Aloha Friday - Squalls and Sand

Things are finally starting to feel normal around here.  The kids kind of have a morning and evening routine.  Charlotte is a regular at the playground across the street.  We are meeting the neighbors, signing up for library cards and creating our Hawaii bucket list.  Things are good and here's a snap shot at our lives these past two weeks.

1.  Finding a Routine.  I can't even tell you how awesome it is to feel somewhat "normal" again.  This is our home.  Our furniture.  Our space.  Charlotte constantly says, "tis is our house."  It makes me smile every time I hear it.

Bath time is a sacred ritual in our home.  Charlotte loves her new bathroom.  She actually has a bathtub with a TON of toys.  Justin is usually in charge here.

Charlotte also started ballet two weeks ago.  Before enrolling into the class, Charlotte and I sat in on a session.  Only a few minutes into the class, Charlotte was nearly in tears.  She wanted to wear the little pink skirt so badly.  Needless to say, she now loves ballet (and the clothes that come with it).

Play dates have become a part of our routine.  Here is a photo of Charlotte and her new friend decorating Valentine's Day cookies.  Let's be honest though, there wasn't much decorating going on.  Charlotte dipped her spoon into the frosting, into the sprinkles, and then directly into her mouth.  Can somebody say sweet tooth?

2.  A Growing Benjamin.  Benjamin turned 5 months old last week.  Where has the time go?  He is just the sweetest baby ever.  He loves to talk and coo and smile and drool.  Oh boy does this kid drool.  Niagara Falls!  Here are some photos of my growing baby boy.

3.  Squalls.  To Charlotte's delight, squalls are as quintessentially Hawaiian as those Dole pineapples I talked about the last time.  Out of nowhere, the rain will just come pouring down.  As Justin and I dash around the house to shut all the windows, Charlotte squeals with delight to run in the rain.

4.  Turtle Beach.  We continue to explore as much as we can on the weekends (so long as Justin isn't working).  I wanted to see turtles so badly and Turtle Beach up on the North Shore has a reputation for being a great spot to see them on land.  So on Superbowl Sunday (because we knew no one else would be out and about), we ventured up north.  But there were no turtles.  Oh well.  There was still a beach, right?  Charlotte always loves an excuse to play with her bucket and shovel.

Benjamin even got a little playtime on the beach (under the comfort of this awesome sun shade/ tent thing I bought from Costco before we moved).

5.  Hale'iwa and Shave Ice at Matsumoto's.  After the beach, we wandered into the cute town of Hale'iwa for lunch.

We had some awesome Hawaiian style pulled pork at Kono's.  Here I am with Benjamin inside the restaurant 

We then walked down the road to Matsumoto's for some of their famous shave ice.

Shut up.  It was AMAZING.  Right up there with poke.  OMG.  I seriously can't wait for our next trip there.  SO WORTH IT!  Justin ordered the Green Tea Special (shave ice, green tea ice cream, beans and condensed milk) and I got the Rainbow Combination (with ice cream and condensed milk).  I'm salivating just thinking about it...

And as you can see, Charlotte also enjoyed the shave ice.  :)

On our way out of Hale'iwa, what did we notice while driving past Turtle Beach?  Um...turtles!!!

Shortly after a jam packed morning, both kids passed out in the back seat.  So Justin and I took the scenic route home along the coast and saw some gorgeous sights.  This is one of my favorites.

6.  Hickam Beach.  And finally, we spent one afternoon last weekend just lounging on Hickam Beach.  It's not the best beach on the island, but it's close to home and on base.  This was the first time we put Benjamin's feet in the sand and water.  He actually didn't look like he cared.  Charlotte, however, had a FANTASTIC time.

Oh my...that was a ridiculously long post.  But if you made it this far down, mahalo for stopping by!!! I will have to do a separate post about Valentine's Day.  :)

Favorite Photos of June 2012

I was surprised how difficult it was for me to find twelve photos from June 2012 that I absolutely adored.  Maybe it was because Charlotte and I were in our "routine" without Justin or that I was back at work and she was in school most of the week.  But there is some comfort knowing that June, for the most part, was pretty boring and "normal."

So here they are, the favorite photos of June 2012 completely unedited.

We are living at my parent's house during our little 6 month stopover in San Diego. This is my mom frying up some fish outside.  My mom is the best cook ever and Charlotte and I both LOVE eating everything she makes!

My little brother was living at home as well.  (He has since moved out.)  But it was so nice having him around to play with Charlotte and give me a break every once in awhile.  Little brothers are the best!

It seems like every Navy wife I know has a husband on deployment.  So here is Charlotte with J and L whose dad was also on deployment at the time.  Charlotte absolutely loves playing with those two!

Here is a shot of all three kids in front of the San Diego Zoo.

Charlotte with her cousins at Chuck-e-Cheese.  That place is insane!
 

I love this photo of Charlotte relaxing in the play structure outside of the San Diego Children's Museum with my sister in the background.  My sister is amazing.  I think I would go crazy without her.  She makes life a lot less lonely with Justin gone.

Charlotte sleeping in her big girl bed.  With the whole family sleeping in one room right now (since everything is on it's way to Hawaii as we speak), I'm really starting to miss that big girl bed.  :)

Charlotte riding her tricycle after school.  I love this photo.  I love this little girl.  

Charlotte posing with a father's day card I made for Justin's dad. We met up with him, Debra, and Uncle Adam later that night for dinner at C Level.  Lobster mac 'n cheese.  Mmmmm...

At the end of the month, Charlotte and I flew out to Virginia to spend a week with Justin. We had a red eye and Charlotte only slept about 4 hours total.  But that didn't stop her from soaking every single moment with Justin.  Here they are reading  in bed together.

Charlotte is all smiles while Justin puts on her lotion.  And she HATES putting on lotion.

And she is still giggling while Justin combs her hair.  

As always, thanks for stopping by!

Thirty Plus One

Today is a big day.  

First of all, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JUSTIN!!!  While we can't be together to celebrate another year, know that Charlotte and I will be sure to eat lots of ice cream and cake in your honor.  :)

Secondly, we wanted to make a little announcement...

Digital Papers and Elements by Crystal Wilkerson.

I've hesitated announcing this to the blog but since today officially marks 30 weeks plus one day (one whole day longer than Charlotte stayed in my belly), I figured it was the perfect time to let the blogging world in on our little secret.  

Charlotte is already preparing to be the "best big sis" ever.

I'm trying to nest and make pretty things for the baby's nursery.  

Supplies:  Twine by The Twinery, Floss by We R Memory Keepers, Cardstock by American Crafts and Martha Stewart Crafts, Frame from Ikea, Adhesive by Xyron (Creatopia, 5" Creative Station).

And since I know that it's hard for Justin to be away while all of this is happening, I made him this little pillowcase to remind him how much our entire family loves him.  It still amazes me that by the time he gets back from deployment, there will be one more little person to hug and love and welcome him home.  :)

As always, thanks for stopping by!

Words for Wednesday - More Love for Daughters

I snapped this photo of Charlotte in her old nursery and it seemed perfect for this beautiful quote by Laurel Atherton.  As always, thanks for stopping by!

Countdown to Goodbye

We are counting down the days/ hours/ minutes before Justin leaves again.  The anxiousness just hangs over everyone.  It leads to uncontrollable crying, senseless bickering, or overwhelming love at random times throughout the day.  But we are all trying to focus on simply enjoying the moments we have together and being grateful for the time that we do have.  I keep reminding myself that it could be a billion times worse and that this isn't about us.  It's about something much bigger that us - it's about serving our country and the sacrifices Justin makes because of his love for this country.  I have to suck it up because I'm not strong enough to do what Justin does (and will do).  But I know that somehow I can be strong enough to make sure that our little family will be fine while he is away.  And during those moments when I falter, I know that I will have my family and friends there to pick me back up.  

So the countdown to goodbye continues.  But the sooner we say goodbye, the sooner we can start counting down to hello.

Two Weeks

Late Friday night, Justin came home.  He spent the last nine weeks in Virginia for training.  Now, he's home for about two weeks before deployment.  It might only be two weeks but he's home.  And we are so amazingly grateful.

Here are some photos of Justin and Charlotte when we met him at the airport.  

Charlotte had her hands wrapped around Justin's neck the entire time and couldn't stop just stroking his face or patting his back.  

At one point, while I had my head on my his shoulder, she pushed me off and gave me a pretty mean glare.  Aw, that's my girl.  :)

On Sunday, Justin and I attended a friend's wedding while Charlotte got to hang out with Pappy and Grammy.  It was smiles all weekend for our entire little family.

Justin, you are certainly loved.  :)