Dendra Chavez – Calista Corporation. (Click on this link to read the full article)
I feel so honored to be featured in the April 2015 Calista Storyknife newsletter. It means the world to me to be recognized as a Leader in our Region and in our Native Community. I will continue to work hard to be a good representative and positive role model.
My youngest son Joey is 15 years old today!!! Seeing him grow into a young man has been exciting. He sure keeps our family entertained. As a young boy, Joey was very much into football, adventure and hunting.
The first time DeLon took Joey hunting was when he was 5 years old. He was more than thrilled to go out and was so excited he could barely sleep the night before. We got all of his hunting gear together, cleaned his gun and went over what to expect the next day.
Their morning started out with loading up the boat, filling up the gas tank and getting some hot chocolate for the ride. The frost on the boat and bushes glistened as the sun rose. I watched from the window seeing my baby get ready for his big adventure. You could see their breath in the air as the chill set in. Naturally, I worried that he would be warm enough for his trip so I made sure to pack him an extra set of everything.
They got the boat hitched to the truck and ran in to give me a hug goodbye. I’m not going to lie, I cried a little when they left just feeling a mix of emotions. I watched them drive off until I couldn’t see the truck anymore.
I watched the clock envisioning where they would be during their trip. I crossed my fingers that Joey would catch at least one duck. Hailey and I decided to pick Grandma up before they got home so we could spend some girl time together. We watched a movie, organized the house and went for a ride down to the river a couple of times.
Later that evening we heard the truck pull up. We all ran outside to welcome them home and see what they got. Joey was so excited he yelled, “Guess what Mom, I shot a duck in it’s tuq (that means butt in Yup’ik). We all couldn’t quit laughing. I told him I was so proud of him and asked how many he shot. “I got 33!”. I looked at DeLon in disbelief and he confirmed that Joey did in fact shoot 33. WOW, my baby is a natural hunter like his great Uppa.
The guys came into the house to warm up and my mom and I went to get the birds to clean. We counted only 32 in the bag so we went back out to the boat and found one duck hiding and it had laid a trail of eggs around the boat. Poor. I felt bad for it, but knew we had to kill it. I called Joey over and told him to kill it. He only knew how to shoot it and we couldn’t do that in city limits. It was left up to me to ring its neck.
The following weekend we had an ukiiquq (throwing party) for Joey’s first catch and cooked all the birds. That was so much fun!! So many people showed up and we threw so much stuff out. It was entertaining to watch older woman almost elbow each other to get the goods!
Now 10 years later he still loves hunting, football and adventure. The only big difference is that he is taller than his dad! I just love my baby and reminded him that he will ALWAYS be my baby. Happy Birthday Joey, we love you so much! You have brought so much joy to our lives.
Morgan’s Senior Shoot
Have you ever looked out your window and wondered, “Where could I possibly have my photo shoot?” Don’t worry, leave it up to me. I have scoped out so many places and I’m constantly looking for the perfect location. Alaska has endless opportunities for the most amazing landscape in your portraits.
Don’t get me wrong – you are my main focus, but it’s more than that… it’s the experience. When you enjoy the ambiance you are sure to have a memorable and great time!
For Morgan’s Senior Session, we ventured out on the Seward Highway with the intention of going to a glacier. The weather didn’t cooperate and we were unable to make it to our destination, but we were still able to capture beautiful images.
Take a look at the majestic mountains behind her and the turquoise glacier lake. It is just breathtaking! Morgan came prepared with the perfect jewelry to compliment not only her eyes, but her surroundings. I LOVE the pairing! Great job on color coordination!!
We did Morgan’s session in December so the weather was around 30 degrees. For my winter sessions, it is not unusual to pack blankets, towels and all the normal winter gear (snow pants, gloves, hats, boots and scarves).
This session was a little different. We packed all of the winter gear and packed some rain gear as well. Yes, rain gear… I even packed full rain gear for all of my equipment (umbrellas, trash bags and shower curtains to cover my camera and lights).
As we went to each location, Morgan stayed bundled up until the moment we shot. After about 20 min. she would warm up in the car and be ready to shoot again. Between the shivers, Morgan gracefully posed and gave me beautiful smiles. What more could I ask for? Yes, I would say she is a natural. Wouldn’t you agree? Wow, she is just gorgeous!
Check out the awesome images we captured. You cannot tell it was cold or that we were being dumped on by rain, right? We had an absolute blast! I have officially named one of the locations, “Morgan’s Place”. It had a beach, mountains, trees, boulders, moss…everything that you imagine for an Alaskan scene. We’ll be going back there for sure!!
My sweetheart’s birthday!
My Alaskan Beauty!
Cute baby pics!
Milestones are meant to be celebrated and I am excited to share that we will be celebrating Hailey’s 18th birthday. This milestone is bittersweet. I’m sure you can relate… right?
We are so blessed that she has grown into such a wonderful person, but I am starting to feel like I am losing my baby!! It’s hard to describe how I’m feeling, so quite simply, I’ll say that I am very proud of her.
My mom used to work in Medical Records and I worked down the hall in the Billing Office. She came by to drop off some records and stopped by my desk. She looked me up and down and said, “You are going to have that baby any day…you dropped!” I thought she was just saying that to make small talk. Well, you know that saying, ‘Mother’s know best’ – she knew!
After I got off of work, DeLon and I ran to Swanson’s to get his sister a birthday present. We were walking around upstairs in the clothing area and all of a sudden I came to a complete stand still as I felt a pain in my stomach. I tried to shake it off thinking that it was nothing, but the pain came back and even stronger. My mind and body finally connected and I realized my contractions started!!
“Wow, I can’t believe this is happening now!”
The contractions lasted all evening. I timed them and followed everything by the book. I started to grow impatient thinking something was going to happen that night. Minute after minute, hour after hour passed and nothing. I went to work the next day and just took a small break between contractions. Finally a little after lunch I went home to pack my overnight bag.
Okay…I thought by NOW I would have had her. I waited all evening on 1/14 – Mel’s birthday and all day on 1/15 Lorenzo’s birthday and still nothing!!! C’mon baby!!!
Hailey finally decided to join the world on 1/16!!!! YAY, MY BABY is here!!!!
My life has never been the same since. The love I felt for her was unimaginable ~ how can you feel this way about someone else?!? I am so very blessed with her.
It is now 18 years later…yes 18 years!!! I am just in awe of my Beebin. She has grown into such a talented and gracious young lady. Okay, I am wiping tears away now… I need to go and hug her.
Happy Birthday Hailey ~ I love you so much!!
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My daughter, Hailey and I enjoyed our day exploring the great Alaskan outdoors, scouting locations for future photo shoots. One location in particular caught our attention as it was fairly easy to get to, which I like since I am a bit out of shape right now, and I … Continue reading
