Easter from Wilmington to Raleigh!

We had a great Easter Sunday-so humbling to celebrate Jesus and what he did for us!
This picture was taken outside of Matt's parent's church- Matthew loved the flowers. This outfit was Matt's when he was a baby- I love the tradition and how little Jr. could wear his daddy's clothes!


We then went to Raleigh to spend a few days with my family. Yes, this a pizza crust that Matt let him chew on. Great Aunt Cindy thought it was hilarious and held him while he chowed down! He has so many teeth coming in I think 4 have come in just his week!


This is my mom's 2lb teacup poodle- I mean her guard dog! She's about 4 months old and is a wild woman:) She is sweet and will cuddle up in your lap. She was obsessed with the little boys- kept trying to nibble on their hands and feet!

Maui Wowie!!!

Wow - after 17hrs of traveling to get there, we spent 6 WONDERFUL days in Maui, Hawaii at the Hyatt Grand Regency on Ka'anapali (Cahn - ah - pal - i) Beach. The trip is referred to as the Round Table for Southern Farm Bureau and is awarded every year to those agents that meet certain requirements. I was honored in 2010 to qualify and attend my first Round Table. The awesome part is that the company pays for spouses to go too, so Liz was able to be there for all of it and we had a great week. Our big event was our Gala Evening to celebrate. We got all dressed up which was so much fun!

I had the most beautiful date in the room!


The Hyatt Grand Regency - Wowie!


I must say that it was first class from the hotel greeting with REAL flowered lei's to the awesome themed dinners and the beautiful resort.

We did so many things that it's hard to recall all of them, but some of our favorites were:

1. Watching the sunrise at 10,000+ feet elevation on top of the Haleakala Volcano crater and then biking 26miles down the mountain - we only pedaled about 200 yards! The sunrise was the most amazing spectacle of nature that I have ever seen. It was so indescribable watching the countless stars fade away as the light begins to color the horizon.

First light over Haleakala


Almost there...


Good Morning!


2. Trinity Excursions snorkel trip to the Molkini Crater (underwater extinct volcano). Along the way, we were graced by a humpback whale calf 'breaching' to gain its strength as momma whale watched. This was the coolest thing I have ever seen in regards to the animal kingdom. Oh yeah...as we sailed back, they fed us ice cream.

This was the last picture before the battery died, so we didn't get a shot of the whales :(


3. Snorkeling with sea turtles on our snorkel getaway to Wialea. Although Liz thought she saw a shark and had me swim her in so I could go back out and play with the turtles!!!

4. Awesome lunch at The Gazebo Rest and Awesome dinner at Lahaina Grill - our two favorite places to eat

Liz at Gazebo


5. Happy Hour at Captain Jack's and Cheesburger in Paradise - these two "second level" bars provided awesome people watching, live music and fresh mai tai's - Maui's drink of choice.

Mai Tai's before dinner


It was so tough to leave our little "escape" from the hustle and bustle of being parents and living life, but we were so glad to see Matthew. Plus, the look on his face when he saw us at the airport was so precious. He was like, "Wait a second...is this a joke? Are you guys really here?" When he realized that it wasn't Skype, he lit up like that sunrise at Haleakala.

Our final sunset from Ka'anapali Beach...


In Hawaiian, they don't have a word for goodbye, so they say "A Hui Hou" - "Until we meet again!"

Headed to Hawaii!

We are so fortunate to be leaving for Maui, Hawaii in 5 days- thank you Matt for all of your hard work that earned this trip!! I've learned many lessons of the last few years, but one I have promised to Matt, is that he would be my #1. A husband and wife must take time and choose to make this happen! On the scary side, we are headed far far far away from our little boy for 8 days!
We are actually already packed and ready so we aren't throwing our junk together on Tues. night, but can i just say I'm starting to getting a little worried about how I am going to do as we board that plane leaving him behind. Matt's parents are keeping him and I know he will be fine, we are blessed to have them so close, Derrick is even teasing that Matthew will be walking when we get back. (not worried- he isnt even crawling yet;) And if he does, please tie him to a chair until we get back.
On a more serious note, I must leave my anxieties and worries with God and know that He will watch over all of us as we part ways. I'm praying that God will take my worries and give me peace in my heart. Especially, Wednesday morning at 3:30am when I kiss him goodbye, oh little precious Matthew- we love you and will miss you! Mommy and Daddy are going to have a trip of their lifetime; Hawaii here we come!