Merry Christmas 2008!

The photo above was published on our Photo Blog this evening. You may download the full-size version there.  Merry Christmas from the Harper family!

Daily Harper Photos

In an effort to share photos in a more timely and efficient manner with friends and family, we set up a Harper photo blog back in August. For a while we were publishing a new image every day; that is until we moved, experienced a phone company mix-up and were without an internet connection for almost a month. Now we are back in regular-posting mode, although with three small children and a busy church and work life we can’t promise anything.

In the same tradition as our daily devotions, the photos will come at as steady a pace as we can manage. Simply click the next or previous buttons at the bottom right to peruse the entire collection. Posts are also tagged rather clearly, so you can visit entries featuring specific subjects or members of the family. If you’d rather have each new photo sent via e-mail, just type your address in this form and click the confirm link that shows up in your inbox.

By the way, even when we are not posting new photos or blog articles on a regular basis, we are always active on FriendFeed. Click to Latest tab at the top right of this site to see what’s happening on an almost hour by hour basis.

Denali National Park

After a few stressful months at the office with little opportunity for time off, we decided to take a break last week and drive two and a half hours down the Parks Highway to Denali National Park and Preserve. Deborah and I have enjoyed several previous visits, but realized recently we hadn’t made the trip in nearly five years. The girls had a great time, and were especially interested in seeing “da wiver” (the river; see below). They had three opportunities on the way, as we crossed the Tanana and Nenana rivers and concluded our trip on the banks of the Savage River. They were very impressed with each sighting and kept asking for more.

Our Denali 2008 photos are now posted in the Gallery so you can take a look at some of the scenery we enjoyed. There are also a few pictures of Deborah, Hannah and Elisabeth taken along the way. Wind and rain kept Stephen mostly bundled in his stroller, but if you look closely you’ll likely see him (his blanket) in the background on one shot near the Savage River. Let us know what you think!

Portland Head Light

The Portland Head Light is a great place to visit if you happen to find yourself in Maine. Some of our favorite pictures were taken at this Cape Elizabeth lighthouse during a deputation visit in 2006. The other day I happened to run across another beautiful series of Portland Head Light photos. Since we have made an image of this lighthouse sort of a theme on our blog, we thought you might like to see them.

New: Old Gallery

We have recently done some updating in our Family 2007 section, including a few pictures from the end of the year. An entirely new gallery has also been added, documenting some of our 2006 travel on deputation.

The above shot was taken in night mode on our terrific Sony camera. I had been stranded in Beaver, Alaska for a few days that December (2006), and was happy to see that Cessna in the foreground. The temperature was around 40 below zero.

London In Pictures

While I enjoy debating the weighty matters of theological conservatism, I fear I do it all too often on this site without also offering something simple, interesting and fun. Today I found myself surfing BBC London for information on the upcoming mayoral election. (I’m fascinated by the British political system.) As a side journey, I decided to visit In Pictures, which led me to a series of fantastic photo galleries.

Over the past few years I have become increasingly interested in learning more about life and culture in Britain, and have collected a series of web links to UK political, cultural and photography sites. The BBC is one of my chief sources, along with the Telegraph, and the Independent. Anyway, you don’t have to be nearly as intrigued as I am to enjoy these photos of London.

• Night Fantastic - Night shots from around London.
• Big Ben - Go inside the famous Westminster clock tower.
• London Bridges - A collection both historic and modern.
• Aerial Photos - Much of the city seen from the air.

I have taken a few decent London shots (including the one above), which you can see in our England 2007 gallery. Most of the others were captured in either Bedfordshire or Buckinghamshire this past October.

Take the Journey

Serving as Internet Coordinator at the Fairbanks Convention and Visitors Bureau over the past year has been fun, educational and rewarding. One of my favorite assignments has been the creation and ongoing development of a website called Inside Alaska. I began the initial work for a pre-launch last August, but have only recently completed all of the creative elements needed for an “official launch”. Reaction from staff, visitors and bureau members has be overwhelmingly positive. Leave a comment and let me know what you think.

Some of my favorite articles on the site include:

• Sharing Alaska Adventure - Fantastic entries from our photo contest.
• Photographing the Aurora - Tips on how to get northern lights pictures.
• Fairbanks Musher Pulls Ahead (for good?) - Promoting the Yukon Quest.
• 2008 Open North American Pictures - World’s best sprint-mushing.

Stephen James Harper

How quickly our newborn Stephen James is becoming a “big boy”. Here you see a glimpse of the transition we observe on a daily basis. From his very first photo to his first captured smile, our little boy has been a joy. Praise the Lord for a beautiful and happy one month old! Larger copies of the above pictures are available here.

Our Christmas Weekend

I was pleased to have both Monday and Tuesday off for Christmas. This is one of the rare times I’ve had four consecutive days away from work. We have all really enjoyed our time together. Here are a few pictures from our four-day weekend.

Merry Christmas from the Harper Family! Hope you spent the day giving honor and thanks to God for the gift of His son. (And had some fun with family too!)

Not Cold Yet

Did we really need these kind of temperatures during one of the longest, busiest two week periods of the year? That’s what I was asking myself today as I walked from the office to the parking garage at 36 below. I make this two-block trek every morning and afternoon, usually enjoying these few moments to get focused on the day, or the drive home. Today it was just miserable.

Even the inside wasn’t safe from the cold. When I arrived home I found ice forming around the bottom of the door and windows. It will continue to build overnight, until a warming trend begins, and we see a balmy high of -5 by Friday. Welcome to winter in Fairbanks, Alaska! By the way, you’ll notice in the above graphic we are already six degrees colder than the predicted low. That happens almost every day in the winter; it’s like no place on earth.