I love seeing all that fresh lumber going up! This has got to be one of the most exciting phases of the build because finally you can see your home as well as the views framed by each door and window. Looks like you are off to a great start!

Wow, this thread has really grown with some fantastic goodies since I was last here! Prill, Allison, Pinch and Firsthouse, you can start packing up your Flow Blue, wooden boxes and tablecloths, and Jessica Martin painting because UPS will be arriving shortly to pick them up for me. Thanks! Speaking of thanks, here's a big one to all of you who had some kind words for my coffee lady! Like most other choices in my kitchen, this one was a matter of love at first sight and so your "I like her too!" affirmations are making me feel like Sally Fields. lol. That said, I'm hoping this thread continues with others of you posting more of your own loves as well.

The cap is a bowl, the base is a plastic cup. I filled them both with concrete, stuck a piece of rebar in the cup (to make a stake) and let them cure. The base is painted then sealed with a spray sealer. When I'd finished both, I used Gorilla Glue to glue the two pieces together. I had fun last night looking for more bowl/cup combinations that would make cute mushrooms, and the small size makes them good for experimenting with concrete. I'm thinking about trying some different techniques, like maybe a colorful aggregate or reverse mosaic on the cap. I'm also intending to play with some concrete formulas that include perlite to lighten them up a little. I would love to send some as gifts to relatives, but the weight makes shipping expensive. Why do I get the feeling somewhere down the line people are going to start calling me the mushroom lady? LOL

Glad your whale watch actually found some whales! Our winter breaks on Maui coincide with Whale Season in Hawaii -- best viewed from Maui and Big Island of Hawaii. Whales migrate from Alaska to warmer waters to calve -- and to mate. There are astounding breaches by bulls competing to impress the cows. Using binoculars, I can see a lot of 'showboating' from our condo's lanai. Last Christmas we took our son and his family on a morning whale watch out of Maalaea harbor. We were fortunate to have a calm day, with a sea like glass. The bay is a favorite 'nursery' for whales, and we were only out five minutes before seeing a cow, her newborn calf, and an accompanying 'auntie'. (Auntie cows aid with the babies and help keep too-eager bulls at bay.) Later, we were still in the water watching a pod of dolphins when a young bull came alongside the boat and then went under us to the other side. We could almost scratch his back! I don't expect to experience that again. (By law, boats must keep a good distance from whales, but a pilot can only cut engines and wait when a whale decides to approach.)