The New Year for Lisa and George

Hello friends! I apologize for keeping so quiet over the past weeks. We had a holiday season made lovely (and busy!) by seven visitors from the mainland. Big mahalos (thank yous) to Rachel, Mike, Rita, Becca, Duane, Alison and Matt for making the long trip to our little corner of the ocean. While I love Hawaii, it is still always hard to be away from the best friends in the world. They soften the homesickness by coming out to see us. I don't think we can fully explain how meaningful it is to have our guests.


Needless to say, I was keeping too happily busy during late December and early January to log on and blog. While I did take some pictures with our guests that can be found here, a much more complete picture of our holidays can be found by looking at Rita Shah's (photographer extraordinaire) pictures here. She took many lovely, lovely photos.

With our guests, we saw many sites, went hiking, tried surfing, enjoyed a luau, spent quality time at the beach, and last but not least shared laughs and good times at our place and around the island. We were once again awed by the amazing fireworks displays on New Years Eve. I'm not sure I'll ever want to spend December 31st anywhere else.

The fun had to come to an end, however. The Christmas lights and decorations have come down and we are back to our ordinary lives. All of our visitors, have gone back home. Luckily, my second semester at school started out surprising well. As a new teacher dealing with tough students, I still have a perpetual anxiety that permeates most everything. I am proud to say, however, that my passion for teaching has not gone unnoticed. I was nominated by my principal for a new teachers' award called "Teacher of Promise." While I did not win the state award, I was one of 5 state finalists and I earned Oahu's Windward District "Teacher of Promise" award. The encouragement has helped me feel positive about work, despite all its challenges. Do a good deed: tell a teacher - past or present - how they affected your life. The encouragement helps a lot!

For George, it has been a time of transitions at work. He's spending his free time working on remodeling our bathroom. Look for an update on that soon. Its coming along nicely, and he's laying down marble in the shower as I type!

Well, I hope this gives you a little taste of what's been going on in our lives lately. Look for more frequent updates now that the holidays are past. Have a happy New Year and as Garrison Keillor says "Be well, do good work, and keep in touch." Love and Aloha, Lisa (and George)