Wordless Wednesday - Panda Bear!

My fur child..not a real panda..but yes a baby goat with a shirt on (it was cold)

See more wordless wednesday posts here on the wordless Wednesday blog

and here on 5minutesformom

Jonara Blu Maui

Our experience with the Maui, Hawaii Tsunami from the Japan Earthquake - March 2011

It was Thursday night when my mom called and told us there was a Tsunami warning for the state of Hawaii from the Japan quake. This has happened to us many times over the years and usually it ends up being nothing on our end. Last year we had a good surge..but I believe no damage. I was shocked by her call though and thought it was a bit late for the tsunami because the only earthquake I had heard about was on Wed and it was something like a 7.8 (can't remember exact measurement) I had checked online for that and was so happy to find out that Japan was safe and didn't even loose power. I also tried to check for tsunami warnings but found none. No she said..there was another one today....8.9 (now upgraded to a 9.0) My heart sunk.. I turned on the news and oh those poor people! It looked like a bomb had gone off :(

We kept one eye on the news as we prepared on our end...for us since we live so high up the mountain we were safe from any threat of water..so this meant mostly calling friends and relatives in the flood zone making sure that they had a place to go "Bring your pets too!" I insisted..I hate to hear stories of animals getting hurt and lost in these disasters. I was on the phone a lot at first trying to find out if my aunt in Kihei was going to go up to my moms..she waited last minute until the cops came to her road telling everyone to get to higher ground! I found that out later because after just a little bit of time the phones stopped working..I could receive txts for a while but could not call or txt anyone back. Most people I talked to lost the use of their phones as well.

We also turned up our refrigerators and freezers as suggested on the news in case of a power outage and we filled up some containers for drinking water and some buckets for flushing the toilets and for the pets. I washed a bunch of clothes and we all took showers just in case we would not be able to later. On line it seemed a lot of friends and family were doing the same.

The tsunami was due to hit Hawaii around 2:50...something a.m....then changed to 3:07 a.m. I believe. We tried to stay up to watch on the news as we did last year when one happened in the middle of the day. We couldn't make it though and went to bed around 1:30 a.m. Then just after 3:00 a.m. I got woken up by multiple txts from friends and family from the mainland asking if we were okay. My mom said she even got one telling her she better wake up a tsunami was going to hit! Like we wouldn't know? lol! The state of Hawaii gave us ample warning..they said they even started the warning sirens 2 hours earlier then they normally would. I'd heard that the sirens started going off around midnight..we could hear them over the news when they show news journalists trying to report in Honolulu. Family here heard the sirens down a bit farther from us..but up here high on our volcano (in our little area called Olinda) it's nice and quiet. My brother just 5 min down the hill from me in Makawao was woken up by them.

At that point we tried to turn on the news again and see if we could watch the tsunami live on tv. Our son had already gotten up and turned on the news in the living room..so he came and hopped on the end our our bed to watch in our room. The news had the camera on the water..and it looked like it had some sort of enfrared (sp?) lights so we could see..but not sure if thats what it was. My eyes would just not stay awake though..so I fell asleep and the guys said they turned it off before they could see anything happen.

Morning came and thankfully it was not such bad news for Hawaii..The Big Island was hit the hardest..I believe a few homes were carried out to sea. No deaths though. For Maui the worse part was up Puunene Ave. in Kahului. The water went up as far as Walgreens. My bank on the corner of Puunene and Kamehameha was flooded. My husband, Paul, waited at home Friday..not going to work until the afternoon because roads to his shop were closed. On this video below of some Aerial Reconnaissance on Maui... near the beginning it mentions Kahului Beach road and how all the cement barriers from the harbor are all over the road..that is the road he takes to work.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRZvK7FG020

We could see the traffic and how bad it was using binoculars from our deck. There was another way around that Paul could have taken to work..but it looked really traffic-y and the news kept urging people to stay home and let the city clean up the roads. He had to get down there eventually though because we had a customers car in our shop and they were needing it back. So when he saw the roads seemed clearer..he left. Once down there he decided to at least try the usual road which was said to still be closed on the Maui County update page..but it was open when he got down there and looked fine. We spoke to others with businesses nearby who came down but closed up shop because there were no customers. Also everyone was dead tired! Most on Maui had stayed up most the night..and many of those who had to evacuate either spent the night on a road somewhere trying to sleep in their cars.

As for my aunt..like I said..she eventually came up to stay with my mom after being warned by the police! Then she left my moms house super early going back way before the all clear was given. She said the road by her condo was full of mud and fish and smelled bad! Then when she got to her place someone yelled to her that it was not over yet..a huge wave just came over South Kihei road! She kept her stuff packed in her car and thought about coming back up the hill to us..but ended up staying there and is fine thankfully!

Just yesterday my husband had to go check out a car at one of the car lots we do work for and they showed him a car that had been parked at the harbor having just arrived for them to pick up. The water line can clearly be seen on it..here are pictures my husband took:





Here is a clip from Maui County showing the rescue of a turtle that was washed up from the Tsunami. The Hawaiian sea turtle is an endangered species and in normal circumstances not to be touched..however this was a special circumstance and I'm glad they helped him back out to the ocean.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhMZiIR-YEM

I'm sure a lot of people around the shore have had to do much clean up and I read that it caused tens of millions of dollars in damage..but other then that we are very fortunate. Especially compared to those in Japan. I was able to contact a friend I had met from Japan in 2009 and find out that her and her family were safe and farther away from the damage. However every day we think of and pray that others in Japan find their loved ones safe and sound.

Long overdue thank you's

I was both over-joyed and mortiphied this morning as I realized my FaceBook page for my jewelry shop was auto-hiding all the wonderful comments people were leaving there. So it appeared that I was ignoring everyone and not saying thank you! Why was I over joyed though you ask? Because what a nice thing to wake up to..to comments like these:

I'm almost thankful that the jewelry designer whose work I loved on Oahu vanished into thin air because that's when I discovered Jonara Blu! I will be in touch with you soon with a new order!

Marlene Schulz

Love, love, love my new pieces.... and thanks for the Jonara Blu bucks! You'll be hearing from me again sooooooooon, Jamee!

Marlene Schulz

I'm not just a fan, I'm an adoring fan! Jamee made the most perfect and beautiful jewerly for me so I could wear on my beach wedding. I just cant stop raving on what a superb job she did. It is truly gorgeous jewelry. Thanks again Jamee!

Omayra Miranda

Jamee, I love your jewellry as it's absolutely beautifull and I can feel the Island feel to all of it just by looking at the photo's.

Lisa Smith-Rutherford

Jamee, your jewellery is so beautiful, I love how your photograph it!

Pamela Davies

You have such beautiful jewelry! Classic and timeless... :) I definitely know where I'll go when I'm in the market.

Jessica Seng Jensen

Hi from your newest fan - greetings from Melbourne :D!

Val Zdero

I can totally feel the LUV! A very belated thank you to everyone!

If you'd like to link to my facebook page here I am --->Jonara Blu Maui's FaceBook page

Etsy Treasury - The Aloha Way of Life

Thats me down in the bottom right corner. you can visit the the actual treasury here Thanks so much SurfhoundSoapCompany

Note from a bride...

I just received a wonderful thank you note from a bridal customer...makes me remember why I like making jewelry so much..especially when it gets to be part of such special a occasion :)

Jamee,

Aloha! I just wanted to drop you a note to let you know that I received my new anklet in the mail today. It's absolutely gorgeous! The anklet looks even better than how I envisioned it looking in my head! I am planning on wearing it on my left foot where I got a sea turtle tattoo from the Chrome Lotus Tattoo shop in Maui during our 2008 Christmas vacation.

Thank you so very much for adding a little something special to my wedding day. The anklet will go great with my wedding dress!

Sincerely,

Angela
Baltimore, MD

here is the anklet she purchased for her wedding day:


Mahalo Angela!

Spring time and more new babies!

It's warming up here finally...way up here on the side of the volcano I call home. It was our first winter at our new place and we loved it! The wood stove was awesome and kept our house nice and toasty. The kitties learned quick were the best place to sleep was!



Taxes are done..the yellow pin coushin protea are blooming like crazy outside my window..peaches are covering the peach tree out back..and more baby goats are here! I do believe springtime has sprung :)

Friday March 19th this little guy was born on our hillside. The owners daughter donned him Chip. (If I haven't explained before..these goats are on the 6 acres of property I live on. Our landlord gave them to a local vet and her fam since he moved away to the mainland. I have become quite close w/ them..the humans and the goats lol! ..helping them out when I can since I'm here all the time. I have kinda been thrown into a situation that I didn't expect and it's been the coolest experience ever!)




Then we had the twins 2 days later Sunday March 21st..their momma Cocoa gave birth to them right at my gate to the pasture by my drive way. She's wild like most of the herd but super used to me..I'm still really suprised she had them right there rather then the bluffs out back like the rest usually do. These two boys have to be the cutest most strangest looking goats ever. The mom is a lamancha (they have super tiny ears) and the dad a nanny..however they pulled all lamancha only one got black and white on it's head from it's black and white daddy:

(you can even see one of the placenta's left by my gate..these cuties were JUST hatched here!)




These baby boys look like wookies or ewoks to me lol! I would have loved to name one Wookie and one Chewy Chewbaka..but they have been donned Splash and Rusty by their little owner..cute names too :) They were a bit weaker then the other goats at first..not sure if it's because of the breed or that they were twins. We think she had them late according to our calculations. I had to watch them closer then the others for about a week. They even fell into a hole we did not know existed on the property. I could not find them anywhere for 2 days. Finally the vets came out (both husband and wife are vets) and the husband found them in a hole covered by a carpet of grass. We were sure to cover it so no more could fall down there..but makes me wonder what other perils exist on this 6 acres of land. Today they are doing very well though and are finally able to keep up with mom who brings them down to visit me by the gate :)

Here's a vid of the 3 new kids from the other day. We have 4 others..had 6 others but lost two. I'll have to tell their stories another time..very sad and very sweet goats.

We have also been helping to raise an orphaned male goat named Mana...the vet kept him in a kennel at her house for the first month..bottle feedings needed through the night. Then once that was done she brought him up here and we kept him in the bigger cage dog kennel at night w/ his blankie in the little dog house attached..he would sleep in that to stay warm since he has no momma to cuddle up to at night. I had to feed him 3 times a day..morning time I had to wake up for 6:30 a.m. feedings..did that a little while then learned to jam my earplugs down farther so I could ignore his cries until about 7:30ish. Now it's warmer so he we leave the kennel door open for his choice of sleeping in there or not. He doesn't yell for me every morning now..yay! and I mean YELL..this goat has a crazy loud voice that sounds like he's saying "HAAAYYY!! HAAYYY!" not the cute little "BAAAA" like the others lol!

Here is Mana having a snack of wild olive bush and hibiscus leaves before bed. He will eventually replace the billy goat fathering all the babies right now so that some new blood can be brought into the herd.



In other news...the human kid is doing much better. He'd been sick for about a year and a half..many of you were following my updates during that time. He's much better but it really put him through the ringer emotionally. He still gets bouts of what he had before off and on..and of course I say if he didn't eat like a teenager he'd have less of them..but he's a teenager and not much I can do about that! He's happy to be out and about again though and having fun w/ his friends :)(my Cameron is the guy in the hat hiding his face w/ his hands..)




And last but not least..our orphaned chicks we raised got a new home..a totally 'green' home...all parts were found and/or donated used parts. Hubby has never built anything before..he's more a car guy then a builder...but I think he did pretty good! It's gonna get some more trim and a coat of paint. He's put in some other fun windows since..I'll take another pic when it's all done.








And yes I have been making jewelry..not as often as in the past since I'm enjoying such wonderful new things w/ the animals..but I still love making jewelry and selling it online. I'll be posting new pieces soon...

Double Strand Bracelet - New! Just added!

Taxes are finally done and I am on the jewelry path once again! Right now I am mostly trying to go through my 3 shops and organize..however I did make a few pieces right before I started working on my taxes and this is one of them:

Turtle Rainforest - Double Strand Asymmetrical Beaded Bracelet

A whimsical mix of dyed stabilized turquoise in different shades, lime chalk turquoise, lime dyed howlite, spring green dyed jade, dyed freshwater pearls, glass seed beads in bright turquoise and lime green, peridot and paua abalone shell with accents of sterling silver and cute charms..one a Hill Tribe silver turtle and the other a silverized pewter leaf.

available here

Sunset Palm Earrings - NEW!

Available here: Sunset Palm Earrings

Wordless Wednesday - Maui Prince Beach

For more Wordless Wednesday please visit: 5 Minutes for Mom and Wordless Wednesday

Beach Bride Jewelry Video

Maui Beachcomber - Beaded Necklace

A Beachy mix of shells and semi precious gemstones show off a pendant of blue Peruvian opal and a shell that I found here on one of Maui's beaches.

Bead ingredients include: amazonite, abalone, mother of pearl, desert jasper, blue Peruvian opal, glass seed beads in a champagne color and Hill Tribe silver accents.

Maui Beachcomber Necklace available at Jonara Blu Maui

Wai'anapanapa Video posted online

Here is a quick video I took on our camping trip of the view from the lookout at Wai'anapanapa state park. You can see the beautiful black sand beach :)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7Fo8x4olFU

Wai'anapanapa - www.jonarablumaui.com - kewego
http://www.kewego.com/video/iLyROoafMl_2.html

Green and Purple Island Inspired Whimsy!

Soon to be added to my shop Jonara Blu Maui





feel free to
email me if you have any questions

Sunday Brunch at the Maui Prince Hotel

Our Sunday brunch at the Maui Prince Hotel

one of many plates....this one full of different amazing salads.



the most important part of the meal...dessert =P



egrets forging for their meal...they were being very bold..not afraid of the lawn mower at all...




The back walk was full of the most vibrant orange shower trees..






The teenager that rarely will look at the camera these days...



hubby and me :)

Wordless Wednesday - Diaper Change w/ a View

My friends sweet little boy...what a place to have your diaper changed ;-)

For more Wordless Wednesday please visit: 5 Minutes for Mom and Wordless Wednesday

Same Hotel...All Grown up

Well..sort of all grown up..heheh



For more Wordless Wednesday please visit: 5 Minutes for Mom and Wordless Wednesday

Jonara Blu Maui in Cyberspace News.....

Jonara Blu Maui got a couple more mentions this week. Thanks to Siena Heart of DIY wedding girl for this write up at Wedding Fanatic entitled The Beauty of Maui in a Necklace I love that title..so cool!



Also a thank you to Cindy of Peacock Jewelry for including me in her treasury featuring the very beautiful paua abalone shell. My necklace is at the bottom right.



Here is a close up of the picture they used..



And yes! This little beauty is available for purchase: Abalone Island - Freshwater Pearl and Shell Necklace

Morning Glory Ceramic Beaded Earrings

Hand painted ceramic coin shaped beads pink w/ white morning glories....mother of pearl carved plumerias dangle from the bottom and mother of pearl beads accent the top.
Earrings are hand wire wrapped with sterling silver wire and dangle 1 1/2" from the base of sterling silver lever back ear wires.

$49
Available at Jonara Blu Maui

Visitors in my backyard

I can never catch these guys on camera...they take off well before I can get my camera out...but this there must have been a lot of yummy seeds in my not so green grass..as I was not only able to get my camera, I was able to change the lense and sneak around the side of the house to hide behind some plants and pretend I was on a safari taking pictures of wild animals. (I think that would be so fun!)



Are these Cardinals you ask? Yes they are! They look a little different then the usual full red Cardinal..They are called Brazilian Cardinals..aren't they pretty? I don't know if they are in any of the mainland states...I'd never seen them in California before..but we have them all over here. I just love the bright flash of red against thier white feathered breast.



Oh..hello!



And these..I don't know what they are. Some kind of seed pod..but what? I've never seen them before. A few days later we found a couple more in our yard. Some new plant near us because we've lived in this house for 5 years and have never had these strange visitors.



Anyone know what they are?

The cutest baby!

Another picture of my new nephew...my sister Kimberlee went to visit them today and took this shot. She says hes such a good baby, very calm. Hopefully I can go this weekend. I can't wait!