Maui

02.26.2012
We just returned from one of the best places in the world, I'm sure.
Sugar Beach, Kihei, Maui, Hawaii...
Everyone I know that has been to Hawaii raves about it, and now I know why.
I loved this trip because:
1) everthing was sooooo family friendly
2) cultural, yet americanized (I felt safe with my kids there in just about any location, with both boys being sick while away I felt comfort in knowing that a medical care system on par with being at home was available to us...this is just different when travelling with your kids than when you are solo, and something that hadn't really entered my stream of consciousness until being there)
3) uniform, great weather (hot, but not too hot, a bit of wind, lots of sun & blue skies)
4) our condo's location (in a more quiet area, fronting on literally miles of beach, relatively calm ocean, central and relatively close to everything)
5) the view from our lanai
6) the sounds from our lanai (specifically the waves crashing on the beach)
7) I had no preconceptions of what the holiday should be, other than relaxing (and boy, did that deliver)
8) laying in the sun
9) swimming in the pool
10) daily walks along the beach, babe on back
11) making sandcastles
12) being together in one place as four
13) watching the whales (fascinating)
14) the sunrises and the sunsets

I did haul my big camera around with me quite a bit, but I actually didn't get it out and take as many pics as I thought I would. Photo opportunities abound on Maui...here are a few of the pics I did snap (sort of wishing I had taken more?!).

catching a humpback mid-breach - spectacular to see in person!

one of my favourite captures of the whole trip (love the colours & composition...I sat very patiently waiting for this guy to poke his head above the water and I totally lucked out and caught him) - sea turtle

our first morning - sunrise (the colours really are that spectacular...I did no editing other than to resize for web) 



building sandcastles was a fav activity for sure

view out over Lahaina harbour 

surfers (man & sea turtle) at Ho'okipa Point - I could have sat and watched the waves, the surfers and the turtles here for hours...

a bunch of surfers waiting to catch the "big one"

back at Ho'okipa - watching the windsurfers at dusk

The Plantation Course - Kapalua (oldest golf course on Maui) - stunning views...a lot in the estates surrounding the course will run you a cool 1.5 million

beautiful vegetation at the golf course

these trees were so interesting

I loved Maui...I could have stayed for a much longer time (I think I could actually live there, lol)...and I hope with all my heart that sometime in the future I will be able to return.

Another post with some of the camera pics I took coming soon.

Hi!

01.17.2012

I just wanted to stop in today and say hello!
You may have noticed a decreased presence here on my blog...
I feel like I should explain a bit.
As I have written previously, I chose EMBRACE as a word to represent and guide my 2012. Life is so fleeting...moments are gone in a blink of an eye and I want to remember and savour every single one. The big moments for sure, but the small things more.
While I found my blog a great place for recording little moments, it was time consuming, and I never seemed to get all the stories told I wanted...and some of that computer time was eating up time I could be spending more of those moments with my family. I always (and still do) write stories on the blog primarily for my own need, whether it be to remember, vent, reflect...but at the back of my mind was all of you, my blog-followers. I didn't (and still don't) want to let you down...it got me thinking.
This year I am embarking on a somewhat "old-fashioned" way to record the little stories - a daily pen & paper journal. So far, so good. I find just a few minutes every day to jot down what I want to remember. As for the photos, I have found my iPhone to be a simple yet amazing way for me to capture the little things of daily life (and to let go of the quest to capture our life "perfectly"). It is serving its purpose exactly as I had imagined...and for that reason is worth every single penny I spent on it! Its not that I have given up on my "big" camera...I am just re-purposing how it will be used in daily life. I am not giving up on you, either! I will continue to post here, but less frequently!
If you are interested in where daily life takes our family, you can find me on instagram (my user name there is jmdcreate). If you don't have an iphone, but still wish to see what's going on in my instagram feed, try this link (then click on my user name).
I'm off to embrace my new process for daily recording and give my kiddos some hugs and kisses :) (a big day around here, B insisted he wear gotchies today!).

- me out for a run on the night the cold snap hit...brrr!

O-man begging for a walk.

- S enjoying his bath (and me enjoying him enjoying his bath)

- B saying "no pictures, Mom"

-out for a night-time walk

- freaky January weather (water running down the street?!)

- embracing my commitment to exercise

- tea becoming part of my daily rituals

- B coloring and making "B's" (really into that right now)

Until next time!

Embrace!

01.01.2012

2012 is my year to embrace.
Literally and figuratively.
Fully and completely.
With all my heart, mind and soul.

Embrace a continually more healthy lifestyle, embrace returning to being a "working mom", embrace my imperfections, embrace the big moments, and all the little everyday moments in between.
Embrace the busy, the quiet, the sad, angry, happy.
Embrace positivity and action while banishing negativity and inactivity.
Embrace those that I love more and wrap them in all the love I am capable of giving, be it physically or spiritually.
Embrace continuing to grow as a person and striving to be the best me possible.
Embrace all that 2012 will bring to my life.

PS: Thanks to my littlest man who decided it was a great idea to embrace his big bro as he sat and squished him into the little brown chair...perfectly timed to add to this post :)