Overdue

So a blog about our adventures of moving towards self sufficiency through food production is rather dull when it is rainy and freezing out, we've both been working, and we've been taking turns being sick for so many weeks it's hard to remember. At long last, Tim's hand is better and for the moment we all are healthy and happy.

More excuses on my absence of blogging: I have those seedlings started and some rather low hopes for them as this snowflake-shaped rain continues. The proximity to 32 degrees is particularly noticeable as I am biking with a stroller full of nearly 100lbs of children and possibly a dog in tow... up a hill - and I use my creative imagination to remember someplace warm, to dream of the summer that seems so far away. Moving in the fall really gives a wet and cold impression of your new home... But, the chicks come next week! And hopefully that means we will soon be motivated again to get things moving and growing here at Honeymoon Bay.

 This is my current job. Hanging out with these two awesome kids. This must have been the one brief moment that wasn't in the low 40s or high 30s in the last couple weeks and pouring rain. I know, I moved from Alaska, I should never complain about weather, but really - after biking a half hour each way through it, or walking with a kid on each hand and standing around at bus stops... so cold! So wet! So ready for real spring which leads to summer! I want to get my plants outside! I want to get my garden going! I want to put the hammocks up!

It's so stunning to wake up to this view at the foot of my bed every morning. My eyes flutter open a tiny bit to judge if I can roll over and go back to sleep or if it's time to get up and I catch a glimpse of this and feel like I'm still dreaming.

So maybe it was sunny and warmish pretty recently because I think this was last Thursday. Tilly came to work with me. I practiced biking with her and the stroller, than we picked up Oliver and biked home, then biked all the way to the daycare to pick up Abby and back. Oh, and on the way to work we stopped at the dog park. Tim had awesome timing picking up Tilly just as we got back to the house and taking her home for a long nap. This Saturday, Tim pitched in again and helped me take the kids to Port Townsend which turned out pretty well. Not quite all I dreamed of, but not Tim's greatest fears either.

Tim is once again between jobs as Joe just left and the Kachink Kachink is now looking and running excellent in preparation to be sold. Tim did a lot to get the boat running better than ever and we all pitched in on the advertising front. Check out the boat here and spread the word to anyone you know looking for a great deal on a luxury yacht or roomy live-aboard. We might even be up for a second honeymoon sailing it to it's new home for the right person! kachinkkachink.squarespace.com

Yesterday I had the day off and Tim had not yet returned from his adventure down to Tacoma to see his friends Zac and Drake, so I took off on the mo-ped with Tilly (very slow speeds in the shoulder). She seemed totally un-phased by the puttering exhaust coming out next to her and managed to maintain a good trot most of the way to Freeland and back. Once again, it was rainy and cold, so as soon as we got to the farm supply store, we deployed the kickstand, turned off the engine, and spent some serious time warming up and walking around. I bought Tilly a bag of dog food to pick up later with the car and the awesome women working there were good enough to give us a couple cups in a tupperwear dish for immediate consumption. They also said we could spread the dog beds on the floor for sampling, play fetch in the isles, and generally cozy up and get warm. Though there was no way I was putting a 50lb bag of dog food on the mo-ped with me, I did decide to implement my awesome Alaskan Girl Scout skills and tightly rolled up Tilly's new bed, put bags over each end, and strapped it into my backpack for a makeshift ride home. She seems to be appreciating the effort and it's even big enough that she's not always rolling and sliding off.

Well, tonight I unpacked my journals and lined them up in order on a bookshelf. That makes this home. Like unpacking a collection of porcelain pig figurines or something, I feel like all my friends are settled in after being smuggled here in their box. One of these days I'll sit down and read through them all - write a long letter to my future daughter reflecting on my experience as a tween, teen, and young adult. I can point to where Tim and I started dating, each grade of school, trips, tipping points; my life in pages. Yet for whatever reason, after over 10 years of filling a journal every six months, I've been working my way through the first half of the same volume for the last three years or so. My journaling seems to have come to an abrupt halt around the time Tim and I started cohabiting full time. I guess having a person to confide in beats a blank book. Speaking of - tomorrow will be 6 years since he insisted I hold his hand and I gave in to falling in love.

And there's that handsome man now! He whittled up a foam nosecone for his rocket. He's very proud of it and did quite a nice job on his lathe.

You can see it's a great fit in the rocket body, nice and snug. All he needs to do now is add some fins, find a way to attach and deploy the parachute, and he'll be ready for blastoff. But first a quick paint job.

...which unfortunately melted the foam horribly. The red looks nice though! Tim is now rather sad. Back to the lathe... and the paint store...