Our return to Maui.......

We enjoyed an amazing vacation in Maui last week. It was a nice "end of summer" trip and Ava got to spend some quality time with Grandma and Grandpa Scifres. When we arrived it had been a long morning of traveling and with the 3 hour time difference it was late LA time, but that didn't seem to faze Ava at all. She was under the Hawaiian spell and couldn't stop smiling! She loved the sand, ocean, pool, and pretty much everything else about Maui except sleeping. For some reason she was totally against sleeping the entire week....maybe she was afraid she would miss something?? The lack of sleep didn't slow us down nor stop us from enjoying our time in Maui. Here are some pictures capturing our relaxing and fun week in the sun!

First dip in the ocean was a success! I'm not sure if it was the ocean she liked or the reaction from all of us...but either way no tears were shed!

I took this picture on my morning run along the beach. Maui is such a beautiful place.

Playing with grandma and grandpa while mommy and daddy are off learning how to surf!

Family picture <3

<3

Looking at the fish with grandma. Since Ava couldn't join us when we snorkeled we took her to the aquarium so she could experience the sea life.

Hanging with her grandparents before we head to the airport.

Getting ready to head out to the beach!

Beach baby!!

Loving the ocean!!

Nearing the end of summer, but it's not slowing us down!!

The new school year starts for both Steve and I in just 2 short weeks. :( As summer is coming to an end we have kicked it into overdrive in an attempt to fit in as much as possible. We're just having way too much fun and don't want this summer to end.

Swimming at Grandma and Grandpa's house.

Ava has finally discovered Bruce and loves to grab him. So far we haven't had any injuries, but we are trying to figure out how to stop the grabbing before Bruce has had enough!

Ava loved going to the Santa Monica pool. She couldn't take her eyes off the other kids.

2 minutes into the car ride home and she was already sound asleep!

My happy girl. <3

Bananas, yum yum!! Ava has tried peas, carrots, sweet potatoes, and bananas. She loves playing with the spoon a little more than actually eating the food.

This past weekend we were in San Francisco visiting Sandra and Jake. We had so much fun touring around the city with them and Ava loved being with her Aunt and Uncle!! This was her first LONG car ride and she did pretty well considering the trip home took a little longer than expected. Due to summer construction, A 6 hour car ride turned into a 9 hour ride and Ava seemed to do better with it than I did. We all know how I get when I feel that everyone around me is NOT driving the way I think they should!! :)

After a long drive we had to stop at Ruby Hill Winery. :) Ava and Claire's first wine tasting experience.

All bundled up and ready to tour around the city. Thanks Grammy for the booties and hat....they came in handy in the cold San Francisco weather.

Beautiful city, but probably a little too cold for our family.

Ava with her Aunt Sandy and Uncle Jake.

Ava loved shopping with her Auntie!!

Lunch time!! Ava is upset that we had to take a shopping break to have some lunch.

Do you think she has enough toys to keep her happy?? At first I thought I packed too much, but ALL the toys came in handy for the very LONG car ride home.