Uncle Dougie is "All Growed Up"

Ava's Uncle Doug got married a couple of weeks ago. Aunt Crystal joined the family October 7th. It was a beautiful affair at our parents house. Since they couldn't make it to the beach like they wanted, we brought a little beach flavor to the wedding. Us in the wedding party went barefoot. It was really neat. And as you'll see, Crystal was a beautiful bride. Special thanks on this post to Papa C. He was the camera man, as I was busy with being the best man and all. Enjoy!

"Welcome to the family." Now picture that with a Brando voice...


Nani brought Ava over to Uncle Doug for a "good luck" kiss.


Last minute questions and advice from Pastor Kevin. (he's also our uncle, and he married Becky and myself)


Beautiful blushing barefoot bride!


No title necessary.


Here's the set up. My folks (and their volunteer crew) worked all week. Dad actually worked all summer on some of this. It was a picturesque setting.


Grammy taking Ava on the rounds :)


"You married who?!?!"


What a big girl!


I have this as my desktop at work.


Catering by "Q It Up" was amazing. Doug and Crystal went with a semi-Mexican flare. I tried to link a website, but it looks like they don't have one. You can Google them to find a phone number in our area. I'd suggest them for any event. It was awesome.


Wouldn't be a celebration without a Harley ride.


Ava playing with her cousins.




Look! The paparazzi trying to get in on the action!


Well I hope everyone enjoys Halloween. I still can;t figure out why I have to buy candy (that we normally would not buy) to give away when someone knocks on our door, when America is facing such an obesity problem. And if I handed out a healthy alternative, I'd get "tricked" for having no "treats." It just doesn't seem fair for a hippie like me. Oh well, I guess we'll just have to enjoy the kids and costumes! Stay safe, warmest Aloha.

The Big Plunge

So I figured that before Doug took the Plunge wit hCrystal, I wanted to do 2 things. 1: Celebrate this next, amazing chapter in their life together by giving him a weekend he could always look back on with amazing memories. And 2: Show him how scary such a big step could be, but also that it's worth the risk. So, dad and I took him skydiving. The weather dampened the day that Saturday, but Sunday's rescheduled jump was on a perfect day for it. So we 3, plus Doug's good friend Rory, and Matt (& Colleen) all showed up at the skydive site. Here the photos from the day.

"We will not sue, we will not sue, we will not sue."


Doug put his life in Bill's hands. It was the right choice. (Any of those guys would be the right choice, really)


"Here's what NOT to do..." Bill giving Doug instructions.


I heard a similar lecture. Ed told me what to do if I needed to jump out of the plane, but he never did cover how to land. Guess he figured I'd wing it, or be scared ....Less if it happened and faint. Either way, I was okay.


Pose one last time!


Here we go. Bill told Doug about a myth. The saying goes, "Why would you jump out of a perfectly good airplane?" The answer: There's no such thing as a perfectly good airplane. They're all ready to fall out of the sky, we just have to beat them to it.


"This is how you wave at the camera."


Taking off...


...And coming down.


Perma-smile.


"Yes mom, I made it." Look at that smile.


I love you bro, I hope it was unforgettable.


The guys at Skydive Plainwell did a tremendous job. Anyone considering, even remotely considering a jump, I'd say talk to them. They were professional, knowledgeable and fun as... Well, you get the idea. Just click on the link above for their website and get ahold of them.

Hopefully Doug enjoyed the jump, it was pretty amazing to see him fall from the plane, as the pilot bank and I got a bird's eye view of the landscape below and Doug & Bill's canopy. Next time: the other Big Plunge. Warmest Alohas.

Back to the Mainland...

Aloha and welcome back to the mainland. Haole's. (that means "new to Hawai'i," what all tourists and most recent transplants are - what I would be if I moved there next year) Hopefully everyone is well, and enjoying the weather. It's been COLD here, which isn't normal quite this early in the season. But, that's what you get, right? Anyway, we're doing pretty well. Getting back to everyday things and pictures, Ava's final tooth is almost in. We can see the white of it almost poking through. And she's really expanding her vocabulary. These photos are from when we got back from vacation. Enjoy.

The person being influenced by me, is none other than Auntie Kimmy! She took a piece of Michigan home with her. So she got inked by Dream, with a lightning bug, a memory from her times with the Michigan family. It turned out very cool. Here she is right before the pain :)


"Hi guys!" I love this shot.


"Ha ha ha! Good one!"


One of Ava's favorite side dishes. She makes it a main dish sometimes... Guacamole!!!


"What's that Ava?" "'Mole, dada. Want some?"


"Write dada, write." She loves sidewalk chalk. She spent many days outside writing. (I did some, too)


She found balloons with Papa.


Ava's good at cracking up Grammy and Gampa.


Sheww, thirsty! Our little double fister can't get enough of that water.


I think Ava's obsessed with Hawai'i. What do you think?


Just like her dada. Notice the matching gaping mouths, snoring away.


Our little puddle splasher. Looking like a jedi knight with her mama's shirt as a robe.


Much more flattering than the one back there with me. Ava and mama looking pretty.


Still to come: Doug takes the big plunge! (Can you tell I'm in tv, with my teases?) Warmest Alohas.

I almost forgot: check out Nick & Rachel's Blog for some cool pictures of Ava meeting Samantha. I'll post some eventually also, but Nick has some great ones.

Time to Go Home

So I've been pretty regular over the last month.


As far as the blog goes :) Anyway, if you're not sure whether you've seen all of the Hawai'i posts, scroll on down and check them out. I've posted a LOT on our Maui trip. Hopefully no one got too bored. Today's photos are from our last days on the island.

Ava learned how to stack things. Before this she only knocked them down. It's more of a 2 year old skill, but she learned it at 16 months :)


Our last breakfast on the lanai. If you look closely, you can see my favorite souvenir.


This is where we got those souvenirs!


A refresher on what those would be...


Now this is a Christmas card photo!


Even as our hearts were breaking at the airport on the way out, Ava kept us smiling.


Yep, I'm a threat to national security. I was searched by this nice man because I beeped through the metal detector. Twice. It ended up being a drink packet with foil in it. Silly. But this was the weekend when the "no liquid or gel" confusion had just begun. All the TSA folks and staff at the Kahului Airport were great.


Oh look, she's out!


Ava made a friend, who she ended up hanging out with on the flight about 10 rows back. If I remember right, her name is Kayla or something like that. She was really cool.


Not afraid to make friends!


And here we are back home!


Well I hope you enjoyed the Aloha adventure of Hawai'i. The trip really changed me, made me realize how much I miss the ocean. First Oceanside, now Maui. It's hard being this far away from the Pacific. Maybe I'll see it again soon. Enjoy the day, and the weekend everyone. Warmest Aloha, and mahalo for stopping by.

Oh, here's two photos I found, to show the profound influence I have on my family. I'll let you in on the story later...

Before.


After.