The Girls Abide

Nice picture taken by friend Gwen with her BlackBerry cell phone.

The gift that keeps on giving. Here they are at one year, eight and a half months. Egg production has slowed somewhat, but still a steady 1 to 2 a day and sometimes even 3!

From left to right: Silent Bob (formerly known as Betty), Delores, Blondie and Ruby.

Thank you girls!

Michelle's Place in Ulupalakua

We had a fantastic visit to our friends place waaay out in the country on Maui.

I posted a "Gallery" of photos of her garden and coffee and bananas and mac nuts and mangoes. 

The photos are on my SmugMug site 
Notice the comments lower left under each photo or bottom center if you choose to run slideshow mode.
Click here

Meli Graduates Puppy Kindergarten

5 classes consisting of one hour a week for 5 consecutive weeks yielded this:

First thought was to frame it so that we could always look and celebrate. But then we thought, "Naw, Meli earned it, so let's just give it to her. she's now so well trained, she'll take good care of it."

Below some of Meli's classmates and their humans:

The class usually begins with all pups off leash and commanded to "go play."

Tracy had a handful of treats and instantly became the main attraction.

Another part of training is called "cradling" and indeed even these big Newfie babies love it. These two are actually younger than Meli. 

Carter has a big support group. Human Mom is just off camera on the left. Carter is quite excitable and needed a combined effort to manage the "cradle".

Meli learns to walk!

Oh yes, remember above that we decided to give Meli her diploma

Well...

We did!

Friend Gwen said that puppy training classes are really for training the humans. I guess we need more training....

Good girl Meli, you're a good girl!

Hungry Horse

Our neighbors' pasture has provided plenty of grazing for their horses for most of this year. (See January 22, 2012 post). But after 7 months they have pretty much chewed the acre and a half of chest high grass down to dirt!
Here is the mare discovering greener pastures - our back yard. It was interesting to see how graceful and careful she was, gently slipping her head between the barbed wire strands and getting to the fresh grass.

Horse sense - that's a good name for it!

Ulu, aka Breadfruit

Breadfruit (ulu) is something of which we have become quite fond here on the islands. It's all about preparation and after experimentation we have come up with a recipe we love.

We got this little keiki (baby) from a farmer down in Hana Town.

We named her "Lil' Ulu"

Arrived December 21, 2010

As you can see below, our tree is doing very well.

Nearer to now: September 1, 2012

A fully developed fruit ready for preparation

Latest Arrival: "Man Fern"

Sister Katie Neighbor Lady rolled in on Tracy's birthday with this present for her garden.

One of the names for it is: "Man Fern"

Gee, I wonder, why?

Interestingly, scientifically speaking, it's biological classification defines it to be of the family Dicksoniaceai, suitable, I suppose.

The Hawaiian name is Hapu'u.
(pronounced hah-poo-ooo - accent on the "poo" and the "ooo" sounds like the "ooo" in you, too!

Here is a photo grabbed from Google Images that shows Hapu'u much more grown up and old enough to wear clothes!

Breaking News: Man Fern Get's More ... "Manly"

Man, what a fern!
MAN FERN!!!

After such and long and successful display of bulbous growth - looks like the kids are coming.

Check back for updates.

Welcome Home Meli!!!

Meli is Hawaiian for honey

(Pronounced May-Lee)

Her Mom is a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel and her Dad is a Chihuahua

Arriving - 6 weeks old

Truly cute with a nice attitude and appears to be friendly, responsive and maybe even smart!

Always interested

Sleeps well through the night. That may have something to do with her being allowed to sleep in our bed.

We're off to puppy training school in a couple of weeks. Five one hour classes (one a week) with other dogs and people. Tracy wanted a baby so that it could be trained early and properly - so far so good. The chickens have had a few things to say, but they're getting over it. The bees could care less.

What's the buzz? I'll tell you what's happening!

Finely time for some bees. Tracy went to bee school and graduated with the equipment and a hive full of bees (a colony).

The bees had to be picked up and moved at night. So on the afternoon of the big day we set up the stand and equipment in preparation for their arrival. Chose the banana patch because it's downwind from the house and provides some shelter from the wind and rain and plenty of sun with just a little shade.

 As dusk descended, Tracy and Gabe drove up the hill and picked up the bees, drove them home in the trunk of the car and Gabe placed them on the stand in the dark. Next morning it was time to open them up and let them begin orienting in their new environment and get to work.

Adding a bit of smoke while opening up their front door.  Smoke confuses the bees, causing them to slow down and move closer to the center of the hive, where the queen usually is.

Tracy couldn't resist opening up for a quick inspection

 Tracy and Gabe Shalitmontagne watching the action. Gabe comes from Seattle having grown up in our old West Seattle neighborhood. He bought a one way ticket to Maui and is off on a Wwoof'ing adventure. After a short work/trade stay with us he's moving on to an organic farm here on Maui for the longer term. What's WWOOF you might ask?

World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms

 We finished quickly with a minimum of interaction and left them to settle in.

 A couple days later it was time to play "Find the Queen" and do a more in depth inspection.

 Pulling out a frame. Notice brave Tracy - no hood, no gloves but lot's of love and no stings.

 Again it became evident that we should not invade too much so we cut short the Queen search before we found her. Another reason we quit was the photographer (that's Neil) was the only person to get stung - one time on the right cheek (facial, not other). We were trying to photograph the frames so that we could take a close look at the photos in hopes of finding the Queen. Neil was standing up close with the camera, in their flight pattern, and got nailed.

It's been a couple of weeks now and the bees are very active and appear to be thriving - sweet, wild, local honey on the way!

Just a Reminder

"Not So Almighty"

A Whale of a Whale Watch - Best Day Ever!

Friday, March 2 2012, 11:30am HST at Ma'alaea Harbor, Captain Jay motors in to pick us up.

~remember to click the pics to see them full size

The boat is a 60 foot Catamaran with twin Caterpillar engines

Jay has been a skipper for the Pacific Whale Foundation for nearly 25 years and a great new friend of ours!

Along for the ride: my Dad, wife Dodie & Tracy


First sightings

Thar she blows!

A mom and her calf




The next 3 pictures are explained below:

A 40,000 pound mother Humpback breaches. The second picture is a zoomed in version of the the first. The 3rd is the amazing splash made as she landed back in the water.

Just what the skipper ordered!

A whale's tail with Molikini in the distance. Molikini is a crescent-shaped, partially submerged volcanic crater off the south shore of Maui & popular destination for SCUBA and snorkelers 

This 4,000 pound newborn (2 to 4 weeks old) stuck around our boat with it's mom

and did multiple breaches for nearly an hour.

(Zoomed in version of picture above it)

~remember to click the pics to see them full size 

For more about the whales and whale watch information from a previous post, click here:

VonhofMills: Humpback Whales