Happy Birthday Erick!

We were so busy this weekend that I didn't have any time to post! I usually try to post some fun pics of the kids on their birthdays.

Just look at those eyes and that tongue sticking out! What a cute kid! I really love this picture. It truly captures the spirit of "Erick"

This one makes me laugh every time!!

November in Texas

November 2007

Chat with Santa

When I was a kid, I had to use a pencil and paper to write my letter to Santa. I also had to put my coat on, strap on some moon boots and get in a car to drive to the mall (or ward Christmas party) to see Santa.

Kids these days have it so easy!

Gobble Gobble

I have had a few little turkeys say and do some really cute things lately and I wanted to write them down before I forget them!

Emma

• The other day at dinner, sat down and said "ok, everyone say two things you are grateful for. She started and said 1. books and 2. Mom.
• She received her soccer trophy this week and it was her first trophy ever and she was ecstatic! Her coach said that at every game Emma would ask him when she gets her trophy. I didn't know she was THAT excited!

Ben

• Gave his first talk in primary. The subject was "My faith in Jesus Christ grows as I count my many blessings". He talked about his family and how playing games and reading scriptures with his family makes him happy and how grateful he is for the blessing of family. He did a good job!
• When Emma asked everyone what they are grateful for said "reading scriptures and going to church." This was totally unprompted by his parents!

Erick

• When asked by Emma what he was thankful for said "Jesus" pronounced Sesus. This was totally unprompted by parents as well! Go Erick!
• Also, a few days ago I set his lunch before him and he started eating and I was busy getting Camille's lunch ready when Erick stopped eating and said "We forgot to say prayer mommy." So, we stopped and he said the prayer and then continued eating his food. Pretty good for a two year old (soon to be 3!)
• His nursery teacher said that today in nursery when she did the roll call, she kept calling Erick's name and he wouldn't acknowledge that he was there. He then told her that Erick is not here, but Papa is here. Papa is Erick's nickname. Poor guy, he has so many names!

Camille

• In Relief Society today, she wanders around and all the old ladies eat her up. One of them gave her an empty tic tac box (I thought of you Char) and Cami took it and touched it pretending to dial on a phone and put it to her ear and started talking.
• Camille is a jabber box and is starting to kind of say stuff. She walked in the kitchen today while I was cleaning and was waving her hand saying "hi, hi, hi, hi, hi". Cute!
• She also does the "I love you" and the actions that the Hobson family does (you know what I'm talking about if you were lucky enough to know Grandma Hobson) she says I love you too, the best she can.
• She LOVES to be outside. As soon as a door is opened or someone puts their shoes on, she makes a b-line for the door and if she can't go out, you definately hear about it!
• She loves shoes and clothes. Today I put her dress on and she was so excited and ran around the house with her arms in the air like she was the prettiest thing on earth (she is right of course) She is just a doll. I wish you all could spend a day with her becuase if you did, you would just want to kiss and pinch her chubby cheeks and giggle right along with her. It can be therapuetic to be with that girl.
• One more thing. . . She is full into the tantrums. She falls down on the floor and then throws her body back (banging the back of her head). This is how she tells us she is really mad. It just cracks me up especially when she is on the tile or hard wood floor and before throwing her head back, she turns and looks to see how hard it is going to be and then falls back accordingly so as to not hurt her head so badly!

I wanted to also include two other little tidbits. I guess they are mom tips. Take them or leave them!

1. Each month on their would be birthday, I write a letter to my kids just updating them on what happened in their life that month. I try to include cute things they do and say (you get the picture). It is a love letter and they will have a nice book of them when they leave home. Eventually I want to include a special little outing or activity with mom on this date so I can have some one on one time with each kid.

2. Most days of the week for dinner, before I serve the main course, I set a plate in front of each child full of broccoli, carrots and tomatoes. The kids are usually SOOO hungry and will eat these while I am finishing up dinner. It is a good way to get them to eat veggies, I call it our vegetable appetizer.

This is a very random post, but I want to respond to Emma's question about what I am thankful for. . .

Earlier this week I had just had it! I have been sick and coughing and sniffling for almost a month. I decided it was time to get a blessing! So, Don gave me a beautiful blessing which included a little blurb about my blessings and how I need to be mindful of them and indeed count them one by one.

So this week, I have been doing that. One of the many is that I can stay home and do not have to work outside of the home! I am so grateful for a husband who supports me and wants me at home with the children. It is such a blessing to be able to be here with the kids and to love and nurture them. It is a very tiring and I can't say that I am always grateful to be home, but deep down I really am, I wouldn't want to be doing anything else!

Also, I must say how grateful I am for my four beautiful and healthy children. They are not perfect by any means but they are great and they are trying! I am also thankful for my parents and love them so much. I am grateful for the unconditional love and support they have always given me. I miss them.

I am grateful for my Grandma Law who turns 80 this week. She is such an example of enduring well to the end. I love you! Happy Birthday.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

PS, we will post some pics of our little turkeys later on this week.

The Pumpkin Patch and Halloween 2007

The Pumpkin Patch and Halloween 2007

Enjoy!

I Love "F Minus"

I love F Minus ... so funny!

Whenever Jill and I watch The Office on Thursday nights, Jill always calls Fritz over to sit with her on the couch. Sometimes I get a turn to sit on the couch with Jill.

Amen

Today was a hectic Sunday as most Sundays are for us. We have the 1:30 time slot for church. It gets over at 4:30 and we get home usually by 5:00. This weekend, Don is working the night shift, so he had to leave for work as soon as we got home, so you can imagine the chaos that was going on when we arrived home from church, with tired and hungry children, a Dad who had to leave and me trying to get hands washed (don't forget, I am a germaphobe!) and kids fed. In the midst of all this we managed to have a blessing on the food with the whole family together. After the prayer, for some reason, both Don and I looked over at Camille in her high chair. She had her arms folded! Don and I both looked at each other and said "Did you see that?"

It was her first time to fold her arms during a prayer and neither of us have really ever prompted her to do it, she just did it! It made my entire day! What a cute girl. I will try to get a picture posted soon of her folding her arms. After she did it, we all clapped for her and gave her hugs and did a big tadoo, so she will probably expect that each time too!

Also, today was the kids' primary program. As I mentioned before, Don is working the night shift this weekend and so all morning he slept and I tried to keep the little hellians as quiet as possible (which is not very possible at all.) Anyway, by the time we got to church I was exhausted as you can imagine and sorry to say, kind of sick of the kids at the moment.

BUT, nothing can melt your heart quicker than your child singing beautiful primary songs and looking so angelic! Emma's class sang a group solo of "I'm Trying to be Like Jesus" and it was so beautiful and I really know that Emma tries hard to be like Jesus. Both kids did great on their speaking parts and spoke slowly and loudly like we kept telling them too. It was a really nice program and it just gets me all choked up every year. I am so grateful for my kiddos and love them very much. I am proud of the choices they are making and the way they are turning out. So far so good -- mind you, my oldest is only 7! Yikes!

Jill's Fives

Ok, it is my turn now!

5 things I was doing 10 years ago

1. Serving a mission in El Salvador
2. walking in the jungles and looking for people to share my testimony with.
3. I was getting ready to be released as a missionary and return home within a month, so you can imagine my feelings of excitement/sadness/joy.
4. Because I would soon be leaving, I was feeling the need to procure items to bring home with me. My mom will get a kick out of this one, but I was seriuosly worried about leaving the food that I had grown to love on my mission ie: beans, tortillas, tomales and yes even the corn coffee (which has no caffeine in it by the way) so, I was purchasing some of or as my mom would add (tons of) food to bring home with me. You can imagine the surprise of my family and friends when we opened my suitcases upon my arrival home! I don't think I will ever live that one down! I thought everyone would be just as thrilled as I was to have all this awesome food brought home to Idaho!
5. Just to give a taste of some of the everyday things we did in El Salvador. . . washing my clothes by hand with a rock and brush, dumping collected rain water over my head to shower (sometimes with dead cockroaches floating in it), hiking several miles uphill to reach the home of an investigator. Loving my mission and getting even more sad to leave!

5 Things on my To-do List Today

1. Get the dishwasher emptied and breakfast dishes cleaned up.
2. Change Camille and Erick's daipers.
3. Get down on the floor and play with the kids in their tent they just set up (i have to conciously add "play with the kids" to my list everyday) isn't that sad?
4. Enjoy church today (how can I not, it is the primary program)
5. Try to keep the kids quiet so Don can sleep, he worked the night shift last night.

5 Snacks I Enjoy! (This is my easiest category)

1. Kit Kat
2. Anything with almonds in it
3. home made granola (with lots of almonds)
4. Wheat Thins (have you tried the new cinnamon kind?)
5. Sun Chips (again, the new cinnamon kind is delicious!)


5 Songs I know the Lyrics to

1. Any Backyardigans song (they are so cute!)
2. The Hymn "Dearest Children God is Near You"
3. Almost all the CAKE songs
4. A lot of the jazz standard songs
5. Most primary childrens songs

5 of my Bad Habits

1. Trying to multi task way too much until it stresses me out
2. Not taking enough time to spend with my husband and children
3. Being a "neat freak" which I guess is good and bad
4. Over eating
5. losing things (like the pictures I printed off a few months ago and was ready to scrapbook, can't find them anywhere!)

5 things I'd do if I were a millionaire

1. move to Idaho
2. go to Hawaii again with just Don
3. buy cute brand new clothes for my kids instead of just getting them at Wal-mart or hand me downs
4. get a massage and facial and pedicure
5. decorate my house the way I REALLY want it decorated

5 things I will never wear again

1. a head band (I don't look good with them and they hurt my head)
2. my white cheap flip flops that tore up my feet yesterday in the five minutes that I wore them. I am in pain and can't wear any shoes until the wounds heal.
3. stretch pants
4. tight jeans
5. cheap nail polish (it just doesn't work and I spend too much time putting it on to just have it peel off or ball up, I might as well spend my money and time on the good stuff!

5 of my favorite toys

1. Those tupperwear blocks that open and close Grandma law had them and I found some for my own household, they are so fun to play with
2. magnetix
3. my bicycle
4. my dog (does that count)
5. Emma's Easy Bake oven that we don't use nearly enough!

The Fives by Don

I just read my sister's "Fives" and thought I'd post my "Fives." Jill can post her's if she ever gets a moment. (I'm working night shift right now and have lots of down time for this!)

5 things I was doing 10 years ago
1. Still trying to adjust to post-mission life at BYU.
2. Teaching my first district at the MTC.
3. Buying the Civic.
4. Going to BYU football games.
5. Trying to get a date.

5 things on my to-do list today
1. Go running (check ... 7 miles in 59 minutes)
2. Work on chess tactics (check ... did over 100)
3. Get a haircut (check ... looks good)
4. Do whatever Jill has on her list for me to do (I think I did them all)
5. Go to work

5 snacks I enjoy
1. Almond Joy
2. Doritos
3. Peanut butter and grape jelly in a rolled warm flour torilla with Ovaltine milk
4. Jill's cookies
5. Vanilla yogurt with frozen blueberries (sometimes with Honey Bunches of Oats)

5 songs I know the lyrics to
1. Stickshifts and Safety Belts by Cake (or any Cake song)
2. Never Tear Us Apart by INXS
3. Iron Man by Black Sabbath
4. Hazy Shade of Winter by The Bangles
5. All of the theme-songs Jill's made for and of each of our kids

5 of my bad habits
1. Staying up too late
2. Procastination on some things ... usually not wanting to spend money on something
3. I can eat a half gallon of Dreyer's ice cream in one day
4. The same goes for a bag of Doritos (except I can polish off a bag in the 1st half of a football game)
5. Sleeping in

5 things I'd do if I were a millioinaire
1. Pay off the house and all debt
2. Complete college accounts for kids
3. Buy an HD TV
4. Let Jill spend some money
5. Buy some new clothes for myself

5 things I will never wear again
1. A gold (or any) necklace or bracelet
2. Football gear
3. A pinky ring
4. A pink shirt with grey pants and matching tie
5. A tank top

5 of my favorite toys
1. My computer with all the software and games I love
2. They aren't mine ... but I really love Ben's Star Wars toy ships
3. Mega Block Legos
4. The play train set
5. Toy airplanes (WW2)

Maui- My two cents

I loved Don's report about our dream trip and I thought I might add to it just a bit. I also loved his pictures, he took all of those beautiful scenic pictures that make my heart happy to look at. We truly did have a wonderful time and first and foremost thank my parents for making this trip possible and for making a huge sacrifice and taking care of our kids! The kids were happy when we got home, Erick had just finished his 24 hours of throwing up so I didn't even have to deal with that! Thanks Mom and Dad!

My favorite parts of our trip were. . .

• having uninterrupted conversations with Don about things other than children.
• Laying out at the beautiful resort right by the beach and reading a book only to be interrupted by the beach concierge asking me if I wanted more nachos.
• Having a nap on the beach whenever I wanted too.
• Being able to swim and lay out and relax without worrying if one of the kids was drowning or in danger.
• Oh, we missed the kids, and I wished that each day I could just blink my eyes and they would appear and we could swim with them in the kid pool or play with them on the ocean and then I could wish them away again when we were done!
• Being free of any and all responsibilities including child care, house cleaning, cooking, phone calls etc.
• Seeing Don having fun and relaxing and enjoying me.
• marveling at how Heavenly Father could make anything as beautiful as the places we visited.

We had a great time and I am so grateful we were able to go. Thats all for now! Jill

Maui Pictures

Here is the web album

Hawaii October 2007

Here is the slideshow (183 slides)

The Maui Report - Part 7: Haleakala, Iao, Home

Saturday would be our final day in Maui. Since our plane didn't leave until 9pm, we had plenty of time to see everything else.

I got up and went jogging along the beach one final time. I walked in the sand on the way back. I'd miss these morning jogs. After jogging, Jill and I ate the breakfast buffet at the hotel. They only serve it twice a week and we wanted to try it. It was good ... nothing spectacular.

When breakfast was done, we packed up and checked out. Then we drove part way up the big volcano ... Haleakala. Part way up was the lavender gardens. It was beautiful up there. The view of the island was magnificent and the weather was quite cool. It was really quiet up there too ... you could whisper to each other several feet away. I remember the Guatemalan highlands were the same way. We snapped a few shots and then toured the gardens and gift shop. The drive back down into the valley was very pretty too.

After Haleakala, we drove into town (Kahului). We decided to drive up to Iao Valley and see the "needle." We were glad we did. The valley didn't go back very far, but it was scenic. We got out, snapped a few shots and walked around a bit. There were lots of tourist buses coming in and out of Iao Valley. Over the little river there was a "diver" ... he didn't dive, rather he just jumped off the bridge there and into a deep part of the pond. That part of Maui is very pretty.

After Iao, we drove back to town and found a place to eat. We read in our "bible" (Maui Revealed) that a restaurant in a strip mall was pretty good. We found the place, but it had changed its name. I ordered the burger and fries and milkshake. Jill ordered some Ahi fish. Both were excellent. The name of the place is Ocean Grill in the Maui Marketplace. It was the best food I had all week. Maybe it was because I really wanted a delicious burger and they did it to perfection. Plus the milkshakes were comparable to Redfish Idaho milkshakes. The fries were really good too.

When we finished lunch, we visited various stores and malls and walked around. When it was time, we headed over to the airport, returned the car and checked in for our flight.

The first flight to LA was fine. We had a whole row to ourselves and slept. Then we had an hour layover in LA and then we flew to St. Louis. We slept the whole time on that flight. When we got to St. Louis, we found out that our flight to Dallas was cancelled. So we got a flight to Bentonville Arkansas and then into DFW. We would get in four hours later than scheduled. But we made it back alive and with our luggage.

Erick had been sick the last few days and was throwing up. Jeff and Sandie did a wonderful job watching them. The kids were really excited to see us and wanted to know what we brought for them. Erick seems to be talking better now and Camille seemed to age a lot while we were gone. Emma and Ben were very happy to see us too.

The Maui Report - Part 6: South Maui

There really isn't much to report about our last full day on Maui. We got up late, ate breakfast and then drove to south Maui ... Kihei, Wailea, Makena. It is much drier on this side of the island. Once we were down by the resorts, we felt like we were right back in Kaanapali.

We first drove to Makena bay and did some snorkeling. We saw one turtle and a couple of fish. It wasn't as good as Black Rock near Kaanapali. After snorkeling, we drove up near the resorts on Wailea. We walked around a bit along the Marriott Hotel path. They didn't have a beach front ... just rocks. But there were nice beaches near other resorts.

When we saw enough, we drove back to Kaanapali. We stopped in Lahaina and bought some chips and chocolates and then back to the resort.

The rest of the day was spent on the beach and by the pool. We read lots and swam and soaked up the golden sun.

As sunset approached, we walked along the beach and talked. Then we found a fallen palm tree and sat on it while we watched the sun set. We dug our feet into the wet sand, listened to the breeze and the birds and the crashing of the waves. Off to the far south we saw bright pink clouds kissed by the sinking sun. Over the island Lanai were dark grey clouds. Up above were slightly oranged feathery wisps of clouds. We looked left and right and all we could see was beach. The ocean was silvery with a hint of orange. It was serene. We simply sat there and enjoyed God's great creation. It was spiritual.

The stars came out and we went to the pool. All the kids had cleared out and we had the basketball hoop our ourselves. It was a rematch. Jill didn't have the will to compete with my dominance in the pool. It was a rout. But then her true talent shined when we played PIG. She had PI and I had no letters. But quickly she equalized the score. It was down to one last shot. She hit a long 15 footer and I missed it. Jill will say her biggest win of the night was when I was in the pool by myself and she snuck in without me knowing. The she came up from behind and scared the poop out of me. It was pretty funny. She is never able to suprise me so this was a huge victory in her book!

When we had enough water, we came back to the room, showered, ate some dinner and watched The Legend of Zorro which was on TV. Then we read and went to sleep.

The Maui Report - Part 5: Dragon's Teeth, Blowholes and Snorkeling

Thursday morning started off with a morning run for me. Jill decided to sleep a little more. After the morning run, I came back and we showered and then drove up to The Gazebo for breakfast. We liked the breakfast there so much, we decided to go back. This time we ordered the Big Kahuna omelet and three white chocolate macadamia nut pancakes. It was just as delicious as before. But we think I can replicate it. When we get back to Texas, I'm going to try to make the same delicious pancakes as The Gazebo. Jill thinks that the coconut syrup is what makes the difference. I think it's easy to make breakfast as good as they make it ... we'll see. We may even start our own Gazebo!

After breakfast, we kept driving north on 30. Our first stop along the way was the Dragon's Teeth. These are lava rock formations along the very windy coastline of northwest Maui. They really do look like Dragon's Teeth. We snapped a few shots of the place and walked around a bit. This part of Maui has more pines than palms.

After stopping by the Dragon's Teeth, we drove further along 30 up to the Nakalele Blowhole. The road to the blowhole was a bit narrow ... much like Hana, but we survived just fine. We didn't hike all the way down to the actual blowhole. We stopped a few hundred feet above it and snapped some shots. The coastline view from here was gorgeous and the waves were ferocious because of the strong constant wind. All the trees along this coast are bent inland because of the wind. We spent about 30 or 40 minutes enjoying the view before we drove back to the resort.

After a quick bite to eat, we took our snorkeling gear to Black Rock and snorkeled. It was pretty neat. We wanted to see some turtles. We didn't see any at first, but then we saw one and it was very cool. Some divers were swimming down below with the turtle. Then we swam back towards the rock and saw even more incredible looking fish. On our way back to the shore, we saw another turtle. One of the other snorkelers swam down and kind of rode the turtle's back. The turtle didn't appreciate it and swam off. We were told it is illegal to touch the turtles.

When we finished snorkeling, we walked back along the beach and then sat by the pool and read our books. It was a very windy day ... even at the resort, so all the umbrellas were down.

My eyes could take no more of the wind, so we went back to the room, showered, refreshed my contacts and then walked to Whaler's Village where we ate at Leilani's. We asked for a table by the sidewalk. We actually timed it perfectly ... we were able to watch the sun set from our table while we ate nachos, lava flow drinks and teriyaki chicken. It was a peaceful dinner. We strolled back to the resort, stopping by a luau and watching the dancers for a bit. Then we found some lawn chairs under the stars and enjoyed the vast expanse. You can actually see part of the galaxy ... it looks like a faint cloud, but it's not. The stars are very bright in Maui.

We were getting sleepy, so we came back to our room and watched The Office and then went to sleep.

Only one more full day in paradise.

The Maui Report - Part 4: Lazy Magic

Wednesday was a lazy day for us. We got up fairly early and hit the running trail. We jogged up to the same spot I ran to on Monday. The sidewalk has a very nice view of the ocean. On the way, we stopped a minute to see some beautiful song birds gather around a seeder. They were Java Sparrows and they are quite striking up close. On Monday I saw a black cat lurking in the underbrush where these sparrows were feeding. Further down the trail were snails as big as my fist. At first I thought they were just old seashells, but then I saw their slimy heads. I don't think I would have wanted to step on one!

After our jog, we got our swimsuits on and sat by the pool. We enjoyed the golden sun of the Pacific and read our books and occasionally dipped in the cool water. The constant crash of the waves lulled us to sleep once in a while and then wake us a few minutes later. Kids played on the manicured grass and the palm trees swayed in the breeze. I've been often mentally pinching myself to be sure that I'm not dreaming. Paradise is wonderful!

Later in the afternoon we decided to go snorkeling. We walked to the activity center and were about to rent the equipment, but didn't want to pay the "convenience fees." So we decided to just stroll along the beach. Later we would be in Lahaina Town and could rent the gear for half the price of the activity center.

After our stroll, we showered and went to Lahaina. We first got our snorkeling gear and then went downtown. It took a bit to find a parking spot, but we finally just parked in a nearby neighborhood and walked to the town. The town has lots of little shops and restaurants and sits right on the beach. We ate at Cheeseburger in Paradise. We had a table right over the beach and watched the boats in the harbor while we ate. Large cruise ships dock daily at Lahaina to allow their passengers to visit the quaint town. The burgers at CIP were average ... about the same of a Costco patty at a family BBQ. What makes them a little special is the sauce or pineapple or mushrooms (also from Costco I imagine). I ate a teriyaki burger (the sauce with pineapple and cheese). Jill ate a mushroom and Swiss cheese burger. The onion rings, however, were really delicious. I could have ate two helpings of those.

After dinner, we walked the town. We stopped at a few shops and bought some items. We also saw this local who sits on the sidewalk and makes those tiki masks and such. Some of his work was pretty neat.

We stopped in a few art shops. We talked to this gentleman who owned one of these shops. He mentioned he was a retired CFO of two Fortune 500 companies and got bored at home, so he started an art shop. Now he sells paintings and sculptures from artists all around the world. The one painting Jill liked only cost $3,000 unframed.

The last event of the day was the Warren and Anabelle's Magic Club. We walked through the front door (which overlooked the harbor) and then walked up some stairs. They checked us in and gave us a key and took us to this small room and then shut the door. Anabelle (an invisible ghost) then told us what to do ... she gave us a little riddle and then we made it through another door (with a help of the key). We sat down and ate some dessert and then Anabelle began playing the piano. The pre-show was entertaining, but I think you have to have a few drinks to really enjoy it.

After the pre-show, we went to the theater where Warren amazed us with his magic. He hails from South Carolina and still has his accent. His humor was very funny and his wit was lightning quick. I was laughing pretty much the whole time. His magic was very good (like I'm a magician critic). Some of his tricks were mind-boggling. I can imagine how he did most of his tricks, but there is one that I just don't get. The whole show lasted over three hours ... maybe four ... I lost track of time. But it was very entertaining. His shows are sold out one week in advance, so if you want to attend his show, I suggest you make reservations a week before you come to Maui.

Thus ended our Wednesday in Maui.

The Maui Report - Part 3: The Road to Hana

Today (Tuesday) we drove to Hana. We were a little apprehensive about going on this drive. It would be an all day event with lots of turns and curves and narrow roads. But we were up to the challenge. We left at 6am and were ready to start on the road to Hana by 7am.

We got a little confused at first when we started looking for mile markers. We didn't realize that the real road to Hana didn't start for a few more miles. When we finally got to the real road, we realized our mistake and then were able to follow along in the guide book which identified all the neat waterfalls, vistas and special points. Jill did a great job keeping up with the guidebook while I drove.

We stopped several times at waterfalls. It's not really the rainy season, so the waterfalls we saw were murky and not that spectacular.

We did stop at one of the many local banana bread stands. We stopped just in time too. We were treated to the first batch of bread out of the oven. We bought a loaf and then walked down to the rocks and enjoyed the ocean while eating fresh banana bread. The bread was really quite delicious and the view gorgeous.

One of our favorite parts was a vista that overlooked the ocean and a small village. It also had a great view a two waterfalls in the mountains. The smell of pineapple fields was strong and Jill and I felt that we were back in Central America.

We continued driving on the road. In total, it was 52 miles to Hana. All of that was driven at a slow pace ... always less than 20 mph.

Our absolute favorite spot was off the beaten path and main road. We took a 2 mile diversion from the main road. Right where a bridge arched over Makapipi Falls there is a road that leads down to the coast. This small road took us to Nahiku and probably one of the most beautiful spots on the planet. The road dead-ends where the view is spectacular, but we parked by the church and walked the rest of the way down. Along the way is a small pool next to a tree with a rope tied on it (for jumping in and swimming). We didn't take the plunge. We kept on walking and were rewarded with a breath-taking view. We've seen pictures like this view, but they don't do it justice ... seeing the white waves crash against the black rocks with the rugged coastline in the background was amazing! We walked up to the edge, sat on the grass that was there and soaked it all in. The waves entertained us for several minutes. The sun was out and it was AWESOME. We spent about 4o minutes taking in the view before we decided that we needed to keep going. We took lots of pictures of this spot.

Our next stop was Kahanu Garden where we saw the largest temple in Hawaii (Pi'ilanihale Heiau ... say that three times fast). The garden was pretty and the temple was neat, but we didn't spent much time there. I found a picture of this temple on the Internet. We didn't have a helicopter to take aerial shots, but at least you can see what it looks like. The black rock is actually the temple. It is MASSIVE!

Our last stop was Hana where we ate lunch at Tutu's. Hana wasn't all that great, but we were glad we made it and were ready to head back home. The drive back didn't take as long. We made it back in good time and then stopped by K-Mart.

When we made it back to Lahaina, we stopped by Bubba Gumps and ate an early dinner. The food was pretty good and the view of the ocean was great.

After dinner, we came back to the hotel and went swimming. We played water basketball. Jill won the first game and then I won the next two. I probably should have let her win and I would have received fewer scratches! Then we relaxed and watched the sun set ... but not really because the clouds were in the way. But it was still nice to relax on the beach for a bit.

And thus ends our Tuesday.

The Maui Report - Part 2

Monday was a lazy day for us. We slept in late (6am) and did whatever the heck we wanted to do. The first item on my agenda was to go run along the beach. I noticed Sunday morning that hardly anyone is up at that hour. So I went downstairs, streatched by the ocean on the perfectly manicured grass with Plumeria tress above me and palm trees swaying in the breeze. The mountains were shrouded in mist and the ocean's rhythmic beat played on. After my streatches, I started to jog. The beach has a sidewalk that runs for quite a bit. The sidwalk begins at the Hyatt, then passes where we're staying (the Marriott), then passes the Westin and then the rest of the local resorts. The path is never further than 15 feet from the crashing waves. The day is overcast and by mile 2 in my jog, it was drizzling. Thirty-three minutes later and I was done with my run.

Jill met me down by the lawnchairs and we sat and watched the ocean. We saw three stingrays about 20 feet out in the ocean. They swam closer to the shore and pretty soon they were in the very shallow water. I snapped a few shots (I forgot my usb cable, so I can't upload pictures right now).

After relaxing on the beach, we went to breakfast at The Gazebo. The Gazebo is about a 15 minute drive from our place. When we got there, it was raining lightly. We stood in line for about 20 minutes. While we waited, we chatted with this family from California. The Gazebo only seats 15 tables at a time (it's very small) but the breakfast is so delicious and affordable, there is always a line. I ate the white chocolate macadamia nut pancakes and Jill had the country eggs benedict. Both were heavenly. It would be the only meal we ate that day (and for a very affordable price).

After breakfast, we walked down to the beach and sat on some rocks and watched the waves. It was raining a bit as we watched the waves crash against the rocks. After watching the ocean in the rain, we got a bit cold, so we drove back to our room and got our swim suits on and went to the hot tub.

When we finished warming up, we sat by the pool and read our books. We ended up sitting by the pool and reading books the rest of the day. It was very relaxing. When the afternoon came to an end, we cleaned up and attended a party. Then we walked along the beach and watched a gorgeous sunset. It was orange, then pink and then deep orange and the ocean was silver. It was really amazing! We walked along the beach and then found a nice spot to enjoy the view. It was a perfect ending to the day.

The Maui Report - Part 1

Jill and I arrived late afternoon Saturday. The flight was fine ... a bit long, but we survived. We got our luggage and our red convertable Mustang (that was a little stressful, but we won't focus on that) and we headed to the other side of the island.

We had the top down the whole way. The drive was nice. After checking in, we decided that we were hungry. It was very late according to our body's clocks, but it was only evening local time. We ate at a place called Compadre's in Lahaina Town. The food was really good. I liked the chips and salsa. We ordered a plate of carnitas which were also very good. I especially enjoyed the vinegar sauce that came with them. After dinner, we went shopping for groceries and then came back to the place and crashed.

I woke up at 3am the next day and really couldn't get back to sleep. Jill woke up about 45 minutes later and we talked for a few hours. Church was at 9am. There were many tourists in sacrament meeting, but from the comments the locals made, it sounded like there weren't that many tourists there. After church, we went to a crafts show and Jill got some gifts for various peoples.

When we got back home, we took a nap and then we took a walk on the beach. It was blissful! After lunch, we met with a timeshare salesmen who showed us the new properties they they've just built. GORGEOUS! For a chance to stay one week a year on a three bedroom villa overlooking the beach, you only have to pay $109,000. The villas were very nice, but obviously for the very rich. He said that a one bedroom suite (the type we're staying in) runs for about $14,000.

After the tour, we strolled along the beach and walked around Whaler's Village. We looked in all the shops and then enjoyed the sunset. Very NICE! We ate dinner at Leilanis .... we got a table right by the beach and ate under tiki torches. It was very cozy and the food was good. Jill ate the Opa (fish) and I had fish and chips.

Six more days of bliss to go!

Cami Learns How to Give Kisses

Jill and I were sitting at the table after dinner when I smacked my lips after taking a drink. The next minute, Cami was smacking her lips like she was kissing! It was the cutest thing. Jill ran and got the camera and we snapped some precious shots!

Emma's Soccer Game

Ben's Soccer Game

A Full Day of Soccer Comes to an End

Papa enjoying soccer

Camille and her purse

Soccer Mom

Well, its official, I am a soccer mom! In fact, this last Saturday were our first games (Ben and Emma are both playing), Don had to work the weekend and so I took all 4 kiddos to both the soccer games and kept them entertained while still managing to cheer the respective soccer kid on during the game. Yes, I am pretty amazing! Plus, it was REALLY hot too, although it is September now, we are still in Texas and experiencing mid July/August type weather. Incidentally, we will be experiencing summer weather really until late October or November, that is all part of Texas fun.

I have to say, watching your kid play sports is pretty fun! I really got into it. I was proud of my kids too, they have never played any organized sports and joined teams who have been together for a few years and they were able to really keep up! Both Em and Ben hustled and ran their little hearts out and really stayed in the game. I had several parents express their amazement at how well they did having not played before. They each scored at least one goal and the most important part was that they really enjoyed themselves! It was fun. I look forward to more games when Don can be there with us.

I guess we are on our third week of school and all continues to go well. We met each of the teachers and had a chance to see what they are like and their rules and such. I think the kids ended up with really great teachers and I look forward to a good year for both.

The homefront is holding up well and enjoying some quiet time from 8 to 3 each day. Erick enjoys being in charge here and he and Camille are living it up having free reign with all the toys. I know I am not the only mom out there who thought I would have all the time in the world with the kids in school, but 3pm sneaks up on me way too quickly and I haven't accomplisehd what I wanted too. Oh well, it will wait.

As I mentioned above, Don worked last weekend. His whole schedule change is a good thing career wise, but a very big change for our family. It really does take the whole family working together to make this "shift" schedule work. We are focusing on the time he has off each month and trying to focus on the positive things this new schedule has to offer instead of many of the negative things that come with it. So far, so good.

I think I mentioned that Ben is now riding his two wheeler bike as well as Emma. We will get a video up soon. It is so fun to watch the kids get better and better at bike riding and progress in all areas of life. They are really good children for the most part who try and want to do what is right. I appreciate each of my chidlren and am so thankful for their healthy bodies and minds and spirits. What a blessing to be a mother and to have a husband who supports and loves me. I am truly blessed.

Check back later for more pictures.

Emma Gives Ben Some Advice

More 'F-Minus' comics

Soccer

Erick

First Day of Liberation (School)