A Well-Lived Summer Day

Summer evenings* are made for campfires. We set around the fire until after midnight with sweet friends last night. Tonight - it's a family circle around the fire. Cory is just 2 weeks away from finishing his degree and is pushing to finish, Dad decided he wanted to turn in early tonight (he was out until 8:45 p.m. last night).  We LOVED nightly campfires when we lived full-time in our RV. This is a habit we have worked to carry over into our stationary lifestyle. It is FINE if everyone simply reads at the campfire...some nights we talk, or read a chapter of Patrick McManus....tonight we relaxed.

Michael, Stacia, Nolan, Krista, Alex

We don't have s'mores EVERY night, but I have converted a tool box to a "s'more kit" and it IS always ready to go. 😉

Of course, relaxing around the fire is much more satisfying if one has been productive during the day.

I mailed off packages....and had a 2 hour ILP (Individual Learning Plan) meeting with our contact teacher at IDEA,  the charter school where our children are registered.  She loved the kids' plans....she knows our family and we truly like each other. She is a Pastor's wife and I keep thinking it would be fun to visit their church - but I haven't found a week where I want to miss our church. ::snort::  She said there will be no problem waiving the extra credits Stacia is taking as she knows we will do what we say we will do, and  she has seen how we are working to keep Stacia engaged and challenged. She had suggestions for Alex which I think will prove to be beneficial as we steer him towards his future. Specifically, she helped me create a much stronger "Career Prep" credit for him than the Sonlight texts I had....we'll incorporate local and state resources. She also explained  he qualifies for the Alaska Performance Scholarship and can use the money  for Voc Tech classes. As we talked, I realized Ales hasn't taken Ramsey's Foundation of Personal Finances - a requirement to graduate from our home school.  I mentioned we'd be working on that on the side and she suggested we incorporate it with the Sonlight Economics course to make it a full credit course.

And then....we simply talked. We shared about her recent visit home and my summer....and what it is like to be a woman in your 50's with parents aging and grandblessings thrilling....and to do it all from, and in, Alaska.

I stopped at Lowes for marking paint, peat moss and lime. Gardening and timber felling.... LOL I made a final stop before coming home for Dad's paper.

The front of our place is wonderfully private in the spring/summer/fall. It's very public in the winter when the cottonwood and birch trees lose their leaves.  It's a forest - and we're always working to keep the cottonwood from taking over.....

Michael and Alex went into this mess and cleared out Cottonwood. They left a a one deep stand between our home and the clearing. 

So handy to have these two in our midst

They planted four evergreens. It's a start. We'll leave the cottonwood as these grow...and then remove some of the Cottonwood to gain a bit more yard once the new ones provide privacy.  Once again, thinking in terms of years from now is an oddity for us - and we're enjoying it. We have the time to change this. 

Dad likes to come out and do what he can - always providing encouragement, and a few jokes, along the way. 

Michael, Dad and Alex 

THIS is the squash which grew from our secondary compost pile. This gives me great hope for my lasagna beds....it's taken over the area to the north of the garden which I hadn't weeded or planted. 

We aren't sure what it is. Arielle and I have talked about it and we both had spaghetti and butternut squash seeds we threw in the compost....maybe it will be one of those? Regardless, we have a lot of blossoms on it.... What do you think?

This tells me our compost is not heating up enough to really "compost" and that it IS providing enough nutrients to grow things...more than our soil. LOL  I have not been able to use the compost we started last year....we aren't adding to it any longer and I hope to be able to use it next year. I think it will just take longer for it to "cook" due to the cold winters.

I'm doing my best to awaken a love of growing things in the next generation. 

Bachan - look! 

 We have cauliflower! 

We have both red and green cabbage. It's amazing how much better it looks without moose eating the center out of them. LOL 

The bed is terribly over-crowded. I pulled off the lower leaves and put another green layer on the lasagna bed. I don't have any more "frames" for a bed...and the guys are busy with trees, so won't be making more beds. I think I'll stake out a few more beds so I can utilize our grass clippings, barnyard litter, and fall leaves. 

This is kale AFTER I've harvested 7 quarts. I think I'm going to harvest it all before we leave for OR and freeze it. I suspect more will grow while we are gone and we'll have plenty fresh when we return. 

We are getting lots of broccoli. 

We had another night of yummy veggies from the garden...zucchini, kale, cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, carrots....garnished with fresh basil....

Um....I tried to show him the goals for disc golf...but he thinks the goal is to throw the disc through the trees. Come to think of it, he has observed such playing. LOL 

My heart! Benny's new pose when he knows I'm going to take a photo. 

Playing with Mom is always more fun than playing with anyone else! 

It was a fun day.....and while I don't want to concede fall's arrival - I am looking forward to many fall evenings around the campfire. LOL


*Summer Evenings - it's getting dusky at 9 p.m. now, and it doesn't get light until 6:30 or 7:00 a.m. We have a few leaves on the ground, and the trees are starting to turn golden....fall is certainly on it's way...but for now, my calendar still says this is summer!

Stacia Launches a Business

Stacia makes hats. She's done this for a couple of years....all winter...all year long. Her brothers are convinced she needs to start a little business for herself and market online. The little Alaskan girl who wiles away the frigid winters crafting hats. She's made several for me, one for all her nephews, nieces, siblings, sibling spouses, guests to Alaska....The boys report these are WARM in the winter for ice fishing....

She recently SOLD her first two hats..to Terrah in Oregon. Two slouch hats.  She then sold a few too me which I gifted at a baby shower. Here she is mailing two slouch hats to Oregon. They wouldn't fit in the small box...From this we learned to save boxes, it is far cheaper to mail them by weight and not flat rate. We also learned she will need to charge for shipping.  ::snort::

We were discussing how we'd thought a slouch hat would fit in a flat rate envelope but they won't...that we needed to save cracker and cereal boxes etc....Michael asked why we don't vacuum seal the hats. Hmmm....

An adult slouch hat

The first try turned out bumpy and crumpled. 

They added cardboard from a bacon package and it worked. This may fit in a flat rate envelope? AND it's just fun to watch them expand when you open the bag! ::snort:: 

I found some books on Micro-Businesses; from starting one,  to running one, to paying taxes....I'm in the process of creating a high school credited course for her on start up, marketing, branding et al, she'll learn to build an online storefront and she has a lead on a local store that may carry them....I'm not sure what to call it....I'm leaning towards  Micro Entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship is the process of designing, launching and running a new business, which is often initially a small business. This fits.

Stacia's dream has always involved owning a small business (Whether that's a family farm or a bakery/tea shop) - we're going with it and getting her experience and school credit.

Currently, we're trying to figure out how to come up with a cool tag for her creations. She's come up with one that simply says, "Joy" and has a hiragana symbol with a wobbly weeble (incorporates her name, Japan, our place).  Recently, a sibling suggested "Anastacia's Accessories," she may play with that a bit too.  We're trying to find a place that could make a simple cloth or leather tag to sew onto the brims of her hats.

Read along for the rest of the story.

Smoked Salmon Chowder

I was originally given this recipe by Sandy D.  our first year in Alaska. I have made it so often and changed it much. I'm going to go ahead and rename it and put in the way I actually make it as folks always ask for the recipe and I have to remember what tweaks I've made. If you'd like to try the original, click here. 

Even our fish haters take seconds of this soup. 

Note: This makes a large pot...1/2 for a "normal" 4- 6 serving pot of soup. Above is my 6 qt pot with this recipe as written below. 

Ingredients 

6 T butter

1 1/2 C chopped onion (Large onion)

8 garlic cloves (less if you don't love garlic)

1 C chopped celery

2 tsp garlic powder

4 C diced potatoes

4 Carrots, diced

4 C chicken broth

2 tsp salt

2 tsp black pepper

4 tsp dried dill weed 

1-2 pint of canned smoked salmon (or 2 - 4 16 oz cans or, 2lbs salmon filet) *

2 (12 oz) can evaporated milk (in a pinch use any milk; I've used almond milk)

2 -3 C frozen corn 

1 - 2  (8 oz) block cream cheese, do one and see if you want more

2 - 4 caps of liquid smoke (if you aren't using smoked salmon) again start with 2 and adjust

Directions

Melt Butter. Sauté onion, celery, garlic and garlic powder until onions are soft. 

Stir in potatoes, carrots, broth, salt, pepper, and dill. 

Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer 20 minutes.  (If using uncooked salmon filet add at this point and it will be cooked in the allotted time. 

Stir in salmon, evaporated milk, corn, and cream cheese. 

Cook until heated through.

Recipe Notes: 

I provide shredded cheddar cheese at the table as the original recipe called for it. Most don't add it. 

Visits, Projects, and Accidents

Bre has a delightful friend from her days on staff at Calvary. Donna and Bre shared an office for years. Donna has come to Alaska to visit BreZaak. Krista and I deemed it easier for us than Bre to make the morning drive to Anchorage.  It was fun to catch up with Donna...hear a bit from our home church and here a bit of the reaction to dad's upcoming move to Alaska. 

She brought us avocados. I asked her to buy some as they were much cheaper than I can them here...and these are in great shape and big! 

It rained today - really rained! Dad and I smelled the rain and smiled and commented on how familiar and comforting rain can be. We're Oregonians. Michael, Krista, Alex, and Benny were outside putting trees on the ground when the downpour began. They weren't so enamored with the smell of the rain.

Just like Papa - sort of

 I heard a huge crash and then crying and moaning....I was worried dad had fallen. Stacia had slipped in a puddle of Yuuki's making (she's out of control these days) and fallen FACE FIRST onto the brick that lines the nook for our wood stove.

Benny sympathizes. He was covering his nose when I began to take the photo. Yuuki expresses her apologies. 

It took quite a bit of time to stem the bleeding to be able to see if we were dealing with broken teeth or WHAT....a very sore nose, a gash...lots of ice and we'll see what we have tomorrow. Poor thing.

She jumped back and helped me make some yummy salmon chowder and biscuits for dinner. As we cooked...I pondered....the biscuit recipe is one I've used for decades....Barb's recipe, a friend from Hardin, MT. The chowder recipe is Sandy's, a new friend. There is something so satisfying in fixing yummy food with connections to friends.  Chowder recipe to follow.

AN AMAZING DAY

Michael and I left home at 0845 today for a meeting.

I had a stack of library books to return and we needed to pick up a gallon of milk and Dad's paper, so we ran those errands while out.

We passed Krista, Stacia and Dad on our way home....I called to let them know we HAD a paper for Dad.  They came back to get it - the plan was for him to get coffee and a paper to enjoy while Krista and Stacia ran a errands around town. It turns out he also got a doughnut - it seems to be the game we play that tomorrow a.m. when his sugars are high he will say, "WHY are they high, we eat healthy?" ::wink:: I'm on to him. I know the outings are for more than coffee (which I make here each morning for him) and a paper (which I could have delivered). ::snort::  I may just join him for a maple bar one of the mornings. Mom certainly wasn't the only one in the family with a "sweet tooth."

Michael and Alex left for the DMV. Alex has a bit of test anxiety, and the test IS harder than many state's tests we've taken...but today he PASSED.....Watch out world. He has a permit and will have a license in short order.

Way to go, Alex! 

I worked on book work, made an appointment to go over this year's ILP's with our contact teacher, cleaned out my nook which had become overrun with both empty and filled canning jars, did a bit of clean up, and then headed outside to the garden.

Benny saw me heading for the fence and said, "No. Ouch." ::snort::

He's learned well not to go near the fence, though he's never been shocked. I have learned WELL to unplug the fence when I walk into the backyard. I HAVE been shocked numerous times. It's a bit sad the moose haven't been back since they were shocked...and yet...they stripped our peach tree and destroyed several plants on their previous forays. I'm relieved they aren't getting into the garden like they did last year.

Fun garden helpers

Today we picked a nice big head of broccoli, a pan full of lettuce, 7 quarts worth of Kale (and sealed and froze it), a couple of carrots, a cucumber, 2 zucchinis (avoided the rest), and a bunch of tomatoes were ready in the greenhouse.  I may make salsa yet.

I was pulling up lettuce that went to seed and putting it my lasagna bed....but "someone" ahem...a 6'2" man in his 50's....has a soft spot for the hens and suggested they get the choice lettuce.  They do love lettuce and kale.

Michael was in the front starting the overwhelming job of spreading gravel on the driveway. Dad came out to help. Don't FUSS! Just out of camera range is a chair and a cold drink. He threw a few shovelfuls and then sat and visited while they worked.

This girl, Krista, has been offered two jobs in the school district. She could be a building sub in the town over - about a 30 min drive on a nice summer day, or a district sub....she liked the flexibility. She got a call today and was offered the job of Spec Ed aide at the High School in our town.  She accepted and will start tomorrow or Wednesday. HR is having trouble keeping up with the last minute hires. School starts on Thursday.

Road Runner had to come get into the action. She wasn't a lot of help. 

Krista brought Michael a "Sustain" drink, and he relaxed before dinner on the deck. 

Nolan treated us all to a celebratory dinner via Papa Murphy's. He headed for bed after dinner. Dad and Michael followed on his heels. 

We spent 1/2 an hour playing Flashpoint. We didn't save the victims....I had a hard time even understanding what I was supposed to be doing. LOL Stacia loves this game so I put forth the effort. 

Today Mom G would have been 91. Stacia always remembers as it is 4 days before her birthday and we had a wonderful joint celebration for them on Mom G's last birthday.

Sunday Sights

Michael woke up too dizzy to sit, get up, or move around. This happens from time to time. His blood pressure goes low.  Doc says there is nothing to really take or do unless he is passing out.  He is too think safety and stay down when this happens. It usually clears in minutes to hours. He stayed home from church.  

After church the kids, Dad and I, Krista, BreZaak and Jonathan (a guest of CoRielle's and friends of both CoRielle and BreZaak) went out to DQ. 

We came home to lovely Sunday afternoon naps. When I woke, I viewed a very naked Benny outside our window. Now THIS isn't a sight I thought I'd see in my yard during my middle years. LOL 

I headed over to join the reading party in the hammocks. Such a fun place to read - though Stacia had fallen asleep. I have no clue where the photo I took disappeared to...from my phone to some odd spot online I'd guess.

Michael, Alex and I ran into Anchorage. Michael bought himself a table saw. 

Driving home it was impossible to note leaves are turning yellow and orange. Not a lot of them - but enough of them to signal a change. We were driving home at 9 p.m. and it was dusk - instead of bright sunlight.

Phoenix has been crowing at 4:30 every morning, this morning it was 5:30.

I may have to face reality fairly soon.

Dad's Moving

Dad has been visiting since June 8th. The days have been full and we've loved every minute  we've shared.  Our talks have shifted to his return to Oregon and finding the best date for Will and Sherri, as well as the best prices for a ticket to OR. We could tell Dad has been deep in thought.

Wednesday, everyone was out of the house except he, Michael and I.  We had been looking for a chance to discuss all the living arrangements available to him in the upcoming years.  He surprised us by cutting to the chase and saying he would like to move up here.

We told him we would love to have him here. Dad is the only grandparent our kids have left and we treasure any amount of time we have with him. Mom's absence still pains me...and it has been comforting to have Dad here.

Will, Nate and I have always been in agreement Dad should be the one to choose where he lives. We're all happy he will be staying with family.

We weren't sure when he would want to move up. Maybe next spring? No. He wanted to move up NOW...and so we want to make this happen before snow flies on the Alcan. We will be leaving the last week of August to drive to Oregon. We'll bring back things we have stored in Will's barn from both our mothers, and Dad's things.  Dad wants to make the trip with us both ways - we've suggested he fly one way...but I think he's gotten a bit addicted to our crazy adventures and doesn't want to miss any of the fun. Unfortunately, well be at Calvary over Labor Day weekend and many will be camping....but we'll leave to get back here the day after Labor Day.  At this point dad plans to drive back with us.

He has talked to grandkids in Oregon, his brother, best friend, friends in OR and the pastor of the church he has attended for 60 years.  Now he told me to , "Put it on Facebook."  And so - for internet consumption....

A rather fun confirmation involves Dad's primary care doctor. I called to see if we could have an appointment with her before Dad leaves and it would need to be the 30th - due to travel dates and the holiday.  She said, "Oh we moved his appointment to August 30th and was going to call you. " We're going to do our BEST to push through to OR by the evening of the 29th.

Dad is moving to Alaska. He will be living with us. Our empty nest has turned into a revolving nest or something. CoRielle sign for a house in 5 days...and hope to move in by the beginning of October. The girls will stay in the RV until they move. Dad will have Stacia's room.

We loved having 3 generations here. It was kick having 4 generations this summer. I was thinking 2 generations would seem a bit odd after the past couple of years we've lived...and I'm thrilled we are going to continue to have 3 generations around the place - a different 3 but still 3. LOL

I grew up in cultures where the norm was having multi-generations in a home. Japan is much like this as well....this feels natural and right to all of us.