September 29, 2013

I was out early this morning because it wasn't raining.  The geese came flying in as I was standing at the end of the dock, but changed their direction when they spotted me so close to their intended landing spot.  They ended up having to swim and walk a bit further they wanted honking and squawking their feelings of indignation at me as the made their way to the grass.

Fox Island, Washington  

September 28, 2013

With all the rain, rain and more rain today I stayed busy inside with juicing, pasteurizing, brewing, mixing, baking, boiling, broiling and drying.  All with.... ?  That's right..... Apples!   Finally, late in the early evening the rain let up and I was able to get out with my camera.  The dock is growing greener with each passing day and rainstorm.  The temperatures have dropped significantly and the winds have steadily picked up as we move into the Autumnal season.  We finally turned the heat on in the house this week because the boys were commenting on how cold the house felt in the mornings.

Fox Island, Washington

September 27, 2013

Another day for apple picking.... after a long run in the woods with the Dirty Girls first.  So far this week I've made 3-4 gallons of pasteurized apple cider for everyone to enjoy.  Today I made 3 gallons of the unpasteurized nectar and will do the same tomorrow so I can start brewing a hard cider.  With all this juicing going on, I'm left with a large amount of apple pulp that I can't bring myself to throw away.  So.... what can I do with it?  I used some in the meatballs I served for dinner the other night and the family declared them the best I've ever made.  The pups like it mixed in with their dog food.  I think I'll even try to bake up a batch of doggie treats later next week.  And... I mixed up a couple of bottles of apple ginger ale the boys can sample next weekend.  

Fox Island, Washington

September 26, 2013

Many of my friends are in the process of harvesting their Fall fruits and vegetables.  I'm right there with them.  Because the deer ravaged a lot of my garden, I planted a round of tomatoes, lettuce and peppers in pots on the deck.  These yellow bells are coming along nicely and should be ready to pick in a week or so.  With the temps getting colder, I'm preparing to move all the plants inside so they don't get killed off by frost.

Fox Island, Washington

September 25, 2013

After a great run at the Cross Country meet in Port Orchard, Zach and I stopped at the Fox Island fishing pier to take in the view.  Yes, there is some cloud cover, but the sun was doing it's best to make an appearance at the end of the day.  From the southeastern tip of our island where the pier sits and if the weather is cooperating we can see the shoreline of Tacoma.  Every morning, even half way up the island where our house is located, we can hear the trains moving along this track to and from the busy Port of Tacoma.  

Fox Island, Washington

September 24, 2013

The girl and her sorority sisters were permitted to move into their house last week.  Even though it's still in the middle of being renovated, classes begin tomorrow and they really need a place to settle in.  Obviously, the AO∏ house is still under construction.....  but when it's finished, it'll be gorgeous. I took a few much needed items over to Jordan, got a quick tour of the house and had lunch at a cute little bistro in the U district.  We had sunshine and comfortable temps to make the morning quite enjoyable.

Seattle, Washington 

September 23, 2013

Our new Boy Scout troop (Troop 282) in Gig Harbor received our awards packet from Hawaii just in time to present them at the quarterly Court of Honor.  The awards date back to the beginning of the year so Sam had a larger than usual list.  So far this year, Sam has earned 15 merit badges and advanced 2 ranks.  Pat on the back to Sam and thank you to the many mentors we've encountered along the way!

Gig Harbor, Washington

September 22, 2013

I love Mackelmore.... he made thrift store shopping cool.  Today, while Dave and I were browsing one of the Tacoma Goodwill stores, we chanced upon a barely used Jack Lalanne Super Juicer.  Upon returning home we immediately tried it out on the remaining 1/2 bushel of apples I had picked earlier in the week.  WOW!  This is fantastic apple cider!  I think I'll be doing some serious apple harvesting for the next couple of weeks.  We'll be brewing up some of the regular stuff, but guess at what else we're going to try our hand?!?!  

Fox Island, Washington

September 21, 2013

A cool, crisp Fall day made for some great sailing weather.  Many of our neighbors were out on the water today, enjoying the last few days of decent weather.  My guys went to the University of Washington vs Idaho State game instead.  Good game for UW!

Fox Island, Washington

September 20, 2013

Happy, happiest birthday to our youngest prodigy, Samuel.  Eleven is a good year!

Fox Island, Washington

September 19, 2013

I went out to scare off the rodents (that would be the deer) who were, yet again, attempting to get close to my vegetable garden and saw this beautiful spider web filled with dew droplets.  With the bright sun shining on it there's a slight rainbow effect.  

Fox Island, Washington

September 18, 2013

Zach is running Cross Country for the High School this year.  Gig Harbor High School has a phenomenal team -- one of the best not just in the state, but in the nation.   Good, bad or ugly doesn't matter to me.  Zach's teammate, trainers and coaches are amazing, kind, compassionate people who lift his spirits and encourage him to be a better person.  I feel incredibly blessed to be here.  Run Zach, run!

Gig Harbor, Washington

September 17, 2013

So.... what can be made from the apples I pick?  Applesauce for one!  It can then be put to use in my latest bread recipe.... Spiced Applesauce Bread.  This was my sample loaf.  It's all gone now, but I'll be making plenty more soon.  Recipe to follow in the Daily Bread.

Fox Island, Washington

September 16, 2013

Our good friends, Brian and Mack Kleven arrived today after spending the last 7 days driving across our beautiful country.  Here's a shot of the men with their 1st born sons.

Fox Island, Washington

September 15, 2013

With all the fog and rain today, I thought we could use some comfort food.  For this every day dal dish I got to used fresh veggies - spinach, tomatoes and onions -  from the garden.  

Fox Island, Washington

September 14, 2013

While participating in the annual Fox Island rummage sale I met my neighbor who has many apple trees in his yard.  By the end of our short conversation I was named "keeper of the apple trees."  It turns out my neighbor hates dealing with the apples and would love to have someone pick them and take them away.  Here's is a small sample of what I got when I stood under 2 of the trees -- just reached up and plucked them off the branches!  This batch was peeled, cored and diced into a pie and large pot of apple sauce.  The harvest over the next couple of weeks will be enough to last through the winter!  Recipe ideas and suggestions are more than welcome.

Fox Island, Washington

September 13, 2013

I started seeing these and various signs pop up around town as of Wednesday evening.  At first, I though it might be from a supportive friend or parent, but the numbers have grown exponentially over the last 2 night.  The balloons and sparkly signs are everywhere.  I mean EVERYWHERE!   "Harbor Power, Go Tides, GHHS, Roll tides roll.....  It's the 2nd week of school, but the first week to kick off the sports season.  Gig Harbor High School (along with most of the schools in our state) had their 1st games, matches or meets for football, volleyball, soccer, tennis, swim/dive, water polo and cross country.  The whole town is behind this campaign.  It's fun to see all of the town support for our many student athletes.  Roll tide!

Gig Harbor, Washington

September 12, 2013

Walking back from greeting Sam at the bus stop this afternoon I spied this cluster of almost ready to pick cluster of apples.  A few of our neighbor have many trees similar to this one.  I do believe I'll be doing some door knocking to inquire about the possibility of apple sharing.  I'm more than happy to share some pie filling or apple sauce if they let me pick their apples.

Fox Island, Washington

September 11, 2013

Never forget.
Fox Island, Washington

September 10, 2013

My plan was to say something about a slimy slug I came across while walking the pups this morning.  That is, until the boys walked in as I was downloading pictures and excitedly started spouting off information about the fire slug, it's eye stocks, the breathing hole, the single, large suction foot that ripples for locomotion, type of food it prefers, mating rituals, etc.... Zach then apologized for not being very knowledgeable about invertebrate mollusks.

Yeah, here's a slimy, orangish slug the pups and I came across while on our regular morning walk.

Fox Island, Washington

September 9, 2013

Another day on the trails enjoying the incoming autumn feeling.  The heavy rains we've experienced lately have encouraged the leaves to fall and the fungi to grow.  It's amazing to see the many different shades of green in the forest.

Gig Harbor, Washington

September 8, 2013

Lots of fog again this morning.  It makes for a peaceful walk.
Fox Island, Washington

September 7, 2013

I spotted a red headed woodpecker this morning while running the trails this morning.  Actually, I heard him first.  It took a while to locate him because of the heavy, wet foliage still clinging to the trees.

Gig Harbor, Washington

September 6, 2013

In the Pacific Northwest, like many other areas, September signals the coming of Fall.  I just didn't expect the change to be so sudden and drastic.  Since the calendar turned over we've seen cooler temperatures, orange and brown leaves, darker skies and lots more rain.  It even smells like autumn.

Fox Island, Washington

September 5, 2013

The sun peaked out from behind the clouds for just a minute today.   That's when the pups and I went out for a quick walk down the hill.  This little fellow scurried across the driveway, but didn't go too far. I guess everyone is getting ready for the Fall.

Fox Island, Washington

September 4, 2013

Four years of Home Schooling with the same number of household moves, halfway around the world and back.  We never missed a beat.  Today was the first day in many years of school at traditional brick and mortar locations.  Junior and freshman at Gig Harbor High School and 6th grade at Kopachuck Middle School.  All went well for everyone.  Including me.  

Fox Island, Washington

September 3, 2013

Last day of summer break and the bigger boys are taking full advantage of some free morning time.  Remi just likes hanging out and watching.
Fox Island, Washington

September 2, 2013

Our little gas station and convenient grocery store did a very creative thing.  Instead of have just some ugly tall gas tank vent valves, they made them pretty!  If you look closely, you can see the 4 release valve lines behind this artistic pipe model ship.  Very clever and attractive at the same time.

Fox island, Washington

September 1, 2013

This was the scene up and down Greek Row at the University of Washington this morning. Kelly Payne and I got in a quick walk and coffee from Starbucks before finishing up at the yellow house. Ww worked non stop from 7am until the doorbell rang at 1:00 pm for the check out walk through.  After just 3 hours of sleep then scrubbing bathrooms, a kitchen, many floors, windows, walls and moulding, jamming give-away junk into my car and tying larger pieces of furniture to a roof rack I'm ready for a shower and a good night of restful sleep. Thanks for joining me, Kel!

Seattle, Washington

August 31, 2013

Taking a break from helping the kids move out of their house.  Kelly Payne and I decided we needed to get away from the nastiness to enjoy some Hawaiian BBQ on the Ave.  Once the clean up is completed we are having a slumber party and drinking a few brews.

Seattle, Washington