Hawaii - Day 5

Wednesday May 26, 2010

Today was the big day. We had purchased tickets to go on a snorkeling adventure with turtles, dolphins and other fish. I was so giddy with excitement.
We woke up at 5:30am to get ourselves together and be down at the marina for 6:15. The walk was only 5 minutes from the resort. We had a light breakfast and then had a briefing from the captain. We were then soon on our way.

On our way out to our first stop we saw a small pod of spinner dolphins. It was unreal seeing these wild dolphins in this crystal clear water.

Our first stop we swam with these HUGE sea turtles. No kidding they were huge and came so close. We were given some fish food and whenever I put some into the water I would be engulfed by fish. It was amazing.

Our second stop was near Electric Beach where we had been the day before. There was a place of some serious tropical fish and even a shark.

Our last stop was an attempt to swim with the wild spinner dolphins. The pod was a lot smaller than normal and very young. They easily got scared and swam away quickly but I did get into the water quick enough to see them dive and swim away. The rest of the trip we watched them from the boat. They were very playful and put on a show for us.

Back to the marina we then had lunch. After that we all took a nice long needed nap.

Then off to Waikiki for the evening. Stuck in traffic for a long time we missed the sunset :( But we had a romantic dinner at Dukes right on Waikiki beach. Romantic + Beautiful is a perfect way to spend our last night.

Hawaii - Day 4

Tuesday May 25, 2010

This morning we headed straight out to the bay where we relaxed and I had my very first experience swimming in the ocean. Yep, very first! I had seen the ocean several times but never actually swam in it. I then went straight into my first snorkeling experience. AWESOME! I loved it and couldn't believe how many fish (including seriously large ones) were swimming right under me. So cool!

We had so much fun there we quickly got a bite to eat and then drove a short distance to Electric Beach. There I learned a bit about the large crashing waves and strong current. The bay at our resort is protected so there aren't larges waves coming in. Here there was no protection. I got a little carried away snorkeling I wasn't paying attention to how far out I had gone. I really wasn't far from the shore but I started freaking out when I tried swimming for the shore and couldn't. I was kicking as hard as I could and was only being pulled backwards. I soon remembered to swim diagonally towards the shore and soon enough I was back. Whew! :)

All dressed up we then headed up to the PCC again for our Luau first stopping off at the Laie Temple. This time we drove our awesome KIA. HA. Unfortunately the temple has been closed but we still got to admire it's outward beauty and we even met Elder Mark Eubank there. He was awesome and gave us a little tour and taught us some cool things about the temple, BYU Hawaii and the PCC.

Our Luau at the PCC was perfect. Food was delicious and the entertainment exciting. We even got these enormous delicious smoothies that came in hollowed out pineapples. So cool!
Afterwards we went to see the show 'HA'. Call me emotional but it moved me. I loved it!

Hawaii - Day 3

Monday May 24, 2010

Today we headed up to the North Shore in the convertible :)
It took a lot longer to get up there than we thought it would but enjoyed the beautiful drive.

We ate lunch at the Grass Skirt Grill (as seen on Rachel Ray's show). The food was delicious!

There were some stands nearby with loads of souvenirs so we picked up a few things to take home. The guy was very friendly and asked us all sorts of questions and then asked if we were Mormons. He cracked a few jokes and then gave me some free jewelry.

We got to the PCC (Polynesian Cultural Center) just in time to see the island boat parade. We wandered around, watched the guys learn some dances :) and it down poured on us just before we got a picture with the Fiji tribe. So fun!

On our way back we stopped by the famous Matsumotos to get some shaved ice. They were indescribably delicious. Unlike any snow-cone I've ever had!

We stopped off at sunset beach where we wrote in the sand and took some pictures and then made our way back to the resort. The guys snorkeled in the bay while me and Tawny admired the sunset. The sun sets around 7 pm so once it was down we got ourselves cleaned up and ate dinner at Chucks. A 'posh' restaurant on the resort overlooking the ocean. I decided to be daring and tried king crab legs, mahi-mahi, and scallops for the first time. We had a great time dining and laughing with our good friends.

Hawaii - Day 2

Sunday May 23, 2010


Sunday in Hawaii = BEAUTIFUL!


We ended up getting a little lost trying to find the local chapel but did manage to make it. The speakers where amazing and it was so nice to be able to relax, listen and feel the spirit without wrestling with children. It did make me a little sad that they weren't there though. I felt like apart of me was missing.
The locals sang a gorgeous Hawaiian farewell song at the end of the meeting for a family that was moving out.


From there we drove to the Byodo-In Temple ,a non-denominational Buddhist Temple. Spectacular Japanese temple built over 950 years ago without any nails or screws. The same temple used in one of the LOST episodes. Inside of the temple is a 9 foot wooden Buddha covered in gold lacquer. Just outside of the temple is a brass peace bell weighting 3 ton that we all took turns ringing.

We then drove to the Pali Lookout. The mountain drive up was incredible and once we reached the top it was unreal. It looked out over the east side of the island Oahu and the cliffs are around 1000 ft high. The winds up there were unbelievable creating this wind tunnel effect that would basically keep you floating. We had some fun lying back into the wind but once we left my hair was a wreck. It was so hard to brush out those horrible knots. We had a great time up there though and it's defiantly not a place i'd take my young kids.

On our way back to the resort we tried to find the Mauna Loa Nut Plantation but failed and also tried to get in to see Pearl Harbor but missed our chance for the day. So we headed back to the resort where we made spaghetti and ate our cheesecake from the night before.

The remainder of the evening we strolled along the beaches and had fun taking lots of pictures.

Hawaii - Day 1

Saturday May 22, 2010

I just love this postcard I made dont you? :) 

Going to Hawaii was an incredible experience. It was such a last minute trip It came and went all too fast. My uncle has a timeshare on the island of Oahu and wasn't going to use his week in May so we got the opportunity to. We also had two free flights so we were not going to pass it up!

We booked our flights, planned out trip and left the night of Friday May 21st 2010.

As soon as Aaron got of work we packed the kids and their stuff up and headed to Aaron's parents house. They were graciously going to have our kids for a week. We picked up a Papa Murphy's pizza for dinner, ate and got the kids tucked into bed before we left. I had bought some nice crib bedding to fill the crib to help make it nice and cozy. As I tucked Rachael into bed and gave kisses I couldn't help but shed a few tears. Laugh all you want but when these gorgeous children are apart of your every waking moment you feel like you are leaving an important piece behind. I was truly going to miss them. I was ok and excited anyway.

We made our way to the airport and caught our flight to Vegas at 9:40 p.m. The flight was horrible as there was so much turbulence and we were on the back row so we had the loud engine noise and our seats didn't recline but we were on our way to Hawaii! Once in Vegas we had just over 4 hours before catching our next flight to Honolulu at 2:45 a.m. Can't say hanging out in the Vegas airport for 4 hours in the middle of the night is much exciting but we share A LOT of laughs with our good friends Carl and Tawny. I think we were so tired we didn't know what we were laughing at most the time. I think they were laughing more at me than at anything else because of my experience going through security (all to do with a simple innocent question) and then Pizza Hut.

We boarded our flights and slept the whole way. That was so nice. All the previous flights I remember I was constantly battling with a toddler on the long flights to Europe. 

We landed in Honolulu around 5:30 a.m. and began our day there by picking up our rental cars. Carl and Tawny rented this gorgeous Mustang Convertible and we got a cheap Kia. Haha. We were happy with our kia :)

Only a 20-30 minute drive and we were at our resort. The Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Resort. It was INCREDIBLE and beyond what I could have ever imagined. We wandered around in awe probably with our mouths wide open.

As it was only 8 in the morning we explored the resort and the beach. There was a Costco and Target very close by so we went to Costco to pick up a few things and ate lunch there. 

We spent most the day relaxing on the beach.

That evening we got ourselves ready for a night in Waikiki. Today was Carl's birthday so we were going into town for dinner. We ended up eating at The Cheesecake Factory. Mmmm!

From there we shopped at this fun little outdoor shopping center with loads of little booths. I got myself a gorgeous pearl, some jewelery and a beautiful dress.

Journals

From personal experience I now have an even stronger knowledge of how important journals are.
I do really well remembering events by seeing pictures that I had taken so recording memories through pictures is a huge deal for me.

Recently I accidentally lost all the pictures from Rachael first walking, Joshua first riding his bike without training wheels, pop's birthday party, and all the pictures from our anniversary trip to Park City. I was devastated and wanted to cry uncontrollably. I couldn't believe it and was so mad at myself.
Luckily I ran into my room and got my journal. I found those dates and quickly began to read, I was soon settled and comfortable for I had recorded a great amount of detail from those days. I am so glad I did!
There are often times while writing my journal (sometimes often late at night) that I wonder if I am even making sense or if it's even worth mentioning. This experience has confirmed everything to be worth while.

As I read what I wrote about those days I can mentally see those pictures exactly as I took them on those days. It's just a shame I can't share it with anyone. But i'm even more grateful for journals and have more appreciation and dedication for writing in mine.

April and May

On April 7th Pops took the training wheels off Joshua's bike and began helping him to ride on his own. By April 10th (three days later) Josh was riding all on his own cruising around everywhere. I can't believe it!
By now he is a pro, starting and stopping all on his own and riding around the neighborhood. He calls his training wheels, baby wheels and says he no longer needs them because he is not a baby.

April 27th We celebrated our 6th year anniversary!
A couple weekends before our actual anniversary we went up to Park City for a couple nights. I accidentally lost all the pictures I took and I am devastated by that but luckily I kept my journal up to date and recorded those days. We had a great time at the Salt Lake Temple where we did sealings with one of Aaron's mission presidents brothers. That was cool! We did some major shopping at the Tanger outlets, rode the Alpine Coaster, ate at a yummy Mexican restaurant Baja Cantina, watched Date Night at the local cinema and made our own chocolate strawberry Heath shakes. Yum! We had a great time.

The day of our anniversary Aaron surprised me with some gorgeous flowers and we got a new car (Honda Pilot). I have to say, I LOVE IT!

Aaron's family found a lovely home and so on the 1st of May they moved out of our home and into theirs. They seemed very excited to be getting their own stuff again and to start settling into a place of their own. The past 6 nearly 7 months they've lived with us have been wonderful and hard at times but we are so glad they have made the move over and have gotten their permanent residency. You can see more about how they are doing HERE.

Rachael took her first 3 steps on May 2nd and was walking sturdily on her own by June 11th.

May 7th was Pop's birthday. Mum had a birthday party for him a few nights before and we got to celebrate along with Jess, Ben and Jack who were in town for the night. Josh got to spend the night with Jack at Mama and Pop's house. He loved that!

They day of Pop's birthday I got up early with the kids and we went down to make him a large breakfast. I then took the kids to a park where we played around for awhile. 

May 9th - Mother's Day.

A beautiful day that was. Rachael actually fell asleep in my arms at church, that NEVER happens!   I was given some perfume, cute decoration from Josh, chocolate and some gorgeous daisies from my mom.  

We were very fortunate that day to get to see both of our Moms. I am so grateful for the mothers in my life!

The rest of the month we enjoyed our first summer swim,  Joshua's Preschool Graduation, Hawaii (separate posts on that coming soon), A Day out with Thomas, and Steph's Birthday.

Ankle - Easter - Family

Strange combination I know!
On March 30th after a long tiring day Aaron returned home from playing soccer earlier than normal. As he came crawling into the house pale white and sweating buckets I knew something was wrong. 

He had hurt his ankle quite badly. While he worked through the pain of me taking off his shoes, shin guards and socks I tried to analyze the situation and decide what needed to be done. As it was quite late a night I got some crutches from a neighbor so he could at least try to go sit in the bath. Nope, way too painful he nearly blacked out. Yikes.
Thanks to a rescue of some great friends Carl took Aaron to the ER while I stayed home with the sleeping kids (Mum, Dad & Beth were in Denver visiting Jess, Ben & Jack). They got home around 2 a.m. No broken bones but lots of damage done. Lots of healing ahead of us.

Aaron's wonderful co-workers stopped by with loads of wonderful gifts. He is such a spoiled man getting flowers, balloons, candy, authored signed book, popcorn, brownies, movies etc.

After nearly 12 weeks, a few visits with an orthopedic surgeon, X-rays and MRI's, walking boot, ice packs and ankle braces he is moving around just fine and playing soccer again but his ankle still doesn't look right. It is still a bit swollen and really tight. I think he may need to have it looked at again. 


On to a better note: EASTER


We decided awhile back that we wanted to give our kids their Easter baskets and egg hunts on the Saturday before so that we could focus on the true meaning that Sunday.
So Saturday morning we did just that and enjoyed relaxing while listening to General Conference.

(those Ferrero Rocher's were not for Rachael by the way) :)

Sunday we had a delicious Easter meal up at my parents house. Conference was fabulous and Josh enjoyed pointing out the first presidency and listened to at least their talks. I noticed a likeness in a lot of the talks focusing on the family. Loved it!

My mom had put together little easter baskets for the kids and had them go around the house in search for candy and money filled eggs. They then colored a few easter eggs with Steph and then we all enjoyed a few of the chocolate covered strawberries I made. Yum!

Family:
The McReynold's were in town so we got to spend some time with them. I had a great time taking their family photos the Monday after easter and enjoyed bowling and a few games of lazer tag. That was great fun and so nice to see them again.

Rachael's 1st Birthday

Back on March 17th - St. Patrick's Day - we celebrated Rachael's first birthday.

We start birthdays out by opening presents in our bed. 

Rachael was a little unsure as to what was going on. 

She got this cute green dress perfect for a birthday shared with St. Patrick's Day

We had 18 close family and friends come over to celebrate with us that evening. 

With yummy Papa Murphy's Pizza for dinner we then had some of the delicious devil's food cake I had made. It took me quite some time to make and I was nervous how it would turn out as it was a new recipe I had recently found (yes I was daring) but it was fantastic if I do say so myself.! Before the day was over we ended with a lovely stroll around the neighborhood.

A couple days before my wonderful neighbor Katie let me borrow her studio to take some pictures of Rachael. 

It was an interesting experience but I managed to get some gorgeous shots!

I can't believe how quickly time flies...

Another Picnic day!

I think we are all so excited for this summer that we just couldn't wait to get out and had so many things planned this week.

Again the kids were begging me for another picnic at a park. I was planning on a day inside cleaning but who wants to do that right? :) So we packed a lunch and swimsuits picked my sister up and went to this nice man-made lake near my in-laws. We had a blast eating lunch on the beach and then the kids played in the sand and water.

We were there a couple hours before the winds and clouds came in. We packed up and headed home. Not long after arriving home we went to Aaron's soccer game and watched him score a nice goal! Way to go honey!

Another great day! Tomorrow the WORLD CUP starts! 

The Zoo

Yesterday my mom took me and the kids up to the zoo for the day. We got up there soon after it opened which was perfect. It was just overcast enough to keep it a manageable temperature. The animals were out interacting and Rachael was going crazy for the monkeys. She loved it!

Around lunch time the clouds were gone and the sun was out and hot! It went from a nice cool wet morning to blistering humid heat. We got a couple quick snacks. Drank some nice ice cold water and headed off to finish our adventure.

Seeing all the animals was a lot of fun but Josh was more concerned about riding the train. So our last stop we took the train ride. Once we sat down I snapped a few pictures because the kids were hilarious. They both looked extremely tired yet excited to be on the train. Rachael was a little more fearful and unsure what was happening.

I have to say that my favorite part were the birds at the bird show. INCREDIBLE!

We left the zoo around 2ish, cooled off in a nice air conditioned car, picked up some lunch and frosties from Wendy's and ate at a park. We ate at this park that sits on the fault line. Kinda cool and creepy at the same time. Rachael fell asleep on the blanket and I was wanting to join her so badly. I don't know what it is but a day at the zoo zaps me. I never have an ounce of energy left the rest of the day.

We had a great time! Thanks mom for taking us!