Ooof. March thus far has been a month of too much work, too little time with the kids, and no time for myself, but I daresay I’m over the hump and able to carve out a couple of hours to sit in a coffee shop and reminisce about our final days in Maui. MAUI. Already feels like a lifetime ago that we were there.
Juliette and I had booked a snorkeling trip with the Chens early-early on Wednesday, so we walked to their hotel in the dark and perched at our favorite photo op while I sipped my coffee.
The sunrise boat ride out to Molokini Crater was actually one of my favorite parts of the whole expedition. So serene and pastel – I love Maui in the morning.
Juliette was super-excited until the moment we anchored and people started flipping into the water. You mean, I have to get in? All the way?
But after a little coaxing, several snorkel adjustments, and one more in-water pep talk, she went for it and we both ducked our heads underwater. And front and center, as if they were waiting for us, were so many fish.
Thumbs-up for pushing through the nerves, Kiddo.
Meanwhile, Shane and Isaac lived their own best lives.
We all hopped back into the boat after an hour of snorkeling and started to zip toward shore when our guide quickly brought us to a halt so we would all watch the mama and baby whales playing in the water remarkably close to us.
Stunning creatures. Top moment.
We made it back to the boys just as Isaac was wrapping up his morning nap. Time to swim some more, I guess!
Isaac added the word whoa to his vocabulary while on this trip and would say Whoa! Whooooooooooooa! as we spun him in the water.
You look good, Buddy.
Our family pool time was really one long, sweet continuous top moment. What a treat this was.
And speaking of treats, since it was our last full day in Maui, I splurged on an overpriced poolside pina colada. Worth it.
We took a short sun-break back at the room after lunch, but Juliette was begging to go swim with N after 30 minutes, so back out we went! Maybe it’s because our trip was winding down and I was so intent on soaking in every last detail, but goodness, the sky looked extra-blue and the grass looked extra-green that afternoon.
Juliette and Isaac played hide and seek and tag and I sat in the shade. For two minutes.
And for record, “playing tag” is really us chasing down Isaac and trying to get him into his stroller.
Finally, though, Isaac was strapped in and Juliette was dropped off with her best bud. Buddy and I walked over to the market for iced coffee and a box of souvenir cookies. We came back an hour later to these two living large.
I mean, it’s hard not to be giddy when you’re in an ocean-front cabana.
We walked back our place to rest and freshen up a bit before meeting up with the Chens for a final round of Mai Tais.
We don’t do a lot of kicking back on vacation in this current season of life (love you, Isaac!), but this was as good as it got!
And one last sunset…
I love our family time, but vacationing with friends is next-level. So thankful for these people.
Whooooooooa!
Baby footprints on the beach! Freeze-framing that one, too.
These five spent several minutes standing at the edge of the waves, wanting to see how far into the sand their feet would sink. Isaac played that game for about four seconds and then opted for his own game of seeing just how many baby footprints he could leave in the sand.
One more game of chase-the-waves…
A round of high-fives for a top-notch day…
And goodnight, sun.
Shane tucked in Isaac while Juliette traded in our swimsuits for dresses and grabbed a shirley temple and a matcha mojito at the hotel bar. There was a guitarist playing cover songs across the room and when he started crooning Harry Styles’ Watermelon Sugar, Juliette and I bopped along.
My grown-up girl…she makes a good date.
We talked about school and friends and Isaac and sports while we ate our matcha creme brulee.
Thursday! Just a few precious hours left…
One last acai bowl, one last round of beach play…
(You can see from Isaac’s onesie that he very much enjoyed the acai as well…)
We got our mileage out of these $5 sand toys!
Keeping Isaac from destroying Juliette’s masterpiece wasn’t easy.
DON’T DO IT, BUDDY!
Pure mischief, this kid.
A final dip…
A final rollick with friends…
And a final group pic. See you in Seattle, Chens!
Isaac really got the hang of the beachfront showers. Life skills!
A quick pause at the lucky mermaid, where I made a quiet wish that I’ll see her again next year…
Mahalo, Maui. Our trip didn’t start quite as planned, but gosh, those last few days were a dream.
