Aloha!

Simon and I had a few extra days off last week, and we really needed a relaxing vacation so we decided to jump on a flight to Maui.

We went walking along the water on a lava field and saw two sea turtles "surfing" in the water. They kept riding the waves, so I can only imagine that they were having a fun hawaiian vacation as well.

This was the "road" we took to the famous big wave break called Jaws on the north shore of Maui. It was pretty isolated and we got the directions from a pineapple stand as it was not shown on any maps.

The view was amazing and twice a year the conditions create 100 foot waves. They break with such force that apparently from up on this cliff you can feel as they hit the shore.

Simon made it out for a day of surfing, while I had a day of reading and napping. We both had a successful day.

We also made it up to the top of the volcano, Haleakala.

A fancy and delicious dinner at the Plantation House overlooking a golf course and the ocean.

A love rock. You can't really tell, but in this photo the hole in the rock is an exactly shaped heart....aaahhhh...

We found a blow hole and a moment later Simon got soaked! If only I had taken more than one photo, darn.

The view from our room...not too shabby.

The OC 1/2 Marathon

Simon and his friend Scott ran the OC 1/2 Marathon and did an amazing job!

It was Simon's first road race and he finished it 1:57:17!!!

At mile 3 and 4 we had Lauren Hanson and Lauren Drake join the cheering. At mile 6 we had a very nice homeless man cheer personally for Simon. At 9.5 we got my dad out and had a group of police officers cheering for Simon. It was very nice to see the community come out and support the runners.

Scott's wife Karen brought the cow bells, which were more popular in the first few miles when people asked for "More Cow Bell". By mile 9 I think people couldn't be bothered to ask.

Don't know who this was, but this was his running outfit.... we also saw a girl running in a tutu and a guy running barefoot. Very interesting decisions on outfits.

Simon is planning on running next year, so if anyone else wants to run next year you'll have someone to train with.

I will be back as an observer/cheerer.

Simon Turned Older.

The Big 41!

Simon had never snowboarded at Mammoth, so we decided to head up there to celebrate with a few friends, family, and boarding.

Gerrit helped Simon blow out the candles

España!

Recent Travels

I recently had the honor of traveling with Ashley and the girls back to Philly....

Ashley mostly held Audrey and I got little Viv.

Audrey did an amazing job! She brought plenty of toys to play with and snacks to eat. She might have even got a small nap in too.

Vivienne was the perfect traveller... She was adorable and slept on both flights. And was a great representative for the "Cousins who want more Cousins Coalition".

On the second flight the Flight Attendant loved Audrey and let her come and play in the galley, complete with a pyramid of cups to stack and knock down.

Here she is sitting in the jumpseat and chatting with someone..

Overall, the flights were successful and enjoyable.

Nosara, Costa Rica

Simon and I decided to take a last minute trip to Costa Rica. We flew to Atlanta and then to Liberia, Costa Rica. We rented a car and stayed near Nosara at a beach called Playa Guiones.

Here's a quick video of our ziplining views.... sorry if you don't like heights.

I wasn't planning on running or anything athletic while I was in Costa Rica, minus swimming or surfing. So, I didn't pack my running shoes. We ended up zipling which requires athletic shoes so I ended up having to borrow shoes from the Costa Rican guys that worked there. Needless to say, they did not have a ladies size 6 shoe. My husband, the evermost supporting guy, called me 'Bilbo Baggins' all day. Lucky for me 'The Lord of the Rings' did not translate over to the Ticos (natives) who worked on the zip line.
Simon, who oddly has a fear of heights, overcame his fear for the day while ziplining. I think it was because there was an 11 year old boy in the group who kept volunteering to go first and made all the guys look bad.

Finished!

After a year and a half of dirt, we finally have a finished backyard to come home to!

Phoebe came to check it out...

Farmer Carrie finally able to grow her veggies and herbs....

And for whatever reason Phoebe most enjoyed the parts of our yard that still had dirt...