Hi H.,
Are you guys military? If so, I highly recommend moving onto base as this will be the easiest way to mesh with finding other military moms to become friends with.
If however, you are looking to purchase, whether you are military or not, Eagle River seems to be a nice place to go, far away enough from the city and it seems to be quiet with bigger homes for your money and more yard area.
The Anchorage area is very nice. Right now, because we are heading towards breakup, it's sloppy on some days, icy on others, and everyone is anxiously awaiting spring. The days are getting longer (we are currently at about 10 hours of sunlight, in the summer we will have 22 hours of sunlight with 2 hours of visible light, which is weird). It dries up really quickly after the ice and snow melts because of how much sun there is. Families are generally up until like 10:00 pm playing because the sun is still out shining as if it's 3 in the afternoon; seriously. Life is very different here because everyone soaks up as much sun as they can in the summer.
Prices are another story. When we first moved here, I went to the commissary to buy some basics, and just about had sticker shock in the produce dept. I recommend purchasing in bulk at Costco for as many things as possible; their produce lasts the longest. Another thing you will be shocked at is shipping. Oh my heck, shipping is expensive. I probably have spent over $100 in shipping for Christmas gifts the past two years. And with my business, I use a pro lab for prints and other items and it's $15 a box. Props usually cost as much to ship as they are to purchase, and my lights cost almost $300 to ship. *ugh* But at least we are able to get these items fairly quickly. Ladies whom I know that sell Pampered Chef actually get their orders for their parties faster than in the lower 48.
Anyway, good luck on your move. These are the things I think everyone needs to know about when moving up here.
Talk to you later. If you have any more questions, please feel free to email me at ____@____.com.
Warmly,
M.