Goodbye Lana'i

Well, it's time to say goodbye to Lana'i. Richard, Kaya, and I will be moving back to the mainland on Sunday, March 1st. It's been a crazy, fun-filled year, and we will miss many things. It's definitely a bitter sweet time. But we want to be closer to family so Kaya will know her grandparents, aunts and uncles, and all her cousins.

Our new journey begins now, and with that I've decided to start a new blog. The new address is http://richardandlisa-journey.blogspot.com Please take a look at it when you get a chance since this blog is now retired.

Lana'i will hold a special place in our hearts. We leave our friends with hopes to see them again some day. Richard and I met here and Kaya was born in Hawaii. We will always have a connection to the islands.

Goodbye Lana'i. We'll miss you.

What's been going on?

Well, that's a very good question...

OMG!...We've been back on Lana'i for almost a month, but it doesn't seem like it. I thought I'd blog about what's been going on.

Kaya is now 4 weeks old and she's done so much already. Both her grandma's have come to visit, and we all had a great time. She's been to the beach, gone to lunch and dinner many times, taken walks, visited with friends, and so much more. It's amazing having her here. She's a blessing in so many ways.

Like always, I have to cut this one short. Kaya's calling. I'll post more later. :)

Kaya Joyce Kibitlewski is born

Kaya decided to join the world on Jan. 17 at 4:41 pm weighing 7 lbs, 3 oz, 21 inches long, with brown hair and blue eyes. Below are some of the first photos over the weekend. I'll be posting more of her on her blog, so check there in the future.

38 Weeks...no baby yet!

We went to the OB on Monday and things are progressing, but we have no idea when she will get here. I could go 40 weeks, ugh! But who knows, she could come at any time. At that appointment, I found out I'm 1-2 cm dialated, 60% effaced and the baby is at -1 station. I've been having small contractions periodically, but they haven't been painful or close together at all. My belly looks like an alien is inside when she moves now. There's a full moon tomorrow, so we're hoping that she comes this weekend sometime. I'm HUGE and I'm more than ready for her to get here. I've been in Honolulu for 4 weeks today! I'm ready to go home!



We had an ultrasound today and everything's great. She weighs approximately 7.5 lbs and her femur is 7.8cm long. She is definitely going to be one long baby! She's in the 58th percentile, so she's not too big and not too small.

Below are a few sunset pictures Richard took from our room. We have a pretty good view. We are staying in the Ala Moana Hotel. It's definitely a great place in a good location. Which makes staying here for so long a little easier.





Hopefully we'll have another blog very soon that will have a picture of the baby. Keep your fingers crossed!

ENGAGED!

I had to move over to Oahu on Friday, Dec. 12th. Richard came with me to spend my first 5 days there. It turned out to be a very memorable weekend. On Saturday, we drove around the island, starting on the East side. This way we got to see the part of the island we missed last time we were here. It was a great day to drive...it was overcast, not too hot, and the waves were great. We stopped at most of the lookouts and took pictures along the way.

Then we got to Sunset Beach on the North Shore. The last time we were there it was so busy we couldn't find a place to park. This time, we had the beach almost to ourselves. We went for a walk along the shoreline and talked about the baby coming and the time we would be apart. It was a very emotional, sweet time for us. Then Richard got down on one knee and asked if I would marry him. I was so speechless...the ring is so beautiful, I couldn't talk, he had to ask if that was a yes. And of course, YES! The weather was on our side too. We started walking back to the car and it started to rain. Had Richard waited any longer, we would have been soaked.

Then we went to dinner to celebrate!

Richard did a great job picking out the ring. It's the most beautiful ring I've ever seen. This day will be remembered forever!

Oahu....and waiting

I am now staying in Honolulu waiting for the baby to come. I've already been here 10 days and atleast I can say time is going by fast. Richard went back to Lana'i last Wednesday and he will be doing the blog post our weekend together.

The question I get the most is, "What are you doing with all your time?" Well, I can say I am definitely trying to keep myself busy, otherwise time will go slow. So, here's a list of things to pass the time:

* I brought the baby blanket I've been working on. I have to finish before she gets here.
* I have 3 doctors appointments a week.
* I try to walk everyday
* I got my haircut...thank God! It's been almost a year.
* I got a manicure and pedicure.
* I'm reading a lot. Thanks Mom for the books, they will come in handy.
* I've been taking a nap almost everyday, definitely a luxury.
* Once my car is here I have maintenence that needs to be done on it, plus I'll be able to finish the shopping I need to do before baby gets here.

I guess that's about it. Baby is doing great. We still think she is going to come early, but she has to wait until Richard gets back over here next week. I'll keep you posted.

Week 33

I'm kind of in shock at how fast time is flying by. I'm already at 33 weeks and I still have 7 more weeks to go. It's going to fly by, but I know I'm just going to get more uncomfortable. I can't imagine how big my belly is going to get. Here's the latest pics...

Thanksgiving Pics

I wanted to post a few pictures from our Thanksgiving dinner. We didn't pull all the stops, but did a pretty good job for just two of us. The turkey came out great! It was beautiful. Richard made his mom's sausage stuffing, and it was delicious! We had left over for days...



Here's Richard carving the turkey. Yummy!!


We decided to show you all what piggys we are. Richard had the two plates on the right.


Happy Thanksgiving again!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

First, I wanted to say a few things I'm thankful for...
* My wonderful Richard, who is my soulmate and best friend, and who allows me to be me
* Our baby girl who is healthy and will bless our lives in less than 2 months
* Our health, aside from the random cold here and there
* Our families, who continue to support us as our lives keep changing
* Our friends, who help keep us sane and keep us laughing

We would both love to be with our families this year, but that's not possible. Hopefully, next year we will be able to share this holiday with one of them. We wish you all good health and great happiness. Enjoy the food and the company. You will all be in our thoughts tomorrow. Gobble, gobble.

Polihua and LPSC

Another one of our days off, way back in April, we went down to Polihua beach and then went to Lanai Pines Sporting Clays (LPSC).

Polihua is on the North side of the island and is usually very windy. That's why we just went down for a little while.

Here's Richard having some fun running up the sand...


King of the Hill!!!


Just like all the other beaches on Lanai, Polihua is gorgeous. It was a pretty calm day and the views were great.







Then we went up the LPSC for some more fun. We did some archery and then sporting clays. We had a great time and I can say that I SUCK! Richard kicked my butt in clays.

I recommend doing sporting clays if you ever have a chance. It was a blast!!

30 Week Ultrasound

Richard and I went to our last ultrasound appointment yesterday. Thank God! It was great being able to see the baby again, but the best part was finding out that she's okay. She grew into her kidneys, so there is nothing to worry about anymore. I'll post more info about her on her own site, so check that out.

After that appointment, we met with Dr. Ponder, my OBGYN. Everything is still going great with my pregnancy. I am 30 weeks and measure 30cm, as the Dr. said, "perfect". My weight gain is fine, even though I haven't gained anything the last 7 weeks. (It's hard to believe I've only gained 15 pounds and I'm that huge.) She reminded me that the baby will take whatever she needs from me. The biggest news from this appt, was that she wants me to be on Oahu at 35 weeks. This means that my last day at work will be Dec. 15 and she wants me over there on the 16th. I'm not too happy about this, since I will miss the holidays with Richard. But I am also understanding. Some of you may know my history of high blood pressure...that's why I have to go over so early. At any time, it can get high and that puts baby and me at risk. Plus, I will feel a lot better being over there, since we have no idea when she will actually come. Everyone thinks she is going to come early, including me.

So, to put things in perspective. This is the timeline...my last day of work is in 4 weeks and I leave for Oahu, and in another 2 weeks Richard will be over there with me, then the baby is due 3 weeks following that. It still feels so far away, but time is going to fly from now on. I'll keep you posted.

OBAMA -- OUR NEW PRESIDENT

OMG! This is a night for great change. We have a new president, and that's not all...we have our FIRST black president! I'd say our country is shouting that it's ready for change, especially since Obama won by a landslide. I am so very excited and relieved to have him for a president. I think he will do a fabulous job. And I think the USA will be back on it's feet in no time.

28 Weeks...almost 29

OMG! and Whoa!! I'm now almost 29 weeks, in the third trimester, and my belly is getting huge. But from the last picture to now, I haven't gained any weight. She has just gotten much bigger. Now she is probably almost 3 pounds and close to 15 inches long. We all think she is going to be really long and probably a big baby. It won't be long until we know in person. :)

Day Light Savings

This post is just an FYI to everyone. Hawaii does not change times for day light savings. So, we are now one hour closer to you all. Central time is now 4 hours ahead and Eastern time is now 5. I'm hoping this makes talking with everyone a little easier. Happy Sunday!

Horseback riding and Awalua

One day back in April, before I was pregnant, Richard and I had a fun filled day. We went horseback riding...this was Rich's first time on a horse...and then we went camping down at Awalua.

Here's a few of the great views from the mountain where our ride went.





Here we are before heading out. We look pretty official, don't we? I sure did love that helmet! And the others are at the stables.

After the ride, we went back home to get Izzy. Can't forget her, especially when camping. The next few pictures are on the way down to Awalua.

Richard throwing out the shocka...

The views are gorgeous. The red dirt contrasts so beautifully against the blue of the sky and ocean.

This was our set up at the beach. This beach faces North, so we knew we'd see the sun set.

We moved over to the fire to relax and cook some food. We were just hangin'.



The start of the sunset...

These next are examples of how beautiful the sunsets are here. It was amazing.

The next morning Isabelle was running around the beach. We didn't wake up early enough to see the crabs coming out of the sand, but we have a picture showing how many there were...tons!

We had a great time the day before, but were exhausted. So we went home late morning and relaxed the rest of the day.