Vacation - Part 1

Oh how I love Hawaii! I was talking with a friend today and we were thinking that vacation is not quite the right word now that we have kids. I guess it's more like a get-away, a change in routine. I bring my "work" with me now when I go away, but it sure is nice going away with family (grandparents in particular) who are happy with watching the kids while we catch some rays or get some ice cream. The grandparents were particularly happy watching the kids since they knew they would be relaxing for real the following week. They brought us along the first week but they stayed an additional week without any children or grandchildren around making their lives a whole lot noisier.

Hawaii was FABULOUS. The weather was perfect. Warm, sunny, 80 degrees. Every Single Day. I suggested for me to stay the additional week with Nana and Papa, but they didn't exactly take me up on my offer. So I'm back home now, getting back into a routine of laundry and cleaning and cooking. Spring is just around the corner, though. The weather here hasn't been so bad. It is a bit cooler, but the sun is shining!

I was a little worried about taking Micah on the plane because he had been sick with a runny, stuffy nose in the days leading up to the trip, but he did fine. On the way there he slept for two hours and stayed in his car seat the entire time. I was very thankful that we had a seat for him because he is very squirmy and strong and it would have been impossible to keep him still on our laps for six hours.

We stayed in Waikiki at the Marriott on the top (33rd) floor for the first night. There was a beautiful view from our room, but I was too scared to step too far out onto the balcony because it was a reeeally long way down! The balcony was tiny and there was a wrought-iron railing that didn't seem as strong as concrete.



Waikiki is such a fun place - lots of shops, lots of people, beautiful beaches. We got in during the afternoon, so we had dinner at an outdoor restaurant at the Marriott and then went back to the room so we could get Micah out of the sun and wait for Dave's bag to get in. His bag didn't make it from Seattle on our flight, but it came on another flight and they brought it to the Marriott that evening so he got it before we took off for Maui.

There is a lot more to tell, so I will save it for another post. So far, the first part of our trip has been excellent! I know you'll be waiting on pins and needles for the rest of our fabulous trip!

Fun with Grandma and Grandpa

We had a great time with Grandma and Grandpa - Cheri's parents. They came for 5 days last weekend and it was fantastic! Micah had so much fun playing with them, helping Grandpa do some projects around the house and reading books with Grandma. We didn't have a whole lot planned while they were here, which was good because they just wanted to spend time with Micah anyway. By the end of their visit it sounded like Micah said "Grandpa" when my dad was coming down the stairs. We were trying to teach him how to say Grandma and Grandpa all weekend - actually, even before they came I was trying to get Micah to say it. I had shown him the photos in the calendar that we had of Grandma and Grandpa and during the weekend he just wanted to carry the calendar around with him.

My dad put together Micah's tricycle that he had received for Christmas. Micah is still too short for it so his feet don't reach the pedals and he wasn't quite sure about it yet. Hopefully by the spring or summer he'll be more excited about it. We also blew up his ball pit. He had received that for Christmas as well and was pretty excited about that. Anything that has to do with balls is always a big hit for Micah. We have to be careful going up and down the stairs these days...

He decided to lounge on his teddy bears while reading his books before he fell asleep. He has been sleeping much better now so we are thankful! He tells us when he wants to take a nap using sign language and he stays quiet when we leave his room at bedtime. We keep the door open now and even if he's standing at the edge of his crib and watches us walk by, he's still usually quiet and eventually falls asleep on his own. It's wonderful!

He received a new toy from Great Gran and Great Grandpa. G-Gran sent along a ball with a happy face and it made Micah get a big smile on his face when we picked up Grandma and Grandpa from the airport. Great Grandpa wanted my parents to pick out a toy from the toy store from him, so we got a toy with balls and a hammer. He loves it! Thanks Gran and Grandpa!