Halibut Help?

We have 55 pounds of halibut in our freezer from Eric’s Alaska trip, which we haven’t had time to blog about yet. Anyway, I am in desperate need of as many halibut recipes as I can get my hands on. Looking online for recipes has left me only mildly impressed. So, if you have any recipes that you know are awesome, please pass them on!

Alaska Trip

The Phillips boys' big adventure into America's last frontier in July 2009.

Eric, DTP, and Todd checking out the marshlands and realizing this is the closest they will ever get to walking on water.

On the first day, the boys rafted down the icy Chugach (allegedly class 5 rapids) river on their way to their Bed and Breakfast in Clam Gulch. After nearly freezing to death, they drove out to Hope Alaska where they had, what they claim to be, the world's best fish and chips at this tiny cafe.

Day 2 was the Kenai River. Eric described it as the most crowded remote wilderness of all time. Throngs arrive every summer for a chance at the world's biggest King Salmon.

Average time it takes for an individual to catch a King Salmon on the Kenai? 36 hours. DTP? Three seconds! With ease, he snags the first--and only--catch of the day.

What a punk!

Wow, he's a beauty. Unfortunately each participant can only catch one King Salmon a boat trip, so while Eric and Todd continued to fish, DTP enjoyed the wildlife....

like this moose...


black bears...


And brown bears... this one was only 15 ft away. DTP took a Red salmon away from his leering jaws. Crazy!

David's 45 pound King Salmon. For the record, Eric and Todd didn't get a single bite during the remaining 5 hours, 59 minutes and 57 seconds.

A small plane ride to see the glaciers and fish without a crowd.

Alaska's gorgeous coastline.

Flying over glaciers.




and waterfalls.



and marshlands.

This is what Eric, Todd and DTP were walking on in the first picture.
and bold eagles taking flight. beautiful.

They each brought home about 60 pounds of fish--mostly halibut.

Later they drove to the other side of the Kenai penninsula and stayed at Seward...which boasts some of world's most photographed natural beauty.
A little perspective as Eric walks along a glacier near Seward. This was at about 11 p.m.

Eric was hoping to stumble into Superman's home and learn all of Krypton's secrets.

Eric ended up climbing down to where the glacier emptied into the river. Here's a video. He brought home what he called "the purest water you'll ever drink" and convinced Connor that if he drank it, he'd end up 30% bigger "just like all the animals in the area." We didn't get bigger, but we might have got ice worms, which apparently infest this particular glacier.

Out to sea. Unfortunately, the waves were too rough, and their boat turned around before they could witness the Kenai Fjords famous "calving" glaciers

But they did see another waterfall...

and another.

And sea lions sunbathing....

And whales breaching...

And eagles stretching...and a whole lot more.


One last look at Alaska on their drive to the Anchorage airport. Eric said this was the first time they saw blue sky the whole week.

The new house to do list

We have officially moved into our new house. And the list of "to do's" is long, but we are loving every minute of it!!!

Our new house.

Our list goes a little like this:

-dining table and chairs
-couch/chair/2 end tables/cocktail table
-entertainment center
-bedroom furniture for Master bedroom/kids/Guest rooms
-blinds and window treatments
-re-tile entry way, kitchen, dinning area, and three bathrooms
-landscape front and backyard, including major stone retaining walls
-light fixtures, dining and family room are priority
-paint the entire interior of house
-find different cabinet pulls
-*baseboards and moldings for entire inside of house
*that's right, a brand new house in Hawaii doesn't come with baseboards!
-rain drain system


Furniture we have picked so far:

Our dining table is from Environment Furniture, which uses reclaimed wood. TIME Magazine recognized Environment Furniture in its annual Green Design 100 for there minimalist lines and eco edge of sustainable home furnishing designs. I guess am into being green. We asked the store Mesh, where we purchased the table, for lighting direction. They said they have seen all different types over this table, from traditional, to Mediterranean, to modern...That wasn't much help. I was hoping for a clear direction. Many options make it hard to choose.

We bought two parson benches, in an ebony finish like the legs on the table above, for the kids. And for the end of the table, we want to find two upholstered chairs with a funky patterned fabric.

Also, in twelve weeks we will have something to sit on from the Cisco Brothers.

Kind of looks like this, except the arms are a high modern shape, and it's a nine by nine L shape. We went to every furniture store on the Island and this couch by Cisco brothers was the most comfortable couch ever. The store that carries the Cisco brothers line is So'Mace, which is listed in my 'just for kicks' link list.

Lighting. So many choices. Here are a few that we like:

My first thought is drama! This is by??? I forget. sorry.

Love the pattern it makes on the ceiling.

This chandelier would go with the stainless steel appliances and hardware in the kitchen.

Simple and fun.

Too Fun?

Mark Chai, a Hawaiian-Chinese sculpture makes theses chandeliers out of wood.




At night they're glowing works of art.

more.....



Traditional/contemporary chandeliers by Candice Olsen,
a fellow Canadian. The Chandeliers on the right and center
could go over the dining table, but the chandelier on the right
could go in the Master bed room, except in a silver finish.


Art Deco/modern? Uhm?

I like this one, but maybe not for the dining room.

Window treatments:

We have decided on the woven blinds with a privacy lining that allows the light to still shine thru.

This is basically how the blinds will look in our kitchen, with light wood cabinets and a black counters.

We have three sets of french doors in the main living area. I am thinking of hanging dupioni silk drapes in lemongrass or clay from Pottery Barn. I am still trying to decide on the style of draper hardware: grammets in picture above or.....

...... ring-top...

This is the lemongrass color. I like the way these hang.

.....or pole pocket.

Opinions? Ideas? We welcome them all.