...so Tahoe it was! Brandon has been working so much overtime the past few months and on his one day off we decided to get away and actually get some quality time to talk about some pretty big work decisions for me.
On the way up to the cabin we stopped in Squaw Valley. Even though the cabin isn't too far away, we haven't been to Squaw Valley in years! We wondered around (while drinking our free 7-11 slurpees) and enjoyed the beautiful views.
We did the Emerald Bay hike in the morning. Despite Lucy complaining pretty much the entire way, we enjoyed the little trek. We had a wonderful breakfast at Fire Sign Café afterwards that made up for all the crying :). Lucy actually ate ALL of her pancakes that morning!
In the evening we went out for a walk to Sugar Pine Point. It was a lovely, brisk night and the perfect opportunity to talk things out on this job opportunity for me.
In the end, the very short getaway is what we needed to talk through this big decision for me. In the end, we decided to talk the part-time job position. I'll be sharing a contract and classroom with another teacher teaching 3rd grade! We're nervous and excited and every emotion in between. I've gone through countless scenarios in my head when deciding and it was just torturing me to make this decision. I love my time with our girls and family, love taking care of things and seeing these littles grow so very fast. I have been so fortunate to get to stay home with them for this long, and now its just decision time. We really feel like this is a door that I need to walk through right now. So many things have been paved for me already that made this decision easier. Lots of changes in store for us in the next few weeks! Mommy is going back to work and Aubrey is started Kindergarten! *tear.
There's going to be some serious emotions going on over here! It's funny, change is always happening in our lives but I never seem to do very well with it. Here's to a new chapter in our lives :).
Back in April we had the most gracious blessing of being taken to Hawaii! Brandon's parents took us to the big island of Hawaii for a fun filled family week. We were so excited!
This was Lucy's very first plane ride and she was so excited about it she was talking about it for weeks on end before the trip! We visited daddy at work and of course saw airplanes in the sky, but she had never been in one and now was her chance!
We got out the door around 4:30am and were off to the airport!
The plane flight went so smoothly! The girls did great despite the long time of having to sit quietly and be still, but we couldn't have asked for better :).
Even better, the flight ended with the girls getting to sit in the cockpit with daddy and talk to the pilots a little bit! The girls got little wing pins that they proudly wore and shared about when we got home.
Of course when we got to the condo the first thing the girls wanted to do was go swimming! It was actually a little cool in Hawaii all week so Lucy and I spent most of our time in the spa or outside the water watching everyone else swim :).
And swim they did! We went to different beaches each day and pool several times and the girls really couldn't get enough time in the water or by the beach somehow!
Aubrey wasn't even afraid of going down the slides at all!
Our mornings were lazy. We had breakfast and coffee every morning on the lanai and let the girls run some of their energy I the grass right in front of us. The bottom floor was the best floor for these busy girls :).
Lucy affectionately named one of the cats that roamed the premises 'healthy carrot' :).
We had access to other hotels so we went to go see the Dolphins and turtles one morning.
And we all had some time all together that morning.
We all had our hand at making leis for the first time. Even Aubrey made her very own and she was so careful in making it correctly.
And here were the finished products!
This one looks just about right for Lucy :).
One day Mike, Tyler, Jessica, Brandon and I went on an excursion to the north side of the big island where it's much wetter. We kayaked through a large irrigation channel that included tunnels and bridges.
It was an unusually wet, cold day even for this part of the island and needless to say, our plastic rain ponchos didn't do much more than hold the water close to our bodies! I had some nice hot chocolate when our trip was over :).
Beach by day and beach by night. Our little beach babes just wanted sand and water!
Burying daddy and Uncle Tyler was definitely in the plans.
Throughout the week we went to lots of different beaches and each were beautiful in their own way.
This beach was one of the prettiest during the day with the bright blue waters. It was calm during the day, but the waters got a little rough in the evenings.
One morning it was just the girls and I for a little bit, so we walked the little shops in Kona and enjoyed some Hawaiian shaved ice on the beach!
That evening we went back to the beach for some more play time and sunset gazing.
The next morning we went to another beach where Lucy actually got into the water and enjoyed it for more than 5 minutes!
The hotel grounds were absolutely beautiful!
This little lagoon was just perfect for the girls to wade and swim in! They could have spent the entire day there!
This particular evening Brandon and I got to enjoy a fancy dinner out just the two of us at Roy's (a little early anniversary celebration). We went to this restaurant on our honeymoon, so it holds a special place in our hearts :). Boy, how things have changed in the last eight years!
The last day we had some down time and some time all together in the evening.
On that plane flight back Aubrey was fully awake and excited, but Lucy just needed some sleep to recuperate from all the fun she had!
Thank you, thank you, thank Mike and Mary for taking us on this memorable and very special trip! We will remember this always and are so grateful for how you really went over and above with making us feel so special. We will treasure the memories of this trip always :).
