Paradise Found

Jason commented the other day that I have not posted much information about our Hawaii trip. True. I guess I just got caught up in life as soon as we got home I haven't made the time to do it. On last Wednesday night, the day after we got home, I fixed a big dinner for all of us in honor of Jason's birthday. That night, as Jason and I were lying in bed with Josey snuggled in between us with her head on my pillow and our three boys all sleeping soundly in their rooms I was overwhelmed with the sense of where paradise truly is. As wonderful as our trip was (and it WAS wonderful), nothing compares to the joy I receive from being with my family.
When I was about to graduate from UH and planned to move back to Montgomery, people would ask me, how can you leave Hawaii? But, God was leading me back home and of course now I know why. He had something far greater than the paradise of Hawaii awaiting me in Alabama!
So, sorry if I'm being corny, but my heart has been really full lately with the deep love and respect I have for my amazing husband as well as my gratitude to God for our three beautiful boys. God is good.

A few of our favorite Hawaii pics

Taken during our hike over looking Lanikai Beach
At dinner Sunday, check out the cloud capped mountain in the background
Jason at the USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor
North Shore surfing - waves were at about 8-10
Jason and his Island Girl, Arwen
Some of the Alpha Gams met us out for dinner
Jason and the band at Tiki's
We took a catamaran cruise off the Waikiki Beach coast, Diamond Head in the background
Jason with Miss Hawaii
Hawaiian sunset
One of the pools at our resort
Jason playing the Waikoloa Beach course

Aloha!

Jason and I just got back from our trip to Hawaii a couple of hours ago. Wanted to tell everyone aloha, and that I'll be back in touch soon. I got voicemails and emails from a lot of you while I was gone, I guess I didn't do a good job of reminding everyone about our trip!
I will give more details of our fabulous Hawaiian vacation over the next few days, but to sum it up we had a wonderful time and got to see a lot of good friends and see a lot of beautiful sights. This picture was taken from the gardens of one of my favorite restaurants, Haleiwa Joe's, it's on the windward side of Oahu. We went there for dinner Sunday night with our dear friends Mai Ly, her husband Rob and daughter Arwen and our friend Malia. Mai & Rob were so gracious and treated us to our dinner in celebration of Jason's birthday (which is today). For my part I gave Jason a birthday card on the plane about 6:00AM today as the flight attendant woke us up to serve breakfast after our all night flight.
More soon. Eli & Josey are sleeping and I'm ready to do the same.

The Outlaw Josey Walker

It's funny, when we had Eli everyone told us that Josey would get lost in the shuffle. They figured she would no longer receive her fair share of love and attention. Some even said she would get jealous of the baby. Well, all of you naysayers will be glad to know that Josey has fully maintained her high billing in our family. She still sleeps in the bed in between Jason and me and she is still doted on as much as any dog ever was. And as for her feelings toward Eli, they absolutely adore each other. I laughed when Eli was 3 weeks old and said to Jason, "Is it wrong that our puppy is in the bed with us and our baby is in the next room sleeping?"
Here's to Josey!

"Tis pity not to have a dog, whatever be his breed, for dogs possess a faithfulness which humans sadly need. And whether skies be blue or gray, good luck or ill attend, man's toil by day, a dog will stay, his ever-constant friend."

‘

Eli is dressed for the big game

New Year, New Eating Habits

We gave Eli a sippy cup to drink from today for the first time. He grabbed it up and stuck it right in his mouth and drank the water in it. He still loves his bottle, so he'll get both for a while. He is also eating 'finger food'. Gerber makes these flavored grain puffs, which melt in his mouth. He hasn't quite perfected this skill, but he likes the challenge.

Happy New Year!

War Eagle (click to hear the fight song)

So, the new year started off well with Auburn's win in the Chick-fil-a Bowl last night. Jason and I took Eli to his first New Year's Eve party where we watched the game and dined on some amazing food while visiting with friends. My girlfriend Lynn and her husband Glenn hosted a wonderful fete at their newly renovated, very cool home. They put out a spread including Conecuh sausage, shrimp & grits, homemade salsa and guacamole, smoked wings, and an array of cheeses to please anyone. Eli actually did well, happily staying awake until halftime then his little eyes were so red and tired we had to bring him home and put him to bed. He slept right through the end of the game and woke up at 8:30AM this morning.
Check out this cute picture of him 'standing up' in his crib!

Now Jason is cleaning his new golf clubs and attaching his personalized labels. He and a couple of friends played one of the RTJ courses in Prattville yesterday. And I am about to finish cleaning up and storing the Christmas decorations. Jason got the tree down day before yesterday.
We plan to have a laid back day, gearing up for the Sugar Bowl tonight at 7:30PM. The Honolulu Advertiser has some fun articles about the team and game if you're interested, check it out. Make sure to tune in for the pre-game personal interest stories. They'll have some good scenes from Hawaii along with some insight into the cultural traditions and practices of the team. Jason and I would love to be in New Orleans right now, but we decided to save our pennies for our upcoming trip to Hawaii instead. Go Warriors!