HAWAII Part 2

Honestly thinking back on this trip it already seems like a Dream! Its crazy thinking two weeks ago we were in 82 degree weather laying on a sandy beach. So I left off on Sunday. Sunday we were able to meet up with our Bishop and his wife and go to church together at the Hawaii Tabernacle. What an incredibly beautiful place. It was fast and testimony meeting and it's so interesting but nice to see how different cultures do things differently yet the gospel is the same wherever you go and we felt so welcomed there. It was a wonderful Sunday morning. I was a little frustrated at this point in the trip though because our CAMERA BROKE! How does that happen on a trip like this. I was worried the last three days we were there that I wasn't going to be able to get all the pictures we had taken all week off the camera so Toby, being the amazing husband that he was planned the day to go back to all of the main places we had been to "recapture" a lot of the pictures we had taken. It didn't take long because, let's face it, most of the places we went were the beach but he was sweetheart for driving around for me. (obviously you're seeing pictures with this post so they were recovered...yeah!!!) One other not so great thing that happenned while we were there was Toby got a phone call that his good friend Shawn Jones passed away. He really had a hard time with it and struggled with the news. We almost decided to come home early but because of certain circumstances we stayed. On a lighter note Toby pulled his magic like 4 different times on the trip hooking us up with an EXTREMELY UPGRADED room for FREE! ( long story but our first room the first night was so small and Tob just did his thing and next thing you know we're in a suit the next 5 nights for free..crazy), he managed to hook me up with 3 FREE pearls from the "pick a pearl" kiosk so I got my beautiful pearl necklace, and at the airport he got us the gold pass and exit row seats with no one sitting next to us. We had SO MUCH leg room! He is just a likeable person and people really respond to him. I LOVE watching it happen:) As fun and relaxing and rejuvenating and magical as the trip was it is always just as good if not better to get home and find everything well and taken care of. Seeing my kids made my heart want to burst. We just had a big love fest all night and just kept telling each other how much we missed each other. Those two are simply wonderful. I won't lie though...it won't be another 8 years before we go another trip like that!

HAWAII

I don't even know where to start with this post. This trip was so incredibly wonderful. I'm not going to lie, there was a lot of anxiety leaving the kids...saying goodbye to them was really hard for me. I knew they would be taken care of so well, but still cried all the way to the airport. Tob even asked if I still wanted to go, but OF COURSE I did! This was our first trip alone since our honeymoon. We couldn't have had a better time! I'd go through each day and describe what we did...but really we just did a lot of the same thing the whole time...BEACH and FOOD. Everymorning we'd wake up, get breakfast, and walk to the beach. When was the last time I got to lay around in the sun next to water and READ a BOOK???!! It was funny I felt responsible for everyone else's kids. The mother in me was still anxious when I saw some kids get to far into the water. Go figure. But it was so nice to have so much time to just be together. Our dinner's consisted of Cheesecake Factory, PF Changs, Jack-in-the Box, and Hardrock twice. (Sing the song One of these is not Like the Other) I enjoyed Hardrock so much I asked Tob to take me back a second time. While laying on the beach I kept seeing these fun Outrigger boats taking people out for rides so on Friday I convinced Tob to let us go. One of the best parts of the trip! We went out to this "turtle-docking station" in the middle of the ocean and snorkled. It was really hard for me to jump in...I don't understand how they can gaurantee there are no sharks there. They can't. Freaks me out. Anyway snorkling was so fun...the biggest Sea Turtle ever floating right up between tob and I. When we got back on the boat as we were sailing away dolphins started following our wake and jumping just feet from our boat. It was BEAUTIFUL!!!!! Another highlight of the trip would have been the BYU game. So fun to be at the game in that atmosphere in Hawaii. We had 2 row tickets and we met up with JD and Ash and had a great time there. Other activities included driving to North Beach, surfing contest, waimaii Bay, Turtle bay, Dole plantation (twice again), shopping, International Marketplace, ect. Adding Picture to all of this now...continuing details of our trip in next post- (If you want a funny story ask Tob or I about our visit to "Tiffany's":)

Family Pictures 2011

What can I say? I LOVE family pictures. They are priceless to me. I love having that memory of what my kids looked like at the age they were taken and I love looking back and remembering what things had gone on around that time and during the year. I guess that's why I make sure they happen EVERY year. The kids change so much and I'm grateful I have these pictures to remind me...of how stinking cute they are and how much I LOVE my FAMILY!! Yes it can be stressful, but at the same time SO WORTH IT.

Super Cash turns 4!

For the last 6 months Cash has been talking about and planning his 4 year old birthday party. He's watched Elle have "friend" parties and wanted one so badly too... how do you say no. I've implemented an every-other-year rule so that makes it a little easier. At least in my mind:) So he chose the theme "superheros" and we went with it. My friend and I decided that when you start stressing during planning a party, that's when you've gone too far. So I tried really hard to stay behind that imaginary line. I opted to make each guest their own cape and mask i leui of favor bags. The kids decorated the masks, had "target practice" with a marshmallow gun, played "vaporize the villian" with silly string, "leaped buildings in a single bound", searched for "kryptonite" (glowsticks) in the bat cave, and took pics showing off their incredible muscles. Cash LOVED helping me cut, paint, glue, and plan everything. He got the traditional breakfeast in bed and balloons on his ceilings. He was so cute as he was eating his breakfast, he said "I love this day so much...you get breakfast in bed, balloons, my guests will bring me presents..." I'd say that sounds like a pretty good day to me. I LOVE this little guy more than I could ever describe. He is just so darn likeable. Tells me ALL day how much he loves me and how he's going to be with me forever. This family can't get enough of him. Happy Birthday Cashy boy!

Halloween Part 3?!!

I can't believe there's a part 3! I swear Halloween never ends...so many fun activities and parties. Can't leave out these last couple. The Halloween carnival Elle's elementary puts on is amazing. The kids loved the parties and it's so fun for the neighborhood. Cash's preschool trunk or treat was also a hit. And then one of the highlights of October was going with Grandma and Grandpa to Gardner Village to see the witches. Too Cute! We told the kids to decide between taking a hay ride out to see where the "witches live" or a pony ride. They chose both. And Grandma and Grandpa said okay. It was worth every penny. AND of course there was picking out pumpkins at the pumpkin patch and painting them....Bring THANKSGIVING on!