reality bites.

for real, though. 

my lovely, week-long hawaiian vacation is officially over. gone are the days of sleeping in, lounging in the sun, and wearing shorts 24/7. back to work and crappy weather. but that's how it goes. if it lasted forever, it wouldn't be a vacation. 
though the scenery was beautiful and the weather was wonderful; it wasn't all roses. i had been sick for about a week going into the vacation, and wasn't getting any better. finally on thursday, i went to a walk-in clinic in maui close to the condo we were staying in. after an hour of waiting, i was finally called in and examined. i ended up having acute bronchitis, conjunctivitis (aka pinkeye) and general sunburn-itis. not the best combination, and especially not on a tropical vacation. but what could i do.....
that same day i went to the clinic, my grandmother passed away. she hadn't been in the best of health the last few months and had been in hospice for a few weeks. so it wasn't completely out of the blue; but never the less, it was still difficult. to paraphrase my sister; it's hard to live in the world without the people that brought you into the world. it's got to be so much harder for my mom. i can't imagine what it would be like to live without a parent, or parents, but that's something everyone has to deal with in life, i guess. her memorial service is planned for september 10th, and the whole family is planning on going to michigan for it.
through all this depressing-ness (both mentally and outside in WA), there is a light.....a few, actually.
4th of July is right around the corner (one of my favorite holidays!) my birthday is in two weeks, and my brother is coming tomorrow night for 10 days. i can't wait to have him around again....can't believe i haven't seen him in 6 months!!
but for now; enjoy a hawaii montage. live vicariously through them. i am.....until there's enough sun here.

[condo beach]

[at the blow-holes!]

[the trek down....]

[& again...]

[i love hearts if you couldn't tell....such a photo op.]

[ziplining!]

[ziplining!]

[rainbow.....it rains somewhere other than the NW....]

[my niece harper didn't want to look at the camera haha....]

[breathtaking.]

[love these colors....i want them for my wedding ;)]

[i love shadow pictures]