The Weatherman

First, our trip to Remlinger Farms.  Today we did our annual pilgrimage to pick out some pumpkins.  In past years, we’ve headed over with the PEPS group but this year our soccer schedules didn’t allow this to happen.  So today the four of us drove over so we could arrive when it opened at 10am.  In past years we’ve just visited the pumpkin patch but this year we decided to go inside of the harvest festival where all of the kiddie rides exist.

Nate and Zach loved it.  We first took a ride on a little train around the grounds of the farm which lasted about 20 minutes.  We saw scarecrows, pumpkins and a river.

Excitedly waiting for the train to leave the station.

Someone likes the train.

Next up, the dreaded slide.  This is a tall bouncy slide (probably around 20′ tall).  You walked up the middle and slid down either side.  The middle section was very steep with these tiny flimsy steps.  Zach was OK on his own but Nate would need help.  So good ole dad stepped up to the plate.  I quickly realized this task was going to be very difficult.  These little flimsy steps did a horrible job at supporting me, let alone me trying to push Nate along.  I kept throwing Nate upwards, then I’d hold him in place while climbed up farther.  It also kept getting steeper.  We were about 2 steps shy of the top when I couldn’t hold Nate anymore.  He slid into me taking out my feet, then I slid down taking out another kid…the three of us tumbled to the bottom.  Nate and I gave up.  Later in the day I learned there were handrails going up the steps…duh!  That would have helped.

Next up, Zach and mommy went on some spinny ride.  I have no idea how to explain this.  But here is a photo of Zach.

After this we went into a large bounce house and then through a hay maze.  Daddy had to crawl through a large tube as he chased Zach around.  While this alone isn’t a big deal, I was still feeling the affects of my failed attempt on the slide.

Now we got to the fun rides.  Remember the lobster at the fair?  Well, we had a similar ride but you rode in pumpkins.  Zach went with mommy and Nate went with Daddy.  Now we get to dad’s next mistake.  The ride starts and everyone else’s pumpkin goes up into the air, but not ours.  I couldn’t figure out why – I just assumed our pumpkin was broken.  Nope, daddy was broken.  With about 30 seconds left in the ride I decided to pull this lever sitting in front of Nate and I…guess what?  Our pumpkin went upwards.  Not very bright daddy.  Immediately after the pumpkin fun, we rode the tea cups.  Again, mommy and Zach rode together while I got Nate.  Fortunately daddy understood how these work and definitely got the tea cup spinning very, very quickly.  Nate giggled for a while…then he stopped.  That bothered me as I didn’t want projectile vomit coming out.  So I slowed down the twirl in the cup.

Next door to the tea cups was a junior size ferris wheel.  Zach and Nate waited patiently.  This was a kid-only ride.  They would be locked in a cage (a good babysitting device actually).  It was at this ride we realized we could leave them here for an hour or two and get some food.  Not exactly, but if they sold beer…hmmm.

Waiting for the ferris wheel.

Caged, like criminals.   Hopefully this is the only time we see them behind bars.

Next to the ferris wheel were these horses.  Nate was concerned about riding these – his look, posture, and grip never changed.  Zach seemed pretty relaxed on them.

Our final ride was on the roller coaster – the mini twister.  Unlike some of the other kids, ours loved it, laughed, and even held their hands up.  On the train before ours, a few kids came off screaming and crying – guess they don’t like roller coasters (I can understand this as I was one of those kids).

Some silliness.

Before leaving we went and saw the sheep, goats, chickens, and rabbits.  We also did a spin through the pumpkin patch.  We found two very nice pumpkins for our doorstep.  On the way out we had lunch at the Fall City Grill (another tradition) and then came home.

So what’s better than 7 lbs of brisket?  13 lbs of Pork Butt!  Yep, I got a special on Pork Butt – buy one get one free.  So I’m smoking all night tonight – both pork butts.  One has a basic rub on it while the other just has salt and pepper.

The two pork butt’s right before they hit the smoker.

Oh, and some photos of the boys from a few weeks ago.

Nate throwing a little tantrum at soccer practice.

Zach konking out after a very long day.  I believe this was bedtime (yes, it was still light out).

Well I picked up a BGE on Friday (the Big Green Egg).  For those who don’t know, this is a ceramic, egg-shaped smoker/grill.  It uses lump charcoal and can run for over a day on one load of charcoal so you can smoke food for a very long time.  It can also grill at temperatures as high as 750F so you can sear meat really well.

Here is a photo of it immediately after I got it setup.

So what have I cooked?  I made a beef brisket on Sunday.  It smoked from 8am to 7pm and turned out to be very good.  Very tender.  I did a basic rub with equal parts Lawry’s Seasoning Salt, Garlic Gourmay Garlic Pepper, Cumin, and Garlic Powder.  I rubbed it all over the brisket.  I used 4 lumps of applewood to add a light smokey flavor.  The temp consistently stayed between 225 and 250 for the full 11 hours.  Once done, I wrapped the brisket up in foil, a towel and placed in a cooler for an hour so the juices could continue to permeate the meat.  When I pulled the brisket off the grill, the large fork shredded effortlessly through the meat.

Finished brisket on the egg.

Some things I want to try:  Searing Filets or Rib-eyes, smoking a turkey, smoking a pork butt (for pulled pork sandwiches), and cooking tri-tip.

The most impressive thing about the grill is its ability to hold a steady temperature with no effort.  I did very little to maintain the temperature.  I also never had to add any charcoal.

As for the rest of the weekend, Steph and I went to dinner with Jan and some of my work friends at Jak’s Grill.  We had an enjoyable time.  On Sunday, the boys played soccer (they are signed up at the local community center).  The coach runs them through drills and games (no real soccer games) and the boys seem to have a good time (once Nate’s little 20 minute meltdown ended).

Some photos of the boys.