Fultz Family Fun

Recently, I have become reacquainted with cousins in UT and while were there this last time my Grandma Kay and her sister Verna flew in and we had a Fultz family reunion.

Ken is missing from this picture.  Hopefully someone can Photoshop him in.

Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip.

A Birch Bay Get Away

I always jump at the chance to get a weekend away in Birch Bay.  I have such fond memories of family reunions spent there as a child.  This year we took our good friends the Krick's with us.  Having their company, and Elizabeth's cooking, was awesome!

Trevor has been taking swim lessons this summer, so he got a lot of good practice in at the hotel pool.

On Sunday, we took a 12 mile round trip bike ride up to Blaine, WA and did some fishing at the public marina.  We didn't catch anything, but the ride was awesome and the company was even better.

On the way back to Birch Bay we took the historic Plover Ferry from Blaine to Semiahmoo.  Trevor even had a chance to be Honorary Captain.

Austin just had fun roaming around the vessel.

It was a fun trip and we are glad that we went.

Road Trip from Down Under

My trip to Spokane for Time Out For Women, was wonderful.  Although the trip was short, it was good to see my sister-in-law and my niece and nephews.

The drive home was to opposite of wonderful.  In fact, it was horrible.  Miserable even.  We should have stayed one more night and driven home in the morning, but we didn't.  We left Spokane at 8:30pm and didn't arrive home until 2:30am.

Austin is sick with a fever in the 100s.  He kept waking up every 45 minutes the whole way home to cry "hold you, Mommy" which means "hold me".  Having not slept much the night before I was exhausted and a long drive at night didn't help.  I had to pull over several times for a 15-20 minute nap.

Just before midnight we had to stop in Ellensburg to get more Tylenol because Austin's last dose had worn off and his fever was back with a vengeance.  Let's just say that the trip inside the store did not go well and I was a broken woman in tears at midnight in a Super 1 Foods in the middle of no where (sorry Ellensburg) with two children who desperately needed to be at home in their own beds and not at the grocery store.

When we finally pulled into the driveway, Darren helped me carry the kids inside and we all went to bed.  At 5:00am Austin awoke with a raging fever again.  After some medicine he just cried, "hold you, Mommy" and reached up for me.  Instead of getting him out of bed, I got in bed with him and that is how Darren found me in the morning.

Leavenworth Day Trip, aka Mindy's Christmas Present

After the terrible Christmas gift the I got from Darren last year, this year he made up for it by planning a surprise day trip to Leavenworth without the kids.  He planned everything from the childcare to the sleigh ride.  It was a quick, but wonderful trip!

Leavenworth in the winter is charming.  It feels like you've traveled back in time to simpler place.

One of the highlights of the day was a sleigh ride Darren planned for us to go on.  The horses were beautiful and the scenery was magical.

As part of this little Christmas Gift trip, Darren was less frugal than usual and we purchased several things in town, including an adorable headband that was totally overpriced, some taffy, a caramel apple, and a lb of cured bacon.  Dinner was delicious and the company was delightful.

It was the best Christmas present from my husband ever!

Our Hawaiian Vacation

Is anyone else besides my Grandma Kay anxiously awaiting this post with pictures, videos and stories from our trip to Hawaii?

• The Airport and the Plane Ride

We got a lot of great pictures of the boys on this trip, but some of my favorites were taken at the airport.

 

The boys did great on both plane rides, mostly sleeping and snacking.  We snapped a quick family pic before landing in Oahu.

• Haleiwa, the Northshore, and Shaved Ice

Day one was spent relaxing, unpacking and grocery shopping.  On day two we took a drive up the center of the island to Haleiwa and the Northshore. 

Austin loved to eat the sand.  It was disgusting, but it made him so happy.

This is my favorite picture from the trip.

 Before going home we stopped for some shaved ice and the boys loved the cold, sugary goodness!

• The Lagoons at Ko Olina Resort

We stayed at my brother-in-law's condo at the Ko Olina Resort.  Within the resort they have 4 man-made lagoons that are perfect for the kiddos.  So after a much needed nap...we headed off to the lagoons for more fun in the sun.

I made Austin his very own sand Bumbo and got to spend time with Trevor playing and swimming in the ocean.

• The Temple and the PCC

Day three was spent in Laie visiting the temple and the Polynesian Cultural Center.  At the temple, the boys and I were walking around enjoying the peaceful feeling that is always present on hollowed ground, when all of a sudden we heard a loud wailing sound.  My heart stopped; it sounded like a tsunami warning.  I immediately grabbed the kids and found shelter within the doors of the temple.  The kind man at the recommend desk assured me that because it was the first day of the month, the alarm was only a test.

That experience got me thinking about how grateful I was to be a forever family and for the covenants I had made in the temple.

 

No trip to Laie would be complete without a stop at Giovanni's Shrimp Shack for lunch.  Trevor is just as much of a shrimp lover as Darren and I, so now there are 3 Giovanni fans in the family.

Trevor has a thing for what he calls a "wiki-tiki".  (He first learned about them from a Scooby-doo movie he saw at Grandpa Rocky's house.)  There were lots of wiki-tikis at the PCC and Trevor wanted his picture taken with all of them.

 

The Polynesian Cultural Center was just as wonderful as I remember it being 7 years ago when Darren and I visited during our honeymoon.  I loved the coconut cake they made at the Tahitian village, Trevor loved the drums at the Tongan village and of course the Samoan village is always a favorite.  Trevor wasn't so sure about the angry faces, yelling and tongues in the Aotearoa Village, but that is by far Darren's favorite.

The night show, "Ha: Breath of Life" was wonderfully done and I have thought about the messages in it several times since seeing the show.  The main message for me was that "family is central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of His children."

• International Market in Waikiki

Trevor loved the huge koi fish at the International Market Place.  He tried to feed them leaves and got offended when they didn't seem to want them.

For posterity I'll record that Darren decided to drop the boys and I off in downtown and then continue driving around looking for a free place to park.  Shortly after he dropped us off, Trevor had to pee and Austin was screaming, but that's not even the best part.  When it was time to go Darren said he would run ahead and get the car because it was parked a long ways away.  So off Darren went running and the boys and I headed in the direction Darren said the car was.  After only 3-4 blocks Trevor started having a melt-down begging me to carry him.  On top of that, Austin fell asleep in the front pack making him 16 lbs of dead weight.  We walked for what seemed like forever (it was actually 11 blocks) when I finally called Darren asking where in the heck he was with the car.  His response...I can't find it.  Exhausted, hot and totally pissed off we stopped walking and sat down in the shade on the corner of Ala Wai Blvd and Namahana St.  A long time passed (at least 20 minutes) before I finally heard from or saw Darren.  He had finally found the car and it was 30 feet from where the boys and I were sitting, resting in the shade.

• Swimming Pool

Day four was the wedding, but it wasn't until later in the evening so we went for a family swim.  Both boys love the water and we all had a lot of fun playing and splashing.  It was a hassle trying to get everyone to hold still so that we could take this family picture, but I am so glad that we did because it is a favorite of mine.

• Randi and Gabe's Wedding

The wedding ceremony was beautiful, Randi looked amazing and I was honored to be a part of her special day.  Besides a disaster with the wedding cake (it wasn't me who made the cake) the day was perfect.

It was wonderful to look up during the ceremony and see my husband and sons looking so dapper.

 

At the reception, Austin tried poi for the first time.  I documented the experience in a series of three photos.

**shudder**   **gag**   **cough**

"What on earth was that?!?!"  "No dad, it's not yummy and it's not funny either."

"Do I want more?!?!"  "Are you kidding me?"
"There's no way you're sticking that spoon in my mouth"

•  Dole Plantation and Goat Island

On our last day in Hawaii, we made a trip to the Dole Plantation.  We did the pineapple maze and shared some amazing Dole Whips.

Trevor found the cutest little pineapple and he wanted so badly to pick it and bring it home with us.

After the plantation, we went back to Laie to Malaikahana Recreation Area to play in the sand one last time.  We didn't make it out to Goat Island, but we saw it.  Darren did some boogie boarding and took Trevor in the ocean while Austin and I sat in the shade watching and taking pictures.

• Harry, the Coconut

He tasted delicious!  We have tried buying coconuts since we have been home, but none of them have tasted as good as this one we bought on the side of the road in Hawaii.

We had a fabulous time in Hawaii and we were sad to leave.  When we got off the plane in Seattle it was 7am (4 am Hawaii time), 40 degrees, and raining.  Trevor started to cry as we disembarked and when I asked him what was wrong he sobbed, "I want to go back to Hawaii".