For me personally, it was a huge event. And apparently my stomach knew it. For the last week or so I have just plain hurt. I finally pushed the button today and now I don't hurt. Stress.
So how much do groceries cost in Alaska? Today I got seven pages for $1705.24. That does not include meat or dairy. Here's a little taste of what we got:
C&H sugar #25 $29.89
Dr. Pepper 24/12 oz cans $19.99
Chef Boyardee Pizza Mix 12/16.6 oz $42.31
Flavorite Mushroom pieces 24/4 oz $26.31
Tide Mt. Spring 4/87 oz $55.93
Cottonelle Bath Tissue 8/12 roll $58.30
Prego Sauce 12/28 oz $49.78
Pinto Beans 12/1 lb $20.31
Carnation Milk (dry) 12/25.6oz $105.70
Basically, we've discovered that if you'll pay for it, you can get it. Most of our groceries will be bought by the caseload. We will still have to hit WalMart for items we would only need 1 or 2 of -- such as jelly --- I can't imagine buying a case of jam! We can buy and check out at the Bush Counter and they will package it up and mail it for us from WalMart.
So... this is taken care of. It's a relief. We can relax and enjoy our day or 2 in Anchorage. Maybe next year we'll try the guerilla shopping experience with all the other incoming teachers to Alaska.
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Sunday, June 24, 2007
MmmHmmm.... Yep, that'll 'bout do it
Oh, my.... Our house is nearly empty. The Boy's room is full of tubs. Each of us has 3 tubs. One to ship now, two to take as luggage. The Girl's room is empty, painted and cleaned. She has an air mattress and that's it. Closets are cleaned out. Cabinets are getting there.
Then the whole south end of the living room has boxes and tubs for storage. It will all be gone by July 5. That's when we're moving to Wilburton.
Wait.... there are about twenty tubs in the middle of the living room. All addressed to us. In Kasigluk! I really didn't think we would have so much STUFF. How can we need this much stuff? It's amazing how you can stuff garbage bags and suck the air out them. You can really pack a lot in when you do that. But the game tub is full. Even when we took every item out of the boxes and put all the pieces into a zip-lock baggie. The Mister says we'll have to spend one whole evening just figuring out what goes with what game.
Actually, those twenty tubs are going to the post office tomorrow. At $45 - $50 a tub, it will run us about $1000 to ship our "can't live without this goodie" tubs to Akula. I'll let you know how we do. We will ship media rate. Someone at church today said they knew someone who sent their belongings "priority mail." WOW. That would be terribly expensive!
I have butterflies in my stomach. And my legs. And my arms. My head is a little on the light side. We're on the countdown. 41 days until we fly out from DFW airport.
Then the whole south end of the living room has boxes and tubs for storage. It will all be gone by July 5. That's when we're moving to Wilburton.
Wait.... there are about twenty tubs in the middle of the living room. All addressed to us. In Kasigluk! I really didn't think we would have so much STUFF. How can we need this much stuff? It's amazing how you can stuff garbage bags and suck the air out them. You can really pack a lot in when you do that. But the game tub is full. Even when we took every item out of the boxes and put all the pieces into a zip-lock baggie. The Mister says we'll have to spend one whole evening just figuring out what goes with what game.
Actually, those twenty tubs are going to the post office tomorrow. At $45 - $50 a tub, it will run us about $1000 to ship our "can't live without this goodie" tubs to Akula. I'll let you know how we do. We will ship media rate. Someone at church today said they knew someone who sent their belongings "priority mail." WOW. That would be terribly expensive!
I have butterflies in my stomach. And my legs. And my arms. My head is a little on the light side. We're on the countdown. 41 days until we fly out from DFW airport.
Thursday, June 14, 2007
It disappeared before my very eyes!
A lot is happening in our lives right now and yet it seems likes it is moving in slow motion. We had the big sale. Just about everything is gone. In just 24 short hours we sold nearly everything we had. The stuff that is left will be put in storage or the trash. It's amazing what your house can hold! It's also amazing what those gray tubs from Wal-Mart ($4), and seemed so humongous two months ago, can NOT hold today. We've filled up about 8 of them and no clothes have been packed as of yet.
So what are we taking? Well, bed sheets and comforters. Also, kitchen pots and pans and utensils. One tub is full of games. We took all the pieces and put them into zip lock baggies. We took all the boards and stacked them together. The Mister says that we'll have one big game just trying to figure out what goes with what! We have to take bathroom stuff - towells, wash cloths. And then there are some things like our living room clock we want to take just to make it seem more like home for us. All the furniture and large appliances are provided.
Some things we will wait on until we get to Anchorage. Like a set of dishes. It's cheaper to ship from Wal-Mart there than it is here. Each 50# tub will cost around $45 dollars from Oklahoma. In Anchorage, it will be more like $12.
For anyone who is REALLY interested in reading about where we're going and such, I found a blog written by a PA who is living in Bethel -- our district hub. The writing is terrific and it provides a great insight of the culture in which we will soon find ourselves. It is www.tundramedicinedreams.blogspot.com . Go back and read the archives. They are full of information.
So what are we taking? Well, bed sheets and comforters. Also, kitchen pots and pans and utensils. One tub is full of games. We took all the pieces and put them into zip lock baggies. We took all the boards and stacked them together. The Mister says that we'll have one big game just trying to figure out what goes with what! We have to take bathroom stuff - towells, wash cloths. And then there are some things like our living room clock we want to take just to make it seem more like home for us. All the furniture and large appliances are provided.
Some things we will wait on until we get to Anchorage. Like a set of dishes. It's cheaper to ship from Wal-Mart there than it is here. Each 50# tub will cost around $45 dollars from Oklahoma. In Anchorage, it will be more like $12.
For anyone who is REALLY interested in reading about where we're going and such, I found a blog written by a PA who is living in Bethel -- our district hub. The writing is terrific and it provides a great insight of the culture in which we will soon find ourselves. It is www.tundramedicinedreams.blogspot.com . Go back and read the archives. They are full of information.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
What's New?
So what HAS happened for us lately, you ask? Well... yesterday was the last day of school for the kids. The mister and I have three more days of inservice. I suppose we could just use sick days as we both have a lot left over and we can't take them with us, but I think we both want to see people just a little bit more and have some more closure for this part of our lives. We've lived in Holdenville since January of 2000. We've been here longer than any other place in our married lives. Roots were getting deeper than we've ever been able to go before. We still have to clean out rooms and turn in keys and such.
It's onward ho with the packing and decision-making at the homestead. We have three piles going in the living room. Sell or give away, pack it up -it's going to storage and finally, keep it out-we're taking that to Alaska. That last pile tends to get bigger and bigger. Sometimes we have to stop and re-do that one. I will have to check on shipping costs. Last time I looked it was $42 for a 50# box. And that was just from here to Anchorage.
We've made the hotel reservation. Yes, $170 for one night!! Ouch! However, our site administrator has told us we can stay in their condo for two nights and another teacher is letting us use her Expedition instead of renting a vehicle. Just remember that May - September is tourist season in Alaska and you're going to pay dearly for a room. It's half that amount in December!
Oh! We found a program called "Google Earth" --- my dearest brother told us about it. It is soooo cool! You have to download it -- it's free. Then you can see anywhere on the planet from a satellite view. Kasigluk is so clear, it's unbelievable. If you use the program, remember that Kasigluk is actually 2 villages. Ours is Akula. Akiuk is about a mile and a half away and looks more like an island. Akula has the airstrip and the school looks like a fat T. Our house sits just north of the school. There's a row of three or four and our's is the fartherest on the left. Directly in front of the house is the playground and just west of that is the basketball court. Our building is separate from the main building and is south of the court. The mister has the north half and I have the south half. It is .02 mile to our building from the front door. If you go out our back door and head north, it's about the same distance to the river.
If you get a chance, try it out. Some places aren't clear at all but in Buenos Aires I could tell you what roof tops had on them! It's amazing --- and scarey.
It's onward ho with the packing and decision-making at the homestead. We have three piles going in the living room. Sell or give away, pack it up -it's going to storage and finally, keep it out-we're taking that to Alaska. That last pile tends to get bigger and bigger. Sometimes we have to stop and re-do that one. I will have to check on shipping costs. Last time I looked it was $42 for a 50# box. And that was just from here to Anchorage.
We've made the hotel reservation. Yes, $170 for one night!! Ouch! However, our site administrator has told us we can stay in their condo for two nights and another teacher is letting us use her Expedition instead of renting a vehicle. Just remember that May - September is tourist season in Alaska and you're going to pay dearly for a room. It's half that amount in December!
Oh! We found a program called "Google Earth" --- my dearest brother told us about it. It is soooo cool! You have to download it -- it's free. Then you can see anywhere on the planet from a satellite view. Kasigluk is so clear, it's unbelievable. If you use the program, remember that Kasigluk is actually 2 villages. Ours is Akula. Akiuk is about a mile and a half away and looks more like an island. Akula has the airstrip and the school looks like a fat T. Our house sits just north of the school. There's a row of three or four and our's is the fartherest on the left. Directly in front of the house is the playground and just west of that is the basketball court. Our building is separate from the main building and is south of the court. The mister has the north half and I have the south half. It is .02 mile to our building from the front door. If you go out our back door and head north, it's about the same distance to the river.
If you get a chance, try it out. Some places aren't clear at all but in Buenos Aires I could tell you what roof tops had on them! It's amazing --- and scarey.
Monday, April 30, 2007
New News
Airline tickets are bought. Wow. That was a big step. Yes, we've sent off the contracts and such but actually getting the tickets.... after more than a year of watching prices dip and soar.... It's a relief to finally have them in hand now. We leave DFW on August 4 at 2:56 and fly to Seattle. Then it's on to Anchorage where we're supposed to arrive at almost 10:00 that night. Of course, it will feel like 1:00 in the morning to our bodies.
We'll spend three nights in Anchorage and then on to Bethel for 3 days of teacher inservice. We'll fly out to Kasigluk on Friday.
Our school district will pay for $1000 moving expenses for the Mister and for myself. That is going to help out tremendously. Not all districts help with moving costs. Plus, we will get an advance on our pay, to be held out in May. We also get laptops for each of us at inservice so we don't have to ship our computer if we don't want to. However, we think we'll go ahead and ship it in the fall for the kids to play games.
Thoughts about groceries --- Some teachers wait and buy all their food in Anchorage or Fairbanks in August and then ship it out to the bush. My thoughts are.... this is my first time in Anchorage and I want to look around. I don't care about spending my days in the stores. So, we'll be ordering most of our stuff online and having it shipped ahead of time. I'll go to Mr. Prime Beef that week and set up an account. Then they can ship our meat out when we really get to the village. I'll let you know how this all pans out later.
The Boy and the Girl are excited about the class list we received today. The Girl will be in junior high ---- yes, her daddy nearly flipped! --- and there are 14 in grades 6,7,and 8. The Mister has 20 on the roll and I have 16. However, as our principal wrote --- this may all change until May 17 of next year! Be flexible. Be adaptable.
We attended a Winters family reunion last weekend. So good to see people. Our beloved Windstar had a major arterial attack of some sort and died on the way to the party. We will miss her terribly but hey --- how many people can say "our major mode of transportation has died but it's okay, we're moving to Alaska and there aren't any roads there anyway?!" Still, I wish we had gotten to Bates earlier and got to visit more. Don't forget the Sanders' reunion next month!
We'll spend three nights in Anchorage and then on to Bethel for 3 days of teacher inservice. We'll fly out to Kasigluk on Friday.
Our school district will pay for $1000 moving expenses for the Mister and for myself. That is going to help out tremendously. Not all districts help with moving costs. Plus, we will get an advance on our pay, to be held out in May. We also get laptops for each of us at inservice so we don't have to ship our computer if we don't want to. However, we think we'll go ahead and ship it in the fall for the kids to play games.
Thoughts about groceries --- Some teachers wait and buy all their food in Anchorage or Fairbanks in August and then ship it out to the bush. My thoughts are.... this is my first time in Anchorage and I want to look around. I don't care about spending my days in the stores. So, we'll be ordering most of our stuff online and having it shipped ahead of time. I'll go to Mr. Prime Beef that week and set up an account. Then they can ship our meat out when we really get to the village. I'll let you know how this all pans out later.
The Boy and the Girl are excited about the class list we received today. The Girl will be in junior high ---- yes, her daddy nearly flipped! --- and there are 14 in grades 6,7,and 8. The Mister has 20 on the roll and I have 16. However, as our principal wrote --- this may all change until May 17 of next year! Be flexible. Be adaptable.
We attended a Winters family reunion last weekend. So good to see people. Our beloved Windstar had a major arterial attack of some sort and died on the way to the party. We will miss her terribly but hey --- how many people can say "our major mode of transportation has died but it's okay, we're moving to Alaska and there aren't any roads there anyway?!" Still, I wish we had gotten to Bates earlier and got to visit more. Don't forget the Sanders' reunion next month!
Friday, April 20, 2007
Pictures Have Arrived
We received pictures of our village this week. Apparently, the playground is out our front door. The village clinic is out the back. Our building is very close to our house. It's the red one. The house is about 1200 sq. ft.
We will be renting from the school. The new housing went in about 2003. I don't know who is in the picture by the stairs. I assume it's one of the people who currently live there. They were so nice to send us some pictures of the house and school. I plan to ask that the handrails be added before we arrive! The present occupant asked that they be left off so the dogs wouldn't get tangled up in them.
Our house in Oklahoma is up for sale. We've had 4 lookers in the last 2 weeks but no takers. We will close it up in June and spend July with family.
Everything we own just about is for sale. We will have to mail any boxes to the village and that comes to about $45 for a 50 pound box. The house is furnished and the occupants are selling us quite a few things. That way they don't have to ship them "outside" (that's Alaskan for the lower 48!) We are shipping dvd's, games, kitchen supplies and clothes. We will order food from internet companies as well as shipping stuff from Anchorage in August. Also, most of our cold weather clothes will be ordered after we get on site.
Monday, April 16, 2007
We're Moving...
To bring everybody up to date ---- two weeks ago the principal from a small village in Alaska called to let us know they would be sending out our contracts that week. We've received the packets and most everything is back in AK where it needed to go.
Where are we going? To Kasigluk/Akula. Find Anchorage on the map, go west 400 miles to Bethel and then northwest about 20 miles. It's a village of about 600 people. There are about 100 students, K-12. There are 9 teachers.
What will we do? Melissa will be teaching first and second grade --- combined class. Joe will be teaching fourth, fifth and sixth grades. We "think" he will have mostly kids that are below grade level in their performance. We will be working in the Lower Kuskokwim School District. See:
www.LKSD.org
How will we get there? We will fly to Anchorage and buy groceries to ship to Akula. Then we will fly to Bethel for teacher orientation. After 3 days there, we will fly in a Cesna plane to the village.
Summer plans: We will stay in H. until the end of June and then go to W. and stay at my dad and C's place while they go to AK for a cruise. Then we will probably fly out on Monday, July 30 from Dallas.
Keep checking this blog for further updates and pics and such. I really intend for this to be a way to keep family and friends informed about our great Alaskan adventure.
Where are we going? To Kasigluk/Akula. Find Anchorage on the map, go west 400 miles to Bethel and then northwest about 20 miles. It's a village of about 600 people. There are about 100 students, K-12. There are 9 teachers.
What will we do? Melissa will be teaching first and second grade --- combined class. Joe will be teaching fourth, fifth and sixth grades. We "think" he will have mostly kids that are below grade level in their performance. We will be working in the Lower Kuskokwim School District. See:
www.LKSD.org
How will we get there? We will fly to Anchorage and buy groceries to ship to Akula. Then we will fly to Bethel for teacher orientation. After 3 days there, we will fly in a Cesna plane to the village.
Summer plans: We will stay in H. until the end of June and then go to W. and stay at my dad and C's place while they go to AK for a cruise. Then we will probably fly out on Monday, July 30 from Dallas.
Keep checking this blog for further updates and pics and such. I really intend for this to be a way to keep family and friends informed about our great Alaskan adventure.
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