hawaii

Recently, Andrew had a work conference in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. He convinced me we should all come along and I'm so glad he did because it was so much fun. It was quite a trek to get there and it was reconfirmed that Bitsy is a terrible traveler. (She would only eat fruit snacks and french fries the whole trip.) We packed our stay full of fun activities; a helicopter ride over an active volcano, a snorkeling tour, a luau, swimming, and lots of playing on the beaches. We also saw dolphins, a whale, a couple of sea turtles, lots of colorful fishies, a native Hawaiian temple, and a macadamia nut factory. The kids were in heaven, even Bitsy decided to warm up to all the fun, minus only eating fruit snacks and french fries that is.

Helicopter ride. Bitsy fell asleep within the first few minutes and Tank lasted about 30 minutes before conking out. Everyone loved this!

Scenic drive. Honestly, whenever people talk about taking a scenic drive I never believe all the hype, but this one was awesome! It was like an untamed jungle with small one way bridges and vines hanging down off tons of trees. Parts of Jurassic Park were actually filmed here. We saw a pretty lookout point and decided to snap some shots.

Ha! Andrew and I spent a good while laughing at these next two photos. Here I am with my irritated face on trying to get Tank to pose for a family picture and...

here he is! We love him

Hawaiian ice. Love! We got this a few times, sorry Andrew, he only got it once cause he was at work. 

Looking at fish and crabs. There were lots and lots of crabs at this particular spot.

Lava tube. On the Kona side of the island there are lots of old lava flows and some of them have collapsed underneath and turned into lava tubes. It is like walking through a cave. When we first headed toward the tube Tank started acting like we were going to feed him to the wolves by having him go in there. After further inquiry, it turned out, he was pretty sure dinosaurs lived in there due to our recent conversation about  Jurassic Park on our scenic drive. He was pretty sure dinosaurs were alive and well on this island. I love kids. Once that was clarified, he was all about exploring that tube. 

Snorkeling tour. The kids loved being on a catamaran and Bug had an especially fun time snorkeling. She was pretty fearless and went straight on in the water. It was all very fun, except for when I fell off the boat! After snorkeling, one of the instructors said I could go use the shower (just a very low spout off the back of the boat) to rinse Bitsy because the salt water gets sticky when it dries. Turns out the spout was at the top of three larges steps leading into the water. Well, I turned on the water, held Bitsy out a bit to get her wet and slipped. I thumped down every step on my back while clinging to Bitsy who wasn't wearing a life jacket and started screaming bloody murder on step one. We then plunged into the water. It was embarrassing, funny and traumatic all at the same time. When I popped my head out of the water I handed a very scared and screaming Bitsy to the captain who's mouth and eyes were large from shock. He really had no idea what to do with Bitsy, but I had to catch my breath for a moment. The instructor then helped me up and told me to watch out cause the steps there were really slippery. Ummmm...you think? while also telling me I scared the crap out of him (he used other words). Everyone was super nice to me afterward. I mean SUPER nice and I was offered the use of the 'shower' again! I'll pass.

Tired after snorkeling.

Before the luau. Bug loved the dancing and waited so patiently to meet the dancers after their performance. The kids were all mesmerized during the fire part and now they all think you can eat fire no problem.

Lots of beach fun and phone pics

Building a dam to keep Bitsy out of the water. It didn't work and Bitsy thought she was helping build it.

Macadamia nut factory. Cracking open macadamia nuts.

I cleaned it and gave it back.

Last sunset

Tank fell asleep BEFORE the plane took off to go home.

Bitsy is technically a 'lap child' on a plane, but she would only be content sitting in her own space.

Lots of fun memories to look back on!

and she's off

No training wheels for this girl anymore!

walker

Bitsy is pretty much a walker. She took her first steps about five weeks ago, but was unconvinced walking was the best form of transit. About the middle of March she started coming around, but can still be found crawling half the time. I find it amusing only because once Bug and Tank discovered walking, they never went back. Here she is cruising along while the big kids ride scooter and bike.

And I love that she still carries prized little toys clenched tight in her fist.

happy easter

Since my father's passing, Easter has quickly become my favorite holiday. I'm so glad for the Easter reminder of all the gifts Christ has given us - birth and life, death and salvation. Happy Easter! 

1

We can't believe Bity is one! The year has simply flown by. We absolutely adore this little one. In particular, we love:

• How she scrunches up her little nose and has a crooked cheesy grin when she smiles 
• That she adores stuffed animals and Olaf
• How she gets attached to strange little plastic toys that she must carry around in one hand. If you try and pry it from her cute little fingers, she acts like major harm has been done
• That she likes to get in on all the action, especially when the big kids are playing chase with dad 
• That she is a puddle of tears every morning when Andrew heads out to work and nothing but smiles when he returns
• That she has been saying "mama" for a little over a month and is working on "dada
• That she has 8 teeth
• And when putting her down for a nap or bed, if she spies her bottle in her room she won't sit on her own or crawl, but just lay flat in a pile of tears until that bottle is in her mouth (I'm a little nervous about weaning her from that beloved bottle)  

We have always had a reason to feel and be grateful, but Bitsy was truly a great big ray of sunshine after a profound amount of compounded loss and grief. For me, her arrival provided a beautiful transition from a great deal of personal sorrow to joy. I always imagine the angels kissed her goodbye and sent her straight down to me. So, happy birthday to our dear Bitsy!

She was pretty good at opening presents

You can't tell here, but she loves her new lambie

Skyping with papa and grandma Duffin

 

She really does love Olaf

Bitsy was too interested in the giant cake placed before her to hold still

An example of her carrying a little toy in her left hand (in this case Olaf). Don't try and take it away. 

She ate the whole thing no problem

Happy 1st birthday Bitsy!