Christmas Day back in Anchorage

Cold, cold, cold!  We had hoped to ski at XYZ Lakes going out of Talkeetna on the way home today, but it was 16 below zero when we got up, and 15 below when we left about 11 am.  We were led to believe (weather.com) that it was going to be ski-able when we got home, but instead, we drove through 25 degrees below, 30 degrees below, all of the way up to 0 - and it never got any higher!  So we dumped the skiing plans and moved on to wine and appetizers once we got unpacked -- and opening our Christmas presents, which we left til we got home today!  After planning the food for our few days at the cabin, I forgot to plan for Christmas, but I had a baguette and made some bruschetta and others with pesto -- we were almost done when I thought to take the picture!

We got a start on the second season of Downton Abbey, but we've got to go back for the rest of Season 2 tomorrow -- I hope WWI comes to an end!  We kind of resigned ourselves to staying in for the day -- I forgot to mention the skiing yesterday - we went up to our friends, Laura and Klaus in Trapper Creek, about 28 miles from Talkeetna - and it was warmer there but still never up to 0 the whole time that we skied -- a beautiful trail through the woods on our back country skis.  But . . . when we got back, Brian had locked our keys in the car.  An hour later, with darkness descending and the temperature dropping WAY down further, we were finally in and on our way back to Talkeetna, but I think that it took overnight for me to warm up again.  If you look in the background of our picture, taken by Laura and Klaus, Denali was in perfect form!

Klaus and Laura with "Elfie" on the trail.

Our potluck dinner at The Roadhouse was a short walk for us when we got back and cleaned up, and we brought a great new recipe - Risotto with Saffron and Butternut Squash.  We met a couple who had retired 5 years ago and bought a cabin off the grid - it was fun talking to them about the life they've created up here in retirement.

Back home today, we made our food courses as we went along and got hungry -- halibut baked in parchment paper with pesto, tomato and shredded zucchini!

Very yummy!  I'd planned a big dessert finish - Roasted stove-top pears with a dulce leche sauce -- but I forgot that I needed molasses so we opted for Christmas cookies and a little red wine to finish off the day.  Tomorrow we HAVE to ski - hoping the temperature comes up, but we can manage zero degrees if it's not two days in a row!  Jessica arrives on Friday!  We got very thoughtful and well-appreciated gifts from all of our family.  Merry Christmas to everyone and best wishes for the new year!

Christmas in Talkeetna (and Brian's Birthday)

We got off to a later start than we anticipated on Sunday for Brian's birthday, driving up to Talkeetna for our third Christmas in a row here - I guess that's getting to be our new tradition!  It was snowing pretty furiously all day, and we made a last minute trip to REI for a replacement headlamp, had lunch at the Middleway Cafe, set the car keys down on the counter and didn't notice -- so an extra half hour walking back and forth until we asked at the counter!  We weren't relishing a walk home in that snow and wind!

We got up here to our cabin at about 6 pm, so no ski that we had expected to have, but here's a picture from Saturday -- no better conditions could you ask for!  Almost 20 degrees, perfect snow, and a late afternoon just before dark ski up to Goose Lake and back from Valley of the Moon park - about a 10K.

A gorgeous day - Sunday we drove up mostly in a snowstorm still, but it was very cozy once we got here.  This is the first time that we stayed at Talkeetna Cabins, but it's easily twice the size as the cabin we rented the first year where we were either at a little table or in bed!

And then there is also a loft or second floor with a double bed and a single bed.  We've had "Irish oats" each morning with dried blueberries and honey, and we brought our pizza stone and made pizza Sunday night when we got here - it was supposed to be Arugula and Goat Cheese Pizza with carmelized onions, but somehow I ended up without the goat cheese, so we improvised - it was really good though!  Should have taken a picture!  What I did take a picture of was the annual Christmas puzzle (which I worked on for 4 hours Monday morning, mostly before Brian got up!  This is one that I gave to my mother last year, and she sent it to me because it was such a pretty one and also nice to do - the pieces are heavier and not so ambiguous about how they fit together!

Once it warmed up "a little," we went out for a ski along the river, across a railroad bridge and onto the Chase Trail - a little disappointing in that we didn't find another trail through the woods and were on a snowmobile trail longer than we wanted to be, but all in all a fine afternoon!  We kept thinking it felt colder than the 14 degrees that it was when we started, and by the time we finished, it was 8 degrees - that was more like what it felt like!  Here is the sunset over the river as we were coming back -- sunset that is at 3:00 or so in the afternoon!

Then it was back to the cabin for a little wine and dinner - Lemon Pasta with Roasted Shrimp - part of the fun in coming is finding special recipes to try - and then a Downton Abbey marathon for Season 1 that we rented to bring up - we've started watching but missed the first two seasons, maybe 3, not sure where we are now!

Today is Christmas Eve - we're going to our friends Laura and Klaus' to ski this afternoon (and it's REALLY cold this morning - 16 degrees below 0 - more than we expected, so hoping it warms up).  and then back to clean up and go to The Roadhouse for dinner just down the road.  It's a potluck with the owners making a turkey and dressing.  We're bringing another new recipe (and the pre-test says it's delicious!) - Risotto with butternut squash and saffron.  Merry Christmas to all, and we'll add more later - we have check out on Christmas Day at 11 am, then we'll probably ski on the way home and end up at our house for another new dinner - Halibut with Spinach Pesto, Zucchini & Tomatos wrapped in parchment paper.

The Winter Solstice & Time for Holidays

It's the Winter Solstice today . . . the darkest and shortest day of the year. Sunrise will be at 10:14 am, and sunset at 3:41 pm, with 5 hours, 28 min, 11 sec. of daylight.  Tomorrow daylight will be longer, for the first time since the summer solstice! Chance of snow today, and very warm for how it's been lately -- up to 31 degrees, so let's hope it stays in the 20s, a much better temperature for skiing!

Indoors, everyone is getting ready for holidays . . . our table is covered with the cards that haven't been addressed, the Christmas candy and cookies that I made, our calendars that we make each year with Alaska pictures that haven't yet been sent . . . and it's the dark, quiet time of the morning that I like to have to myself.

I remembered to start the amarylis AND the narcissus this year, and flowering bulbs make a big difference in December.  We love watching them grow, especially since they leap up inches at a time, it seems!

This was only about a week from the time it began opening to being in full flower.  Now to get a prettier pot!  The quilted salmon table runner came from a wonderful artist in Talkeetna!  We're headed back to Talkeetna for Christmas again this year, beginning tomorrow for Brian's 60th birthday.  We'll be staying at Talkeetna cabins and having a potluck dinner at The Roadhouse for Christmas Eve. 

The paperwhites, or narcissus, I had in front of the television when they first started, and I'd swear that we could watch them grow!  I eventually had to move them to the side on the coffee table, as they are now taller than the TVand very much in the way! 

And then, what do you do on those long winter nights?  Well, one of the things that I did was to copy an artist friend of mine, Herminia Din, an art professor at the university, who has a "Junk to Funk" project to recycle just about anything!  Here is a crocheted purse that I made up based on her designs, made out of plastic bags from two different grocerty stores. 

No new outdoor pictures today -- the snow has been beautiful!  I think we have more snow at the moment than maybe we've ever had here - two decent snows in a row, about 10 inches and 6--8 inches - that's a lot for Anchorage -- we just tend to keep it, and not go back and forth in temperatures as much as upstate New York has done in recent years anyway.  I predict skiing for today, so maybe some nice shots outside next time!  We'll be in Talkeetna til Christmas day and probably travel home Christmas night.  Jessica arrives on December 27 and will stay until January 5 - can't wait to see her too!  

Between the Holidays!

We had a very restful Thanksgiving holiday -- a ski mid-day, pretty cold but bearable, on the Campbell Creek Trail, not tracked but we diagnol skied for an hour or so.  We were downstairs for h'or d'oeuvres at 4, then dinner at 6 and lingered over wine then coffee and a game of dominos before pumpkin pie.  I'll have to insert a picture of the turkey when I get it from Lance, as he really takes care in carving the turkey - it's worthy of a picture!  And we bundled up, pretty cold by evening, and walked up to the Town Square to take our December picture for our annual calendar.  Here it is - preview:

I thought that we would ski all weekend, but not only was it minimal snow - it was probably a high of 5 degrees on Friday, Saturday & Sunday!  Friday we went to a movie - The Dallas Buyers Club - it was a good movie and one Brian wanted to see.  Then Saturday after yoga and a long, quiet afternoon of working on photo albums of all things, we bundled up and walked up to Cyrano's a community theatre and saw Madeline L'Engle's "A Wrinkle in Time."  Pretty interesting!  REALLY quiet weekend - tried some new recipes (and they were really good!), Christmas cards, a bigtime trip to Costco -- who wouldn't want in on THAT?!

Since then, what are the highlights?  I joined a gym - finally - it's gotten to me when it's too cold to go and we don't end up getting regular exercise - so I've found this week, working out 3 mornings, I have more energy, my brain works better, and I ended the week in a WAAYY better place than usual!  Yay for Anchorage Athletic Club!!

Brian has been working on a greenhouse here in Alaska for my hairdresser, and that's been an interesting project - a big greenhouse - 10 x 12 and 10 ft. high.

He's always got unusual jobs - the last one was making a door for a German shepherd to be able to get in and out of the house but also stay separate from the ferrets - now THAT's a specialty!  Or he's replacing toilets or putting in a new outlet for a damaged one that almost started a house fire or putting in floors or figuring out how to fix something someone tried to do for themselves that didn't quite work -- he's quite the creative problem solver!

We're hoping for snow but the last two days have been freezing drizzle off and on instead . . . Sunday we may get snow, and all that we need is a little bit to be skiing again!  Happy holiday preparation to everyone in the meantime!