Alexandra's 15th Birthday

This week is Alex's 15th birthday!  It's hard to believe the little 8-year-old I met so many years ago is now 15!

I picked her up after church, and we drove to the Purple Café in Woodinville's Wine Country.  It's a funky looking restaurant, all cement, brick and black metal, but the atmosphere is cozy, and the food is excellent--small bites and portions that go well with wine and other beverages.

We started with a plate of bruschetta, followed by Pesto Pasta and salad for Alex, and an Apple, Cheese and Bacon salad for me.  It was fun getting caught up on Christmas and Valentine's Day, and hearing about school. 

 

 

 

 

 

Maltby Pies

Last evening, we made our first two apple pies under the "Maltby Pie Company " label.  One is for us to eat and critique, and the other will be taken to work for some general feedback from the staff. 

It's exciting to launch a Cottage Food Industry item, especially with spring and summer coming up.  It will give us a chance to try all types of organic fruits and their combinations, all wrapped up in a homemade pie crust!

 

 

 

 

 

Tole Painting

My Aunt Elsie was the artist in our family, and she could create the most beautiful pieces of art out of all types of materials.  Years ago, she collected lovely crystal brooches from the 1930's and 40's, and put about 50 of them together to make a lovely Christmas Tree mounted on wood.

Her passion was tole painting, which involved small-detail painting on wood.  One of my favorite pieces is this red heart, delicately decorated with these small designs.  I hang it up every Valentine's Day in the family room so we can all enjoy it.  I remember her in so many ways.

The Maltby Pie Company

Today, it's official--the Maltby Pie Company was founded!  I ordered these pottery pie plates with our company name on them, so we are ready to roll (pastry, that is!)...

Anyway, seriously--we are starting our 'cottage industry' pie company, and will only serve select clients.  I'll be taking some courses on creating food at home, and then I'll see what develops.

Wish us luck!  We've got our pie-making down to an art!

Firewood for Solar Woodshed

This is the first year in our 12 years living in Maltby that we went through a full cord and a half of wood that has been drying for one to two years in the solar woodshed.  We contacted the Maltby  organization that provides our wood, and had another cord and a half delivered this week.

The wood is beautiful, and the smell of alder and cedar fills the yard.  This weekend, we will begin moving the wood in the wheelbarrow from the driveway to the woodshed in the pasture.  Since the woodstove will soon be 'retired' until next year, this new wood will have almost 9 months to dry before we start using it next fall.

Adirondack Chairs at Seabrook

Adirondack chairs are everywhere at Seabrook!  We had a lovely pair of cedar Adirondacks on the deck of Com-Pass the Time, and you can find double and single chairs in and around each home in this little beach town.

Here are a couple of examples.  It was so relaxing sitting on the chairs on the deck overlooking the forest and a small stream.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Com-Pass The Time

This is the name of the house we rented last weekend at Seabrook.  The owners have traveled all over the world, and they had decorative maps and beautiful photos adorning the walls.  We enjoyed the 'travel' theme in the house, and even the rug in the second bedroom was a map!

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Seabrook in January 2014

This last weekend, we rented a new home that was just completed a few months ago.  It backs up to a forest and greenbelt, and had a lot of privacy for the two decks and the hot tub.  It was near the new Seabrook Town Hall building, shown below in the afternoon sunlight.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the Beach

Winter at the beach is an exhilarating experience!  The sun is bright, and the wind is bracing, and the world around us is quiet this time of year. The birds go about their daily lives, ignoring us unless we get too close.

Polly got a new sweater at the Salty Dog Boutique last weekend.  It's a handmade wool dog sweater from a company called the "Chilly Dog", and organic wool and natural plant and fruit dyes are used to create safe clothing for our pets.  The sweaters are made in the Northern Highlands of South America by descendents of the Inca Indians.  All knitters and practices used to make these garments  use Fair Trade guidelines.

 

 

 

The Salty Dog

There is a wonderful dog boutique at Seabrook, filled with every type of dog supply and creature comfort you can imagine.  They even have a self-service dog wash (the sign outside advises you to B.Y.O.D. (bring your own dog!).  As you can imagine, a dog who is vacationing at the beach can get very dirty and sandy--a dog wash is just the thing you'll need before going back into the lovely houses and cottages at Seabrook.

The last picture below shows Polly with her new hand-knitted sweater from The Salty Dog.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Polly Goes to Seabrook

We took a long, three-day weekend last week, and took Polly on her first trip to Seabrook and Pacific Beach.  She is a good traveler in the car, and slept most of the way to the coast.

Here she is, enjoying herself in the car and getting acclimated to her new life with us!