When you work hard, you play hard. Sometimes people buy fancy cars. Some take lavish vacations around the world. (I dream about being like these people. I want to be these people.) And some buy other fun toys.
Handy Man and I have been loosely talking for years about the luxury of having a swimming pool or hot tub in our own back yard. Pool parties, sun decks, hot tubbing in the winter. Handy Man's vote is typically for a pool while I sway more on the hot tub spectrum. My justification has always been that you have to winterize a pool but a hot tub can be year round enjoyment. Now the kids... well, their vote has always been why choose? get both!
Over the last year or so our day dream conversations have started to take a turn for reality. Handy Man's window shopping started progressing to serious, obsessive online research. And if I know anything about my husband as soon as he starts really "researching" a big purchase, he's about to get out the credit card.
This spring I finally convinced Handy Man that a hot tub was the way to go. We had the perfect location picked out. We narrowed down a few tub options we were interested in looking at in person. As Mother's Day weekend weekend approached, we finally decided that we were going to go to this huge hot tub/spa expo sale and explore diving into tub ownership.
Mother's Day morning I woke up so excited. Momma was getting a hot tub!!!
Thirty minutes later, an obsessive compulsive Handy Man was panicking that our dryer wasn't drying and his wet clothes were preventing him from finishing his laundry on his self-designated laundry day (a novel for another day.) I got a pit in my stomach and I knew what was about to unfold.
Behold my Mother's Day hot tub dryer.
A month or so later we were coming home from Handy Man's annual company picnic and talking about hot tubs. We were already out and about (we sound so old but that's really how we roll) so we decided to swing by one of the spa dealers that carried the model we had our eye on. It was just a check-it-out kind of stop. Just to look. See what's out there kind of a thing. (you know how that goes)
Thirty minutes later we were picking colors, selecting accessories and buying a hot tub!
We ended up getting the tub we had initially wanted, but not without some serious wavering. The tub we liked was HUGE in person! I mean gigantic! Like over a foot wider on all sides than a standard tub. We had flip-flopped back and forth on a couple other smaller, more standard sized tubs, that were still plenty big in their own right. But after comparing the current promotions, latest technology, number of jets, energy efficiency and blah-blah-blah we stuck to our original mammoth, 8 person (more like 12) seat hot tub.
We walked out of the spa dealer (kinda with that dear-in-the-headlights, did-we-really-just-do-this look on our faces), sat in the car out front holding our credit card receipt and Handy Man turned to me and said, "Go big or go home right?"
We died laughing.
OMG what did we just do???
Handy Man and I spent the next two weekends tearing out fencing and grading the proposed spot for the tub.
Mr Blue Eyes was so excited he watched Daddy on the tractor most of the afternoon.
During the dirt work phase we decided we now also needed a hot tub deck... After a week of brainstorming, we agreed where the new tub would sit. We built the frame for the hot tub pad and waited on a load of pea gravel to be delivered for the base.
30 days later from purchase was our delivery date. With anxiety and excitement the kids, Grandma and I watched four men unload this giant tub.
I held my breath as these guys unloaded and moved this humongous thing. The dry weight of the tub is like 1,300 pounds!
Even the electrician jumped in to assist.
Dear Lord, please don't let them break it. And please don't let someone die today....
This crew laid that thing over so quickly and with such precision. You could tell they had done this once or twice before. (thank goodness)
They started peeling back the wrapping and hooking everything up.
Boy oh boy she is pretty!
And enormous.
Fully installed. All hooked up. Time to fill this girl up and take her for a soak!
The tub holds 500 gallons of water! It took quite a while to fill. Then I had to add the chlorine and additives and get all the ph levels correct before we could use it. I must say, this was the most stressful part. I am not a chemist. I have never owned a hot tub before. Once delivered the company was kind of like, "There ya go. Good luck!"
What was supposed to be a new relaxing adventure was becoming very stressful for me. After consulting google for hours, a spontaneous trip to the closest spa dealer (who doesn't even sell this brand) and a mini breakdown in front of a barely 20 year old sales kid about ph levels, test strips, chemicals and filters on a tub they didn't even sell me... the kid had compassion and explained everything to me. He sold me a few items that did not come in my hot tub starter kit and sent me on my way with his business card if I had anymore questions. (That kid has earned my business forever with all of my future hot tub needs. I could have kissed him.)
Chemicals added. The ph level perfect...
We Were Hot Tubbing Baby!!!
The kids were in love! There was a lot of splashing and playing.
Phase Two commenced a few weeks later and Handy Man started framing the new deck addition with the help of his handy man in training apprentice, Mr Blue Eyes. Those boys work fast!
Feeling his age a little with this DIY project, I still think he's a amazing, the best thing in my life since sliced bread and...
... I love to watch him work!
Truth be told, I helped build the deck too. I didn't just drink wine all day and watch him work. Well, not all day anyways...
One advantage to getting the hot tub before we starting to build the deck: soaking your tired body after a hard day's work!
Or in my case, after the kids went to school and I came home from a morning run, I had the whole tub to myself. Coffee in hand. Horses quietly eating their breakfast. Birds chirping in the background. A girl could get used to this!
I am telling you, THIS is the life Miss Kitty!
Trex Day! Our Trex order was finally delivered (after we had ordered enough samples to start our own sales team and finally decided on colors that didn't involve me having to re-paint the entire house to color-coordinate with the deck) just in time for Handy Man to finish the deck before leaving for Alaska again.
Handy Man Jr was super excited to get to work.
Dear Lord, he looks JUST like his father with his hands on his hips as he supervises construction.
All Hands On Deck!
This deck build really did became a family affair. I hope my kids remember these days.
After years of dreaming, months of planning, weeks of back breaking work...
The rewards were plentiful.
We work hard and play hard.
