Monday, December 21, 2020

Aloha! Maui, Hawaii!

Oh my the hoops we had to jump through to get to Hawaii during covid, but man was it worth it! We had the most amazing opportunity to go to Hawaii with one of our closest friends the Johnsons that we couldn't pass up! We weren't sure we going to make it with all the run around to get there due to the covid circumstance but we made it! Aloha! Best decision we have ever made! A. to actually leave town for a week and B. traveling with the Johnsons was amazing! They know how to travel and see it all! 
So I have collaged each day and will break it down by day in this post for our Maui Hawaii adventure! The top 2 collages are our flying collages! Penny has only flown once at the age of 3yr and Cash and Piper were infants and don't remember flying! So needless to say all 3 were excited to fly! We flew with the Johnsons which made it that much more fun to travel together! Same flight! Love it! The kids had a blast on the plane and did so good for the long flight too!
Day 1: We made it! We arrived in Maui, Hawaii and couldn't believe our eyes! The beauty of this Island had begun! Our first stop Costco of course! lol We stalked up on food and snacks for our condo for the week. 
As soon as we got to the condo we were staying at the kids jumped into their suits! The condo we stayed in overlooked the beach at walking distance! OMG!! We couldn't believe it! We hung at the beach! The kids were hyped! They found coconuts, giant crabs and starfish! After beach time we headed to dinner and had the best coconut crusted chicken! Yum!
Day 2: Beach Day! We went beach hopping! Stopped and played at 4 different beaches. Again I couldn't believe my eyes.! The water was turquoise! The sand was different at each beach! The beautiful rocks and trees! Every beach got better and better! 
The kids and Chad snorkeled at every stop! The played "tsunami"(their made up game) that is when a big wave takes you out! lol There were plenty of big waves crashing in and taking the kids out! So much fun! They loved it! 
The snorkeling was unreal! They were seeing turtles, octopus, eels, tons a species of fish, beautiful coral and star fish! I didn't even need to snorkel because you could see the fish from the shore line! One of the beaches in our beach hop had turtles come right up to you! I tried to capture a picture and you can see in the above collage. Unbelievable!
Had great lunch at Maui Taco! Then was off to hit up 1 more beach and see a blowhole!

Along the way to the blowhole we stopped off to see the most beautiful green trees! Again we couldn't believe our eyes. The beauty! The pictures don't do it justice! Absolutely breath taking! 
Last stop the blowhole! The kids had a blast hiking down into the blowhole area! The were getting sprayed with mist when it would shoot up! They loved it! After the blowhole we proceeded around that part of the island! It was sketchy with the one lane traffic! lol but what an adventure! The scenery is gorgeous!! WOW! Dinner we ate a Teriyaki Chicken place and of course Hawaiian shaved ice for dinner! We had that every night! lol
Day 3: Up early to hike! We went to the Lao Valley Park and hiked around! Again the most beautiful sights to see! The kids had a blast hiking around!
Beach time! After our early morning hike we relaxed on the beach! Oh how we loved the McKenna Beach! The waves were rough and wild! The best "tsunamis"  the kids would say! The sand was fine and would stick real good to you. In fact McKenna beach was so good to us that we are still getting the sand our of our hair! lol

Lunch we had the best Maui Pizza! and Hawaiian shaved ice! Both our favorite food stops!
After lunch we took a winding road to the top of a volcano and watch the sunset! The Haleakala Volcano! Unbelieved how beautiful it was! It was cold up there but so perfect! We were even above the clouds! The kids were in aw! An amazing night!
Day 4: Up early again! Road to Hana! 1st we stopped by a local beach and saw seals and giant turtles just right up on the beach! Again we couldn't believe our eyes! The kids were so excited! 
Then it was time! Road to Hana time! We downloaded the gypsy guide app that showed us around the entire road to Hana. A tour guide! You put the app on your Bluetooth to the car speaker and we felt like we were on the Disneyland jungle book cruise ride! lol The tour guide through the app tells you what your seeing, where to stop off and hike. and where to eat! This app is a must if you plan on going to Maui doing the road to Hana! Come to find out the Hana is actually a very small town up in the mountains. But what an adventure getting to it! So many beautiful sights to see along the way and we definitely stopped. Collage above we hiked in to see the Golden bamboo, the rainbow root trees and a waterfall! So amazing!
Then we stopped off and hiked a Lava Tube! The kids loved climbing through the cave! So cool! The lava looking like chocolate dripping! Amazing!
Next stop the Black Sand Beach! Yes black sand! Unbelievable! So gorgeous! 
The water at the black sand beach was pretty rough and wild! The kids loved it! The water is super turquoise against the black sand! Breath taking and so beautiful! 
Next stop the 7 sacred pools at the Waianapanapa State Park! We hiked in and it was amazing! We also saw waterfalls just pouring out and into the sacred pools! We had the best weather. It's rainy season in Hawaii in December and we didn't have 1 drop of rain all week! We got lucky with no rain! Then we was lunch time and we at the famous Braduhh Hut for the best chicken, pulled pork, rice, and macaroni salad! So yummy! We stopped into the cute little local stores in Hana too!
To finish the Road to Hana you must travel around the entire island! It get's wild! Its winds around up and down! Some parts are dirt road! Sharp turns with one way traffic! Such an adventure! We loved it! It was really neat to see parts of the island that are not green and lush! Yes the do have a dry side to the island! Crazy to think but we saw it! I had no idea! You driving right along side the ocean! It's unbelievable! What a great adventure! For dinner we ate at Maui Burger! and more Hawaiian shaved ice! :)
Day 5: Up early again! You must have a photoshoot with beautiful Hawaiian lays on! So we did! lol We just walked across the street from the condo we stayed in and had ourselves a little photo shoot! 



Love these beautiful kids of mine! We had a wonderful time all together as a family! They were troopers the whole week! We didn't stop! We were on the go, go, go! And they sure kept up perfectly! 
First stop the beach! More fun in the sun! More snorkeling for Chad and Jay! Penny found a tiny little star fish and her, Piper and Maddie made sand castles and used it for decoration! They are the cutest! 
Next was whale watching! Now this was an adventure! We got on a cruise type of boat and set sail to watch some whales! So much fun! The kids had a blast spotting the whales!! None of us got sea sick so that was a plus! 

After whale watching we were ready to eat! So we went to fancy dinner called Kimos! We sat ocean side and watched the sunset while we ate! The kids loved it! Chad and I were in Heaven! It was amazing! The food was out of this world too! After dinner we walked the boardwalk and shopped the little shops! What a way to end our amazing day and trip! 
Day 6: It was time to head home! We were so sad to leave paradise! We truly had the best week ever! We made the most of it every step of the way! This was a much needed trip for my honz! He never takes long periods of time off! Thanks honz for making happen! We created memories to last a lifetime! Our kids will forever talk about their trip to Maui! Me too! We did Maui, Hawaii! Saw and did everything! What a week to remember! We are already dreaming about going back!





 

Friday, December 18, 2020

Fun Day Trip to Phoenix!

So what do you do when you a need a rapid 24hr covid test to go on your Hawaiian vacation???? You drive down to Phoenix for the day and get it done! Wahoo! We had such a fun little adventure! We made a whole day out of being in Phoenix!  Such a blast! All of our results came back negative! Hawaii here we come! Can't believe it! 

 

Penny's 1st Piano Recital!

So proud of our Penny girl! She performed in her very 1st piano recital. It was a Christmas Recital! She has been begging for over a year to learn to play the piano and we finally got off Mrs. Andrea's waitlist! Yay! Penny loves learning to play the piano and absolutely loves Mrs. Andrea! She also takes voice lesson from Mrs. Andrea a well. We all know little Miss Penny loves to sing! She closed the Christmas Recital  killing it with Rocking around the Christmas Tree! She is so fun to watch perform! She really puts on the show!! Love her so much! Our little performing star! 

 

Thursday, December 3, 2020

Santa!!!

SANTA! In your Best Elf voice! lol Oh how we love to see Santa even if he's behind a plexi glass wearing a mask! lol A year to remember that's for dang sure! lol Definitely had to document seeing Santa in 2020! 
It was actually kind of nice having to book an appointment to actually see Santa because there was no one in the kid area what so ever. They got to play all the fun little games this year. Normally I don't let them play in the kid area because it is so packed with kids and adults everywhere. You can't even get around in that area of  Bass pro with all the people. Today we walked in had the whole area to ourselves played and left. So nice! The kids had a blast!!! 
Love this time of year!! Just checking Christmas traditions off left an right! lol

 

Gingerbread House Fun!

Keeping our traditions alive!! Making Gingerbread houses with cousin's! The kids love getting together to make their houses! Little Piper and Little Navy did so good this year all by themselves! All their creations were a masterpiece! Such great times together!! 
 

80's Party!!

Holy 80's!!!! I must say we have some of the coolest friends ever! We celebrated 2 of friends Birthday's at the Crystal Palace Skating Rink 80's night!!! Holy throw back!!! It was so much fun! It was a blast getting our outfits all planned! Then wearing them was amazing!! We love dressing! Even Chad had so much FUN getting into it!! I haven't been in skates since highschool! We had a blast!! 
Such a great night with amazing friends!! Skating the night away! lol

Sunday, November 29, 2020

More Thanksgiving Fun!

We had loaded our trailer up and spent our Thanksgiving at Chad's Dad's in Logandale! Once we were done there we headed up to my sister's in St George to stay the rest of the long weekend. What a blast we had! We took over my sister's street with mine and Ryan's trailers! All the kids bikes, scooters, mini razors, barbie car, chairs, ramps.... the list goes on!  We took over her street! lol  Thankfully she has some amazing neighbors that didn't seem to mind at all we were there. Half her neighbors are our cousins! lol So much fun! We were the "Cousin Eddie" for sure! lol The kids played non stop! I shopped! We ate, laughed, and visited the whole weekend!
I love being with my family! Just fills my soul! Ryan cooked dutch oven both nights! So good! We had such a wonderful time together! Best Thanksgiving long weekend ever! :)

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving feast at Chad's dad's house out in Logandale for Thanksgiving! We enjoyed amazing food and a wonderful time visiting with family! Such a great day! 
So grateful for family and especially this family! We love you all! Thanks for a wonderful Thanksgiving day!
 

Drive in Movie Time!


 We love the drive in! The day before Thanksgiving we went and saw the new Croods 2 movie! It was so good!! It was a bit cold but we all sure had a great time! What will we see next.....

Monday, November 2, 2020

Happy Halloween!!

Happy Halloween from Tiger King!! These kids totally did this one for me! lol Love my kids! Such good sports! They were a hit everywhere we went! lol People loved their costumes! I did too!! Tiger King for the WIN!
The Best Carol Baskin! lol
Cash money nailed Joe Exotic!! lol He loved wearing his mullet hat!! lol
Can't forget the Tigers!!! The cutest little Tigers ever!! Piper and Ruby! lol
For trick or treating we have gone to Chad's aunt house the last few years! So of course we went again! They have a great safe neighborhood and it's so much fun to trick or treat with cousins!! But before we headed off to trick or treat... we decorated sugar cookies and ate dinner! So yummy and so much fun!
Then it was time to head out to trick or treat! The kids had a blast with their cousins! The community wasn't as packed with kids like in the past and most homes just had their candy out on a chair! Dang covid! But the kids got more full size and king size candy bars than they have ever gotten! The kids were so  hyped about that! A lot of the homes did goodie bags packed with candy too! They got so much candy that Penny's bucket handle snapped in  half! lol! Another great Happy Halloween in the books!!




Sunday, November 1, 2020

Pumpkin Carving Fun!

Such a fun night! Pumpkin Carving checked off our Halloween list! We had a blast! Each year the kids get older and really get into it making it easier for us parents! Penny was  determined to carve hers all by herself and she did it! No ones help at all! She was so  proud of herself! Cash didn't want help either but it was taking too long so Chad stepped in to get the job done! Sweet little Piper decorated hers with tons of pumpkin face stickers! She was loving it! Our new tradition with Jeff, Melissa and their kids! We love family time! Especially cousin time! Great night! Great memories!

 

Letter "H"

Piper had a fun week at pre-k! Letter "H"! She had Horrible Hair day for H! She loved it! She wanted her hair in buns all around her head! It wasn't horrible it was adorable! In fact she loved it so much that she had had me do her hair everyday like this since the 1st time we did it! lol
Then it was her Halloween party, parade and songs for H! She got to wear her costume!! She paraded around and sang the cutest songs for all the parents! She said it was the best week ever! Love this sweet baby! She's growing too fast!! Hurts my momma heart! 
 

Cash Lost His 1st Tooth!

 Somebody finally lost their 1st tooth at 7yrs old! Wahoo! He has wanted to loose a tooth for a couple of years now and finally he wiggled and pulled it out!!! He was so proud of himself! He already can't wait to get his next tooth out!! This boy is full of life!! We are so proud of you son!!! 

Martial Arts!


 Cash loves going to Martial Arts with Sensei Lou! The boys just got their Gi's all embroidered up thanks to my Honz!! On the back of each Gi, Chad put their last name and a giant dragon! The boys love it!! They turned out amazing! So proud of what my hons can do! Seeing the smiles on the boys faces was priceless! The 3 amigos! Best little buds! 

Little Ruby!

Oh how we love our little Ruby! She just hit 10weeks! Not quite 3 lbs! We are all smitten with her! The perfect fit for our family!
She's official! Finally found a name tag that was small enough for her! lol! My tiny little teacup! She comes with us everywhere! She loved her little purse I carry her in!!
Little Ruby had her 1st bath! She did great! She stood so still! The kids loved bathing her and blow drying her! Making great memories with little Ruby!

Thursday, October 15, 2020

Piper's 1st Field Trip!

Piper's fun  pre-k teacher took them to the Pumpkin Patch for their 1st field trip! We went to the Boca Park pumpkin patch! We had the whole place to ourselves! So much fun!
Piper ran from ride to ride loving her life! Even little Ruby rode some rides! lol She loved it too!
Little Ruby had so much fun she wiped herself out! lol


 

Pumpkin Patch!

I've said it before and I'll say it again! I love this time of year! We love going to the pumpkin patch! We have done it every year since Penny was born!! This year all the cousins on Chad's side of the family came to play! The kids had a blast! Non-stop running from ride to ride! Such a great night with family! 

Little Ruby even came too! Don't leave home without her! lol