Hawaii

Ben and I just returned from a wonderful week in Hawaii with great friends! This was our first venture away from Ethan. Prior to this trip, we had never been away from him for even one night. So we were both worried about how not only he would adjust but also how we would handle being away from him. After hearing his giggles on the phone, we knew we had nothing to worry about and Mimi had it all under control. So, we sat back and enjoyed our trip...here are a few of the more than 400 pictures we took.

The awesome view from our balcony

A 5 a.m. sunrise at 30,000 feet atop Haleakala. It was a toasty 40 degrees.

Our group after biking down a volcano. I made it half-way, then decided to relax and ride the rest of the way down.

A sunset dinner at fabulous Mama's Seafood!

Ben playing a Kapalua's PGA course

Snorkeling on the Pride of Maui

Ben learning to surf

The Diesch's and the Le's learning the Hula

A gorgeous view from our sunset dinner cruise

A visit to the 7 sacred pools




While there was a small twinge that we hoped that Ethan was home missing us, we soon realized that he was having the time of his life with Mimi and Ms. Kristin...As evidenced by the numerous picture messages we received of our baby boy having a blast at home.

He spent his week...

Playing in his water table

Playing with his push toys outside

Playing in the tunnel at the park

Swinging at the park

And playing in his pool (Thanks Kara!!)

It was great to know that he was so entertained while we were gone. I'm not sure if he even knew that we weren't there! He has been in great spirits ever since we got home and only Mommy and Daddy know how much they missed him! Not to mention how much he grew while we were gone! Before we left he was walking 4-5 steps at a time and now he's walking across the house. Before we left, we were working on waving bye-bye and now he's clapping and playing Pat-A-Cake. All in 1 week!! That will show Mommy and Daddy!