How things are looking

The planter boxes around the koi pond proved to be a huge amount of work to fill. But GB finished them all off.... and we bought a large palm to fill up the space (and think we need another).


The pool deck has been acid washed and is awaiting sealing.
Sunrise. I woke up and this was so amazing (but too early!).... so I took a shot and went back to bed.

And GB's folks sent these awesome floaties for the pool! No blowing up.
GB looks comfy, no?

In Preparation

Way back when we put up some fencing.
It sat and sat and sat... waiting for some animals to enclose it.
They also needed a shelter. Friday we poured concrete for the footings. Saturday- a BLAZING hot and dry day, GB and I started work.

Here I am with the 4x4s that hold up the structure
Did I say it was hot?? This photo, I believe was taken after lunch. I was very crabby by then. But we needed to get it done!
We were motivated, because three little goats were waiting to be picked up by us at the end of the month. And they needed a structure!
Here it's almost complete. GB and I added a gutter and a small pond for water. And then Luka, Osiana and I painted it bright yellow!
We're ready for you, goats!

Pool Fun!

This Saturday we had our first pool party!

The pool quickly filled with kids- funny how they gravitate like that
The adults stayed at the deep end- trying to chat amid the chaotic screams of joy

They chatted and drank

And as the sun went down, the lights went on.... and the little kids (and then the big kids) moved inside for a movie

The adults continued to chat and drink
And the kids swam some more
and moreIt was an awesome time.

Pool!

We returned home from a trip to the mainland, and the pool was done!

The boys and I had a long journey back.... 10 hours from Newark to Honolulu and then a short flight home. We arrived at 9pm at home- which is 3am east coast time. But were we ever excited to see the pool!!! So we jumped right in.

The lights are programable and they change colors.

Pool progress

We've certainly been enjoying the house and land.... but what we're REALLY waiting for eagerly is the pool. It's looking really awesome!

got concrete?

Phase 1 of the driveway is done! It's not yet ready for driving on, but for walking? Perfect! Here's Luka and Safta enjoying the smooth ride.Another gorgeous sunrise

breakfast time

Another early am shot

We put city boy to work!

My dear brother Mike was visiting for a couple of days. He's a city boy at heart, but was really helpful and dealt well with the chaos that is our house right now. Here's Luka walking up the "driveway". I tell you.... gravel is nice, but walking up this every time we leave the house? Getting old!
Here's Mike on the way up. Despite the heat we put him in pants because of the mosquitos. They love him.
We needed to put the auger on the tractor so we could dig a hole for the telephone pole. Yup.... telephone saga not over yet.
It's not hard work, but dirty and requires a couple of people. I was happy not to be one of those!

Done!

progress

Just because we moved in doesn't mean everything is done!
We had wanted to wait until it was ALL done. But the house was complete.... and the thought of it sitting there, empty was just TOO much!
Plus.... school would start soon (in the beginning of Aug) and mainland visitors were coming. SO we moved and have been living with construction around us.

Here's the fish tank getting filled up (with Luka in the background)

And pool tile!

Braces OFF!

Ra'am was gone for the move. He was on a most adventurous backpacking trip in Idaho.
After being back for 1 day, we swept him away to 69 beach for a 5 day beach vacation (I know, rough life!).

Upon our return, after 3.5 years, Ra'am got his braces off!!!

Sunrise

One benefit to being exhausted and falling to bed early every night is that you wake up super early. That means that we've seen lots of sunrises here. And they've been spectacular.

Day 1

We're back online!
And in my orderly sense of things, I need to chronicle our first month here in chronological order.

Since it had been so long since our last move (about ten years), I had forgotten how exhausting it is! GB and I fell into bed and I don't think I remember being that tired. But it was a good fatigue because we had finally made it!


GB set to work right away unpacking. He found an excellent place to put all of his sci-fi books that are smaller- like old sized paperbacks. We have 4x4s all over our walls- they are perfect.

The light that comes in the front windows is incredible. I believe this is in the early morning.

Here's Kika......
The cats were pretty freaked by the movers and stuff, so we went and got them and locked them in my office here. After a couple of days we let them out on the lanai. Kika looked the most at ease and comfortable. But a couple of nights after we moved, he jumped off of the lanai railing and never returned : ( we miss him terribly. This is the last picture we have of him.

We MOVED!

We successfully transported most of our stuff to our new house on Thurs July 18th!

We've slept there 3 nights now... sleeping has been fitful... there's so much going on (read moving is stressful and a ton of work)... were still moving stuff out of our Hakalau house... and the moon has been so BIG and FULL this week. All of those windows are letting in a huge amount of moonlight!

We took tons of pics, but we're taking an internet break at the new house (i.e. phone and internet aren't done yet), so I'll get them up later.

We're in our NEW HOUSE!

Moving Day

It's been so long since we've moved. We lived in the Hakalau House for 9.5 years. That's a long time- a lot of accumulated memories (Luka was born on the living room floor!), accumulated stuff, and accumulated crap.

Here's some shots of what it looked like before the movers arrived. Boxes everywhere



When the movers arrived, I went to drop off the kids and prep the new house while GB directed the move.Of course we've had like 3 weeks of NO rain, and on our move day the rain fell. Perhaps it's like rain on your wedding day.... after that everything is uphill?

It rained on and off all morning. It wasn't too bad, but it did make the ramp off of the moving truck slippery.The photos and the lack thereof make it look like it was a piece of cake. I assure you it was not! We had some heavy things (like the piano), and the 6 movers worked their butts off- as well as did GB and I.

The kids happily returned from a day of play to their new house!

And we all enjoyed our first dinner together on the lanai (Ra'am is on the mainland).