It's a little bittersweet

I know I should be grateful for this amazing trip that my parents gave me. 28 days in Hawaii with my sweet boy is just a dream for some people. And, I am very grateful for the experience. But, every day we are here makes me realize more and more how sad I am for Aidenn.

You may think its awesome to have parents that live in Hawaii. And, it is. It's a beautiful place to visit. But, really, how often do they really think they are going to see their grandson? After next month, A has to have a plane ticket. So, it's a $2000 trip just for the flight. That doesn't include any extras.

My mom and I were talking one night and she is totally ok with seeing him only once a year. She said that she only saw her grandparents once a year so why would this be any different! Really? It makes my heart hurt for my sweet boy. And, during that once a year, they won't even change up their schedule. I mean, for the most part, A and I do our own things in the morning because even on their days off they aren't up til 10. So, we go to the beach for a couple hours because we are up at 5 or 6 and i can't keep Him quiet so they can sleep. And by the time they are ready to go do something, we are back and A is napping. They really don't get to see him until 3 or 4 pm those days.

I didn't expect them to stay in Asheville forever. But, I guess I also didn't expect them to move to Hawaii. Not just Hawaii, but they actually live on the farthest west in the country. It is closer for them to go to Japan, Australia, and Asia than it is to come to the east coast. It is closer for me to go to Europe than to come here.

Plus, Aidenn will probably grow up not knowing the majority of my family. I mean, we aren't close. So, now that we will never be at the parents' house at the same time, I really don't think we will see each other all that much. Maybe for big events, like weddings or funerals. But, other than that, probably nothing.

So, I know I should be savoring every moment here. But, I am really just sad because Aidenn is loving being with his Mimi and Saba. And, I honestly can't even think that he might not see them for an entire year. And, unlike them, I'm not ok with that, but I also can't do much about it.

Turtles, Lava, and Snorkeling

You know that old saying "Never wake a sleeping baby"? Well, I'm pretty sure that applies to toddlers also. But, after a 4 hr nap, getting up at 6 to eat dinner and hang out for a bit shouldn't have been the disaster it has become.

Aidenn decided 430 was wake up time this morning. Fortunately I was already up. This time is killing us. But, totally worth it.

We went to an awesome park that's right down the hill from my parent's house. We will definitely be frequenting it more often. A played on every single thing there and had so much fun. His favorite was the slide, but just recently he's started liking swinging.


After finally getting him to leave the park, we went to snorkel beach. Apparently, it's the crappiest beach area here, but the best underwater scenery.



The sand is a mixture of regular sand and broken up lava. All the black "rocks" are lava and super duper slippery. They make little tide pools along the water, which is great! Aidenn sat in the tide pool and filled his bucket with sand for hours!



I finally got him to get in and he loved it. So much different than this time last year when we were at the beach. He hated it then. But, these beaches really are so much different. The water is crystal clear. The water was so still so I didn't have to worry about the waves bothering him and scaring him. He jumped and played, went under, and blew bubbles.



We saw a couple of turtles in the water, which was just amazing. They swim right up to you and have no fear. At the end of the day, I finally showed A the turtle that had been hanging out on the beach the entire time we were there. Unfortunately, when they are out of the water, you have to stay 10+ feet away. So, we waited til the end of the day as to not keep him away from it all day. He was thrilled that the turtle was so close!



We ended our day with a smoothies from Jamba Juice and Aidenn was out. So, needless to say he was absolutely exhausted. And has now been crying since about 20 min after I woke him up. I guess we will be going back to bed!

More fun in the morning! :)

Seriously amazing

So, my week has beed a little hectic and needless to say I've gotten behind on my thankful posts, so we will move on to a vacay update.

Hawaii is amazing. It's actually nothing like I imagined. But, amazing nonetheless. We traveled all day yesterday. Aidenn was surprisingly fantastic to travel with. We got to the airport at 6:45 am and he played for a bit. We left for Atlanta at 830 and he fell asleep during takeoff.

I woke him up in Atlanta and we ran through the airport. I had enough time to get his diaper changed and eat a Cliff bar before getting on the next plane. We sat next to this super cut old lady on her way to Cali to visit the grandkids. A played the entire 5 hrs to LAX. He was the entertainment of the plane and had a great time. He was absolutely amazed with the tvs in the seats. He ate pretzels, kicked back, and made a 5 hr flight look like nothing. When we got to LAX, he made a friend that chased him around the entire terminal. We quickly got his diaper changed and had a snack and got on our next plane. The last 6 hrs of our trip.

Word of advice: I love Delta, but would absolutely not recommend them from LA to Kona. Teeny tiny plane that is super overcrowded. A's new friend sat across from us and literally screamed the whole way. The dad just put on his headphones and watched Californication. Luckily, A fell asleep and was out for the first 3 hours of the flight.

I loved that after each flight I got great compliments on how well behaved he is. How sweet he is. How smart he is. How beautiful he is. It makes for one proud mama.

Aidenn was so happy to see my parents. They had a lei for me and a flower for him. He loved it and literally smelled it until he passed out in the car.



We ended up going to bed pretty early since they are 6 hrs behind here and we had a very busy day. I was surprised that A slept til 630, but it was nice.

Day 1 of our trip was amazing! We played on the porch this morning. Here is the view:



Supposedly, today is not normal and usually it's much clearer. But, it's still pretty breathtaking. We took the dogs to the fruit stand and got breakfast at Lava Java. Then spent the day at the Hilton. The pools there are amazing. They are absolutely freezing, but so much fun. We played at the beach pool. It's a kiddie pool filled with sand that connects to the regular pool. The regular pool had three different sections, waterfalls, slides, 3 hot tubs, and more. And this is just one of the pools at the hotel.

A loved the beach pool, so we spent the majority of the day filling buckets with sand, putting sand on the turtles, and jumping.



So far, I've learned:
1. A rainy day doesn't actually mean that it's going to rain. It just means it's not clear out. And this is only the 2nd time in 7 months it's been cloudy.
2. Graffiti isn't spraypainted on walls. People use white rocks on the lava to draw pics, write messages, and more.

3. Ruths Chris is totally overpriced, but great when you eat for free. I'm pretty sure we will eat there a couple times.
4. Aidenn likes island time. He was up at 630, napped at 1030, and in bed at 7.
5. You can get anything you want for free, as long as you know the right people. We have daypasses to all of the top rated resorts because my dad likes to network. He is also getting us tickets to a couple luau's and passes to the volcano.
6. Hawaii, or at least The Big Island, looks nothing like I imagined. It's all lava pits that turn into amazing resorts that are world renowned. It is beautiful. It feels like you are on another planet.

That's it for now. But, will definitely continue to update about this amazing trip that we are so lucky to be on. Now to go snuggle with my sweet boy.

Day 13 {my home}

It might not be much. A 1-bedroom apartment can get really crowded really quickly with a toddler hanging around. But, I'm thankful that I'm not living on the street somewhere.

I can't wait to get the big beautiful house of my dreams. With the perfectly landscaped yard. The white picket fence. The columned doorway. The brick driveway big enough to turn around in. The master bedroom on the main floor. The nursery connected to the master so that it's easier to take care of baby.

But, until then, I will pretend that my teeny tiny 1-bedroom apartment is all that and more and be thankful for what I do have.

Day 12 {dark rooms}

I have had a migraine all day. And my migraines are pretty awful. Throwing up with movement, light, sound, or the threat of all of the above. So, it's pretty hard to take care of a 1 year old while it's going on. Of course, it started to back off earlier, so I decided to try to clean. Not a good idea. The cleaner made it come on even stronger than before.

So tonight, as A drinks his milk and watches Yo Gabba Gabba, I'm extremely thankful for my very dark room. Hopefully I will feel better in the morning.

Day 11 {Our Troops}

My Papa was in the army. My brother is in the Coast Guard. My step sister is in the Coast Guard. I love this country and am so thankful for my family that helps to keep our freedoms.

Today, on Veteran's Day, we celebrate the freedoms we are allowed because of the troops that fight for our freedoms every day. A veteran is anyone that signed that paper saying they are willing to give their life so I can live mine. It doesn't matter how long they have served, the fact that they served was enough.

I am so thankful for our troops.

Day 10 {Pumpkin}

Anyone that knows me knows that I'm not terribly fond of this time of year. I don't like cold weather. I despise snow when I have to be out in it. I don't care about the leaves changing colors. I hate the fact that it's light out in the mornings and I can't sleep in.

The best thing about Fall has got to be pumpkin. Coffee, pie, muffins, bread, donuts, and everything else. It is one of my favorite things ever. Even in an iced coffee (3 pumps with skim milk and sugar please), it has a warming feeling that overcomes me. The smell of pumpkin makes me want to sit in front of a fire in super warm pjs all day long. I'm in love with pumpkin.