In less than a week I will have a 4 year old in the house....

Forrest reeling in his first adult steelhead just 2 days ago...

This soon to be 4 year old is keeping us on our toes as usual in the Fulton household! He is really fully a little boy, (excuse me, a BIG boy!), an older brother and quite a good one at that, as well as an overall sweet kid with a VERY fiesty side that tends to pop out daily, if not hourly!

the ninja brothers

Forrest demonstrating his good big brother abilities :-) "Come on Talin, lets go to the trailer and chase bad guys...!"

As I write this both brothers are lying together on our recliner talking about which chair they like best, which blankie they like best, and giving each other the occasional brotherly kick or jab. Or now they've made a dog pile on the couch with Forrest on the bottom cracking up as his little brother jumps on him with all his 25 lb. strength :-)
4 years! It seems so long, but so quick as well. Forrest has come a long way and he is more a sponge now than I have ever seen him. He absorbs information like no other, loves to read, and at the moment is trying to read a book to his brother. We need to capitalize on this and read more to him, as it instantly makes for a calm focused Forrest. His other favs at the moment are the little legos that make amazing contraptions like helicopters, airplanes, etc. This is two-sided for me, as they are often all over the house, but he LOVES them and thankfully his Dad I think likes them as well and the other day they made all the helicopter and plane pieces into two new models for future boats for our family, (Alex wishes!). He has a very mechanical mind, has a great memory, and can count to 40 only skipping a few numbers. During our long car rides he'll just start counting and keep going and going until Alex and I go batty :-)
So the counting thing is great, counting objects, no problem, but I think this kid has a little trouble with colors. Or else he's pretending to not know his colors, I can't quite figure it out. But even something as simple as a red stop sign catches him? But yet he knows blue and yellow make green, (probably from memorization and the book Little Blue and Little Yellow though...) but this color thing confuses me? Color blindness? Just not catching the concept? I don't know.

He is still extremely active, ALWAYS on the move, and there is tons of imaginative play right now. He can occupy himself for quite a long time these days playing with his airplanes, boats, or anything really. Unfortunately a lot of his play has to do with "bad guys" and shoot guns, or squirt guns, slime guns,(what IS that??) but I think this is pretty normal for a kiddo this age. He does understand that we really don't want him to be the bad guy, shooting other things, so then he'll say, "Don't worry Mama, I'm a good bad guy...I don't get in jail"
Great... :-[
His activity can be quiet play too. He is more into arts and crafts though not nearly as much as other things. He has drawn a few pictures for us and loves a little instant erase drawing board with magnets my Grandma picked up for him. Other quiet play can be giving his Dad or myself rubs and massages. This is awesome. He is very into it and tells us he is doctoring us when they happen. These moments along with his frequent "I love you SO much Mama" make all those crazy times just drift out of our minds....or....at least make it all worth it! It really is amazing the love these little people can share. 
Pre-school is going well. We still have bad days where multiple time-outs happen but things overall are LOADS better for this intense kiddo. He still can be rough, and his rough play is triggered by low sleep, over stimulation, (too many kids,) and the rest, well, who knows? After a particularly rough day over a week ago His preschool teacher and I were trying to make sense at it all but really couldn't. Trying to put sense for our kids behavior I think makes us feel better but really, they are their own independent beings and really this is hard to do. There are so many variables...hunger?fatigue?sickness?growth-spurt?I don't like this blue shirt you made me wear?My breakfast made my tummy hurt? and on....and on.....
Whew.
So, it has been, and is always, a learning experience for us.
A super duper super hero birthday party is upcoming for this soon to be four year old Fulton boy.

4 days of paradise

We are back in the saddle again so to speak. Transitioning from our 4 days in Kona straight to a week of work was tough, but this trip was good enough to carry a ton of great memories for awhile. Everything really was perfect. The kids had a blast with their Grandparents and Aunties enjoying quality time in Santa Barbara, LA, and I'm sure everywhere in between! We had an amazing time getting UNINTERRUPTED SLEEP!(really is amazing how well you feel after 8 hours of the stuff! So good we really couldn't sleep in !) And we also filled all our moments with great trips to postcard perfect hike in beaches with our old friends and neighbors Dick and Lori, a lot of terrific snorkeling, amazing fish-papayas-mangos-bananas-pinapples-and those amazing fruity drinks, an amazing night on a cliff look out watching manta rays, and I could go on and on! It was capped by a peak at a multimillion dollar home where we got to enjoy drinks and a great sunset over the ocean with a great tub to soak our feet in. Yes, epic. It was primarily awesome in that Alex and I now realize how much we really can do and how much fun we have with just the two of us. Our kids are our life, but we're pretty fun without them once in awhile!

First morning in Kona, starting off with some fresh juice??NOOO, Airborne for us. I fought a cold but even that couldn't spoil an amazing time!

Hiking out to Maklavena Beach

Beach shot with our great friends Dick and Lori

Remembering how to boogie board!

Snorkel fun

Such an amazing spot. After our hike in we ate, drank, swam, snorkeled, relaxed, and even took a little nap :-)

 

driving out from Maklavena, we were following the locals...lots of jeeps and surfers...

Alex braving a windy ocean on the paddle board.

calmer waters on our hotel beach

This is just to show HOW windy it can get! This was the next day, on our way to the "green" side of the island. More wind and rain. Beautiful  scenery!

Hike down to Pololu Valley. Great hike even if a bit windy and rainy

Looking away from the ocean on the Pololu Valley floor. Alex said it reminded him of Alaska. Crazy how many different looks the landscape of Hawaii has!

Pololu Valley

There were several rope swings hanging from trees on the Valley floor, most you would not want to try!

This one was great!

My favorite picture of the trip I believe, the valley floor and forrest of Pololu valley was amazing! I love the trees and trail :-)

Gorgeous view looking up the coast from the trail

Rainbow and Mauna Kea

Hiking down to Captain Cook Monument. 1300 foot climb to get out and 4 miles round trip but so worth it!

Snorkeling Captain Cook

Mai Tai!!!

A pina colada a night was on Alex's schedule!

My great morning run scenery. First time in months I was able to run in shorts and a tank top!

Gorgeous sunset!

Hanging out with sea turtles while watching the sunset!

Our hotel was at the start of the Iron Man swim. Though during our stay the Pea-Man event was going on...3 mile run 1/3 mile swim. More my style!

One of our many fabulous fish dinners. Can you say wahoo and ahi!!

 We are blessed to have amazing family that we could entrust our home and our boys to. Lucky pups we are!

If you must smoke, smoke salmon!!!

Or so says one of Alex's shirts. I know the blog has been a bit quiet over here. We've been well though! It's been just a wee bit sunnier so we've been outside more...and between preparing for a certain trip that is suddenly upon us and studying for my boards that I have to retake in one month, it's been busy!
But, it suddenly struck me to share a bit on a tride true Ranch happening that occurs several times a year. Smoking salmon! This is all Alex. I'm learning, as I've been brining our Ranch turkeys when we take one of them a few times a year. This is the first time we used the same brine for the turkey and the salmon.
So, without further adieu....


You start with a salt and almost boiling water solution. We do approximately 1 cup of salt to 1 gallon of water. Don't quite let it boil or the salt can burn, (so says Alex the guru!) You then add twice as much sugar as salt. We use brown sugar and white sugar as our base. This is the base of the brine. This is the 2:1 ratio that is critical. All the other additions tend to change a bit but are fun to play with!

Brown sugar going in the pot after the salt and water have gone to solution

Pepper is always good!

Honey is excellent!

Here Alex is cooling the solution with ice cubes, so it will not cook the fish before it is in the smoker

Now, plenty of people swear by adding alcohol of some sort. Red wine, or whiskey is common. To tell you the truth, we kind of think it is a waste as the taste is lost in the brine, but tonight, Alex was feeling the JD so in it went!!!

 

 Next, that beautiful salmon is sliced up in strips....

The salmon is left in the brine in a bowl for 12 hours. It is then set on the smoker racks. The smoking process takes about 18-24 hours depending on the thickness of the cuts.
And on the other end you end up with delish smoked salmon! Yummmo!!! This is quite a staple in our home as it is an awesome snack, the kids love it, and I love to mix it in to pasta, on top of toast or a bagel with cream cheese, or in a quesadilla . :-)

A fishy frosty weekend

The setting for our inpromptu "date" afternoon on the river :-)

 hoarfrost [ˈhɔːˌfrɒst

 n

(Earth Sciences / Physical Geography) a deposit of needle-like ice crystals formed on the ground by direct condensation at temperatures below freezing point Also called white frost

The above picture of, what appears to be a furry white rock amongst a background of snow is what we've been living in lately, and is actually frost! Hoarfrost to be exact, as my fun factoid of the day, (this term was new to me!) But, it actually does look like we've had snow around our neck of the woods. Places of the ground where the sun never hits during these long winter days has a thick covering of this beautiful crystal ice covering, crunchy when you walk on it, and very frozen.

Amidst hoarfrost and the deep dark days of January, winter steelhead fishing is upon us. Despite the freezing cold temps, the ice that has not left the ground for weeks, and fingers and toes that feel as if they could fall off I've got a husband who is, quite literally, foaming at the mouth to be on the water, the 36 degree water mind you, every day he can!
But, then again, catching something like THIS....

.... would just send that adrenalin through the roof wouldn't it!

We were lucky enough to get a "date" afternoon today. No wonderful little angel boys to bless us with their opinion of the weather, the snacks, and their lack of nap. And, to tell you the truth, it was just plain to cold for them anyhow. And yes, on this rare date afternoon we splurged on NOT the finest meal in town, nor the best movie playing at the theater, but, yes, ice cold steelhead fishing and the most beautiful sunny, but VERY chilly river scenery you could ask for. 

Yep this mama finally dusted off her fish fingers and got into some of the action herself. Despite the fact I have a fish lover husband, I have not actually had a fishing license for two years. Until today! I guess I've been busy training up my wee little fishermen and have let Alex do all the catching :-) I broke the new license in with these two beautiful fish, and lost two others just to make it exciting. It was awesome to say the least. So happy I have a fish guru hubby to take me on these spur of the moment adventures when we can spare a few hours of the day :-)

Sunday town trip

Forrest getting ready to "Go to Mom's work to see the animals ;-)" truth be told sometimes I think of my work that way myself :-)

Today while Alex was guiding on the river, and because I had a few hours of work to do in town, the boys and I had a fun filled town day! Forrest was great at my office, eating more snacks then I ever thought he could possibly stuff in his little belly. A sign of things to come I suppose. Talin had a few hours with his fav daycare lady and then we were off!
We filled the day with our first ever trip to the local Zoo, albeit small, known as California's oldest Zoo!  Red pandas, a barnyard with a whole host of animals, monkeys, and llama's were the boys favorites. The Coast was GORGEOUS. I have very few pictures from this trip, because, well, the boys and I were having a blast! And by blast I mean in a very active way. While Forrest raced around having a blast on one of 6 different slides, Talin also was EVERYWHERE. No fear either which was a bit worrisome. But big brother Forrest did great and both boys were thoroughly tuckered out by the late afternoon.

 Not too tuckered out to eat a bowl of "special treat" frozen yogurt!!!!!

 Yummy!!!!! Happy boys I had. And one happy Mama! We loved thawing out a bit in the lovely sunshine of the coast. Looking forward to more town days this winter :-)