Spring Break

Easter and Spring Break were the weirdest this year.

We were traveling home from Bora Bora on Easter Sunday.

Mom sent this Sunday picture to me. 

Did I mention on Friday Avery texted me in Bora Bora to let me know that Andrew is sick and puking?

Yeah. 

So when we got home, all the dominoes fell, and all the children were sick. 

Actually Andrew recovered quickly, but Avery got a cold, and Evan got massively sick. 

I don't know what Evan had, but he was throwing up and so so sick without appetite for the whole week. 

He lost so much weight. I don't remember ever having him be so sick. 

I called Teledoc, and they gave us some Zofran to help get some food in him. 

Despite having a cold, Avery went to Vegas on Thursday to have the time of her life with the Kelvs. 

She had her first solo flight on Allegiant! It was so weird to just wave goodbye at security. 

She figured it out and all the pilots and flight attendants treated her like royalty.

Then Jamie showed her top notch Vegas entertainment. 

Meanwhile, us at home laid around A LOT. 

We were watching Scout while the Blacks were in Panama. 

Evan slept a lot, Andrew was bored to tears without a lot of options. 

I just told him how good it is to be bored sometimes. 

Evan's first time out of the house all week. 

Friday we met the Dickson at the beach for a weenie roast. 

It was very low key. 

We think maybe he has Fifths Disease? Because that's what Hunter also had. 

He eventually got a giant rash all over his body. 

Look at this! The rocks were lodged in the roots. 

Finally on Saturday we gathered some friends and went to Aim and Game. 

It felt like the most exciting thing ever after a week of cabin fever. 

Here they are choosing who is "it" for hide and seek. 

It was truly the weirdest Spring Break.

When Avery got home, she was still pretty sick, but it went ahead and ramped up into a disaster of a sickness. She got a fever and pink eye and missed four days of school the next week. We have been to the doctor and then called Teledoc again for eye drops. 

I also got sick with a cold, and Jim threw out his neck/back - so for a minute every single one of us (excpet Andrew) was running on less than 50% and it just felt like A LOT. We were scraping by on our hands and knees. 

I feel like we are coming out the other end of it now...moving on with life with residual coughs and such. 

But also today in church I noticed Andrew has a raised rash on his cheeks. 

He says he feels fine, so ok, whatever, everything is fine.

Except Iran has entered the WWIII situation and that's just great. Everything is great. 

 

Siding Plus

Roofing.

Then plumbing.

Tyvek and windows...

Siding.

We are "dried in", so time for the electrics.

And here is where we are at!

Ready for paint this week, and I think some hvac. 

It definitely feels like slow moving now that the big things are done. 

I'm still hopeful for mid May completion. 

 

March

I know it's the middle of April, but I forgot to post this nonsense from March.

Things to remember from March:

One day Jim and I went to Galbraith and were surprised with the amount of snow on the trails. It was slip slidey. And pretty.

Having a dog is an invisible way of making teenagers happy.

The amount of joy that Koda brings them - the hit of dopamene when she lays her head in your lap...makes having a house that stinks worth it. 

Avery went to TOLO this year. The theme was ho-down. 

She borrowed her seminary teacher/ our contractor/ our old Bishop's hat. 

The kids are into Wii Golf. 

This ugly thing is worth lots of money. 

Tennis started! 

Tennis is one hundred times less stressful than soccer. She loves it. 

Evan on bass drum and triangle. 

Remember last year how sickening it was when Evan got cut from baseball? This year we headed that off with NOT doing baseball at all. Instead he is doing track with ALL his buddies and having fun. 

No more baseball scarcity for us, and it feels great. 

March is the perfect month to do this 7 Waterfalls hike - with all the winter runoff, it was awesome. 

Annnnddd...dinner at Dreyton Harbor Oyster Farm. Plus sunset. plus best buds. 

 

Bora Bora Fin

Well now I'm sick, so we are all scraping by over here in this house. Literally we are all half dead.

FRIDAY

Morning walk. 

This shepherd would join us for a little bit every day along this stretch. 

One day we came upon a husband and wife and their net full of fish! So many fish.

I asked "do you eat all that?" and they said yes.

They call Diet Coke "Coka Light" in Bora Bora and it doesn't taste the same. Way less sweet. 

coka light. I say that over and over.

Today's adventure: kayak to deserted island, visit the sister resort Thalasso.

We took the kayaks out due south from our Bungalows. Our boat guide told us to go check it out. It was deserted of course.

For the THIRD time we have a beach all to ourselves. 

We called it shell island. It was covered in those weird lip like shells. 

The choral was pretty shallow, so I got two coral scrapes on my leg. It's the strangest - you barely touch it and it shreds your leg. I still have scabs from it. 

There was a lot of mouthy corals and spikey black balls. 

We swam to the outer limits of the atoll. It's a weird feeling for some reason. Like it's the edge of the world. 

Then we paddled over to the coral gardens aquarium again, and this time we found this:

Every night they have turn down service and they leave these treats for you. One night our resident lizard was licking the cookie. 

Friday was probably the hottest of all the days! My legs got sunburned. 

We took a massive Siesta that day. 

Jamie and Andy went over to Thalasso earlier than us. Jim and I Siesta'd and exercised. 

We rode a boat over to Thalasso at sunset. 

The view over there is so pretty! Like someone made it on purpose - like Disneyland facade. 

Thalasso is on the edge island of the atoll, so there were actual waves! It was weird to suddenly HEAR the sounds of the ocean. 

We explored the grounds and watched the sunset. 

Then headed back to eat dinner at our restaurant. I got goat cheese ravioli mmmm that was so good. 

SATURDAY

We did all our morning stuff  - walk, breakfast - a little bit dragging our feet. It's sad to leave vacation.

We lingered longest at breakfast, going back for seconds, thirds, fourths. More than one hot chocolate, more than one croissont. We sat at the table until the chair indentions were etched in our legs. 

Jamie and I went snorkeling off our porches one last time. We found some cool shells! My cool shell still had a critter inside it, so I tossed it back in the water with a yelp. 

Good bye Bungalow 73

This is when the water got my shoes wet. 

LARSINGTON!

Once we got kicked out of our bungalows, we hung out by the pool, called the kids from the library, visited the market one last time. 

And then our boat taxi took us back to the airport...

About three years ago Andy texted us:

"Start losing weight and saving money - for Jamie's 40th birthday we are going big"

Jamie only found out about it at new years - a surprise! 

And now it's over and done. All these precious memories stored up. 

Let's all start losing weight and saving money for the next trip! Where should we go?