Have Passport Will Travel?

The house is QUIET with three people out of town! Wow.

Dad and I made another trip to the post office - this time with an appointment. His passport application is on it's way to PA! Have passport, will travel? He is happy to think he has it for another 10 years.  The last time he'd renewed it was in Manila.

Nolan got home from work a bit early.

We all took naps.  I have discovered a new joy! Reading outside at midnight. A habit which evidently leads to afternoon naps.

I woke up in time to prepare dinner and have a water fight with Benny. 

The three of us played Farkle after dinner. The games are much quicker. LOL They are really fast if one rolls like this - I've never seen a roll like this. 3,000 points and Nolan for the win!

Dad and Nolan headed to bed after a second game. I headed outside to get chickens to bed, close up the greenhouse, water what looked dry and take care of some bug problems.

It's been a bit of a quiet day - but it's been a good day.

MeMa and Benny's First Water Fight

Benny LOVES to be in the middle of whatever project is occupying our attention. He especially likes chores involving water. Here are a few photos from last week. 

Helping water

On another day he helped me fill the chicken's water. 

He was doing a great job - until he turned the hose on them. 

The chickens tend to avoid Benny

Benny has spent yesterday and today calling for Papa, Yay-a, and Ax....alas  all went bye-bye. I suggested he come out and help me feed scraps to the chickens tonight. We asked Arielle - she said yes - and off we went.  I should have remembered the chicken incident.

It all started so innocently. Dandelions and Eggs - remember? Our two crops at Wibbly Wobbly Acres. All crops must be watered.  Don't be fooled by the cute innocence. 

Watering the dandelions

This was the warning shot....

and then all the photos became blurry and water logged as I attempted to escape  the onslaught of Benny-directed watering. He got me good....I was laughing and yelling. Arielle was laughing.  G Dog was yelling and laughing from the window....I was WET.

Benny? He was laughing with glee.  And chattering a mile a minute. In the midst of it all he called me MeMa (Memaw?). I have no idea if it will stick - but I liked the sound of it coming from a little grandblessing.

I told Arielle to help me....she said he'd get her if she helped. ::snort:: I told her to turn the water off. ::snort::  Look at the determination on that face!

I hope it's the first of many water fights to come.

Busy Monday

I got a text from Michael early this a.m. like 0500 early.  I needed to run an errand for him as soon as the post office opened.  Michael has safely landed in Colorado. He'll enjoy a few days with his brother and family. Krista will meet him in Colorado in a few days. They'll proceed to drive to Alaska.

Dad and I went to the post office to mail Michael's passport, get my photos and renew my passport, and get Dad a new passport. We managed to mail Michael's and get my pictures. We'll go back tomorrow as Dad needed an appointment. The man told me I could "mail this yourself." At the end of  helping me, after I'd paid, he gave me a flat rate envelop and recommended I send the passport priority.....as I walked out I realized...."No, I can't mail this FROM home, I'll have to bring it all back to mail it here." ::snort:: Tomorrow.

I didn't even get to walk into the door before Stacia met me and we headed to Freddies to get her a couple of things she needed for camp.  This is usually a 5 - 6 minute drive. Due to road construction it takes 20 minutes to get to Freddies. Tis the season.

Nolan came home and agreed to drive out with Dad and I to take the kids to camp. He was making a call to the oral surgeon before we left and they said the could see him THIS Friday. WHAT? No initial consult. They'll remove the offending, painful teeth this Friday...IF we registered him before the end of business day. I knew we wouldn't be home before the end of business day....that was a LONG registration form. ::snort::

We met a friend and followed them out to camp. I was a bit worried about trusting the GPS in totally new territory.  Gorgeous area, nice camp. I took a photo, but promised one of the girls I wouldn't put it on Facebook.....

Yes, the kids are at camp. Michael is gone. I freely admit this as one would  be a fool to attempt to get into this house. Enough said. There are still 3 men here... CoRielle had recommended Smashburger...they said the burgers were good, the view great, AND they had a vegetarian option.

Our table with a view

They were right on all counts. It was another gorgeous summer day in Alaska and we scored an outside table with a stunning view.

Back at home, Nolan and Dad headed to bed. I spent another hour watering, weeding and settling chickens for the night. I've discovered it's very refreshing to sit and watch a sprinkler....with a cup of tea.

Saturday Projects

We worked on projects today. Michael and Alex were determined to finish the upgrade to the chicken coop before Michael leaves to bring our baby girl home. They succeeded. Michael can leave knowing the chicks are contained and I'm not chasing them up and down Mat Peak. LOL 

They'll have a covered area this winter and I'll wrap the fence in that corner to cut the wind and snow drifts. We are hoping this will allow them to be outside more and cut down on the pecking and such. We also hang cabbage for them to peck on, give them carrots, put balls in there, and I'm looking for a xylophone to attach to the wall - anything to give them something to do. LOL   

They errected a temporary fence that runs from the corner of the coop to the existing fence. This will keep the chicks in and close to the bigger chickens. We're letting them get used to each other, waiting for Phoenix to mature, then we'll sneak this year group into the coop some night. Maybe it will go smoothly. Lucille still can't go back into the coop. She is bloodied every time we try. She WANTS back in....that'll preach. 

Josiah came by as we were finishing our Saturday projects and helped catch chicks. They have enjoyed free-ranging. I am tired of the poop on the front porch. They've started heading for the road, and one made it. They are also easy prey the further they range.  They are adjusting well to their confinement.

CATCHING them was an adventure. Benny jumped in to help with this as well. They love hiding under the trailer.

As we caught them, we introduced them to their new home. Stacia with Lorri 1. 

Josiah and Lorri 2. 

Alex with Red - needs a name. 

 See the thin one with the white head and gray back lower half. She holds herself very upright when she runs. She's fun to watch. We've named her road runner - and we'd love guesses as to her breed. 

 While the guys worked on the chicken coop, Stacia and I continued working on the garden. 

I hadn't realized how big the garden spot is. I planted all the seedlings I had....and still have 1/2 the garden to plant. I had hoped to find some squash and pumpkin starts - no luck.  The chick weed up here is like Kudzu in the south. It's terribly prolific! I don't want to look at a huge patch of weeds all summer....the wood shavings did not deter the weeds last year. They grew through ROOF shingles. ::snort::  I am covering the areas we are not using with black plastic in an effort to check the weeds.  We were given a roll and used it. Michael had a huge box from Lowes and we used all of it today. I need to go buy more. 

I am standing in the NE corner of the garden by the fence post...all this grassy area needs taken down and then covered. To the left is corn. 

Stacia and I covered from the beds to the fence line and over to the other SW fence line. 

It's going to be a work in progress. I envision various sizes of beds, some flowery spaces, a bench and table to enjoy....a trellis and a wooden fence with an arched entry way....for now I'm content to slap plastic over it and weed every day....Things are growing this year. I'll do a post soon - I have garden questions too. Anyone surprised? LOL

As the guys picked up tools, we started dinner inside. It was fun to have Josiah out to visit and to catch up with him.

We played a couple of rounds of Farkle and STACIA won for the first time since G Dog arrived. LOL

Chick Antics or Name That Breed

If you are a chicken person, please give us your opinions on the breeds of the chicks we mention below. I am happy to have selected chicks from a local feed store - I got a bigger variety than I need when we ordered from Anchorage....but I haven't a clue what I got. I do have 6 Cochins or mixed-Cochins. I recognize the one Red Sex Link. 

The antics of this year's chicks keep us on our toes....Evidently this gal wants to go for a bike ride.  Anyone want to guess as to her breed? 

This is one of our black Cochins, shown providing natural fertilizer for my plants. 

Chicks happy in their new home - well ok - not so happy. They want to continue having free range of Wibbly Wobbly acres...but as they are not smart enough to stay out of the road....they now have a safer home.  Anyone know the breed of the one in the bottom right - white head, gray feathers, black tail feathers. She's really pretty. We have two of them. The Cochin beside her appears to be a mixed whatever she is and Cochin. Any guesses?  They run like road runners - therefore we have named them road runner 1 and road runner 2. 

Phoenix is getting the crowing thing down...though he seems to think 1 a.m. is an appropriate time to practice. I need to figure out how to make their pen DARK so they aren't waiting for the sun to go down.  Anyone know what breed he is? 

Guesses on breeds? 

Thanks all! They are two months old. We are waiting for Phoenix to be big enough to win in a fight with the mean girls before we combine the two year groups. We want him to establish order and not be terrified of the meanies. 

Summer Afternoon

Benny loves being outside. One benefit of having dad here is  I slow down enough to sit outside for an hour or two with him each day. Arielle and Benny often come out after his nap.  Here he is enjoying frozen banana/apple puree. Frozen in a long bag, it's better than otter pops by far but just as convenient. LOL

I use this time to check in on the garden. We have tiny cucumbers and tomatoes in the greenhouse. Pepper, melon and tomato blossoms and beans starting to come on. I'm calling the greenhouse a success and dreaming of simply enclosing the entire garden spot. I enjoy the humid warmth too - tropical muscle memory. 😏   Out in the garden I thinned the radishes. We have lettuce, carrots, kale, cauliflower, cabbage etc growing.  There are a few hills of potatoes sprouting and a bit of corn. I'm disappointed not to see more corn. What could be going on?

Michael and Alex are busy with the latest project. They are the wonder-workers around here. I think it up - they make it appear. They are making a covered area off the coop. In the long term this will provide shade in the summer and a snow-less spot in the winter.  In the short term, we plan to put a temporary divider off the corner of the coop to fence in the area for the free-ranging chicks. I tried to put them in  a couple of nights ago and Phoenix flew out and then instructed the girls how to break free.

We ended the night with a dinner of smoked salmon, roasted potatoes, and salad. We also played a couple of rounds of Farkle. Michael and I were the evening's winners.

Smoked Salmon

The day after a salmon trip..... 

THIS is the recipe I used last year. Everyone loved it - it was sticky sweet. As I am dealing with diabetes, sticky sweet is not a good thing. It also limited what could be done with the salmon. It was GONE by January.

I knew I wanted to make more as this was a favorite....but I researched to see if I could find another brine.

We sort of combined various recipes/techniques this year. Here is exactly what we did.

INGREDIENTS
4 C brown sugar
1 C Kosher salt (non-iodized)

Maple Syrup or Orange Juice
Apple and Alder wood chips (is what we used this time)

INSTRUCTIONS 
Mix brown sugar and salt.

Filet salmon as you desire. Rather than cutting salmon into small strips and chunks - we left it in big pieces this year. This made it easier to dry and smoke on the racks, took less time, and may be one reason it isn't as sweet this year. 

Layer salmon in container, top with 1/4 inch of brine on each layer. Cover your container and place in fridge for 12 -14 hours. I consistently read online that longer marinading leads to saltier fish.

Put salmon on racks. Save liquid from containers to baste salmon as it dries. Pat off any big salt crystals. DON'T RINSE. Baste salmon with liquid.

*Dry salmon on racks - with a fan blowing on them for 2 - 2 1/2 hours.  Baste around the one hour and 2 hour mark. Dry for 30 min beyond the last baste.  A sort of crust layer forms and this is desired. Can't remember what it's called but it starts with a "p".  It's helpful to have Yuuki stand guard during these 2 hours.

Beagle not essential to success

Near the end of drying...fill your wood chip pan with chips Heat smoker to 250* and let a strong smoke build up.  When a good smoke has built up, turn your smoker to the lowest setting, open the door and let it cool down a bit. Spray your racks with non-stick spray (I didn't do this and it was fine). If you didn't dry your salmon on racks as I did - load the racks - or place the racks in the smoker. Baste if you'd like.

Reheat smoker to 150* Cook for an hour under steady smoke.

Baste with brine or do as we did - maple syrup. Orange juice can also be used and I'll try that next time.

Continue smoking with light smoke on 150*. In the original recipe this took an hour or two.

This took 7 - 8 hour with the bigger pieces. 😏

We smoked to an internal salmon temp of 145*. I am seeing it can be smoked to 135-145. I think we'll aim for 140* next time.

Michael basted throughout the process whenever the mood struck him. 

It turned out really good. Not as dry,  or sticky sweet. Rather than a sweet snack, we ate some for dinner.  This will be great on crackers (as the last stuff was) but it will also be good in recipes and dips. I think the difference in the sweet is  we left the salmon in bigger pieces AND Michael covered the racks with tin foil the first time...we didn't this time.

The racks cleaned up quickly in the dishwasher.

Smoked Salmon will keep for up to 2 weeks in the fridge. We vacuum seal and freeze and it lasted until it was all gone - at least 6 months.

If you want to can the fish - smoke for an hour or so for flavor,  and then proceed with canning. I think it would be far to dry to can completely smoked fish. I have smoked for an hour and then canned with good results.

*Drying under fan - online some skip this step; all or most the Alaskans recipes I read say it is essential. I decided not to skip it.

Brenda sent this recipe. It uses a salt water brine for 4-8 hours in the fridge and then a sweet or savory dry rub right before you smoke. I plan to try the savory next time we have some salmon.