Hawaii Part One

Hawaii seems like a distant memory already.  How can it have been three weeks ago that we were surrounded by paradise?  I was so nervous to go and yet I was so welcomed by the relaxation and peace that came with it.  That combination along with nature's pure, breath taking sights was enough to fill my senses and I'm hopeful that sensation will last awhile!

Our first sunrise on Maui.

How do I go about writing a recap of a week that meant more to me than words can say?  This trip was long overdue. This trip was about leaping on too good a deal on air fare.  This trip was planned by friends whom we consider family. Every last detail was thought out and reservations made.  All I really needed to do was pack and show up.  And sometimes, that felt like a lot. . .because I'm a nervous flier.  And it's a long flight.  But the pros outweighed the cons and we were in it.  We were ready for rest, relaxation, and adventure.  Maui did not disappoint!

 This was "Big Beach" and it had some really BIG waves!  Notice the red flags.  Lifegaurds were asking people to stay out of the water, which I happily obliged, rule follower that I am.  The beach and mountains were gorgeous, but those huge, crashing waves were fierce.  My feet never felt the ocean on this beach.

We had to go to the La Haina Luau, because everyone must go to at least one in their lifetime!  This is the same one I went to about fifteen years ago with my parents, little brother, and papa .  It hadn't changed much and the traditional food was even better than I remembered, or maybe it's just that I appreciated its authenticity so much more now.

I had a drink and cheers-d my dad, who was celebrating his birthday three thousand miles away at home.

The thing about this trip, is I was very much a noticer.  There was so much lush beauty to take in, and I really tried to. . .when I wasn't reading one of my many books I brought along.  A vacation wouldn't be great if I wasn't able to bring my voracious appetite for books.  This trip did not disappoint in the least!  

Speaking of disappointments. . .I don't think I can ever eat a California shaved ice again.  There is no comparison!  Uluanis Hawaiian Shaved Ice was absolutely the best EVER!  So good, it will only ever be THAT good there in Hawaii.  

Speaking of good. . .I had to get myself a Dole Whipped, because, well...Hawaii! 

It was mighty tasty, but nothing compares to that shaved ice!  Nothing, I tell you!  These simple adventures would have been enough, but there was so much more.  There's a whole camera I haven't even downloaded pictures from!  These are just snapshots of our first couple days with my phone.  I think I had to wait awhile to go back and begin documenting this trip.  First, I needed to not be missing it so badly.  And next, the writing of the recap now, is just what I need to keep my mind set in the second honeymoon phase with E and I home together for the next couple weeks.  I'm smiling as I write this.  Our trip was a good one, probably the next best trip to our honeymoon because it was all about us.  Just us.  We missed out on the chaos of home and it was good.  So good it's going to take me awhile to get all our pictures in.  Bare with me.  This adventure is one for our memory books.  And if you're reading this:  get out there and create some new adventures of your own!  You will never regret it!

Road Trip: Girls Only Day 1

 This month we had the opportunity to go on a road trip that was EPIC  (Anjalene's word).  For the first time in her 12 years, she packed her bag and headed out on the open road with only me, her dear friend since kindergarten, and her mom.  We loaded up in the Prius at five thirty in the morning and hit the road.  Let me begin by saying, this is way out of my comfort zone.  Ernie is my trusted touring companion.  I do a great job riding shotgun and keeping him company, but this?  So not me but so glad I did it!  We had a blast!  The best part was, we had a light agenda, which meant we were open to all kind of other stops along the way.

In Solvang we had the best crepes and the girls tried on these cute Dutch outfits.  They had too much fun giggling in the dressing room trying to put on all the pieces.

Next, we stopped in Avila beach because. . .well, Avila.  We had to show off our best camping trip ever to our friends!

Then we drove into downtown San Luis Obispo to gum alley where Layla and Anjalene left their mark.

J and L were gracious enough to encourage a stop into my Aunt Katie's home where we ate lunch.  She enjoyed our visit so much.  I just love this lady.  I rarely see her, but her life has been filled with sadness: lost both her sons in a drowning at Morro Bay, and has lost two husbands to sicknesses too soon, and at eighty-nine she smiles through it.  I loved spending some time with her.

 Morro Bay was the next stop.  It was dreary there.  I think the thought of my cousins struggles in that sea made me just a little sick to be there.

But the girls, ran on the sand and dug looking for crabs.  Every beach we stopped at they got wet frolicking in the waves and laughing deep, hearty laughs filled with absolute fun and joy.  It was a most beautiful sound!

 After miles and miles of lush fields, we might have had to backtrack 15 miles for gas.  My heart was in my throat as I thought, "I should have listened to Lene when we left san Luis Obispo."  I was not really aware how the prius did on gas, apparently I thought it would be even better than it was.  Actually, I had no idea how far we had actually driven as our day was broken into so many little stops.  It was the smallest, scariest gas station you ever did see with only three pumps.  Luckily the girls were asleep so they had no idea of our little snafu.

The girls swam and went in the sauna when we reached our final destination: Monterey.  I fell asleep before showers were even completed.  It was a fabulous, fun, full day!

Spring Break 2015

How we've gotten to Summer without me posting about our Spring Break is beyond me!  Stranger things have happened, but geeze, where did the time go?  This Spring Break found us needing a get away.  There was a lot going on and we were just tired.  We needed to be refreshed and we needed time to just be. Anthony stayed with his dad for a couple days so we booked a hotel on the bay and headed out to the Newport beach. It was the kind of vacation that is imprinted on my heart forever.

 One of our nights there, the big kids: Little and Kendra came down to show us his new truck.  They stayed for dinner right on the water.  The food was just okay but the company was terrific!

We came home Easter Sunday, but not before attending mass at a neighboring church.  The service was great and the kids liked the donut option before mass started.

 Our view from the balcony

 We decided on A Thousand Steps beaches because I remembered it from my college days.  Let me tell you, it did not disappoint.  Look at that!  God's beauty at its finest right there!

 I love everything about our pictures at sunset.  When I was in college, I would drive to the beach just to watch the sun set so watching it set with my kids dancing and playing in the fore front?  A small preview of heaven.

 Walking the pier and someone got tired.

 I think I might get these blown up on a canvas.  I love them THAT much!  This particular picture reminds me to pause and take it all in: the beauty and the chaos and to count it all as joy!

 Big. Medium. Little.

 Good Friday quiet time in the hotel room.  Tradition.

 The ferry.

After our quiet time, on Good Friday, we began walking to Joe's Crab Shack for Dinner since it was Friday and all.  As we were walking, I believe Lene directed us all to look in the sky.  There was an inverted rainbow clear as day.  The kids were super excited that God chose that moment, hours after his death to remind us about His promise.  My mama heart was so full it could have burst!

Weekend Wandering. . .

I love when God knows just what you need.  After a pretty disastrous Thursday, Friday was followed up with some great girl time with two friends I don't have enough time with.  We headed to one of their churches for a Her Night Out with a special performance by CeeCee Winans.  She had us on our feet, praising God in our loudest voices.  Listening to her was pure JOY! The message was given by a woman who I hadn't heard of before, Julia Veach, She spoke of her faith, her struggles, and I was just reminded to surrender.  It has been in times that I've surrendered total situations to God, that I have seen His hands busy at work.  I'm not sure why I let that thought get away, but I'm thankful God found a way to get me to hear it again.

Saturday morning, Lene played her last volleyball game.  She did so well and had such a fun time this season. She was a lot less nervous about returning the ball and most of the time she can serve it over the net.  Her Pink Gummy Spikers had a great season full of many wins, but I like best that she enjoyed the game and wants to play again.  That means the most to me.

Saturday afternoon we got out of town and headed to Newport for a date night.  I didn't even realize that it was the last day of the month--so glad we squeezed it in!

Date #2 of 15 in 2015

We ate at Maestros.  The food was amazing!  The view was beautiful and the rain stayed at bay so I got to enjoy all of it!

Somehow during the course of our date night, after talking about what we both wanted to do for our birthdays this year since we are turning forty, we decided a trip would be in our future.  So we booked Maui.  That is a little crazy for me, especially considering the kids will be only two weeks into the start of a new school year then, but the tickets were priced right so we're going.  I'll get nervous about it later.  For now, it's fun to be planning this trip simultaneously as our Spring Break trip.  Big problems, I know.

Sunday we went to church with the whole family.  I just have to smile when I look at my girl's eclectic styles.  If only Ernie had let Nessa wear the fancy dress with her jeans that she had on originally.  That was really something!  Since my Sunday dinner idea didn't pan out with the big family, we decided to do what we do best: focus on what happens within our walls and have our own Sunday family dinners.  Let me tell you this, it is so refreshing not to be waiting on anyone else, not to deal with last minute cancellations, no drama.  Our family dinner focuses on the lives of those we directly influence and impact: our kids.  It is a beautiful thing to create your own traditions when extended family fails you.  It further cements the understanding that who lives under this roof matters most.  It causes us to stress the importance of loving your brother and sisters, creating nurturing relationships that last.  Serving each other out of love is something I strive to show them.

I love Joshua 24:15
15 But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD."  

There really is no other way to live.  We won't compromise on this one.  And we can love one another and not love the way they are living.  Psalm 127:3-5 says, "Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one's youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate."

We are training our arrows to be Kingdom Kids, to be set apart, to be in the world, but not of the world. This role as parents is the most important calling on our life.  This weekend was a good one. . .filled with JOY and quality time with the ones I love most.

Spring Break Part Two

Hard to believe that Spring Break is over and done with already!  I can honestly say this was probably the best Spring Break yet!  For being a staycation, it was jam packed with a great combination of play and rest! In addition to our girl's mani/pedi day and arboretum, the big littles visited grandma and grandpa one day to watch a movie, so Nessa and I baked cookies in our time alone.

She's almost a pro.  She likes to do everything on her own.  Everything.

That same night I sneaked away for a bible making session with my book club.  Awhile back I had made a Child Training bible that everyone loved but they knew they wouldn't make their own unless we carved out some time for it, which is exactly what we did.  It was a fun, but focused night together.

Thursday morning I surprised the kids with a trip to the canyon to horse back ride.  As of yet, this is something only Anjalene enjoys, but I thought it was the perfect time for Bubba to try it out too.  He loved it!

It was a gorgeous day to be out and it was so much fun to listen to them go on and on and on the car ride home!  That day continued with a spontaneous park day with some of our book club peeps.  I think at one point there were twenty-one kids.  And in the four hours we were there, no one tattled on anyone else the entire time. Victory!

Friday was the perfect kind of adventure that could only be orchestrated with my dearest BFF in the world. She showed up with Starbucks iced teas in hand and we were off on our last day trip of the week.  We headed to San Juan Capistrano Mission.  Such a rich history.  So much more fun with our families together!

We explored, listened to audio about all the different spots and then walked downtown for lunch.  The weather was a little on the cool side but perfectly pleasant to be out and about.  Towards the end of our time there, Nessa got a little attitude and all she wanted was a carrot, which she may have repeated about fifty times! So frustrating, that girl is sometimes!  She must be four or something!

The kids were dying to go to the beach but us moms weren't dying to take them.  We were cold.  Imagine them in their swimsuits splashing around in that freezing water?  We were too close not to set foot on the beautiful sand so we proceeded to San Onofre beach--pulled right up to the water practically and the kids frolicked in the waves. . .in their clothes.  Except for miss Nessa Bessa who proceeded to climb in the car and change once her jeans were wet.  She does not like wet clothes at all!

They had such a great time! I had such a great time watching! They changed into their bathing suits for the ride home--so what if we did it all backwards?  That was all part of the fun! They didn't even complain the entire Friday drive home--which meant a lot of traffic, but I would do it again in a heartbeat because the minute we got home, Lene hugged me and said, "I had the best time! Thanks Mom!" That right there is what it's all about, stepping out of your comfort zone and making memories.  I can not wait for our beach trips this summer.  I say I'm ready for weekly!

I think the best part of this trip was watching our ten year olds together.  Lene and Lo are a day apart and have been destined to be friends like their mamas.  In the fifth grade vernacular, BFF gets thrown around rather loosely.  One week it's with this person, the next it's with that one.  And sometimes it's hurtful that friendships can seemingly change in the blink of an eye.  So it's important that we  both stress to our girls the importance of longevity and investing in years of friendship before anyone earns that title.  They see us and know it's the real deal.  Real friends really do become family. The idea that they knew each other before they were even born is something only the two of them share and it is neat to watch it develop.  As many friends as they have at school, there's just something special about that friend that you consider family.

No one could really narrow down their favorite part about this Spring Break.  Neither could I.  That's what I call successful!