We slipped down the slides again, ate some of the best food (helps when one of your friends is a culinary graduate!) and had loads of fun making Summer memories. We watched the full moon rise above us in slow motion, picked lilikoi, and fetched water when the water pump broke leaving us in a primitive state. We got back to nature, back to simple times…My son told me he was tv-sick…but from the looks of things, I’d say he had a pretty great time himself.  I’ll let the pictures tell the rest of the story…

a couple of cows giving kisses on our way up

rocking chairs invite you to take a load off and relax

hangin’ in the hammock

Gettin’ dirty

the sun playing peekaboo behind the pines

The reservoir and slides

Duke ridin’ the kayak

Slippin’ and slidin’

All tuckered out

While up relaxing I was reading Martha Stewart’s Living magazine and fell in love with her dip dyeing article. If you want a beachy feel to your house this technique seems easy enough to turn your house, whether along the coast or in the dead center of the U.S of A into a beach getaway. Even better, Martha has directions online for anyone that missed the August 2010 issue. If I get my act together I may give it a whirl!

Ok, now it’s your turn…share a link, click on a link, keep the hula shake shakin’!

Have a rocking week everyone!

Cam, learning to surf

And he’s UP! Woohoo!

My ballerina in the sand

Duke

What a “Ruff” life, huh?!

Ok, ready?!

So the big question was “Did I go back into the crap infested waters?” Here’s how it went…

It was HOT, the sun was SCORCHING and I was sweating. My husband was catching some pretty good waves so I knew we’d be there a while. I looked at the water with the trained eye of a CSI agent; no poop in sight. And then I did it…

I ran in, dunked myself up to my waist, gave my shoulders and arms a splash and then ran out of there.

Yes, I knowingly went back into the water where 30 minutes prior I had seen “The Floater.”

Ick.

After the beach we all took baths in bleach. Not really, but we did immediately get showered, using mass amounts of soap and defunktified ourselves. We are all still living and haven’t yet grown a third head.

Yesterday we headed to the beach, found an uncrowded spot and jumped into the ocean. The kids were playing, jumping over waves, building sand castles, corn-dogging* each other , then rinsing off in the warm Pacific waters.  It was a damn near perfect afternoon.

Then a large group of tourists and their kids came towards us, the kids in the water, the parents walking along side them on the beach.  The current was rather strong and was taking the kids on a ride down the shore.  We said hello and we all continued to play. They floated on down the shore and I held onto Leah’s hands, helping her dodge the small waves. It was then that I saw IT…

I immediately grabbed the kids and told them we were DONE. I wrapped them up in their towels and told them we were outta there!  I couldn’t move fast enough.  I was highly grossed out and disturbed.

Now, in full disclosure I do have to share that our dog was with us, chasing a tennis ball, swimming with us in the water. But at no time did he go to the bathroom. And a bit too much information here, this floater wasn’t his shade…yes, I pick up his sh*t and know all to well what his particular scat looks like. This was no dog scat. That’s all I’m saying.

EWWWWW.

The kids didn’t want to leave the beach. They begged me to let them play in the sand for a bit. And although I wanted to find shower that resembled a HASMAT operation, I didn’t want to return to our oven of a home. I agreed. We stayed. They played OUT OF THE WATER and I tweeted the above message. (it was met with equal parts of pee-in-your-pants laughter and make-me-want-to-throw-up tweets)

A good 20 minutes passed. People came and swam where I saw THE FLOATER. It had traveled with the current to who knows where. It was out of sight. If I hadn’t seen it with my own two eyes I, myself wouldn’t know better. For all I knew this thing had been making an appearance all day and we were just it’s last stop on the shore.

I sat there with the kids playing in the sand, my husband surfing and the brutally hot Lahaina sun beating down on me. I was sweating once again, almost hotter than when we had arrived.  With no floater in sight and the current having brought new water to my portion of the beach, I debated…

Do I go in for a quick dunk to cool off?

or

Do I sweat it out, knowing that a floater was seen in the last 30 minutes and NO WAY and I going back into that sea?!

What would YOU do?

*Corn-Dogging at the beach: When you get wet in the water and then immediately roll around in the sand, so as to cover yourself from head to toe like a corn dog.

cartoon by Jsez

Today I took the kids to the park and then out for some lunch. That was met with Cameron stating…

“Mom, thank you for making today the best day ever!”

Score!

We then headed home to hang out. He was tired, crabby but wouldn’t nap.  I told him no more tv, it was quiet time.

To which he replied…

“This is the worst day of my life!” (he may have gotten some of his dramatics from me. Maybe.)

While we were hanging out, having some quiet time I received a phone call from our friends asking if we wanted to come over for some dinner. They had tons of freshly caught ahi and needed some others to partake in it (twist my arm!).  When I told sour puss Cameron that we were heading over there for dinner and that he could play with their daughter (his preschool mate), he responded with…

“Yes! Yes! Yes! Thank you mom! You are the best mom in the whole entire world!”

We then had to stop off at the store to grab some wine and beer to go with our ahi.  Cameron was not happy, we were not arriving at our fun destination soon enough for Mr. Bossy Pants. Tears were shed and then a yelp of…

“Noone loves me!” was heard sputtering out from his trembling lips. (I may have rolled my eyes. Maybe)

We arrived at our friend’s house. Cameron played, had fun and on the way home he let out a…

“Thank you Mom & Dad. Today was awesome.” And with that he fell asleep.

This is The Rollercoaster I ride with my 5 1/2 year old son. But ya know what? I flippin’ LOVE roller coasters.  They are fun, a bit scary, I get to yell, throw my hands up and when it stops, I take a big breathe, thank god I am a live and I say “Let’s do it again!”

So as my little man falls asleep and another day is done, I can’t wait for a new day to come so we can say…

“Let’s do it again!”

20 Questions…This or that

1. Morning or night?

I am most definitely a morning person! Although that changes after a long night with the kids.

2. Lefty or righty?

I am a righty, hubby is a lefty as is my son.  I am pretty sure Leah will be a righty like her mama.

3. Facebook or Twitter?

I use Facebook more for family and close friends, but I do have an Ohana Mama page that you can “Like.”  I am on twitter a lot.  It’s easy, and you can drop in real quickly. I love posting pics to Twitter

4. Beach or Mountain?

Maui…where we have mountains and beaches! haha

5. Lipstick or lip gloss?

I am a huge lip gloss girl! I don’t own a single tube of lipstick!

6. Real Housewives of Orange County or New York?

That’s tough!  Even though I grew up in Orange County, I’d have to say New York…I have this odd attraction to all things NYC related. I have yet to visit although it’s a life’s dream…maybe we’ll go for my 35th birthday (in 2.5 years).

7. Sweet or salty?

Sweet. I have an enormous sweet tooth and I don’t add salt to anything I am eating, including my margaritas.

8. Disneyland or Disney World?

Having grown up in Orange County, I’ve gotta go with the original, Disneyland. (although I would absolutely LOVE to one day take the kids to Disney World!!)

9. Cat or Dog

I am most definitely a dog person. We have a yellow Labrador named Duke, he’s 9 months old and my absolute favorite hairy thing on the planet.

10. Platinum or gold?

I love platinum for timeless pieces such as my wedding ring, but lately I’ve been into dainty gold paired with turquoise. It’s a favorite combination.

11. Bob Marley or Bob Dylan

BOTH..these are my two favorite musicians!

12. Minivan or SUV

I am an SUV driving mama. Although I would love to try out the VW minivan.

13. Real Simple or In Style?

Real Simple. Hands down. It’s my favorite magazine.

14. Red or white?

I actually love white a bit more than red wine but white tends to give me a headache really fast. Red at least waits until the next day to creep in with a migraine. (I swear I am allergic to alcohol!)

15. Coke or Pepsi?

Coke coke coke coke. Oh and coke!

16. Vanilla Latte or Mocha?

My favorite treat is a Starbucks Vanilla Latte and a good magazine. Throw in a pedicure and that’s heaven!

17. Mac or PC

Apple is my new BFF. I am hooked on my mac and iphone. Whatever did I do before them?

18. Blog or vlog?

BOTH!  I love to see the person behind the blog, their mannerism, the inflection in their voice but I also love to get lost in their words.

19. Girly girl or tomboy?

A bit of both with a tad more of the tomboy in there.

20. Work from home or work out of the home?

For me, right now?  Work at Home. I have been a work at home mom for a combination of 3. 5 years.  It’s challenging and rewarding all in the same. No matter how hard it can get (making sure the “work” doesn’t totally take over the “Mom” part), I feel blessed to be able to work from home!  (remind me to read this next time I am freaking out over deadlines and potty training!)

And now I have a question for YOU!

Phone or email?  Which do you like better?

You can also ask a question of me and the other readers in the comments, let’s keep the “this or that” fun going!

We tried our hand at architecture and made our own play house!

Items used: Toobeez, a blanket & one white bedsheet

We tried out our green thumbs and planted sunflower seeds

Items used: planting box, seeds, water, love and attention

We felt the need, the need for speed! So we created a race track the floor!

Items used: blue painters tape, cars, and a little breaking of moms back

We got crafty and made a place to keep all the memories and pictures from our Summer!

Item’s used: cork board bought at drugstore (comes 4 to a pack), an old frame that was in my closet and scissors

What have you been up to this Summer?  Got any easy, fun ideas for frugal Summer fun? Share!

Two weeks ago I was frantically throwing about all of my important papers in search of my marriage license. Then running in for a last minute appointment at the post office to get my passport renewed with my “new” (I’ve been married for nearly 8 years) married name. I paid an extra $75 to get my passport in time for the trip to the Dominican, I was not chancing the possibility of missing such an opportunity!

I had taken time off of both of my jobs, my husband had worked it out so that he could care for the kids for five days all by himself. (Bless his heart!). I was planning my outfits, planning my packing and envisioning myself relaxing and experiencing this amazing all inclusive hotel…just me, some cool bloggers and the Caribbean! I had even seen my flight itinerary, which was going to be a long long flight, but that didn’t matter I was ready to get outta here!

And then I got the email.

“Your trip has been postponed.”

There were other words on the page but that’s all I could see, for the world around me went black.

Yes, in just under one week until my fantasy vacation, I got word..the trip was off! For now. It had been postponed.  Just as I was starting to smell the Caribbean air, feel the hot sun on my skin and taste the frozen concoction I was sure to enjoy….poof! It was all a dream.  I felt my head spin. It was like Calgon wasn’t taking me away, no, it was as if Calgon was throwing me back up…hurling me out of la la land and back into reality. With no break, no books, no booze, no bloggers and no Dominican Republic.

Bummer, man. Big, fat, huge, elephant size BUMMER.

I did feel bad for the super nice PR rep that had to send us all that email. I mean, to have to write to a bunch of women, MOMS, and tell them that their 3 days of freedom relaxation had been called off…I mean…he better be wearing a bullet proof vest! Us moms don’t take days off very lightly.  The important thing to remember (which my husband has reminded me every single time he catches me sulking in the corner) is that the trip was not “canceled” it was “postponed.” And to that I say…

You say potato I say pa-tah-to.

It’s the 4th of July weekend, many a beach day will be had. And many a car will be filled with sand; sand that will stick with you until Labor Day weekend, when you will then add even more sand to your car and home. Ah, summer…

BUT, you don’t have to bring the beach home or start a sandbox in your backseat, instead just add a bottle of baby powder to your beach bag. Baby Powder, which is made from pure cornstarch and can have aloe and vitamin E in it, makes the sand literally disappear with just a tap tap and a rub.  This is especially awesome for kids in diapers. Who wants rough sand stuck in your diaper?  I haven’t met a kid that did. So pour some baby powder on their derriere and voila, sand be gone!

It also works wonders on feet – you may have white feet for a bit but the powder does go away, as does the sand, and  your feet are even a bit softer than before!

So have a Happy 4th of July, throw that bottle of baby powder in your beach bag, and gain your independence from sand in your car!