Sitting on the porch in the shade watching butterflies flutter, birds swoop between trees, the breeze is cool, the waves are crashing loudly just out of sight, and I appreciate how much the nearly waist high almond tree has grown in the four months since we planted it. Back in July we put it in the ground, careful to place it where it would not block the view of the house we had just begun constructing. Over the course of ten days, the house grew from a poured concrete foundation to block walls nearly head high. It was painful to leave the country with the project just beginning, but also exciting knowing the next time we visited the house would be completed.

Now, it’s done and we are back here to appreciate it. We stayed at the hotel a short walk away the first two nights before driving to town to buy a bed and a 4” thick foam mattress. The two items together not even exceeding $100 US. The casita is simple. Eventually when we build the bigger house it will become the caretaker’s lodging, but for now it has everything we need to stay in and a secure storage area to leave our surfboards and other things we won’t have to bring down next time. At 400 sq ft., it has a bed, kitchen, and bathroom, but we still haven’t hooked up power. We get water from the well and carry it in buckets to the shower. After sunset it’s all about candles, and the morning coffee is made with water heated on a wood stove. I love it!

We have two more weeks to buy some more plants and get everything organized, then it will be back home again for more months spent wishing I was right here on the porch enjoying the breeze.