Snow Day Bliss

Whoo-hoo! The first snow of this 2011-2012 winter season finally hit our 'hood around 10:00 o'clock this morning. Within a couple of hours, we were surrounded in a winter wonderland.

Our backyard this morning.

Of course, we just had to take Tula out for a romp in the snow. (At least, that was what she was telling us.) She ran, jumped, made (dog) snow angels, and would catch snowballs that we lobbed up to her in her mouth, eating the ones she caught (which were most of them).

Tula out and about, enjoying the first snow this winter.

Later on in the day, when the clouds parted, we had a clear view of our partial or "cleavage" water view, which we can see both from the windows next to our kitchen/dining nook table as well as from our den/spare bedroom.

Our humble little western-facing view out of our backyard.

Snow days are sooo ... blissful. All in all, a good day was had by all.

The three of us romping in the snow. This image may just be featured on next year's winter holiday card - stay tuned.

2010 In A Nutshell

Ah, 2010 ... it was a full year for us, complete with happy hellos and heartfelt good-byes.

In April - on April 1st, no less - we enjoyed a very welcome "shotgun wedding" (and no, no shotguns were necessary) at the Seattle Municipal Courthouse: Tracy and Paul were married!

Tracy and Paul on their day of nuptials ... complete with cake topper.

Just in time for the arrival of their adorable twins, no less, who blessed us with their arrival just a little over 6 weeks later, on May 16th, 2010.

Baby A (Avery Floyd) and Baby B (David Evan) are a welcome addition to our family!

We of course started (lovingly) spoiling these boys before their birth, a practice which continues to this day.

Proud Auntie Jacqueline and Uncle Chris with the twins in the hospital just two days after their birth.

Although identical twins, these boys definitely are their own, independent beings.

Twin teddy bears for the boys, complete with scarves knitted by their Auntie Jacqueline.

Other things were growing besides the twins that spring. From around May through October, the garden's activity is downright riotous. From it, we enjoy planting, nurturing, and harvesting both edible and non-edible treasures.

A glimpse of the spring garden in May 2010, from left to right: garden snail, clematis, and false orange blossom.

Father's Day was spent with Dad; we took him to Tap Restaurant in South Surrey for a culinary night on the town.

Dad and me imbibing during our Father's Day night on the town on June 20th, 2010.

By July, the garden was in full swing. From flowers to herbs to fruits and vegetables, our urban homesteading is a lot of fun (all we need are chickens and bees)!

Urban homesteading, from left to right: sunflowers and Ball canning jar glass bird feeder; garlic harvest; and borage, which is an annual herb also known as starflower (a wonderful edible flower that goes great on salads).

And nevermind the garden; by August, the twins had already grown so much! One day we donned them in their "onesie best" and conducted s photo shoot with them. (Av and Ev were not particularly pleased.)

Ave and Ev suffering through their very first "formal" photo shoot. (They say beauty is pain, after all.)

Then, in early September, we took Dad on a week-long-plus trip to Vegreville, Alberta, stopping in Edmonton, Banff, and Jasper as well. Visits with family and old friends were greatly enjoyed. Some of the photos we took from this trip made it to our 2010-2011 winter holiday card, but here are two that didn't:

I have dubbed these images "From Stud to Stag" - it was a great trip. A good time was had by all.

In early October, 2011, I gave a Cross-Border Liquor Laws presentation to lawyers and beverage industry folk in Chicago - a way for me to merge my professional experiences into a new career path that combines my right and left brains: an entrepreneur and writer with a focus on the food, beverage, travel, and lifestyle industries. Chris is still enjoying his legal practice as an employment and labo(u)r lawyer/attorney who represents the management side of things.

Although many happy hellos took place in 2010, one sad good-bye stands out: on October 14, 2010, at the age of 15 years, Teddie Bear left us. We put her down when her back hips and appetite came to an end. Although difficult, it was the best and most humane birthday gift we could have given her. We miss you Teddie.

One of the last photos of Teddie (October 14, 1995-October 14, 2010), when her appetite was still going strong. A soft serve ice cream cone was one of her most beloved treats.

The grief for Teddie was great and a void had to be filled in our home. So, in a matter of weeks, Tula joined us at the age of seven weeks. Also a Newfoundland like Teddie, Tula is also a Landseer Newf - a darling black and white Newfie.

Tula and me a couple of week after we brought her home, in late November, 2010. She's had the run of the place ever since the first day she arrived to join our home.

December of course means LOTS of time with family and friends. Dad came down to stay with us for a week or two and our social calendars were full.

Here's last year's holiday card, in case yours didn't reach you either electronically or via snail mail (or you just need a reminder).

That about wraps up 2010, my dears ... we're older, (hopefully) wiser, happy and healthy - and we wish the same for all of you!

Nearly Two Years Gone By....?

Wow - so it's holiday time (yet again) and we have come to the shocking realization that it has been nearly two years since we last posted/published here at The Pruhig Times! (*GROAN!*) Fear not, for that is now about to change. Also, we have officially gone completely paperless here at The Pruhig Times, which means no more paper holiday newsletters (which were seeming to be a tad redundant, anyhow). So now, our hope is to update all of you family and friends who actually care about our goings-on via online posts - right here and coming soon....

Seattle Holiday Wrap-Up

Greetings all ... today is the first day we have the time to sit back and ponder our wonderful holiday with both family and friends. We kidnapped Dad from Surrey for two weeks and Chris' folks flew in from Kansas. Our house was full - not a difficult task, given its cozy dimensions - almost nightly. Below is a wrap-up of this year's Christmas festivities:

Holiday Preparations: This year we set up a martini tree, complete with mini martini glasses, mini vodka bottles, and "shake it up" martini shaker ornaments. Teddie was not amused, as she'd hoped for a dog treat tree. This year's gifts were either made with love by hand, or experiences, rather than more stuff.

Christmas jams (made mostly from the fruit in our own backyard) & knitted
dish &/or handcloths (Jacqueline has now taken up knitting) as gifts; Teddie awaiting Christmas (she was not disappointed, as she was a very good girl this year: she's pushing 15 years old, after all!.

Holiday Cruise (December 23rd): Chris and I hosted the entire clan to an evening on Lakes Union and Washington. A 2.5-hour cruise complete with champagne and heavy hors d'oeuvres, this event was a hit from Sklyer to Dad!

The number of lighted boats cruising on Lakes Union & Washington as a the grande finale to the Holiday Parade of Lights was breathtaking; the number of boats easily numbered in the dozens (some piped holiday music, too)! Chris, Jacqueline, and "Captain Skyler" at the helm. Skyler waited the entire 2.5-hour boat cruise for the chance to be captain ... if only for a moment!

Christmas Day: Chris and I hosted the entire clan for Christmas dinner, which consisted of a nice, Kurobuta ham with all the fixin's! There was enough food for an army - which led to subsequent - and nearly nightly - games nights and dinner parties.

The holiday hors d'oeuvres in the living room - from cheeses and crackers from the local farmers market to homemade pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and homemade dill pickles - tied folks over until the Ham din-din was done 'n' ready for all. The holiday feast of ham, scalloped spuds, green beans, carrots, mac 'n' cheese, rolls, and Waldorf salad would not be complete without pumpkin pie and the beloved French-pagan tradition of the chocolate yule log, or Bûche de Noël.

Nothing beats a full house filled with loved ones during the winter holidays. This year, we had all ages - from 7 to 81 (over 100 years old if you count Teddie).

It was a fun-filled time of great goodies, family, & memories.








Hockey Game (December 27th): Chris, Dad, and I attended a Seattle Thunderbirds-Chilliwack Bruins hockey game. What fun! We enjoyed hamburgers and beer while Dad cheered for the Bruins (he was, as far as I can tell, the only one in the arena). Good times!

Chris, Dad, and I drove out to Kent, WA to the ShoWare Arena to see Seattle play Chilliwack. The Chilliwack Bruins ended up beating the T-Birds in overtime, 3-2 (the reason Dad is smiling so broadly).

We hope that your holidays were as wonderful as ours. Happy New Year - we hope that 2010 is the best year yet - hope to see you as it unfolds!

Happy New Year, everyone! (Be sure to stay tuned for our 2009 annual e-newsletter, coming SOON!)

Teddie Turned 14 on October 14!

Teddie enjoying her birthday cake ... of canned meat product.
Happy Birthday, Teddie!

Below is a quote that pretty much sums up what sharing your life with a canine companion means. I'd like to dedicate it to Teddie:

"He is my other eyes that can see above the clouds; my other ears that hear above the winds. He is the part of me that can reach out into the sea. He has told me a thousand times over that I am his reason for being; by the way he rests against my leg; by the way he thumps his tail at my smallest smile; by the way he shows his hurt when I leave without taking him. (I think it makes him sick with worry when he is not along to care for me.) When I am wrong, he is delighted to forgive. When I am angry, he clowns to make me smile. When I am happy, he is joy unbounded. When I am a fool, he ignores it. When I succeed, he brags. Without him, I am only another man. With him, I am all-powerful. He is loyalty itself. He has taught me the meaning of devotion. With him, I know a secret comfort and a private peace. He has brought me understanding where before I was ignorant. His head on my knee can heal my human hurts. His presence by my side is protection against my fears of dark and unknown things. He has promised to wait for me ... whenever ... wherever - in case I need him. And I expect I will - as I always have. He is just my dog."
~ Gene Hill

Teddie enjoying her organic beef rib -
'twas a good day all around for the ol' Tedster!

It is with great pleasure to report that Teddie is alive and well!

Teddie Bear turned 14 years old last week. Her birthday was celebrated with filet mignon dog food, an organic beef rib, a specialty canned dog food fashioned into a birthday cake, and a day filled with car rides.

She still enjoys life with gusto - including walks, tummy rubs, gourmet meat-laden food, ice cream, car rides, and naps. She still knocks at the door when she wants in and jumps up and down (well, does half jumps) when she knows she's getting a car ride.

Happy Birthday, Teddykins. It's been a terrific ride so far!

Back in the Old Country....

Traditions are valuable things. They allow us to create memories, and hold those dear to us close to the heart, be they family or friends (and often a bit of both).

On Saturday, September 19th, family (and somewhat brotheresque) friend Les invited some of the women in my life whom I consider to be sisters (i.e., Kelle, Doe, and Anthea, the latter of whom unfortunately couldn't make it) to his Delta, BC home to be tutored by his mother Sylvia and grandmother "Baba Lena" on how to make cabbage rolls and perogies. By hand. From scratch.

'Twas a fantastically memorable afternoon.

We made, rolled, cut, stuffed, squeezed, pinched, baked, boiled, fried and -subsequently - devoured some of the tastiest Ukrainian/Eastern European fare I've had in a loooong time.

Imagine three helpings just like this.

Not to mention the absolute fun it was to spend the afternoon surrounded by such friendship, team work, feminine collegiality (sorry Les), humour, and all-around fun. They say you can choose your friends, but not your family. This may be true, but you can also choose you make your family friends and your friends family.

Just like they used to do back in the Old Country.

Thank you, Les, Sylvia, and Baba Lena - you rock!

Hundred 'n' Nine Jars of Preserves on the Shelf ...

Only a slight portion of this year's bounty.

There's truly something to be said with living off the land. Of course, it doesn't hurt to have a couple of fruit trees and a hankerin' for growing edibles. (As Chris always says, "if you can't eat it, what's the point?" For the record I also love planting and growing the non-edibles, but here I digress.)

Urban homesteading is definitely where it's at. That said, Mother Nature doesn't space the harvest times out for us much, which means we have a LOT of edibles at any given time. This year I made over 100 jars of preserves. I'll break them out below:

Pruhig Rhubarb:
Our rhubarb plant is prolific; this is our third cutting since May; it's September now and it's still full! The trick to rhubarb is to cook it savory as well as sweet - you can substitute about 1/3-1/2 of the celery in any recipe - the more rhubarb, the tarter the taste - and see how it goes. Two of my favorite rhubarb recipes are rhubarb juice and braised rhubarb onion chicken.

Pruhig Fruit Trees:
This year our Italian plum prune and pear trees went wild; each bore us no less than 300 pieces of fruit each. What to do, what to do ... after countless fruit desserts ( plum and port crostata and baked butterscotch pears being two of them) and the giving away of bags 'n' bags to family and friends, I decided to accept the inevitable: I was going to can. Boy, was I ever going to can!

Pruhig's Neighbor's Contributions:
Urban homesteading is not for everyone; however, once word gets out that you have become one, those who choose not to get on this bountiful bus and know you have want to share (there are also plenty of terrific organizations that collect and distribute such food to needy folks, such as City Fruit , Community Harvest , and Solid Ground ). As a result, I inherited both crab apples (thanks, Ian), honey figs (thanks, Freecycle), and salal berries (thanks, Larry). Thank you, gentle donors.

Pruhig's Small Purchases:
I confess that not all of my fruit was gratis; I also found fabulous apricots, blueberries, a couple of bananas and oranges and some cherries at the local market and small cukes at the West Seattle Farmer's Market that I couldn't resist picking up and (subsequently) preserving.

The Result:
ONE HUNDRED AND NINE JARS of preserves! They are itemized below:
- 11 jars of bluebarb jam (blueberry-rhubarb)
- 14 jars of rhanana jam (banana-rhubarb)
- 4 jars of orange rhubarb chutney
- 3 jars of apricot jam
- 15 jars of salal preserves (both jams and jellies)
- 2 jars of fig preserves
- 3 jars of pickles
- 39 jars of tri-tree fruit jam (pear, plum and crab apple)
- 7 jars of crab apple plum jelly
- 7 jars of canned pears
- 2 jars of cerises l'eau de vie
- 2 jars of plum & pear l'eau de vie

Some of you may read this and think I have a wee bit too much time on my hands. But hey, if armageddon hits and the zombies try to take over, have I ever got food set aside!