Lip sync battle

Our young men and women battled in a lip sync battle tonight in the first annual event that I really hope becomes one of the favorite yearly activity for our ward! Each of the classes had a song prepared and also each of the organizations presidencies performed for us and it was such a fun night! Everyone had such great performances and we had a blast watching them! The teachers took home the grand prize with their rendition of  “Africa” though honorable mention definitely goes to the primary presidency all dressed up as old ladies. Love this night!

Happy Halloween

Race cats

The boys have been practicing and working so hard with their cross country team Race Cats this fall. They practice twice a week and have 3 races a season. It has been fun to see them work and make progress at something that isn’t always easy. But all four of them did so good and made their Mama proud!

Citrus Hill Project - Fall break day 10

We had to leave today and every time we go it's a mad dash to get last minute things done.  We took a swim at Kim and Hector's which is always super fun!  And Ramos came and finished up the rest of the landscaping business he's been working on.  He finished leveling out the side and then somehow maneuvered his tractor through the narrow channel to the back.  He took out some plantain trees, removed the stump from the huge tree we had taken down a couple months ago and leveled everything out so that there will be better drainage from the house.  Overall he did a great job and it look really great.  We took quick showers, finished packing and then off we went leaving our house that we love so much!  I know we'll be back soon, but we're always longing for more when we go.  We have loved being here with the boys and working on this great project together!

 

Citrus Hill Project - Fall Break day 9

Today we tried to get as many things done as possible before we pack up and leave tomorrow. We had a busy morning: Eduardo (electrician) and his crew came to work on the electricity that will pipe into the air conditioning units upstairs. Also working on getting power to the pump on the roof that will control the water in the cistern. Lots of good things happening on the electrical end. 

The boys took one last trip to the tienda down the road for Coca Cola (suddenly their beverage of choice) and bags of chips. 

Josh took down the last of the tile in the blue bathroom and I started working in the master bathroom where the boys have been hammering tiles off all week. We definitely won’t get that bathroom done befor we go but at least the blue room is done! That’s hard work removing that pesky tile. 

This afternoon the boys and I left josh to some work calls he had to join and drove down to Ceiba to see Carmen and swim for a couple of hours. She’s so sweet and made lunch for us and let us hang out and be there as long as we wanted! We had the pool to ourselves all afternoon and the boys could not get enough swimming. So we stayed and played and finally after 3 hours in the pool I decided that was probably long enough :) It was so fun to see Carmen and we’re so glad to have this sweet friend in our lives! 

Tonight we drove down the road to the food truck stop which is open Thursday- Sunday. We’ve never tried them so tonight we thought we’d give it a shot. The boys chose pizza, josh had a Venezuelan sandwich of sorts and I had chicken tacos. Overall everything was delicious and fun to try something new! 

It’s hard to believe that our time here is up and we’re leaving our PR home tomorrow. We’re excited to see our girls and get back to life, but we always leave a little piece behind when we go. We love every minute of the time we get to be here! 

Citrus Hill Project - Fall Break day 8

Another day in the books at Citrus Hill! Highlights from today:

Josh and I met with Kimberly at Home Depot to get the cabinets going for the kitchen upstairs! (Cabinets take 3-4 months so we thought we’d get that going even though there’s a lot to do between now and when we’ll actually be ready for them)

Desh bought his very own machete 

Got to FaceTime with our girls who we are missing dearly 

The daily routine of outside showers (that inevitably turns into a water fight)

Just a bunch of good things going on here. 

This afternoon our good friends Melvin and Maria invited us over for a late lunch and a swim in their pool. It was so fun to get away to do that for a couple hours! Melvin was one of the first people we met when we first started looking for houses here and we’ve stayed close to them since day one. Rides to the airport, borrowing a car, help lifting something- Melvin is there without a question. They are THE BEST and we’re so grateful to have friends like them around here!

The night ended early for us as we’re all tired and there’s a light rain falling outside which is just the perfect thing to fall asleep to :)

Citrus Hill Project - Fall Break day 7

We had a lot of work going on at the house today and we got right to it. A landscaper came with a large tractor to start leveling out the upper part of the property. We eventually want to put a patio and pool there but in the meantime having it level will get us started and in a holding spot until we’re ready for that. Desh did not want to stop watching that tractor go back and forth hauling dirt. He was totally engrossed in the project! 

By the end of the day it looks so much different and so awesome to see it leveling off. 

We continued our work removing tile from the bathrooms upstairs. It’s such a big job and I almost feel like we may not ever get it done.  But we are definitely  making some progress. 

We also had Edgardo the plumber come today and work on some of the lines running to the bathrooms upstairs. He’s great and does such a good job and I can feel the day drawing closer that we’ll have hot water running through these pipes! He’s sure prepping for it! That will be a good day. 

A trip to Home Depot and the grocery store in the middle of those projects sealed up the day and before we knew it we were back to bed for the evening. The kids go to bed just completely exhausted from working/playing all day in the heat and they just fall asleep instantly.  

I splurged this late evening and stayed up to watch the opening game of the NBA. Warriors vs the lakers was one I just couldn’t miss so even though it didn’t start until 10:00 pm (yikes) I stayed up until the last second just glad to be watching basketball again! So I’m going to say good night and get a few hours of sleep before it starts all over again tomorrow!

Citrus Hill Project - Fall Break day 6

Today we spent the morning working on the tile again in the upstairs bathroom. We’re so close to getting it done that we just busted through and kept working. It’s hard. And hot. So it makes for a sweaty, eyewear fogging job. The boys meanwhile cleared out the roots of the plantain bushes that we chopped down. Chopping roots and hauling them away was also a hard sweaty job but the boys kept at it and finished that up. 

Josh had some work calls in the early afternoon so we got to take a break :) I napped while the boys played scum. Then we packed up and headed to the beach for the rest of the afternoon before dinner. One of our favorite beaches is down in Luquillo called Playa Azul. It has great waves for boogie boarding and an awesome beach to sit and enjoy the day. It was the perfect way to spend the hot afternoon while Josh was occupied. 

Tonight we started watching Thor Ragnarok - the boys first time seeing it. We didn’t make it all the way through before we had sleepy eyes starting to show up. I’m sure we’ll take the rest of the week to finish it up. Just a little at a time but we’ll eventually get there! Night night!

Citrus Hill Project - Fall Break day 5

Today was Sunday and we had the most wonderful day! We went to church and met back up with our  little branch that we grew to love and still love after all these months! It was fun to see some familiar faces and also meet some new ones. There are new sister missionaries in the branch and we chatted them up for a while. The branch seems to be growing a bit as the sisters are trying to reactivate some that have been missing for a while. I love to see that progress! Church is also two hours now which is fun. The kids got to go to primary (joining the 3 other boys that are in the branch) and practiced songs for the primary program that’s happening in a few weeks. Too bad we aren’t going to be here for that. I would have loved our boys to be a part of that day. 

After church we drove over to San Juan to look at the new temple that is under construction. It’s said to be completed in April and I’m hoping that we get to be here for the open house! 

We spent the rest of the afternoon doing just what the day of rest is for - resting. Josh and I got a nap while the boys played games and traded Pokémon cards with each other. After we woke up we played some more games (scum, checkers, mastermind were the top choices) and had dinner together. We used up some ripe avocados to make guacamole and toasted up some taquitos that Desh lovingly kept calling “torpedoes” although he didn’t say it with much love as he complained that he “hates eating torpedoes!” He opted for Mac and cheese while the rest of us ate taquitos and guacamole. 

The rest of the night was spent listening to a delightful playlist “slow down” in the speaker and reading, catching lizards (namely Olympian,  Edward, Sparky, Rocky and, my favorite, Wilford), using machetes to show off ninja skills and catching a gorgeous sunset from our patio. Josh and I kept looking at each other and pinching ourselves that we could have a day like this together in a place like this. We feel so lucky to be here and have this place to escape to. 

Citrus Hill Project - Fall Break day 4

We woke up to an incredible sunrise on the beach after a night of just a couple incidents: Liev couldn’t sleep because the waves were too loud, Keen had a mosquito inside his mosquito net that kept biting him and Beck needed a drink in the middle of the night. Other than that, the night on the beach was a success and most of us slept great in our hammocks. The best part was we got to wake up to an incredible view and that is something you can’t beat. We had a couple hours to swim and pack up before we had to return our Jeep and catch the ferry back home. It was a great morning with the beach to ourselves for a couple hours!

Those that didn’t get enough sleep had a chance to catch up while we waited at the boat launch. And the rest of us compared who got the most mosquito bites. Liev definitely takes the award for biggest bites but Keen has a good patch right on his knees that might beat everyone else. You’d think we would be used to the big bites but somehow we always get surprised by how many we end up with. 

The rest of the day we spent at home getting a few things done. Josh and I mapped out the upstairs kitchen including a new window that we’re going to have cut and installed (it’s going to look amazing!).  Dinner tonight was Liev’s choice: poached eggs on toast and mangos topped off with Coca Cola from the tienda down the road. Beck and Desh had dish duty and rocked it. And we finished off the night with a solid game of scum (Desh ended as king, mom as scum) and a gorgeous sunset from the upstairs balcony. All in all a great day in Puerto Rico!

Citrus Hill Project - Fall Break day 3

This morning started early with a trip to our favorite Puerto Rican gym and then breakfast of fruit bowls up on the deck. I love this part of our routine and we rarely break from those two things while we’re here. We headed out pretty quick after that and drove to Ceiba to catch a ferry to Vieques. We’ve been to the island culebra a handful of times now but never spent any time on the other island Vieques. We’ve all been so excited to try it out!

The ferry ride was short and smooth and we all made it here without any seasickness! That’s a win. 

The first beach we visited was one we’ve been anxious to see. It’s a black sand beach and the sand comes from the volcanic rock on the island. It was really cool to see the mixture of sands and play in sand that is a color you typically don’t see. To get there we hiked for about 10 minutes through a jungle full of hermit crabs and huge spiders hanging on their webs above us. We stopped to look at one particularly large one then hurried our way past the rest and pretended that we didn’t know they were there. We were glad to make it to the beach. 

I got a glimpse into the life of my boys as I watched them all disappear around a corner and then streak towards the water at full speed. And you better believe that Josh was there leading his pack of sons! I just love all five of these boys in my life!

After Playa Negra we headed to another beach so the boys could boogie board. We ended up at Sun Bay Beach which is a big arching half circle with warm water and beautiful views. We spent the day just soaking in the warm sun, catching crabs, playing in the sand and water and enjoying every minute of the beautiful weather! It was a great day on the beach. 

After dinner at a yummy place called Bananas we headed back to Sun Bay Beach to set up camp for the night. We brought hammocks and mosquito nets for all of us and a small blanket for the boys to sleep in. We showered in the open showers on the beach (which felt amazing to clean off the salt water!) and then jumped into our hammocks before the mosquitos chomped us to death. Now here we are laying in our hammocks, the boys are chatting away from their own corners and I can’t even hardly believe that we get to sleep in the open air on this beautiful beach! It is an absolutely gorgeous night. I guess tomorrow will tell how the night on the beach went but as for now it doesn’t get much better than this!

Citrus Hill Project - Fall Break Days 1-2

It’s finally time for us (most of us anyway) to head back to PR! Josh has been there a handful of times since June but the rest of us have waiting lots of month to get to go back again. Fall Break for the kids is next week so we took them out a few days early and get to spend a good chunk of time down there working on the house. This turned into a boys trip as the girls have band and school commitments they couldn’t get out of, so we left them with friends and grandmas for a couple weeks and off we went! 

Josh took an earlier flight than the rest of us so he could get down and get the van and come back to pick us up. We ended up with an overnight layover in Chicago so the boys and I rented a hotel room for the night and came back the next morning to catch our second flight. It worked out great so we weren’t tired but did make it seem like we were flying for a solid 24 hours. We got a great deal on our flights though so it was all good! The boys did great on the flight and we were so happy to see Josh pull up to the curb to pick us up! We stepped off the plane to a perfect temperature and light rainstorm. Just what I picture when I think of Puerto Rico weather. 

We made a quick stop at Costco to fill up on food and then made it home just in time to crash into our beds and sleep off the plane ride. 

Today we woke up rested and ready to work! Josh and the Hammer boys worked hard last week getting the tile out of the bathrooms upstairs. There’s still some to go so that’s where we worked this morning. We have a little mini jackhammer that works well getting underneath the tiles, but it is hard, sweaty work. We all helped though josh of course did the bulk of the work. Our goal is to finish up both bathrooms before our trip ends. 

The boys also took some time to trim the bushes and grass with their machetes. They’ve been looking forward to getting their machetes out for weeks and they spent a good portion of the morning chopping whatever they had in their sights. 

One of my goals this trip is to catch up on some sleep so I also worked hard on that goal and going a nice nap this afternoon while it rained outside. It was the perfect nap/chill weather. 

Later this afternoon we walked down to the basketball hoop and played for a while before dinner. And Josh and I polished off the night with another Costco run to get a generator that was about to go off sale. Totally worth the drive to Carolina! Now we’re set. 

Sunrise

We woke up to this beauty this morning...

 

Chilly Day

We had our first really chilly day of the year and the first snow visible in the mountains.  It was gorgeous!  We drove up the canyon to look at the fall colors and loved seeing the white tipped mountains in the background.  We also enjoyed a chilly (and sometimes rainy) football game but loved being in that stadium to cheer on the cougars!

 

Halloween Concert

Rease and her symphonic band had their Halloween concert tonight.  They played some really fun songs and were dressed up in their costumes which made for a fun night for all of us!  

 

School puppets

Keen and his class made these amazing hand puppets in school with their teacher.  They used all sorts of supplies to make whatever kind of puppet they wanted and there are some super cute ideas up there on display.  Such a fun project!

 

Citrus Hill (October) - Hammer Labor

This trip included some serious muscle showing up day two.  Hammers and all their beef came one day after my arrival and it was well received!  These boys know how to work! 

Clearing the property including plantains, bushes and weed trimming then lead to tile removal along with toilets, fixtures and tubs.  At one point I went upstairs to check on them and they all had their shirts off and covered in red tile dust.  

The odd rainstorm would draw them outside to wash and cool off.  It was so good to work alongside these great friends! 

And of course, right on queue, the minute the junk hit the ground it was picked up by Jesus (a local) happy to take it to get recycled.  I told him he was an answer to my prayers. 

Eduardo (electrician) and his crew and Edgardo (plumber) pushed forward and even tag teamed the setup of the cistern, pump and pressurized water tank. 

First water from the Cistern! We now don't have to worry about the daily water outage.

Hammers love the beach so we made our way to Culebra to stay a night on Flamenco beach.  These boys don't ever stop getting in the water.  It was pitch black before we could get them out of the surf. 

Snorkeling at Melones beach in the AM then back to Rio Grande on the afternoon Ferry.  It was such a great trip!

The rest of the beach included more work along with Charco Frio.  Pikole on the way to the airport was the cherry on top and the acai stains on JT's mouth. 

Awesome week Hammer Men.  Let's do it again!

Conference tower

General Conference wouldn't be the same without some amazing lincoln log towers being made...

 

New York girls trip - Day 4

Our last day in the city and we visited the 9/11 memorial and museum first thing this morning.  It was INCREDIBLE and also very sobering to remember that day 20 years ago.  The museum is so well done with amazing tours and artifacts left from that day.  We could have spent 2 full days there but unfortunately we had just a few hours before we had to get to the airport.  We loved being there!

We got on the subway for the last time in lower Manhattan and rode all the way out to JFK airport.  It took us about an hour and a half to get there but we avoided all the traffic that way and had plenty of time to get checked in before our flight left.  As we said goodbye to Britt and headed home, we promised each other that this would not be the end of our girls trips!  Next year? Same group, new destination!  Love all these sisters of mine like crazy!