Aloha, Hawaii

These two years in Hawaii have FLOWN by. We moved here when the twins were three weeks old. Unbelievable. They have grown up here. Our little Hawaii boys. Good thing we are moving to another warm climate. I don't know how any of my boys would handle pants and socks. 

Before we leave any place, I always have a list of things we need to do and take pictures of. I have slowly been checking things off since the beginning of the month. I think I managed to do everything plus a few extras.

Of course we had to enjoy our last shave ice. All three boys love them! We will definitely miss this cool treat that Hawaii is known for. 

Here's our pictures from around our town. First, we had to take a picture of the Mokes painting. The Mokes are our twin islands on Kailua beach.  Our little beach town is quite proud of these. And we had to visit the intertube girl statue. I have no idea about the history behind this statue, but I thought our boys needed a picture with her...

I wanted to have a memory from our time in Hawaii. I saw these paintings on pinterest and I thought they were perfect. My dad painted the amazing canvases and my crafty friend, Debbie, helped me with the boys' sand foot prints. I love how they turned out and I can't wait to hang them in our new home. 

I wanted Abram to see an authentic Hawaiian luau before we left so we went on a mama/son date. We ate dinner at the luau and stayed the night at the Hale Koa after.  It was such a fun night. Abram loved the whole show and he is still talking about the fire dancers. 

We couldn't leave without saying good-bye to our trash man.  EVERY.SINGLE.SATURDAY all three boys run outside to watch him take our trash. He is so wonderful and he waves and honks every time.  They love it. So, on our last Saturday we had to take him a small gift and get our picture with him. (I guess you could say its a tradition we have when we move. I guess it comes with having 3 boys.)

And here is our traditional picture of all three boys in front of our home. We have so many great memories here. It will be hard to leave.  

Abram is already praying for God to send us friends in Florida because he is so sad to leave his friends. He made sweet friends at church and school. We have had so many play dates and birthday parties- Abram has had a great time with these boys. 

His friends from church, Corban and Ranen. Their favorite thing to do is visit the bounce houses. They can do it for hours!

His best friends from school, Jakey and Dustin. These boys have had such a fun year!! 

I can't finish this blog without including pictures of how God has blessed me this year.  I love that God always shows up, gives us exactly what we need and so much more.  

This year I was blessed to be apart of the leadership team at Bible Study Fellowship (BSF). It is a nationwide Bible study and this year we studied John. When I became a children's leader I thought I was helping them out but oh my goodness, I learned so much about God's faithfulness and the importance of prayer.  I was so blessed to be apart of this amazing group of women.

I love fellowship. I love talking with women about the important things and really getting to know them. When I learned about IF:Table, I thought it would be such a great thing. And it was! We met the first Thursday of every month and every time we met, it was such a sweet time. IF:Table provides us with a topic and four conversation questions. Super deep questions that force us to be honest and open. The four of us didn't know each other too well when we started meeting and such a beautiful friendship was formed this year.  I will miss these ladies, but we all want to start IF:Tables at our new location (three out of the four of us are moving this summer).

And finally, this last one was so very good. Every Wednesday morning a group of moms met at the preschool to pray over our kids and the teachers (Moms in Prayer). What a sweet time it was every week.  I learned so much about the importance of prayer and that God truly wants us to come to Him about everything. We celebrated answered prayers, cried over our children and encouraged each other throughout the year. I looked forward to Wednesdays with these ladies and God did some amazing things!

It is always hard to leave a place and say good-bye. Everyone always asks me how we do it and if I like moving so much. Here's what I say: It is hard to leave and we have loved our time here, but God is faithful. He has a purpose for each place He sends us and He takes such good care of us.  So, even though we love Hawaii, I am also excited to see what God has in store for us in Jacksonville, Florida.  He always provides what we need, takes care of the details and never ceases to amaze us.  

So on Friday we say "Aloha" to our time in Hawaii.  Next time we post we will be in Jacksonville, Florida!