quickie update...

will try to post more soon.

we do not yet have internet at the new house... hopefully by Thursday.

Liv and I had a wonderful visit to the monastary with our friends, Eric & Ellen, their great kids, Ellen's dad, and her uncle who lives & works there, Brother Pierre. I will post more pictures soon! (we took LOTS)

thinking of you and hoping to post again soon!!

xoxo
e.

Our New Home

As I implied in the earlier post: we’re in!! The deal was finalized Friday morning and we had movers come in at noon to pack up the truck that afternoon! We slept in our bed in the new house that night!!

It’s wonderful!! We couldn’t be happier. Liv is adjusting well! Lots of novelty is keeping her entertained. The first night was a little rough – waking up in the middle of the night in a new place. But she did much better last night.

We have a million boxes to unpack. And lots of exploring to do! We don’t have phone or internet yet (I’m sending this from town). Nor the fridge or laundry machines, but like I said… We couldn’t be happier.

This week, Jeff will be traveling for work. And I have the great honor and pleasure of traveling with our dear friends, Eric & Ellen Stolzenberg, and their two beautiful children, Hayden & Cecelia, to northern California to a monastery – where Ellen’s uncle is a monk and Cecelia will be christened! We’re very much looking forward to the visit and the trip!!

Here’s a video clip of Livy running up & down our 3-mile hallway last night!

A picture of the back of our house that I took when Liv and I went out for a hike this morning. You can see that there is no landscaping yet…

Closing? Looking Good!

This just in from the title/escrow officer:

"Great news everyone,

We are set to record in the morning on this one.

I will contact everyone after I get official recording confirmation in the morning.

Thank you!!!"

Hooray!!!

Closing? Not Yet...

Things have gotten a little bogged down in the "short sale" closing on the new house. Which, as frustrating as it is, everyone assures me, is quite normal.

Grrrr.

We're now hoping that the title co. will have everything it needs to "record" the sale on Friday.

Hopefully we can get movers over the weekend, tho' I suppose I should be content with next Monday.

Jeff and I both have travel plans (albeit separately) for next week.

I'm a little stressed -- Please, send me your happy thoughts & wish us luck!!

Playground

We're all rested up from our exciting Hawaii trip and have moved on to packing for the expected move next week.

Liv's got a bit of a cold. Hopefully it won't turn into anything too nasty, and hopefully I'll avoid catching it altogether! :)

We needed some outside time & made a quick trip to the park this morning.
Liv hit all the highlights: Slides, Swings, Sandbox & Merry-Go-Round.

Here are a few cell phone pictures.

Last Hawaii Pictures

Liv and I arrived back in CA this morning. Jeff was scheduled to fly to Vancouver, but got called back in to the Honolulu plant... he's still there. And we're not sure what's in store for the next couple days on that front.

The rest of our stay on O'ahu was very nice!! We spent a few hours at a nearby surf beach with friends - Liv was very impressed with the local big kids & their games. (boogie boarding in the beach break, climbing trees, etc.) The next day we had another terrific afternoon/evening at Ala Moana Beach Park and later at their home with our friends, Chis and Claudia. Saturday Liv and I had a very nice visit with another friend and her kids at their home in Kailua. But otherwise we stayed pretty close to the resort and played in the beach, fish ponds, and pool! No complaints!!

There were loads of little kids at the resort. And I was impressed to see Liv interacting & playing with a few of them during our stay. She'd share her shovels & beach toys, she'd wade and splash and sit in the water with them. It was pretty cool. She also became much more comfortable in the water - by the last day, if she tripped & fell & got her face in the water; she'd scramble into the shallower water to recover - but no crying and no big panic for the most part.

Here are a few more images from our Hawaii adventures.

Liv posing for a picture.

Trucking around in a nearby natural lagoon

Studying a Bug!

Letting the Koi give her "kisses"

"Da! Boy. Tree. Pie." (her version of "up high")

"Lily. Pie."

Pretty fun stuff!

Mom & Liv playing at the beach.

Now, back home. rainy & cool - but not horrible. Unpacking and the piles of laundry that accompany that task! It's also time to start tying up a few outstanding details about the home purchase/move. We'll try to pack a few boxes a day - get quotes from movers, truck rentals & make a plan on that front. Finalize the home insurance & mortagage loan. And a few other miscellaneous tasks... It's exciting stuff!! And everything appears to be on track for the closing NEXT WEEK!!! yay!!

Aloha!

Nyah, Nyah!

Aloha! We are on a surprise trip to Hawaii! Jeff’s been here working on the Honolulu Power, he called on Sunday night with the news that he was expecting to have a bit of free time this week and remind me that he’s racked up a mess of frequent flyer miles. Well, all right! We’ll be there!

So Monday evening Liv and I went to the airport. Liv still loves to watch the planes. Here she’s commenting on the “BIG” British Airways plane.

She did well on the flight. When we arrived Jeff was there to meet us with beautiful fragrant leis and big hugs.

Liv had a long semi sleepless night… ugh. Jet lag, excitement & a new environment all added up to some hours “playing” not “sleeping” ah well.

Here’s our pretty girl in her “Two. Blue. Shoes.” That she asks to wear everyday!

Charging off to throw fistfuls of sand in the water at the “new beach”

The new cheesy grin I suspect we’ll all be seeing more of!

Sand play.

A bit of refreshment.

Kicking back.

cheesy grin, again! BTW, Just kidding about the tongue thing!

Hi, Mom!!

Swimming with Dad after work.

Splash! Splash!

See you tomorrow!