tropical hawaiian vacation.

WARNING: THIS IS A VERY LONG POST!

BUT THERE ARE PLENTY OF PICTURES FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO USUALLY JUST SCROLL THROUGH ANYWAY.

aloha. mahalo. mele kalikimaka. that about wraps up my grasp of the hawaiian language. but after another awesome week in hawaii, i think we all speak the language of the island. hawaii is really fun. i've only been twice, both times with emily's whole family. in fact the last time i went, emily's dad and i sat out on the balcony of the hotel over looking the ocean to complete that age-old ritual where a man asks his future father-in-law for his daughter's hand in marriage. it's weird to think all that has happened in three short years. william being first and foremost among them.

in fact three years ago only one of these grandkids was in the family. baby emmy is all grown up and had some seriously wild playmates to play with this time around.

and we had some serious fun too this week in hawaii. we started the week off with a trip to the dole plantation, complete with a train ride for the kids and dole pineapple whips for the adults. seriously, so delicious. (not pictured).

our hotel/resort had some pretty pretty amazing pools and beaches. we could have spent the whole week on the property and been more than satisfied. for real, look at this layout. will didn't totally love the whole waterfall element of the pools, but other than that, he got used to being waterlogged pretty quickly.

we did however get off the property for some necessities. like malasadas from leonards. my dad used to recommend this tasty delight to anyone going to hawaii and not a single soul has been disappointed from his advice. we made at least two trips and i almost snuck away to make it three.

one of the days we went over to waikiki. totally worth it. that beach couldn't be more perfectly suited for tourists wanting a great beach with mild waves for whatever you desire. emily and i got out on the surfboards with her brother andrew and his wife steph. they were nice enough to give us a rookies some nice surfing tips. plus the beach was just right for william too. will was pretty funny about the whole beach thing. he refused to walk on the sand. we could eventually get him to sit and play on the break, but he would not get up and walk around. i guess he doesn't like the feel of sand on his feet. i can only assume (hope) he gets over that in the future. his california cousins, emmy, kate, and weston on the other hand knew exactly what to do at the beach.

following my brother-in-law wade's example, i figured i should trying to start to teach will to surf at a young age. i think the first lessons, fully clothed, dry, and away from the sand went pretty well. and weston was there to show him the ropes.

since we had to plan our activities according to 6 kids under the age of 4, emily and i went prepared. we took this awesome wolf puzzle that emily got several months back at an old pioneer trading post as sort of a joke. and yet, fatefully, everyone put in some solid time during kids' naps and late night to pull off this masterpiece. it doesn't look too difficult, but have you ever attempted a non-square, non-bordered puzzle before??

all in all it was a really fun week. everywhere you would look was another picturesque photo op. so we submitted to the beauty and took a lot of pictures of ourselves. forgive the vanity. plus the mornings were so perfect for running, going on walks, and just soaking in the serenity.

it wouldn't be complete without a photo session for the family christmas card. emily's mom has been planning this photo with coordinating outfits for months, maybe even years. and then when the day of reckoning came, all the outfits were left in california. luckily last year some time, the girls decided buy the boys matching shirts in LA. fate would have it. steve, wade and i just happened to have packed this very shirt for the trip. what are the chances. it's just too bad that cort had to work and couldn't make it. don't worry though, he also has a matching t-shirt and will be photo-shopped into the family pic.

so with the men in-sync, the women just had to get some clothes to get in line. i think the end result turned out pretty well.

and the kids mostly cooperated.

on a personal quest, the last day of the trip, i got to visit the others. (LOST reference). we went to the dharma initiative housing unit on the other side of the island. i'm not going to lie, it was sorta creepy walking through that village, especially knowing the history of what transpired there. i kept a close eye on will to make sure there weren't any kidnappings. and even then, steve and i had a walt sighting. totally weird, i know. but then again, so was the entire series of LOST.

will on the other hand, just loved playing in paradise.

and so did we. what a trip. it was a ton of fun and super relaxing. too bad we can't always live in tropical paradise.