Hawaii 2015 Last Thoughts

This Hawaii trip was our "big trip" for the year. I like to try and go on one big trip every year, if possible. 

First, the planning. I went through a travel agency that was recommended by my boss. He uses them every year to go to Cancun with his family. He stays at all-inclusive places. I wish they had all-inclusive places in Hawaii!! Going through the travel agency made things a little less stressful with planning the hotel, booking the airfare, etc. The only thing is -- I'm a bit of a control freak, so I was double checking everything. So not sure I actually saved "time" in going through a travel agency! But I did like that she was able to show me different packages depending on the airline/hotel combination. Overall, I enjoyed going through the travel agent and will probably use her again for my next trip. 

I get good rental car prices through work corporate perks. This I will continue to use on trips going forward. So, I'll book this separately from the travel agent. Next time, I will look more into HOW to get to the rental place (need to take a shuttle or if it's part of the airport, etc). 

Second, the packing. I always over pack. It's just my thing. I'm a "just in case" type person. Overall, I over packed for Little Guy - had a lot of options. He still had half his clothes left that were clean! BUT his clothes don't take up a lot of room. My clothes - I packed JUST right. I used almost everything I brought. There were some hair accessary items I didn't need for Hawaii, like my curling iron. What I know I over planned for was the "in flight toddler entertainment." Almost none of it worked! I still need to do a "review" of the things I brought. Knowing what I know now - I will not bring as much stuff for Little Guy. The things that entertained him the most were a cup from the plane and a straw. Really! 

Third, attending events where I'm not really "welcomed". OK. So, not that I wasn't welcomed. But it wasn't a "we're happy to see you" type feeling that I got. Next time, I will not plan a trip around something like that where I will feel uncomfortable. I do have a wedding to attend next month with the same group... but that's ONE event and there will be more people I know to keep me company. 

Forth, the trip was a day too long for a toddler. You can only ask so much from a toddler! You can't expect them to just adjust and be ok with it. Considering we were in a hotel, I think I would prefer to stay in condo/apartment-type hotels when having little ones. Better to have a fridge and food at the ready. Plus, a bigger place to explore. I enjoyed our Florida trip where we rented a condo on the beach. Big enough to explore so it didn't feel like we were on top of each other. 

Fifth, traveling solo with a toddler is TOUGH. It's not like this is my first trip with Little Guy... but it is my first trip with him being a full fledged toddler! It was exhausting trying to get things done, carry everything, stay on schedule, keep a nap schedule, not to let him get over tired, not to let him get too far away, make sure he was eating, make sure he was drinking enough water, expose him to new things, etc. It's tiring. I'm tired! One day too long for both of us! 

Overall, I had a great time on this trip! I got to see most of the island, I got to experience things I haven't done before with the Luau, Botanical Gardens, North Shore, and just exploring Waikiki. There was equal chances to relax and explore. 

I love Little Guy and enjoy his company so much. Seeing things through his eyes is nice. But all he really wanted was to point at airplanes and play with his cars! Oh, and run around exploring without me saying "no-no"! I did a lot of research on "toddler friendly" places on the island. I'm sure he enjoyed himself, as much as a toddler can. 

Though it was fun and we got to do a lot -- it was also exhausting! Hoping for a nice relaxing weekend... then onto our next adventures: 

1. Next Week: Road trip to Southern California + Disneyland! I'm finalizing the plans for that one. This is to attend my God Daughter's High School Graduation! I'll have both toddlers for this trip and my friends' teenage daughter will be coming along. 
2. Next Month: Road trip to Southern California for the wedding. Will just have Little Guy for this one. 
3. December: Trip TBD. This will be dependent on TTC and adoption finalization. 

Hawaii Trip, Day #8: Travel Day -- Headed back to the Mainland!

Time to head home!!! I have to say, I was excited about going home. I loved our trip, but there comes a time when all you want to do is sleep in your own bed, let your toddler run around in a child-proof home, and just relax. I seriously need a vacation from my vacation! 

First, we packed and put everything in the car. When I say "we" - I mean me carrying a toddler in a baby carrier and lugging all of our junk through the hotel and elevator to the car. After we had the car loaded and ready, we checked out. Here's Little Guy saying "bye bye" to the Koi Fish. 

All in all, I was really satisfied with the Sheraton Princess Kaiulani. The resort fee is charged at all the hotels there, but I really liked what it covered (parking, 2 bottles of water/day, beach towels, beach chair, family photo). It wasn't fun facing the construction, but there's so much construction around the area anyways. Overall, satisfied. I loved the location, we were close to everything. Maybe a 3.5 stars out of 5? 

After we checked out, we went to our favorite breakfast spot Keoni by Keo. Then, it was time to head to the airport EARLY - so I wouldn't stress out! Also, to tire Little Guy out. 

Since I had such an "adventure" arriving in Honolulu, I decided to go about things a little differently for heading home. The game plan: 

• Park in the terminal, check in luggage. 
• Return rental car. Take shuttle back to the airport. 
• Go through security. 
• Let Little Guy run his little heart out. 

This plan worked out EXTREMELY well!!! Checking luggage before returning the rental car helped with the issue of loading all the luggage on the rental car shuttle back to the terminal. Saved me a lot of stress. Plus, check out the view from the terminal parking lot! What was awesome is that there were some military fighter jets in the air and Little Guy was fascinated with how fast they were going! I'll have to remember this for the future, maybe watch an air show one day. 

Since we got to the airport so early, Little Guy was free (for the most part) to wonder around. He played with luggage carts, played with pay phones (can you believe they have pay phones?!), talked to people, ran away from me as fast as he could, played on the computer, etc. 

Last views of Hawaii from the plane. 

You'd think that would tire him out? Well, it did! But it didn't really help on the plane ride home. He only slept for maybe 10 minutes on take off and was up the entire trip back home. Cranky toddler on the plane. That was us! 

Just to add to the "fun" of air travel with children. We arrived at our home airport right on time, like on the dot. Then, there was an issue with the jet bridge! We had to wait about 25 minutes on the plane before they could get the doors open to let us out. Joy-joy. Just got to roll with it. 

Regardless, it was nice arriving home. Our friend was kind enough to pick us up and our dog was happy we were home! 

Best part of the day: breakfast at Keoni by Keo's. 

Worst part of the day: Toddler meltdowns on airplanes. 

Hawaii Trip, Day #7: Pool Day + Family Photos

This was our last full day in Hawaii. Since we have been jam packed with adventures since we arrived, I decided it would be nice to just chill out by the pool for most of the morning. 

That worked out OK until Little Guy decided he wanted to run around and explore! That didn't bode well for me having to chase him everywhere. He would go up to people and talk to them, then sit by them, then get down and try to run away. He cracks me up. It's exhausting keeping up with him! 

Here he is sneaking up on people in the lobby! He was standing there for 5 minutes before they noticed he was there. 

Family Photos 

The hotel we stayed at offered a free photo by a professional photographer. Of course I ended up buying ALL of the photos! There were just too many I liked, especially by the beach. There are some really nice ones and the background looks picture perfect. 

Something completely random, I ran into someone I went to college with at the hotel! We didn't have time to chat - but it was so random and I haven't seen her in years. Small world. 

After we had photos taken, we went to the beach and ate. Had a spectacular view from one of the hotel bars.

That evening, Little Guy had a hard time! Had his first breakdown since arriving in Hawaii. That's when I knew the trip was maybe 1 day too long for him. Nothing that could be done at that point but just let him get through his meltdown. 

Best part of the day: Taking family photos on the beach. 

Worst part of the day: Toddler meltdowns. 

Hawaii Trip, Day #6: Dole Plantation and North Shore

Today was an adventure! We were up early and I decided to have breakfast in the hotel. It was OK... not the best considering the cost for the continental breakfast. I don't know if I will do the hotel breakfast again. Overpriced and just not appetizing.

Dole Plantation 

After breakfast, we picked up a beach chair and towels for our day trip to the North Shore area. We started the drive to the Dole Plantation and it wasn't too bad, not much traffic. I was really excited about this portion of the trip, as I was hoping Little Guy would enjoy riding the Pineapple Train and I couldn't wait to see how he liked the Dole Whip! 

When we arrived, the first thing we did was get a Dole Whip! At first, Little Guy wasn't so sure about the whole thing. Then, after a few bites - he really liked it! 

After we finished the Dole Whip, we rode the Pineapple Express Train. 

This is a 20 minute train ride around the plantation. It was very informative! Unfortunately, Little Guy was getting grumpy while we were waiting to board the train. Grumpy toddler + trying to escape while riding a train = kind of a stressful train trip for Mom. I don't think he really realized we were "on" the train! He was excited when he saw it, but I think he's still too young to realize these things. 

Afterward, we tried to do the Pineapple Maze. Bad idea! Right at that time it got extremely hot and we were both miserable with little shade to hide under. I mean, I was dripping sweat - it was so humid. Yuck. I decided it was time to buy some souvenirs (so we can hang out in the AC) and then have lunch. 

A few years ago I started collected Christmas Ornaments for each of the trips I went on. One of my friends did it and I thought it was a fabulous idea. I used to collect shot glasses - but those are harder to "display" year-round. I bought a Christmas ornament that says "Our Ohana" on it with our names :) It'll be our first "Family C" ornament for our tree this year. 

I wasn't too thrilled with the lunch we had at the Dole Plantation... I think I just ordered the wrong thing. Other menu options looked really good. Ours just wasn't very tasty. After lunch, it was time for the beach! 

North Shore 

North Shore is really close to the Dole Plantation. I have to tell you, the view from the road driving to the North Shore is amazing! So beautiful!!!

 I had a destination in mind, but I ended up detouring to a different beach. The drive was so beautiful and the ocean was picture perfect blue. Amazing. I drive up most of the North Shore until we reached a less populated beach. That's where I decided we would "hang out" for the rest of the afternoon. The waves were too rough for Little Guy to go in, so he just played in the sand. 

I have to admit, traveling with a toddler can be tiring - as I have to carry EVERYTHING! The toddler + all the beach stuff (chair, towels, cooler, backpack, toys, etc). So getting to the beach and leaving the beach are the tiring parts. Sitting there watching Little Guy play in the sand is the joyful / relaxing portion of the beach trip :) 

The drive back was LONG! Over an hour long to get back to the hotel. But the view... wow - the view!!! I wish there were more turn offs or scenic stops not his route. I would have stopped so much to take some pictures of the stunning landscape. Breathtaking. 

Although I was enjoying the views from the road, Little Guy wasn't having it! About 45 minutes until we reached the hotel -- he started whining and whined all the way to the hotel. Joy-joy. 

With the busy day - neither of us really got a good "nap" in!!! When we got back to the hotel, I gave Little Guy a bath - then we were off to dinner at the lobby cafe. Then off to sleep for us! 

Long day driving, but got to see a lot of Oahu that I haven't seen before. 

Best part of the day: The scenic route. 

Least favorite part of the day: Carrying all the stuff back to the car after the beach. 

Hawaii Trip, Day #5: Foster Botanical Gardens + Chief's Luau

I didn't have much planned for this day accept going to a Luau. Of course, the day ended up feeling a lot more busier than expected!

We didn't have anything planned for the morning. Figured we'd try going to another botanical garden, so that Little Guy can run around. There's not a lot of places for him to run around and he was getting a bit antsy being confined all the time. We went to a closer garden called Foster Botanical Garden. 

It was a lot smaller than the other one and closer to our hotel. 

Since it was small, I let Little Guy run around and go which ever direction he wanted to go. He enjoyed that part. It was really pretty and very educational.

Chief's Luau at Sea Life 

I REALLY wanted to go to a Luau this trip. I researched and researched different options. I finally decided to go to the Chief's Luau at Sea Life. 

It was ranked #1 on Trip Advisor and some people I spoke to said it was really good, smaller and more intimate. I decided to pay for a shuttle ride there as well. The shuttle ride was very scenic and I loved the drive! They give you a history while you're driving there and point out some places to see and things to do. 

I was thinking about going to Sea Life during the day, but the actual park doesn't have great reviews - so I opted against it and doing the botanical garden instead. 

When we arrived, we received some shell leis. They also had a bunch of activities to do, spear throwing, making headbands, taking pictures with the dancers. It was really nice and small! 

Little Guy was running around chasing the rooster and trying to get away from me. He really loves his freedom! Such a boy, he can wonder off far and away and not even notice how far he's gotten. 

Here's a view of the Luau. Such a great location and wonderful view. 

What was nice, the moon was shining bright during the performance. 

Also, the fire dancers were the best part! Loved it!

I was very happy with the Chief's Luau. Very well organized. Getting on the shuttle, arriving, eating, and then leaving - was all well organized and done well. The food wasn't the "best" - it was just OK. But the overall experience was excellent. Plenty of room for Little Guy to run around and not get hurt. Entertainment for the adults and something the kids would like. Little Guy liked the fire portion as well. 

Best part of the day: The Chief's Luau. 

Worst part of the day: Nothing today! Maybe just tired, we did a lot. 

Hawaii Trip, Day #4: Beach + Graduation Party

We had an early start to the day! The graduation party was in the evening and I wanted to make sure we got some beach time in. Also, I wanted to make sure we got a nap in before the party! 

The day started off early. We got ready to go to the beach and went to ShoreFyre for breakfast. It's a little hole in the wall place that was featured on the Food Network and they were handing out flyers at the beach yesterday. 

They were BUSY! We got there about 7:30am and the line was really long. We finally got our breakfast and ate it at the beach (which was just right down the street). We then setup our beach spot and stayed here all day until lunch time. 

This was a good beach trip because Little Guy finally was able to play in the sand without freaking out that he was dirty! He really enjoyed playing. Still had a hard sell on going into the ocean though! 

The Graduation Party 

After we took a nice afternoon nap, we headed for the graduation party. It was ok. The food was excellent! The really bad part was that Little Guy fell and hit his head!!! Big scratch on his forehead and his nose. Ugh. It was so random. He was playing outside, running on the sidewalk - like normal.. then all of a sudden fell right onto his face! I was right there when it happened, nothing I could do to have stopped it. Other than that, the evening was uneventful. 

Best part of the day: Having breakfast on the beach. 

Worst part of the day: Little Guy busting his face. 

Hawaii Trip, Day #3: Ho'omaluhia Botanical Garden + Exploring Waikiki

I was excited for this day! On the itinerary: Visit a Botanical Garden. I researched a few Botanical Gardens and found that Ho'omaluhia Botanical Garden had wonderful reviews. I loved the pictures and decided that we just HAD to visit there. Figured, Little Guy can run around and see some nature.

Here is what it looked like:

How beautiful is that view! Little Guy had fun running around in the open area. Not many "No-No's" from me! We went by the lake, where they have a plethora of Koi Fish. Little Guy decided to eat the food instead of throwing it to the fish. But he loved looking at them and watching them. 

There's even a place to go fishing. Little Guy was too young for that though, so we settled for running around and feeding the fish. 

Afterwards, we laid out the beach towels and had a picnic by the lake. 

Everything was going well until it started raining. At first, it was just drizzling. Then, it started to poor! Like torrential rain! I brought an umbrella, but of course left it in the hotel room! Duh. Little Guy was fine in his stroller, it was me who get drenched. Like no joke - all the way through. It was tough pushing the stroller through the wet grass, but we got out of there when it didn't look like the rain would let up. 

Exploring Waikiki 

After we got back to the hotel after getting rained on, we took a nice afternoon nap! I know I needed it after all that adventure. After we got up, we explored Waikiki. Went up and down the streets, checking out some stores, had dinner. We ended up running into a performance at the beach with some Polynesian dancers. It was really nice sitting by the beach and watching some dancing.

Little Guy was dancing and singing. He was also trying to talk to all of the people around us! He went up to a guy and starred at him in the face until he looked up, then he started laughing and ran away. I guess that's how he makes friends! Silly boy.

After watching a few performances, Little Guy was getting antsy and we started heading back to the hotel. Here was the gorgeous sunset that day. 

Best Part of the Day: Having a picnic by the lake.

Worst Part of the Day: Getting rained on!

Hawaii Trip, Day #2: Waikiki Beach + Graduation Ceremony Day

The whole point of this trip was to attend a graduation for my friend's daughter. Well... it turned out to be a little dramtastic.

Before the drama of the graduation ceremony in the evening, Little Guy and I went "exploring" and found a little place right by our hotel called Keoni by Keo. It's a cute little place and we loved their breakfast!

Waikiki Beach 

After we had breakfast, we headed to the beach across from our hotel. Man, the beach was packed! We wondered a little to the left of the hotel to find a little area that was perfect for us. There is a little patch of beach that has a break in it - which makes the waves less intimidating for Little Guy. 

Little Guy didn't like the sand at first. It took him a little bit to get used to it! He also wasn't thrilled with going into the water, even with the small waves. After a little while, he seemed to enjoy the water and the sand a little bit more. I took it slow with him, not forcing him to into things and giving him a chance to adjust.

Even though the beach is right across the street -- imagine I'm carrying Little Guy in the carrier and have a beach chair as a backpack and a small backpack with me for beach stuff. Fun times carrying everything. I made it work though! 

We spent the entire morning at the beach then headed back to the hotel for nap time prior the graduation. 

Graduation Ceremony 

I won't spend too much time on this part, as it wasn't the most joyful aspect of the trip.

Some background: I had a falling out with some of the family members a few years ago when I first became a foster parent. Long story short, they didn't agree with my parenting style and said some mean things to me. Then, it got blown out of proportion where I ended up doing some big bad wrong that was unforgivable. I have tried to talk it out, but one of the family members refuses to talk to me about it. She also refused to acknowledge my existence and will ignore me at events. Very mature! On top of that, her children feel like they are unable to speak to me when she is around. I've known her kids since they were babies (they are now teenagers). I was really close to her kids. Lots of heartbreak and soul searching has gone into this for me, and I'm now "over it".

So, my friend's ENTIRE family came out -- including the one that has the drama with me. I wasn't really looking forward to the graduation events! I came to support my friend's daughter - not to have a dramafied time. My friend specifically asked me to come out for the graduation, which is why I came.

Well, we were all meeting at my friend's house prior to the graduation so we can all drive over together. Man... the tension in the house was thick. I haven't felt that "out of place" since high school maybe? Sheesh. I really could have skipped the graduation... but the whole point of the trip was to support the graduate. So, here I was in awkward-land. And yes, the relative ignored me - didn't make eye contact with me - ignored Little Guy too (which was even more annoying). Got to love immature adults! The graduation ceremony was even more strange since we were all in close quarters. Then, returning to the house afterwards -- the tension didn't ease. They eventually left, then I left shortly after them. It was just all awkward! I wasn't looking forward to having to attend the graduation party on Sunday.

This whole experience made me realize something about the entire situation and what I need to do next to let go of some of my past where these people are concerned. I'll save that for another entry though - no need to linger on it now! It's over (thank goodness).

Best part of the day: Hanging out at the beach with Little Guy.

Worst part of the day: hanging out at my friend's house. 

Hawaii Trip, Day #1: Travel Day - Headed to Oahu Hawaii!

Travel days... Not the funnest part of vacation, especially when you are traveling solo with a toddler.

Packing

First, all the stuff you need to pack!!! I have to admit, I'm a procrasti-packer. I normally don't pack until the day before OR even a few hours before. The reason? There's stuff you use everyday that you need to pack! Or last minute laundry stuff. So yeah... I didn't pack until the day before we left and wasn't finished packing until about 15 minutes before we left the house.

The Airport 

My home airport was easy breezy. My friend dropped us off at the airport, which helped so much. Then, checking in at Hawaiian Airlines. I have to say, I love flying Hawaiian Airlines. But what I don't like about it is -- they don't give you your seat assignments UNTIL you are at the GATE! THE GATE! Not checking your luggage, but at the gate. So, you have to check your luggage, go through security, go to the gate -- to get your seats. Weird! They wouldn't let me choose while doing the online check in or when checking my luggage. It made me feel rushed to get to the gate and make sure we had seats. As it turned out, we didn't have time to eat breakfast or explore the terminal - as we were already boarding about 15 minutes after getting our seat assignments.

We ended up getting a window seat, which was nice - since there are only two seats in the row. No need to worry about anyone else in our row.

The Plane Ride

We were delayed about 20 minutes. Other than that, the plane ride was relatively uneventful! Little Guy did amazing!!! I brought a lot of Toddler-Worthy-Plane-Distraction-Items --> Were they a Success? I'll have to do another blog entry after the trip on that... But some cute things: Little Guy called his Teddy Grams "Baby" and he was playing with the animal crackers and making animal noises :)

Arriving in Oahu 

When you fly to Hawaii, you have to fill out a form saying you didn't bring anything with you that is on this list before arriving at HNL. Well, apparently there were people on our flight that brought some "no-no" items with them. Therefore, we were diverted at the airport to another portion of the airport where the Sheriffs came on board to "escort" these folks off. That means we were delayed about 40 minutes on the tarmac. THEN, we were so far from the baggage claim!!! I ended up walking to the baggage claim (bad idea - it was so humid!!). Then, someone told me the wrong carousel number and I was waiting at the wrong one! Argh. Our luggage was the LAST pieces of luggage on our carousel. Not to mention, I couldn't find a luggage cart - they were all empty and no one at the airport (employees) would help me locate one. I got lucky finding one.

It gets worse...

Rental Car 

To get to the rental cars you have to take a shuttle. Well, there's no sign in the terminal to tell you that. So, I was waiting and asking some very unhelpful people (more HNL employees). For being in Hawaii, I have to say the most unhelpful people I have ever come across were working at this airport. This was by far the worse airport I have ever been to.

Imagine, I have a crap load of luggage WITH a baby and now I have to get onto a shuttle to pick up the rental car...! So now I'm waiting for the shuttle to come... waiting... waiting... waiting... 20 minutes or so? After waiting 20 minutes in the terminal to find out I needed to wait for the shuttle.... Grrr.

Then, the shuttle finally comes and are people helpful? Nope! They were pushing their way to get onto the shuttle while I had a crap load of luggage AND a baby strapped to me. Tsk tsk. Don't they realize they're going to have to wait for me anyways? Trying to get past me and push your way onto the shuttle is actually delaying the process. When we got off, I then had to reload all my luggage on a luggage cart. Does anyone help? Nope!

Mind you, it's not like I "need" the help. I can do all this myself (which I did). It's the point that people were literally watching me and not offering to help. Which is so odd! When we flew to Florida in December, there were people bending over backwards to help (even when I didn't need it). When we flew to Austin, the same thing - people were forcing their help onto me. It's just a different mind frame I suppose and something I didn't expect would bother me. Watch a lady with a lot of luggage and a toddler and not offer to help when you are just standing there doing nothing. To see this repeatedly makes it even more odd.

We get to the rental car place and then we have to wait ANOTHER 40 minutes just to check in and get the car! Oh my... I'm normally a patient person, but at this juncture I was getting pretty pissed off.

I finally load my rental car (with no help AT ALL from anyone!) and head to the hotel. My darn GPS took me to the wrong place originally and I had to re-map it while ON the Freeway. Not my finest moment, I may have muttered some not so sweet or nice word choices.

Arriving at the Hotel 

At this point, I'm exhausted. Absolutely bone tired and need a nice nap...! At least the room was ready and we were able to get in with no hassles. We stayed at the Sheraton Princess Kaiulani Hotel. The check-in guy was pretty friendly and nice. He must've thought I looked crazy -- I didn't realize my hair was sticking out everywhere due to the humidity and I was really unfriendly at this point, just wanted my key and to lay down for a little bit!

The good part is, we did have a "Partial View" of the ocean from our room. The bad part is, we are right next to construction!! It's really loud!!!

First thing we did was go to the beach! It's right across the street. Little Guy was scared of the waves and cried!!! We didn't go in the water, I just put my feet in.



Then we ate dinner and called it a day. I was tired. Do you blame me? :)

Best part of the day: Seeing the Pacific Ocean :)

Worst part of the day: The entire Honolulu Airport Experience. Worst airport experience I have EVER had. 

Busy May, Staying Distracted, & Vacation Countdown!

Last week was emotionally draining and just a blur of events.

• First, I had a big Toastmasters event last weekend. Which went extremely well! But it was exhausting - an all day event. Not to mention all the prep work that went into it. 
• Second, I had my first IUI cycle come back as a BFN. :( 
• Third, the court hearing for my foster son didn't go well. :( 
• Forth, I've started my second IUI cycle and started Clomid at 100mg. I'll save my Clomid stories for a different entry. 

All of that to lead into May events. There's a bunch going on this month: fertility appointments (including my second IUI - date TBD), appointments for my foster kiddos, another court hearing for my Little Guy, a Toastmasters conference to attend, and the biggie -- Hawaii Vacation!!!! 

After all the downers from last week, all the uncertainty with Trying to Conceive (TTC), and the craziness that is my Little Guy's foster care case... I needed to switch my focus on counting "cycle days", worrying about IUI success rates / how to increase your chances in IUI, worrying about Severance Trials... Therefore, I'm going to focus on my vacation that's coming up! Little Guy and I are going to Oahu, Hawaii on May 28th! 

25 more days until Vacation!! 

I'm looking at this as a "positive distraction". There's a lot going on in my mind around everything and I need a way to funnel all this pent up energy. I went to Google-verse and looked up "How to keep a toddler busy on a plane." :) Then today, I went to my trusted Amazon Smile and I SHOPPED. Bought a bunch of cool things to keep my Little Guy busy (hopefully) and entertained (hopefully) during our long flight to Oahu. If these cool toys end up being worthwhile distractible toddler items, I will blog about them after we get back. 

This isn't our first plane trip together. Little Guy has been to California (twice), Austin, and Florida. He was a lot younger on those trips and he's a busy guy. Now that the toddler months have decided to arrive early, I have to be prepared for optimal toddler entertainment. It is already stressful traveling alone with a toddler, not to mention the luggage, the logistics, etc. But I am determined to make this the smoothest trip we've had - meaning minimal meltdowns, food on the ready, sippy cup ready, and toys to entertain! Added plus would be for me not to sweat like a dog through the airport carrying my toddler, all these fantastic distraction items, pushing his stroller, and trudging his car seat along. 

All in all --> It felt GOOD to focus on something FUN!! To further enhance this "distraction", I plan to continue working on our itinerary of things to do and places to see. I had started it before I started my first IUI cycle and have gotten away from it. Time to finalize everything.

This trip was already planned prior to Little Miss arriving. Therefore, she will be staying in respite with her daycare provider while we are gone. 

I'm really excited to be taking this trip with Little Guy. We leave the day after the severance trial and after I receive my Beta results back... So, the trip is perfectly timed. Whether I receive positive/negative news prior to leaving -- I have this trip to look forward to! 

Aloha!