ALOHA!

In March Brian and I were able to go to Hawaii on an adult trip with his parents, sister and brother-in-law, and his brother and sister-in-law. We went to Maui for 7 nights and then Oahu for 1 night. It was SOOO much fun and it was nice to have some adult time (although I did miss my children a TON). The weather was wonderful and the island was gorgeous. I think I could definitely live there at least for a couple years. Here is a little bit about our trip.

We arrived in Maui and hit up the local Costco to stock up on some goods. We then headed to the condo in Kihei. We immediately headed to start booking our excursions. And this is when the fun began. The things we enjoyed:

Body boarding- This seemed to be the hit with everyone (well maybe not my mother-in-law after she took a good spill). Brian and Isaac couldn't seem to get enough of it. They would laugh and giggle like little kids playing in the water. It was super fun though. The only downside is the amount of sand that ends up in your swimsuit. I think I was still cleaning out sand this summer from my swimsuit.

Whale watching-it was the perfect time of year for this. We didn't even pay to go watch any but we saw plenty from the beach. One day we were out body boarding and got to see a mother and baby about 100 feet out from the beach playing. The baby was putting on a show for us and the kayaks that were right next to it. It was awesome. Those animals are amazing.

The Road to HANA- So I would say that we enjoyed about the first and last hour of this drive but not so much the 6 hours in between. We were told to take this trip to Hana because it was so beautiful and don't get me wrong it was gorgeous but the crazy winding roads were too much for me. And then it is talked up about Hana is such a wonderful place and I swear there were only like 2 buildings there. I am still wondering why it is that everyone likes Hana. One thing that was amazing about this trip was the 7 pools. This is a fresh waterfall that spills down into 7 different "pools" which eventually spill into the ocean when there is enough run off. There was only a couple of pools full when we were there because there wasn't much runoff but it was beautiful. The Road to Hana was a good experience but I don't think I will ever need to experience it again.
Luau- Who can go to Hawaii without experiencing a real Hawaii Luau? We went to one in Lahiana. It was a lot of fun and the food was so DELICIOUS!!! I definitely think that I could go to one of these everytime I go to Hawaii. The fire throwing and knives were amazing. It was really cool to watch. And those Hula dancers can shake their hips. I didn't know that it was possible to move like that.
The aquariam- we visited an aquariam on the island. It was a lot of fun and interesting to see the different sea life that we don't have around here.
Pearl Harbor- Our main reason for visiting Oahu was to go to Pearl Harbor. That is why we were only there for a night. And that was definitely enough for me in Honolulu. Pearl Harbor was so amazing to visit. It was very breathtaking to see the monument and read the names of all of those killed there. One of my favorite things to do here was to read the little stories about individual people that they had around the grounds. These stories really made me realize how many different people were affected by this invasion. Another thing I found interesting is that even though it was so long ago that the USS Arizona went down you could still see oil bubbling up from the ship. I was very glad that we took the time to visit Pearl Harbor. It was a very touching experience.

One other thing Brian and I got to do was go out to dinner with my cousin Katrina and her family while we were in Honolulu. They live on the northern side of Oahu and made the drive to Honolulu to come visit and have dinner with us. It was so much fun and their girls are so adorable. Thanks guys!

This is was a wonderful trip and I am hoping to go back soon. I think that I could make it a yearly vacation. Maybe next time we will take the kids because I think they would love it too.

Go TEAM BLACK!

My kids get a lot of playtime with Daddy during the basketball season. There is at least one night a week that I am gone late and they get to enjoy the evening with Brian. Usually it is pretty uneventful fun like: video games, movies, eating out, etc. There was one night I came home and found a big object made out of a box. It was pretty cute. I thought it was a boat but was corrected and told it was a bobsled. The boys had enjoyed a night with daddy watching the olympics and decided that they needed their own bobsled and snowboards. I am bummed now because I didn't get pictures of the snowboards but the kids wouldn't get off of them for days. Luckily Brian took some pictures of their fun adventures. Here is Team Black!!!

Happy Birthday Cooper!

Where have the past 2 years gone? I cannot believe that my baby is already 2. He is such a joy to have around (most of the time), and we wouldn't trade him for anything. Some moments he is onery as ever but then he can be the sweetest little man.

Things to remember about Cooper being 2:

• loves to sing-favorite songs ABC's, Popcorn popping, Caillou song
• would eat cereal all day long if I let him
• loves to take baths
• can operate my Iphone
• likes to cook and help mommy in the kitchen
• Caillou is his favorite TV show
• has to do anything his brother are doing
• loves CHOO-CHOO's (trains)

This is just a glimpse of his doings. He is such an active little guy and is becoming such a talker. His favorite line is "just one more time" as he holds up one finger. Cooper we love you and couldn't imagine life without you in our family. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Playing with one of his birthday puzzles

He couldn't seem to get enough of these Elmo hands. He just thought he was so funny.

SLACKER ALERT!

Okay I admit that I have been a major slacker with our blog. Well hopefully I can catch up so continue to read because there are a few new posts.

Sledding Fun!

So sure enough we leave to Montana to enjoy the snow and we come home to find that we got our own. We got dumped on New Years Eve so the next day I told the boys that I would take them sledding. They got some sleds for christmas from Grandpa and Grandma Black and have been dying to use them. So I finally took them. The good thing about sledding for us is all we have to do it go to Grandpa and Grandma Black's house because they have a big hill for a backyard. The boys loved it. Even Cooper had a lot of fun and couldn't wait till he could go down again.


After enjoying sometime sledding we started making a snowman. One snowman turned into 2 and then 3. I said it looked like one for each kid. It was a lot of fun and the kids had fun decorating the snowmen with Grandma's stash of buttons. Who said that button's only belong down the front of frosty's jacket. These buttons became like confetti on the snowmen. It was a fun day though and the kids were exhausted when we got home. Needless to say they slept super good that night. Thanks Grandpa and Grandma for the fun day in the snow.

Ethan flying down the hill

Cooper before the fall enjoying himself
Cooper after the fall, still enjoying himself

Cody full of smiles


The boys with their snowmen that Grandpa and Grandma helped them make. Look at all those buttons.

Montana fun

This trip was a spur of the moment fun time for me and the boys. My sister lives in Montana and we haven't seen each other since August. She wasn't able to come home and be with us for Thanksgiving and talked about wanting to come home for Christmas but once again couldn't. So I decided that I would go to her. The week after christmas Brian was working nights and we don't get to see him much when he is on nights so the boys and I decided that we would go spend a few days in Montana. I am glad that we were able to go. The boys did great traveling and the roads were good so it was a wonderful traveling experience for us. I got to visit my sister at her "funny farm" as I call it. You would probably think the same thing. They have 40 something chickens, a couple of roosters, a pig, 2 rabbits, and 2 dogs. It definitely keeps them busy. My kids got to take part in the daily chores of a farm. They helped with collecting eggs, feeding the pig, and getting water for the rabbits. Cody was even super excited because he got to hold a chicken. The funny part about it was that my sister told him the only way he could hold it was if he could catch it and sure enough he caught one to hold it. It is a lot of work to make that place function. I admire her for everything she does. Oh and she has a wood burning stove in the house that she has to keep going day and night if they want to stay warm. It kind of felt like I was living on the show Little House on the Prairie. It sure was a lot of fun though.

Another thing the kids enjoyed was the snow. We have had snow this year but it hasn't stuck around for any amount of time. So they were happy to see snow on the ground and actually be able to play in it and go sledding. We had a lot of fun and I am glad that we were able to go. Although I sure was glad to come home to my home with central heat and for the fact that I didn't have to go gather any wood.

Nelson, Cody and McKenzie

Their Go-cart. My boys couldn't get enough of riding in this.

Cooper, my sister Krystal, and McKenzie. Cooper never wanted off the 4-wheeler. In fact he even fell asleep at one point while riding it.

Nelson, Cody and Ethan loving sledding

Christmas with the Black Family

This year we spent Christmas with the Black side. It was a lot of fun as always. We went to church with Brian's parents on christmas eve and then went up and had junk food and opened presents. It was a late night but it made for a good chirstmas morning because we got to sleep in until 9:30am. Woohoo! We spent christmas morning at home playing with new toys and destroying our house. Then we went and ate dinner with Brian's family. We had a wonderful christmas and the boys enjoyed every moment.

Our attempt at a family picture

Grandma Black's new baby she got for christmas