Holiday Party at the Grand Hyatt Kauai

The past two years we have been very fortunate to have our Company Christmas Party at the Grand Hyatt Kauai. The Hyatt is so pretty, I worked there for over 5 years I think when I first got married. I even worked at Tidepools, the restaurant where we had our dinner. I love their food and I love their staff, they are the bestest!

We had a large party so we had to have a preset menu. I worked with their manager and they were so accommodating, I was so excited to just EAT!!

Please don’t mind the junk phone pix… hope I can still make you drool!

We started with family style pupus (appetizers). I just love fried calamari, my hubs calls it bait, but I call it delish!

We also had the lump crab cake. Ooh this has always been one of my faves and each time they change the menu I’m so glad they don’t change this! Big chunks and lumps of crab meat not too much filler.

This was a new one on the menu and I was excited to try it. Hamachi sashimi with watermelon and topped with jalapenos. YUM-O!!
Hamachi, or yellowtail, is family to Ahi, but it is a higher grade fish for sashimi or sushi. It’s a lighter meat and very mild tasting.

For dinner I chose the Opah. Grilled not gangnam style. It’s a very mild fish also known as the moon fish. Of course the men all ordered the prime rib, which my husband ranks as number one on the island!

We had a gorgeous dessert platter of bread pudding, crème Brule and a chocolate mousse bomb… and yup everything was THE BOMB!

I think everyone had way too much to eat, because after dinner everyone just went back to their rooms to rest. In the morning we woke up to this beautiful view.

Yup, luck I live Kauai. (am I making ya’ll jealous?)

I enjoyed a cup of coffee on the lanai and ate some chocolate covered dried pineapples for breakfast before meeting up with my friend who watched my son for us so we could have a night out. We picked up the lil guy and then came back to the hotel so he could play for a little bit.

THANK YOU MIKI! We totally owe you!

First things, first…. chocolate ice cream shake for the lil man!

Of course then we had to have lunch pool side.

He played in the pool for a little bit.

And before long… he was out cold!

It’s days like this that remind me we live in such a beautiful place and I need to take more time to enjoy it and enjoy my lil man especially since he’ll have to share my attention very soon.

I am blessed to work for a great company and have a wonderful Christmas party and wonderful friends who will take my son for the night so mom and dad can have a date.

I just had to share this especially after my little rant yesterday.

It’s all good!

whats on my wish list?

Note: I started this post well before Christmas and never got around to finishing it, but I updated it at the end for a nice surprise finish.

Ya Know, just in case you were wondering or Santa was reading….

Actually some of these are on my wish list, but some of them I have stumbled across and thought would make a good gift.

Like Yankee Candle’s Sampler Votive Gift Book.

Wouldn’t that be great for the candle lover!

I personally have never tried these but how good do they look? And who doesn’t need lip balm? Anyone want to put an EOS Lip Balm in my stocking is more than welcome to!

For the baker that you know, who doesn’t love the look of a domed cake plate with desserts in the kitchen?! Of course this one is from Williams Sonoma and is more than I would pay, but you can even get them at Wal-Mart. I would recommend filling it up with something first *wink*

This one is always on my wish list. I can’t bring myself to buying one or having my hubby buy one, but one of these days… it will be mine! What is it about a pretty colored Kitchen Aid Mixer?

These are just a few things that I wouldn’t buy for myself but would be nice to have or give as a gift.

In reality all I really want is for our bills to be paid, my grandmother to be on her way to recovery, my dad to stop the horrible cycle of drinking, for me and my lil guy’s cold to go away (I’m going on week number 3 thank you very much!!) and my hubby to finally listen to what I’m trying to tell him and HELP ME!!!!

Update starts here….

Well today is the day after Christmas and I survived, barely, but I did.

Working long days and then visiting with my grandmother in the hospital after picking my son up from school, and then going home to cook dinner proved to be more than I could do especially when you throw Christmas shopping in the mix. I very quickly lost the holiday cheer and really just wanted the holiday to be over with. I also have to mention that I am still sick! Going on 4 weeks now!! Let’s also add that my son came down with a sinus infection and because of his post nasal drip has been throwing up every night all week long! Then because of his antibiotics he had the runs for 2 days! God was with me, let me tell you.

I was frustrated with everything, mad at the world and taking it out on my family. I was at my breaking point and when my hubby says he’s going to ride bike with his friends 2 days before Christmas instead of helping me prepare for Christmas like I had been begging him to for the last 2 weeks I well, for lack of a better word, went ape shit.

To be honest we’re still not back to normal and he’s still sleeping on the couch. But if he has time to go shopping on his lunch break at the fishing supply store and the motorbike store AND spend $250 on a new pole blank for himself and then have absolutely nothing for his wife and son at Christmas because he ‘doesn’t have money or the time to shop’ this hormonal witch is standing her ground!

Thankfully my mom came over on Sunday and while my son and I were napping and cleaned up my kitchen and cooked dinner for us. What are mom’s for! Even though she makes me crazy she really does know exactly when I need her the most. I woke up to find her in my kitchen and the hubs sitting on the couch watching TV. Needless to say I blew a gasket!

I nearly did not make it to my in laws on Christmas day but I did and was surprised with….

A beautiful expresso Kitchen Aid Mixer! Yea Baby! Thank you mom Sheila!

We did have a nice late lunch/early dinner of prime rib and lobster. The lil bun in the oven kept me from eating as much as I wanted to. My son got to the point where he just wanted to go home so we did and ended the night early. It was nice to get some rest.

And then morning came, and we had to get up for work and school and get back to reality. It was actually really nice to get back to reality. Until next year….

So very grateful…

With everything that has been going on in my life recently I need to focus on what truly great things I have to be grateful for.

I know my last post was a bit grouchy. I am having a hard time feeling the pressure of the season and Christmas quickly creeping up on us, but other than that I really truly am grateful for many things.

I thank God that my grandmother is still with us. On November 30th we were told she would not make it through the night and today she is still with us. It has been rough working 9 hour days, picking up my 3 year old and bringing him with me to the hospital every afternoon to visit and check on her. Then go home and get dinner ready and my son bathed. But the fact that she is still with us and getting stronger everyday is a miracle. Do I get worn out running around you bet, but I am just thankful for her.

I thank God for my amazing friend Miki who always unselfishly jumps in and helps us out in a bind when it come to my son. She had come to our rescue so many times in the past and this past weekend was no exception. We had our company Christmas party which includes dinner at an amazing restaurant (I’ll have to tell you about that in another post!!) and a room at the Grand Hyatt. It’s like our mini getaway once a year. At the last minute we lost our sitter and Miki was wonderful and took my son for the night. My hubs and I got to enjoy a wonderful dinner and night all to ourselves that never happens.

I’m grateful for my friends who are always there to listen when I’m having a hard time and just need someone to talk to. I’m very lucky to have a few friends that listen without judgment and to have friends who are there for me without keeping score and don’t require something in return. That’s true friends.

I am grateful for a job and although the end of the year is always stressful and being 31 weeks pregnant I struggle to be normal, I still have a job for a lot of people don’t.

I also write this because today 2 days before Christmas my husband decides to go ride trails with his friends rather than helping with crunch time and I need to focus on good or I’ll probably loose my mind and leave his things in the garage.

Well, with that being said, I’m off to clean the breakfast dishes so that I can do my baking. I hope it’s a productive day!

What ever happened to Christmas being the most wonderful time of the year??

 

I know that I have admitted in the past that I am a Christmas Grinch. I have been changing my ways, I really have.

Even though it was like pulling teeth and I would rather have pulled my teeth out than have to nag at my hubby to spend 5 minutes to take some of our Christmas decorations out of the attic, I had a fun time with my lil man putting out decorations.

We didn’t take down all the decorations this year only one box and no lights on the house this year either. All I can think about it having to spend the time taking them down and packing them away just weeks before the baby is due.

I even did my best at keeping my OCD in check and I let my son decorate the tree with very little help. I sometimes sit on my couch and look at the tree and see two ornaments hanging too close to each other and I want to move them so bad, but I let it go. I’m so proud of myself.

Still all I can think is, what is so damn jolly about this time of the year?

I don’t know if it’s the hormones, or exhaustion, or stress, or all of it put together but I just want to skip the holidays all together!

Everything is rush rush and its so commercialized, how do we get back to the real meaning of the season?

I’ve been so busy at work and then going to the hospital to visit my grandma every day after work and then rushing home to cook dinner and do our night time routine and then do it all over again! I have had NO time or energy to do my Christmas shopping. This is the last weekend before Christmas and instead of helping out my hubs is going to ride with his friends, just great, thanks! I told my hubs from last week, I need his help with the shopping and well… I won’t even go there.

So this year, we’re not doing Christmas… if I get the chance to do my baking, I will, if not, oh well.

I don’t even feel bad for not having anything ready or having the time or energy to put into Christmas, is that bad??

How about you guys? Are ya’ll ready for Christmas?

What to do??

I originally started my post for this morning about my busy but wonderful weekend and how thankful I am for a very special friend.

Then I read this article… “I am Adam Lanza’s mother”

It is worth the few minutes to read it. I really hope and pray that these mother’s and children can find the help that they desperately need.

Baby Update: 29 Weeks

Wow time is sure flying by, I can’t believe I’m at 29 weeks already! Baby will be here before we know it!

How far along? 29 weeks 4 days (as of today)

Total weight gain: somewhere between 15-20 lbs

Maternity clothes? My bottoms are definitely maternity but I just wear baggy or stretchy tops

Stretch marks? Thank God not yet

Sleep: Just seems like its never enough. Then again I’ve been battling a cold for 2 weeks and we’ve been running back and forth to the hospital to visit my grandma so I am more worn out than usual

Best moment this week: ??

Miss Anything? Being able to walk up a flight of stairs without being out of breath, being able to carry my lil man, a couple glasses of wine with friends, being able to work in the yard, seems like just normal stuff.

Movement: Not as active as my son was but when baby is in the mood, man I get a good kickin’

Food cravings: nothing in particular and I’ve stopped living on junk food, desserts and hagen daz

Anything making you queasy or sick: only brushing my teeth in the morning

Gender: well…. I still haven’t announced it

Labor Signs: except for our little adventure in the hospital, nothing thank God.

Belly Button (in or out): still in but open pretty wide! LOL

Wedding Rings (on or off): off, but then I normally don’t wear my wedding rings.

Symptoms: my feet are getting swollen! With my son my feet only got swollen about 2 weeks before I gave birth, now if I’m on my feet too long or even sitting for too long they get swollen. I also notice that if I stand for too long, it feels very heavy down there, yup down there and I have to sit.

Happy or Moody most of the time: Still very MOODY!

Looking forward to: Getting the baby’s room cleaned and set up and also meeting the newest addition! I know we have a ways to go but we’re so excited and I’m ready to not be pregnant.

Prayers needed because miracles do happen…

It’s been quite a hard past 2 weeks.

It was Sunday and I woke up with a sore throat and just feeling like I got hit by a bus, and then dragged. Within 2 days I had a full blown cold.

Being sick while you’re pregnant sucks, one you can’t take any medication to relieve your symptoms and two, at 7 months pregnant every time I would cough I’d pee myself. Yup! I went there.

At the same time my dad and grandma were sick too. They had it pretty bad, my grandma, really bad.

Being the stubborn lady she is, she refused to let my dad take her to the doctors. Finally on Friday my dad threatened to call the ambulance and so she finally agreed to let my dad take her. He rushed her to the ER about 5 minutes away and by the time they got there she had collapsed and stopped breathing.

He called me upset and let me know what was going on. Thankfully my girlfriend works there and she let me know it was urgent and I needed to get there asap.

We gathered at the ER that night and the doctors told us she was in really bad shape and she wouldn’t make it through the night. She had really bad pneumonia a lot of fluid in her lungs and chest cavity and she had already stopped breathing and was being assisted with a ventilator. I spent the night with my dad camped out in the living room hoping not to hear the phone ring.

The next morning we got up and he went to the hospital to check on what was going on. They evaluated her and told us her kidneys were failing and she wasn’t doing well at all. We called some of the family and made arrangements for the priest to go and give her last rites.

The following morning they took her for a scan and surprisingly she had improved. Her kidneys were fine and had no permanent damage as well as her brain had not suffered any damage from lack of oxygen. She was still badly congested and was on the ventilator and they couldn’t say which way things would go.

We all prayed for her and the first night in the ER, my dad says, she’s gonna need a miracle. Thank you Lord, he had one for her. Not to mention she’s a fighter! As of today she is doing tons better. The congestion is clearing, she has been breathing on her own for a few days now and is conscious.

She still has some ways to go to recover, but as for us, we have already received our Christmas Miracle this year. Thank you everyone who prayed for her and for us.