6.17.24 Monday
Hello again!
Spring has definitely sprung! These delicate, blue "Forget Me Nots" are everywhere! For those of you who may not know, they are the Alaska state flower...
In the last few weeks, Kevin was able to come home for a few days. He and Huck picked me some beautiful wildflowers...
We also have an abundance of dandelions so I decided to try making dandelion jelly... You know, when life gives you scraps, make quilts..or lemons, make lemonade...you get the idea...
Success! It tastes pretty sweet with a hint of honey flavor...
With Kevin home for a few days, we were able to get all of our seedlings transferred outside and he even tilled up a garden. We knew that the previous owners had left a couple of tillers but didn't figure they would work. Needless to say, we were pleasantly surprised! I'll show pictures of our plantings next time, once they've had the chance to really pop up.
Because we were stranded from driving the trail for six weeks, I've been keeping busy in the kitchen...
Homemade pot pie... (not perfect, but edible!)
Used my mom's pot pie recipe and my grandma's crust recipe...
Pretty tasty, if I do say so myself!
Also learned how to make English Muffins from scratch...
Who knew??
Kevin is back to work now so Huck and I wile away the hours in my happy place on the porch swing...
It doesn't suck....😎
Before I let you go, let me tell you a little story....When Kevin was able to come home between work schedules, I needed to drive the trail to go into town to pick him up at the parking lot. Granted, we'd not been able to use the trail for six weeks! So I jumped on Ruby (yes, I named my ruby-red Rubicon 😂) and headed in for the 12-mile stretch. About 1/3 of the way there, I came across a large birch tree across the trail. I couldn't lift it to move it out of the way and I couldn't drive the four-wheeler over it without getting high-centered. So....options? I travel with a chainsaw in the summer for moments just like this! The problem was, I've USED the chainsaw but never cut a tree out of the trail. How hard can it be, right?? And, if I'm going to do this, why start at the little end?? I'm starting on the big end! It didn't take long for me to get the chainsaw super-pinched in the tree. Yep, it was stuck like none other. I couldn't cut the tree out of the way and now my chainsaw was totally stuck!
No phone service (of course!) to call Kevin and let him know I might be a little late, so I had to improvise. I turned around and took the lower trail (which we don't normally take). It's a little further but it took me around the fallen tree and got me back on track. Kevin had been a little worried because he'd not been able to reach me and I was later then expected...
Heading back home, we stopped at the fallen tree with the chainsaw hanging out of it. Here's the rub.....he's an old logger....and that thing was SO STUCK that we had to remove the chain from the saw! Even the winch wouldn't move the tree! He was able to get the four-wheeler around the tree and we headed on home. We got a BIGGER chain saw, went back to the tree and he made short work of it. We also moved another one out of the way on our way home. Moral of the story: Always try to travel the trail with at least one other person...two heads are definitely better than one! (And two strong backs don't hurt either!)
Until next time, stay wild!