What I wouldn't give to go back...

(warning: picture overload)

From June 2012

Evening stroll on the strip.


Love how people conveniently forget to tell you how much you are going to have to pay for a photo op with their parrots until after the shoot has taken place.  It was well worth it to see the smile on these boys faces though.


Waikiki Aquarium.  Not quite as exciting as the bus ride with 3 boys and a stroller to get there.


My very own scuba steve.  He was in heaven.




Can't visit Hawaii without a meal at Cheeseburger in paradise.






The boys got to sport these cool new tattoos from the Luau.  They are lucky we didn't find out how much they cost before they got them done :)


Of all the hours we spent at the pool, Graham spent very little time actually in the water.  He much preferred to be exploring the pool deck.




Saying goodbye to the beach.



We miss you Hawaii!

Family vacations

Being the youngest of 6 kids I have experienced a lot of family vacations. Some of them good, some of them not so good, but all of them full of memories to last a lifetime. This was just part of growing up Cross.
Now, here I am 32 years old, with three boys and providing them with the good, the bad and the ugly of family vacations.
You get 5 sisters, 1 brother, 13 cousins, 5 spouses, nana and boppa together and there is bound to be drama! It doesn't matter that we are all grown with kids of our own... We are still family, and sometimes families just don't get along. Well, in the Cross family maybe it's more than sometimes. I'm not sure I can remember the last family vacation to be drama free... Oh, that's right, there's never been one!
On the flip side, the boys are having fun and behaving despite the crazy schedule we have held these last few
weeks. They are the calm in this storm and I am so thankful for that. Luckily, they are oblivious to the palpable tension.
One more day and we can put closure on Cross family vacation 2012 and hope that 2013 brings a calmer and less hair raising get-together... If its even possible.

The Bugbee Family takes Hawaii Day 1

After a heroing 6 hour and 5 minute flight into Honolulu we checked into our "closet" with two beds and snuggled in for some sleep before our hawaiian adventures began.  Heroing?  Yes, heroing.  I now believe that anybody that survives a 6+ hour flight with a 7 year old, 3 year old and 1 year old should be deemed a hero.  Especially those that have to pack, close down the house, disperse the animals and manage to get 3 boys to the airport during rush hour to meet daddy who was flying in from LA to make it to our flight on time.

Low and behold our adventures began at 0530 the next morning... dang time change!
The boys and I got up and hit Starbucks and the beach so daddy could catch some extra z's.  One of us might as well be rested!

The boys were oddly amazed with all the birds there, most of which are pigeons.  It was as if they have never seen them in Seattle.  Pretty sure they fed their entire donut to those pesky birds.  I bet the hotel staff loved us.

Next up... a romp on the beach in our jammies.
Or in Graham's case, in his diaper.  He wasn't quite sure what to think about the sand at first.







Finally we woke up this guy and headed to the pool.



Day one was met with a steep learning curve.  The life guards at the Hale Koa are strict.  There was pretty much nothing we could do right by them... including, but not limited to, throwing the "pool football" on the pool deck.





There is no doubt you can tell where we are from.  Pretty sure, if they weren't already wearing their sunglasses, all pool goers quickly dawned them to protect their eyes from the harsh glow of our pale skin.



Maybe black and white is a better look for us on our first day.



Next up was nap time.  I have to say, despite the close corridors, the boys did great.  At nap times we wheeled Graham's archaic looking crib into the bathroom where he napped.  Alex slept out in the room and Tyler and I hung out on the deck reading and playing the iPad.  The only downside was that Tyler and I had to run downstairs to use the bathroom during that time.  But it was worth it to have two rested little boys.



Then it was off to the beach...









drinks in hand!

The Birthday Party

Well, there was no doubt we had to celebrate our little man in style.  

It was a swimmin' good time too!

Thanks to my countless hours on pinterest, I think it came together nicely.





I learned so many new things putting this party together.  My favorite of which is the use of royal icing and making fondant.  Not too bad for my first go at it!





The decorations...
It was so crazy to see all the monthly photos put together.  It really put his while year into perspective.  I just can't believe how fast it went by.



The photobooth... it's not a party without it, eh?







Graham chowed on his favorite dinner of chicken enchilada's.  It was the perfect party food as I was able to prepare it the night before and pop it in the over when I needed it.  Definitely made the party more enjoyable for me.



Cupcake time.
Graham wasn't quite sure he knew what to do with all the singing...



but he knew exactly what to do with that cupcake!



Eventually it all got a little overwhelming.  Poor little man.



Luckily, Grandma B snuggles always makes everything better.



And of course Nana and momma snuggles too.





Happy Birthday Graham.
You have blessed us in way you will never know.  Thank you for being you!

Thanks to everyone for helping us celebrate our G baby.