Life in Tee Harbor, Alaska

Happy Seward's Day

Snowiest Winter Ever!

This winter is the snowiest on record in Juneau!  Early Tuesday morning we surpassed the old record with 194.6 inches total snow.  The past few days it has been warming up and just when we thought we were on the path to spring, it snowed again last night and this morning.  Around noon the sun broke through and we had a couple hours of gorgeous, warm sunshine!  The news has been giving different stats about the snow and one year - I think it was 1965?, it snowed on May 13!  I sure hope it is done before then...I'm ready to start gardening already!

Earthquake, Comet & a Tsunami Watch

What an interesting week - I woke up to an earthquake on Tuesday morning, got to see the comet on Wednesday afternoon, and now there is a tsunami watch.

The earthquake on Tuesday was a shallow 5.7 about 110 NW of here.  I was still in bed and awoke to the bed shaking. I was groggy and not sure what was going on, but was pretty sure it was an earthquake.  The wind was blowing pretty hard too, but I tuned into the local radio and my thought was confirmed as they gave the report.

Wednesday just after sunset, I got to see the McNaught Comet - that was cool!  I didn't get to look through the binoculars, but Rod did and said he could see stuff coming off of it and that it was just spectacular.  Lucky I got to see it that day, as it was about the only clear day we've had for awhile.

And then...

About an hour ago, the Emergency Broadcast System beeped on the TV....a tsunami watch had been issued.  I found on the internet that the earthquake was a 8.2 near Japan.

The Emergency Broadcast System just came on again with more specific times - the estimated time of arrival of the first waves, if there are any, is 3:10am here.  We live near the water, but are up a bit higher, so we won't be going anywhere.  If it were light out we could watch the Tee Harbor web cam to see if we get any waves...    http://www.jeffuswilliams.com/teeharbor/index.php

I guess we need to step up the progress on our bug-out bags (72hr emergency supplies)!

January Goals

I think my New Years Resolutions will be easier to achieve if I break them down into smaller chunks and spread them throughout the year.  So I will have certain goals for each month.  So here are my 7 goals for January:

1.  Plan dinners for the month

2.  Limit grocery trips to 3 this month

3.  Can some dried beans - pinto, kidney, black & red beans

4.  Sew some more clothes - 2 skirts, 2 shirts, 1 jacket, 1 vest

5.  Find out about RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) classes

6.  Come up with cleaning & decluttering schedule - and follow it!

7.  Spend within the budget I've set up - use Thursdays as desk day to pay bills and record spending

I am starting this today - already have dinners planned, so I can check that one off!  I made a list of what we need for the next 2 weeks - milk, green onions, green peppers - that's it!  I will also work on the cleaning/decluttering plan and print that out for my Control Journal.

Hope everyone is having a good day!

My Year in Review

Instead of just making my New Year's resolutions, I decided I should take a few minutes and think about what I accomplished this past year.  So here it goes...

I've been baking our own bread since last Spring.  It is so great to have the house smelling so good!  I now have a grain grinder and wheat to grind for flour - it is a hand crank so it takes a bit of time to grind enough for our bread, but it is rewarding.

I did alot of canning this year - I think my canner paid for itself this summer.  These things were firsts for me:  peaches, pears, pickles, chili, chicken soup, spaghetti sauce, and best of all - moose.  It has been so nice to just reach on the shelf and open a can of our homemade goodies.

Speaking of Moose - Rod shot his first Moose and we butchered it entirely ourselves - that is definitely something to be proud of.

I have sewn alot this winter - made myself 3 skirts and have been wearing them often.

We have recommited to eating only meat/fish that we catch - none from the store.  So far so good except for the organic turkeys for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

We bought and setup a storage shed for some much needed storage space.  The yard is looking so much more organized now.  I even have a potting bench in there.

I built 4 new raised beds in the garden that are all ready for new plants in the spring.

Speaking of the garden, I had all the plants in the ground on time this year...too bad about the root maggots though - I think they ate more than we did!

I've completed some crochet and knitting projects in the past few months - some hats and scarves for gifts and I started a sweater for myself.  Oh, and I completed a wool hat for myself - very complicated pattern, so I'm more confident in my abilities now.

We have been changing what we eat.  Mostly homemade, more frugal, more grains, more organic, more local.  It is a gradual process that has been paying off - I've lost 24 pounds through diet changes and exercise - gotta love that Biggest Loser Workout tape!!

My biggest accomplishment last year was realizing that I don't have to wait to do "homesteading" stuff until we move to our own land.  I can practice my skills and implement alot of them here while we live on my dad's land.  And that is just what I did this year!

Our Homesteading Adventure

I have always liked to be able to do things myself and make things myself - cook from scratch, sew a quilt, knit a sweater, build a bird feeder, sew curtains, etc.  I made my own prom dress.  I planted a small vegetable garden when I was younger and have always been interested in identifying and learning about the wild edibles we have around here.  I was born a "homesteader".  I really enjoyed this article I read on Crystal Miller's website - http://thefamilyhomestead.com/meantohomestead.htm.  She talks about homesteading where you are now.  After reading this, my thoughts shifted from homesteading being something I would do sometime in the future to homesteading being what I am doing right now.  Learning and practicing skills I will need when we are able to quit our jobs and live off the land (as I am hoping will happen someday!).  We may not be living on the "perfect" homestead, but we do have a good situation now - no land payment -we should be taking advantage of that!

We have been trying to simplify our lives and think about how people used to do things.  Our new house does not have a dishwasher - opted for more cabinet space instead.  We do not have a microwave.  I was skeptical at first - how in the heck am I going to warm up the leftovers?!?  Well, how did they do it before microwaves?  The oven, stove, double boilers...  Our family always had a microwave when I was younger, so it really seemed "necessary".  Turns out we don't need one.  We don't have a coffee maker (I don't drink coffee - or any caffeine).  Rod makes his coffee on top of the stove.  All our frying pans are cast iron - I recently tossed the only teflon one we had, so I am officially converted.  I have one cast iron pot and we have Rod's dad's dutch oven.  My other pots are stainless steel. 

I tried a bread recipe back in March - Rod liked it so much (and me too) that we stopped buying store bread.  I try to make bread on Sundays - my baking day.  I have tried to make all our meals from scratch - make our own rolls, tortillas, cream cheese, yogurt, ice cream.  I try to buy only basic ingredients.  It has been fun challenging myself to this.  I have been really into canning this summer - salsa, peaches, salmon, spaghetti sauce, chicken soup, chili - things I haven't ever tried before.  My pressure canner has a permanent home on a chair in the dining room. 

A few months ago I changed our cat litter from the standard clay stuff to pine shavings.  Simon accepted the change right away - and he isn't getting sick all the time now.  I made homemade laundry soap from Crystal's website.  She has great step by step directions and pictures - http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/laundrysoap2.htm  We have been using it for 3 months now and I think it is what we will use from now on.  We use Crystal's shampoo bars.  I tried a few different things before settling on them - I went 7 days without washing my hair - just hot water.  I read that our hair doesn't need to be washed, that the natural oils make a coating over it and you just need to rinse.  Hmmm...  Then I tried washing with a baking soda paste and using a vinegar rinse.  The baking soda felt wierd, but it worked.  Anyway, we use the shampoo bars - Rod loves the smell of the Rosemary - he says it wakes him up.  I have been using the vinegar rinse or some conditioner.  The conditioner makes my hair soft, but it seems to get greasy fast.  I tried out some homemade deodorant - baking soda and cornstarch.  It gave me an awful rash!  Even after adding more cornstarch - it didn't help.  So I bought a natural crystal stick deodorant and got rid of the anti-perspirant.  I made some homemade sanitary pads - those are great.  They are so comfortable - I won't be using the disposable anymore!  You can find directions on the Hillbilly Housewife website:  http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/sanitarypads.htm.  I need to sew up more so I don't have to do laundry everyday!

Our entertainment for the most part is the computer, basic cable, reading and garage sales on Saturday mornings.  Rod works nights in the summer (6pm to 2am), so we don't see each other too much.  I'm so glad that Monday he starts days again - we will actually be able to eat dinner together!

I think the roast is done, so I'm going to go eat - I harvested our peas tonight since there is a frost warning tonight - so I will have some of them too.  Yummy!

Long Term Goals

Here is my list to work toward - not in order of importance:

1.  Pay off all debt (credit card, 401k loan, truck, house)

2.  Buy land from Dad - 5 acres

3.  Plant fruit trees - apples, cherries, plums - 20 total

4.  Plant berry bushes - raspberries, boysenberries, thornless blackberries

5.  Build second strawberry bed and plant runners in it

6.  Build greenhouse

7.  Build storage shed

8.  Build chicken coop with enclosed yard

9.  Raise chickens for eggs and meat

10.  Build root cellar

11.  Raise enough vegetables to enjoy fresh and stored through the year

12.  Fish and hunt for all our meat needs

13.  Build deck on front of house

14.  Install gutters on house

15.  Solar panels/wind power for house

16.  Woodstove for heat (looking for a Fisher woodstove - Baby Bear model)

17.  Build fence around garden

18.  Construct cistern system for water collection and storage

19.  Build pond in backyard with bridge

20.  Have a year's supply of food, paper goods, medicines, etc.

21.  Develop home craft business to eventually support our cash needs

Introduction

My name is Michelle and I live in Juneau, Alaska with my boyfriend, dog and cat.  We live on 5 acres "out the road" that belongs to my father - he owns a marine repair business and stores boats here.  We look out for the place in exchange for our rent.  We just bought a new manufactured home last fall to replace the travel trailer we had been living in.  The new place is still small - 800 sq. ft, but it seems so roomy compared to the 275 sq ft we had.  It is so cute with its log siding!  We now have an extra bedroom that we use for our "hobby" room.  My half is for sewing and crafts, Rod's half is for reloading.  I am still in the process of getting totally settled and finding places for everything.  It is amazing how much storage my old place had! 

Recently, I have been focusing on getting my finances in order and paying off my credit card.  I have made a budget and am following it!  We have budgeted $200 per month for groceries for years, but I normally go over.  I added up my purchases for last month and it was $495!  Ouch!  So July I have been really paying attention to what I'm spending and trying to stay within the $200 - we decided to include eating out and canning expenses within the grocery budget.  It's almost the end of July now and I have spent about $240 - which includes canning stuff - salsa, cherry pie filling, pickles.  I want to go back through and figure what was canning vs. what was food.  We haven't eaten out at all so far this month - we are planning to go to dinner at our favorite restaurant Fernando's on Saturday.  At the beginning of the month, I sat down and planned dinners for the month, trying to use things that we already had.  I found that it worked well - mostly as a guide - we ended up having more leftovers than I had planned.

Tonight I made bread.  Usually I make it on Sundays, but was busy last weekend with the pickles!  I use a recipe from Feed Your Family For $15 a Day - quick to mix up, no kneading, rises in 30 minutes and bakes in 35 minutes.  Rod likes it so much that we don't buy bread at the store anymore.  The recipe makes 3 loaves.  I might bake one or two and put the remaining dough in the freezer.  Or I use the leftover dough and make fried bread.  Tonight I shaped them into sandwich rolls and baked them.  They turned out a little too brown on the bottom - still getting used to the gas oven.

My other project tonight was a batch of yogurt.  Again, I usually do this on the weekend, but was too busy.  I read in the Tightwad Gazette that you can freeze your yogurt that you use for starter, so I did that and have enough for 5 more batches.  I also used their tip of adding 1/2 cup of powdered milk to the fresh milk to help make it thicker.  I incubate it in an electric yogurt maker that I got at a garage sale earlier this year for $1.50.  It was brand new - never even been opened.  It makes 5 cups of yogurt - perfect for my weekday breakfasts.  I mix in different stuff - failed peach butter that I call peach sauce, strawberries, homemade granola, etc. and sugar or Splenda.  I haven't tried honey as a sweetener - I'm sure it would be good.

Well - getting late.  I better get to bed so I can get to work on time!