Hawaii 2017

Hawaii holds SUCH a special place in my heart! I'm lucky enough to have been quite a few times, to each of the major islands, and to the smaller ones on day trips. If I *had* to chose a very favorite island though, it would be Maui. The last time we went on a big family vacation was five years ago - the girls were 2 and 5. They never acclimated to the time change (in the summer Hawaii is three hours behind California) and, while it was fun, it didn't really feel like a vacation. Fast forward five years - the girls are 7 and 10... THIS was a vacation!

We stayed at the Kaanapali Beach Hotel, which is awesome when you're staying with kids. The rooms aren't fancy, but they are perfectly nice and there isn't room service, so if you're an ordering up junkie this might not be the place for you. BUT there is a great pool, a restaurant, a beach shack, an awesome beach bar, a (shockingly) well-priced gift shop, and tons of fun activities for the kids, most of which were free. You've also got the amazing Kaanapali beaches just a few steps away.

On the other side of the island, is another one of our favorite beaches - U'lua Beach. Coco had *just* gotten comfortable with swimming this summer, so we wanted to take her to a really chill beach to get her acclimated to the ocean, and comfortable with snorkel gear.

I am really prone to ear infections when I'm in the water too much, so when we needed an ocean break we headed upcountry to the Surfing Goats Dairy Farm which was a fun experience!

 Whenever we are anywhere tropical I *must* book a snorkeling tour where they take me out somewhere on a boat! I've been snorkeling at Molokini before, but Tony hasn't, so that's where we went!

We booked through the Pacific Whale Foundation, because part of your purchasing price goes towards their incredible conservation efforts. This was the biggest boat I've ever been on, and the tour and snorkeling were awesome!

We saw a white tipped reef shark, a nasty looking and eel and hundreds (if not thousands) of fish. At our second snorkel spot we swam with beautiful green sea turtles too!

After the snorkel tour we re-fueled at Alchemy Maui. This place was awesome, and I'll definitely return every time I'm on the island. Tons of house-made kombucha on tap, artisanal, incredible sourdough bread and THE most delicious ceviche I've ever had!

The Maui Exhibition Center hosts a huge swap meet every Saturday from 7:00 - 1:00. This is the perfect time to stock up on cheapie souveneirs! It's also a perfect time to eat pineapple. (Note: eat pineapple every chance you get when you're in Hawaii. It doesn't taste that incredible anywhere else!)

During this trip we hit up the Drums of the Pacific Luau, and while luaus are always fun, this one just wasn't worth the money. The entertainment was good, the bar was good, the food  was ok. Like I said, we had fun, but the price was ridiculous for what you actually got. We have done far better luaus for a lot less money.

 When you're in Hawaii you *have* to get some shaved ice!

Leila on the Leila canoe :)

 The sunsets in Kaanapali are magical. Every single night!

Tony and I are lucky enough to have eaten at Mama's Fish House three times now - this is the view.

 My drink of choice was the Pau Hana - lime, guava and bombay gin. Tony was loving the Hibiscus Breeze - hibiscus, lime, ginger beer and bourbon.

One of the fresh catches of the day. My mouth is watering just thinking about this meal!

My camera ended up with so many pictures like this. My girls turned into total beach bums!

 The old banyan tree in Lahaina - another special spot for us!

Maui was a wonderful vacation! The girls became total beach bums, and snorkeling pros! We made so many wonderful memories, and I can't wait to go back!

Scenes from Christmas

Happy {almost} New Year, everyone! This year, as always it seems Christmas came and went in a flash. My girls are at such fun ages - Leila is almost 9, and Coco is 5.5 and they still both believe in Santa, and all of the magic of Christmas (though they of course know what the REAL reason for Christmas is!) This year Tony worked the days before Christmas, and came home on Christmas morning. I'm not going to lie - it's kind of nerve wracking being Santa all by yourself. Every little noise I heard while laying out presents, and stuffing stockings made my heart drop, thinking I was getting caught. Luckily I didn't! :)

I made the girls come into my room as soon as they woke up, and we watched "A Christmas Story" on TV while waiting for Tony to get home. Lucky girls didn't have to wait too long, though. The second he walked through the door, he came into the room and said "Girls, Santa was here, get up get up!" and just like that they were excitedly running down the hall.

The big things they wanted (and received) from Santa were a sewing machine (Leila) and a Barbie pop-up camper (Coco) I can't sew to save my life, so I am currently looking into lessons for Leila. She is fashion-obsessed, and wants to be a designer when she grows up, which is why she wants to learn to sew. Melt my mama heart!

All I really wanted was for Tony to for sure be home (and YAY - he was, you never know with his job!) but he also got me the other thing I really wanted - a new bike! (He also got me some awesome new Lululemon pants, which I'm calling my magic pants because I look pretty good in them!)

Ramon got everything he wanted too ;)  {so did Sugar, she's just not a fan of the camera, unlike my boy}

We had my parents over in the morning for presents and brunch and then the girls were able to play with their new goodies for a few hours while I attempted to get my house back in order. In the afternoon we went to my brother's house.

My girls and my brother's girls. Love them all so much!

And this is me and my brother - believe it or not I was a whole foot taller than him up until his junior year of high school....

And my four.

I am not one of those people who dreads the holiday season, quite the opposite actually. Every Christmas night, for as long as I can remember this Sesame Street Christmas song has popped into my head. Always a little bit sad to say goodbye to the magic and beauty of the holiday season.
 

Not like things are slowing down one bit, though! Leila's birthday is at the end of January, so we are in planning mode for that. In February I have my cousin's bachelorette weekend, and the very beginning of March holds Coco's birthday, and my cousin's wedding, which I am a bridesmaid in. I'm planning on sleeping a lot after that ;)

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! And I would love to know - what was your favorite gift you gave or received this year!

Merry Christmas

From my family to yours, we wish you a very Merry Christmas!

What's Up, November?

What's up, November? You're one of my very favorite months, and I'm so happy you're finally here. This month (as with every November) the following things will happen:

• I'll hustle to get all of the Halloween decorations put away on November 1, so I can promptly decorate for Thanksgiving.
• I'll later hustle to get all of my Thanksgiving decorations put away, so I can get all of my Christmas decorations up.
• I'll try my hardest not to listen to Christmas music until the day after Thanksgiving, but I'll probably cheat and listen to at least a couple songs early, but only if it's one of my favorites.
• I'll shop til I drop the day after Thanksgiving
• I will try every seasonal coffee drink at Peet's, Starbucks and whatever coffee shop I happen to be at that has something new and Christmas-y. I will complain that it's too sweet, and about half way through the month I'll get smart and start ordering my drinks with half the syrup.
• I'll bite off WAY more than I can chew, and say yes to entirely too many things. I will spend more than one night up until just a few hours before my alarm goes off thinking about all the things I have to do, and how I'll get them done. This will continue all through December.
• I'll start bundling up like an eskimo, even though the low for the day is in the 60's. That's California freezing, you guys.
• I will crank the heater up way too high on the nights my husband is working, because (again) California freezing.
• After Thanksgiving (but before the start of December) we will drive to Apple Hill to get a Christmas tree. Tony and I will talk about how the drive is SO long for a Christmas tree, and maybe we should stick closer to home next year. But next year we will go to Apple Hill. And the year after, and the year after....
• I'll start burning a pumpkin-y scented candle from the second I wake up, to the second I go to bed.
• I'll put flannel sheets on all of the beds, and make them so cozy that it's extra hard to wake up in the mornings.
• Soup will be on heavy rotation at dinner, and my crockpot will get so much use that it's practically live on the counter tops. 
• I'll reflect on the many things I have in my life to be grateful for.

What are some of the things YOU do every November?

Musical Memories

It's funny how our senses can be connected to certain memories. I know some people have strong scent memories, and I do too. If I smell the combination of cigarettes and leather it brings me instantly back to an unpleasant memory. Or if I smell the perfume "Youth Dew" by Estee Lauder I am instantly reminded of my Grandma. Some people have taste-related memories. Me? One of my strongest and most vivid memories is connected to the song "Chariot" by Gavin Degraw.

It was a Tuesday night in mid-November, 2005. Tony and I had been married for just about a month. I remember it was a Tuesday because our dog Ramon had his puppy classes on Tuesday nights at PetSmart. We were both at his class that night, and when we walked out we saw a Christmas tree lot across the parking lot. We walked over, SO excited to get our first Christmas tree together. Our eager puppy Ramon, (who just celebrated his tenth birthday in July) dragged us via his leash the entire way. We looked at trees forever, arguing over what type to get. Tony wanted a big, beautiful Noble Fir, I wanted a sad looking Charlie Brown tree. (Still an argument I have with my family every year when picking out a Christmas tree.) After much debate we settled on a tiny tree, one that would fit on top of our tiny little kitchen table. It seemed perfect for our tiny little family, celebrating our first married Christmas together.

When we walked back to our car, which was our first big purchase ever, a 2001 Mitsubishi Montero. (Man, I loved that car!) we strapped the tiny tree to the roof, instead of popping it into the trunk or the backseat, where it would have easily fit. It somehow seemed more grown up to do that. When we got inside the song "Chariot" came on the radio and I told Tony how much I loved it. We stopped at Target right then and there (after the song was done) so I could buy the whole Chariot cd.

To this day anytime that song comes on I am instantly transported back to that night. Not that there was anything particularly remarkable about it or anything, but it sticks in my head as a bit of a special night. A reminder of a simpler time.

Life is great now, just so much busier. Anytime I feel like the craziness of life is starting to get to me, I pop that song on and am brought back.



Do YOU have any songs that connect you to a memory? What about scents or tastes?

Life Lately - Summer 2015

Hey guys! Long time no blog ;) I feel like the summertime is such a mix of busyness, and slowness. Full days with my girls means that blogging takes a bit of a back seat, and that's ok. I've had a few emails asking where I've been though, so I thought I'd let you know what we've been up to.

This Fourth of July was the first in (I think?) five years that we haven't hosted a big party. It was very bittersweet. We didn't host for a few reasons, and at the end of the day it was kind of nice not to deal with the stress of hosting a big party, but I did miss it. We spent the morning at Tony's firehouse. They have a big pancake breakfast every year, and we all had tons of fun.

That afternoon and into the night we were at an awesome block party. Three sets of friends live in a neighborhood a few minutes away, and we spent it with them and had a blast. Someone was doing face painting. Leila went with a flag:

And Coco was one of the few who decided not to go the patriotic route, and asked to be a witch instead.

 There was a kid's game where they had a plate filled with whipped cream, and one gummy worm was buried in it. First one to find the gummy worm (without using hands!) won. It was so fun to watch!

We've been to a bunch of concerts in the park this summer:

And lunch dates at our favorite spot (Chipotle!)

I've been logging lots of gym time! (Shirt from HERE)

Countless hours have been spent in the backyard, eating nectarines off the trees:

...and playing on their play structure:

 Tony and I went to Wente Vineyard to see one of our favorite bands, Dashboard Confessional (and Third Eye Blind too.) Jacket * Jeans * Shoes

I was in Las Vegas for three days for Stella & Dot's annual conference. I LOVE this conference! It's three days of learning, inspiration and tons of fun! I feel very grateful for this little side gig of mine - it helps pay the bills, I get tons of free jewels, and I get to schedule everything. It's awesome. Our fall line is pretty incredible too - let me know if you'd like a lookbook!

Tony then flew to Las Vegas for another two days. We had a friend getting married there.

We've done a handful of fun, family day trips. Last week we went to Stinson Beach and Mill Valley. Coco fell asleep on me, which never happens anymore so we had to document it!

...and more concerts in the park! It's such a fun, low-key thing to do. We get to see our friends, our kids get to see their friends, it's a win-win. I have fond memories of concerts in the park when I was little, and I hope my girls will too.

My girls have had one week of dance camp, and will have one week of VBS too. Lots of their friends have camps and activities just about everyday, and I'm sure my girls would have it that way too if I let them, but in the summer I think it's important to hang loose, not be so structured and just have fun! What have YOU guys been up to??