Back to my Tropical Garden

I've been back from San Jose for a couple of weeks, and I'm finally settled back into home life.

While I was gone, my tomatoes and baby pineapples continued to bloom and grow, bloom and grow. ('respect' to those who got that reference)

Here's the newest member of our pineapple crop. Notice that it's still got the purple blossoms attached.

And her big brother:

Other tropicals that I planted last year... these are all crotons, from left to right: Rooster Tail, Duck Foot, and Thai String.

Aloha, y'all!

Aloha, San Jose, Aloha !!

While I was in San Jose, I was able to see many friends and visit many favorite restaurants. It was a busy busy week and, as much as I loved seeing everyone, I'm happy to be home again.

I stayed with Barbara and Steve and Megan (and the furkids, Hannah and McKenna). McKenna (a wire-haired terrier who is stone deaf) slept with me every night and was a great bed buddy! She took up much less space on the bed than Sophie!!!

The four of us went to the Sharks Tank and watched the Sharks play the Kings for their last regular-season game of the year. The Sharks won. And now, as I'm sure you know, the Sharks are destroying the Kings in the playoffs.

If you are one of my many friends whom I wasn't able to see on this trip, I'm sorry. Next time?

It's March ALREADY????

February was truly a short month, and I managed to go the whole month without updating you on the adventures of Dana and Sophie!

Thank you everyone who sent birthday cards and presents! Sophie and I quickly reached our bliss point with all the chocolate and other yummy goodies! For Valentine's Day, we celebrated with all things red... Sophie's California Cousins, Hannah and McKenna, sent her this new favorite toy:



On the household front, the bad news is that the old washing machine I inherited finally died. The good news is that my plans to remodel my laundry room / pantry are now at the top of my To Do list! A propane plumber comes this week to hook up both the laundry and kitchen for gas, and then I'll put in new commercial shelving and the new washer and gas dryer. Yay! The kitchen remodel might have to wait until next year, but I'll be one step closer to cooking with gas!

 

It looks as if I'll be in San Jose the first week of April. I just paid for my ticket, so this time there's no taking it back. I have to work at Thermo all week, but I'll find time to see a few friends and catch a Sharks game.

Aloha y'all!

Baby Gecko

Look who was peeking out at me from one of my giant hibiscus this morning...

Megan and Shannon do Hawaii

Megan and Shannon

Meeting Sophie

Waiting for midnight on NYE

Swimming with dolphins

Paddleboarding

Up close with manta rays

(Megan took these underwater photos with her new GoPro camera.)



Ah... this is living...

Happy New Year!

Barbara, Steve, Megan, and Megan's friend Shannon came to celebrate the New Year. Sophie LOVED the two teenaged girls!
We stayed home on New Year's Eve and celebrated with Donna and Steve from across the street. As expected, the neighborhood put on a fireworks show for us. Most of us managed to stay up until midnight (we had to wake the girls for the toast).

Barbara, Megan, and Steve...


Sophie the Photobomber...


Megan with the Ali'i Drive Macaw...


If you've ever wondered what the habitat of two 16-year old girls looks like...


It's a very scary place. I recommend entering only when absolutely necessary.

Tonight, Megan and Steve go night snorkeling with the manta rays! Barbara and I plan to watch from the hotel bar.

Aloha y'all!

Jen and Donna and Manta Rays, oh MY!

Jen and Donna came for a week in mid December.



They snorkeled every day...



Donna was very serious about her snorkeling and convinced us to go snorkeling at night with manta rays. Jen and I were both a little resistant, but it was SO MUCH FUN!

We donned wet suits and rode on a catamaran with 25 other adventurers out to a spot near the Sheraton where the underwater lights attract krill which in turn attract the rays. There were more rays than we could count and they were HUGE. Our boat crew said rays can get to 16 feet across. Some of the ones we saw SEEMED that large but probably weren't. Donna took these pictures:







Aloha y'all!