A little-bits crazy - A lotta-bits fun.

This past weekend my sister and soon-to-be brother-in-law came to have some fun in Maine. My used-to-be adventerous, wild and crazy, have no fear sister is now the spitting image of my "we are going to fast, will you just slow down you crazy maniac" momma. Out for a spin on the snowmobiles, she was all bunddled up and ready for a ride. Half way to our destination she was ready to be there and Michael may have been internally bleeding from all the hitting to slow down. But we made it to Jackman.

Refreshed from lunch, it was time for a change. We had to have the sleds back at 4:30 p.m. and at 2:45 with 35 miles to go 20 mph wasn't going to cut it. Laura was bold...she let me drive with her on the back.  Michael rode my 1-up sled and Brian was on the F6...zooom! off we went.

I checked-in a time or two to make sure she wasn't totally freaking out (or had fallen off) and it was smooth sailing. That is till I took a wide corner at 40, slid on some ice and almost knocked her and I completely off. But Laura was the perfect passenger, she stuck her leg far enough out that if we tipped all the way over she wouldn't get stuck and she pushed us back up before we ever stopped forward motion. Whew!

Everyone made it back in one piece, and no interal bleeding for me. Laura's quote of the day, "I didn't hit you to slow down cause I knew you wouldn't care. Rachel'd just get off the sled at the end of the day and ask "why are you such a pansy?""

It was an awesome trip!

So many UPDATES.

What a bad blogger I've been...so much has happened in these past few weeks!

Brian took a new full time job dispatching for Sommerset County. He misses being a cop; and the importance and meaning in his career so he's making his way back to law enforcement. First stop dispatching, next stop police force.

I'm back at Forrester working 15 hours a week. I have my own desk in the Northern office and I can walk down the hall to my computer in my sweatpants. It's been awesome so far. There is even a table full of snacks which brings memories of the girls back in Boston.

And we're looking at camps! With Brian's new job he'll be working a 12 hour night shift which means it's time to move out of our Northern Outdoors apartment. Our one room apartment isn't ideal for opposite schedules. And with no windows its hard to do anything in the daytime without turning on a light or two. Rent up here is just as much or more than a mortgage payment and utilities would be with real estate so cheap so we're looking at camps/year-round homes. That way if we ever want to move we still have a place here for vacation. (And visitors can stay for free!)

A little taste of home.

I finally got around to making baked beans. Boston Baked Beans, as if there is any other kind. They are pretty yummy, a little bland but perfection takes time. Brian went back for seconds so they can't be half bad.

Now if you don't already know, I'm a total foodie. I love food! I'm particularly fond of the hunt for the best food; restaurants, speciality shops, and organic everything. My beans had a mix of the best stuff  - organic onions, hickory smoked thick-cut bacon, sugar, molasses, navy beans, mustard.

In case you'd like to try them for yourself. I edited the recipie I followed so that yours will turn out more flavorful. If they come out a little bland and lighter colored at first don't worry, they get tastier and darker the next day.

Boston Baked Beans
1 pound beans (navy beans work well)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 pound bacon or salt pork (bacon gives a smoky flavor)
1/2 medium onion (peeled, not cut)
4 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 cup molasses
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Soak your beans in a bean pot or casserole dish overnight.

In the morning pre-heat oven to 325˚ and fill a dutch oven half full with water and baking soda. Bring to a boil and add beans, cooking for 10 minutes. Strain beans, saving the water they were boiled in. Rinse beans with cold water, set aside.

Line bottom of bean pot with half of your bacon/salt pork. Place your onion in, then cover with beans. Use remainder of bacon/salt pork to cover the top of the beans.

In a bowl mix all other ingredients with 3 cups hot bean water. Stir till combined well, pour over beans. Baked covered for 6 hours checking hourly for moisture. Beans should be moist, but not flooded.

Pleasant Pond Mountain.

Wednesday we decided to hike to the top of Pleasant Pond Mountain. The first tracks up the mountain of the new year. Greg, one of the snowmobile guides/groomers, gave us directions - leaving out one fact that newbies must discover for themselves - turn left at the fork!

With our snowshoes on we hiked in to the sign that said 1.3 miles to the top. Doesn't sound too bad? Except there was two feet of snow on the ground and if you don't know; snowshoes does not mean that you float. We made it to the Appilachian Trail hut where Brian found the sign for the toilet. Then headed around to a logging road following the trail before seeing the sign that said 1.1 miles to go!

Apparently we took the long way up and around the back side of the mountain, which added almost another mile. So up we went -and up and up and up. We stopped halfway up for some crackers and cheese with an incredible view through the trees.

After a snack, off came the snowshoes as we had to climb (me falling every step of the way) up the mountain. Grabbing onto tress and slipping on the snow we made it up the steep embankment only to see the trail kept going. Not long after it was time for lunch.

Thanks to Mom we enjoyed organic tomato soup. All warmed up it was time to head back down which was much easier now that we knew the shortcut.

Over The River.

And through the woods, into the great big snow we go!

Saturday night's storm dropped almost two feet of fresh snow. And today we had a day off so we strapped on the snowshoes. Brian got a good laugh as I attempted to tromp down a path along the Kennebec River. After a mile and 10 stops to catch my breath (a foot of snow on top of your shoe is HEAVY!) we decided that I am the most out of shape skinny person we know.

But we couldn't call it quits; not with all that powder. I rented a sled and Brian hopped on his and off we went. After lunch down at The Hawk's Nest something crazy happened. I actually took Brian up on the offer to ride his Arctic Cat F6 SnoPro. My first reaction, "It's like a magic carpet!" I was whisked away over the bumps and up the trail. I have since apologized and let Brian know that I am sorry, but I can not give his sled back. It is mine now. (He thinks that's the okay for a new sled) Silly boy.

A New Friend.

I have a new friend...his name is Bailey.

Bailey is a Bernese Mountain Dog. My FAVORITE breed. I have been begging for a puppy for over a year now. Brian said yes right off the bat, but tiny apartment after tiny apartment combined with insane schedules means I'm still waiting. Bailey let me indulge in cuddling him to pieces while I gave puppy eyes to Brian begging once again for a bigger apartment so I could have my puppy.

Hopefully Mandy, Bailey's mom, can stop by for a visit again soon. Maybe we will even take a ride with Bailey down to the farmers market in Waterville we were chatting about. Gotta love grass-fed beef, organic chickens, and milk in glass bottles.

We're Here!

Our tiny studio apartment is packed to the limit.

Everything's been cleaned and fixed (thanks to the mom's and dad), the boxes are almost empty and last night we spent our first night in our new apartment. We are officially off on our new adventure!!

Now don't let me lead you astray, I now understand why so often people look back at life and wonder. Our stress levels right now are through the roof, wondering all of the normal questions. However you never know till you try, right?