Aloha!

This fall we went to Hawaii and it was just the best and I didn't want to forget it! I was pretty stressed leading up to this trip because I was pretty sick and worried I wouldn't be feeling up to it. But about 3 weeks before we left I started feeling SO much better which was the biggest blessing! I was so glad we were able to go out to Hawaii as a family and the quality time combined with beautiful weather and scenery was good for my soul.

We had so much fun with Chance and knew instantly that bringing him with us was the right decision. Andrew got me tickets to Hawaii for Christmas last year and it was such a blast to have something to look forward to for so long I loved it! Andrew is also a sweetie gem and suggested we invite my mom to come along and I'm so glad we did, we had a lot of fun with her and even though she doesn't do well in the sun, she was able to avoid getting burned and had a great time with us as well! We even convinced her to wear our awesome Hawaiian shirts in the airport. It was amazing.

We were there for 8 long days and stayed at the Ko Olina Beach Villas. This place was rad and so beautiful. We got a great discount because it was the off season! We had views of the lagoon and ocean and had the most beautiful balcony with the coolest sunsets I've ever seen. The change in time was great and made us get up super early. I started every morning with a run on the beach with Chance in the stroller. It was so peaceful and beautiful and I still dream about it. :)

We flew in on Saturday. We looked like such dorks at the airport and I loved it so much. I was nervous about the flight with Chance but he did SO good and took naps. He's the best little traveler and even though there is a lot more planning involved with him, he definitely makes things more fun.

Some of the highlights of this trip, in no particular order were:

• Surfing lessons and catching my first wave, a lifelong dream of mine!
• Swimming in a waterfall with Andrew and Chancey
• Spending quality time with my mom 
• "Night swimming" with Andrew in the ocean 
• Amazing food every meal 
• Running with Chance in the stroller on the beach each morning
• Swinging on a random tire swing and feeling like a teenager again
• The days where we had no plans
• Visiting with cousins and family who are in the area 
• Andrew dancing on stage with the asian guy at the PCC
• The beautiful scenery 

 
 

Lowlights (yes, there were a few lowlights):

• Family pictures on the beach, not our proudest moment
• Crashed hard in the ocean while surfing on day 2. I cried a lot.
• Gaining a solid amount of weight from all the delicious food (I see this as also a positive)

Overall it was a great trip and I never want to forget it. I made a memories video I'll post here.

xoxo

-steph