Goodbye, 2021!

Can you spot the perching bald eagle?

With the winter solstice behind us, bright days are on the horizon!

After a day or two of freezing rain, the snow had a slick crust. When the wind blew through the trees, the ice on the branches, needles, and moss would crack and 'chime' together. It was a new sound I've never heard before.

 To bring in the new year, we went to visit some friends and had some delicious foods, tried some home-brewed beers, and set off an elaborate amateur fireworks show. The light snowfall made it even more lovely. It was also the first time we had celebrated the new year with others since moving here two and a half years ago. New Years in Alaska is full of fireworks, making up for the lack of them of the 4th of July holiday. Driving home that night, we saw fireworks going off for nearly the entire drive. It was beautiful to see all of the participation!

A watchful eye over the homestead. Sometimes the Alaskan clear blue sky is extra blue like this day.

Winter Solstice: the sun rises over the mountains for the afternoon. This photo was taken in our backyard. The lake is just beyond this small swampy forest.

Mid-December, we attended the Colony Christmas Parade in Palmer. The temperature hung around zero degrees, but despite the extreme cold, we had a wonderful time. The floats in the parade were all decorated in lights and music, even the horses and dogs in the parade had holiday lights and garland on them. At the end, our daughter enjoyed seeing Santa on top of a big red fire engine with his Dalmatian. I loved seeing her eyes light up during this holiday season!

Colony Christmas Parade in Palmer: a dog walks by lit up with Christmas lights. In the distance you can see the local favorite Palmer water tower also decorated with lights for the holiday.

Last week, on Christmas, we continued our tradition of making a large holiday meal, full of our favorite dishes from family feasts growing up. The holidays are traditionally a time of baking and we find that we do quite a bit of it, in spite of our small cooking space. Between Pete and I, we made breads, puppy chow (my favorite), mini Baked Alaskas, and chocolate pecan pie. As I sit here reminiscing on these concoctions, I’m realizing that I’m a bit of a chocoholic. Pete stands firm, not allowing chocolate in his sourdough bread, but he is getting much better at remembering the chocolate chips in the banana bread! Baked Alaskas were a new dessert I wanted to try. I had never heard of these until a few years ago when I saw it on a menu somewhere. I made a mini version of it so it was more manageable. The bottom layer is a spongy vanilla cake, topped with ice cream –which Alaskans consume lots of—and covered in toasted meringue. I used huckleberry and double chocolate chip ice cream in the middle. Making meringue was another first for me and, thanks to Pete’s help operating the blow torch in the tiny kitchen, they turned out beautifully and were just as tasty!

A mother moose passing through with her baby behind the woodshed. The deep snow-covered brush piles are not much of an obstacle for the pair.

 In the month of December, three days before Christmas, the Winter Solstice takes place—the shortest day of the year. Where we live, as we've mentioned before, we receive about six hours of sunlight on this day. Even though it’s the darkest time of the year, we know the pendulum has begun to swing the other direction and days will lengthen and temperatures will warm (eventually).  

Moose passing by the kitchen window. Coincidentally, we were thawing ground moose for dinner...

Just like the previous month, December brought a few more records. Some areas in our region received record snowfalls this month, some places saw record temperatures, and Wild North Design made it’s largest wooden sign yet! We are curious to see what the rest of this winter brings, as it has certainly been interesting so far. 

I had fun experimenting with the layered effect on the latest sign.

Looking good during their first winter.

 Looking back on 2021, it is fun to see all we have accomplished. One of the highlights being our new laser which brought new products to Wild North Design. In the cabin, we finished the stone and tile hearth around the wood stove, and we also installed beautiful spruce flooring in the loft – made from boards we milled and planed ourselves. We began developing our small farm and started experimenting with raising crops and livestock. We expanded the fencing, developed the driveway, beefed up the sawmill, raised 30+ chickens, went deep sea fishing, built a shelter for a car and the tractor to park under, and the list goes on.  

King Hawaii perched with a few of his ladies.

 This coming year has many more new projects and experiences in the works. I can’t wait to see what it brings! Your continued support keeps the steam in our engine while we build the life we love. What an adventure it has been so far. Thank You!

The snowmobiles and side-by-sides are ready for their paint job!