Landscaping Begins - March 2010

Happy to be Home!

Sat. 3-6-10 - It was like spring here in Sequim when we returned from Hawaii on Feb. 22nd, which put us in the mood to start our landscaping projects. So we took a few pictures outside. The 2 above are "before" pictures.

The picture above was taken on 3-6, and the one below today, 3-13. Our landscaper Debra planted the trees around the propane tank and put in the gravel path that goes from the front sidewalk down to the basement door. She's not finished yet, but it already looks good. Certainly makes walking up and down the hill much easier (and cleaner)! No more tracking mud into the house.

In the picture below you can see we brought the gravel all the way up to the road, where I am standing. We did that so Ted could get his Power-Wagon down to the basement to haul the heavy things (books, collectibles, etc.) up to the garage for packing and mailing when he sells them on e-bay.

Kaua'i - Hawaii 2010

Sunday 1-31-10 - We checked into the Marriott on Kaua'i around 4:00 p.m. April took the picture below from our 12th floor rooms. Beautiful view of our beach. Toured the entire island over the next week, before our unforgettable helicopter tour on Saturday!

Saturday, 2-6-10 - The picture below is of the Na'Pali Coast. No roads. Only way to see it is via helicopter or boat. "Jurassic Park" mountains and jungle. This is where we were when the engine blew up on our helicopter! It was a pretty intense few minutes before our wonderful helicopter pilot Doug landed us safely, on the ONLY piece of level ground anywhere around.

You can see how small the patch of grass is where Doug set the helicopter down. What a thrill ride! We were met by some hippies who heard the engine fail and came to see if everyone was okay. Doug radioed in for help and one of the hippies, "AJ", led us down the beach to their camp about a half mile away.

"Uncle T", the leader of the camp, brought out chairs for all of us so we could wait for the rescue helicopter to arrive, then entertained us with stories about his 11 years of living there in the camp. He was a great host, and we all had the best time! Of course there is a lot more to this story, but not enough room or space on the blog to tell it all. You'll just have to call me. :)

Sharon (me), Ted, April & Kenny

It took over a week for them to replace the engine on the downed helicopter, so they flew in and out of the Emergency Landing Pad that is right next to the hippie camp many times with parts, mechanics, etc. etc. April had given the helicopter company $20.00 and asked them to make sure Uncle T and his group got some ice cream, peanut butter and a few other requested items. The picture below is Uncle T's girlfriend retrieving some of the groceries that were delivered. There were several bags of groceries that were flown in to them during that week - way more than $20.00 worth. Meeting them and the time spent with them was one of the best parts of the entire trip!

Hawaii - February 2010

Saturday, February 6, 2010 - Below is a picture of our hosts, Uncle T, his lady friend, and AJ (and me beside Uncle T). Uncle T offered us wine, wanted to fix us lunch, insisted we have some of their homemade bread with cheese. They were wonderful hosts during our 3 hour wait for the rescue helicopter to arrive.

The rescue helicopter picked us up at the hippie camp, and we continued on with our island tour. We landed safely about 40 minutes later. It was the most exciting (and a little scary) trip....one we could never have imagined! We got way more than our money's worth!

Friday, 2-5-10 - We met up with Tasha and Tory (Ted's niece and her fiance) when we toured the "Grand Canyon" of Kaua'i. They got engaged on this trip.

Friday, 2-12-10 - The four of us, Kenny, April, Me and Ted, went out for our big Zip Line Adventure. Our helmets named us Romeo, Shorty, Honey & Wiggles. All of us really had a blast! It was so much fun!

On the way back to our condo from the zip line adventure we stopped at a little restaurant for dinner. The hostess had a collection of sunglasses, so we all grabbed a pair and had our picture taken. You don't think we look like tourists or anything do you? :)

Christmas-New Years 2010

Friday, March 12, 2010

Time got away from me. Didn't realize it was

November when I last updated the blog. I'll bring things

up to date over the next couple of days.

January 1, 2010 - Ted and I spent the evening at home and toasted the New Year in with a glass of sparkling cider in above picture. We had Christmas eve dinner with Ted's family in Tacoma.

Dec. 25, 2009 - We stayed over at Karn's (Ted's sister) home, got up early and drove over to Cort and Liz's house for Christmas morning with the family. We spent most of the day there then returned to Karn's and spent the evening visiting. Returned to Sequim the following day.

I love the picture of Karn and Signe below.