Chicken chair

What do you think of my chair? I made it up in Talkeetna a few weekends ago, hard work. It's good to see that the chickens appreciate it at least.

The pumpkins were carved earlier in the week, Scott's is scariest for sure.

baby cooking

Here are two pictures of the future heir to the Andersen empire. The first is I think 36 weeks and the second is 34 weeks, can you tell the difference? I certainly can! The baby room is done, the baby shower was so great and now just a little more cooking until we meet our son!

R.I.P Rue McClanahan

She was a funny chicken, had a hard time hatching, we had to help her. She might have never laid an egg, and she was often thought to be very low I.Q. No matter, she was sweet chicken who made some really crazy seagull like noises and she will be missed. Here is her official baby chick pic, sigh, sad to loose a pet.

A role in the hay

Ginger has taken to napping in the hay Seth spread in the perennial beds. The chickens and ducks love to root around in the hay and so Ginger doesn't get much quality sleep.

Projects for a rainy day

The weather this weekend was terrible so I started some projects, might be a little nesty ah? Well, when inspiration hits better run with it. As someone who has no patience for straight lines or exact measurements sewing is not generally my bag but I found a neat book with really simple projects. Made some little bibs, simple giraffe shaped rattles, burp rags and ribbon teething rags.

Menagerie of pets

With a little sunshine the farm animals really start to look beautiful. For your viewing pleasure here is Ginger in her fall glamour shot and the chickens dust bathing in my flower beds. On a similar note I just opened up the linen closet to put away a towel and out jumps Spy cat like it's her usual to be in the closet all morning, she just rubbed my leg and walked over the food bowl, as if to say, "Good morning Bonnie, I'm simply famished, have you eaten yet?"

The picture of the dog and the chicken happens to be our newest friendship. David Green, something of a loner chicken has developed a taste for Ginger's canned dog food and stops in the arctic entry around 6 ish each evening to clean-up whatever Ginger doesn't care for, David Green is the first up every morning, last to bed and now her plucky resolve has been rewarded, she is the only chicken eating beef in a rich gravy each night. Yes, she may look like a cross between a taradactal and a drowned chicken but she is very smart. She is named after a local fur coat retailer because she wears a fur coat and owns no feathers.

Baby Room

A few weekends ago Seth did the most amazing job transforming our extra room in to the baby's room. He put in new flooring, painted, new furniture and than we did a bit of decorating! So fun, now just to add the occupant. Looks like Seth wins the best dad on the block award from me.

September

Well, it seems August has morphed into September here in Anchorage and hopefully it starts to be a little less rainy around here. You know it's fall in Anchorage because Ashley and Scott are back in town, school has started and now Pat and Caroline are back in town, I guess it's time for schedules, snow and darkness here soon.

On a good note the blueberries were great, I don't want to brag but I really made a pretty good haul for someone who can't bend over very well. My salmon haul was good too but turns out not worth it, I pulled a ligament in my belly while lifting a backpack full of fish and now it won't heal, with a large belly it turns out this is becoming more painful and more of a pain, just rolling over in bed is becoming an event, poor Seth.

Over the last weekend a trip to Homer was made to pack things up for winter and add stairs to the new dock. Seth found some incredible bolts, wires, rock drills and epoxy to make sure the dock won't float away in the ice this winter. While working we watched an otter clean himself obsessively every morning, a baby eagle learn to soar (not gracefully) and Kingfishers chase each other. It was relaxing to have no appointments or job, a quiet evening playing cards and reading sure helps to calm you down.

Now, it's back to the race, Seth and I should be well schooled after childbirth class and hypno birth class with a little breast-feeding class thrown in for good measure. Let the crazy times begin.

Here are a few pics of the deck all buttoned down for the winter, hope your fall is swell.

Dock progress

Looks like in all the family visits I forgot to include a few pictures of the dock Seth and I built a few weekends ago out at Bear Island. The area is aptly named as we saw at least one bear if not two every day. The dock is up and very steady, we are headed back down to add stairs to the dock and to the island itself and to prepare for next summer's big adventure of cabin building. Building the dock was actually really fun, learning all the terms for the beams and creating something from just wood is so cool, I have to admit I was totally hooked and really excited to see what Seth had planned every day. We floated all the wood for the following day over from Dad's beach to our rock outcropping at high tide and Seth had a great itinerary so we would stay on schedule. Now, hopefully it is all there and as we left it when we go back in two weekends.

Is it fall already?

Word is there is termination dust on the mountains here in town, we wouldn't know as the rain hasn't let up in ages, can't see them yonder peaks anyhow. The bumper crop of raspberries had to be picked and frozen so that the rain wouldn't rot them. I can safely say that the ducks are in heaven though, boy do they love water in any form.

Lately Seth and I have been having some fun. Last weekend was the big family lamb roast for Grandma's 87th birthday. Lots of the family was up at the farm, kids, dogs, chickens, geese and meat was everywhere. Seth and showed up a bit late in the morning so the geese cleaning was already in the works but we did each get to clean one so I spose we were lucky, goose fat makes your hands softer than you could ever imagine, just in case you ever have a bad chest cold Gram saved the lanolin to wrap in flannel for your lungs. Than to the kitchen table where giant pieces of lamb were drying, processed that and parceled it out for the family and the cousins roasted lots to perfection for dinner. Than off to heard up the cows, cousins new sheep dog was incredible and really did his job, Dr. Seth turned two little bulls into steers while four grown men cousins held the little fellows down, thanks to the new video camera M & G gave us for birthday we have some awesome footage. Next up roast lamb dinner that was incredible out on the lawn than an easter egg hunt with 1,000$ in them!! Seth had an egg with a $100 dollar bill in it, lucky. Some eggs had slips of paper entitling the bearer to a fruit bar, fancy bar soap or 8 seconds of money grab. In case you haven't experienced money grab it is incredible. Money grab is a gallon bucket with a t-shirt duct taped around it, you get 8 seconds to stick your hand in the sleeve and pull out as much cash/ coins as you can, such a good time, it can only be given justice in a video, which you know I captured with the new device.

A few days later Seth headed off to Denali for a backpacking and pack-rafting trip with another cousin and some friends, the pictures look amazing, no sign of humans for years it looks. I hung around town and prepared the old art room for kids and spent time with more cousins and the grandparents out at the farm. Overall a great time.


NOW!!!! Now, it is 10:18 pm and Seth is using a shovel to pull up the carpet in the baby's bedroom. I bought some paint tonight and tomorrow is painting and new wood flooring. While the whole house shakes from Seth's hard work I will update you on the happenings and try not to feel lazy, I will also simultaneously cook up this little baby who is now 2 lbs and can open and close his eyes!!! I can also poke him and he will poke back, he knows upside down and right side up as well as light and dark!! Yes, only the fattening up to do until we meet the little pecker in November, can't wait!!!!!!!!!!! I hope he is calmer at night than his father, if not I spose a lot will get done around this little farm when he is older.

Hope all is well with you and wherever you are there is summer sunshine as I hear August is the hottest part of the summer somewhere besides the upper one.

Here is the Old House Seth and I have been working on. The inside is done and the outside is being excavated and landscapes this coming weekend. I just created a website to show our potential renters so I hope it works, just in case you are interested here is the website: dearmounoldhouse.blogspot.com

And now here is something you will really enjoy:

New improved outside and deck



Old outside house and old deck




New improved kitchen



Old Kitchen




Bedroom #1 old



Bedroom #1 new



Bedroom #2 new



Bedroom #2 old



New living room



Old Living room




New Bathroom



Old Bathroom

Clearing the Island

This last weekend was spent doing some/lots of manual labor, the type where you shimmy up a rope and than proceed to clear brush for 2 entire days. Meghan was good enough to help us, lots of help!!! It rained one whole day making things a bit more tricky, especially when you are sliding brush down a gully to the ocean!!! What everyone needs in this case is an amazing friend who works hard and has the positive attitude that never fails. In the end we did an incredible amount, created 270 degree views for the cabin and clearing a way to build a dock and stairs to the site this coming weekend. Ginger did not care for the rain, she did not care for the sheer cliff ascent but when it was time to descend she laid very carefully in a backpack as we lowered her to the rowboat, now that is an impressive dog!

Ginger served dual purposes that weekend as a bear dog and bomb sniffing dog. We found this rocket shell on the beach and after calling the police, than the troopers than the coast guard as instructed on the can warning it was a bomb! We were told to just through it in the trash, it was mostly likely not armed anymore. So as usual with anything that floats in on the tide, we are storing it in the outhouse.


Along with bombs and chainsaws we saw lots of seals, otters, eagles nesting in the woods above the cabin site and two river otters, a very rare creature I hope to sight again.

A little trip to the Bahamas

Well, we are back from a two week trip to the Bahamas followed by a week in Washington with the Andersen/ Anderson fam and a week with Ma and Pa Peltz.

The Bahamas was a once in a lifetime trip. We visited our friends Rob and Nadine who are teachers at a boarding school for 16 and 17 year olds from the United States on an Island called Eultheria. The school takes 70 students per semester and teaches them about sustainable living, renewable resources and encourages learning through hands on participation. Seth and I stayed on the campus and enjoyed swimming at least twice a day, snorkeling, biking, running, kayaking and spear fishing. We took a little trip on the kayaks along the very deserted coast (the southern tip of Eultheria is not populated by much besides land crabs and conch shells. Lots of sunshine, 85 degree water and great people (the other teachers at the school were great fun!) Lots of beautiful fish, Seth received one on one scuba lessons and we had our first shark experience, I spose our unborn son did too, which is what crossed my mind when I watched the creature swim underneath me!!

Visiting in WA was great, met Melissa and Gail's new pup, Rum Doodle the Poodle, very cute and full of energy. Enjoyed the warm windy weather, went on a nice hike, windy bike and beautiful boat ride. Mom and I dropped Seth at the airport in Seattle and had a whirlwind shopping trip with excellent maternity pants in the basket and a quick visit with Melissa and Gail.

Few, now to catch up on the chick weed in the garden and the out of control flower beds, one forgets how lush Anchorage is until you leave for a month and can't see you house under the hops plant.