Another month has zoomed by. I am still working long hours so I am behind on all of my chores that don't absolutely have to be done. So I am skipping yoga tonight and getting out two months of newsletters.

     This was the month of the messed up bookings. When Todd was sick and I "helped," we ended up over booking some of the time in April. It all turned out ok, but the Irish family that was going to stay at Ahhh Paradise ended up cancelling their trip. The wife broke her ankle and couldn't travel. They sounded like really nice people, it would have been fun to meet them. Pam and Aaron stayed with us in the garden apartment. They had a great time, but Pam fell when they were hiking and tore off her finger nail. She was fine after she received treatment and they were still able to enjoy the rest of their time. We had another really cool family stay with us. Pat and Minori and their two sons were on the go. The older little boy had lost his tiny plastic dinosaur in the grass next to the apartment and they asked if we found it to email them. He was quite attached to it. Todd said that he thought he saw it the other day. He walks a few feet from where we are standing and picks up this little green and red toy. Todd was the kid's hero. He is mine two, but he still hasn't been able to find the laundry basket for his dirty socks. Maybe I should put the laundry basket outside in the grass...

     Since we had issues with our bookings this month, John and Jess couldn't stay with us. They ended up staying with friends of ours. Thank you Bob and Beryl! Jess looks fantastic. She doesn't look like she gained any weight except her belly. They only had a few days with us before they went over to the Hilo side for a day and then back to the east coast. They did get to go hiking at the volcano and to the beach. If you can believe it, they are both more fair skinned than I am. Neither of them suffered any bad sunburns and were able to enjoy their whole time. Jess and I went shopping one afternoon and when we got home all four of the boys were in the living room watching TV with their eyes shut. John was on one couch, Todd on the other and the dogs were on the floor. I guess it shows what men do with their free time and what women do. Sleep or shop.

     It was Todd's birthday this month and I bought my honey some gifts. He has been asking for a juicer and I have said no. It is just another large kitchen machine to clean and find a place to store. I broked down and bought the JuiceMan. I also got him Hawaiian print seat covers for his truck and a set of wind-up flashlights. One night my car battery died at the beach and BJ gave us a spare battery. (He has one of everything.) He had this really cool wind-up flashlight so I had to get one. We use flashlights all the time. Todd is always running outside at night to see what the dogs are barking at or to just walk around. We also had Senor Billy's for his birthday dinner. We had guests arrive that day and I had a bad headache so we just did take out. My poor baby had to go get his own birthday dinner.

     While Todd's parents were here, Sharon sprayed the coffee trees with neem oil. It has made such a difference. The trees look more healthy and are more green. Todd is going to get more. Todd has started to paint the apartment building's roof. It was rusty so he first had to sand it, wash it and put on a rust treatment. Next we bought the primer that is a bargain price of $114 per 5 gallon bucket. We needed 4 buckets. Todd has been cooking himself up on the metal roof, but he is doing a fantastic job. The roof with just the primer on it looks 100 times better. The paint is over $100 a bucket, but it is still cheaper than a new roof or a leak during a heavy rain. Back in March Todd started to put in a little pond next to the lava rock steps. Louie likes to drink out of it and walk around it balancing on the rocks. Buddy (the anti-water dog) doesn't even walk near the little pond. We have no fish yet and no waterfall except for the small fountain that comes with the kit, but it is still pleasant to hear the water.

     Happy Wedding anniversary Jodee and Jim! Happy Birthday to my fantastic husband, Todd! Happy Birthday to John and Jess. Louie is nearly twenty pounds and Buddy is nearly eighty pounds. My boys are growing up. We went camping the last weekend of this month. It was lots of fun except for Buddy and Louie both crying outside of the tent to be let in. They would lean on the tent and whimper until I would let them in. They would then run around inside before settling down. Then they would want out. The last time I let Buddy in, he had stepped in dog poop and was kind enough to bring that in with him. GRRR... Bad dog. Needless to say, I didn't sleep a wink. Also being right next to the ocean and hearing the waves, I kept having to go to the bathroom. The dogs did have a great time. They swapped fleas with the other dogs and swam in the ocean. Yes Buddy swam. He only swims when we go camping. Grace and Charlie came camping for one night. They enjoyed it and will hopefully come for July 4th.