Big Island Day 5

By Day 5, we found "our" pool. The one that had 3 hot tubs right by it - the one that had a huge lava rock waterfall with a "secret" hot tub located behind the waterfall and under the rocks - the one with a kiddie sand/beach area attached to one end of the pool. That was our chosen pool for the remainder of the trip. Problem (well, if you call this a problem) was that it was on the totally opposite side of the resort. But, Reagan and Cole loved the tram or boat ride over to that area so, we just made an excursion of it and had our lunch and dinner right by that pool. We swam and swam, hot tubbed and hot tubbed and played in the sand to our ... er.. their hearts' content. Their little bodies were so tired that they fell asleep before we could even get them into bed. I'd call that a good day in paradise.

Big Island Days 3 and 4

On Day 3 of our trip, we headed out to the pool first thing. Reagan and Cole just wanted to swim, swim, swim. I love this hotel, but one drawback is that they don't heat the pool. Talk about shocking!!! Jumping in (or inching in - as I did) was really hard. After you were in for a while, it was all good, but that first dip - whoa! So, after swimming for a while, we headed over to the lagoon and the beach area. Reagan and Cole loved playing in the sand and in the water; Steve and I loved laying on the beach chairs and soaking up the sun.

Day 4 held more pool and beach time. Later that night, we took a walk and were able to see the tiki torches lit (by a guy in a traditional costume) and we watched the sun set - gorgeous! What a nice break from the snow and winter at home (Rachel sent us pics - we know how blustery it is). Forecast for tomorrow.... sunny and 82-85 (all year round baby!!!!).

Big Island Days 1 & 2

Ok - so, in December, we said how boring we were to go to Maui twice a year and that we needed to go somewhere new. Well, does another Hawaiian island count? We've done Maui (tons), Kaua'i and O'ahu, so, we decided to try the Big Island. Our flight was over an hour late getting in so, by the time we got to Waikoloa, it was dark - so much for Day 1. By the next morning, Reagan and Cole (still on SLC time), were up at 3am and ready to go. We headed out to survey our hotel. Wow - it was big. We were at the Hilton Waikoloa Village and it was 65 acres of hotel towers, grounds, pools and beach. You actually take a gondola/boat or a tram to get around the grounds. They also have lots of animals, birds and fish. There is a "Dolphin Experience" where you can swim with the dolphins - Cole was too young and Reagan was NOT interested. The beach is more lava rock than sand, but they have a lagoon that comes in from the ocean into the center of the hotel grounds where they have made a beach. People snorkle, swim and paddle boat in the lagoon and it has all kinds of fish, coral and sea turtles. The view from our room looks out over the waterway where the boats sail, past one of the pool areas and out to the ocean - SWEET! We are so excited to be here!!!!

From Cowboys to Infinity and Beyond

Reagan's friend Shaylee (and her cute mom Anna who works at the Nest) had a birthday party with a Cowboy theme. Once again, we raided Anistyn's costume closet to borrow a cowgirl outfit. We played outside, posed for wanted posters, pinned the boot on the treasure map, and panned for gold. THEN... imagine our surprise when Buzz Lightyear AND Woody showed up for the party. SCORE!!!! All the kids were totally stoked. Cole was especially happy and wasted no time buddying right up to both of them. Gotta love it! What a nice surprise. Glad that Shaylee had a good party, but we consider ourselves lucky to have hung out with Buzz and Woody. Now Cole is wondering if they will come to his party. I've got a few months to figure that one out, but for now, here are some pics of the party:

Here Comes the Sun

Come March, we are pretty sick of the cold, dark, blustery, short, winter days. That's why we try to head out of town - just to get a break from the cold. But, there are those few (and sometimes far between) days that are just sunny enough - or just warm enough - to get your spirits back up and let you know that spring is coming. We've had a couple of these lately and Reagan and Cole love it. Just to be outside without a coat for a bit - or even with a coat - enough to play, to run and to "be". I love it too because it means that the yard will be greening up, the flowers will be blooming and we will be back to the Utah weather that I love the most. (Growing up in Scottsdale, our winter was what? 65 degrees? Here, that's shorts weather.) Anyway - here's some pics of us playing outside on the few nice days that we've had lately.

The Bat (err Cat) is Out of the Bag

Apparently, it is a well guarded secret at dance class what that year's theme for the recital will be. Perhaps even more important is what character each class will play. Well, we found out that Reagan's (and Anistyn's) recital this year will be the Beauty and the Beast. We are way excited! Immediately Reagan thinks of being Belle. Um... yeah ... that part is probably going to one of the older girls. In fact, one of the other little girls in our class announced that if she couldn't be Belle, she definitely wanted to be the Beast :) Cute things - sorry. So, we wondered what will this class be? I kept remembering the "Be My Guest" song and thinking that Reagan would maybe be a fork or a candlestick or a broom. I was trying to think of what the costumes may look like, etc. Well, turns out that Reagan's class has been assigned to be bats. I guess they are going to torment Belle. We've only been given a few hints at their costumes - black and purple. Based on the pics hanging in the studio, I'm confident that they will be great.

So, now my mystery solving skills have turned to getting an idea of what the dance will look like. So far, I got nothin'. They say they are teaching them the dance, but I can't see it yet. Maybe I'll have to watch the movie again and see if there are bats in it and what, exactly, they do. Come to think of it, although Reagan loves Belle, I don't think she has ever even seen Beauty and the Beast. (How she knows all these characters, their names, their assigned prince, etc. when she hasn't seen the movies is the topic of another post altogether).

Anyway, I am excited for the Beauty and the Beast theme - maybe less excited at being bats, but hopeful that it will turn out great. After all, one mom said that last year her daughter was a pig and she was darling. (I'm sort of confused considering last year's theme was Wizard of Oz - not sure I remember a pig in the Wizard of Oz.... hmmmmm). Anyway, here's some pics of our "bat rehearsal". Maybe you'll be better than me at figuring out what their dance will be.

Museum of Natural History

I know I've blogged before about our great dance class and all the fun we have together. Well, this week, some of us went to the Museum of Natural History at the University of Utah. I've never been there before. With our group of 12 or so, we descended on the museum. Reagan and Cole really enjoyed it. They put puzzles together, looked at dino exhibits, played with puppets, worked in a "dig" - using brushes to unearth fossils, looked at animals, and played in sand and water. One of our moms goes there each month, so, we had our own sort-of tour guide. It was really fun. After the museum, we played at a park a few blocks away - and the weather was great! What a good, educational, fun day! Here's a look at our trip downtown:

Village People Tryouts?

Geez - is it that time of year again? Well, I guess Cole has been tracking the calendar better than I have because he is the one who reminded me that it was time to try out for the Village People. Rather than going only for one character, he decided to opt for a homage of sorts and combine them all into one costume. He has Reagan's boots for the Indian, his leather jacket for the Policeman and the Leatherman, apparently he is trying to change the Construction Worker into a Ball Player and in a nod to the cowboy, he wore his diaper, sans the chaps. Unfortunately his costume limitations didn't permit him to include the GI. Well, good luck with that Cole and hopefully no one will see you and drop you off at the YMCA. As an aside, even though Reagan is blurry in this pic, you can obviously see her opinion of his costume efforts - standing akimbo, she is lecturing him on which characters he glaringly forgot in his homage. After all, what are sisters for? That's OK Cole, in my opinion, you are one Macho Man (er.. boy) :)