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After managing to get only one picture with both of us in it on our honeymoon, we try hard to remember to ask people to take our picture now.
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Our first trip as a family was pretty amazing--we had a whole week of non-stop, full contact, no holds barred family time, and it was just about perfect. We got to enjoy warm sunshine, just as Seattle was starting to get cold. We played and ate and slept together. Jason and I really got to be parents together; so often at home, we find ourselves parenting in shifts--"I'm going to do laundry while you play with the baby", "okay, then I'll go clean up the kitchen when you're done"--and there's so much of life to take care of on evenings and weekends, that it's hard to get big chunks of family time together. Getting away from home was restorative for all of us.
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Ready to go to Hawaii!
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Not so sure about this, guys!
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Adam gained some new skills while we were away, and I'm sure it's in some part from all the time he got with us. He's (literally) got more balance now--he can sit without falling over, and we don't have to keep our hands on him every second, worried that a concussion is lurking under the rug. He is way more into solid food. He is even more confident in the water (although he's enjoyed swim class every week, he's even more gleeful after getting to play with his dad in the pool every day for a week).
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| We call this one "baby with avocado and eggplant" |
I think my favorite things were:
Pickles! A friend from parent-baby group mentioned that pickles were the best teething toys for her son--textured, cool and soft on his gums, interesting flavor, and easy for him to hold. Adam's first tooth made it's debut the morning we left, and our first evening there, a full day of travel and teething got the best of him just after our dinner arrived at our table. Snatching Jason's pickle spear off his plate and giving it to Adam bought us 20 happy minutes to eat, and began a new love for our baby--pickles. The rest of the week, pickles accompanied us everywhere we went, just in case :)
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Mah Pickle!!!
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Early morning play time. Each morning we'd get us and sit on the living room floor of our condo and Adam would play with his toys while I drank coffee, before we all had breakfast. It was beautiful and peaceful to sit there and watch him play, as he'd smile at me, no place else to be, nothing else that needed doing.
Pool time. We found that late afternoon was the best pool time--after Adam's afternoon nap, around 3 or 4, when the pool had warmed up from the sun all day, and the sun wasn't so intense and the beach was windy--we'd go swim and play and Adam was all smiles and giggles, getting to be in the pool with Mom AND Dad.
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Family picture in the pool
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Smiley Baby loves the pool!
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| Mom & Adam |
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Lunch. Weird, right? Before baby, dinner time was special and romantic , and we didn't always eat lunch on vacation. Now, dinner can be a difficult time for the little guy--he's tired and not at his best by the end of the day--so it's less fun to be out. But lunch time, restaurants are less crowded and things are more low-key. The best lunches were at the Shark Pit food truck...grilled corn with furikake seasoning...ohmygoodnesssotasty!! Furikake seasoning might be my new favorite thing.
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Adam napping on my lap at the Maui Ocean Center Aquarium, in front of the shark tank. We took a day away from the sun, to explore the aquarium. There is a huge tank with a tunnel through it and a big room with a glass wall looking into the tank, with different kind of sharks and tuna and ray fish. Adam was getting a little fussy , so I sat down in front of the shark tank and nursed him to sleep, and spent the next half hour in that big, darkened room, listening to the kind of music that's always playing when you get a massage, watching the big fish swim by, with a sleeping baby on my lap. It was magical!
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| Checking out the fish at the aquarium |
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| nap time shark watching |
Evening time with Jason. After we read to Adam and I nursed him to sleep, we'd sit in the living room and enjoy a glass of wine and a snack and talk or read and enjoy quiet time together. I think we only turned on the tv once. I'm really quite fond of Jason, and it was wonderful to get so much time together, with no work or laundry distractions <3
Watching Jason play with Adam. There's really nothing quite like seeing my beloved being a father to our son. He plays differently than I do, and Adam loves it--I get smiles and snuggles, but Jason can make him laugh like nobody's business! They are besotted with one another :)
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Laughing for Dad
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Reading with Dad
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Vacation was wonderful, and we look forward to going back. With family, with friends, just the three of us, Hawaii is always a perfect place to be :)
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| Loving the beach by the end of the week |
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| Happy Family--can't wait to come back! |
