19 Months

Well, I am very late with this post since Jace is now almost 20 months. But I wanted to write it anyways. Jace has learned so much this past month. He can say the sounds for elephant, monkey, lion, bear, chicken, and duck. He's also learned the word cheetah and says it over and over. Sometimes he says it in his sleep. He knows all about airplanes, helicopters, cars, trucks, and motorcycles and can point them out to me when I ask him where they are. He has also learned the word, "no" and will say it when he doesn't want to do something. Lately he wants to stay in the bath forever and when I ask him if he wants to get out he says very cutely, "No." It makes me laugh since he has such a cute little voice. He understands a lot and will do things I ask him such as "throw that away, bring it to mommy, or stay by mommy." It's really cute to watch him learn new things and he is learning new words so quickly. I am probably not remembering all the words he knows. He loves saying the words, "blanket, night night (for bedtime), fish, car, helicopter (he says ka ka), turtle, and crab. It's really fun to hear him talking so much. He also just learned how to stand on his tip toes and also how to jump on the bed. He's also been experimenting with floating in the bathtub and he can float on his back in the tub. He loves the water and doesn't mind getting his face in the water and even pours buckets of water on his head when he is playing. He is the sweetest little boy and we love him so much. Everyday I am so grateful for him and what a blessing he is in our life. Thank you Jace for making us momma and dadda. We love you!!

Day 68-74

Day 68

Monday, January 17, 2011

Sheldon and I went for a run up to the Diamond Head Lighthouse and then we headed to Kapiolani Park to watch the MLK parade. It was fun to hang out together since Sheldon had the day off of work. After Jace's nap we headed to Laie to spend some time at Hukilau Beach and then we went to eat at the BYUH cafeteria again. Sheldon and I like eating there since it's inexpensive and it's all you can eat. It's fun to see all the college students in the cafeteria and reminisce about our college days. Jace was the only baby there. Luckily, they do have one high chair. :)
Here's our little surfer dude.

Sheldon bought a kite and some new beach toys for Jace (what a great dad!!). We had a great afternoon in Laie.


As the sun was setting we had a great view of the full moon.
Day 69

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Jace and I went to the zoo in the morning and in the afternoon we headed over to the Hilton Lagoon. Too bad my camera battery was dead. :(

Day 70

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

In the afternoon Jace and I went to a different spot on Waikiki Beach. We had a lot of fun since there is a sea wall and it stops the waves from breaking on the shore. There were lots of small fish and Jace had so much fun looking at them and playing in the water. He's an expert at saying the word "fish" now.

Day 71

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Sheldon had the day off of work since his attending doctor was on vacation. Yeah!! We spent the morning on Waikiki Beach and it was VERY crowded. We still had fun swimming and Jace loved looking at all the different boats that were in the water. In the afternoon we had a picnic dinner at Lanikai Beach and enjoyed the beautiful scenery without all the people and had a fun time flying our kite and watching Jace play with his new beach toys. I guess we are beach snobs now because an overcrowded beach just isn't our style. :)
This is more like it....



Here's Jace learning all about how kites work. He likes to hold it and then let go after a few seconds.



Day 72

Friday, January 21, 2011

Jace and I went out on a date together. We went out to eat, had ice cream, and went to a movie. Really, I was just trying to think of something fun to do besides the beach. So went to eat at Panda Express, had Cold Stone, and then saw Tangled. Jace loved all of it and by the end we were so very full since we also ate popcorn during the movie. Afterwards we did eventually end up at the Ala Moana beach and Sheldon came to pick us up after he got off work. The movie theater was three miles away and I ran there but didn't want to run back. It was a fun day with Jace and I wish Sheldon could have joined us. Later that night Sheldon took Jace to watch the fireworks at the Hilton. I was too tired or maybe too stuffed to do anything else. :)
Jace loved his ice cream but the sprinkles got everywhere. He shares my affinity for Cold Stone.
Jace and I had fun playing at the beach while we waited for our ride home.
Day 73

Saturday, January 22, 2011

In the afternoon we headed out to the North Shore to Laniakea Beach to hopefully get a glimpse of some turtles (our first try was unsuccessful). We were lucky that there was one turtle on the beach. They have a group of people that patrol the beach and put up a red rope so that we can "show turtles Aloha," and mostly so the turtles are protected and not harmed by so many tourists. You aren't allowed to go passed the red rope. I was excited to get to see a turtle on the shore since we've only seen turtles one other time when we were snorkeling and it was cloudy so it was really hard to get a good view of them. After that we headed to Kawela Bay again. This time we hiked over to one point of the bay and got to see an old WWII bunker and we had a great view of the Turtle Bay resort. Kawela Bay is one of our favorite places to visit since we discovered the hidden entrance. We are so cool now!!

Kawela Bay is paradise on Earth.




Day 74

Sunday, January 23, 2011

After church, naps, and lunch we headed out in search of another lighthouse this time at Barbers Point. Barbers Point is on the far southwest tip of Oahu. The sun was setting when we were there and it was breathtaking. Jace had fun looking at the crabs and fish in a stream heading out to the ocean. We also saw someone with a pet pig (walking it like a dog) and she was kind enough to let Jace pet her pig. It was a wild pig up in the mountains that was abandoned by her mother so they raised it from a baby. We also had fun flying our kite again. I guess since our ward never gave us church callings our new calling is to enjoy the "Aloha" spirit of Hawaii and enjoy their beautiful island on Sundays. :)
You can see the lighthouse in the background of this picture on the left side behind the palm trees.






Well, that sums up our week in Oahu. Only three more weeks to go. I'm trying not to get too sad about it. What an amazing experience and I am so glad I've been documenting it on the blog. Sorry if you've been bored reading my travel log...it's mostly for us so we can remember our time here and when Jace is older I can show him all the cool stuff he did in Hawaii. Aloha!

Day 61-67

Day 61

Monday, January 10, 2011

Jace and I spent the morning at the Honolulu Zoo and the afternoon at Teddy Bear World. It started raining in the afternoon so I was in search of something we could do inside so we could get out of our apartment. Teddy Bear World was fun but Jace was very upset he couldn't touch the teddy bears.
Here's Jace in front of the tiger exhibit at the zoo. As soon as the tiger started walking towards the glass Jace took off as fast as he could. He was pretty scared.
He LOVES the monkeys, elephants, and turtles. He likes to point them out so he can show me what he sees.
At Teddy Bear world they had different exhibits of the wonders of America with teddy bears in the display. Everything there was about teddy bears. Here is a display of Broadway.
They also let you get a picture taken in the Oval office with the President, who is also in the form of a life-sized bear.

At the end of the tour they have a stage and an Elvis teddy bear comes out to sing and dance.

Mt. Rushmore
They also had a Hawaii section with bears surfing, swimming, and doing the Hula.

Later that night Jace wanted to try on different clothes again. He got to wear my swim suit top, his hat, sunglasses, and Hawaiian necklace. Sheldon said he is very disappointed in me allowing Jace to play "dress up." I just told him what can you expect when Jace gets to hang out with his mom all day. :)
Day 62

January 11, 2011

I ran 7 miles in the morning and by the time we got home and ate lunch Jace didn't get to sleep until almost 1:00 pm. So by the time he woke up it was almost time for Sheldon to come home from work. Jace slept three hours! So while we passed the time we played out on the balcony of our apartment which is on the 21st floor. We drew with sidewalk chalk and then went inside and colored. We've all gotten colds within the last few weeks and this time it was Sheldon's turn. When he got home we opted for a night in and just relaxed around the apartment.

Here's the view looking down. It makes me a little dizzy.

We can see the ocean which is kind of cool.
Day 63

January 12, 2011

Winter weather hit Oahu and it was rainy all day and very windy. We still opted to head for the beach since it was raining on and off all day and it was still warm outside. When we got to the beach there were lots of people wind surfing. We had fun playing in the sand. Afterwards we went to the Hilton to see the animals. This time I was brave enough to take pictures of Jace since he is getting pretty good and just looking and not scaring me by trying to get as close to the edge as possible. On our way home we stopped at the spray fountain for some fun.


Jace loves looking at the penguins, turtles, ducks, and fish and he can point them all out to me when I ask him where they are.



Day 64

January 13, 2011

Jace and I headed to the Hilton again for another repeat day of activities. Sheldon met us there after work and we fun being on the beach together. Too bad I forgot my camera. :(

Day 65

January 14, 2011

In the morning we went swimming at our pool in our apartment complex and in the evening Jace and I headed out to walk along Kalakaua Ave and we ended our walk at the Sheraton. We played in the sand, saw the Koi pond, and got some fries and smoothies at McDonald's. Sheldon still wasn't feeling well so he stayed home for some R&R.


Day 66

January 15, 2011

We spent the morning at Punchbowl Cemetery and the afternoon at Kawela Bay on the North Shore. It was a nice sunny day and we really appreciated that after a week of clouds, wind, and rain.

On the white walls on either side of us are names of service men from the Pacific who fought in some of the past wars and were never found. It was a sobering reminder to us about the cost of freedom. From the website..."It was erected to honor sacrifices and achievement of American Armed Forces in the Pacific during WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. The impressive memorial sits high on the wall of the crater overlooking the graves area of the cemetery. It consists of a non-sectarian chapel, two map galleries, a monumental staircase leading from the crater floor to the Court of Honor, and ten Courts of the Missing. A total of 28,778 names are inscribe on the ten Courts of the Missing which flank the staircase. Lady Columbia symbolizes all grieving mothers and looks out on the cemetery that fills the 116-acre Punchbowl Crater. The view from the Punchbowl encompasses the city of Honolulu from Waikiki and Diamond Head to Pearl Harbor."

After Jace's nap we headed to Kawela Bay. We've been looking for an entrance to this beach since it isn't very well known and normally you have to hike into it from Turtle Bay. We saw some locals parked on the side of the road with surf boards and they told us to go past the No Trespassing signs and walk through the trees to the ocean. So we did and no one said anything to us! We got lucky because we didn't want to have to hike in since the hike takes about half an hour. There was just us, one other family, and the film crew from Alvin and the Chipmunks, "Chip-Wrecked." It was so cool because we got to watch Jason Lee act out a scene on a raft in the water. We were too chicken to go over there and introduce ourselves though. The film crew brought us over water and some treats to bribe us to stay quite when they said, "rolling" and we could talk when they said, "cut." We had an amazing day at Kawela Bay and we are definitely going back.



Sheldon had fun building a trench for Jace to play in. It's a good thing Jace has such a fun dad to play with. :)

Day 67

January 16, 2010

After church we decided to head out to the North Shore. I read on the internet that a good place to see turtles is Laniakea Beach. We got a little lost since we couldn't find it on our GPS and after driving for an hour and a half we finally found it. While we were driving a big storm came through and it was pouring rain. We got out fast enough to take a picture and I was sad we didn't see any turtles. When we got back into the car Jace freaked out and we didn't have any snacks or milk left for him. So we headed over to Matsumoto's for some shaved ice. Not our best planning moment since we got lost and had to spend money on Sunday. But at least the shaved ice helped Jace want to be in the car again.
Here's Jace enjoying a cookie after his nap.
We got pretty lost on our drive and happened upon some horses. Jace was glad to get out of the car to see them.