Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Aloha from Maui!

Well... I wish we were still in Maui!

I apologize for the belated entry about our wonderful Maui vacation. We hit the ground running upon arriving back in NC and it's taken a few weeks for the dust to settle. We're finally getting back into our normal routine and have resumed our blog entries; we're so far behind!




In late May, the Dick Kemp family (Matt, Jon, Gina, Maddie, Lee, Julianna, Amelia, Dick, and Carolyn) loaded up a few different 777's from points all across the country (Chapel Hill; Austin; Los Angeles) and headed for magical Elua Village (in Wailea on the beautiful island of Maui). What a time we had!

Somehow I gained "Mr. Smoothie" as a nickname - must have been the fresh concoctions I made for our crew each morning. After a quick breakfast and some delicious Kona coffee, we'd load up the strollers and head down to the beach for a few hours. Cousin Maddie and Amelia loved playing on the beach and swimming in the pool. You might have mistaken them for fishes, given all the time they spent in the water.


The little girls would play in the sand, running back and forth from the ocean to their sandcastles hundreds of times. I think we're still cleaning sand out of Amelia! They kept trying to bury Uncle Matt in the sand, but he was hard to pin down - no wonder he was so successful as a wrestler!



Lunch was either back at the condo or at The Maui Onion - one of our favorite spots. Then it was nap time! You might think it was only for the little ones took naps, but you'd be wrong. Who can resist taking a snooze on a comfortable chaise on the lanai, gazing at the Pacific Ocean?! I couldn't! Babies, moms, dads, grandparents, and uncles rested up for a full schedule of afternoon activities.

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Our days consisted of family, food, and fun! If I wasn't out golfing with Dick and Jon, mountain biking with Matt, or zip-lining down volcanos with almost everyone, I was eating great meals, relaxing with my family, and thoroughly enjoying my fantastic company. Each night brought out the chef in a different family member who would cook a favorite recipe for everyone. Boy did we eat well! After dinner we'd connect the cameras to the TV to check out the day's pictures. Between four photographers, we had plenty of entertainment.

It was an amazing vacation... many, many thanks to Grammy and Grandpa!

To see more pictures of our trip... click here.

Aloha!

Monday, June 19, 2006

Will Lee Survive Game 7?!?

We are so behind on our posts! Still in the works are blurbs about our Maui trip, Amelia's first visit to the NC Zoo, our trip to Bald Head Island for a friend's wedding, and Amelia's first swim lesson. But, before all of that, this couldn't wait... Lee has a smile on his face going into Game 7 of the Stanley Cup!!!! Miracle of miracles!

I've never seen Lee so stressed out about a sporting event, not even for his beloved Tar Heels. He had to Tivo Game 3 because the anxiety was too much to watch it live. He went to Game 4 and came home without a voice. It's not clear yet if he'll be going to tonight's game in Raleigh... but we're hoping a ticket comes his way.

As he headed off to work today, he was smiling. Let's hope that he's still smiling tomorrow. GO CANES!!!!