See.... everyone's doing it!

A chicken in the hand...

Well, it was time again for the annual Friendsgiving.   Christina and Daniel were nice enough to host it over at their house this year (and last year too I think).  I had better cut to the chase though and explain the chicken picture below before going any further. 

Robyn had a co worker who needed to get rid of some laying hens that were not laying like they used to.  Robyn is an avid carnivore but had not killed anything he had eaten in the past... until now!  We got together on Saturday morning and slaughtered, plucked and cleaned six chickens in Robyn's backyard. 

It was surprisingly easy, clean, and quick for all parties involved. Below are some pictures from the slaughter and the feast that ensued later that evening. 

The tools of the trade.  Chickens in background.

Ye old chopping block after it's first use.  It's in-your-face meat at it's freshest.

Our last live chicken.  We are all feeling fairly bold at this time.  We also gained a much greater appreciation for where our meat comes from. 

One bad dude.

The dinner table ready for guests.  Christina did a great job!

Rachel and Marilynn with Penelope and Henry.

The finished product.  This bird was roasted to perfection by Robyn.  While it looks like a normal chicken, the flavor was better.  The meat though was pretty tough.  These were some well exercised chickens with a lot of room to roam :)

Scott and Kelly brought wild Alaskan salmon that they cooked on cedar planks.  The flavor and aroma from the smoke tinged meat was irresistible.

Daniel (host) working it on the other side of the camera.

Christina (hostess) cranking out some incredible biscuits.

It's a little blurry but you can just make out Kelly ;)

Goofing around with my favorite dude.

Check out that bling!!  She was loving the chicken but agreed that it was pretty chewy.

Parker is done at the kid's table and on to toy time.

Who invited Van Gogh?  No really, when it comes to eating, Scott is one serious dude.

A tasty plate with something from everyone.

A final farewell to a much loved chicken. 

Spent, after a long night of food, drink, and good companionship.  Until next year guys.

Henry at 3 months

We can't believe it. Henry is 3 months old! Time flies when you are occupied almost every waking minute of the day. Marilynn is finally getting some sleep at night now. Henry is sleeping between 4-6 hours at one time every night! His schedule is becoming a little more regular and I (Jonathan) feel like a goof even writing about this stuff :) Who knew...

He keeps growing faster then we can believe and is wearing 6 month clothing. He's tall, plus his cloth diapers are bulkier then a disposable. His weight has at least doubled since he was born. Oh, and we're pretty crazy about him ;)

Halloween with the Harts

Not sure who the good looking guy in the mirror is, but he looks familiar.

Henry was a dinosaur or a dragon... we're not sure but either way, the costume stayed on for about a half hour and then he was just Henry.

This was Henry's debut before the big party at Christina and Daniel's. All the usual suspects were there and most of the kids went trick-or-treating. If Henry had gone, that would have meant waking up... maybe next year!