Betsy turned 2!

Our Betsy girl turned 2 years old last month!  And let's just say that the whole 2 year old package has arrived.  Oh joy!  Aside from her new independent life and sassy attitude, this little lady has added so much fun to our family.  

Her brother adores her so much.  They usually can't go more than 3 hours at a time without seeing each other.  They embrace one another with long hugs whenever they reunite; after her long naps, or when he comes home from preschool.  It's so adorable.

Dad and Betsy have a special relationship.  I think that his gentle voice soothes her.  She loves to climb up in his lap and put her head on his chest, while they talk about their days with each other.  Dad still thinks that Betsy might be his surfer girl!  Her eyes light up when he gets his board out or talks about surfing.  She can also swim in the ocean for hours without getting blue lips like her brother.  

I'm still the one that puts Betsy girl down for bed at night, while Christian puts T-man down.  We read a few books together, then we turn the lights out and I sing to her while I cradle her in my arms like a baby.  That left thumb automatically goes in her mouth, and her right fingers reach for my upper arm to start pinching.  Apparently my arm fat soothes her.  Whatever works!  I know that she's kind of getting big for the cradle position but I love it and want to hold her like that as long as I can! 

Her birthday fell on a Saturday, so we thought we would gather a few friends at a park for some cupcakes.  Well...a homemade piñata, Cafe Rio dinner menu, and 50 people later, it was time to party!  Why does that always happen when I plan a party?  It actually turned out great, just a little stressful putting it together.  But I had a lot of help from great friends.  

Betsy started her birthday morning with the usual dance party with balloons and presents.  Happiest girl ever:

Her party was held up at the Tantalus picnic area.  This is one of the ridges at the top of Manoa Valley.   It's so beautiful up there!  

Her invitation: 

The piñata.  I highly recommend buying a piñata instead of making one!  Unless you have a team of people helping you with the fringes.  It was kind of torture for me to see this thing get destroyed!

Pin the heart nose on the care bear game.  Dad was in charge of drawing the care bear and he did a great job!  He ran out of pink ink and somehow the bear got a beard.  Check out how close Betsy's heart got!  
The bearded care bear:  

I don't think softball is in the cards for Betsy.  This is how she was swinging her bat!  So funny.

The gang:

Happy Birthday sweet Betsy girl!

Valley of the Temples

When Tristan had his cast on he became very frustrated with many things.  He was forced to use his one good hand and his toes to play with the legos.  He couldn't jump into a pool or the ocean on hot, hot days.  He couldn't carry things with his two hands.  He got very angry at times, which resulted in horrible, horrible tantrums!  

We decided to bring the sticker chart back to promote good behavior; we were desperate for some sort of leverage while he was throwing his fits.  I asked Tristan where he would like to go when he earned his 20 stickers.  He said, "the Valley of the Temples".  Ummm...ok.  He's never been there but he has heard of it.   He was excited and very motivated!

It took two challenging weeks to earn all 20 stickers but he did it!  We invited a few friends and we were off!

Talia and Betsy girl:

When I told Talia to put her arm around Betsy she put her hand on her belly:

This is what Tristan was so excited about!  Ring the bell 3 times for good luck.

We fed the koi fish, visited with a black swan, and walked the pretty grounds.  

It turned out to be a really fun field trip.  

Thanks, Tristan, for working so hard and being a good boy!

Easter

The kids woke up to Easter baskets from the bunny!

Their morning hair is inexplicable:

Tristan was stoked on his Iron Man action figure, and Betsy was so happy about her Cheer Bear.  The bunny did good this year!

We ended up dying eggs Easter morning because we didn't get around to it the night before.  

Dressed in their Sunday best.  Betsy's dress was a gift from my mom before Betsy was born. I was hanging on to it just for Easter.  It fit her perfectly.  

We planned a last minute Easter fest at our house with the Fairbourns and Jarvis family.  We had a roast with rice, green salad, roasted vegetables, fruit salad, and rolls.  It was all very delicious!

Cheers to the kids table!

 

The egg hunt on the lawn.  While Tristan and his gal pal, Talia, show off their Easter eggs, Betsy (aka Spidergirl) doesn't waste any time and continues searching for more eggs:    

Tristan found the golden egg!

Makapu'u Lighthouse

Whale watching season is coming to an end soon so the kids and I decided to go check them out near Makapu'u Point a couple of weeks ago.  Tristan's friend, Nale, came with us.  At first I thought we would just stop at the look outs off the side of the road but then we decided to just head up the Makapu'u Lighthouse trail and see how far we could get.  Haha!  It was quite the adventure going up the trail with 2 four year olds and 1 two year old, but we made it all the way to the top!  And we saw a TON of whales!  

It's a 2 mile hike round-trip and stroller friendly, which doesn't sound bad at all.  But when your two year old decides half way up that she doesn't want to be in the stroller any more, and only wants to be held, AND the bigger four year old wants to ride in the stroller most of the time, then it becomes a little more challenging.  :)  I had the double stroller and at one point I had all three in the stroller!  Betsy threw a few tantrums, but we made it and it was awesome.  

I think I need to wait until B is a little older before I hike with the kids by myself again!

Our view while climbing up one side of the trail:

Searching for the whales:

 

Just chatting away.  Can you believe they are only 2 months apart?:

Tristan was stoked on seeing the lighthouse this close:

It was super windy when we got to the top!  The boys were throwing the leaves they collected into the air and loved watching them fly.

A view of Sea Life Park, where Tristan spent his birthday this year.

When I asked them to smile for the camera, they both leaned in opposite directions and tilted their heads.  I love these two so much.  I'm glad everyone had a good time!