Just a lil This and That at the Earthship.
We have had a lot of lil successes and a lot of, um, learning experiences.
I think it is safe to say that the best part about being at the Earthship is that we, Luke and I, are able to spend in inordinate amount of time together. We are married 18 years this September; hard to believe that much time has past since Luke first arrived in Canada.
It was busy times when he arrived with just to much going on! It seemed like there was very little time for just the two of us and we looked forward to the day that we could spend more time together.
Luke and I, we are not the type of folks that forever want more, want something new, want more material things; we are more about making the best use of the time we have together to do things together even if that means just sitting and being, being content with what we have. I do have to admit that it is very cozy to,  sit and be,  when you are sitting in front of a crackling fire in the wood stove. To watch the dawn turn to day; watch the sun creep over the hill; hear the surrounding  forest wake up and set about making plans for the day. It’s absolutely lovely!
Life’s sustenance  occupies most of my time and I love it! Creating all sorts of culinary delights in my off the grid kitchen. One of our favourite’s is Coffee; no day starts without a cup of coffee. I get up heaps earlier than Luke but I put off brewing coffee until it is almost time for him to wake up so that we can both enjoy fresh, hot coffee.
Our Pantry and Cold Room, when it is in operation, are as full as they can be, given where we live. I would say the pantry is more dependable than the small propane fridge or cold room. We have run out of fresh produce twice since we have been out in the bush but I have managed to create meals from our vast supplies in the pantry. It really is my goal to coax the Greenhouse and gardens into providing us with greens that we can have at our fingertips all year long! So far I have only really had great success with herbs, but that is a start!
We always have grains on hand and well, there is always Bread and Butter, right? Or Peanut Butter. Or Vegemite even though we have to pay an arm and a leg for it here in Canada. But the bread? It is always home made. Sometimes I make Sourdough Loaves, sometimes I make sourdough Cobbs; I think I prefer the Loaves because it is easier to use to make toast and sandwiches. During my January 2018 trip to the Fraser Valley Luke ran out of bread and  we no longer have a bread machine to help him out! (Though there is now one in transit, not that that will help him at the moment)  He had to learn how to get his hands dirty and make bread from scratch! Maybe I will hang up my bread making duties, hey? Nah! I would never do that! I LOVE making bread! Love it!
Other things we really enjoy at the Earthship are the Sunrises and the Sunsets; the sun gets up so late even Luke gets a chance to watch the Sunrise. We love the peace and solitude of Brittany Lake. We love being out on the land, puttering about, tidying up, cutting trails, cutting down saplings, falling trees for firewood, we LOVE walking with Bear and Samwise Gamgee and last but certainly not least, we LOVE watching all the wild life! What a treat! I always say a lil prayer for the creatures that meander through our place, wishing them a safe journey and welcoming them back to our lil oasis; being Vegetarian they are sure to be safe at our place.
We whine and complain about the snow but we actually really love the Winter. Everything is so lovely, covered by a pristine blanket of white snow; and it seems that the sky is a totally different hue of blue in the Winter – exceptionally beautiful and blue. We love that the roads are … easier… to traverse. The amount of snow sometimes give us a few worries but we still prefer to drive in the white stuff over the muck of Spring or the rocks and holes…chasms….of the Summer.
We love our animals. Maybe a lil too much. Bear and Sam bring us much joy and comfort along with a headache here and there; both boys have had us driving back and forth to the vet’s office in William’s Lake which is no small undertaking! We are happy to report that Sammy, with his chest all healed up, seems to be more responsive to our “Return” commands; hopefully that will keep him intact and wound free! Bear’s leg is healing nicely after his operation; it has been a long row to hoe!  For an entire month Luke was Bear’s beck and call servant! Every time Bear needed to go out Luke would have to assist him with a sling; whilst geared up they would do tiny laps out in front of the solar panels – the only flat bit of area that Bear could get to. We are almost 3 months in now and Bear is walking very well but not great distances as of yet. He tries, but then he pays for it. We are just so thankful that he was able to have the operation to repair his cranial cruciate ligament; he does have arthritis in his back legs so we will have to keep him on Recovery, well, for the rest of his life. He gets massages and warm blankets to help keep him comfortable.
Oh, yea, we have a cat. Not sure if I have told you the story. When Luke and I returned from living in Australia in 2011 we rented a house in Chilliwack. The owner was moving to Thailand. I asked him what he was going to do with the three cats in his possession? He said he would try to re-home them but, shrug, animal shelter? I couldn’t bear to see the kitties going to an animal shelter but three? A bit much! We kept Billabong. Right, his name was Bubba but I just couldn’t…made me think of Bubba in Forrest Gump, and while I like the character in the movie, it just did not seem an appropriate name for our new kitty. Bill accepted us as his new humans, transitioned well to the house on Peach Road when we moved there, he survived the drive to Brittany Lake where he is slowly adapting to life in the bush. He was a good lil mouser when we first arrived by now? Jeez, I reckon he invites them in for Kitty Kibble! Silly kitty! He is getting on in years, I reckon; he must be about 8 or 9? Time for a younger kitty to come along and take over mousing duties and Bill can just chill in the kitchen or down by the woodstove.

Okay, I’ve included three photos of my feet! Weird, right? Here’s the thing of it. It is not always easy to cope with being so far away from family. I am eternally grateful that Kristina, our younger daughter, allows her boys to come and stay with us for weeks at a time! Those lil fellas bring so much love and laughter to the place! And they get to boys! Ryan has been up a few times, once bringing us much needed produce! Michael and Hayley reckon they may not ever make it out there…they are not too keen on our bathroom situation. Funny that; I used to be mildly annoyed by it but now it is second nature. Anita is busy, busy, busy and has not made it up yet; maybe this Summer they will make the trip, after our oldest grandson graduates from high school! Anyway, I get to missing them sometimes and get a lil blue so I haul out my red shoes and wear them around inside the Earthship. Those red shoes have helped me through a few rough spots!
The bath photo: well, we don’t have an operational bathtub out at the Earthship, and let’s face it, I’m not getting any younger so these old bones of mine appreciate a hot soak in a bath every now and again! I relish the baths I get to take when I have overnight trips to William’s Lake!!!
The red boots: Luke knows I love pretty footwear! I off-loaded so many boots and shoes for more serviceable footwear when we sold up down in the Fraser Valley. I think the red boots randomly showed up after Luke’s parents visit. They are adorable  and I did wear them out on the trail once but I reckon they are um, city boots.

Thanks for dropping by today. Hope you enjoyed your visit!
Cheers,
Deanna