Bee Update

Two things:

1.  My friend, Kim, sent this home with Jim after his haircut last week!  So sweet of her to think of me and totally treasured!

2.  I have been unable to find a NUC (basically a started beehive) so we are going to have to wait until the spring to get bees.  And at that time we will buy a box of bees and a queen and start from scratch.  I guess that's good because it gives us more time to learn.   But not to worry - it doesn't stop Jim for looking at his empty beehive everyday!

Reptile Expo

We did a quick visit this weekend to the Reptile Expo!  What a super cool thing to go to.  We saw more snakes and other reptiles that we even knew existed.

The highlight was definitely the chameleons.  They were so beautiful and fascinating with their googly eyes and brilliant colors.  Grace got to hold a rescued one which she had never done - it was a big thrill.

Sunday Hike - Sanborn

All Hail the Weiner!

This week's Sunday hike was at Sanborn County Park and we had a couple new joiners, a gal I work with and her mom.   We did the San Andreas Trail to the Peterson Memorial Trail, which was straight up and then straight down, 1282 elevation gain in the first two miles and 4.2 miles total.

After the hike, Stacy posted this pic of Ahi with the text, "All hail the Weiner"!   I must have been lagging because I never saw them take the pic and cracked up when I saw it posted on our hiking site!

Pear Galette with Almond Cream

INGREDIENTS

1. Pastry:
   • 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling and dusting
   • 2 tablespoons sugar
   • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
   • 1/4 teaspoon salt
   • 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
   • 5 tablespoons butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes and frozen
   • 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoon cultured buttermilk
   • 1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
2. Cream:
   • 1 large egg white
   • 3 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
   • 3 tablespoons finely ground almonds
   • 2 teaspoons melted butter
   • 1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
3. Filling:
   • 3 firm, ripe pears, such as Anjou or Bartlett
   • 2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
   • 1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
   • 3 sheets parchment paper
   • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
   • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
   • 2 teaspoons butter, cut into small bits
   • Confectioners' sugar for dusting

PREPARATION

1. Pastry:
   1. Pulse flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a food processor 30 seconds to combine. Add butter. Pulse until butter pieces are the size of peas. Add buttermilk and almond extract; pulse until dough just comes together. Form dough into a disk, dusting lightly with flour. Cover in plastic wrap or wax paper and refrigerate 1 hour.
2. Cream:
   1. Whisk egg white and confectioners' sugar in a bowl until frothy, about 1 minute. Add almonds, butter and almond extract. Whisk. Refrigerate.
3. Filling:
   1. Peel and core pears, then cut into slices about 1/4 inch thick; toss in a bowl with lemon juice and zest.
4. Galette:
   1. Heat oven to 400°F. Lightly dust a sheet of parchment paper with flour; place dough on top and lightly dust with flour; top with another sheet of parchment and roll out dough into a circle about 12 inches in diameter. Peel off top layer of parchment. Invert dough onto a baking sheet lined with third sheet of parchment. Trim around edges of dough. Spread cream over dough, leaving a 1-inch border. Arrange pear slices in concentric circles over cream. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Fold edges of dough over pears, crimping dough to enclose ends of pears. Evenly scatter bits of butter over top of filling. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until pears are tender and crust is golden. (Cover top with a sheet of foil if it begins to overbrown.) Remove; cover edges of tart with foil. Heat broiler. Glaze top of pears under broiler, about 6 inches from heat, 1 minute or until pears are golden brown. Cool on baking sheet 5 minutes. Transfer (on parchment) to rack to cool completely. Dust with confectioners' sugar.

Giving Back

My new employer has a very strong focus on giving back and employee fun.  We mixed the "giving and fun" together to make blankets for the local animal shelter.  Our "Giving and Doing Team" got all the supplies and we provided the manpower to make 30 blankets.

Puppy Time

It's official!  We have been approved to raise a CCI service dog puppy!  This is NOT the puppy we will be raising.  We have to wait about 6 months for ours.  Our hope is that our dog friend, Whitney, has a litter around that time and we can get one of her pups.  That would be great as G helps with Whitney's litters.

This little nugget is 8 weeks old and is from Aggie's first litter.  Aggie lives with Whitney.  This pic was taken two days before they got turned in to be given to their puppy raisers and G went over to help make paw prints.

Sunday Hiking Club

Sunday Hiking Club is different every week.  People pop in and out as they have time and sometimes people bring friends.  It's so awesome to catch up with folks and meet new people.

Last week it was a bunch of CCI friends and CCI dogs! Whitney, who had pups about 4 months ago, (G helped out it the litter) and Nicole, a retired breeder, came with us.  Barnaby, a little rescue dog who gives grumpy Ahi a run for her money, came too.

The hike was the Mockingbird entrance to Quicksilver.  It was a beautiful day with good friends and good dogs (except for Ahi and Barnaby)!

Watching....

Just three friends sitting on the back porch watching the world go by!

Remodel complete

Here are some pics of the house with new carpet, flooring and paint from right before the boys moved in.  The boys and Oakley should be very happy there.

Bee Prep

I have received my bee starter kit and am now looking for bees!  I have two choices: I can wait for a box of bees in the spring or I can find a NUC which is a starter hive.  The box of bees would be about 5000 bees and queen that has not yet built up any wax or honey on frames.  A NUC is actually bees with partially completed frames.  NUCs are a faster way to get your hive up and running.

The challenge is finding a local NUC.  I have a lead on one but the guy had to travel unexpectedly so I am waiting for him to return and check his apiary.  Stay tuned.

Doghouse

Ahi has a newly painted dog house. It's pretty fancy for a grumpy weener.

Half an Empty Nest

We have been working so hard to get G & G moved and the house remodeled that not a lot of thought has gone into Drew And Oakley moving out.  Well...to be honest, a lot of thought has gone into missing Oakley.

So on Friday nite, Drew took a load of stuff over to the house after work and stayed over there that nite.  Then on Saturday morning he showed up right in time for sourdough waffles and to get another load. And that was that....he is moved out!

It is certainly quiet without the two of them and I have to cook less food and spend less money on dog food!  I don't think it will take much adjusting to get used to it.  Plus they are only about 10 mins away so I can see them (really its Oakley) if I need to!

Pleasanton Preserve

Hops and I went for a hike this morning before work.  We drove up to P-town and did a hike right close to the office.  We were on the trail at 6:45 am and watched the sun come up and the turkeys gobble by.

I am still hoping for a summer backpack trip so I am still training with a pack.  This morning I upped it to 28 pounds (from about 23) and could feel the difference in the uphill and downhill.

What a good way to start the day!

Hops

This Labrador is the sweetest girlie.  G put this together for me so I could post a pup and now pic on our dog lovers slack channel at work.  She just has the most soulful eyes.

Unfortunately she is going through some medical diagnostics right now as we try to determine why she is drinking an excessive amount of water.  The blood work looks good but the urinalysis  determined the urine is really diluted - of course it is, she is drinking a ton!  So the vet is discussing her case with a specialist.  Luckily she seems to feel ok.   And lucky for her, I am committed to throwing money at any issue to keep her healthy!  (Don't tell Jim!)

Time Out

A friend who uses the cabin left this treasure for us after her last visit!

Lake weekend!

Took the weekend off from working on moving and remodeling and went to the lakes!

Saturday we spent the day on Don Pedro.  It was hot hot hot but a wonderful day trying out Drew's new wake surfer.

Murray didn't enjoy the heat - here he is with cooling babushka.

Staci, one of our hiking buddies and our jeweler, came up to check out the fun we have in the mountains.  She enjoyed the pups and doing yoga on the SUP.

Sunday was spent floating around our lake.  Another hot day spent floating in the lake!