And then she was 2.

Olive turned two yesterday, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't shed some tears about it. I was taking a moment to reflect on her and my heart just filled with joy. She's everything I had hoped she would be from her adorable red hair and blue eyes to her sweet loving demeanor and unfailing sense of adventure. I think she really got the best of her Mom and Dad. I watch her and I am in constant awe. She is so aware of those around her, she is patient (as patient as a two year old can be) and gentle- she gets these qualities from her Dad. At the same time she just tugs at her Moms heart-strings when she jumps at any chance to run around outside, climb a tree, ride a bike, or hike through the mountains. This she gets from her free-spirited Mom. 

Olive has really changed a lot in the past few weeks, and I find myself constantly saying "what! I didn't know you could do that!" It's always been hard to gauge her comprehension because she didn't talk much but she is FINALLY starting to talk and it makes me so happy! She is in the "do it myself" stage, which I know is a healthy part of growing up but can be more than a little frustrating at times. Especially when it takes half an hour to get out of the house because we have to try to put on our own shoes and shirt and buckle our own seat belt, most of which we can't do ourselves and so she finally concedes and lets me help her- but only after she has given it a good through try. We are working on things like allowing mom to hold on to the handle bars of the bike so she can steer. (She forces me to steer by holding on to her bike seat, which I can actually do very well if we don't need to turn- and I've got to be honest it's kind of ridiculously adorable looking at her little hands all by themselves on those big handlebars thinking she is steering herself.) 

Miss Olive loves to sing sing sing- that hasn't changed much. She will make up words (and actions) to any song she hears. When we started to sing her happy birthday she just chimed right in with us! She wants me to read to her ALL the time, and we do often sit in her room for hours at a time going through each book. She loves to be "scared" by her Dad. Often at night we hide from him on our bed and she says "shhhhh" and then he comes and scares us and it's the best thing ever. She screams and laughs and laughs- oh just thinking about it makes me smile from ear to ear. She has started deciding that she will share with YOU, not you with her. If she wants to give you a piece of HER cookie or pizza or let you hold the remote she will ever so kindly do so (we are working on this one.) If you ask her to give a hug or a kiss to yourself or someone else she instantly drops what she is doing and quickly obliges. She is becoming her own person, and I grow so much watching her grow.

For her birthday we just went low-key. We spent the day doing her favorite things. She didn't know it was her birthday, she just knew it was the best day ever. She woke up to a room full of balloons and Mom and Dad came in and sang her happy birthday. She was so excited! Then she got to go see her birthday sign, which she quickly ripped down because she loved it so much she wanted to hold it and run around with it. She opened her present from my Mom, a doll and some accessories (which she loved) and a bubble machine from Mom and Dad- which has been ENDLESS entertainment since we opened it. I recommend it to any parent with a toddler- they are so cheap and man oh man do they love them! Then Olive's friend Amelia came over and gave her animal magnets that have also been played with non-stop and hauled all over the house. We spent the rest of the morning at the library and I read her every book she brought to me. We stopped by Jamba because Olive loves that place and we sat out front and enjoyed each others company and chatted as though we had all the time in the world. After a long nap I made her birthday cake (which included more than her fair share of taste testing the batter) and Kc's Dad and sister came over to celebrate with us. They got her a little stuffed doggy and when she opened it she said "it's a doggy!" and got so excited. Then we went to bed. It was wonderful. 

I love my family, and I can't wait to experience life with them and watch us all grow. Life feels beautiful. 

Our Second Week in Hawaii

Well, I'm almost home. I'm sitting here in the LA airport and Olive and I have had a long day that started at about 4:00 am and is still not quite finished yet. We have another half hour or so before we should board our next plane and miss Olive was so exhausted she fell asleep- I'm hoping this keeps on the plane, poor thing. It's a little harder to travel without Daddy to help us, but we are abusing my brother in law Spencer. (He deserves it since his wife has to travel with their 4 kids without him.)  I think Olive will be pretty happy to be back in her crib in her own room when we finally get home tonight, although I do think she will miss getting to see Mommy and Daddy in her room right when she gets up so she can wake them up in the morning (Mommy will not miss that.) :) 

I thought I'd take this little bit of free time to try to sum up the rest of our vacation in Hawaii. 

Kc left Hawaii a week before me. We both have jobs and both have taken lots of vacation time this summer- but with the way time off works at the hospital I was able to swing getting a little more time off so I decided to stay another week. Kc was the only one to leave that day and I didn't think things would change that much since I am pretty independent, but things did. I would say the only "hard" day I had in Hawaii was the day after Kc left. I think it was a combination of a lot of things. We crammed in everything we really wanted to do while he was here and so the day after he left it was like hmmm what should we do now? Also, it was just kind of hard. I like having him around. He helps me and he makes me feel good and things are better when he is there. The next day however I picked myself up by the bootstraps because, hey, I was in Hawaii! And I had an awesome last week from there on out. 

I took so many pictures while I was there and I am glad I did because I rely a lot on them to document everything we did, and because our time spent in Hawaii every 5 years is so precious and I want to remember every second of it! Time flew by while we there because we were go go go, and man I just couldn't wait to get up in the mornings and plan our days. Here are some of the pictures and things that we did in my last week there.

Kc's family went to the island of Oahu and we stayed in a town called Laie on the North shore. If you are planning a trip there any time soon hopefully this will give you an idea of some of the great things to do on the island.

Sunset Beach. We went there to watch the sunset and just talk and relax. You know where it gets it's name because it's wide and open and the sunsets there just makes you feel like the world is wonderful. It always amazes me how you can go to a beach a mile down and the sand and beach can be completely different. This beach has nice thick sand that looks like it's been made from chunks of big rocks or shells broken down. It feels good on your feet and it's easy to wipe off. Olive and I didn't go in the water but the shore break is similar to Waimea which Olive kind of hated so I don't think she would have liked it. The wave breaks on the shore and kind of sucks you in and often times these waves have big drop offs. The other kids loved it though, so maybe just not so great for really littles like Olive.

These pictures were taken at Waimea, and like I said it was actually the one beach that Olive didn't like. The shore break was too big and it had a drop off and she was just kind of scared of it. I can almost always get her to get over her fear of things especially since she is so rarely even scared of anything (much to my dismay,) but she did not get over her fear of these waves. On the other hand the water is clear and beautiful and so so blue. It has a big rock you can see in the picture above and you can make out the little people jumping off of it. It's famous for this. I don't get a ton of joy out of jumping off really high things- and being 6months pregnant it probably wasn't a good idea anyways, but I did jump off the smallest end of the rock and it was so fun. I had to do it about 5 times at least! The water is so clear and refreshing and it just felt so good. What I like about this rock is you can choose any height to jump off, so it's really a lot of fun and I totally recommend it if you go!

Hands down Hawaii just has the best climbing trees and I just find myself staring at them itching to climb! I was scoping out this branch for an attempt at a yoga move that i decided was too risky- ha! My worried mother will be happy to know that I do have some judgement, but that didn't take any of the joy out of climbing this magnificent tree.

Surfing while prego. I have to say when I first found out I was pregnant I was a little disappointed that I was going to be so far along while I was in Hawaii because surfing was something I had been really looking forward to. I had heard women say they surfed up to 7 months but I just thought no way, it seemed like it would be way too uncomfortable- but it really wasn't bad. I think with the buoyancy of the water and once you got on the board I think that little baby found a snuggly place in the back of your  belly and said ok, go for it! I will admit I felt slight discomfort at some moments, but it was totally worth it. Once you catch a wave you just think, I know why I'm doing this. It's the best feeling.

If I've said it once I've said it a million times. Olive is way cooler now than you her Mom ever will be, and putting on sunglasses and then passing out in this rock star position proves it. I didn't even know those were in her crib!

Passing on my love for trees, Olive's got the fever too.

Oh, how we'll miss our cousin June. I don't know what it was, maybe that curly red hair, but those girls just loved each other and I just loved to see it. I hope they stay close with one another. June lives in San Francisco so we don't really get to see her often, but from the very first time they interacted with each other they had a connection so I think time and distance won't get these two cousins apart. 

Hawaii has the best fruit stands, you just can't beat Hawaiann fruit! I will say however with the popularity of traveling to Hawaii having risen, the word about the fruit stands has gotten around and they are now really over priced. Boo. Every time I went to the stand there was also a tour bus there and we definitely were getting quoted the tourist price- but I will also say totally worth the mangos that just melt in your mouth! Little Olive tried everything, dragon fruit, mangos, star fruit, papaya, pineapple, and sugar cane. She inhaled that stuff like it was candy! You only live once!

The Hukilau. Hulilau beach was walking distance from our house and they have a tradition there of throwing big nets out from the shore and bringing them in to catch fish. Our family went out early one morning to attend one, and although they didn't seem to catch very much it's a fun tradition and something the kids loved to participate in. 

Poor Olive, she really got pushed to her limit on this trip. We were go go go, and nap time which is usually sacred at our house kind of got thrown out with the dishwater- so we did short on the go naps. This was hike to a small falls behind the PCC. I thought it was a beautiful hike over rocks and trees and a river, but it was a little harder and longer than we had expected and is not something a toddler could hike. I started the hike carrying Olive because she really won't go to anyone else. Poor KC got lots of stares and some comments about making his pregnant wife carry the baby but she really just wouldn't go to him! We transferred her to KC's chest after she fell asleep on mine. Then she shocked us all on our way down by preferring her Uncle Greg to any of us! I think she developed a little crush while she was there, and I don't blame her- those good looking genes go through the whole Atkinson family.

 We rented some canoes and paddle boards close to Haleiwa. I had never been on a paddle board before and to be honest never had a strong desire to try one, but it turned out to be pretty fun. Olive and I went out for a while, she just sat in the middle of the board and had a gay ol' time. I ran into a little problem because she decided she needed the paddle more than I did and I had to eventually jump out and swim while pulling the board so that she could paddle since that was the only paddle that I had. That's motherhood for you. I was also anxious to try some yoga moves on the board since I thought that looked like fun. The headstand was my first try because although it may look impressive it is one of the easier poses to do on a paddle board because you have such a small center of gravity. Then I made Kc try a partner yoga move with me that we had recently mastered on ground. This is what I love about Kc and what made it so hard when he was gone, he is willing to do stuff like this with me. Kc doesn't do yoga, and I don't think he particularly enjoys the stuff I make him do with me- but he does it because he knows how much I love it and it that means a lot to me. The first one is great because it looks like he is strangling me to death and we obviously bit the dust. In the second picture we got half way there and I didn't expect us to and I kind of panicked because I couldn't remember what to do next- and then we ate it. So we never really got the move down because other people wanted to use the board and we didn't want to spend the whole time attempting yoga moves- but we had fun anyways. And I think I may take a paddle board yoga class now!

Matsumoto's snow cones. Classic.

By far Olive's favorite thing was Pupakea Beach, also called Shark's cove. It's a great snorkeling spot and what is great about it is it's good for all ages. Adults and kids love the snorkel and there are these tide pools made by large coral rock that are the perfect height for toddlers and also holds lots of little fish and sea urchins for them to look at. Olive and I went back on our last day with her cousin June and her mom Angie. Out with a bang. 

We loved you Hawaii. You gave us lots of love, sunshine, and memories. Till next time.

A21

I also wanted to take a moment to share a little about my friend Callie and the company she is working for- The A21 campaign. I've known Callie since I was in 7th grade, and loved her the first time I met her. "Nice horse earrings" I think are the first words I ever said to her, and she still liked me after that so I knew our friendship would last. 

I've seen her go through a lot of struggles in her life, and her faith in Jesus Christ has always been her greatest source of joy and comfort. After getting a degree and doing different jobs she could never quite find herself at the place she wanted to be. She had done wonderful things that had brought her such satisfaction, such as working on a ranch as a wrangler in the summers- but at 28 she found herself living in the Seattle area, single, working as a nanny, and really wondering where she wanted to go from there. She often would come up with different things she wanted to do so when she mentioned this possible move to California to work for A21 I don't know that I gave it much thought. Something about this company spoke to her and she felt compelled to leave her friends and family and make the move to expensive California in order to work at an UNPAID internship at A21. Lots of people said this was a bad idea, and I know she felt hesitant and scared- but she did it anyways. The first call I got from her after she started working there brought tears to my eyes. I hadn't heard her this happy in a long time. She knew she needed to be there and she just raved about the company and all the employees and how they were so driven to make a difference. A21 is a company that works all over the world in an effort to stop human trafficking. A daunting task. It's difficult because you are exposed to harsh realities that I think the average person would rather turn a blind eye to. The work they are doing is real, impactful, and beautiful. Knowing that millions of women are abused, they choose to rejoice in just one life saved- because that is all they can do. One life at a time. And it is enough, because doing everything you can to save these women is enough. 

I write about this because originally Callie had promised to do only half the internship because that was all she could afford and she felt it was worth the opportunity, but now she is so driven and has such a love and devotion to these women she is trying to find a way to extend her internship. She has set up an account on GOFUNDME in an effort to raise funds to continue in this cause. Any amount of money would help, and you could not be giving your money to a more worthy person who has worked so hard her whole life and continues to constantly give everything of herself. If you want to find out more about The A21 campaign you can visit this website. And even if you choose not to contribute you should check out the wonderful things this company is trying to do to stop human trafficking. 

People are good. Life is good. Let's be good to each other. 

A little Catch up on Life.

One of my best friends Jennifer Hawkins got married on June 29th! The wedding was beautiful. The ceremony took place up at Bear Claw in Sundance with the reception down at the base. I was one of the bridesmaids so I got to join in all the festivities and weddings are always just so special. I love taking the time to celebrate people I love with people I love. We had to take a chair lift to the top of the mountain for the ceremony and I really loved the time sitting with friends and family and enjoying the beauty of the Utah mountains. They are so beautiful. Watching Jen behind me ride up the chair lift in her wedding dress gave me butterflies and the whole ceremony reminded me a lot of my own wedding. The grooms (Blake) father married them, and his words were so true. I couldn't help but reflect on my own marriage and all the things we've experienced since the day we were wed. It goes with out saying that I cried through the whole thing. I can't wait for Jen and Blake to have those same experiences. Good and Bad. Both are necessary to become whole and grow as a couple. 

Another thing that made this wedding so special was that my three best friends were all there which has probably only happened a couple times- if that! Jen was pretty busy, but before the wedding I got to visit Sundance and help her with some wedding plans and I loved that. My other friend Callie (Jen, Callie, and I grew up together) came to stay with me. As we've grown older our lives have taken different directions and I never get to see her as much as I'd like but when we are together we become those young wild girls. Some things never change, and that's what I love about childhood friendships. You spend years apart and you can always pick up with them like it were just yesterday you were picking out your dress for Prom. My third best friend Stephanie lives in Provo. I met her when I started to work at P.F. Chang's in Orem and really we've been inseparable since! I actually need to take a second to talk about how amazing she is because she almost completely helped me get ready for the wedding. Her sister did my makeup, flawlessly, and made me feel like I was the freaking bride while she was doing it! (I mean really if you want to feel good about your self ask Madi to do your makeup!) Steph took it from there, she came up to Sundance with me and did my hair and helped me adjust my dress and everything. Once all the girls saw how amazing she was they quickly took advantage of her and had her adjust their hair or makeup or give advice. She really has an amazing talent for that sort of thing and I feel so lucky to have her in my life and that she is always willing and happy to do things like that for her not-so-talented-in-that-department friend. Everything about the experience was great. The rehearsal, the dinner, the ceremony, the reception. One of those memories I'll always keep with me. And here are so of the pictures from that night.

 

The perfect couple. I'm assuming this picture will end up on the cover of a magazine somewhere. 

 

Joy.

 

 

Best Friends be like.

 

 

My favorite girls.

 

 

What life feels like when Callie is around.

 

I just love these girls. 

Love.

Hawaii

 After a crazy week with my whole family in town, a family reunion, my best friend and sister and her 5 kids staying with me, and my other best friend's wedding- we took a breather for a few days and then took off to Hawaii (poor us right.) We've been here a week and it goes with out saying- it's been amazing. Kc's family goes here for about a month or so every 5 years because Kc's mother spent some time growing up here as a child. It's crazy that last time we were here we were engaged. It was one of the happiest times of my life. Now to be here with our little girl and pregnant with our second it's crazy how much life can change in such a short time. This time around feels just as special but in a different way. Can't wait to see where we'll be 5 years from now.

 

  

Olive patiently waiting to board our flight which took off around her bedtime and landed around 1 am utah time. I thought it would be horrible but she quickly fell asleep and we carried her asleep from the plane. All our flights with her have been amazing, we are going to run out of luck at some point, it's only a matter of time.

 

This is how we feel about being in Hawaii!

 

Olive and her cousin June. Both these little girls have red hair and a tendency to scream at the top of their lungs when they are around each other. They have unexplainable bond and it is going to make me so sad when they have to leave each other. 

Something about being at the beach or out in warm weather makes me want to kick up into hand stands or something of that sort everywhere I go. Tonight I tried a yoga class in Haleiwa. It was a Kundanlili class, which is something I have never tried. The yoga studio I have been attending since I started doing yoga only does Ashtanga and I absolutely love that but I was thinking it would be fun to try something different here in Hawaii. It was very different than what I am used to and not something I would want to do regularly but expanded my thoughts on some aspects of yoga that would be beneficial to practice more often.

 

 One morning Olive and I went to the beach just her and I. We found a small strip that was far from any public beach and sat at the water edge for a while as we let the tide roll up and down our feet. Olive thought it was one of the best things that ever happened to her, and quite frankly, I did too.

Admiring a beautiful sunset.

 

 

 After being separated by about 20 feet from each other on accident they had to run towards one another and embrace. And then my heart melted.

Kc's sister Erin and her little girls. For some reason I just loved this picture.
 

Like I told ya.

Olive's first turtle sighting! We touched it's shell! (before someone told me it was illegal-- whoops)

 

I had tried to attend a yoga class previous to today but my GPS said it was located in the middle of a highway and so frustrated, hungry, and surrounded by food trucks I made the best decision possible and got one of these famous HulaDogs. It was messy and oh so delicious. 

 

 

ANNNNNDDD this cool huge toad that we found on our lawn. 

So far in Hawaii we've hiked to waterfalls, gone to the beach just about everyday, spent lots of time with family, walked to the local grocery store to get pockie cake (sp?), visited the PCC, eaten shave ice and countles other things that are mandatory when you visit Oahu. Today I tried surfing 6 months pregnant. I was pretty proud of myself for that- but I didn't really get any waves, boo. Only like half of one, oh well! I'll have to try again, it always takes a bit to get back in the groove again- especially when you are competeing with surfing schools to get in the few and far between waves that can only handle a surfer or two on their peak. Also today we visited Castle Beach and ate at one of the roadside shrimp shacks. Top that off with the yoga class I attended and it was an all around good day! Now, I'm off to bed! Fill you in on the rest of our trip in a couple weeks! 

 

ALOHA! 

 

P.S. A short Olive Update (for my own records)

 

Little Olive has seemed to change a lot lately! She really insists on trying to dress herself (poor thing has little success.) Recently she has started to notice if you break off a piece of something and she does NOT get the bigger piece (or that is was broken up at all.) It was cute at first that she would notice that, but now it's driving me crazy! ha She STILL WON'T TALK! The little rascal. I am getting a little frustrated but trying hard to just let it go and encourage her and help her do things at her own pace (since she understand everything and communicates through signs and other ways.) She's more interested in toys and "playing" i.e. having her toys interact with each other and people. She loves to sing, she'll pretend to sing lyrics to any song. She loves prayers, she thinks they are a little game. She looks real low during the prayer and has a little grin on her face the whole time and then when someone says AMEN she throws up her hands in excitement. She loves to try to figure things out like doing the buckle on her stroller and car seat or putting lids on bottles. She is so happy and sweet and good and we just love her little cute self. And that's my Olive update.