No pictures of grass skirts, I promise.

I'm back! Did you miss me? My extended vacation to Hawaii and Southern California is over, but I had some amazing experiences that are going to last forever. Helicopters, snorkeling, rain forests, new friends, old friends...I have tons of stories to share with you all. So many, in fact, that I'm not even sure where to start.

How about at the beginning? I left bright and early on a Saturday and began my trip with a weekend in Los Angeles visiting my brother, sister-in-law, and nephew. I was only there for two days, but we packed so much into my time there, it felt like it's own trip all on it's own. We hit the ground running on Saturday afternoon, heading to the LA Book Festival and the Children's Stage to see James' (and let's be honest, mine too) favorite children's music singer perform, Justin Roberts. I like to think of him as the Jonathan Coulton of kid's music--his songs are catchy, clever, and funny.

James at the Book Festival. He has on a crown and a Star Trek onesie. This kid is definitely related to me.

We also had a bit of a party Saturday night with two of my friends from LA, Patrick and Brian, and one of Bill's friends from work. Delicious Thai food was consumed, movies were watched, it was all very fun. Sunday I got to spend some quality time hanging out with Bill and James, and we went for a walk with James' new tricycle. His feet don't quite touch the pedals yet, but the bike has a handle on the back for Dad-assisted propulsion and steering. What will they think of next??

I had to make Sunday an early night since my flight to Honolulu was scheduled to leave LAX at 6 the next morning. Please note that I said scheduled. Because let's just say that actually getting to Hawaii was a bit of an...issue.

Long story short (too late), I got a call at midnight from my airline telling me that there had been a change to my flight due to the sequester and the lack of air traffic controllers. I was put on a bus at LAX (at 5:30 in the morning) and driven an hour to the airport at Ontatio, California where my flight had been rerouted. We ended up getting into the air about two hours late and I missed my connecting flight in Seattle. I was rebooked on a later flight...but that meant I had 6 hours to spend hanging out at Sea-Tac Airport. Awesome.
By this point I was exhausted and utterly spent, so I used some miles and upgraded myself to first class for my new flight to Honolulu. I deserve it and it was awesome. I finally got to Hawaii there, had some trouble with the car service I had arranged (of course), but finally made it to the hotel where Kent greeted me with a smile and a lei. I fell into bed for some well-deserved rest, and we began our Hawaii adventure the next morning!

Coming up next: Honolulu, Pearl Harbor, and hiking up Diamond Head crater. Fun times!

Aunt Maggie will hug you. WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT.