Any of You Lovely Ladies Live in Alaska?

I'm a transplant from Alaska. My parents and younger brother are there. Yes, cost of living is higher, but most pay checks take that into account. Remember it's only more expensive because it's ALL shipped up. I suggest buying in bulk and limiting your shopping as much as you can. My parents shop a month at a time. I also suggest not living directly in Anchorage, look into the communities just outside, like Chugiack and Eagle River. I personally suggest Wasilla and Palmer but they are farther away but growing fast and lovely. Winters are LONG and dark, but they are getting warmer. Summer is long, bright and beautiful. A 4x4 vehicle is a must! 2 would be perfect, one for you and one for him, that way you aren't stranded at home car less. Get out while you can, get sunshine while you can. I suggest taking up a hobby to keep you busy if you're planning on being a SAHM. People up there are friendly but are also very independent and self- reliant. I'm not sure how you feel about guns, but depending on the community you choose, having one might be a good idea. The farther from Anchorage you choose to live the more wilderness it becomes. Bears can happen.

I just had a funny thought, I'm trying to get my parents to move back down here, want to contact them and trade houses? I'm kidding...mostly. :)

Good luck, I hope this helps.

Anchorage is not bad to live, there are lots of stuff to do in the area. Their is a zoo, which is open during the winter and fun to go to. The zoo is fun because it is way different from any other zoo. During Easter and Christmas the train station has a special train route designed for kids and either the Easter bunny or Santa will ride the train with them. They have wonderful attendants the do activities with the kids and keep them entertained, a lot of fun wish I could go back and ride it again. They have a great indoor pool that during the winter has certain hours for just kids under 5 and the entrance fee is a lot less. There is also a kids hands on museum, just never go to make it. It is close to the ocean, so you can go down and look at it, just to cold for swimming. There is so much to do there during the winter or summer. The cost of living is higher, for where I live compared to Alaska the cost of food is double what I pay for it here. But they have great stores there that run get sales and offer great gas programs (like for every $100 you spend you get .10 off per gallon of gas). They have a Wal-Mart so you can still find clothing for reasonable prices, just a little more because of shipping. Some online stores won't let you ship to Alaska. It does get cold up there and you will spend more time indoors but the summer months make up for it, very little bugs, nice cool weather no hot summers of 100, and it stays sunny longer so you want to play outside more. I would love to more back there, the only thing that was hard on me was being so far away from my family and the cost to visit is a lot more.

I have two very close friends that live in Fairbanks. They love it! We seriously looked into relocating there a few years ago, but ended up deciding to stay in Texas because of being close to family. I've heard so many wonderful things about living in Alaska. My FIL lived there for a few years when he was young, and he also loved it. We're going to visit my friends when my son graduates from high school in a few years. He's dying to see Alaska!

Good luck with your decision! Part of me is jealous! ;)

My sister and BIL moved up there once they had a kiddo. Always been their plan I guess.

It took alot of getting used to. She had never so much as stepped foot up there.

They day light being always on or always off was hard for them to get used to. They bought black out curtains for most of the house and that seemed to work.

They are in Anchorage as well.

Be prepared for lots of snow. They had a record breaking year, this year.

At one point she had a snow drift that was 22 feet in their front and back yard. The photos are insane.

As for cost of living....my BIL had to get a job. To help with some of the bills. My sister is in a profession though that does not make a ton of money. So it was a must for them.

They also HAVE to buy another vehicle that is all wheel drive for next winter. They have been living with one car for this season...Which has made life pretty miserable....When one is gone...The other is ''trapped''.

All in all it is home to them now. We gave them six months up there and they have lasted almost two years! Pretty proud of my sister. She is the first to move away, and stay away.

Winter is WINTER up there. You get snow snow snow. Not in inches...but in feet. So just be ready for that.

And the Day light is all screwy. I do not know this part from experience. I only understand what she has told me about it...Which seems horrible!!

P.s. My mom LOVES going up there just to shop. So i guess it is worth it not having the sales tax:) So that is a plus.

I lived in Fairbanks for 8 years (moved there right after college) and I lived in Juneau for 6 and a half years...so 14 years total. I now live in New Mexico and have been here 2 years...I feel like I am still getting used to living in the "lower 48" and I miss Alaska terribly. I never lived in Anchorage, but I have worked all over the state and I have good friends who live there. Anyway, I noticed that people move to Alaska and either 1. love it with a passion or 2. hate it and constantly complain and dream about moving. To love it there you need an adventurous spirit. You need to learn to love being active and doing things outdoors...because that is what you have when you live there. You have access to the most beautiful places ever that other people save their whole lives to get to visit and see just once. I learned how to ski and became quite good at cross-country skiing. I learned how to ski-jorr with my dogs (Alaskan huskies from dog mushers) and I learned how to dog mush. I took care of dog teams from time to time and got to enjoy hooking them up to a sled and exploring all the amazing trails. We would rent cabins through the forest service or BLM and hike or ski to them. We would ice skate or ski on a big lake next to a glacier in Juneau. I learned how to pick and jar every kind of berry. I learned how to smoke salmon the Yupik eskimo way and I learned how to prepare a moose hide to be tanned. I really enjoyed hiking all summer with friends and going out to really cool places. I learned how to raft and canoe and sea kayak. I miss sea kayaking! What I am trying to say is if you can embrace and love doing things like hiking, boating, skiing, camping, hunting, fishing, etc, you will be much much happier there. The friends I had who hated living there did not like to ski (or did not know how and did not care to learn), did not like to get out if the weather was "bad", did not go on adventures, and did not exercise regularly. The low levels of sunlight in the winter really affect your mood so it is super important to get outside almost every day (when the sun IS out) and to exercise exercise exercise. Yes, the cost of living is higher but to make up for it that is why the pay is higher there. It all pretty much equals out and you just get used to the higher prices for food, etc. If you hate winter, this will be tough for you. You need to learn to love winter and embrace it and start doing winter sports/outings. Snowshoeing with your family up a mountain trail to a cabin is such a cool experience. I highly recommend xcountry skiing. We still do it here in NM in the mountains. Our 7 year old is a pro at it and our 2 year old rides in a pulk sled and has tiny skis she practices walking on. Feel free to PM me anytime if you have any specific questions about Alaska.