One Day! One Day!














No tricks, we want our treat: Jessie!

Two Days...



















Only two days to go! Yippee! 

Three Days...














Spent THREE hours at the beach today...
(Can't wait! Can't wait! Can't wait!) 

Four Days...













...what's that you said? Four days 'til Jessie is here? ...yeah, we know... (we can't wait!) 

Five Days! Five Days!














...just hanging around, waiting for our girl... 

Six Days...














Tonight we present Joe in the role of "6"... 

Splish, Splash, Havin' a Blast...














Boys! They just never get tired of splashin' around! 

Seven Days 'til Jessie's Here...














Ya shoulda seen us, trying to make a "7" with our feet in the sand...first the camera wouldn't work, then we had to get our shadows out of the picture, then the waves came in and my feet were squishing down in the soft sand so I kept losing my balance, then we realized our "7" was backward! (Really, Jessie, we promise not to act so dorky when you're here!) 

Eight Days...














ONLY EIGHT DAYS TO GO! (I know, I know, that's what I said yesterday.) (I goofed.) Eight days! Eight days! Eight days!!!!!! We can't wait to see our girl! 

Countdown Til Jessie's Here: Eight Days...













So we were looking for an "8" for our countdown and it was right there in our hands, in the Bible. (Isn't that cool?!) We went to the worship service today at Calvary Chapel in Kihei, it's in a big old lodge that's part of a big old resort--lots of bamboo and palm trees and the ocean across the street. This was our second time there and we really loved it.
The church is sending some folks to help with hurricane relief in the South and is doing a relay around the island (167 miles) to raise money Nov. 11-12. Guess who signed up to walk a 1.5 mile segment? That's right, your favorite walker: me! If you can contribute, I'd sure appreciate it. Make checks payable to CCBC/Maui Relay and send them to P.O. Box 755, Kihei, HI 96753. (See www.mauirelay.com for more info.) It's tax-deductible and you'll get a receipt in the mail.
(Not to mention a whole lotta "aloha" spirit!) 

Guess Who's Coming to Town...

Our girl Jessie is coming in just 9 days! We are so excited, we wrote it in the sand at Wailea Beach (and confounded all the folk who walked by and wondered what on earth that meant). Jessie's coming! Jessie's coming! Hip-hip-hooray!

Haleakala Sunrise 4...

These are in reverse order for you viewers, but I've numbered them in the order they occured. (Hey, Joe! That's one of your spelling words this week!) This view is looking south as the sun came up. It was beautiful--you just don't see a sunrise like this every day!

Haleakala Sunrise 3...

And that's what it looks like--sunrise at 10,000 feet, sitting on the tippy-top of a teeny island in the middle of the Pacific. Amazing!

Haleakala Sunrise 2...

The clouds were amazing...it looks like it's on fire out there.

Brrr! Are We Still in Hawaii?

It was reeeeeeaaalllllly cold up there. And windy! It was the first time we wore pants since we arrived! (Can you tell how much we miss that cold Seattle weather?!)

Haleakala Sunrise 1...

Here's the view when we arrived. It's so dark we can't see the other hundred or so people perched up here on the summit with us (we saw their cars in the parking lot, though)!

A Boy and His Board...

Yes, that's a big board! It's 9 feet 2 inches and weighs plenty. Jeff's board is 1 foot longer. You should see the guys wrestle them up 3 flights of stairs to our condo (Joe's fits in the elevator, Jeff's doesn't)...or for that matter, strap them down on the roof. For something that slides through water so easily, it's just a big ol' board on land.

Heading Out...

The boys got surfboards! Woo-hoo! Here they are on their maiden voyage...well, not really--the boards are "pre-owned," and Jeff and Joe have been surfing lots of times...but it's the very first time on their very own boards! Woo-hoo, I say, woo-hoo!

Joe and Friends...

Went to a presentation about sting rays at the Maui Ocean Center and Joe stopped to chat with these guys on our way out. Betcha didn't know that sting rays are Elasmobranchs (which means they are cartilagenous, like sharks) and their "wings" are actually huge pectoral fins. Oh come on, how did you know that?!

Sunset 4...

Jeff and Joe watch the surfers at sunset. (Yeah, they're wishing they were out there...)

Sunset 3...

Wow! Is this cool or what?!

Sunset 2...

Look at us: Toes in the water at sunset...what could be sweeter?!

Sunset 1...

We happened across this view just across the street. We were on our way to see the sunset on our walk. Wow!

Lani-Girl...

Here's Joe with a new friend, the 3-month old cocker spaniel puppy who lives downstairs from us. We got to take her for a walk one day and play with her while her owner, Valerie, was gone for a few hours. She has sharp teeth (Lani-Girl, that is!) and is verrrrrry cute. Too cute for words!

Can Opener!

10.09.05: This afternoon's quick dip in the pool...got up to 90 or so here today. Hot and sunny, perfect pool weather. (BTW, the pool here is salt water, not chlorinated. And it's not heated, but not too cold.)(Just in case you were wondering...)

Lookin' for the Tooth Fairy Tonight...

10.09.05 Look who lost a tooth today! That's okay, you can call him Snaggletooth...we do!

Good Morning...

10.09.05: Here's the view we wake up to...this morning the sky was painted a soft rosy pink, the sea was calm...and look at those wonderful palm trees! Love them!

Good Morning 2...

10.09.05: Here's the view to the right of the last one, the rising sun is just hitting the West Maui Mountains. Another beautiful day in Paradise!

The Kitchen...

10.09.05: Here are photos of our place. (I know, I know, FINALLY!) This here's the kitchen, and that's Jeff and me, cooking something up. (Oh, just kidding! We're on our way to the beach, surprise of all surprises...) Anyway, the kitchen--I am totally spoiled now--this one is so wonderfully shiny and new, I don't know how I can ever go back to my little old 50s rambler on 158th Place! (Maybe I'll even learn how to cook!)(Now THAT would be a surprise...)

The Dining/Living Room...

10.09.05: Look! We got a couch! And was it a pain getting it up to the third floor--couldn't have managed it without a kind young neighbor's help. See what the TV is sitting on...it's a box from a computer monitor that I covered with fabric I scored at a garage sale. Yeah, I call them box tables and we have them in all kinds of surprising spots...

Jeff's Office...

10.09.05: Here's where all the big deals go down...

Sally's Office...

10.09.05: Here's the famous writer, hardly working...er, I mean working hard. Oh come on, it's Sunday, even in Maui we get weekends off. (Whadya think of THAT commute?!)(And you've already seen the view...) I have to pinch myself to make sure this is all real...

Joe's Room...

10.09.05: There's the boy, hangin' loose in his room, I mean, the guest room, which would be YOUR room, if you came to visit. Hmmm.

4.5 Candles...

10.03.05: Okay, this picture is so embarassing I almost didn't post it, but I chose to make the sacrifice in the best interest of females everywhere. You see, I am holding the best chocolate ice cream in the world, it is made by Dove and they call it "Unconditional Chocolate." There ought to be a law against it, it is THAT good. (I guess my boys must really love me!) Go get your own!

Cappie, Where Art Thou...

10.03.05: On the way back to the harbor, we saw about 10 Hawaiian Green Sea Turtles, just hangin around. I got the feeling that this one is looking for my mom (aka Cappie), who had a close encounter with a turtle over in Kona a couple of years ago. (Whadya think, mom?!)

The Foot of Haleakala...

10.03.05: It is just so beautiful here, I keep taking pictures! Apparently Haleakala erupts every 200 years or so; and given that time table, it is due to erupt again, soon. In fact, it was recently put on "active" status. The good news is that it isn't the kind of volcano that blows it's top (like Mt. St. Helens)...instead it finds a soft spot and kind of oozes the lava out into the sea.

Les Garcons at La Perouse...

10.03.05: We went all the way to the southern point of the island, called La Perouse. Really neat area to see; it is an old lava bed from Halaekala (I think I spell this differently every time! Oh well!). Anyway, it was a really cool rock formation and usually there are dolphins frolicking about (not today, though). Quite a treat to see--often the winds are just too strong to go this far south on the tour.

Molokini Gridlock...

10.03.05: Molokini Crater is an old vent cone from Halakaela, it is a moon-shaped crescent about 150 yards across. The center bowl is where everyone snorkels, and I mean everyone. Every day about 8 tour boats leave the harbor at just about the same time, then tie up over here right next to each other, each with about 50-60 people who go in the water at the same time. It's just kind of funny to have that many people swimming about in this remote spot! This photo doesn't show it as well as I'd hoped, but you get the idea...you run the risk of getting slapped in the face with a fin if you're not watching out! (There was plenty for everyone to see, though, so no worries guys!)

Birthday Party, Aloha Style...

10.03.05: We splurged on a snorkel boat trip to celebrate my and Joe's birthdays. So now we can say we swam with the fishies on our birthday, well, at least I can! It was a great trip, saw all kinds of reef critters and sights. (And they don't have "field trips" like this in Bellevue!)

Big Beach...

10.02.05: After church we went to this beach, also in Makena. It's a popular spot called Big Beach. It IS spectacular--crystal clear water, soft sand, a long stretch of beach to walk and plenty of sunshine. The waves are particularly good for boogie boarding--big and strong and they crash right on the beach. Joe got "worked" by the waves (a new word we learned today)(okay, we're not quite sure what it means...) But it was a great way to spend a Sunday on Maui! Wish you were here!