Pipeline

The Alyeska Pipeline is really cool.  It was so amazing to see an engineering masterpiece up close.  We made it out to the site of the El Dorado gold mine but figured that Caleb might be real bored riding a train, touring with a bunch of blue hairs...maybe in 50 years me and Cannon will be on the train to El Dorado, seeking our fortune in gold.

Fairbanks...

...it's the type of city I wish Anchorage were like.  Anchorage has grown too fast so it doesn't really feel like an Alaskan city.  We will be in Fairbanks this week and in Glenallen over Memorial Day.  We hope you have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend.

p.s. We see bald eagles flying overhead on occasion.  They are more numerous in other parts of Alaska and it's awesome to see them here when they glide through our skies.

Rainy Friday Brings...

...A call at 6:30a.m. from parents of the baby girl we tend, letting us know they'll be over in 10 minutes.  Scrambled eggs on toast.  "Cars" right after breakfast...

...A greener backyard. We are hunting for the perfect swing set or trampoline.  Our birch trees are not big and hearty so a zip line, tree house and catwalk are out of the question.  We'll be lucky to manage a swing out of one of these trees.  And the root system dominates the entire yard so it will be amazing to get anything that yields fruit or vegetables to flourish. But I love our forest.

...Speed Scrapping. I'm NOT a scrap booker however, last night a few gals got together and we learned about quick design elements to get our pictures organized in albums.  Basically, there are two tips I'll pass along that made my life so much sweeter: 1) Get all pages set up before adding pictures and keep it simple! You can add pictures and embellishments later! That first tip was sooo wonderful to me! 2) Check your visual weight.  Dark colors at top make it top heavy...at the bottom draw the eye down. When pages are open, both should draw the eye to the center, so make borders that draw the eye in (think of pictures that are matted and framed--they are balanced, visually appealing and they draw the eye inward).  It's all about keeping it simple.  That way the photos are the "main event."

...I've also made a dent in the laundry.  It's only 8:30a.m.  I know I'll run out of juice in about 5 minutes...Caleb got shots yesterday at his check up and he was miserable last night. So I slept with half of my body hanging off the bed as Caleb slept (snoring LOUDLY) spread eagle, in our bed.  Cannon can sleep through all of it, bless his heart.  What does your Friday morning bring?

For those of you who know me, you know that I love art, love to create, love to study art, artists, cultures, the historical, social and psychological influences...can't get enough of the decadent, crazy behaviors and lifestyles of most artists...speaking of decadent, I stumbled upon a supposedly authentic Renaissance treat from this website. Who knows when I'll get around to making this masterpiece...If any of you make it, let me know and post pics! I'm sure it will bring out your inner Donatello, Leonardo, Michelangelo or Raphael.

Apple and Pear Renaissance Pie Recipe

Tourte aux Pommes et aux Poires… This classic renaissance dessert is most likely what led to our contemporary version of an apple pie! A warm, sumptuous after dinner treat!

Preparation Time: 25 minutes (+ 10 minutes if making your own crust)
Cooking Time: about 40 minutes 

Ingredients:

1/2 lb. Apples
1/2 lb. Pears
2 oz. Butter 
4 tbsp. Granulated Sugar
2 tbsp. Rose Water (if you can't find rose water, use white wine)
Additional Butter for baking dish

2 Pie Crusts (see recipe below or use a good pre-made crust)

How to Make It:

Preheat oven to 375°F
1. Put crust in refrigerator. Peel apples and Pears and cut into medium-thick slices.
2. Sauté fruit in the butter over a medium flame until tender. Stir in 2 tbsp. sugar. Then, take off heat and let cool off completely.
3. Butter baking dish. Take crusts out of refrigerator and roll out one crust so that it is about 2 inches larger than the pie dish. Fit crust into dish, so that edges are evenly overhanging. Fill with cooled apples and pears. Roll out second crust and cover the fruit. Fold over the edges and pinch to form a "crown". Put in oven and bake for 35 to 40 minutes.
4. Mix rose water and 2 tbsp. sugar. Take pie out of oven and cover top with rose water mixture. Put back in oven for a few minutes, until the top shimmers!
Voilà!

Variations:

If you would like, you can sprinkle the bottom of the pie with a couple of tablespoons of ground almond powder. A favorite ingredient of renaissance desserts and often used in pies and tartes.

You can also make this same recipe by substituting the pears with peaches.

Last but not least, you can also soak 1/4 cup raisins in rose water for 30 minutes and then add the fruits right after stirring in the sugar. 

Serving Ideas:
Ice cream was invented during the renaissance by Italian chefs… so feel free to serve alongside this luscious pie!

Crust Recipe for Apple Pear Pie

Ingredients for Crust:
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Refrigeration Time: 30 minutes

2 2/3 cup Flour
4 Eggs
8 oz. Butter (chilled!)
2 tbsp. Granulated Sugar
2 tbsp. Ground Almond Powder (optional) Pinch of Salt

How to Make Crust:

1. Mix salt, sugar, and flour.
2. Cut chilled butter into small pieces and mix into flour with finger tips. Stop working batter once it looks like "sand".
3. Make a well and pour in eggs. Incorporate into flour using your fingers and a spatula.
4. Once homogenous, form a ball, place on a floured surface and knead for 10 seconds. Divide in half, form two separate balls. Wrap each one in plastic, or put in separate plastic bags. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or more.
Voilà!

Laundry and Dishes, Laundry and Dishes..Yogurt on the Carpet

I've been putting chores off for days, DAYS! It is too pretty outside to do chores. I muscled through a long, dark winter and it is time to enjoy our 65 degree, sunshine filled days.  All the leaves came out overnight last week and in a few days they will be full sized leaves and we will be enjoying summer.  Hallelujah.  Most of my chores consist of cleaning up Caleb's messes.

This is what Caleb is doing right now. He keeps saying "hat, hat".  At least he mostly emptied his raisin bran onto the tray before he put his "hat" on.

I know this is not an environmentally friendly idea, but I'm going to buy the biggest bag of paper plates I can find at Costco so that I don't have to do so many dishes.  I wish there were disposable clothes...like paper hospital gowns...and we could wear them all summer long.  That would be the best.

This is what I would like to be doing all day...planting flowers and working in the yard. Yesterday Caleb helped me pot some plants.  By the end of the day, his face usually resembles what he was doing that day.  He reminds me of Salvador Dali in this picture.

I've got a whole list of chores.  Chores are for the winter time! Caleb is wrestling me out of the chair...got to go...

Mother's Day Flowers

JUST KIDDING! This rose plant was a gift from my dear friend Anje. I had my hands full soothing a 3 month old baby (I tend her a couple times a week) in the other room.  Caleb made the most of my busyness and tortured the poor rose plant.  He also dug up and tore apart 6 little flats of violets that I was planning to pot that afternoon.  AUGH! The rose plant has recovered and still looks as lovely as the first day I received it.  There was no hope for the violets...they ended up in the trash.

 

Some people sleep walk...Caleb sleep eats...

Happy (early) Mother's Day, Mom!

I thought a song would be just as fun (although, it's not about mothers) to receive as a colored picture. We've been practicing every night.  He was a little thrown off because I was holding the camera but he did great!

I love you so much. You are the most wonderful mama and grammy!

Radiation

Cannon is going in for radiation treatment tomorrow,(taking a pill) for his hyperthyroidism. After he takes the pill there are apparently some precautions to take. When doing some online research I found this list:

Use private toilet facilities, if possible, and flush twice after each use.

Bathe daily and wash hands frequently.

Drink a normal amount of fluids.

Use disposable eating utensils or wash your utensils separately from others.

Sleep alone and avoid prolonged intimate contact. Brief periods of close contact, such as handshaking and hugging, are permitted.

Launder your linens, towels, and clothes daily at home, separately. No special cleaning of the washing machine is required between loads.

Do not prepare food for others that requires prolonged handling with bare hands.

Huh, interesting.  I guess it's "no touchy" around the house for a while. If radiation gets Cannon to full health and increases our chances of getting pregnant, bring it on.  

16+ hours of daylight and counting...

We were still playing in the yard at 9:00p.m. last night. Caleb likes riding down the hill. 

Look at the buds on the trees!!  They weren't there 3 days ago. I'm sure that within the week, green-up will happen and suddenly summer will be here!