Welcome Home Grayson!

It's been a long-awaited two years! I feel like everyone's missions go by fast besides my family. It definitely has felt like 2 years since Grayson left. I flew to Utah so that I could be there to welcome Grayson off the plane and hear his homecoming talk! 

There was quite a crowd at the airport. Grayson had a huge group of high school friends who had signs, cookies, and hugs to share. The Goulding family (they are a big bunch) along with my family were at the airport! It was so fun waiting with everyone in the lobby. We had a good time watching other families welcome their missionaries home. Most of these families were crowding the exit and giving their missionary hugs over the glass. That doesn't seem like the most comfortable reunion. Missionaries are trying to hug family members while being yelled at by airport security and other travelers leaving the airport. Not our jam. We chose to wait in the waiting room. we had a huge space all to ourselves! I had my mom's big Mickey hands-on and of course we brought the BEST DAY SIGN from my mission homecoming. Graham was tracking his flight and we all were getting antsy once we saw it landed on the arrival screen. 

Grayson was so calm and gentle when he got off the plane. We were all screaming his name and waving and he just calmly walked over and gave my mom a big hug. It was so sweet. I know he had some struggles on his mission but I am proud of him for sticking through it. We all took turns giving hugs to him. Of course, Callie grew the most and had the most jaw-dropping change. All the feels coming home from a mission. Grayson looked just as I remembered. But I could tell his heart was different. He had just the experiences he needed on his mission. 

 

His friends were sure excited to see him. They missed him so much. One of the girls was bawling her eyes out when she saw him again. It was tender watching him reunite with everyone. Welcome home, Grayson! 

We stopped at a yummy Mexican restaurant in downtown Salt Lake to eat. Our first meal with returned missionary Grayson! Over our meal we talked about his mission and all the things that we all experienced over the past 2 years. So much has happened for everyone! 

 

President Ritchie from the stake came over to release him that night. He asked Grayson a ton of questions about his mission. It was sweet hearing him talk about the experiences he had while in Chicago. It reminded me of my mission a ton. Sometimes you just get homesick for your mission. That's not really something that goes away. I enjoyed watching Grayson and Poe reunite. 

After his release, we went to Dairykeen for some shakes! The place was packed when we walked in. We ordered our shakes and fries and found a table just out of the rain. Our buzzer went off and the boys went to get the shakes. They came back with several large shakes, a kid's meal that was missing the toy/main dish, and tons of fries.. We were disappointed because we went for the birthday cake shake and we didn't get that with this order. We looked through the window back at the front and saw our order there and everyone looked confused as to whose it was. We snuck right up there to get our real order. And with that, we had double the shakes and fries. Grayson said this would be when the missionaries text the CIM miracle thread a picture of the extra food! We all laughed but I think we were also all secretly really happy. #miracles 

A ton of family came to see Grayson speak. He hadn't even been home for 24 hours! I loved all his stories and hearing how his testimony was strengthened. Since serving a mission myself I love hearing other people talk about their mission experiences and hear them talk about their love for scriptures and Jesus. He did such a good job. After we got a group picture outside.  I think Graham is the only one not in the photo. When I asked him where he ran off to after church he said he needed to blow his nose quickly it was running. I thought Aw yes, that happens sometimes. We enjoyed subs and chips in the backyard. 

Other Utah adventures! I went on 2 hikes. One was that Sunday afternoon after Grayson's homecoming. He ran off to a YSA devotional so my dad, mom, Callie and I hiked to a lake up Guardsman. I finally watched my mom's favorite movie Green Card and we made smores in the kitchen. It was a lovely weekend catching up with family. I even had time to sneak in a little hike with Aysia and Cameron. We got caught in a little rainstorm and I loved every second of it. I have missed the pines.   

SUMMER

Gavin and I made a fitness goal for this summer to help keep us accountable and to stay in shape! For 12 weeks we are going to run 25 miles every week and do weights 4 times a week. If we can do it for a whole 12 weeks then we are each going to buy ourselves something! We both have been so dedicated and have been doing everything we can to reach this goal. We both have Apple watches so we can share our workouts with each other. It's been fun seeing each other's workouts come through. Sometimes we procrastinate our runs till Saturday night and that never feels good to have to make for lost time. But we get it done. I have done a few weight workouts with the girls at the park and we had the best rainbow one evening. 

I went on a hike with my friends Mary and Ellie up in Waimea Canyon. Ellie brought her dog Rusty on the hike and he was a good little hiker at first running up and down the trail. He couldn't get enough of the mountains and we couldn't keep up with him. By the end of the hike, Rusty was panting and hardly moving. We had to keep yelling his name to keep him going. As soon as he got in the car he sat down and I didn't see him move the whole car ride back. 

Katrina texted me one day and said that she was coming to Kauai and was going to stay at the Sheraton with her boyfriend Michael. I told her that is the very hotel that Gavin and I work at! We wrote a little card and had it delivered to their room with some goodies they could munch on during the week. It was so fun chatting and catching up with Katrina. We reminisced on childhood memories and had the best time exploring the island. One day I took her up Waimea Canyon where we hiked the beautiful Kalepa Ridge. Gavin, Michael, and I all wore Chacos and Kat was wearing some other sandals. And wow she was sliding all over that mountain. Every time I looked back she was on all fours trying to stop herself from sliding down further or getting up from a previous fall. Chacos for the win! You can always trust a Chaco on a hike. This hike looked a lot like the one I did with the girls the week before. 

Gavin and I both had the 4th of July off so we spent the whole day celebrating America! That morning we went on a run to celebrate our beautiful island home. After we watched some National Treasure while we made pasta salad and lemon bars. Nothing rings America more than Nicholas Cage protecting the Declaration of Independence. That afternoon we went to a multi-stake BBQ on the beach where we ate some burgers and stood in line for an ice cream truck that took way too much of our time. We took a nap on the beach in our hammock before setting up for another beach party with all our married friends. We got a grill from the General Manager of the hotel we work at but haven't touched it at all since we got it. No better day to try out for the first time than on the 4th! Gavin grilled some chicken for us all while we enjoyed the warm night from the beach. 

Gavin and I played an intense game of Giant Jenga that afternoon. My palms were getting really sweaty by the end. One of our friends said she had no idea a game of Jenga could be played that long. I had no idea either. We were both impressed with our skills. 

  

We ended the night by doing sparklers and watching the fireworks at the Stadium in Lihue. Katrina and I haven't been with each other for the fourth of July in who knows how long but that didn't stop us from singing Fire Work Pow and doing the Bella Dancerella dance. I'm sure we are the only people who feel the spirit of the 4th of July by singing that song. Crazy that 15 years ago or so we made up that silly song that is now a staple in the Bocanegra family on the 4th. 

The next day we met Katrina and Michael up on the North Shore for snorkeling. Katrina had a big topple from the ocean as she was getting out. Gavin and I saw it from the water and we were laughing so hard. We saw her flop several times before she crawled to the shore with bloody knees and sand on every inch of her body. Michael was sad that he missed the show. It was a good one. To cheer us all up we went to Lapparts to get some ice-cream! 

 We have been talking about getting a new couch for a while. I absolutely love our pink couch but it's super uncomfortable. It's a wooden frame which makes for a sturdy couch but it's not the best to sit on. I'm not sure why we bought it in the first place. I think we panicked when we saw our empty apartment so we just bought the first couch we saw. We usually end up with a kink in the neck after a movie from sitting on it. We loved how convenient it is for visitors. And the couch is pink which just brings me so much joy every time I see or sit on it. We were on Amazon for Prime Day and saw an amazing deal on a couch so we sealed the deal! It came a few days later from Canada! Gavin and I set it up right away. 

We also decided to head to Oahu for one of our weekends just so that we could see some of the new movies that have come out in Theaters. Kauai doesn't have a theater so we were looking forward to day at the megaplex.  Sarah and Anna joined us on our movie day. First, we went to Raising Canes before heading into Mission Impossible. We loved watching Tom Cruise run and run. We couldn't stop talking about it after. Before our afternoon show, we shopped around the outlets where Gavin got some new shorts and Birkenstocks! We grabbed a hot meal from Cheese Cake Factory to eat in the theater while we watched the Sound of Freedom. We didn't come out smiling as big after this one. To perk ourselves up again we grabbed Crumble cookies and popcorn before heading into Barbie. I threw on my Barbie shirt just for the movie. I loved the music, outfits, and Barbie's Dreamhouse!

We spent the night in Laie and had some time the next morning to visit with old friends. We sure do miss them. 

Since I am a concierge we get to do almost all the tours on the island for FREE. We had to take advantage of a Napali Coast Sunset dinner cruise this summer. We had the most pleasant evening on Blue Dolphin. This was the company I almost worked for last summer when I was looking for a job. Once we were on the boat I remembered why I didn't choose them. One of the worker's jobs is to be the safety officer. He walked around the boat the whole time and told everyone where their hands should be and how to stand. It sure got irritating to hear all night. When he was talking I remembered that I didn't want to work on a boat where I would need to be nagging people. Thank you, safety officer. 

We always have to celebrate 7/11! 

Gavin had a Golf Tournament with the Sheraton. He loved going out with his team and playing some rounds. They always have a ton of food and a lot of fun. 

We had a surprise visit from Sam, Jansen, Kiwi, and Kapono. Wow, their family is adorable. Their kiddos are so cute. We went out to eat the first night and Kaiwi couldn't stop eating the ice from the water cups. He was grabbing all the cups and dipping his hands inside. He was soaked and the table was soaked. Sam and Jansen didn't even notice. They are so chill it's very relaxing to be with them.