Poke

Since we are taking the red eye, H and I had a bit of spare time this morning to get some last minute errands done. I am always surprised how much effort it takes to leave a home... cleaning, cleaning, cleaning. Before nap time, I thought we should stop and get one last authentic Hawaiian meal to go. Have you ever heard of Poke? It is a raw fish salad. I feel like most initial reaction to this is either sick or sounds delicious; there is no in between. If you love sushi (serious sushi not just the common California roll)... then this is for you! I had never heard of it prior to moving to Hawaii... but it is a dish I will be sharing with all my future visitors. I can be a bit iffy when purchasing raw fish so we drove to one of our favorite grocery stories that is a bit more upscale and it was totally worth it. H isn't old enough for fish but I am hopeful she will adore it since both her parents are fanatics.

and the women helping me clean the fridge... she was SO excited to help (and I think just to be in the fridge was super exciting). I am doing all last minute laundry so she was just in her diaper. The life of a baby.

xoxo,
allie

Big Trip

Our bags are packed; H and I are jetting off for a long vacation and visit! We are officially taking the month of June off from military life. As much as we adore our day to day, busy life here... we are going home for some great grandparent hugs, some long runs (H will have plenty of babysitters!), lots of aunt/uncle laughs, and some very missed New York bagels/pizza. I can't wait to just get there. We have a solid 14 + hour travel schedule; I am hoping and praying H will be on her best behavior. We are taking the red eye so I am hopeful we will both be sleeping... You can dream right?

We are ending our trip with a college reunion in Minneapolis.. I am SO excited to see my best friends from college; we have not seen each other in over a year. H is going to adore meeting them and it will be the perfect summer weekend.

Someone asked me about H's eyes... At moments (rarely) they appear a bit unaligned. Per my pediatricians request, I took her to a specialist in Honolulu and it is something she will grow out of. We are going back in September for a final check but the optometrist seems confident it was just the shape of her eyelids and she would outgrow it any minute. I was really relieved although she did look adorable in the test glasses. 

For all moms out there, I totally recommend this style of baby food. Most brands are completely organic and H adores eating it out of the pouch. It is a bit messy but totally worth it and really easy to travel with.

Many more trip updates to come!

xoxo,
allie

Memorial Day

Happy Memorial Day. As much as this day marks the start of summer and is a great excuse for a family/friends BBQ for many people, it also is a day to stop and remember those who have given more than most. H and I hope you all had a wonderful day!

xoxo,
allie

Military Id Chaos.

We all have "one of those days" that never seems to end... thankfully those are rare in our household but today we were less fortunate. H has had an off week; a bad cold coupled with some stomach issues make for an understandably cranky baby yet longer days. She definitely seems to be on the mend (and just in the knick of time for our long flight home). Anyway, we had our nine month appointment schedule for today before our trip (even though we were there yesterday for her cold!) and the gate guard "confiscated" my military id. I went into panic mode. Spouse military ids ("dependents" although I personally deem myself very independent) are basically our lifelines. They give us access to the Commissary (grocery store), PX, Doctor, in and out of post/housing, and everything. After a couple of pleas, he gave me back my ID and said get a new one asap. These ID's are so serious they require a Power of Attorney since Will is deployed, blah. Anyway, long story short, after begging again over at the ID place, and with the help of a very, very kind soldier (who may of used some harsh words in my defense) I got a new ID.

Voila!

Although this is a horrible picture, I had to capture H at the ID place... I am sure the other patrons adored us. We waited forever! Poor baby was not feeling well and really showcasing her true sass.

After that and the long doctors appointment, phew, H and I ran into the PX to shop for new sippy cups (per the doctor's recommendation!). I can't believe she is almost 9 months old and needs to start using sippy cups! She just fully stopped breastfeeding and now onto sippy cups? Where has the the time gone? Of course she looks just like Will in this picture.

It is almost Memorial Day weekend! We hope everyone has wonderful plans!

xoxo,
allie

Beachy Lady

On Saturday, we went out for a wonderful birthday lunch and spent the afternoon on the beach. It was the perfect day. I hope I never become accustom to living in Hawaii and enjoy its' beauty everyday because it is literally unreal (we are beyond lucky to be stationed here). There is nothing better than a beach day and I so hope to have many this summer (after our trip home!) and before our activities gear back up. H is still very unsure about the water.. mainly because of the temperature but she adores the sand and has made vast improvements playing with it rather than consuming it. There were tons of people parasurfing? I totally made that up but, with the strong wind, tons of people were attached to wake boards and had huge kites in the air that they were using to skid across the water. It looked really fun. Will and I will have to add it to our "must do list in Hawaii"... of course after I figure out what it is really called...

I love this series of pictures. They really captures her love for my sweet friend Margaret. H is so lucky to get loved on by so many people. The second picture captures this age perfectly; she was a-lining it for those sunglasses. She loves glasses.

and this picture was from today. H has been a bit under the weather with a cold but she was still happy to get out and about for a bit. Naturally Sophie the Giraffe came along.

Speaking of Sophie, H has a new friend; poor Sophie has some competition. She adores this tiny little bunny. She does seem to love animals... I guess it is the size that appeals to her?

 

Sweet baby.

Happy Wednesday!

xoxo,
allie

Will in the Stan

I have a wonderful weekend post coming your way but I found this on Will's company Facebook page. We are so lucky to have people snapping photos over there to get a glimpse in their lives! I told Will he looked really tan; he assured me it was either the lighting or dust. Anyway, here he is in his office! More to come later...

xoxo,
allie

Hair-y Situation

All day, everyday H is busy pulling up on everything. My days are filled with chasing her and she is not even walking yet. Right now her biggest preoccupation is taking everything out...cabinets, toy box, books, you name it. However, her absolute favorite activity is throwing the silverware out of the dishwasher (that chore was quickly moved to nap time and nighttime). These H outfits are not the best but almost all these pictures are  pre bedtime but I rarely take photos during the day when we are out and about.

anddd we have hair! I am so thrilled it is finally growing.  It is a hard to see because it is very light (blonde?) but I promise it is growing.  Soon enough she will be decked out in bows galore. I love this first picture... straight out of the bath tonight and she is busy sucking her thumb. I honestly don't know if I should encourage this habit (?) but she loves sucking her thumb before bed (and nap time) so right now the habit is contained.

and a Mama/H pic after bath. It is so hard to capture us together so we admittedly do the "couple" photo. Definitely not the best photography. O well.

Happy Friday!

xoxo,

allie

J's Day and Mother's Day

My younger sister, Jessie (Auntie J in our house) graduated from Syracuse University this weekend and we could not be more proud. J has always been super intelligent and excelled in school (I always remember admiring that from a young age!); she applied and was accepted to the prestige Teach for America program nationwide. Basically Teach for America goes into underprivileged school districts (typically very urban or very rural) and teaches the students, after vigorous summer training in Chicago, for two years (right J?). J was placed in Minneapolis Minnesota (yayaya, our family is from there and we grew up spending our summers there) and we SO thrilled for her. She is going to be an inspirational teacher and all her students are lucky to have her. H and I just wish we were at graduation this past weekend, but we can't wait to see what Jessie does in this world; I know it is going to be something amazing. These are my proud parents with the graduate!

My Mother's Day started with flowers from one of my best and oldest friends... Auntie Jenn. It was beyond sweet of her to remember H and I on this day. She is SUCH a thoughtful friend and we are both SO lucky to have her in our lives for years to come. This picture doesn't really do them justice but they are beautiful.

H and I had a wonderful Mother's Day on Sunday. Here is the little women all dressed up for church and brunch.

We met our friends down at Ko Olina (personally one of my favorite places on the island) which is the home to the Marriott Resort and Disney Resort. Both are right on the ocean with awesome views and the wonderful trade winds. I would LOVE to live there but the commute wouldn't be worth it for us! We don't go down there enough so brunch was a wonderful excuse. Ingrid and Steve invited us and we were thrilled. It was delicious... and they were SO sweet to think about me on Mother's Day and spent the afternoon with us. They also brought flowers. I can't thank them enough! I love these photos below because Harper loves Steve; it is almost board line crush status. These pictures perfectly capture how much she loves to look at him. Hilarious.

The evening ended up my favorite neighbors coming over dinner; they were so sweet and brought over the best sugar cookies I have ever had.  It was the perfect ending to a great day. Thank you everyone for making Mother's Day so special!!

I just have to quickly show this last photo.. This was from today. Grumpy Tuesday we shall say... She is cutting another tooth on the bottom; we are up to 7 teeth and she was not pleased. I don't blame her but phew, sassy.

xoxo,
allie

Aunt Momo

Happy 13th Birthday to Aunt Momo!! Harper is very blessed to have 6 Aunts/Uncles... 3 aunts and 3 uncles. Since Will and I are both the oldest children (Will of 5, me of 3), H has lots of love coming her way all the time. H loves Momo; she is always so thrilled to see her on Skype and I just can't wait to see them together soon on our trip home. Molly is so gentle and caring with H... She is a wonderful Aunt. I am sure H will look up to her for many years to come.

I think I am getting more sentimental now that I am a mom but when I found this old picture from Will's first year at school, I couldn't believe how much older all of his siblings are! Especially Molly! Sometimes "Plebe" year doesn't seem so far ago and yet it was a good almost 6 years ago? Crazy. 

I love this picture! So sweet of H and Mo.

Happy Birthday Aunt Momo! We love you!! 

xoxo,

allie 

Girly Girl

I actually don't know if H will be a girly girl... of course I would adore to have that in common (cough, shopping) but more than anything I want her to embrace whoever she wants to become... Tom Boy? Animal Lover? Girly Girl? Nerd? Gosh the possibilities are endless but I am confident she will figure it out.

Today was a girly girl's day and perfect diversion from everyday life; my wonderful friends/neighbors went on a shopping trip down to the BEST mall in Hawaii. The Ala Moana. Seriously it has every store imaginable and is outdoors; perfect combination of wonderful weather and great shopping. If it was a bit closer, I would be there everyday. Good thing we live closer to the North Shore than Honolulu..(at least for our wallets).  H was so thrilled to spend the day with Jocelyn and Margaret; she loves them and they are beyond sweet with her.

I love this last picture. Both girls so happy! 

anddd I can't even believe it! H is 8 months old. Here is the sweetest girl in her big girl jammies!

xoxo,
allie

Happy Birthday Will!

Happy Birthday Daddy!!! Today is Will's birthday and we "celebrated" all day long by doing Daddy stuff. Although he is in Afghanistan, I thought it was important to remind H of this special day. So we sang "Happy Birthday" allllll day long and ate all of his favorite foods. Obviously not quite the same as having him here, but we are so happy he is safe and another year wiser. We sent him a care package with some cakes baked into mason jars (an army wife tip for fresh baked goods I learned!) but we can't wait tell next year to celebrate with him in person! Happy birthday to our sweet Will. We love you and are beyond proud of you!

Singing to Daddy (singing has never been my thing.. fyi!)

H munching on some Avocado... a favorite for both Daddy/H. 

and I just had to include one of my favorite photos. Sweetest newborn H and Will. 

Love love this photo. 

xoxo,

allie

Low Key Weekend

H was feeling a bit under the weather (small virus!) so we had a pretty low key weekend. I was debating whether or not to take her to the doctor... (new mom syndrome) and decided on a quick trip to the Acute Care Clinic on post Saturday morning. The doctor definitely smirked when I told him her symptoms, o well. Better safe than sorry! She was feeling better by Sunday.

Here is us at the clinic... Usually I don't take photos like this but it was for Will.

I decided to treat H to some brunch to celebrate a good doctor's visit! She loved the women next to us.... Thank goodness they loved her too! (yes we had a necessary outfit change with her virus.. yikes. in fact that was a four outfit type of day... life of a baby) 

Also, I have posted this before, but boy oh boy does H love to push shopping carts. It is definitely one of her favorites.. along with dogs, her poodle blanket, and sophie. Today she was " so helpful pushing" at the Commissary.  I am not sure if I should encourage this habit.. she adores it but phew, it is difficult to shop with all the "help".

and speaking of which... Sophie is still very much a part of our life. That silly little giraffe travels everywhere with us.

We hope everyone else had a wonderful weekend!!

xoxo,
allie