HALLOWEEN!!!!

We had a FUN Halloween this year!!! It was soooooo great because it was the WARMEST halloween in 50 years in Calgary!! This was highly unusual...18C today. The kids didnt even wear coats!! It was sooo great! James borrowed Ben's shark and was so darn cute! He loved it...and loved eating the teeth on the costume (sorry Ben). The girls had a fun day at school complete with a parade and sock hop. They then wanted to keep the tradition of going to the mall this year with their friends the Humphreys' even tho it was so warm. We decided to go to see the cute costumes. Then the girls all came back here to go trick or treating in the neighbourhood! They scored and got soooooo much candy (we even donated to the childrens hospital). Then they spent the next 2 hours, sorting, counting and trading! It is so funny how it keeps them entertained for hours! It was fun to see the neighbourhood get all decorated for the holiday and we will have to step it up next year. Hope everyone had a happy halloween!!!

8 Months and Mobile?!?

8 MONTHS OLD!!!

James celebrated his 8 month birthday while staying with the Dahl's (in fact, Mary celebrated her birthday the same day!!) This month has brought many new fun changes. He is much more balanced while sitting, he rolls all over the place, and he now scoots BACKWARD!! It is hilarious! I put him in the family room today and had to answer the phone, while on the phone, I watched him scoot backwards all the way into the kitchen and under the kitchen table where he got stuck between chair legs! It was so funny! His other new trick is that from a laying position, he can get up into a sitting position! I have found him SITTING in his crib after his naps!! Good thing I lowered that crib!! What a fun stage this is. He is babbling a lot now and prefers the DADADA's over the MAMAMA's no matter how much I coach him. He also has started patty caking and is so darn proud of himself! It seems he is just growing and changing and learning new tricks over night! We never know what the next day is going to bring! So fun!!!

Kalalau Trail.....

The Kalalau Trail is a famous hike that follows along the Napali Coastline. It is an 11 mile grind that takes someone going at a good clip an hour per mile. You hike all day...camp on Kalalau beach at night then hike out the next day. We were heading to the beach when we passed the trail head to this hike. Mike wanted to check it out so we did enough to get a taste of what the hike is like. We hiked maybe a mile in and turned around. It was beautiful and around each corner you didnt know what the next stunning view would be. It is definately an adventure to add to your lists!!!!

Waimea Canyon and Napali Coastline

Waimea Canyon
Looking down one of the valleys toward the Napali coastline...there were clouds moving in and out of this valley for the hour that we were hiking this trail...everytime you looked out there was a new spectacular sight!!
More of the coastline...
And another view...
Mike..trying to find a path down...luckily..there was none..lol.

Helicopter Tour of Kauai!!!

This was definately one of the hilights of the week. Now I was quite nervous to get into this flying bird...which is odd...considering helicopters are a strong part of my Bullock heritage (Bullock Helicopters was my grandfathers business). Nevertheless...I got on despite my nerves..and it was truly amazing. It was just like one of those 360 film experiences...complete with a little hawaiian music playing thru the headphones. It was breathtaking. There are so many different beauties of Kauai. They have Waimea Canyon which is the grand canyon of Hawaii. They have the spectacular falls that were used in the film Jurassic Park. Then there is the Napali Coastline which is amazing...from above and below. I hope you enjoy the slideshow. Just remember the pictures were taken thru the windows..so they arent the greatest...and if the sun was shining there was too much of a glare and you got a major reflection. So these are truly amateur pictures. I would highly recommend this tour if you ever visit Kauai!

We are home!

This is where we stayed on Kauai...if you look carefully you can see Mike returning from his surfing fun!!

We finally made it home! It is sure a long way home from Kauai!! We left Kauai at 8pm and arrived into Vancouver at 8am! Mary and James met us at the airport and then she had a mountain picked out to climb! The Grouse Grind! Unfortunately, James was ready for a nap..so I quickly volunteered to wait with him while Mike and Mary climbed! They did it in 56mins which I guess is great! It is straight up and a popular activity for Vancouverites on the weekend! Thankyou Mary for entertaining us for the day and to the Dahl family for adopting James for the week! He had such a fun week with you and thanks to you...I dont think he missed us for a second! We left Vancouver Sunday morning and met Kristin, Brent and Ben at the airport with the girls! We had a quick lunch and then the Hagermans caught their flight back to the warm Arizona sun! The girls had a great great time with Auntie Kristin and loved having Ben around too! They had tons of fun activities and even visited Kristin's favorite ice cream shop (see her blog). They have told us non-stop about all the fun they had! Im so glad they were having a great time with us gone! Thanks so much Kristin!!!

This was the view from our balcony! I sat out here anytime we were back at the hotel! I loved listening and watching the waves and palms! We also had great sunsets from here!

KAUAI!!!!

Aloha!!! From the Garden Isle....

I am having serious technical issues trying to blog pictures! I dont know if it is the wireless connection that is slow...or whether the whole island is just slow. Anyhow, I will have to deal with the pictures when we get back to the mainland.  For now this picture will have to do!  This is the Na'pali coastline of Kauai! Before we arrived in Kauai I had read about this coastline and how it is the MUST see of the island. However, it is unaccessible by road. So you either hike (11 miles in and 11 miles out) or kayak (16 miles one way) or helitour.  It is truly spectacular. We have seen it from the air (helicopter tour). We have seen it from high above (driving up canyon and then hiking) and we have seen it from the coastline (we did a one mile sampling of the eleven mile trail).  The views of this area are so amazing.  As we drive along the island...I just cant stop looking around....it is like a postcard every where you look! Im so glad we rented a convertible so I could take pictures along the way. SO BEAUTIFUL!!! The beaches have been amazing and the weather is perfect! We are trying to soak in the sun, because rumor has it there is snow in the forecast in Calgary! Anyhow...just wanted to let our babysitters know we are doing fine...and survived the helicopter tour!  Thank you SOOOOO much Kristin and the Dahls for having our kids!! And for everyone else who is having them for dinner and to the zoo!! Many Mahalo's!!!

Yummo Cookie!!

This is James' first arrowroot cookie! He just popped two little teeth and he is gnawing on anything and everything...so I picked these up at the grocery store. He giggled and giggled and gnawed it away to nothing! He is loving having these little teeth to experiment with!

Fall colors

We have had an unbelievably beautiful September in Calgary! The colors have turned yet our summer sun is still warm! 25C today!! That is almost unheard of on October 1st! I love watching all the colors change...especially on my drive to school and back. Hopefully this warm weather will last another month!!

Boys and their toys!

My sister and I always wanted to have at least one baby close together. So when she got married we decided she could have her first and I would have my last together. Well, as much as you plan, life sometimes decides for you and as it turns out we have sweet little boys almost exactly one year apart. I can tell already that these boys are going to be little buds. They were playing cars together today!! So sweet! I love little boys!!!

Fall Weekend in Park City Utah!!

I was so lucky this past weekend to be able to join the rest of my family and go to Park City Utah to celebrate my grandpa's 90th birthday! The weekend was fast and furious and we raced from activity to activity. I took only James with me and left the 3 girls with grandma (thank you!!). James was a trooper and went with the flow! We had a great time at Utah Olympic Park riding ziplines, alpine slides and we even went on the wild bobsled ride!!! Longest minute of my life!

We enjoyed a nice evening with so many extended family! It was so nice to visit and catch up with so many that we hadnt seen in so long. Sunday we made a trip out to Salt Lake to visit with my Grandma Shirley and her husband Max and many cousins!! Thank you to all that made the effort to stop by for a visit!! It was so fun to see all of you and your cute kids!! It was a fun fun fun weekend! For more pictures from the weekend...check out my sister KRISTIN'S blog! The link is on the side!