Pumpkin Patch Festival

One afternoon Jillian and I were out running around and decided to stop at a deli for lunch. We saw a flyer for a pumpkin patch festival in a town about an hour north of Kona...Kamuela. We convinced Jeremy to go and we all had a fun day. Jillian got her first pumpkin and she loves it so much! Pumpkins are a new favorite this year. We learned that the festival is an annual event sponsored by the Hawaii Preparatory Academy....we can't wait to go again next year!

The students set up a variety of games and rides...Jillian REALLY wanted to ride on a horse. Jeremy and I were too nervous for that (maybe next year) and she had to settle for a train ride. I was fine while the train did a little circle for the parents to get pictures....then he left to ride around the tents, out of my line of sight, and was gone for quite a while! I started to get a tad nervous, but all the other parents were acting like this was normal procedure. Right when I thought we should go find them, the train came back. I probably should have been paying attention to the train's travel destination from the beginning. Jillian had a ball and is still talking about her train-train ride. :)

We ended the morning with lunch and a hula performance. I can just see Jillian taking hula lessons, how fun! :)

We've Moved!

WooHoo, we have house keys! :) We did the final walk through on Friday, October 12th and were given the keys to the house! Yeah!!!! Most everything is done...a few little things remain, but we are so happy to be here!

Our first sunset. The sunsets here are gorgeous! Immediately after the sun goes down, its very dark. There is no "dusk" and so few street lights. It feels odd to be warm AND dark! :)

Number One priority: paint the garage floor. Once that was done, Jeremy and I hung the blinds.

While we were hanging blinds, Jillian was creatively learning the best way to escape. Now there are chains on every door. Jillian is going through a naked stage...I just can't keep clothes on the girl. Before we put on the chains, I caught Jillian in the front yard wearing only socks! :) We had a plumber come out this week and I had a talk with Jillian about how we were having company and needed to stay dressed for company...the minute he walked out the door she started stripping! What could I say, she stayed dressed for the company! :)

Our household goods were delivered on Monday. We had so many boxes, they couldn't fit in the house! The moving guys filled up the lanai and then the yard with the extra boxes. Jeremy and I worked nonstop to empty all the boxes and get everything inside. We weren't fast enough....by the time I got to my craft room I found a cockroach in with my scrapbooking things. Euwwwwww! I have no tolerance for bugs and the house was sprayed before we moved in...but, there is only so much you can do with the outdoors. I immediately put the box back outside and waited for Jeremy to help retrieve the remaining items from the box. I hate bugs! Alaska really spoiled me in that way!

All tuckered out and nowhere to sleep. Jillian took her nap on the blue chair while I finished unpacking in her room. Mostly she did all her own unpacking, we popped open the boxes with her toys and clothes and let her take charge! This kept her busy for hours and allowed Jeremy and I to make progress in other areas of the home. It was like Christmas in October!

South Point

After we left the turtle beach, we drove to South Point....the most southern tip in the United States (supposedly it's not the Florida Keys like many people believe). This cliff is not actually south point....but many people stop here because it is the closest you can get by car. (Unless you have a 4X4.) The point is a bit further and you hike to get there. Jillian and I opted to sit in the car and eat pie while Jeremy went for the hike....mmmm, homemade lemon creme from a local diner, yummy! :) This is a popular spot for cliff diving. In this picture you can see the old boat lifts...now being utilized as diving platforms. We saw a girl jump...Jillian looked at me horrified and said, "Mommy, she jumped the side!" Yep, she jumped off the side, but she climbed back up and was OK.

This is the metal ladder that can be used to climb back up. The water here was amazing....very, very pretty. The cliff protects the water and makes it very calm. The water is clear and you can see for hundreds of feet...which is why we read that this is a good place to snorkel. WOW, can you imagine getting your gear down and back up?

Before we left some local guys came to cliff dive.

Another jumper.

This is actually South Point. There are no cliffs here but the water is too strong for swimming.

I think this is the monument for the King who was swept out to sea.

Windmill farm on the way to the cliffs.

Punalu'u Black Sand Beach Park

Yesterday we went on a little adventure. We drove about 60 miles south to see our first black sand beach and it was very cool. We brought all our beach gear and planned to go swimming. But, it was a very windy day and the waves were crashing! We saw 2 turtles on the beach and Jillian just LOVED them! We took tons of pictures and all of us got close enough to touch them....even though we did not. After the photo shoot, we walked down the beach and saw a sign that said stay back 15 feet from the turtles...they are resting! Ooops, next time we'll be better behaved.



The sand is very fine, ground up lava. That being said, compared to normal sand, it is a bit rocky. And super HOT to walk on! Overall, the beach is very, very pretty!

Our New Home

We found a really cute house and are hoping to close on Tuesday. They have done quite a bit of work since we took these pictures...we'll get updated shots next week during the final walk through. We are very excited that Jeremy will only have a 5 minute drive to get to work...he could practically ride a bike! And we'll definitely live close enough for him to come home for lunch. And NO travel! We are just very excited, period. :)

Front of the house....Jillian is walking back up to me. She runs down this hilly dirveway so fast, it makes me so nervous!

The ocean...a bit of the view will go away, there will be 2 houses built across the street.

From the back.

Kitchen.

Dining, entry and the door to our bedroom.

Jeremy in the living room...the living area, dining area and kitchen are one room. I really love the open floor plan. :)
Jillian could live in our closet. :)