Sleepers

My children love to sleep.
If I haven't put them to bed properly, they will fall asleep on the floor sometimes.

First is a photo of Asher asleep in the hall right next to the kitchen at Nate and Sandrines house (in MI, where we were just visiting). Next is Finn asleep on my bedroom floor at 9:30 AM, while I took a shower.

(I love how they're both wearing their shoes, silly kids).

I just found this third photo in my file of phone pics. It was taken in November of 07. It looks like Jaxon fell asleep on the kitchen floor, which means he wasn't the only one that was losing sleep when Finn was a newborn.

October Laughs

The next in the series of funny things my kids said over the month of October. Not too many entries this month because we were in Disneyland, then Mark and I exchanged being out of town for a while.
You can find the previous entries here and here.

6th: While gesturing wildly with his hands Jaxon proclaims, "Did you know the more I learn, the more my brain grows? Right now it's as big as a house!"

That same night Jaxon grows despondent and laments, "There's never a superhero in Arizona." (sigh)

7th: Speaking about salt water taffy Jaxon explains, "That's another word for nuts. It's another word in French."

9th: I went to help in Jaxon's class and like last year, he was delighted that I came. The teacher introduced me as Mrs. Steed and Jaxon loudly finishes her sentence, "But you can call her Jessica." Then Jaxon and I walk to the library hand in hand and he says, "Bend down so I can kiss you." So I did and got a wet one right on the cheek.

Also that day, Finn broke a ceramic pumpkin made by Jaxon's little neighbor friend. Jaxon was heartbroken. To help him feel better, we suggested he write an apology note explaining what happened, I began to dictate the note. Jaxon interupts me, "Boring!" It was so not boring. That little greivance.

Throughout the month Asher repeatedly puts his thumb on my chin, pushes down then stares in my mouth. "Looks very strong," he says then shuts my mouth. He does this over and over again. (If this is from movie, please tell me. I have no idea where he got this from)

21st: Asher requests oatmeal at 2 PM. I say no because it's not mealtime. He protests by taking the lid off the container of oats and putting it down his pants.

22nd: I ask Jaxon to eat some salad. After one bite he yells, "The lettuce is horrible! I can't feel my tongue!"

26th: At dinner Jaxon says, "Boy, Asher was really hungry, he ate 3 loaves of corn. I hope he doesn't eat 5 or 6 because that would make him sick."

30th: Asher comes out of his room at bedtime and uses a new stalling tactic. He throws his arms in the air and proclaims, "I'm going to fly to Mexico!" The beginning is a bit garbled, but he was definitely talking about flying to Mexico.

Finn's Day

Today is Finn's birthday and we did a little food craft for lunch, inspired by Jaxon's book in the photo. It's called Buggy Apples, and it's just apples with raisins (attached with peanut butter) and a grape for a head. The kids loved it.

I also got them to all smile at the same time (miracle!) by copying Jaxon. He puts his finger next to his head and says, "Dwoing!" The kids giggle hysterically.

This new secret is great news because we have a family photo session coming up.

Morning Trauma

When we bought our Dodge Grand Caravan nearly 4 years ago it came equipped with automatic sliding side doors. I knew someday those doors would close on little hands, but I didn't imagine I'd have to wait so long for that to happen. (Not that the doors haven't caused severe trauma already, like when Asher split his forehead open on one).

Today while I was trying to convince Asher to attend preschool Finn shut his finger in the van door. I was in the office and could hear Ella fussing, but couldn't hear Finn until I was in the living room.

I have no idea how long he was standing there, with his finger pinched, but it was so sad. We both cried. His little pinkie was red and purple, and bleeding a little bit.

Then we couldn't find his bear.
Then Asher wouldn't go to preschool.
Then Ella had a HUGE blowout in her diaper and required a bath. (These were size 1 diapers and with her pudgy bottom I found that size 3 diapers fit her perfectly).

We're all settled down, but what a morning.

Cost Saving Measures Gone Too Far

Today I drove 20 min to the Mesa Gateway Airport (aka the Williamsfield airport) to a terminal that's half the size of an elementary school with half a dozen cars outside and four people inside, including the one guy behind the ticket counter.

I did this in an effort to save money because buying tickets online or by phone incurs a $14 fee. The ticket buying went fine, although I had to pay $40 extra for 4 of the tickets because there was only one left at the $39 rate. This still was much cheaper than buying the tickets through a regular carrier, instead of Allegiant Air a regional carrier.

It looks as though the nice man at the ticket counter forgot to give me back my credit card, and I've tried to find out if I left it there without having to go back (I was babysitting my niece today).

But, apparently Allegiant Air is so good at cost cutting, that they don't actually have a phone at the ticket counter.
Below is the unedited response to the email I sent to the company requesting information about my lost card.

Hello,

Thank you for contacting us at Allegiant Air. Unfortunately we do not have a phone number for the ticket counter. I would recommend going back to the counter.

Thank you,

Jennifer M.

Is this not a sign that cost cutting has gone too far?

Must I really go down to the airport, wait in line for another 20 min and ask if they have my card?

And if they do, shouldn't they have called me?

The Pet Curse

You may remember that not quite two months ago we got a new pet, Figaro, the fish. (Because I killed the pet mice, right?)

In case you'd forgotten, here are some photos, snapped the day we bought that cute little Betta fish.

That I killed.

Yes, I did it again, folks. I broke my little 7 year old's heart.

But I refuse to take all of the blame. Mark planned this surprise vacation and did not plan a place for Figaro. So, he asked me what to do with her, and I said she'd be fine for 4 days. I mean, I have a friend who tried for a MONTH to kill her Betta fish. Another friend didn't feed hers for a month and it finally died. So 4 days doesn't seem like such a big deal, right?

I was wrong.

When we came home, she was NOT swimming in her bowl. The water was murky and smelly.

Jaxon started crying and (this is the worst part) told me that maybe Figaro was like an iguana, it could change it's color to match it's background, so he was still there swimming around, but he just blended in with the shells and plants.

That's when I started crying. Then I told Jaxon we were going right now to buy a new fish. He perked up at that news.

Why am I the worst pet person in the world?

Or, perhaps the better question is why do I have a child that LOVES pets where I barely tolerate them? (This is where I tell you that Jaxon would sing lullabies to Figaro and kiss his bowl goodnight).

When Mark cleaned out the bowl and found half of Figaro in one of the shells at the bottom.

The new fish's name is Herman.

We'll see if he can last more than 2 months.


If not, maybe we need something a little more robust, like a cat or dog.

Disneyland Trip

We had a bunch of fun at Disneyland and California Adventure.

Here's a link to our Facebook photo album (only 29 photos this time, and with captions!).
If that doesn't work, check out my profile.

We had a good time and stayed in a wonderful house (I'm not sure I can sleep in my own bed again).
Mark is the best for planning this for us. We love you!

Galactic Greetings!

Galactic Greetings Space Ranger,

You have received an intergalactic transmission from a friend who has just completed a mission on the new Buzz Lightyear Astro Blaster interactive experience at Disneyland® Park in California.

To Infinity and Beyond!

http://www.disneyland.com/Buzz

Unfortunately, the kids were too short to be in the photos. I'll post pics of them soon, but these were just emailed to us! Cool, eh?

We're having a great time and wish you (our friends and family) were here!

The real surprise is that my mom and brother are coming too. Now the adults outnumber the kids. Sweet!

Disneyland, Here We Come!

Yep, Jaxon marched into our room with a paper that said Disneyland and his name on it.

He asked if Daddy put it under his pillow to which Mark replied, "No, it must have been the Disneyland fairies."

Seriously? You don't want to take credit for this one?

We're excited! More on our trip after we return.

Baby Finn at Exponent

This post is probably more suitable here at the family blog than it is at The Exponent, and yet I put it up there anyway for some diversity.

Enjoy!

Surprise Vacation!

Thursday morning our family will leave for our first surprise vacation!

Yep, Mark's been planning this weekend getaway since April and only Finn knows where we're going (and he's not telling anyone).

I must admit that I'm having a harder time with the not knowing than I would have expected. Although I knew I was a control freak, I didn't realize I was that much of a control freak.

Except when I watch Mark cook. That's the worst. I can't not give suggestions, "Honey, why don't you use that knife? Also, a cutting board works better than a paper towel. Why didn't you add all the veggies? Etc, etc."

So, it is with mixed delight and worry that I anticipate our climbing in the car Thursday A.M. with our bags packed (with what? you may ask) and head off to who knows where.

But, I promise I will tell you when I find out because.

Drumroll please. . .

I CAN NOW BLOG FROM MY CELL PHONE.

(Yes, don't be surprised if the world comes to an end before Thursday, it is THAT amazing. And if not, I will blog the location of our surprise vacation from the road. Woohoo!)

Camping and Pumpkinfest

Last weekend we got invited to go camping with some friends, the Curtises. They have two adorable boys, Asher (I know, another one!) and Luke. So we packed up our five boys ages 7, 4, 3, 2, 1 and drove up to Prescott at Lynx Lake and had a delightful time hiking, roasting hot dogs, making S'mores, and then hardly sleeping before packing up quickly in the rain. I recommend this campsite because it is seriously no more than 5 minutes from the main road in Prescott (4 minutes from Costco, I kid you not, I felt like I was home) oh, and it had flush toilets, BONUS!

Luckily, the AM rain cleared up and we spent the middle of the very windy day at Freeman Farms Pumpkin Festival. The kids loved the petting zoo, the hay ride, the corn maze, and the pumpkin patch, but mostly the train ride. We managed to take that train twice, actually.

Here's a little movie I put together of some of our pictures!
The song is James Taylor's October Road, which I thought quite fitting.




Also, if you're getting this off your reader, I just brought Autumn to the Waves of Life! Check out our new theme and masthead.

September Laughs

Here's the second installment of the funny things our kids said this month (at least the ones we wrote down). The first is here.

6th: Mark poured milk into an upside down mug. Awesome.

15th: Jaxon's snacking on pretzels and Nutella after school and remarks, "I think when I become a dad, I'll teach my kids how to make this."

16th: When discussing something that is brown, Jaxon says, "French is another word for brown. Vegetarians know that."

17th: This is the first time I notice this language from Asher, but it became more prominent all month, showing up nearly every time he was disinclined to participate in anything.

Me: Asher, come eat your dinner!
Asher: NEVER!

19th: We're watching Coraline as a family (please do NOT show this to your children before you watch it first).
Jaxon is in the fetal position, scared and says, "I'm telling you, my knees are getting freaked out!"

19th: Asher interrupts Mark with, "Stop, I'm talking to Thomas (his train)."

25th: Jaxon and Mark go to the Diamondbacks game. When they come home Jaxon tells me, "You should have been there, they moved the roof like MAGIC, and we were on the BIG SCREEN!" (hooray for daddies, little boys, and baseball games)

27th: Jaxon responds politely at breakfast, "Tea would be lovely, Mom. Thanks." Then a few minutes later, "I love you more than life itself." (At this point he can't explain to me what it means, but he saw it on a movie.)

But the best line for this day was when I tried to discourage him from eating an apple. He had the stomach flu the night before and I told him that apples make me sick when I eat them on an upset stomach.

To this advice Jaxon responds, "Apples won't make me sick. That only happens in adults. God told me that before he made me."

28th: I made a new track on the train table (which I do nearly every day three times because Finn gets mad at Asher for something and promptly throws the track all over the room).
Jaxon sees the new track, runs into thank me with this, "Mom, your new track looks FAGNIFICENT!" (This word is now famous in our home, a stellar combination of fantastsic and magnificent. I invite you to use it as often as you like.)

29th: Asher and Finn have been coming out of their room again and again after I put them to bed. So, imagine my surprise to hear Asher tattling on his little brother by saying, "Uh, Honey, Finley's getting out of his bed."

Triple Bunks and Family Fun

So here are the kids asleep in their triple bunks. Aren't they cute?

A few weeks ago we had a nice rainstorm that came in and cooled us down a little bit.

We went out and played in the nice (80+ degree) weather. It made us all giddy.

Finn gave me a kiss, isn't that sweet?./

Happy little Tadpole!

We gave Finn a headstart on our race. He's just a blur, isn't he?

Karate and Discipline

Jaxon's just started karate. Yep, we gave in to the sales pitch and signed him up for a YEAR.

I know it's a long commitment, but he seemed to be doing really well with the teacher. Master Preston (first name Shannon), is a nice man who is good with kids. He focuses on discipline (obeying the first time) and doesn't let Jaxon get away with anything. Because Jaxon is really interested in succeeding, this has been a good approach. We've used this discipline focus at home to help Jaxon realize when he's obeying the first time, and working towards more of that.

Funny story, when Jaxon was a few months old we babysat for Mark's family friend, a professor at BYU. They had six kids and we watched them for the weekend. It was a little stressful for us, what with being new parents and everything (also, I think they paid us $50 or something).

But the craziest part was the militaristic style of parenting these kids were raised with. They would repeat as a group, like the Von Trapps, "WE OBEY THE FIRST TIME, EVERY TIME, ALL THE TIME." It was a little creepy and Mark and I decided that we didn't want our kids to be raised like that.

Well, here we are six years later. My kids are climbing the walls, getting written up at the gym (yep, it's the one-year-old), and pretty much NEVER listening to their parents.

What I wouldn't give for a little bit of the Von Trapp family now . . .

Dancing

Right now, I have bruises on my knee, on the tops of my feet, and on my right hip. And I'm extremely happy about it.

I just got finished teaching my first DANCE CLASS. EVER.

I'm euphoric!

A few months ago I rediscovered my love of dancing. I started taking my ipod to the gym and dancing in the empty group fitness room. I leap, cartwheel, swing, and cha-cha my little heart out. By the time I look up, an hour has passed (That does not happen for me on the treadmill, the eliptical, or even the fitness classes).

So I decided to take my dancing to the next level by finding a class. As luck would have it, Leslie's friend just started attending an adult evening dance class, a co-op actually. All the dancers take turns teaching, so the class is free.

The first class was a nightmare. I felt like I was surrounded by Cougarettes, women who represented thousands of dollars of their parents money invested in their dance training. I don't have any real dance training. I never took ballet, or tap, or jazz, or hip-hop, or anything. I can't do my splits or fancy leaps. But mostly, and this is the biggest problem, I can't remember the combinations and repeat them. I could probably learn a dance fine if I had twice as long to practice as the other girls.

But, each week I kept going, and each week I got a little better and felt a little less stupid. So, after week three I volunteered to teach a latin dance. Ballroom, specifically latin, is the only dance training I have. I took seven ballroom classes at BYU and tried out for the team three times. I never made it, not even on the third practice team. Not my proudest moment.

And yet, I still love it. Latin ballroom is a different kind of dance than what we had been doing in class. Choreographing the dance took me lots of time and practice. It was difficult, and I knew it wasn't as challenging as the other dances had been.

I stressed out for two weeks over this dance. As I fell asleep at night I would review the combinations. There were days that I wanted to call and say I wasn't even going to come. I imagined the worst of everything. But, I kept telling myself that this is something I love, something I've always wanted to do, and even if it was hard, no, especially because it was hard that I was going to do it. I imagined myself confident and happy and it worked! I wore my cute flippy skirt, my black tights, and my ballroom heels.

So, tonight I showed up to teach my dance. I wrote the sections of the dance on the mirror and as I taught all the sections some of the girls struggled. They weren't sure how to move their hips, how to get the latin part right. It was AWESOME to watch the girls learn and to watch us all dance together this routine that I MADE!

I felt like an artist.

Even more than that, by rediscovering my love of dance, I feel like a little piece of me has been missing and I've found it. That makes me so happy.

By the end of class we'd all had a great cardio workout, and I was sweaty and really happy. I love that adrenaline rush! Now if only I could change this half-marathon into some kind of dance competition . . .

P.S. I'm happy to teach this dance again if you have a group that wants to learn.

Happiness is Contagious

I just read this article in the New York Times about friends, social networks, and connectedness.

Two social scientist studied a group of friends over 4 decades and concluded that a lot of behaviors (smoking, obesity, happiness) are socially contagious.

The article is really long, but I thought it was well worth the time to read it.

What was most fascinating to me is that the behaviors are not just contagious to people you know, but to friends of friends, even three links away. If your husband's boss gets fat, you're more likely to get fat, too.

The other point I liked was that people who are in the middle of a social star (very connected) and not isolated, are more likely to be happy, and even when they're unhappy, they still stay connected. They're even hypothesizing that connectedness is somewhat genetic. Some people are just more likely to have lots of friends.

Oh, and that was another point. The more friends you have, the happier you are, because you have a greater chance to 'catch' happiness. So, for all of you wonderful friends out there, thanks for being a part of my happiness!

Kauai, As Promised

Why Don't I Live Here?
That was my first thought when stepping off the airplane in Lihue, Kauai. This place is amazing.

A few days ago I got the balance of photos from our Cousins' Kauai Trip.View from our lanai (porch)

Michelle, Allina, and I went to Kauai for 8 days at the end of July and I finally have all the photos, organized by activity into webalbums for your viewing pleasure.

Near the heart of Kauai.

I did not include the entire 2000+ shots, but there are probably many more than you are interested in looking at (except if you're either really interested or really bored).

If you want the sampler platter, here's the summary album first, which has photos from the entire trip.

(Drumroll please!)
Here's our trip by event:

Boogie Boarding Trip
We tried to boogie board a second time, even though it was pouring rain and freezing, but a guy on the beach advised against it because he had just rescued some foolhardy tourists. So, we decided against it. I would love to do it again, though.

Snorkeling
I could NOT believe how close the fish would swim to us and how many fish there were. Also, I found a $10 bill floating around in the water. I know, sweet! We snorkeled at Poi Pu and up north at Tunnels after our hike to the beach. It was amazing. At one point Michelle and I were surrounded by nearly 100 fish. It was like I was in a school of fish.

Hike to the Beach
The Napali Coast is only accessible by hiking, air, or boat. So we decided to hike down from the north to the beach. It was a 2-3 mile hike each way and it was pretty steep. We all love to exercise so we had a great time. I brought my music playing phone so we jammed out on our hike. What surprised me was how much I was sweating! Unlike Arizona, in Hawaii, when you sweat the water just stays on your skin until you feel like you stepped into a shower. When we got down to the beach, we played in the water. The ocean is warm, but the stream that runs from the mountains to the ocean was cool and refreshing. There was a native hippie-type woman on the beach with her 6 children (two breastfeeding) reading a book while her kids played in the waves. I was amazed because the signs everywhere said how dangerous the waves were, but her kids were good swimmers. They built an awesome sand castle so I took a photo. Watching her made me want to raise my kids on the beach in Hawaii.

Boat Tour of the Napali Coast
By far, my favorite part of the trip was our boat trip up the Napali Coast. We had VIP seats w/o paying VIP prices. We sat at the bow with our feet dangling near the water. The blue-green color of the water was absolutely unreal. I would love to do that again. We went in caves, under waterfalls, and got to snorkel and eat lunch on the boat. On the way back the water was choppy and the ride from the front was way better than a roller coaster. Disneyland has nothing on the Napali Coast!

Kayaking and Hike to Secret Falls
This trip was fun because we got to go to a local swimming hole, kayak around, hike over the river and through the woods, then see the most breathtaking waterfall. From my research (google, anyone?) it looks like it was 100 feet tall, but it seemed higher, especially when I was under it. In case you're wondering, I was the only cousin who was adventurous enough to swim under the falls. Totally thrilling.

Me under Secret Falls. It feels more like hail than rain!

Tour of Allerton Gardens
We heard from many people that these gardens were among the most beautiful in the world. And while we enjoyed our visit, I don't think I would go back. It was just under $50 and it took about 2 hrs to make it through (the tour guide was SUPER irritating, making canned jokes the whole time). I went hoping to photograph something especially beautiful to print on canvas for our wall as a souvenir for Mark, but he hasn't picked a photo yet. One really cool part about the Allerton Gardens is the trees that were used in the filming of Jurassic Park (also, did you know that Kauai has a film person in their goverment to cooridnate with all the people who want to shoot movies there?). Look for the unusual trees in the webalbum.


Kauai holds so many fun memories for me. I enjoyed myself tremendously, as I'm sure you'll see from the photos.
I recently talked my sister-in-law Katie into leaving her kids with us so she and her husband could go to Hawaii without children. I hope that she's glad because it would have been a lot harder (and sometimes impossible) for me to enjoy my trip with my small children. (But someday they'll be bigger then we can all go to Hawaii).

Anyway, for those of you who have never gone, I wish you could go. Unlike so many places I've been, Kauai was much better than I expected. The water was warmer, the sand was softer, the breeze was sweeter, and the air was less salty. :)

I loOoved it!

August Laughs

I'm starting a new set of posts where I list the funny things my kids have said during the month.

I remember them by writing them on that day on the calendar, and before I wipe it clean for the next month, I'll post it on my blog (hopefully with a funny photo, but I haven't been taking photos lately . . .)

Asher protests indignantly, "Get out of my little WAY!"

Also, when Asher makes a mistake and is reprimanded he interrupts with, "Don't talk to me that way!"

In the middle of his shower, Jaxon climbs out and peers around the door to see his brothers playing in the bathtub. When I ask him what he's doing he replies, "Just checkin' on my boys."

Jaxon says to Grandma and Grandpa, "I have the handsomest and prettiest daddy and mommy in the whole wide world!"

After tasting a chocolate covered raisins (a bit suspiciously) Jaxon loudly exclaims, "Congratulations! These are yummy!"

One morning while I'm trying to rush Jaxon off to school, I ask him to focus. He responds, "You make my brain not focus when I'm focusing!"

Finn, though he doesn't talk much, does make funny sounds all the time. Yesterday he was looking at a book and making a growling noise, then a squeaking noise. Mark wondered aloud, "Is that a dinosaur and a bird?" Sure enough, Mark looked at the book and on the page was a bird sitting on top of an alligator. Funny kid.

Finn wins the award for cutest saying this month. He adores his new cousin Ella, and when he sees her (or wants to see her he begs for, "Baby LaLa!"

Lastly, here is a video was taken during our family celebration of Jaxon's birthday in July.
It's Asher's first time jumping off the diving board by himself. Watch his hands twitch as he psychs himself up for the big jump.

The New Pet

Some of you may remember our disastrous mouse experience. We promised Jaxon a new pet months ago, but we finally got one that we (I) hopefully won't kill.
So, let me introduce our new Beta fish, Figaro. Jaxon named him from the pet fish in Pinnochio (which may actually be the pet cat, but that's okay).

Pardon my rant. . .

Asher's preschool teacher just called to ask if Asher is a boy or girl.

Really?

Now granted, she has never met him, but what kind of person thinks Asher is a girl name?

It's a tribe of Israel for heaven's sake.

Are you going to ask if Levi, Judah, or Benjamin are girl names?

Now, Finley I can understand. According to Baby Name Voyager, Finley is currently ranked higher for girls than for boys (although quite obscure for both, ranking 665 and 818 respectively). But, we call him Finn, or Finners, or Finny (although that's not very masculine, is it?).

But, Asher? It's just a boy name.

That's it.

Of course, why do I care? There's nothing wrong with girl names because there's nothing wrong with girls.
Yes, the feminist in me collides with the part of me who thinks people are stupid for not knowing that Asher is a boy name.

	His new smack. Tomatoes, cottage cheese, and sprinkles!

What Kind of Mother . . .

Thinks about buying triple bunks for her boys (two of whom have hemophilia?)

Me, I guess.

Oh, dear.

On Separation and Reunion

I took this photo on a hike to Secret Falls. I used my polarizing lens (thanks Nate and Sandrine) and it made the water look misty.

Last week's trip to Kauai was the first time I've ever left Mark and the kids for more than 2 or 3 days. My trip was wonderful and I hope to post more photos soon, but in the meantime, I want to reflect on what I learned about our marriage while I was gone.

In case you didn't know, I went to Kauai with my two single cousins and we spent most of our time hiking, snorkeling, and watching the waves from our lanai (porch). Through our many fabulous adventures, I learned to live in the moment, to enjoy each activity without worrying about what had just happened or what was next. Of course this was easier to do in paradise and without anyone to take care of except me, but it taught me a lesson about how much happier I felt when I was truly present.

In my absence, Mark spent time thinking about how it feels to be the one left behind, while his spouse was gone living in the moment. It was a good lesson for him and helped him realize how important it is to share experiences in marriage and to live life side-by-side. He spoke to me over the phone about how he was doing fine with taking care of the kids and the house, but that he really missed me. He knew I was doing things without him and he felt like a little piece of him was missing. From what he said, he came to understand that we both enjoy life more when we experience it together. I absolutely agreed.

Our reunion was sweet. Kisses, roses and squeals from Mark and the kids (though only the kids were squealing). At the risk of undermining his masculinity, Mark admitted to having butterflies in his stomach the night before I returned. I was pretty excited to see him, too.

The days that have followed have been better than I ever could have expected. It's like second honeymoon. Mark and I are more considerate, more loving, and much more in tune to each other. We both love it and hope that it continues for at least a few more weeks (we know it can't last forever).

So, in the end, I realized that instead of being entirely selfish, my trip to Kauai was the very best thing I could have done for my marriage. In each other's absence, we realized even more how much we loved each other. Not a bad realization to come home to.

Just Wait . . .

This is just a teaser, the best of my Kauai photos are still to come (mostly because my cousins took most of the photos of me and I don't have them yet.)

So, you'll have to settle for my sandy toes on the beach outside our condo at sunrise.

Ahh, it was heavenly.