One is never enough...for reals

Funny how you can innocently write a title to a post about your kid having three binkies in his mouth and have it be completely misinterpreted by multiple people as a new baby announcement.  Funnier still when you find out the next day that you are actually expecting another baby.  It's official.  Colton will have to begin sharing the spotlight starting around November 2 (although I like to just round down to Halloween as a much better due date).

We've been trying to help Colton understand that there's a baby in Mommy's tummy (partially to prepare him for the change, and partially to try to convince him to stop jumping on me), but apparently all we've accomplished is making him think that the sign for baby is to pat your tummy.  Oh well.  I think he'll get it eventually...

Ultimate Hawaiian Super-Post

 I could literally write five or six blog posts about our time in Hawaii, but I thought I'd streamline the process...So here's our amazing trip in a nutshell:

Hanauma Bay

Our first big outing was to go snorkeling at Hanauma Bay.  I managed to stay in the water about 15 minutes before I started feeling nauseous.  Seasickness, how do I love thee?  Colton mostly just enjoyed throwing sand.

Wimea Falls (Take 1)

We decided to take a little Scott family trip to Wimea Falls on the Sunday afternoon Justin was with us.  I don't think Colton even noticed the waterfall.  He was far too busy pushing his stroller.  The only thing that distracted him from pushing was the peacock strutting around.  That got him pretty excited as well.

Playground

Emily's house is very happily situated right next to a playground (and the Laie, Hawaii Temple).  It made me realize that kids in Hawaii become playground proficient much earlier than kids from Virginia--but Colton appreciated the practice time.  You can also see that no playground is complete without something to push around on it.  Seriously, this kid is obsessed with pushing!  (And my favorite pic is the one of Colton and Charlie fighting for the stroller.  That is the perfect representation of their relationship.)

Wimea Falls (Take 2)

After our amazing morning at Shark's Cove, we headed up to Wimea falls for a second round.  This time I actually got in the water!  Colton once again just wanted to push his stroller.

Gunstock Ranch Easter Egg Hunt

I'm pretty sure Colton would have been more excited about the Easter Egg hunt if it hadn't been set in a field of prickly weeds.  We didn't get the memo about wearing close-toed shoes.  He was pretty excited about seeing the horses close up--but not excited enough to actually ride one.  Charlie, Colin, Jane, Henry, and Parker all really enjoyed their pony rides though.  Henry liked it so much, he sneaked off and got on a horse for a second ride.  Then he kept telling us all day how sneaky he was.  

Laie, Hawaii Temple

The other Sunday we were in town, we decided to spend a little time walking around the temple grounds and going to the Visitor's Center.  We took all the kids inside to watch the new Joseph Smith movie.  Some of the highlights of that experience include Henry asking at the top of his voice if they had drinks there, Colin (also at the top of his voice) saying "enough with the scary parts!"  He didn't like Joseph's time in Liberty Jail.  And finally, during the several scenes of the Saints being attacked by mob violence, Colton decided to have a full conversation with himself.  His conversation must have been quite amusing because he kept laughing--at the top of his voice.  Good thing the other people in the theater seemed to think these outbursts were as amusing as we did...

 Turtle Bay

Michael and Julie's family stayed at Turtle Bay during the second week of our stay...which meant that we had access to a swimming pool.  I'm pretty sure Colton prefers pools to the ocean.

Justin and Sam's Shark Adventure

Justin isn't exactly a beach person, so he wanted to do at least one thing that was a little bit more adventurous than building sand castles on the shore.  He recruited our nephew, Sam, to go with him and snorkel with Sharks.  They had a great time, and both made it back with all their limbs.

Alligator Pond

Our last official adventure was to take Colton and Charlie swimming at Alligator Pond.  It is the perfect spot for a couple of little boys to splash around.  Maybe next time we visit Hawaii, Colton will be as proficient as Charlie at jumping off the alligator's nose.

Shark's Cove

The last time I went to Shark's Cove, I was six months pregnant, and for some reason, Emily ended up snorkeling in six inches of water.  I suppose we could have stood up and walked at that point (like the people whose ankles we were passing), but between being pregnant and wearing flippers, it just seemed safer to keep swimming.

This year, I once again stayed in the six inch but was smart enough to refrain from actually snorkeling in it.  Colton had a great time playing in the shallow water with his cousins.

It was all fun and games until a certain splashing incident.  You can see how it unfolded:

Before

During

After

Good thing Emmy was there to help him out.  (I of course just continued taking pictures...)

It was a very fun day!

Runamuck

Okay, I know I promised posts about Hawaii...and they are coming...lots of them.  But today's post is about Runamuck.  What is that?  Well, it is a 5K race that includes several mud pits and obstacles throughout the course.  Basically, it's an excuse to get really dirty.  Here's proof:

Before

After

As you can tell, we are all covered in mud.  How is it possible to get so dirty during a race?  Well, besides stepping into a mud pit and sinking down to your knees, the final 50 yards of the race looked like this:

And isn't it impressive that Justin was able to film this considering he was running too?  Well, he came in quite a bit before I did...or anyone else for that matter.  That's right!  My all-talented husband got first place!  In Margaret's words, "Who would have guessed that you'd marry an elite athlete?"  Answer: Nobody.  But isn't great that I did?

Oh, and special thanks goes out to Krysta for very graciously slowing her pace so that I could keep up.  Next time I think I'll do some training before I tackle another running event.

And just for kicks, here's our big finish:

It's also fun when Grandma comes

It has been so long since I last posted...well folks, hold on to your hats because you can expect several new posts about our recent trip to Hawaii.  That should give you something to look forward to.

But Hawaii is not the purpose of this post.  This post is to inform you all that we were fortunate enough to have a quick visit from Justin's mom last month.  It turns out that she has an iPad as well, which Colton has happy to take full advantage of.

 She also had a suitcase, and there is really nothing this boy likes to do more than push a suitcase (or anything for that matter).

Thanks for braving the bus from NY to come visit us!