Our Happy Place

There’s this little sliver of beach that fills my cup to the rim. It’s a place where an ombre' turquoise sea rolls among milk powdered sand and around rocky mountains; it’s a place where palm trees sway in the wind and the happiest of memories are made. This spot is a special place where our imaginations run wild, where our inner child is awakened, and our dreams become a reality.

William has coined this happy place as “Mimi’s Beach”. And it’s true-- it’s ours because we make it our own. We pump our hearts full of adventure and we spread it across our tiny patch of heaven.

Not a moment is wasted on the island. Even when we’re starring off into the blue, we’re living with purpose. We live for each other, we live for our togetherness, and we live for making memories. Our smiles are permanent, our hearts are open, and we’re at peace.

 My cup runneth over.

drawing hearts on trees. big love.



Here are photographs of our happy place: It's just too sweet for words...

 sea glass

I found this while "nature collecting" with William. My plan is to take into a jeweler to turn into a necklace for Krysta. 

 

These. These magic moments will live forever in our souls.

Love, 

Emmie

 

Knee Deep in the Trees Somewhere

***A post from my husband on a father-daughter outing***

I spent my teenage years in Colorado, so hiking is a fairly normal activity for me. Little did I know, Hawaii takes hiking to a new level.

Em's Mom's Roommate (say that one 3 times fast!) Dan took Krysta and I for an early morning hike, and I was definitely surprised at the technicality of it. No beaten, graveled paths here. The only way you knew you were going the right way was the occasional pink ribbon tied on a tree limb. If that isn't enough, the trail was full of creek crossings, tree roots, lush foliage and of course: mud. Not your every day mud either, mind you. This was the sticky, gacky, mucky goop kind of mud.

The biggest surprise of the day, however was Krysta. My dainty, fragile, little princess was out there climbing, hopping, slipping, sliding and balancing her way through the trail with the best of them. Even when we scaled vertical rock faces with naught but a ragged old rope someone left behind, that girl kept her game face on for the whole 5.25 miles!

And man, was it worth it. All of our hard work, and my and Dan's aching bones was rewarded with some of the best scenery and most lush bits of rain forest I could have ever imagined. And then we made it to the waterfalls.

All in all, I consider this day one of the best from the whole trip, and I'll never forget it.

I don't have any photos from the hike, but here are a few that we took while snorkeling after our hike:

 

Meanwhile on land, Em, Mom, and Will lounged in the sun:

More to come.

Stay tuned.

Love, Emmie

A New New Year

I first dreamt about you when I was a little girl. It manifested for years, turning that dream into thoughts and hopes that one day my childhood fantasies would come true. I thought about you religiously throughout my teenage years—doodling your name in my Trapper Keeper, sketching what you would look like face to face, how you smelt, how you would taste. And now, here you are right in front of me, exceeding my every expectation. You’re fresh and invigorating and delicious. You’re a healer of my wary soul and a patch that covers my bruises. Stitch by stitch, you’ve flawlessly repositioned my world back to working order with fresh ideas and artist endeavors and fireworks of inspiration.  You’re a tiny island in the middle of the Pacific, holding an overabundance of beauty, peace, and guidance.

These past two summers on the island have ignited my fire, my passion, my positive outlook. I’ve grown closer to family and faith- surrounding myself around turquoise water and crisp foliage and untouched nature is where I feel closest to God. I’ve spent so many days listening to the ocean rolling back and forth, deep in thought, envisioning our future with projects, art, field trips, new goals, coffee gatherings, dinners on the BBQ, and walks through the trails.

I’m excited for the future and all of the possibilities and adventures that this year holds. It's like having a clean slate that every New Year's Day offers, only better. This is a New, New Year.   

A few random photos from last week:

Aloha,

Emmie