Cherry blossoms!

God gave me a gift on Monday!!!  I went into the grocery store on the way home from picking mom up at the airport - I was getting her flowers for her welcome home. ... They had cherry blossoms - let me clarify, they had branches cut off from cherry blossom trees!  I saw cherry blossoms in real life - for the very first time in my life!  I couldn't believe it...I didn't even have to think twice - I bought them for myself.  You see, I have always wanted to see cherry blossoms in real life.  In my recollection these were the first real cherry blossoms I have ever seen. 

Yes, I paid $7.99 for three branches of an outdoor tree.  

Yes, you can call me a crazy Alaskan.  

BUT, guess what - I don't care :-D!!!!

I'm still holding out for my dream ... Someday, Lord willing, I will get to see Washington DC in April {& again in fall, whenever that is, and in winter too}.  April is my birthday month, maybe someday I will see real cherry trees and cherry tree blossoms for my birthday :-D.

Keep reading for a more explanatory version :-D!
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Fun features of my new camera

The end of last month mom & the kids got me 3 of my most favorite color of roses. I just had to play with how close I could get & still have the camera focus (I can rest the lens against something & it still focuses).... Anyway, while I was playing with the buttons on my camera (eventhough I got my camera a month ago, I haven't had time to sit & read the manual) I discovered I couldmake there be just a spot that has color & the rest is black & white it also automatically makes a copy of the picture too! I thought it wasreally cool... :)

Colony Christmas

(notice the "green" grass under their heads?!)

This weekend was Colony Christmas - for a couple weeks the plan has been for us to go to the Alaska Children's Choir concert in Palmer on the 8th (last night).

Yesterday morning Andrea called & told me it was Colony Christmas. So we went early - there was the Parade of Lights at 5, fireworks at 6:30, & concert at 7. We parked at the St. John's Lutheran Church (where the concert was going to be) & then walked all around the area. By the time we got from the church to the Depot all we could think of was something hot! It was cold, windy (more like breezy in comparison to last week) & no snow!... We did get my coffee & their hot cocoa - partly just to help warm up our hands (even with gloves on)! We got to stand in a great place for watching the light parade, there were even two young moose in the parade. I've never seen moose on a leash before - it took until they went by for me to realize they really were moose. Bud found us Kettle corn & then we went into the Fireside Bookstore to warm up (with about 100 other people).

We waited in somebody's yard for the fireworks & then worked our way to the church. Unfortunately, I didn't stop & read how to take pictures in the dark with my camera (I can't take them, it just won't click) So my pictures were harder to get then I thought they would be & there are white specks on them......

They loved the entire evening - the concert was amazing! There were a lot of kids & some really tiny ones (4 or 5? years old) - they were so cute!!!!! Where we sat we could see the lady's hands who was playing the piano - wow! I thought 1/2 way through at the intermission the kids might want to go, I was wrong. They soaked it up - anything to do with staying up later? :) It didn't seem like it, but it did make me wonder.

It was an enjoyable, wonderful evening & the kids woke up talking about it.