English Pointer puppy at work

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Cooper and I went out with my buddy and his new English Pointer, Bo.  We alternated dogs and put some birds out to get them some winter exercise.  Bo is only about 4-5 months old so everything he does is pretty much on instinct.  It was pretty awesome to watch this dog in action and the highlight of the hunt was him locking steady on this (obviously confused) chuckar that sat on the field path.  Bo-dog locked up hard and stared at that bird, but never budged.  What great instincts!  He's going to be a really good dog.

New 40L 'kraut crock

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Got my new German style 40L (~10.5 gallon) crock for mass production of sauerkraut for 2015.  I currently have a 20L and an old style crock, but needed this bigger model for the amount we eat and amount I give away.  The 'Nik Schmitt' fermentation crocks are the secret to making sauerkraut.

Thanksgiving Oyster Mushrooms

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We visited the family in Lynchburg, VA for Thanksgiving and in the morning I took Cooper on a scouting walk for some deer in the city limits.  We ended up finding these good looking oyster mushrooms on this old dead log. 

These were the first oysters I found and just to be sure, I took a spore print.  A spore print is simply placing the mushrooms (cap side up) on any surface to allow you to see the expected color of the spore and covering them (with a pot, bowl, etc) to create a controlled environment.  In this case, oysters have a pearly to white spore print and this was confirmed on the purple construction paper in the morning.

Pennsylvania Grouse Hunting

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Couple great pics of the dogs working some dense Pennsylvania grouse woods. 3 German Shorthairs and my good ol Lab Cooper.  I should have had the only bird, but had no clue where my buddy was so I passed on a 'layup' of a grouse shot.  Its tough keeping track of everyone in the dense grouse cover.  Watching all these dogs work was just awesome though.  Great fall day.   

2014 Sauerkraut Stomp

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The annual family tradition - cabbage from Somerset County and spending time with the kids stomping kraut for New Year's and 2015.  We expanded this year and did a couple hundred pounds of cabbage in a few different crocks.  Going to be a healthy 2015!

Chestnut Trees

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Jack and I were walking around the yard while digging potatoes and Jack found a chestnut that fell from the trees my Grandfather planted about 20 years ago in our yard.  It got me thinking that I should take these chestnuts and try to regrow a tree from one of the seeds.  So we picked up the handful of nuts that the deer hadn't found yet and I took them home.  I put them in some damp potting soil that I will keep in the fridge for the next 4 months.  More to come on this experiment....

My little spud

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It was that time of year to go up to my Mom's in Donegal, PA and dig potatoes.  Fresh giant potatoes are the highlight of the harvest season and nothing can top fresh cut french fries!  I needed a helper and decided to take Jack for the afternoon.  I dug em and Jack put em in the wheelbarrow.  Quite the tandem!  Here are a few pics from the day.

Tomatoes!

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 Picked our second batch and took a couple pics.  We had a bumper crop of tomatoes this year on a limited number of plants.  We ate, steamed, juiced, froze, pureed, roasted, etc. 

Chili and pizza and pasta sauce!

California Mt. Biking; Camp Tamarancho - Marin County

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One of my best friends and old teammate from JMU recently moved out to San Francisco and I happened to be out there on business.  We were able to get a quick mt bike ride in one evening before I took at red eye flight home.  We rented some awesome demo bikes and hit up famous Camp Tamarancho which is a boy scout camp on 480 acres.  Simply put, this was the sickest ride I have ever done.  It had just about everything you could imagine.  We did about a 10 mile loop being chased by day light.  Getting lost would mean a missed flight and a night in the hills.  Fortunately the trails were marked pretty well and we only made one wrong turn that didn't cost us too much time. 

Trail head  with a bike scene feel to it

The highlight of the ride was definitely the Flow Trail, which can be seen on this YouTube video I found online

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lnlfhhh1PFU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXqu_yAkSvo

If these links are broken, just google Tamarancho flow trail on you tube.

The ride was just a perfect end to the week and a coupled with a few Anchorsteams (was hoping for some Pliney's...), I actually slept the whole way home on my red eye for the first time ever. 

Ohiopyle Reunion

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We had a family reunion in Ohiopyle, which was a wonderful get together and long weekend retreat in the Laurel Highlands mountains.  The last day we made our way down to the river and let the kids get into the Yough.  Great memories with a wonderful family.

Jack the wise

Good Dog

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Cooper turned 7 today.  I cant believe how fast the years have flown.  He's an amazing hunting dog and a best friend, but his value has spiked even more now with the kids.  We're so lucky to have him. 

Inaugural Garden

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We decided to keep the first year's garden some what within reason and used the existing small plot in the yard.  this is probably a great decision given everything else I am trying to do now. But it was super important to get that first garden in and have my two little helpers right there along with me!

Y River Fix

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I've been chomping at the bit to get on the Yough, but been just a little busy with the new baby.  With some reinforcements at the home front, I was finally able to get a float under my belt with my father-in-law and Cooper.  We landed a few trout, but this was mostly just a cruise down the scenic river gorge.  We hit the Memorial Day weekend rubber hatch, so we had a few rafts bumping us on the way down, but that is just part of the drill at this point.  Probably best to avoid these high traffic days if you can.

Lunch break!

Hunter Joseph is Born!

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We couldn't have received a better Mothers Day give at 6:18 AM on May 11, 2014 then the birth of our third child, Hunter Joseph.  He was 6# 12 oz. What an amazing little blessing. 

Spring Shrooming

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I went out for a little spring morel hunt in some new spots near the new house, and though I didn't find any morels, I did find some Dryad Saddle mushrooms and some nice sized wild onions.  I went back to the old dependable honey hole to find the morels up in the crick bottom and under the old dead elms.  May 10th and still finding morels.!  Crazy.

Starting the Orchard

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With the new house and a couple acres of space, we wanted to start planting some apple / pear trees in our first year, so we could enjoy them in a few years when they matured.  We bought a Honeycrisp and Gala apple and a Bosc and Bartlett pear for our family Easter gifts.  The apples are dwarf and pears are semi-dwarf.  There is a lot to learn about fruit trees (if you want to really do it right), so I've been researching a lot.  For now, the trees are in the ground and we have a fence to keep the deer out. 

The twins had a ball helping throw dirt and playing peek-a-boo!   It's amazing how much joy can be found in a dirt hole! 

 Just add water

A few weeks later

Turkey Tail Mushrooms - Proven Cancer Killing Fungi

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I continue to go further down the rabbit hole of learning about the mushrooms and their amazing health benefits.  This spring I came across some turkey tail mushrooms. 

Turkey Tail mushrooms are well-researched and one of the most revered medicinal fungi all over the world, but particularly in Japan and China. It is a herbal mushroom that has an tremendous amount of health benefits.   

The most interesting health findings are the Turkey Tail mushrooms have been proven by an NIH study to cure cancer — especially breast cancer.

Turkey Tail mushrooms offer a long list of medicinal properties and health benefits, but they are most prized as a natural source of the anti-cancer polysaccharide PSK.  PSK is said to fight cancer and halt tumors by inhibiting the growth of cancer cells and “stimulating a host mediated response.” PSK also promotes the body’s own “Natural Killer Cells” to strengthen and kick start the immune system.

PSK is frequently combined with chemotherapy to increase cancer survival rates.  Here are a couple links with more info:

http://undergroundhealthreporter.com/turkey-tail-mushroom/#axzz30tymrnU9

Here is what Dr. Andrew Weil has to say about turkey tail.

http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/QAA400904/Turkey-Tail-Mushrooms-for-Cancer-Treatment.html

Here are some of the pictures of the turkey tail mushrooms I found - I see where it gets its name!