Pinch Me!

Are we really in Hawaii? Though we’re not totally relaxed (yet), we are very much disconnected from the toils of everyday life on the mainland. This morning, Daddy and Ben shared some bonding time at the Starbucks on the beach; or as Ben says “the coffee store.” Check out the reflection in the glass. Yep... those are palm trees. And no JR... I haven't doctored the photos. :)


After our father-son time, we joined the rest of our family for breakfast by the pool and then off to the beach to play in the sun. We seem to be raising fish as both of our kids want to spend most of their waking hours in the water. The water-wings have given Carson a new sense of freedom. Never before has he ventured into the water on his own but NOW he can. The “deep end” is his new best friend. We’re having a hard time getting the boys OUT of the water. But, then again, water is tantamount with Hawaii so it is to be expected.


At the beach, building sandcastles with motes was the order of the day. The afternoon was spent back at the pool where moms and dads enjoyed adult beverages while the kids played in the pool. What, more water?

What an incredible start to our first major family vacation. We’re building memories here that we’ll have for the rest of our lives. Pinch me! This is truly heaven on earth!

From Rain to Paradise!

With only two hours of sleep, we woke at 4am to the sound of rain on the skylight. We had only two hours to make sure everything (and everyone) was ready to go for our big journey to the tropics; our first trip to Hawaii (as a family) and the first time Carson and Ben would be experiencing air travel. As our driver loaded the last of the luggage in the shiny black executive… sixteen passenger van that would be our chariot to the airport, I took the kids by the hands and moved swiftly through the rain to get them secured in their car seats. As the van came in to view, Ben stopped in his tracks and said “that’s not an airplane.” After some explanation and reassurance, we were off to Issaquah to pick up our friends the Lundborgs.

Even though I-405 was closed, we found a detour and picked up the Lundborgs on time; once again we were off and running. Everything went smoothly at the airport until we got to the security check-point. It seems I married a criminal. In the middle of taking our shoes off, watching our belongings AND our kids out of the corners of our eyes, and just trying to stay sane, the woman at the security scanner stopped the conveyor. Our belongings moved swiftly back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. It seems Mara carries a small knife in her purse. Let me rephrase that, she CARRIED a small knife in her purse. After the cavity search (just kidding), we made it to the gate and could finally relax.

We boarded the plane and had a GREAT flight; the boys were wonderful.

Finally on the ground on the beautiful island of Oahu, the ladies were greeted with fresh leis and we all loaded in to a white stretch limousine—all compliments of Mark Lundborg; he certainly made everyone feel special!

We checked in to our hotel right across the street from beautiful Waikiki beach, had a quick lunch, and then off to beach for some fun in the sand.

At this point, the rain in Seattle was a faint memory and the relaxed mantra of the islands was beginning to pulse through our veins. We had touched down in paradise.