It is Finished!!

Well, the pool plastering was delayed from Thursday, to Friday, to Sunday. Knowing that we were on a deadline to be able to heat and use the spa on Valentine's Day...this was sad news, but not the end of the world...let's keep it all in perspective.

The disappointment was more that the plastering appointment was not conflicting with a scheduled weekend in Solvang for my dad's 60th birthday celebration. Which, by the way, was a BLAST!! Below are some pics of the weekend.

Below, we rented a bicycle built for 6 adults and 5 kids. We had 6 adults and 4 kids. So fun! Many laughs as we veered off the map and into a residential neighborhood, up and down hills, with no gears to change.

Below, is a pic taken Sunday morning. The temp in the valley was 40 degrees at 6:45AM. (Jeff left the hotel at 4:30AM to meet the plastering crew).

The kids and I (along with Bub, Toby, and their kiddos) saw my folks off on their hot air balloon ride (which was a gift for my dad from all of us). While waiting for the balloon to land the kids and I had breakfast with my brother and his family.

On our way to the car to meet my folks, Emily tripped over Nathan and she went face first into the parking lot pavement. OUCH! As of today (4 days later), she has 2 black eyes coming in. Below is a photo 15 minutes post contact.

Unfortunately, this was the center of attention the rest of the day...instead of hearing all about the balloon ride and enjoying the fresh new look of the plastered pool (later that day). Ugh.

Below you can see the dark under her eyes just starting.

RE: Pool on Sunday. The kids and I arrived home at 1PM, with the crew just getting into their cars...the pool was beginning to fill. Jeff calculated 5 sec/1 gallon with 35,000+ gal to fill....it would take a while. To both our surprises, it filled in 23 hrs. Faster than expected.

Below the pic shows only a few more hours to go! The baja shelf is not yet covered. It will have about 6" deep of water when the pool is full.

The BBQ is finished. we have yet to pass FINAL inspection, so the sink (the void on the left of the counter) is not installed. Outside sinks are not allowed in our city (ask Jeff, if you don't understand, something to do with tying it into the storm drain).

Wednesday, we had our gate installed. The kids are now able, after 9 weeks (of pretty great weather and playing in the garage), to finally play in the backyard again!! Yeah! I do not have photos of the pool fence (which does not look as bad as I thought it would). I will post those later.

All in all, I am THRILLED with the whole look of the pool. I am really looking forward to getting some trees planted, and the pool house started. We will have dirt grass until the spring....oh well. We can't wait to celebrate and share a great summer with you all (not all at once) hahaha.

Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers on our behalf these past months.