"It may be that when we no longer know what to do, we have come to our real work and when we no longer know which way to go, we have begun our real journey.  The mind that is not baffled is not employed.  The impeded stream is the one that sings."

-Wendell Berry

Dear Friends and Family, 

As always, so much has transpired in the last 5 months, that I can barely believe it myself.  First of all, my new business, Koru Integration - working therapeutically with children, absolutely took off in March and I was booked solid until the end of July.  Local therapists, doctors and teachers recommended my work and I was able to build up my practice very quickly.  I am blessed and LOVED it.  The boys finished at the Waldorf School early June and it was hard not being on the same schedule as they were.  Parents were often interested in me doing intensives with their child during after school hours and during school holidays.  This spring, I applied for two jobs and got offered both positions.  I decided to take the position of Student Support Specialist for grades 1-5 at the Green school in Bali.  Please click on the highlighted Green School to see an informative video.  The school was originally based on Waldorf/Steiner philosophy and has since broadened its curriculum, and has become a world renowned international school for teaching sustainability.  I am very excited to be a part of this school community and to have the boys be at the school with me.  There are over 450 children in the school, grades pre-K through 12th from 75 different countries.  What a rich and cultural experience it will be for us!!!

To get here, the boys and I took two weeks, traveling through New Zealand and Australia.  My sister Jenny lives in Auckland and we spent a week with her, her partner and my new, sweet baby nephew Miro.  It was a huge seasonal shift from the warm summer days of Maui to mid-winter New Zealand, but it made for snuggly sleeping and LOTS of layers and hot tea/coco.  We then flew to Australia for a week and spent time with our friends Nick and Jen Brown and their two girls Zoe and Evie.  They are close in age to the boys and everyone had a blast playing.  The boys and I could not believe all the fun and interesting wildlife we saw - Kangaroos, wombats, koalas, kookaburras, king parrots and cockatoos.  I couldn't believe it all and my excitement made the boys laugh. They have no idea how good they have it.  I've been taking them to such amazing places all their little lives, that they just think it's all normal.  How crazy is that?

Stopping in the lands down under definitely made our transition into Bali much easier.  Luckily we did not experience jet lag.  We were travel tired (don't get me wrong), but only 2 hours difference from Australia, so we easily adjusted.  

We have now been here 3 days.  We are exploring our surroundings.  Learning where and how to shop for food, trying new fruits and foods, and learning something new every single day.  I love it!!!  I love that I am 44 and still learning something completely new every day.  Today we tried a fruit called Salak or snakeskin fruit. It has the texture and crunch of an apple and the taste of maybe a pear and pineapple.  A bit sour.  Very interesting.  Today we saw Luwak or Civets and learned that their poop is used to make a very desired coffee drink.  We DID NOT try it.  But we did pet and feed the Luwaks. 

Every day is filled with new experiences. I start work the 29th of July for orientation days and the boys start school August 7th.  Our next post will show you our new home and our new school.  We are excited to share our journey with you.  

It was very hard leaving my paddle community and dear friends in Maui, but I expect many will visit.  

The boys are excited to start school and to meet new friends.  We welcome a visit from you all and as always, our home is open to you. 
****Please remember to click on the red highlighted words to learn more.

Wishing you all a wonderful summer or winter, depending on where you are.  

Lots of Love, 

Hannah, Kai and Isaac  

New Horizons

Beautiful Maui Sunset

I made a quick trip to CO in March to see these dear ladies.  

The boys and I took a road trip to Hana.  Below are pics from Venus Pools and Red Sands Beach. 

Sweet Isaac joined Little League Baseball this year.  He was not allowed to play without wearing a cup.  His first game  happened before his cup arrived from Amazon, so inventive Kai made a cup for Isaac.  

The Marlins

Isaac played St. Frances in his 2nd grade class play.  

Visit from one of my most favorite people.  Ms. Katy VanAwesome!!!

Ancient Hawaiian birthing stone. 

Sacred Iao Valley

Rainbow Warrior

Easter Fun at the Ranch in Fallbrook, CA

Making a new fountain and pool for Turbo the tortoise. 

Sweet lovings for Pasha

Kai and Isaac had free range of the ranch for a week. They had a blast!!!

Easter time is the time for eggs, the time for eggs is Easter time. 

My dear friend Kimberli came to see me while we were in Fallbrook. 

Michael Franti

I had the great privilege of helping this little guy come into the world.  1 year later!!  Look at him. 

2nd Grade is ready for Lei Day

Kai and his friend Jai ready for Lei Day

Our favorite Jackson Chameleons. 

For Mother's Day the boys and I went to one of our most favorite Maui spots.  Olivine Pools. 

This is a painting and a gift from a dear paddling friend of mine.  

This year's paddling season has been amazing.  What an amazing group of humans and sport I am privileged to be a part of.  

Kai's 5th grade Pentathlon.  Kai was recognized for his style in beauty and grace for the discus throw and long jump.   

A Happy 12th Birthday to this sweet boy!!

He wanted to play paintball and....

go to the Grand Wailea and...

go on a campout.  

Our favorite dog.  Badger turned 13 in June.  

Isaac sporting his jeweled crown on the last day of school.  A jewel for each times table he memorized.  

June's full moonset before paddling practice.  

One of my most favorite things to do on Maui is to go up to the crater (10,000 ft.) and watch the sunset and full moon rise. 

These ladies are true angels.  They helped me get the house packed and cleaned and met us at the airport to give us a grand send off.  

A year's worth of luggage.  We each have a personal carry on and suitcase.  The 2 large bags are my teaching supplies and items not easily found in Bali. 

Saying goodbye to Maui and Mt. Haleakala.  Until we see you again.  Thank you for the amazing 4 years!

Off to see Aunt Jenny and new baby nephew Miro

Fun at the Auckland Aquarium.  

Beautiful beaches of NZ.  

The boys absolutely love their new baby cousin.  

We encountered a derailed tram on our visit to the museum of transportation and technology.  

And we are off to Austrailia

Goodbye NZ

Hello Australia

We were lucky to stay with our friends Jen, Nick, Zoe and Evie Brown in Canberra Australia.  Thank you Jen and Nick for such a wonderful and magical week.  

Rainbows follow us everywhere

Our first sightings of kangaroos.  So exciting. 

Cockatoos are like crows in Australia.  They are literally everywhere 

This is my personal favorite of the road signs.  Crosswalk.  Looks like Michael Jackson legs.  

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Wombat poop.  Comes out square.  The only animal with square poop.  Go figure that one out. 

EMU

Look at the baby in the pouch!!!

Austrailian War Memorial in Canberra.  Poppies are placed by the names of fallen soldiers.  

So long Australia.  The boys LOVED Australia and are already asking when we can go back.  Isaac is hugging his wombat and Kai his Koala.  We were a bit happy to be leaving the cold behind though.  We never removed our wool long johns for 2 weeks straight.  

We finally made it to our new home in Bali. 

The boys woke up our first day and were busy at play in their new room.  

Our home's personal Ganesh statue.  Remover of Obstacles.  He's a good one to have around.  

Our first breakfast.  

Our sweet little neighborhood is Nyuh Kuning!!! This is the town center and it has a field where children are playing constantly - soccer and flying kites mostly.  Today we looked up and saw at least 20 kites flying through out the town.  

All these next photos are taken on our walk through our neighborhood.  Every house has a temple and it appears as though every temple has Ganesh - remover of obstacles.  

Every statue and household gate has these offerings in front of them, with incense burning.  

Our house is a 5 min walk to this monkey wonderland.  We had such a good time walking through the forest and  watching the monkeys.  It was a  welcomed day full of laughter.  

These strange creatures are called Luwats or Civets and their poop is used to make a very desired coffee.  NO THANK YOU!!!

Our very own pool.  The boys are in heaven.  This is the view from my bedroom.