we spent the first two weeks of 2015 on the beach in maui. a welcomed with open arms change from the three feet of snow we left behind us. if you've known me for more than five minutes, you know that i love fall + winter. chill in the air, boots on my feet, scarves + hats, warm hugs + on and on. this still rings true for the most part. fall, i love you. winter though? please snow from halloween until new years day + then be spring. my love of winter changed when abel turned toddler + being cooped up inside with a little explorer just isn't our bag of chips anymore. i mean, how many times can we watch frozen in a day? (no hate) :)
so hawaii called + promised sandy feet, sunshine + lots of time with loved ones... hawaii delivered.
during my dad's last year with us, he + my mom were blessed to go on an anniversary trip to hawaii. my dad had always dreamed of traveling + is hawaii NOT on anyone's list? my dad fell in love. when they returned home he "window shopped" real estate + magazines, and went on and on about how beautiful it was there + how he imagined it must be what Heaven looks like. one of the things he loved most about it was the whale watching, and he told my mom that if the time came, he'd like some of his ashes to be spread there with the whales.
devastatingly, he did leave this earth for heaven later that year + since then, our family was blessed + given this trip by dear dear friends who loved my dad, so that together we could fulfill his wishes.
we ziplined, whale watched + saw the islands from a helicopter. stayed up late after the littles were asleep + fell asleep to the waves crashing on the hawaiian shore... you know, all the stuff the most wonderful vacations are made of.
never have i had so many daiquiris in a two week period + like most vacations for me... i came back as a sunshine + summertime loving carbohydrate. because well...
breakfast: french toast
lunch: fish tacos
dinner: hula pie
& repeat.
It was an incredible trip, and we're so thankful to have spent this time with our big family + all of the little families within it. there is something so special about a get-away. all those little moments that happen in the cracks that would never happen in regular life. we cried, we laughed hard, we're still getting the sand out of our diaper bag! we saw our babies on the beach for the first time + that alone was a glimpse of Heaven. our time in hawaii felt like a much needed deep breath, a perfect start to a new year, a new chapter.
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