Gone to the Animals

  As vacation is dwindling and the weather is waning, decided to go and see the 2 little baby Sumatran Tigers that were being talked about on the news at Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium.

  Upon entering of course I have to go see some of my favorites, always the Asian Elephants.  I feel sorry for them though, as the space is just never large enough for these huge sweet-faced animals.  There is only the 2 females and they are both seemingly bored.  They don't have all the usual things elephants like, like mud, they were pulling dust up and spraying themselves and had large water bodies to play in, but no mud.  Hmm, old Washington weather should be able to supply that one soon enough though I think.
  So we wound through the Asia animals exhibit we went for the main attraction, the 2 Sumatran Tiger babies.  They were sleeping at this time so we missed out on the frolic I was hoping for from them, but hey, I'm just there to watch them, they aren't there to do tricks for me, so I just watch them snuggle with their mother in awe of how beautiful they are.

  Can you give me a big "awwww" aren't they the sweetest, ya I know they could kill an antelope in a mighty swipe of their paws in not to distant future, but for now, "awwwwww."
  The Mere Cats and the Lemur's  are always a favorite, even though we must of came at siesta time for everyone.  The lemurs were sleeping in a tightly packed lemur ball all snuggled together with one at the top keeping of the ball keeping his eye out on things.  The Mere Cats were busy doing what they do best, scurrying, looking about to see what kinda action they could find.  How many nights had I watched them on Discovery channel and tickled by how smart they are and their antics.

Before leaving the tiger house we stopped and saw the snow leopards, they too were napping way up high in a very lazy cat ball and didn't bother to even look down for us., oh well, they were still pretty amazing to see.

 We ended up seeing Red Wolves, which now only exist in zoos, as they've been hunted to extinction everywhere. There were 3 of them and they were kept in separate enclosures which they rotate to keep them from too much boredom.

From there we went into the aquariums, we saw all the different see inhabitants by area.  From the San Juans to Whidbey Island.  It was pretty cool how they had it all labeled for your understanding of how things differ.     The seahorses are always a favorite of mine and there is also a large exhibit of them but they said no flash photography, and I'm sorry to say, I couldn't think of how to turn my flash off. No pics this time.  

Continuing to the shark exhibit, we viewed the nurse sharks, dog fish, and some other sharks I'd not like to encounter while out for a swim personally.  They may be small but their teeth look ferociously sharp and knife like.  No thanks.

nurse shark

After leaving the aquariums it was time to go see the walrus and seal exhibits.  The walrus really put on a show, she heaved her huge body up onto the rocks to look face to face with us.  You'd of thought you could smell her fish breath as she came up to have a peak at everyone.  She really had all of us in Awe! Such a big girl.

The seals too had their charms but they were more concerned who got the best overlook at the enclosure.  A gray seal kept trying to entice the lone white one to move so he could take over...it was pretty funny.

 If you were a kid in the Pierce County end of town you can remember when the poor Polar Bear just had a tiny area right when you entered the park, the area they have now, although so much better really still makes you wish there were more space for animals and maybe a few less concession stands.  Remembering watching the movie "Polar Tale" you can really sympathize as they are such huge wanderers. 

 Here are just a few of the other stars of the day.

All in all, not to bad a day at Point Defiance, and I will likely be going back, when though, who knows....I always say sooner than later....but you know how time goes.

Weekend at Taylor Ranch

Just had a ball with 4 of my closest knitting friends when we drove to our friend Lynn and Rick's Ranch in Tonaskat, Wa.  What a beautiful place.  They have 3 horses, Chrystal, PJ and Rocky as well as a border collie, Koby or is it Coby? Uh oh, I've forgotten.  Sorry Lynn and Rick, it's my memory again.  

This is Lynn, on her princess Chrystal.  She really was such a sweet horse, she actually let all of us ride her, or at least sit on her and be led around.  I'm not familiar with horses so it was very nice that Rick led both Amy and I around, as I really felt intimidated by Chrystal's size, and she wasn't even as big as the male horse PJ, he's the black one you'll see soon. We were also able to watch Rick train with Rocky to become ready for riders, at this time, he's still to young and is just being taught all the things he needs to know and building his confidence.  We learned a lot about horses that weekend and I find it so interesting to see all that goes into it.

The home of Lynn and Rick was so beautiful, it sits so nicely on the hill and the breezes really keep it quite comfortable, we were all marveling at how nicely the house cooled right down just with opening up the windows. The open floor plan and two floors were absolutely beautiful and so comfortable.  Loads of space to stretch out in. I was loving the light and the airiness it offered, but truth be told...the kitchen is what really grabbed me.  Talk about a cook's delight.  Loads of space in the kitchen and open so we could all chat and help in the meal making process. It's a huge part of all of our retreats.

I usually like to dominate the kitchen, but I have to tell you, when Miriam, on the left, and Amy on the right are there...(mother and daughter)look out as pans are moving and meals are being prepared fit for a king.  We ate salmon with Orange butter sauce, we had spanokopita that was absolutely to die for in it's light flakiness, we had gazpacho that I couldn't get enough of and Geralyn our other friend who's not in the picture there made the best blueberry buckle and walnut toffee bars you ever had, but her specialty, the Turtle Back farm granola which we've all come to crave, she brought for us freshly made before our retreat.  Miriam really goes all out and she scans cook books and always has the best recipes ready for us.  

I had brought talligio and padano cheeses from Pike Place and smoked mussles and salmon, some roasted tomato and olive tapanades from the market also and some breads for snacking along with a few other goodies we just couldn't get too. Needless to say, I was pretty happy to get out and walk off some of those calories we consumed. Whew, I left thinking I should never eat again.  Thank you ladies for making such awesome meals.

This is Koby, he kept us all entertained with how smart he was, we marveled at all the things he could figure out doing, Lynn and Rick said he was a breeze to train because he remembered everything.  He definitely is border collie though, he really liked action, but always was a perfect gentleman, I gotta say we were all so charmed by him. Poor guy though, I felt sorry for him, because I can't throw a Frisbee or a ball to save my life, and he just looked at me like, ok, do something will ya? I can wait all day...

The view over the sweeping 27 acres was beautiful,  grassy pastures with a stream surrounded by hills of trees...It was such a nice place to relax and I have to admit, I must have, because I was asleep so early every single night as everyone else knit and chat into the late hours.  I'm not a night owl even on swingshift.  We spent the afternoon out on the wrap around porch, knitting and talking and taking in the sun, I was into it.  I've always wanted a wrap around porch, it's on my bucket list of things for someday, so I really really enjoyed it while the opportunity was there.  Afternoon cocktails and morning coffee were even more enjoyable out there.

Rocky is the Red head, he's 3  years old and PJ there, the black horse, he's 30.  THey were both so very beautiful, Rocky was all frisky and puppylike, they told us that he was the one that got the 2 older horses out there running and really getting across the acres.

We walked through the pastures and got to be in their element, which was pretty cool as they decided to come up to visit us, they were very interactive, I really liked it, although, a tad intimidated by PJ.  He was just big! Totally nice, just BIG. These horses are some of the luckiest ever, they get to live like horses...not all penned up and waiting for people but like  a small herd, it was such a joy to see.

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This barn on their property was figured to be over 100 years old, as well as a few other building we saw as we drove through the area.  We saw beaver damns and work they'd accomplished as well as more of the other homes and ranches along the way. From here, you now know where the term "busy as a beaver" came from.

We had such a wonderful time, our host and hostess couldn't of made us feel any more comfortable and as with all close friends, the talk is easy and the time is always too short. Thank you for sharing your home with us.

Charlie's Lasagna

  Each of us seems to have the one dish we make that everyone loves and is usually the item we bring to potlucks because we're kinda known for it.  Mine is lasagna.  I make it slightly different from the norm and my friends and family have all decided its a hit.  Who doesn't love cheesey warm tomatoey goodness? It is my favorite comfort food of all comfort foods.

  Hope you enjoy this recipe.

Charlie's Spicy Chicken Sausage Lasagna.

Preheat over to 350 degrees.

Ingredients:
Olive oil
box of dried lasagna noodles
1 can Trader Joe's Toscano low fat Marinara
1 small ball low moisture mozzarella, cut into slices.
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
half pint of low fat cottage cheese
1 package either spicy chicken andoullie or spicy chicken Italian sausage, 5 links.  I like Trader's Joes for this too.
crushed chili flakes/to taste for top

1.  Slice sausage into 1/4 inch rounds, put into nonstick skillet and cook till done. Remove and put onto paper towels to remove any excess oil.

2. Starting with 9x11 pan, put a bit of olive oil into bottom to prevent sticking and then add a TBLS of uncooked sauce to bottom. Add 3 uncooked noodles across bottom of pan and top with dollops of the cottage cheese and half the sausage.  You want to have enough to make 2 cottage cheese/sausage layers, so divide evenly, then put sauce along edges of noodles, the sauce will cook into the noodle edges better this way, and a bit in the middle, think of sauce as being divided into thirds, enough for each layer and to cover top.

3.  Make another layer of noodles and repeat with ingredients.

4. For the top, use a layer of noodles, then cover entirely with sauce.  Add slices of mozzarella to top and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes, removing foil at end to brown cheese.

Suggestions:  I sometimes just make with the Chicken Italian sausage and then use fresh basil leaves added in the center layer for a nice really Italiany type lasagna but either way, use what you have. It's always simple and so good.

Enjoy!