PERCEPTION

So if the truth be told, all of the Hawaii posts should have background music....correction, sound effects....of whining, crying, screaming babies.  I had this idea of how our trip was going to be - I was worried about the airport and the 5 hour plane ride, but not the least bit worried about Maui.  I was sure the kids would be great there; they'd love it; and we'd all have so much fun!  In actuality, the plane ride was great, the kids did so well and several people commented to us on our way to and from Maui that the kids were so well behaved.  Once we got to Maui.....not so much!  I'm not sure what it was...the time change, the chaos of being in close quarters with more people for an extended period of time, being in an unfamiliar place without our normal routine, just the fact that we had lots to do that wasn't all about them, or all of the above, but they fell apart!  Luckily, they were behaved and did ok for things like the wedding and the luau, etc., but the in betweens were filled with grumpy attitudes and LOTS of temper tantrums.  And when I say temper tantrums, I  mean temper tantrums like I had never seen from them before....the throw yourself on the floor while kicking and screaming temper tantrums!  Kind of put a damper on the "so much fun" I had envisioned us having.  But what I've learned about life is this.....so much of it is all about perception!  I can choose to remember all the bad things about the trip and what didn't happen the way I wanted it to.....OR I can laugh at how crazy it ended up being and remember all the fun things we did and good times we had with our family and friends (even with the sound of screaming kids in the background :)  I'm choosing to do the latter.  And I mean really, how bad could it have been....we were in Maui!!!  So I'm remembering my trip like this...through some of my favorite pics.  I'm not saying they're the best pictures, but they make me smile!

In no particular order......

Yep, I love this man :)

Love this sandy booty, too!

Me and my sis

My cute mom and dad

Auntie Sarah (inside joke - lol)

Papa

My kids are SO lucky to have these three in their lives!

Kallie

Emma and Kals

Mike and Lacey - had so much fun with these two!

And their baby, Aiyana 

;)

Possibly one of my all time favs from the trip :)

Auntie Becky and Devin

Thanks for the beautiful cake, Kam (btw, sometimes I can't believe that the little boy in the lower left hand corner is mine)!

It's these moments....

Really??? Lol!

Rosie

Sunrise at Haleakala - I can't believe I didn't post about this.  It was AMAZING!  But also VERY early in the morning, EXTREMELY cold and SUPER windy....which is why I won't be going back ;) 

Loungin' poolside...

Bri Bri and Emma

Classic!

Timmy loved Aiyana...

He also LOVED the hula dancers and their costumes - "My buuue!"

Thawing out after the sunrise at Haleakala

Aunt Michele, Aimee, Grandma and Kallie

Dave....man overboard - lol!

Love this face!

MAUI Day 7 - BYE BYE BIG WAWA!

First stop...saying good bye to the fishies at the hotel....

I told Emma to put a flower in her ear and she did....she put it IN her ear literally!  I wish she would always listen to me that well!

Kallie and Lamb Chop enjoying our last little bit of Maui sun 

  

Hitting the beach one last time!

Emma insisted on putting her own glasses on...and wearing them upside down! 

Right after she got in trouble for throwing her sandals in the ocean, this was the look I got...

Trying to get as sandy as possible for the plane ride home

LOVE these kids :)

I have a thing for feet...and shadows!

One last look......"Bye bye big wawa!!!"

MAUI Day 6 - FISH & MORE FISH!

On our last full day in Maui :( we went on a snorkeling cruise to Molokini (to see FISH) and then out to Mama's Fish House for dinner (to eat FISH)....hence the title.

The boat left early and I don't know if you can tell or not, but we're not morning people!

Kallie...always looking grumpy about something! Lol!

Hanging out with Auntie Lor Lor...love her!

The kids weren't big fans of the snorkeling (and I thought they would love the little kick boards with the glass window); they didn't want to be in the water at all!  Good thing we booked a glass bottom boat just in case.  This way, the kids could see the fishies....

...AND daddy "smimin'" :)

The girls with Auntie Becky and Devin

After a day in the sun, it was time for Mama's Fish House with the family...one of the CUTEST places I have ever been with some of the BEST food I have ever had!  YUMMY!!!

Emma, Kallie, and Timmy

My mom and dad :)

Uncle Dee Dee and Auntie Lor Lor

Bri Bri and Gram

My TimmyS

Me, Emma, and Kam

Kallie...she actually likes lemons :/

Emm :)

I know this isn't the best quality picture, and Timmy isn't even looking, but I still LOVE it!  The girls look so happy it just makes me smile!!!

     

MAUI Day 5 - LEI'D OF HONOR

Today Tim took the kids so that I could spend some time with Kami in the morning.  I wanted to take her to get a small token of our appreciation for everything she did for us and for the wedding...which was A LOT!  And honestly, I could never repay her.  Everything she did from the bridal shower and bachelorette party (why didn't I ever blog about those???) to the details for the wedding and the luau (and all the trips home that she took in between) were SOOOOOOO thoughtful and beyond perfect....and WAY MORE than I ever expected!

Kam, I couldn't possibly love you anymore for all the things you did because I already love you THAT MUCH!!!  But you will NEVER know how much I APPRECIATE YOU and all your hard work (I get tearly every time I think about it)!  Only you could put up with me - "All caps or no caps?  Caps and lowercase???  Comma or no comma?  One space or two?  One line or two?  Or what about three???  Period...oh wait, what about an exclamation point?  And should the print be in bold???......"  Seriously, anybody else would have hung up on me!  And that was just about invitations!!!  You were the best Lei'd of Honor anybody could ever ask for and I'll never forget putting this little wedding together with you, from our EARLY morning conversations via phone calls, texts, and emails, trying to get as much as we could done before the trizzles woke up (which I miss, by the way), to getting ready for the wedding...in the car.....on the way to the wedding!  Lol!  Just another one of our crazy little adventures!!!

On a more serious note though...I love you so so much and you made my wedding day special...not just by all the big and little things you did to help me prepare (or the drinks you were bringing me :), but just by being there and by being you.  You of all people know how I hate making a big deal of things and I always just act like "Yeah, no big deal...I'm just getting married today..."  Thank you for ignoring me and making a big deal.  I always say that my life would not be the same without you...and likewise, my wedding day would not have been the same without you either :)  I love you forever!

"The Original" :)

We were a little ("eh-hem") short on pictures of us together in Maui...totally not taking the blame for that one!  So this was the best I could do from this day....more bad pics to come later!  Lol!

MAUI Day 4 - ONE NIGHT HONEYMOON!

Let's face it, Tim and I didn't exactly do things in the typical order...I mean our kids were at our wedding.  Just the mere fact that they were in Maui with us made it less of a vacation (more on that another day), and we definitely weren't expecting a honeymoon, but were lucky enough to have the night of the wedding and next day to ourselves.....AND IT WAS SO NICE!  It was the first day that we really felt like we were on vacation.  We got to sleep in (which I always love), we hung out in Lahaina for the day...and we ate at one of my favorite places, Cheese Burgers in Paradise :) which is kind of funny because I don't even like cheese burgers, but I DO like their coconut shrimp and pina coladas...and I love their view!

Instead of having a reception or formal dinner after the wedding, Tim and I decided to take everyone to the Old Lahaina Luau the following evening.  So much fun!  I plan on posting more pics of everyone later, but here are just a few from the night.....