Week 45 in PR and saying goodbye

What a week it has been.  So many emotions hit all of us at different times throughout the week as we knew it was our last week on the island and living at La Brisa.  I can't hardly believe the time is up.  Let's talk highlights first:

Just like any good sendoff should have, we were hit with a tropical storm warning for the island this week.  The path was super fluid and we didn't know if it was going to hit us straight on before we left or move south of us.  All we knew was we were probably in for some rain at some point and that's ok.  We can handle it.

Projects continue to be crossed of the list and little by little our master list is getting shorter!  We hung pictures and hung the map in the hallway to finish off our "favorite things" wall.  

The Flamboyans.  What can I say except they are making my every day a bit brighter just by existing!

Late night "dead man float" contest.

A last trip to Acai Express

And a ponytail on Keen with his long surfer hair

All great highlights of the week!

We had planned an overnight trip to Culebra to hammock on the beach and soak in a whole day of sun.  But the approaching storm threw off our plans and we opted out of sleeping outside in the rain.  Instead we took the day and drove north to Mar Chiquita and spent the day there.  It's a gorgeous little beach that is just stunning to look at and fun to swim in because it's like a cove surrounded by rocks except one small opening where the water comes in.  We couldn't have asked for a better day to spend doing nothing except enjoying ourselves in the sun and sand.  

The kids got to say goodbye to friends and teachers at summer camp and got cute notes and gifts from their friends.  We will never forget the kindness we have been shown and our love for these great people will always be a part of us.  Our kids have done better than I ever hoped they would at school and with friends.  It's all to do with the nature of the Puerto Rican people who are friendly, welcoming and loving by nature.  I hope some part of that has rubbed off on all of us and we get to take that back to Utah with us!





Saying goodbye is always hard and we felt it hard this week as we got to say goodbye to our branch that we have grown to love with our whole hearts.  They have been our family away from home and we have relied so much on them this year as we've been away from our own families.  We love them now just as if they were real family to us.  We'll never forget the weekly branch activities with boiled hot dogs specially made by Eudaldo, David with his big smile and hug every time we see him, Hermano Vasquez falling asleep in sacrament meeting (every week without fail), Hermana Loisa speaking spanish so fast we barely caught a word she was saying, Hermano Waldo and his endless positivity, Hermana Sonia's gifts for every holiday for every family, the Elders who have been such a big part of our life as they come and go, and everyone and everything else that is logged in our memory bank.  We will never forget.

Most of all, we got to say goodbye to our dearest and most incredible friends Laura and Carlos.  Not only friends but family as they just enveloped us and took us in from the minute we got to the island.  They are part of our every day and I'm not sure what we do without them in it!  Laura said it best though, "I know it's not goodbye.  We'll be in each others lives forever."  We sure will!  We love those two so much.  

Big D had to get some final growth pics of D Papaya and I can not believe how much it has grown in one year!  It's really remarkable.  

It felt like one last everything this week.  

One last service project (the boys helped put up a fan at the Vasquez house)

One last time at Planet Fitness

One last trip to Home Depot (literally our second home here)

One last plant to be put in the ground

One last dinner with Carlos and Laura

We wanted to take it all in before we left.  We tried hard to do it.

Of course there were projects to be done until the last minute.  We got our La Brisa sign in the mail the day before we left!  Just perfect timing to get it up as one of the very last things on our to do list.  We hung a few more light fixtures, took one last measurement on the wall (it's amazing how everyone has grown!), signed our own names on the wall, and spent our last full day in the pool! 

La Brisa has come a long way in the past two years and especially this year as we've lived here.  I had to make a collage of all of Josh's "darlings" and show how beautiful it has all turned out.  Really remarkable how far it has all come this year.  

The night before we left I showed the family a video I made of the whole year, from the day we left Utah to the last day here.  It was so fun to see the progress that has been made on the house, the yard and in ourselves.  Amidst all the memories and fun times and hard times, there was a lot of growth and learning too.  It was a fun time to reflect on what we've done and what we're going to take home with us.  What kind of people we are now because of the year we spent at La Brisa.  

At 4:30 am as we packed the car to drive to the airport, Rhen took one last look at the house and with tears running down her cheeks said, "Look what we've done."  Truly.  Look what we've done.  This year is one we will never forget. 

Week 44 in PR

The parties never stop in Puerto Rico and Rhen had another fun gathering this week for all the "graduates" from 8th grade.  They have been planning on going to a "prom" that was organized by a group of moms as a way for the kids to gather and celebrate being done with school.  It was more of a dance/party where they all got to dress up fancy but didn't have to go with a date.  Rhen had a really fun time and looked so darling in her sparkly dress!  Once last hoorah for these kids before they're off to summer!

Josh and I also got to go on a fun date with Laura and Carlos this week.  Hamilton is playing at the Center for the Arts in San Juan for the next 3 weeks and we got tickets to go!  We've never seen it and have been so excited to go.  It did not disappoint!  It was really really amazing and well done and we had such a fun night together.  

We also took to the kids to see a Guynabo Mets basketball game this week which was super fun.  DeMarcus Cousins (used to play for the Warriors) is on the team here in Puerto Rico and we wanted to see a game.  He ended up not playing in the game we went to but we had fun anyway and I always love me a good basketball game!

The younger kids started summer camp this week at the school and have loved it!  They do so many fun projects and activities and it's been fun for them to be back together with their friends. Keen took a fun field trip to the botanical garden in San Juan one day this week and said it was "hot but fun".  True words.  

Our youth group was able to attend the temple together this week.  Carlos and Laura, Joel and Jonathon and me and our kids all went to do baptisms together.  It was so beautiful to be there together as a youth group and I love the spirit that we leave with.  It was really fun to be there together.  

Beck developed some sort of allergy this week to something that he ate or was in contact with.  He has been sick with a fever the past couple of days so it may have something to do with that?  But he woke up from a nap and said he felt like he had a canker by his top lip that was making it hard to eat.  After a minute or two, I realized his upper lip was actually swollen.  Throughout the night, it got progressively bigger and bigger!  I gave him some benadryl (which promptly put him to sleep for the night) and I'm hoping it starts to go down a little bit within a few hours.  Who knows what this is from but other than the fat lip he seems to be doing ok!

Project this week? Finishing touches on painting and covering up the electrical box on the front of the house.  The boys are always so great to jump in and work with Josh (for a few minutes anyway!)

I hate to say it, but it's almost our last week here in Puerto Rico :(

We have been working so hard on the house and the yard and school getting out and everything else that the time has slipped away without us realizing it.  I'm not even going to talk about it yet, but I will say that we are trying to soak in every last minute that we have here while we have it.  The sunsets have been on point this week as a reminder of the incredible life we've had here.  Heavenly Father sure knows that we love the sunsets from our deck and has sent some amazing ones for us to enjoy.  

This week has been full of lots of projects, but also lots of things that we just want to do at the house.  A game of hide and seek, lots of pool time and quiet moments on the deck.  It just doesn't seem like we'll ever be able to leave this place.  We are in love.  

Week 43 in PR and Rease's Birthday!

June 6th was a big day in the Beutler house.  First and most important, our Reaser girl turned 16!  Wait, what?  16?! Not possible.  I still can't believe it, but we celebrated anyway.  

Our darling Hermano Vasquez bought her a cake (he's so cute and sweet) and we had that for breakfast.  Then we opened gifts (a new Curry jersey) and then had another cake that night!  Why not have 2 cakes on your 16th birthday?  It turns out we lost power at the house just before dinner and cake and ice cream, so it made it all the more special to light her candles and sing to her in the dark.  What a way to bring in your 16th year!  We love this girl to the moon and back!

16 year old stats:

Height: 5'8" - 92%

Weight: 186 lbs - 97%

Second thing that happened on June 6th was Desh's school gathering and awards ceremony.  And what better place to have that than the one and only Chuck-E-Cheese!  Yes, it still exists here and the kids had a ball.  Cute Rease volunteered (on her birthday remember) to be his chaperone for the day and hang out with him to get his awards and spend as many tokens and he could handle!  He has loved everything about his class and his teacher this year and they were so excited to gather again after not seeing each other for a few days.  

Rease stayed with Desh at his party while Josh and I attended a very important event for Rhen.  One thing you need to know about Puerto Ricans is that they love to party.  So any chance they get, they take it and make a big event out of it.  For Rhen's class, that event was a graduation (from middle school), since they're officially leaving the school behind and all headed to high school next year.  They had a full on graduation ceremony to celebrate and honor these cute kids.  Rhen has been looking forward to this day for a long time and her amazing friends have made this year an incredible one for her.  We have so much to be grateful for, but today I'm most grateful for the people that have stepped into her life and made her one of them.  What a group they are!

It was so fun to be there at the graduation and hear all the awards and honors that were given out to each of the kids.  What made it so fun for us, is hearing the loud cheers and applause from everyone when Rhen was given a special award from her teachers for excelling in Spanish as her second language.  The whole auditorium was cheering for our girl and it brought me to tears to hear her teacher praise her for all that she has done this year; stepping into a new school, learning a new language, embracing a different culture, and reaching the high honor roll while doing all that.  It was really so cool to hear all that they had to say about her and I was so proud to know that she is mine.  

We have had such amazing people around us this year and I can't even express how much it means to us for our kids to be a part of something so great and uplifting.  It has been a year of growth for all of us, especially the kids as they've taken on a new school and language and loved doing it.  So proud of this girl!

The next day Keen had a graduation ceremony of his own as he's graduating from the elementary school as a 5th grader.  Unfortunately (or fortunately, however you want to look at it), the power was out at the venue that his graduation was supposed to take place.  We sat there for 30 minutes (in the heat because there was no a/c) waiting for the power to come back on and finally Keen turned to me and said, "We don't really have to stay for this do we?"  Cue taken.  We left before it even got started and got ourselves an acai bowl instead!  Now that's a celebration!  He still got all his awards from his teacher and was honored as one on the honor roll this year as well.  Wow.  What an accomplishment for this boy!  Love him to pieces.  

Other important things of the week:

The boys are obsessed with finding the perfect chain for themselves and are starting to look pretty Puerto Rican to me with them on

The Flamboyan trees are in full bloom and the island is just GORGEOUS with them right now!

Rhen got strep throat (right after her graduation) and was sick in bed for 3 days solid.  Sick enough that she couldn't eat and passed out right in front of my eyes one morning.  That was our cue to get her to the doctor and get her on some meds.  Luckily the antibiotic kicked in within 48 hours and we finally got Rhen back from Zombie land.  

Beck helped Josh fix the caulk around the house

The boys built a race track in the garage for their matchbox cars

Liev caught the strep bug from Rhen and was also in bed by the end of the week

We also got to have Aunt Hayley here with us this week and she was an ANGEL to have!  I wish I could say that we did lots of fun traveling with her and took her to all our favorite tourist spots.  But we didn't.  Instead we worked her to death and I'm so grateful that she was willing to let us push her around!  

First on the list, she helped us with our curtains.  I bought some black out curtains from IKEA for all the bedrooms and the front room where the tv is.  They come super long intending to be hemmed to the length needed.  I saved this project specifically for her, knowing that she would be coming and would know just what to do.  Not only did she know what to do and how to do it very quickly and efficiently, she also used the extra fabric AND the other curtains to make us throw pillows for our couch!  Who does that?  Aunt Hayley the seamstress does.  Oh so glad she came to visit!

The other project we worked on is our referral wall in the hallway.  I've had a wild idea the past few weeks and I just needed her here to help me pull it off.  We wanted to figure out a way to keep some of our pictures that we've had on the wall, up on the wall as part of a way to give recommendations for our favorite spots around the island.  So we took down some of the personal photos and left up all the pictures that showed places or things that we wanted to highlight.  We numbered them according to location and then on the other side of the hall on the big wall, we started writing down all those places that we had numbered.  We wanted to list them out and then put their location on a large map to show where on the island everything is located.  That's the idea I had and Hayley helped us put it together.  When she wasn't sewing or making pillows, she was writing on that wall.  It is a huge job and still a work in progress (we still need to get our map laminated and framed to put up ) but it is going to look so great when it's done!

The last night she was here, we did take her down to Old San Juan to eat at our favorite pizza spot Bari and meet our favorite server Julie.  We walked around the fort, shopped a little and ended the night with gelato at Anita.  It has been so fun to have her here and we are forever in her debt for all the work she helped us get done!  Safe travels and thanks for coming to visit!

Week 42 in PR

We got busy this week with lots of things around the house. Now that the kids are out of school we can put everyone to work and get more done :) 

We have a list of all the things, big and small, that still need to be done and each morning we go over the list together. We pick a few things a day that we think we can get done and then get to work. The projects we worked on this week:

- Attached all the kitchen shelves to the brackets

- Replaced light fixtures on the deck

- Primed and painted the gate

- Planted more plants around the yard 

- The boys learned to trim the yard 

- Installed security cameras outside 

And in between all those things we also had some fun. Our favorite quick game is Cover Your Cookies and sneak in a game whenever we can. We also love our branch and love gathering with them whenever we can! We had a Noche de Hogar at Hermana Luz’s house this week and it was super fun to gather with the branch. Along with our weekly branch activity, we got to see them all lots this week. 

The yard is growing up so much right before our eyes. Desh’s D Papaya is huge and growing so many fruits now. I’m amazed how it has grown in the time we’ve been here. And Beck continues to be a grander and loves planting with josh whenever we gets the chance. 

We sure love our home here and what is has become. It’s so fun to step back once in a while and recognize how far we’ve come. La Brisa has turned out to be a pretty magical place for us. 

Week 41 in PR

We have been keeping the tooth fairy on her toes this week! In the span of four days Desh lost his four from teeth! He went from tiny chiclets to wide open space in the front. This is my favorite stage of teeth, when those front buckers start to grow in and change up a whole smile! 

Desh was also super anxious to spend his birthday money so he and Josh headed to the kiosks to find him a new shirt. So many good options! And he ended up with the best one.  Birthdays are the best! Especially when they linger a few days longer :) 

We’re in full project mode here, working on lots of things that we want to get done. Beck has become a fellow gardener alongside Josh and is trying to revive a plant that almost died out in the front yard. He dug it up, replanted it in a pot in the back and has been carefully watering and fertilizing it for the past week. He so careful to make sure he keeps an eye on it every day! 

We finished laying one more small load of sod up in the upper bed and around some of the plants near the pool. I’m happy to say we’re all done with grass and looking forward to it all filling in now! 

Aside from the projects, we’ve been granted some of the most gorgeous sunsets this week. We’re in awe sometimes at the view we have from our deck. 

The kids celebrated their last week of school and we had to take last day pictures in the same spot we took them on the first day. So crazy that’s is come to the end of the school year already! But even more crazy to see how the kids have grown up this year. The boys have all basically outgrown their pants and everyone looks just a bit older than they were 9 months ago. We have some sad kids that are going to miss all the friends they’ve made this year :(

By the end of the week, we’d had a visit from the tooth fairy four times, played our favorite new game Pegs and Jokers together, worked hard, played hard and I even gained a companion roll maker. What a week it has been and so many good things that happened around here! 

Week 40 and Desh’s bday

Another week means another trip to the doctor for Keen.  We're still working on getting that left arm set the way it should be and this week Josh made it clear that he didn't want to come back to have this done again.  So this was the last shot to get it right!  Well, they worked really really hard on it (without any anesthesia at all, poor boy) and the final x-ray after shows that they got it right!  So we're in business with both arms now and they're on their way towards some good healing.  It has been a long road for these two, going to the hospital every week now.  So glad we're on a good path and now they don't have to go back for 3 more weeks.  

The projects at the house continue to get done.  This week all 5 of the boys worked on getting a gate made for the back fence.  It's going to be great so we have access to the land behind us and those boys all worked really hard to get it done and into place.  It looks great!

It's also end of school time around here so we had the last of the programs and field days this week for all the schools.  The kids all had A BLAST at field day (which wasn't actually on the field, but inside the gym), and played lots of games, performed their songs and dances and everything that they've been working on this year.  Desh's class did a darling dance and he got to be front and center showing off his awesome moves.  

Beck's class won the first place trophy for something or other but I'm not sure what it was for.  Regardless they were all super excited about their trophy and collected it as a group.  Beck and Desh have also been part of the  school choir this year and got to perform one last time.  They both memorized the Puerto Rican national anthem and it's so cute to hear them sing it together.

Keen participated fully in field day, two casts and all.  He is very determined that his team gets first place in every event and he did his best to help the team out with that! They ended up getting a bunch of 1st and 2nd place ribbons for their events so I'd say they did pretty darn good.  

I popped over to Rhen and Liev's field day and caught the very tail end events.  They also had a really fun day and even let me snap a quick picture of them together.  

Other highlights of the week:

Rease, Rhen and I painted the big outside wall.  I wasn't sure it actually needed it until we started and then I realized how much better it looks with brand new white on it.  It looks really amazing!

Our gate motor got installed!  Happy day!  Although, the kids have never had a problem fighting over who was going to jump out and open the gate.  Now they don't have to fight I guess :)

The kids started signing shirts at school as a sort of "yearbook"

Night swimming

Our visitor wall is completely signed and filled up

And an early birthday present for Desh - the new Zelda game (which I got joyfully tackled for by all the boys).  I guess it's a good gift?

Of course the biggest news of the week is that Desh turned 7 right in front of our eyes!  How did this boy grow up so fast?  He has the sweetest teacher and she sent him this cute message on his birthday for us to read to him.  

We had a little birthday party for him and he invited a couple of his favorite friends over to spend the afternoon.  Luckily all they wanted to do was swim so it made for an easy party for us!  They swam their little hearts out and didn't want to stop.

But we did take a break for cake and ice cream and presents.  Mario Cart birthday cake this year!  He was super excited that the cake pulls apart as cupcakes.  

These cute friends of his have been so good for him this year.  They have gotten to be best buddies and love playing together.  I'm so grateful for the friends that have accepted us wholeheartedly and made us all feel welcome.  

Happy Birthday Big D!  We couldn't love you any more!

7 year old stats: 

Height: 4'5" - 99%

Weight: 66 lbs. 13 oz. - 93%


Today is Sunday and since Desh and I share a birthday, we waited until today to celebrate my birthday.  Josh was so sweet and made sure that I didn't have to do anything at all today except hang with my favorite people.  I got a card full of foot rub vouchers from Beck (I promptly cashed in one of the coupons), a vase full of flowers from Desh picked straight from our yard, and a pair of new basketball shoes from Josh!  Best of all, I captured all the kids after church and we snapped a picture of all of us together.  I love this family more than I can ever express.  

Week 39 in PR

We welcomed our Grammie, papa and dear aunt Shirley back into our lives this week and had the best time with them in our home! It is so nice to be back with these loved ones that we have missed dearly while we’ve been away. Monday we drove down to the beach and showed them around our favorite playa Azul. We picked Rease up from school right across the street and she joined us for a bit. That night we hosted Noche de Hogar for our branch and had a great lesson, discussion and good food. It was so fun to have them all at our house together! 

We spent lots of time relaxing, reading, and hanging out in the pool this week. It’s definitely warming up around the island and summer has arrived. The pool provides a great break from the heat. 

Rhen has a dance/party coming up to go along with her graduation from middle school so we took her dress shopping for both her big events. She was so cute trying things on and we loved spending the day with her! 

One day we drove the crew up to old San Juan and spent some time driving and walking around near the old fort. It’s so gorgeous up there especially right around sunset and is one of our most favorite spots on the island to take people to. It’s such a unique spot with so many different views. We had a fun night with them there! 

And we drove them by the temple on the way home and took a short tour around the grounds of it. It was a beautiful night to be out and about! 

We had such a fun week with these three and we’re just so excited to have them here for a few days with us! 

At school Rhen is in full graduation prep. They get to wear their class shirts every Monday and Thursday to school in place of their regular uniforms. It’s a fun break for them from the norm! This week they took class pictures together with their shirts on. These cute friends of hers have been such a blessing to her this year! They’re a fun, good group of kids that have loved and welcomed her from day one. I’m so grateful to them for their love for my girl! 



After Jeanie, Alma and aunt Shirley left we had some friends from Herriman fly in for a few days and spend with us! The Slimaks live right across the street from us in Utah and our kids were so excited to see their old friends again! We spent lots of time in the pool in between them going out for different excursions during the day. It’s always so fun to see people we haven’t seen for a long time. 

We’ve also been watching lots of basketball lately as it’s playoff season for the NBA. We may or may not stay up super late to watch the warriors play… 

In between visitors we’ve been trying to get some projects done around the house as well. This weekend we got a load of topsoil and sod and worked together to get that all laid out in the lower level of the yard. It went fast with all eight of us working together and it’s going to be so nice to have a grassy area to play! We got rained on just a bit and took some breaks, but then just embraced the wet and took it all in! 

For Mother’s Day today I was spoiled by Josh and the kids. I got lots of cards, notes, foot rubs and most of all lots of love from each of them! I couldn’t be more happy to be a mother. My kids are the best parts of me and I’m so grateful to be able to have them in my life. Love them with my whole heart!