Visiting Baby's Roots

I got the wonderful opportunity to spend a few days in the sunshine of Hawaii, thanks to my amazing & lifelong friend Brittany. It was a quick trip, only 4 full days, but worth it for the rest, relaxation and sunshine. Nevermind that we also did deal with a tsunami watch for one of the nights after the tragic earthquake in Japan (think island-wide sirens, evacuations, P.A. systems sounding off, and lots of panic), as that became somewhat of a sidenote when we woke up to no damage and only teeny tiny tsunami waves that hit the Honolulu area. Between Brittany's work schedule (she was technically there on business), the tsunami, and a little fever I caught on the last day there, we definitely neglected to get a decent amount of pictures, but it was great nonetheless.

It was so fun to visit Hawaii knowing that I am carrying a Hawaiian inside of me. Jacob's grandparents were both 1/2 Hawaiian (his middle name is Kaapana, which was his grandma's maiden name), so Avery is 1/8 Hawaiian and I love the opportunity to connect with her family roots. We also visited with our Hawaiian family while we were there and I got a great history lesson in the beauty/tradition/art of Hawaiian naming (Avery will have a Hawaiian middle name), which was so great.

Although we both missed Jacob terribly, it was a wonderful treat to get great weather, much overdue quality time with Brittany, and a quick catch up with the Wailehua family (our Hawaiian cousins).

It was strange to think that on this trip I took my last plane flight before Avery's arrival. However, I realized that before Avery was even born, she visited Italy, Louisiana, Florida, and Hawaii-not bad for the first 7 months of life-in-utero!

Sporting the baby belly with pride on the beach! Couldn't help but notice that people looked at me more with the belly.

A different view than I'm used to while lounging in the sun.

At the end of a great night with the family- here with Kelsi, Avery's Hawaiian second cousin

A quick visit to Lanikai, Jacob's favorite beach in the world

Made sure to visit a Washburn family favorite spot, Leonard's, to give Avery a taste of delicious malasadas.

Waikiki the day after the tsunami scare

I, too, was able to get some work done and fit in a visit to the Hawaii Food Bank. I met such great people and learned a lot about the emergency food system in Hawaii and both its similarities and differences to ours in Washington.