Baked Apples

Baked apples on the wood stove were on the menu again tonight and I remembered to take a photo. First I put down a double layer of foil to line the bottom of the dutch oven. Then I put in the steamer and placed the corning ware pan on top. I used to have a steamer with adjustable feet, but this one has metal pins that don't move and the lid just fits. I was thinking I could put down something else metal to hold a cake pan off the bottom and try baking a cake or muffins.

That is a big pot of water we keep on the stove to help keep the humidity up in the house. Otherwise, the air gets so dry we can get nosebleeds and sore throats. The big pot isn't pretty but it works. I'm going to keep my eye on the lookout for a new tea kettle that I can use on the wood stove and a pretty big pot. After Christmas sounds like a good time to check out the stores and see what is available.

My cute rooster tea kettle kinda got melted a bit on the wood stove, so I only use it now on the cook top. The rooster whistle was so cute but it melted and cracked and the handle is a bit peely now. I need an old fashioned copper kettle that would love to live on the wood stove. I remember seeing one I really liked that had a ceramic blue and white handle. I'd like to find one of those.

Today started out bright and sunny and then turned gray and dark, so I didn't go out or let the chickens out either. I did put some of their feed outside in the pen so they could hang out there if they wanted.

[0 eggs today}

Tom picked up some brown store bought eggs today.

Smiles~:>

More Wreaths

Kristine made this wreath today and brought it home to share with the family. She said it was terribly cold up the mountain and that there was still snow up there. I think she did a great job and I like the bow she made. The ornaments are cute too. This was the best photo I could get and even Kristine took a bunch of blurry photos. I guess I need a tripod.

Here are two of the artificial wreaths I used to hang my old ornaments. I think I should climb up there and rearrange the ornaments because I think they got shuffled around in the storage box. I just hauled the wreaths out of the box and hooked them up there without checking.

The snow is almost all gone and we are stuck with slippery leaves and lots more rain. The sun is supposed to show its face tomorrow, but I'll be surprised and happy if we actually get to warm up. Everybody will be glad to get outside and move around. The chickens are fine but will enjoy a day in the woods with Morgan and I will have fun raking leaves.

Today I've been enjoying listening to Archeology lectures on iTunes U. Usually the lectures don't have visuals so I keep a browser page of Google Image Search open and plug in search terms as they are mentioned in the lecture to keep up visually with the talk. Works out pretty well. Most of the time I can find a picture of what they are talking about.

Kristine is happy. She sent in her last paper this evening. The semester is almost over!

[1 egg today]

It has been so dark and overcast

I think the chickens think it is always night.

Smiles

~:>

Winter Blue

Kristine took this photo on Tuesday with my camera trying to capture the beautiful deep blue sky. I have seen the sky like this a few times and the blue is hard to describe and even more striking than in this photo. Almost all the snow is gone tonight in the heavy rains we have been having, but we may have snow tonight if it gets cold enough.

There was a break in the rain this morning which allowed me a chance to let the chickens out in their pen. The hens walked calmly out and stood on the wet straw, looked around, fluffed up their feathers and then strolled back inside when it started raining again. I left the bottom of the windows uncovered so they can go outside when they want. I thought they would be more excited to get out.

I found a rainfall map here and thanks to the rain we are having I'm sure we will be over the 50% mark this year. I lived in the Santa Cruz Mountain through the wettest and second driest years on record.

During the heavy rains of 82/83 the mountains turned into peanut butter and slid all over the place blocking roads and doing all kinds of damage. The hill above us broke away and slid down and crashed into the side of our house, knocked in the wall and came more than halfway through the house. Amazingly the second story wall held, the rest of the house acted as a retaining wall and held back the hill. That was scary. That was the year Love Creek went and buried homes and people. Lots of people lost their homes and lives. One of my neighbors was killed when his tractor tipped over when he was trying to clear the road.

Correction: Kristine just told me I got my mudslides mixed up. 78/79 is when the mudslides hit the side of the house, knocked in about 24 feet and went inside. 82/83 is when, after the retaining wall was built and the house repaired, another mudslide came around the back of the house and filled up the backyard three and a half feet, right up against the back of the house, but didn't come inside. There were other mudslides, but these were the biggest.

1976/77 I remember as hot, dry and uncomfortable. Our home was on well water and the well ran dry and we had to haul water from Los Gatos or Scotts Valley to fill the tank. We became major water conservationists. If I could think of a way not to use water I didn't use it. The girls were told not to flush the toilet unless really necessary and to pee outside was advised. Peeing off decks into the forest was also enjoyed by the fellows in the area, but a bit hard for the girls. We used paper plates and picnic stuff we could throw away so we didn't have to use water to wash dishes. Simple cooking: baked potatoes, lined pans with aluminum foil to cook roast, etc., salads. We went to weekly baths and clothes washing. No watering which meant plants died. I remember our neighbors leaving to drive down to Santa Cruz to sleep on the beach because it was too hot to sleep at night. I remember being very afraid there would be a forest fire. It was so dry the forest would have exploded.

Then there was the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake that cracked the house down the middle, the other mudslides, the forest fires, the road cave ins, etc. Yep! I guess it was just one disaster after another living in those beautiful redwood mountains, but it was worth it being surrounded by all that beauty.

Tom and Kristine are watching Rio Bravo. Love that movie. I think I will watch The Ladykillers with Alec Guinness, Peter Sellers, and Katie Johnson. I like movies that have great dialog.

I made chicken soup with rice for dinner tonight. We had garlic bread, so that made an easy dinner. It is not even 5:30 and it is already dark. I'm going to go check on the chickens again after I post this. Maybe there will be an egg? I'll have to wait for a break in the rain because it is coming down in buckets.

[no eggs today]

Smiles

~:>

Mistletoe?

These could be balls of mistletoe hanging over the front gate, but sometimes I wonder if they could be squirrel nests. I'd rather go with mistletoe. Sometimes after a big storm blows through I have found little pieces of greenery that I think is mistletoe. I pick it up and get rid of it because I don't want to leave it laying around for Morgan or the chickens to find. Wish I could figure out how to get it out of the trees then I could make mistletoe wreaths.

The rain has not washed away all the snow and there is more snow due tomorrow if I can believe the forecast. Anyway, I am very, very glad to have the rain and the snow finally get everything wet! I have been looking forward to having the ground wet enough to sink a shovel in the dirt. California is in drought mode which I think is pretty much its natural condition.

Although I do remember some very wet years that lead to floods and lots of trouble. I would be happy to have a nice wet winter up here without the flooding, thank you. I guess I will have to move up the coast to Oregon or Washington to be able to have the wet stuff year round. Instead of worrying about stuff I think I will just enjoy listening to the rain. Sounds nice.

I burned the stew a bit tonight when the lentils soaked up all the water. That's what I get for not setting the timer and for setting the dutch oven directly on the top of the stove instead of on a trivit. It still tasted good.

I have been giving the chickens warm water to drink and giving them some grain along with their regular feed. Our chickens are supposed to do well in cold weather and they are doing fine except for the laying eggs part of the deal. Maybe when the snow is gone I will see some eggs?

[0 eggs today]

I told the hens they can go outside and play

as soon as it stops raining.

Smiles

~:>

Snowy Woods

I love the snowy woods, but it is raining and I expect to wake up tomorrow to find all the snow gone from the trees, the leaves on the ground uncovered and just a few patches of snow left under some trees in the shade. At least that is what usually happens.

It is supposed to rain until Monday, so I'll have to wait at least until then to start raking. The weather is tricky. Sometimes I'm expecting lots of rain and the storm misses us. I'm looking forward to being outside working in the cold sunshine. I love winter.

I got a face and head freeze the other night, so last night I slept on the couch in front of the wood stove. How neat is that! I think I would like to move out there permanently or get a wood stove next to my bed.

Tonight I made baked apples in the dutch oven on the wood stove. I put a metal steamer under the corning ware pan with the apples in it (with a cup of water) and put the whole thing in the dutch oven and left the lid on until I smelled apples. I served the baked apples with some of the cranberries I cooked. The steamer held the corning ware up off the bottom of the dutch oven. I wonder if I could bake cornbread that way? I'll have to try.

Kristine brought home a Basil Rathbone DVD of The Woman In Green. I think I saw it many years ago and enjoyed watching it again. She also brought me a book, The World Of Jeeves by P. G. Wodehouse. I remember reading those stories a long time ago (copyright 1967) and I'm looking forward to reading them again.

If we get a break in the rain, I would like to let the chickens out for a bit. I feel bad keeping them cooped up, but between the snow, cold, and the fox I don't feel like I have much choice.

Kathleen called to tell me they are all feeling better and hope to visit in February. This will work! I get to keep all the Christmas decorations up until they get here to enjoy them. Well, at least that's my excuse!

[1 very cold egg today]

Thank you little hen.

Smiles

~:>

Snow Coop

Snow paths make it much easier for me to get out to take care of the chickens and for Tom to get to the wood shed to get wood for the wood stove. I used to carry a supply of wood and stack it near the house or on the deck, but this year Tom is taking care of the wood. One year I even had the wood stacked so I could open a window and grab wood for the fire when the weather was too bad to go outside. At least I don't have to go get the wood this year. That works for me.

This is the first year I remember that Tom shoveled paths. I think he was having fun. The other years I think either we ran cars out there to flatten the snow or our neighbor ran the snow plow around. I stuck duct tape on my boot and so far it is not leaking. I know if my boot was in better shape I would be having fun stomping around in the woods with Morgan.

I'm watching Gosford Park. One of my favorite movies of all time. There are not many movies that I love to watch time and time again. Gosford Park trailers here.

Hope everyone's winter weather is not too bad.

[1 egg today]

That was nice.

Smiles

~:>

Blue Sky!

Snow in the trees goes to show how cold it is staying even in the day. The sky was a gorgeous deep blue this morning. Usually, when the sun comes out the snow warms and and in a few hours it falls out of the trees. By the time I got outside the sky had lightened up a bit, but it was still a beautiful backdrop for the snowy trees.

I had to break up ice and dump and fill the water in the chicken coop, but the chickens are fine and welcomed the lettuce I brought. I haven't been out again to check on them because I don't want to open the door and let in the cold.

We are lucky so far and still have power. Lots of people around the area are doing without. There are volunteer groups going out to find and help people who are in trouble. I'm very thankful we are OK, but I do hope the trees stay upright.

Our neighbor plowed out our driveway and our road to the main drag out of here, so Kristine went ahead and drove today. She passed a lot of cars spun out on the side of the road along the way to work and back. She said she just drove at a steady speed around 35 and didn't have any trouble. Hope she will be able to get up the hill in the morning to get out of here. Ice sometimes makes it a slide.

Today I watched the DVD Kristine got us of Holiday Inn. I love this movie that was made in 1942 with Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire. I love the songs (White Christmas is from this movie) and the dancing, especially the firecracker dance. I love White Christmas too, but I love this movie even more. Holiday Inn YouTube. Holiday inn Wiki. Holiday Inn trivia.

Here are some of the sites I check for weather information.

Western United States weather here.

United States 24 hour loop here.

Looks like there is more bad weather on the way. Rain is forecast for Thursday. More snow? I'm still looking for a site that will give good up to date weather information for the area we live. Seems like about the time I find a site I like the site is changed or dropped.

[no eggs today]

Smiles

~:>

Let It Snow!

Yesterday, snow started fairly light and by evening there were about three inches. The power went off, but then came back on line. I didn't expect very much out of this storm. But, this morning we woke up to this! I love it when it snows. It is so quiet and everything looks wonderful. I'm sure I would feel differently if I had to work or drive in snow and ice.

Kristine didn't drive out and try to get to class. The advisory said not to drive except in an emergency. Tom is going to drive her out to work and back tomorrow. It is tricky driving down the mountain and back especially at night when the roads are snowy and icy.

It was a great day to stay inside warm and cozy near the fire. The chickens are fine. They have divided up with about half roosting and half sacking out in the nest boxes. They could all get in nest boxes if they wanted. Morgan had a lot of fun. She jumps up and down in the snow when she runs.

Poor Kristine stepped off the end of the deck and took a header into the snow. Puff! The snow flew up and landed on her back. Good thing the snow is deep. I waited to go out and feed and water the chickens until Tom shoved a path from the house to the shed and coop. Give me a break. I'm old. Well, that's my excuse. And besides my boot has a tear in it. I would have stomped around in the snow, but I would have got a boot full of snow. I need new boots. No. First I will try the boot repair stuff and see if I can seal the tear.

The forecast says two days of hard freezes and then another snow storm. I feel very bad for the mandarin growers in the area. They have only harvested half their crop. I sure hope their crop and trees are not damaged.

[1 egg today]

One egg is better than no egg!

Smiles

~:>

Snow!

I find it hard to believe, but the snow actually arrived. And it has come with a winter storm warning and a hard freeze watch. I took this photo this morning when the snow was just beginning to cover the leaves. This is going to be a quick post because I want to beat a possible power outage. I'll add to the post if I can.

Kristine said she would buy us a winter flag if she could find one at our local store. I have some winter flags, but haven't found them in the boxes.

Last day to vote for Suzanne here.

Check voting here.

Suzanne's blog Chicken's In The Road here.

[no eggs today]

Kristine checked on the chickens and they are OK.

Smiles

~:>

Christmas Cranberries

This is mandarin season up here and it is easy to find people selling big bags of mandarins. I love using mandarins because they are easy to peel, have no seeds and are sweet and juicy. I only had a small bag of cranberries and probably added too many mandarins. I love this stuff! Click here for Suzanne's recipe.

The recipe on the bag of cranberries called for one cup of water and one cup of sugar, but since the mandarins are so juicy I will consider reducing the water to a half cup and adding more if necessary. This batch has turned out a little soupy, but it tastes great!

I took the Recent Comments widget off the sidebar. Too bad it quit working. It was fun watching the comments appear. I hope google gets the code fixed.

Morgan got very sick last night after eating the organic chicken feed and Kristine was up all night with Morgan taking her in and out. Morgan didn't have bloat but she did have pain in her tummy. Poor baby. Morgan is better now, but we will have to be very careful she doesn't get in the feed again. I'm going to have to do some building and replace the chicken door the bear tore off the coop since Morgan can squeeze through there to get to the feed. This could be fun. I'll get to make a chicken size door that Morgan can't get past.

If you are voting for Suzanne click here. To check on voting click here. Only two more days of voting. Wonder if the judges will be wise enough to pick Suzanne.

[1 egg today]

Kristine brought home a new bag of organic chicken feed.

Smiles

~:>

Cleaner Coop

Nice new clean straw! (fake egg) I pulled out all the old straw from the nest boxes and raked it out into the pen. After the rain? we are supposed to get this weekend, I'll be able to tell how the straw will perform as a mud barrier. I can always put leaves or wood chips on top. Kristine said she had to take the back roads home because the freeway was packed with people headed up to Tahoe for a snow weekend. Snow? I don't see any rain forecast.

Some of the hens came back inside to investigate the straw. I caught Morgan eating the new organic chicken feed. She was licking it out of the feeder. Bad girl. I placed flakes of straw around in the coop so they would block drafts and give the chickens places to cozy up and keep warm. If it gets really cold I will block the exit under the windows with a big 4x4 at night. I have done that before and it keeps the wind from blowing in. I have to find the heat lamp tomorrow and have that handy if we need to put it in the coop.

I really like the snow. I just don't like having the worry of Kristine and other people having to drive in the stuff. I wonder if all those people headed up to Lake Tahoe have insider weather information because all the sites I check say there is not much chance for precipitation (20%) this weekend. Maybe they are staying for the week?

Kristine brought home a bag of cranberries to add to the mandarin oranges she bought the other day. My plan tomorrow is to use Suzanne's recipe and make some homemade cranberries. No canning. We plan to eat them up!

There was a lot of smoke in the air. I don't know if it was from smoky wood stoves or from people burning leaves, but I know I don't like having to breathe smoky air.

If you are voting for Suzanne, click here.

Click here to check on the voting.

Gee! Just three more days of voting.

[3 eggs today]

I washed the fake eggs. Hope the hens add some more.

Smiles

~:>

December Sunset

This is a photo of late afternoon and the low sunlight hitting the tops of the trees. I have seen some lovely sunsets on different blogs, but I would have to travel to the side of the mountain to get out of the trees to be able to see the horizon. That's fine with me. I love living in the woods. And seeing the tops of the trees light up is pretty neat.

Monday it is supposed to be 24 degrees in the day and 23 at night. I wonder how that's going to work? Tom can hook up a heat lamp for the chickens if he thinks they will be too cold. No rain is forecast, so I don't think we will be getting any snow. Hard to tell what the weather is going to do. I would like some rain and a little snow would be nice. I feel sorry for the people who have to deal with a lot of snow and bad weather.

My plans for tomorrow include cleaning out the chicken coop and maybe moving the tall nest box or covering the opening to provide a a cozy nook for the hens. I want them to have a nice place to roost at night. I always read that chickens are supposed to have a draft free environment, but the chickens coops I have seen (and mine) have air vents at the top of the walls. So? I thought I would see if I could make an area in the coop that was pretty much blocked off from through breezes. I'll see what I can come up with. And I need to add some more wood chips to the chicken pen.

Recent Comments on the sidebar is still not working. I guess I should take it off. I'll give it a few more days and see if they fix the code.

Click here if you want to vote for Suzanne.

Click here to check on the voting.

Wow! Where did that lady get all those votes?

[no eggs yet today]

Smiles

~:>

Myrtle in December

The myrtle is very happy and green. Every year I worry if the myrtle will survive the summer drought, but every year the myrtle hangs on and as soon as the first rain comes it revives and stands up tall. Amazing stuff. And look. No leaves. Everything else gets covered in leaves, but not the myrtle. I don't quite know what it does to avoid being smothered. It either grows around the leaves or through them or both? I have transplanted the myrtle along the driveway and in numerous other spots on the property, but this is the place it grow the best. This is the spot that gets just the right combination of sun and shade for it to flourish. The chickens don't seem to mess with the myrtle. I guess it doesn't taste good?

Kristine got hamburgers and fries for her and Tom for dinner. I had eggs and the leftover pancakes. We had used up all the real maple syrup (boy, I love that stuff) so I used honey. I like breakfast for dinner! I need to put buttermilk on the list and make some more pancakes to have available in the fridge for snacks (or dinner.)

There is something wrong with the Recent Comments on the Sidebar. All that shows up when I look is a white box. I reported it to Google. They asked. Blogger said they had added some code that may have messed with the gadget. Don't know. Well, we'll see what happens.

The movie watching and decorating isn't happening tonight. Tom and Kristine are watching Christmas shows on TV. Now I think they are watching Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer. Ho, Ho, Ho. We will do the movie thing and decorating on the weekend? I'm going to watch a TV show on my computer (Ugly Betty) and later listen to a lecture on iTunes. Sometimes I get a better picture going through Hulu than using the ABC player.

Click here to get to the page to vote for Suzanne.

[2 eggs today]

Smiles

~:>

Welcome December!

I spent time today digging out Christmas decorations, putting on the Christmas table cloth, and hanging my fake Christmas wreaths in the house. I used up all my Christmas tree ornaments decorating four fake wreaths. I didn't want to throw out the old ornaments and this was a good use for them. I put all the metal ornaments on one wreath, soft on one, wooden on one, and plastic on another. I still have boxes of Christmas stuff to go through, but I'm hoping that Kristine will help me tomorrow. Some of the stuff will just have to stay in the boxes.

Took this photo this afternoon, but the day was not much brighter. Winter has truly arrived. I'm not ready for Christmas. I can't believe there are only twenty four days until Christmas. I'll just get used to everything and it will all be over. Sometimes, I think that the people who leave their Christmas decorations up all year have the right idea. I suppose I could try it out this year.

Kristine brought home the Angels and Demons DVD tonight. The plan is that we will watch it together tomorrow. Angels and Demons and Christmas decorations. Sounds like a plan.

Click here to vote for Suzanne.

[2 eggs today]

Chickens didn't get out today.

Smiles

~:>