February

February started off better than ever because we took a family trip to Maui! Justin and I were in need of some sun. We've been to the Wailea Marriot in south Maui before so we knew what to expect taking Parker. We got a ground floor, ocean front room so that we could relax on outside and get sun while Parker was napping. Rachel and Scott DiBello happened to be planning a trip to Maui at the same time, so we invited them to stay at our hotel. What great luck! It was so much fun to spend time with them since they live in California. Rachel is pregnant with a little boy and is due just a few days after our baby girl. We got to catch up and talk babies which was a lot of fun.

Parker hadn't spent much time around water, so we were a little nervous how he'd take to it. He loved it! He was shouting "awa" (his word for water) all the time because everywhere he looked, he saw a fountain, pond, pool or ocean. We had to watch him like a hawk because he would just take off for any body of water he could find. He even tried to swim in the lobby koi pond a few times. The hotel offered a kid pool with sand, 1 1/2 feet of water, water slides and fountains. So fun! Parker was a little cautious once in the water, but he loved splashing around the edges. At the ocean, he loved playing in the waves with us.

We were lucky that it was humpback whale season and there were hundreds of whales right off shore from the hotel. We got to see them breaching, slapping their tails, and we could even hear them when we went underwater! Scott and Justin went scuba diving and could hear them the whole time while looking at turtles, tropical fish and coral.
What an awesome trip! I can't wait to go back as a family of 4.

The day after we got home, I had my 30th birthday. We were jet lagged, so Parker and I caught up on sleep. Justin had to go to work, but we celebrated the following weekend with both friends and family. Justin threw me a party with many of our good friends. It was fun to get a big group together- something we don't do often enough anymore. I am very lucky to have such loving people in my life! I can tell already that this is going to be a wonderful year!