With Love, From Maui

**WARNING-this is probably going to be a long and boring post for most of you, but I'm doing it for me, so feel free to skip to the pictures!**

Well, since it's been a MONTH already since we returned from HAWAII, I thought it was about time I got blogging about it. :) Part of my parent's Christmas gift to us this year was a wonderful week long trip to Maui! This was my third trip to Hawaii, but my first time going to Maui and it was amazing...I'd have to say it's probably my favorite Island. Oahu has so much to see (like Pearl Harbor, PCC, the Temple, Wakiki, etc..) so you have to go there at least once, but it is very tourist-y and busy. The Big Island is very volcanic and not as pretty. Kauai is sooo beautiful, and peaceful but there isn't much to do besides swim and layout (which I LOVE, but with a baby along it gets boring for them fast). Maui was a perfect combination of beaches, shopping, sightseeing and restaurants.

To start off with, the WORST part of the trip was that Mike wasn't able to come with us. Because of conflicting work committments, he had to stay home. He missed Carson and I a lot, but he's been to Hawaii so many times with his family that he wasn't too sad about not going (haha, I don't think I could ever be to Hawaii too many times).

So on the morning of Dec. 30, 2008, my dad, mom, Rachel (sister), Carson and I took off from snowy Utah and arrived in Paradise. The trip to Hawaii went very smoothly. There happened to be an extra seat on our row so we brought Carson's carseat on board the plane and he was able to take a good long nap. WHAT A BLESSING! We weren't as lucky on the way home...the combination of a red-eye flight jam packed with other families with unhappy babies, a cranky teething 11month old, turbulance forcing all of us to stay in our seats, and super annoying flight attendants made for the flight from HELL home. On top of which, Mike forgot to pick us up from the airport...haha, BIG OOPS! There were a few nasty words from his tired wife when we finally arrived home. Luckily I missed him so much that I couldn't stay mad for long.

We had such a great time while we were in Maui. The weather was a perfect 80 degrees and sunny almost the whole time we were there. Carson got his first taste of the ocean and was TERRIFED of the waves. He loved the pool though and thought the beach was the best thing ever invented. It only took him about 2 minutes to get covered from head to toe in sand each day after getting to the beach. Carson had so much fun squishing it between his fingers and throwing it in the air. He also got to spend lots of quality time with Grandpa who so generously babysat Cdawg so that Rachel and I could get our fill of boogie boarding and laying out. We also did LOTS of shopping and eating.

And of course I had to go and get myself electrocuted while we were there...I'm still not sure exactly how it happened...somehow I completed the circuit with the microwave while trying to plug in my phone charger with wet hands. I definatly lost a few brain cells in the process and my arm was throbbing and tingly for 3 hrs. after. I didn't ever believe my mom when she said not to mess with the outlets...now I definately know to keep Carson away from them! :)

It was a great trip and we had fun spending time together. Thanks so much mom and dad!!!!

**PICTURES TO COME***