December 06th, 2015

We've had a productive week. I started a new batch of bokashi (natural fertilizer made of rich forest soil, manure, dry grass, molasses, ash, a type of rice flour, some natural bacteria/fungus). I mixed it all up and let it 'cook'. And boy, does it ever cook. I have to turn it over twice a day for four days, then once a day for a week while spreading the pile in lower and lower heaps. Eventually, it stops cooking and the mixture is ready to use. As of today, it's looking very good. I'll be adding it to our vegetable and flower beds to add some much needed nutrients. The last time I did it, the evidence was quick to see and we had great results.

Meanwhile, Kevin, Martin and Jairo divided the big fish in the big pond and put half in the pond across from the guesthouse. It's so much easier to drain that pond every Monday to catch fish for Roberto. We start selling fish tomorrow. Due to the increase in the amount of trout we'll be selling, we need to have two people cleaning and gutting the fish to be as efficient.as possible. So, Kevin built two outdoor working stations for Martin and I to use. It's brilliant!! The shelves sit over the canal under the house. Kevin installed a water pipe directly over the large blue and green buckets and then drilled out three holes at the bottom so the water can drain into the canal. We dump about 20 fish in the big buckets at one time to speed up the process, hence the size. The white bucket is where we dispose of the guts (we'll throw them into the river directly so they don't flow into the ponds). Then, we'll put a large cooler between Martin and I so store the clean fish. Kevin added some lights, too, because it's a bit dark under there. Now, it's nice and bright. It's perfect! I can't wait to try it out tomorrow!

Kevin goes up and down the property on the ATV (quad) to bring the large bags of trout food up to the hatchery. And when Frankie hears the engine start up, she runs outside and begs for a ride. She LOVES riding on the ATV, which I find really amusing. She's not a fan of the car, however. So, she's picky when it comes to her vehicle preferences. She's a spoiled little girl, that one.

We also hosted lovely guests from Lyon, France. I got to practice speaking French again, which is always great. Here are Diane and Adrien catching their dinner...

Now, you'll have to excuse me, I have to get ready... why you ask? My daughter, Phoenix, and her best friend, Kaila, are arriving TODAY!! I'm so excited. They'll be here until Friday, and we'll be having fun introducing them so our friends, I'll take them down to the Pacific coast for a day so they can experience the beach, they will be going horseback riding and we'll be adventuring to our favourite waterfall in Providencia. Not a lot of time, but we'll be packing the fun in. I'm sure I'll have lots to share next week. The picture below was taken at the airport this morning... looks like they're excited, too! (Kaila on the left, my baby girl on the right)