We were anxious about the timing of Mom and Dad Edwards' trip. The house is busy right now and we worried they would not have the Hawaii experience they hoped for. In the end, their visit meant so much attention for the kids, help around the new and old house, and conversations we will never forget.
The day after their arrival, we went to the Point and watched the waves crash against the cliffs. October is typically a miserably hot time of year, but this year we were lucky and had trades almost the entire month.
Saturday, they were great sports and went to both of the kids' soccer games to cheer them on. Kate scored three goals in her game! Zachary's team suffered their first defeat--we told him before the game that we were only counting his passes and not his goals and, well, we know the result of that strategy. The ball travels faster than anyone can run, so in the end, passing more will pay off, especially in competitive soccer.
After the games, Dad generously helped Brady at the house for hours while the gals went to several grocery stores and ran errands. We ended the evening with a beautiful walk in Poipu, where Owen picked up a (living) red breasted cardinal and we all panicked. This kid! He's so fast and catches us by surprise!
Sunday was a beautiful, sunny day. After church, Brady, Dad, and the kids spent hours on Halloween art.
The kids made him sign his work, "Vanpa."
Grandma showed Kate how to make paper people families and created a pumpkin girl. After dinner, we went to Kukuiolono Golf Course and had a beautiful sunset walk, played soccer and watched Owen panic over dogs after getting nipped. We finished the night with a few rounds of Wackee Six.
Tuesday, I took the early flight to Oahu to have MOHS done on my basal cell carcinoma. What started as a visit to my dermatologist over more superficial issues like melasma and acne turned into a serious visit with a biopsy over an acne scar that seemed to get bigger over the past six months. I learned it was cancer and was shocked for two reasons: 1) I thought Red would go down first, and 2) I am 35 years old and if skin cancer is starting already, this is surely only round 1. My dermatologist was willing to remove it in his office but I'm glad a good friend talked me into going to a specialist and doing MOHS. The cancer was deeper than expected and I likely would have had to go back more than once to have it removed if it was simply an excision by the dermatologist. With MOHS, the lab work is done on site, the cutting is minimally invasive, and they take only what they absolutely have to from the face.
I only had two rounds of excision. She told to take a picture of the spot so I was not alarmed when I saw the stitching later. It made me a little woozy to see the depth, and I was disheartened by the long, bumpy, finger-length stitching. However, two weeks later, it looks so much better and I think as the below-skin stitches heel and skin stretches out, it will look even better (assuming I can successfully shield it from the sun). The doctor told me that this will now be my facelift side.
A super flattering, post-workout shot of my stitches:
Mom and Dad took Owen to Poipu and played by the water the day I was gone, and took care of getting my kids picked up, lessons completed, and run around to activities like dance and soccer.
While I waited on lab results, I found this little social media gem that Zachary drew for his coach two years ago.
Another gem: Owen hates the tub unless Kate is in there playing with him.
Since I mentioned gems, a few more goodies:
Owen is obsessed with "Baby Signing Time":
Monday morning, we hiked along Shipwrecks. Owen loved being in the pack as much as he enjoyed blazing sandy trails.
Peek-a-boo, Owen! This has to be one of the only pictures I have of me with Mom Edwards.
Wednesday, Mom and Dad went up the canyon while I went on with the busiest day of the week--our trek to Wailua for piano followed immediately with coaching soccer practice. Owen loves the park during piano.
Thursday, we picked the kids up and went straight to the beach after school. Zachary loved showing off his surf skills to his grandparents, and enjoyed playing in the sand with Grandma even more. Kate loved swimming in the water with Grandpa. I loved watching how hands-on Mom and Dad Edwards were with my kids. Mom doesn't let a moment go by if she sees an opportunity to connect, even if that means kneeling in sand and digging holes.
Dad Edwards:
Brady joined us that afternoon.
My favorite picture from their time here:
Brady, throwing Owen over the wave, and Dad Edwards playing in the water with Kate:
Owen adores his grandpa. He pushes himself out of my arms to run to his. He snuggles for ten minutes at a time, begs to be picked up every morning, and races around looking for him in the driveway. I have a video of Dad Edwards encouraging him to say words, and the best was Owen repeating Dad with a "HOORAY!"
Mom Edwards playing water lava games with Kate.
Friday, the kids had a Fall Festival at school. Mom and Dad went to the north shore to see the lighthouse and Secret Beach, and came back in time to gut and carve pumpkins that afternoon.
Zac and Grandpa created a Ninjago Battle pumpkin. The other kids at school loved his props.
Brady and Kate did a Little Mermaid pumpkin this year. She used an American Doll fork as the dinglehopper in Ariel's hand. She's collected treasured shells this past year and glued them on her pumpkin.
Kate with her friends Daysha and Ivy.
Saturday closed out the soccer season for both kids. The games were at the same time in different locations so we split up boys and girls. My girls played well and I loved co-coaching with Jennie. I did not love having a toddler on my hip at practice, but I did enjoy participating in the growth and development of these 5-7 year old girls. I loved making them giggle on the field with fun games and drills, and I loved watching them rise to the challenge on defense or take a ball up the field on offense. We started out with very little ball handling skill and ended the season with more adept playing.
Kate and Ava.
I question the amount of time organized sports eats into family life, but this season, I watched my sometimes timid girl gain so much confidence and become a leader on the field during the games. She took a soccer ball to the face the second game of the season and I wondered if I'd ever see her play aggressively after that. However, after the third game, she courageously rose to the challenge and started scoring goals regularly, defending well, and even playing goal keeper. Zac gets so much attention for running but Kate was easily the girl with the most endurance on her team. I am so proud of her!
Zachary had a really exciting season. His team nearly dissolved because not enough kids from Koloa could play. A friend arranged to give us some players from a neighboring team. Some of the kids had never played soccer before despite the U10 age bracket, so we expected a rough season. Zachary was a leader and scored in every game, totaling 21 goals on the season. We stopped him in two games and told him he could only pass and not score and he reluctantly agreed. AYSO is the community soccer and we are excited to see what happens during competitive soccer season. He is fast and can run forever.
That afternoon, the kids booked it to a piano performance class while Mom and I cooked for the ward Trunk or Treat. Every year, I think it is so much work to prepare for one event, but with Mom, it was much easier!
Kate, ready for performance class, joking about wearing my heels. This pic took my breath away--she looks so tall and grown up.
This year, Kate was a mermaid, I was a jelly fish, Brady was a snorkeler tangled up in jelly fish, Owen was a shark, and Zac...was Carlos from Descendants. Zachary offered to dress up as an urchin for the Trunk or Treat but it was too late to put that costume together.
Owen looks like a willing enough participant in this picture but the next one shows his true feelings. I love that Zac and Kate keep their cool with it.
I thought my costume was so original--I even taped in flickering lights. Then, I got to the Koloa School costume parade and 9 teachers had the same idea!
This is our only picture from Trunk-or-Treat. The kids played games, we ate soup and chili with Mom and Dad, and we all passed out candy in the rain.
I love this picture of Mom and Kate walking into church the next day.
We did Edwards Eerie Edibles for dinner that night, hosting the missionaries. We all carved pepperlanterns and participated in naming all the creepy components of the meal.
Sunday night was my favorite night ever with my in-laws. We asked them questions about their lives and heard all sorts of new stories, opinions, and details. We heard about their engagement, what they usually had for dinner, and about Dad kissing Mom on the rock her father planted in the yard to fulfill her wish after her parents died. We learned more about their dating history and early work history. We laughed at embarrassing moments and teared up over the heartbreak of losing parents. We talked soberly about future plans if one of them passes, and realized how lucky we are to have two healthy sets of parents in our lives. It is impossible to imagine the loss we would feel with any one of them passing.
Monday, we spent hours at Mahaulepu Beach walking the coast, finding crabs and seashells, and exploring the caves.
Dad generously spent the afternoon helping Brady at the house.
Zac had us in fits and giggles that night with his skeleton poses.
Tuesday was finally Halloween! Owen propped himself right up on grandpa to start the day, just like every other day.
Kate and Zachary dressed up for the costume parade.
The pouring rain stopped just in time to let the kids march around campus to zombie music.
Zachary and David dressed up together, and a couple girls joined them as characters from the movie, too.
Owen and I ran from the parade to story time. Mom joined us for the event, which was very short and loud and not at all worth the chaos!
We made it back to the school to participate as a trunk in the Kinders and 1st grade Trunk or Treat. I roll my eyes at how many Halloween events take place, but watching Owen say, "Here you go!" and put creepy eyeballs in 100 kids' buckets made my day.
Top that off with Kate dancing, holding him in her arms.
We changed it up this year and did our Trick or Treating in Kakela Makai with Nic and Heidi's family. We had no intention of letting Owen participate but he was not going to be left behind and went up to every door, asking for a treat and saying, "TANKS!" Mom came with us and trooped around the neighborhood on the cloudy, lovely night. There was major flooding for the next two days and we were lucky to be spared the heavy rain on Tuesday.
A baby that talks is so adorable, until he realizes that just because he can say "treat" doesn't mean he will get a treat. Lots and lots and lots of candy drama since Halloween.
But we'll keep him. This kid is so fun.
Last Halloween picture: Zac made a man out of his pumpkin. He started working on it (cutting up boxes, rolling out loud tape) at 6am the day after carving. Insert eye roll, but how creative!
So many anticipated events are over--Mom and Dad's visit, Halloween, and soccer. Now we are into futsol and looking forward to the holidays. After family leaves, we are always sad to realize it will be a long time before we visit again, but we are so grateful for the connections and love we feel when they are here.
No comments:
Post a Comment