"You've been married HOW long??"

16 years. Yup, 16 years. Some days it seems like it was yesterday that we exchanged our vows, sometimes it seems like ages and ages ago. Time has a funny way of stretching out like a rubber band, and then snapping back when you least expect it.

Quinn surprised me by arranging a fleet of overlapping babysitters this past weekend, so we could run away to Turtle Bay after his North Shore race was over. He came in 14th, out of 680 swimmers, and was first place in his age division. Woo Quinn!!

We got to Turtle Bay by lunch time, and were figuring out what to get from the room service menu, when Quinn got a text from the first babysitter: "Where's the house key?" Uh....... oops. (click the link to see how big of an "oops" it was!) There we were, on the North Shore, and Kate and the kids were waaaaay down in Ewa Beach, locked out of the house. Yikes! Luckily for everyone involved, Kate and Quinn brainstormed a solution... there are 3 windows along the top edge of our living room, about 6.5 feet up in the air. They're just barely tall enough for a lean and lanky 9 year old to slither inside, after you pop out the screen. Three cheers for Ben!!

After we ordered and enjoyed our amazingly tasty bacon avocado cheeseburgers and seasoned fries, we stretched out for a nap, to rest up for our blissfully child-free evening. When we woke up, we strolled around the resort a bit, and wound up at the pool, sipping mai tais. Cliche, but you know... there's a reason they're cliches. There's a surf break about 50 feet out from the pool, so we go to watch a couple local guys working the break while we sipped our drinks. Aah! :)

For dinner, we chose the 21 Degrees North restaurant (also on-site), and were very happy with our meals. Quinn got the duck, and I had the filet mignon. After a dessert of chocolate souffle, we trundled ourselves back to our room.

Sunday morning, we headed to the beach for some sunshine and snorkeling! The only other time we'd been there for snorkeling, the water was very turbulent, so visibility was pretty poor. This time, however, it was marvelous. We saw all kinds of fish and other critters, including many things I'd never seen before. After about an hour in the water, we were chilly, and retreated to our lounge chairs to let the sunshine warm us up. By the time we checked out, a little after noon, we were as cooled out and laid-back as any tourists visiting Oahu could possibly be.

What a fantastic way to celebrate 16 years of marriage! :)

Dipping a toe in the churning water...

So it's just like going back to school as a kid... you think you're doing ok, then summer vacation draws to a close, and you head back to the classroom. Once you get there, you realize that some things have changed since June. There are new trends (or maybe they're not so new, you just didn't pick up on them before) and before long, you are telling your mom that you *NEED* that new because: "Everybody's Got One!"

So... in that spirit... here's my blog! Expect nothing, and you'll never be disappointed. With everything my life's got going on right now, I make absolutely no guarantees about the frequency of updates, the inclusion of photos/videos, or any other promises, implicit or implied, and all that jazz.

In any case, what I *will* be putting in here is stuff that I found entertaining or thought-provoking, whether I saw it posted online somewhere, or thought it in my head as I was wiping smeary fingerprints off of the fridge door for the kazillionth time. Of course, just because it entertained me has absolutely no bearing on whether or not YOU will find it funny or worth cogitating on. Best of luck to us both! ;)