Many moons ago, or 4 years ago to be exact, Bruce and I took the kiddos to Williams to ride the Polar Express. Man Cub was only 2.5 months old at the time, but the girls loved it and ever since we have talked about doing it again. Especially since Man Cub is a big fan of trains.

This year, all our talking finally turned into something more. In September Bruce told me that he was completely serious about doing the Polar Express this year and asked me to make arrangements. I booked the train, found a hotel and made plans for Bruce's dad to join us on the adventure. Then we kept our mouths shut. We didn't say a word to the kiddos! Even when we surprised the girls by pulling them out of school early, we didn't say a thing. We were a good 30+ minutes into our drive north before we finally told them where we were headed and they were so excited!

Unfortunately, there wasn't really any snow in the Flagstaff/Williams area while we were there,  but we still had such a good time and enjoyed the chance to do something extra Christmasy. We drove up and got ourselves checked into the hotel. Then the kiddos opened their Christmas pjs and we grabbed some dinner. We made the quick drive from Flagstaff to Williams and boarded the Polar Express. The train ride was a lot of fun, though Shark Bait was over it by the very end. The hot chocolate and cookies that were served were delicious and we especially enjoyed singing Christmas carols and welcoming Santa aboard our train car where he presented each of us with a silver sleigh bell. After the train ride, we visited with Santa for a few minutes back at the train depot before heading back to our hotel.

Saturday morning we slept in, then ate breakfast and took the kiddos swimming at the hotel pool. After we checked out, we went to Walnut Canyon to do a little hiking. Bruce and his dad assured me it was a flat hike... um. No. It was a steep hike, straight down a deep canyon. Yes, it was amazing to see the Native American ruins and watch the kiddos amazement as they learned about the way the Native Americans had lived right in the side of the mountain, but I'm pretty sure we took several years off my life in the process. I am deathly afraid of heights and my legs were legitimately shaking in fear the entire time we hiked. In fact, Sunday morning I woke up with some intense leg pain from how severely they had been shaking for the several hours we spent in Walnut Canyon. It was beautiful, but I still cannot say it was worth the toll it took on my anxiety to do the hike.

After Walnut Canyon, we ate lunch and headed to the Lowell Observatory in hopes of taking a look through one of the huge telescopes. The Observatory was incredible. I was a huge astronomy nerd back in middle school and high school. At one point, I even attended a weekend long AstroCamp in Idyllwild, California. The Observatory was definitely my favourite part of the weekend. We spent a lot of time in a cool room where the kiddos got to be space cadets and learn about astronomy in ways that total appealed to them like video games and trivia questions. Then we headed up to the telescope and wouldn't you know it, while we were inside the Observatory, a bunch of clouds had rolled in which meant they didn't open up the large telescope. There was a smaller one we got to look through, but only Man Cub and Beebs got to actually see the moon. The rest of us just used the telescope to look at street signs and cars in the city below. But we still really enjoyed it and Man Cub especially thought the telescope was the greatest thing ever.

Our drive home was uneventful. We were all exhausted after our jam packed, whirlwind of a trip. We had such a great time and hope to be able to go back again soon... we've gotta give the Observatory another try! Hopefully without clouds next time.

California 2016 | Family Photos

For Christmas last year, we surprised our kiddos with one really big gift- a trip to California! Our trip ended up being broken into three parts- a few days at Disneyland by ourselves, a few days at Disneyland with Bruce's family, then a few days in San Diego with our wonderful friends from Bruce's police academy days. We had such a great time... the only problem with that is I am just dying to go back!

Bruce, the kiddos and I left for California Sunday after church. We drove straight to our hotel room, where we got ready for family photos. Surprisingly, it was Bruce's suggestion that we start our trip off this way. It was time to update our family picture and Bruce wanted to recreate our beach portrait from before Shark Bait was born. We decided that if we tried to take the photo the first day, then we wouldn't have to stress about it through the rest of the trip. Plus, if for some reason the weather was bad or the kiddos didn't cooperate, we'd have chance to try again the next weekend while in San Diego.

After scouting out locations online, we settled on Crystal Cove in Laguna Beach. It was a beautiful spot. The only downside was that we had to park quite far from the beach, so we had very little time with good lighting to get the photo. And the beach closed at sunset (it's a state park) so we had to hustle out of there once the photos were taken, so there wasn't much time to actually enjoy being there.

But! We were successful! We got a fantastic family photo that hangs as a 20x30 on the living room wall. And then we had dinner at Slaters, so it was pretty much an awesome way to start out the vacation.

San Francisco Whirlwind

The weekend before Thanksgiving, Shark Bait and I took a whirlwind trip to San Francisco to see my brother T. He was going to drive to Phoenix for Thanksgiving and wanted a road trip buddy. I LOVE road trips, so he flew me up to see him for 36 hours, then the Monday before Thanksgiving we made the 12, turned 17, hour drive to my house. 

The flight to SF was uneventful. Shark Bait was a dream travel partner, as always. We were both excited to land and see T and meet his new puppy, a 10 week old Newfie named Horatio. Horatio and Shark Bait became fast friends and spent a lot of time together in the back seat of T's car over the next few days. 

When we first arrived, T told me he was going to take me to my favourite place. Having never been to SF before, I wasn't quite sure what he meant, so I jokingly said "the temple!". He grinned and told me that yes, he was going to take me to see the Oakland temple. We went by his work first so he could show me around and we could get a picture of Shark Bait in the Hyrule Kingdom (aka- Link) room. We then went out for real ramen. I have always equated ramen to the 10 cent noodle packs you buy at the grocery store. I was pleasantly surprised to find that actual ramen is much tastier. Then it was time for the temple! Shark Bait and I wandered the grounds and enjoyed the beautiful view of the city below. We touched the Oakland temple and took a picture to show the other kiddos. We then went to Alameda for some Tuckers ice cream. Eggnog for T and butter pecan for me, after which we headed to T's apartment where he spoiled Shark Bait with pressies from his recent trip to England and we binge watched iZombie. 

Sunday morning T walked Shark Bait and I to church where I really enjoyed the Sacrament service I attended. One speaker in particular really struck a cord with me. He talked about the importance of discipleship and how it is often said that we are the average of the 5 people we spend the most time with. I completely expected him to say that we need to be spending enough time with Heavenly Father and Jesus to include Them in that average. Instead, he talked about surrounding ourselves with good people who help lift us up. Definitely an important concept, but what I took away from the talk was the importance of spending as much time as possible with my Heavenly Father and His Son, so that I can be as much like them as possible. 

After church, T showed me around town. He took me to see the Golden Gate Bridge (which Shark Bait slept through!) and we had Gorilla Barbecue for lunch. It was amazing. The best barbecue I've ever had, and I make some pretty darn good barbecue myself. I'm dying to eat there again. Then we drove along the coast a bit and stopped in Half Moon Bay to watch the sun begin to set. We ran a couple of errands on the way home to be sure we were ready to leave the next day, then ate pizza for dinner and watched... you got it, more iZombie. And Shark Bait continued to be his usual, happy self the entire time. Especially when I let him sit up like a big boy in his stroller. 

Monday morning we set out on our epic road trip.  We said goodbye to T's cute street with all it's historic houses and got the boys comfy in the back seat. The drive should typically take about 12 hours, but we stretched it out to a nice 17. We stopped about an hour out and had lunch with some old friends of mine who had moved home to the Bay Area after living in Phoenix for several years for school. It was so nice to catch up with them a bit. Then we hit the LA traffic and stopped for dinner in Pasadena. Never mind all the stops for Horatio to go potty or Shark Bait to eat. Lesson learned- driving with a new puppy and a small infant really adds to the travel time! But regardless of all the stops, we had a great trip and I loved the chance to spend time with my brother and talk his ear off for 17 hours straight! I had an absolutely lovely visit with him and would do it again in a heart beat.

Shark Bait Says "Aloha"

Time to play catch up! Let's rewind to August. Shark Bait was five weeks old and it hardly seemed fair that the three oldest kiddos went to Hawaii and Shark Bait missed out, so we decided to correct that problem!

Ok- not exactly how things happened, but in August, Shark Bait and I did in fact make the trek to Hawaii. It was the second half of my 30th birthday present from Bruce. He brought my best friend KJ here to spend my birthday with me, then sent me to KJ for her 30th birthday. When this gift was originally planned, KJ was living in the Pacific Northwest, but 2 weeks after Shark Bait's birth, she left the mainland for Hawaii so her husband can attend pharmacy school on the Big Island. When this new adventure began to unfold for KJ and her family, I kind of figured the second half of my birthday gift would be a no go. I love being wrong in situations like this!

On August 19th, which just happened to be KJ's 10th wedding anniversary, Shark Bait and I set out early in the morning to begin a day of travel. Our first flight was 6 hours, from Phoenix to O'ahu. I tend to be a nervous traveler anyway, but adding a 5 week old baby to the mix made me even more nervous. Luckily, my worrying was in vain. Shark Bait is my super calm baby and flying for 6 hours didn't change that one bit. He slept for all but 30 minutes of the first flight. And the 30 minutes he was awake consisted of him staring at his mama and nursing. After a short layover in O'ahu, we boarded our second plane, headed for Hilo. That flight was only about 45 minutes and once again, Shark Bait slept the entire time. Travel success!

We arrived mid afternoon Hawaii time and KJ and her boys picked us up from the airport. After driving through Panda Express because I was starving, we decided to start my Hawaii stay by stopping to see Rainbow Falls. My first Hawaiian waterfall. It was so so beautiful.

We then drove to KJ's beautiful new home. It sits at the front of 27 acres of rainforest. This made for some crazy mosquitos but oh. my. goodness. It is gorgeous. Her house is adorable and has so much character. (Haha! I hate that word- so overused on my favourite HGTV shows, but it's true. Her house rocks) We spent the afternoon hanging out and catching up on all that had happened in the four weeks since we had seen each other last. We also ran to the church for about an hour that evening so KJ could attend her first Relief Society activity with her new ward.

The mauka view from KJ's house

Thursday our Hawaiian adventure officially began. The morning started with getting KJ's boys through their homeschool work before packing up and heading to the Kapoho Sea Pools. They were amazing. Situated amongst large lava rocks, these giant tide pools house beautiful coral and fish and it was just incredible. The downside is that there was no sandy beach for Shark Bait to lay on, but the mom-gyver in me pulled through and I rigged a fancy little lounging spot for him. Then Sean stayed with the kiddos and KJ and I headed out to snorkel. I loved snorkeling in O'ahu and this was right on par. Beautiful fish, amazing coral, warm salt water and black lava beach. I wish I could put into words just how incredible it was.

This is the photo that pops up on my phone anytime KJ calls. She needs to call me more often! It makes me so happy every time I see it! 

Our drive home was a slow one, only because we stopped about a dozen times along the way to "ooh and aah" over the incredible scenery. We snapped a picture in front of a papaya grove, we stopped to pick and eat strawberry guava (one of my new favourite fruits) and we enjoyed a sprinkle of rain that created a beautiful Hawaiian rainbow. Our final stop before heading home was at a shave ice shop so I could introduce KJ and her boys to one of my favourite Hawaiian treats. The shave ice were gigantic. We probably could have (and should have!) all shared one. They were amazingly delicious and I am still kicking myself for only eating one the whole time I was there.

Eventually, we arrived back at KJs place and I sent her and Sean out on a date to celebrate their 10th anniversary while I stayed with the boys. The younger two went to bed and I taught the older boys to play Sushi Go- a Wayne family favourite. I also binged on some of my favourite Hawaiian treats- Sweet Maui Onion potato chips and Pass-O-Guava drink. Obviously, healthy eating was a top priority while I was there! Ü

Thursday was a jam packed day of fun, but we somehow managed to fit even more into Friday. We started the day by driving across the island to Kona. KJ and I were able to go do some work in the Kona Temple and Shark Bait got to touch his first temple, in Hawaii of all places.

After the temple, KJ bought malasadas from a road side stand. Now, I'd heard of malasadas before we went to O'ahu in March so I made sure to try one there... it was not good. I definitely did not get what the hype was all about. But these malasadas, made fresh at the road side stand... they were AMAZING. I get it now. And I wish we'd bought more. Like I said- healthy eating.

We chowed down on our malasadas as we headed to South Point. Kind of self explanatory, but it is the southern most point of the United States and it was super, super windy. Sean jumped off 30 foot cliffs into the sea below, while I stayed as far away from the edge as I possibly could.

Next on our "to see" list- Papakolea Beach, also known Mahana Beach or Green Sands. Just getting to this beach was quite the adventure. It took us 45 minutes to drive 3 miles due to the extreme terrain. It felt a lot like riding Indiana Jones at Disneyland. Once there, we then had to hike down a rather steep cliff with natural stone steps. But the effort was worth it. Once we had done our part, we were able to enjoy the wonder of one of just a handful of green sand beaches in the world, made up of the mineral olivine. They ask you not to take the sand home due to it being a very small beach containing a finite amount of this amazing sand. Despite having a collection of sand at home from the various beaches I have visited, I honoured the request. But, when we arrived home, we found that KJ's 3 year old had accidentally brought home a good amount of sand in the pockets of his shorts from rolling around on the beach. KJ was kind enough to let me keep the sand to add to my collection.

Luckily, the 45 minute drive was filled with more amazing Hawaiian scenery

After Green Sand, we headed to Punalu'u, a black sand beach known for it's abundance of sea turtles. We got there just as the sun was setting which made for a beautiful view but not great pictures.

We had planned on Punalu'u being our last stop of the day, but as we drove by the volcano Kilauea. We figured we might as well stop. We'd seen pretty much every other natural wonder of the island already! It was super cool to see the lava and steam against the black night sky. As we headed home from our day of amazing sights, I couldn't help but feel blessed to have seen so many of God's masterpieces in one day.

Saturday was the big day I had flown in for- KJ's 30th birthday! It was insanely hot, but we spent the morning at the Hilo Farmer's Market where I bought KJ her first spam musubi. It wasn't quite as good as the one I had when we were on O'ahu but it was still tasty. You know, for being made with spam. Ü KJ and I also split an amazing Pad Thai from a food truck near the farmer's market and I did all my souvenir shopping, picking up some adorable dresses for the girls and Shark Bait's first Hawaiian outfit. (Man Cub's souvenir was a tiki man that I bought later in the day. He LOVES it. It sits on the shelf in his room and he calls it his tiki monster)

I bought my brother and Shark Bait matching Hawaiian attire Ü

After the market, we went to Coconut Island followed by another black sand beach in Hilo called Richardson's Beach. It was crowded but we still had a blast. KJ and I got to snorkel some more which I loved. It wasn't nearly as stunning as the sea pools from earlier in the trip, but we still saw some beautiful fish and had a lot of fun.

We wore the kids out, then dropped KJ's boys and husband off at home before heading out for KJ's birthday dinner. We found a great little sushi restaurant and ate an insane amount of food while Shark Bait slept on the bench beside me. We finished off the meal with mochi ice cream which I had heard a lot about but never tried during our March trip. I can't say I was overly impressed, but at least now I can say I've had it.

Sunday was my last full day on the island. We started the day with church which was a fun experience! Several weeks earlier, KJ had been asked to speak in church on the 23rd, which was the week I would be there. Well, the week before I arrived, they told her that they were switching her talk to the 30th. Well, we arrived at church and I just happened to glance at the program and found KJ's name there as the concluding speaker. I told her I had some bad news and we immediately went into work mode. The topic was "Seeking Our Ancestors", a topic near and dear to KJ's heart. And luckily, she had pondered the topic already, just hadn't written it all down. We threw together some bullet points and gathered some quotes and scriptures and she rocked it. I was seriously proud as I sat in the audience and listened to her speak. No one had any idea she had pulled it together at the last minute and multiple people from the ward wanted to talk to her about the things she had said afterwards.

Other than KJ rocking her talk last minute, my favourite part of church was when I was given a beautiful lei in Relief Society. It is made of paper flower cut outs and beads and I was able to carefully bring it back home with me. It makes me smile every time I see it! They definitely made me feel welcome in the ward, even if I am a haole. Ü

We both rocked our {frizzy} curls the whole time I was there. The humidity basically gave us no other option.

Sunday afternoon I snapped a few family pics for KJ then Sean cooked chicken and dumplings for dinner and I made KJ a birthday cake. Nothing fancy, just a Texas sheet cake, but it was incredible. It seriously tasted amazing. I also got to try all sorts of fun things like a white pineapple and apple bananas and Sean found me a huge fresh coconut to drink. Definitely one of the best Sunday dinners I've ever had!

Monday morning we dropped Sean off for his first day of pharmacy school and then headed to the airport. It was raining cats and dogs and all the flights were delayed. I was a nervous wreck. By some miracle, I was able to get onto an earlier flight to O'ahu which happened to leave at the same time as my original flight was suppose to, so I didn't miss my connection back to the mainland. Shark Bait was a dream on the flights home. He slept peacefully for most of the travels and when he wasn't sleeping, he was grinning at me.

We arrived back in Phoenix around 10pm and got home around 11:30- just in time for me to snap Shark Bait's 6 week picture. We were mostly happy to be home. Ü I was glad to see Bruce and the other wee ones but sad to have left paradise and my best friend behind. It was a little hard to sleep on Monday night without the chorus of mynah birds, coqui frogs and the pitter patter of rain to put me to sleep, but somehow I managed. It truly was a magnificent way to celebrate both my and KJ's 30th birthdays. It's going to be hard to top this year when we turn 40!