Front Yard Gets a Lifestyle Lift
The project:
The result:
The supervisor:
It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon
Christmas Eve was spent with Steve and Stephanie over a traditional Italian dinner, cioppino and fontina fonduta. After we ate ourselves into a food coma, we exchanged presents and then took a picture in front of the tree:
Kali’s Christmas from us revolved around a new desk and chair for her room, and all of the accessories to match. She also got a new toy to play with from Gramma Cindi and Poppy.
Jeremy and Kali got me a telephoto lens for my camera, which means no one, no matter how hard they try, will be able to hide from me anymore! (Insert evil laugh here).
Kali and I got Jeremy a new backpack for his backpacking trips, and a camelback (which is a fancy water bottle for hiking) to fit inside. He wasn’t very excited about the gift at all.
Walking into the kitchen to grab a couple of screwdrivers to help Kali assemble her desk, I had to take a picture of the aftermath of our Christmas celebrations. Garlock thinks Christmas is just fantastic – everyone sitting on the ground, happy, throwing paper and ribbon around. Way up on his list of favorite things, I’m sure. After spending a bit of time playing with our new toys, well Jeremy played with a toy, Kali and I tried to decipher IKEA assembly instructions, we headed over to Teri’s for the Robertson family Christmas gathering. Trevor, Alexis, and Kali took up station next to the Christmas stockings, very patiently waiting for the festivities, and by festivities, I mean a madness of flying wrapping paper and exclamations of joy: All in all, a great holiday. We’re looking forward to heading up to Fairfield for our post-Christmas, pre-New Years family celebration. In the meantime, Kali has been spending a lot of time getting her new room addition just the way she likes it:
On the other side of 30
On Saturday, I turned 30, and Jeremy threw me a wake. Yes, you read that correctly, a wake. We mourned the passing of my twenties with some good friends, family, an awesome cake, black balloons, a memorial slide show, and a floral funeral arrangement. Yup, we saw them out in style.
Thank you, honey, for one of the best birthdays I’ve ever had. To quote Tim McGraw, “my next thirty years will be the best years of my life…” I’m glad I get to spend them with you.
Becca flew down for the night, and partied down with us.
That's Kelly. She designed the cake. Pays to know a professional cake decorator!
That's Cassie and Jason. Cassie was the mastermind behind the funeral arrangement flowers.
Commenting
On the twelfth day of Christmas...
Our stockings were hung from the side table with care...
Even Garlock and Brooklyn, they got a pair.
And what would Christmas be with out a Santa or two...
Tonight, with Christmas carols playing softly in the background, we decorated our first family tree...
It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas?
Jeremy was out of town for work Tuesday and Wednesday this week, leaving me with morning dog-walking duty. Putting aside the fact that it was forty degrees outside…
Today, as we walked down a court one block from our street, Garlock had what I believe was his first real encounter with an inflatable Christmas decoration. As we turned onto the street, he stopped suddenly, looking suspiciously at an inflatable several houses down, peeking through the bushes. We walked on, Garlock coming to a full stop each time he caught a glimpse of the inflatable. As we drew closer, Garlock become more and more anxious until finally, as we passed the inflatable, he ran into the street as far as his leash would allow, straining to avoid having to walk past it.
All in the Family
So, Sunday, we tried again, and were successful.
Not pictured here? Sarah running back and forth to the camera to set the timer for another picture (or three), and Garlock wanting to play with the doggy across the park.
P.S. In spite of all of the running, I really do love my macro lens.
Thanksgiving
Thursday: Molokini & Cheeseburger in Paradise
Once at the harbor, we found our boat, The Four Winds II, and were Molokini-bound. Molokini is a half-submerged crater in the channel off Maui, and is a federally-protected bird sanctuary for the frigate bird. It’s also the home of some of the best snorkeling on the island, with crystal clear blue water like I’ve never seen before.
Once on board, we confirmed our reservation for snuba. Snuba is a cross between snorkeling and scuba diving, where you breathe through a regulator attached to a hose, which is attached to an air tank that floats on a raft above the water. This enables you to go 20 feet down, but avoids having to carry your own air tank. We also rented an underwater digital camera, and were able to get some great shots of the reef, and of ourselves underwater.
Geared up in flippers, snorkel mask, and weight belts, we got into the water and swam a few feet away from the boat. Knowing that I needed to get through the inevitable breathing under water panic, I put my face into the water, and breathed through the regulator. A minute later, my brain came around, and accepted that today, we’d be breathing under water. Once the entire group was in the water, we started on our journey under water. As I was struggling with actually diving under the water, the instructor added some weight to my weight belt, and lo and behold, I started to sink.
The hardest part of snuba is learning how to clear your ears. Every 2-3 feet you descend, you have to clear your ears by pinching your nose and gently blowing. We did finally get a hang of it, and enjoyed a wonderful half hour swimming with the fishes.
After our snuba tour was done, we outfitted ourselves in standard snorkel equipment, and swam around on top of the water, exploring the rest of the reef.
The tour included a continental breakfast, and an all you can eat lunch, which, after all of the swimming, we were both very grateful for.
Before the boat picked up anchor and left, I jumped off the side for one last swim in the pristine waters.
On the way back, we stopped in the so-called “Turtle Universe,” with the hopes of seeing a sea turtle or two. I was able to get one decent shot of a sea turtle swimming near the boat.
That night, we hit the Lahaina tourist landmark, Cheeseburger in Paradise. After some questionable service from the hostess, we were seated upstairs, and enjoyed tropical drinks, excellent burgers, and a beautiful sunset. A great end to a perfect day.