An open letter to my husband •

05 Monday Mar 2018

Posted by Making Magic in Life on Maui, Thoughts from Jenn

Tags

Dreams, family, first time mom, goals, growth, Happiness, Life, love, Marriage, married life, Maui

Dear Husband —

I SEE you over there.

Waiting, watching, wondering, where your wife went.

For 2 years you’ve loved me as I slowly gave myself away day after day, hour after hour, second after second. You supported every decision I made as you watched and cheered me on, helping every SINGLE step of the way. You supported me unconditionally and I have often times let you down.

I promised myself that I would always put our relationship first. That our foundation would always be my first priority and that everything else would ALWAYS come second. I’ve lost myself in Motherhood and found myself and lost myself, over and over again. Sometimes in the same day, others in the same minute. I tell myself on the daily that I’m going to do more, give more be better and day after day I fail, but there you are, loving me anyways, always helping me find my way back to you.

You love me so hard and so fierce and so unconditionally. You remind me who I am, who I want to be, and who I am working so hard to become. You continue to love me without limits or judgment or condition. You allow me to give myself to our son day after day, night after night, hour after hour without hesitation without resistance, without blame.

So my husband, my one true love, thank you. Thank you for loving me, thank you for accepting me and sticking with me. Thank for making me feel beautiful and loved and limitless. Thank you for waiting for me. For believing in me and for loving me anyways.

I SEE you. I miss you. I can’t wait to get back to me and you. You are (still) my best friend. You are (still) the one I have the most fun with. You are (still) the ONE.

I SEE you. I see us. I see all of our dreams coming true. I see our life being built. I see our son living a bright and happy future because of who we are. I see YOU.

You are my past, my present and my future. There is no me without you. There is no us, no dreams, no tomorrow. YOU are it today, tomorrow, forever.

I don’t tell you enough but I hope you never forget how proud I am of you. How proud I am to be your wife. How proud I am that you are Cash’s daddy. How proud I am for the selfless, hard working, funny, light hearted man that you are and who you are continuously trying to become for you, for me, for our son.

I hope you know that I am more IN LOVE with you today than yesterday and I know tomorrow will be even more than today until forever!

My favorite time

24 Saturday Jan 2015

Posted by Making Magic in Thoughts from Jenn

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Happiness, Life, saturday

There is this moment on Saturday mornings when the whole world is still. The dawn is just barely breaking, birds are just starting to rustle in their nests and the air is still and cool. To my left I have a seven pound ball of fur curled up and jammed in my ribs. To my right my lightly snoring husband who is too far away in slumber to hear me stir. I’m careful not to disturb either, just yet. It’s in this single moment when thoughts of the day, to-do lists or responsibilities have yet to creep in to my mind and my world stands still. It’s the moment that I look forward to all week. A moment I stop and record regularly to keep fresh in my memory for when I need a minute of peace. It’s my favorite time. Nothing to do. Nobody to be. Just me and my whole world, for a second, until it’s gone, until next time.

Gone. The saddest word in our language…In any language.

18 Wednesday Jun 2014

Posted by Making Magic in Thoughts from Jenn

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

death, Life, loss, love, reflection

…8 years ago today I sat in a crappy apartment, in a crappy city, in a crappy relationship. My relationship of five years was coming to an end (it was long coming) but it was five days before my 22nd birthday and although I knew it was over, there was some part of my naive 22 year old heart that was hoping for something (anything) to give, I mean come on…it was my birthday!

As I started my day and got ready for work I got a phone call that stopped me still in my tracks, it was my mum, and her words were telling me that my godmother was dead.

Died. Dead. Passed away.

– Silence –

Excuse me?

I’m so sorry baby.

-Sobs-

And there it was my 41 year old godmother (holder of so many years of my life, my secrets and my childhood was gone) just like that! No goodbye, no hugs, no kisses, no no no no. It couldn’t be, how could she be dead. It wasn’t the first time (unfortunately) my family & I were hit with such young death in our family but that didn’t mean it was going to be any easier.

I hung up the phone and started packing, feeling anxiously aware that I needed to leave, leave my boyfriends crappy apartment and never ever ever come back. I packed and cried and sobbed and talked to her. I called my job and told them I was done, I had to go it was time to leave, leave this crappy apartment, in this crappy city, in this crappy relationship but as I said the words my eyes stung with tears because I knew that even when I did leave it didn’t change one damn thing, my godmother was dead.

I spent my 22nd birthday at her wake and funeral. It was horrific to know that while I was being born 22 years ago (probably one of the happiest days of her and my families life) she was now being buried (one of the worst days of mine and her families lives) as I sat at the viewing I looked around in a tear-stricken haze at my family, her family, her kids. Her kids. It wasn’t fair, life was and never would be fair and there wasn’t a damn thing anyone could do about it.

My godmother and I weren’t talking when she died. We hadn’t talked in quite some time. It’s not important why we weren’t talking, what is important is to remember how we thought it was okay that we weren’t talking. We made excuses (so many excuses) life happens, people get fucked up, people change, things change, we change, people lie and cheat and you think that being mad at them and holding grudges against them will eventually blow over and things will be okay. Or even worse you think that never talking again, never forgiving them again will some how be okay. We forget (we always forget) that while all of this is happening death can happen…at any time without warning. You think you have TIME. You think it will all be okay. You think, you think, you think.

I think everyday. Everyday about so much..life, love, forgiveness, loss, sadness. That’s life. That’s part of my life. This is part of my life, everyday. But I live and the more I live and the more I give the more I learn. I’ve learned that I refuse to live my life with regret so instead I live with lessons learned and just like all lessons in life some are much much harder than others.

I miss my godmother. I miss her so often. I miss knowing that I can call her (even if we hadn’t talked in a long time) I miss knowing that she was there. I miss knowing her, hearing her voice, her laugh. I miss her craziness. I miss, well, I just miss her.

It’s 8 years later and I still miss her. I will always miss her. In life and in death she has taught me so much. She has taught me that nobody is perfect, that unconditional love and forgiveness will prove to be one of our hardest but most important struggles, that memories with family and those you love will be your most valuable possession and that no matter what you do there will always be loss (but there doesn’t always have to be regret).

I feel you in the breeze at the beach, I smell you in my tanning lotion on hot days, I listen to your voice on my wildest of nights, I secretly cheer for the Miami Dolphins every single time they play and I giggle every time I see a girl with long fake nails.

I’m turning 30 in 4 days and I wish you could call me and wish me a happy birthday (like you did for so many years) I wish that my birthday didn’t remind me of your loss. I wish…

Until we meet again….

Me and my godmother in July 1986 after my 2nd birthday feeding the ducks in the park

Our December

07 Tuesday Jan 2014

Posted by Making Magic in Life on Maui, Thoughts from Jenn

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Christmas, December, Happiness, Life, Maui, staycation, time off

I am officially in mourning as I take down Christmas around our house. We had such a beautiful December spent doing the things that we love and really just enjoying Maui.

I am so grateful that we were both able to get Christmas and New Years off and that I had some extra afternoon down time since my elementary schools were all on break and my office work was light with my father in law on vacation. He went on holiday for the holiday so Colt and I stayed on Maui this year so we could handle biz (literally).

December was mellow and fun and we enjoyed it and each other very much….

We got our tree on black Friday. It was another perfect pick and I’ve enjoyed having it up very much. The smell, the beauty. It’s still up as I type I am just looking at it and wishing it didn’t have to come down (ever)…

Once the tree was up we had our typical Christmas card photo-shoot (thanks Anu) and as you can see it’s not Colt or Kai’s favorite part of the holiday but I love it.

A Stew’s Christmas 2013!

We spent a lot of time playing at the beach working on our tans. I think we went to the beach more in the last 2 weeks than we did in the entire year of 2013 but hey better late than never!

We also spent a night at the Grand (Colt and Joe) surprised Anu and I and of course it was awesome!

We spent our Christmas Eve at the beach, went to the candlelight service at church and then Anu and Joe had us over for a really nice chicken dinner.

Christmas Day Colt made a big breakfast buffet just for the two of us and we relaxed, ate and exchanged gifts while enjoying the morning.

This was Colt’s favorite gift (it was $3.50) a koozie that says “Drop Shaka’s not Bombs,” it has also become his 2014 motto.

Later that evening we went to Anu’s parents house and had a wonderful dinner and played games. We of course missed both of our families very much but we are so blessed and grateful for our Maui Ohana.

6 days into January and my head is still floating in beautiful memories of December. It was a good year, a year of transition!

We are both really looking forward to an exciting and adventurous 2014!

New Year, New Stew

Random

25 Friday Oct 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Thoughts from Jenn

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

acceptance, Coaching, growth, learning, Life, new day, random, thoughts

I’m currently reading “words from a wanderer” it’s a great ~~book~~, well I guess you can’t really call it a book. It’s more of a collection of notes and poems and sayings by the author but none the less it’s still great.

As I was in bed reading the other night one of the quotes jumped out at me and changed my entire week, and although the words are simple they are deep if you allow yourself to really feel them:

Dear self,

There’s a blessing in every breath you take. Even when it’s hard to breathe, you have yet to suffocate. I commend you for your endurance even when the air is thick — keep breathing, keep loving, keep going…”

Love,
Self

As I read the last word all I could think about was all of the shit that I allow to consume me. Things that either won’t matter in a week, a month or a year or even worse things that are simply so far out of my control that even if I did attempt to try to change them it wouldn’t make the slightest of a difference….so why not keep breathing, keep loving, keep going?!?

I dove into my week wide open with this mind set and just allowed myself to be 100% present in the results as they unfolded beautifully.

I helped a student build confidence in a situation that I could have just let go. I found a solution that worked without ever making the student feel defeated. I relished in happiness for hours over the outcome of the solution and the gratitude that was expressed to me from their parent.

I logged and prepped every bite of food that went into my mouth & body. I opted for a salad over a sandwich and organic over fast food. I fueled my mind, body and soul with everything it asked for and or needed.

I feel strong, I feel alive.

I laughed long and hard with two year olds as we rolled around stretching our bodies and exploring new movements. I watched and encouraged as each of them tried new things. I cheered and yelled and clapped as they did their double forward rolls or walked like a crab across the bars to show each of them how truly special they are to me.

I drank green tea every day at noon and buzzed blissfully in the high.

I drove in my work van with the windows down and music up as I traveled from school to school, class to class while listening to country music and re-living some of my favorite memories from our time spent at stagecoach.

I watched as 6 of my advanced students gained the courage to throw a backhand spring on their own. I waited each time (stomach in knots) knowing they were ready (but scared maybe they weren’t) as they sprung backwards down the cheese, some successful some on their heads. I cheered and screamed and jumped up and down while applauding their courage and strength as they wanted to do more more more.

I had a photo shoot with Penny our best friends bulldog that just turned a year old. I made Colt put a pink hat on her, staged a fake pink cake while positioning her gift all in hopes to make our best friends smile and know how loved they are as they went through a difficult time.

I washed, dried and put away all the laundry (and it’s only Friday) which means happy weekend to me!

I enjoyed a glass of wine and a beautiful fancy dinner with my best friends and husband on a week night. We even ordered dessert (and yes, I tracked all the calories…)

I made home-made tacos with Colt and then snuggled on the couch with him and Kai while watching our DVR episodes of law and order svu and criminal minds.

I ran a few miles each day and watched happily as Colt got his stride back and me my running buddy.

I said a prayer as I got into bed beside Colt and Kai each night and felt my heart grow three times its size with love, happiness and comfort.

…and lastly I realized that the way we think of others is not always the same way that they think of us. Relationships change, people change, and just because we choose to accept this does not mean we are disregarding or belittling the hurt and sadness that this reality brings to us, but instead we are just choosing to make a conscious decision to focus on the good rather than spend our time stressing over things that are ultimately insignificant and/or out of our control.

Until next time keep breathing, keep loving but most importantly keep going…Balance is Everything!

Kona-teering

31 Wednesday Jul 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Wanderlust

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

big island, family, friends, Happiness, Hawaii, Life, Travel, vacation, wanderlust

We spent this past weekend vacationing on the Big Island with Joe, Anu and her family. We were so stoked when Anu told us at the beginning of the summer that her Dad won a gift certificate for a weekend stay at the Hilton Waikoloa timeshares and decided to give it to us. It was such a generous gift to give and believe me we appreciated and enjoyed every single second.

The boys left early (5 a.m. kinda early) on Friday morning to catch the first flight into Kona, so they could golf with Auntie Shal & Uncle Russ. They were able to play golf at two of the nicest courses on big island and they couldn’t have been more happy.

Since Anu and I were going for more of the relaxing (let’s get drunk at the pool) kinda weekend we didn’t arrive until a little after 12:30 on Friday. Once we landed we drove over to Costco to stock up on all the essentials then headed straight for the hotel to enjoy some much needed girl time.

Anu & Jenn take Kona begins..

Next stop, best weekend ever.

Welcome to our home-base for the next 3 days.

As soon as the bell man (barley) closed the door Anu & I were jumping up and down and running through the condo like 5 year olds for a good 10 minutes.

It doesn’t get much better than this

(this picture captures “vacation” Anu perfectly, my goodness I just love her)

well until you open the back sliding door to your own private pool and jacuzzi…jackpot!

cheers to the best of friends and adult vacations on Kona

Pre-gaming with a game of Apples to Apples (to go) before heading over to Anu’s families place for a Friday night BBQ

Saturday morning the boys hit the golf course while Anu & I took over Kona, the Hilton, the pool and the pool bar

(you know just your typical girls day)

All that swimming and sunning sure did make us thirsty, so it was no big surprise that we spent the rest of our afternoon at the pool bar

We made friends with our bartender Donna and before we knew it we had sipped and laughed the afternoon away

Drink of the day (with vodka instead of rum)

Shot of the day (no clue)

Pact of the day

(you wish you knew)

the daily essentials…

flowers, heart shaped sunglasses, room keys, the boys credit cards and the vap (duh)

Best ranch in the whole entire world (ever in the universe)

A girls day wouldn’t be complete without a ANTM photo-shoot

We got these luscious looking drinks to take back to the room for the boys

(and then drank most of them on the way while stealing a golf cart…)

(don’t judge us, the ground was HOT!)

The boys were not amused with us so they hit the bar by themselves

(but we of course crashed their party)#jjacmusketeers aka double diva’s

After the pool we headed back to the room for some more apples to apples (to go) sunset, dinner and drinks

Since Anu & I had spent the day pooling & exploring we had found Sansei (which is one of our favorite sushi places on Maui) so we opted not to tell the boys and surprised them with late night 1/2 off pupus and karaoke

this is their “surprise” faces

we were pretty proud of ourselves

so we signed them up for some “surprise” songs, lol

Joe didn’t seem to mind

We even sang a few duets

(we would NEVER do this in Maui, btw)

On Sunday we all went down to the other Hilton resort and spent our day pooling and lagoon-ing

and we of course hit the slides

you don’t even want to know why they are cracking up

(or you do…but you just had to be there)

After hours of pooling we were totally water logged so we hit the road to go leave our mark on Kona by writing our hashtag in coral off of one of the main highways
finding the perfect spot

hashtagging it up

getting the “perfect” picture from above

#jjacmusketeers

(were here, best weekend ever)

Spon·ta·ne·i·ty

23 Tuesday Jul 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Life on Maui

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Freedom, Happiness, leisure, Life, Maui, spontaneous

Spontaneity is something that I have always loved the idea of and wanted to be, just saying the word in itself gets me excited, spontaneity. Living on a whim, redirecting because of a feeling or emotion, taking off at the drop of a dime…but no matter how much I love the idea of living this way if I’m being completely honest I’d have to say my quality or state of actually being “spontaneous” in my day to day life is about a two. Ok, maybe a one (really its a zero) because Monday through Friday I am the most vanilla and least spontaneous person you will probably ever meet. I love my routine, sticking to a schedule and planning my days ahead. Now don’t get me wrong we can make plans but it better be 24 hours in advance (at least) and I will most likely pass if it keeps me out past 10pm! See, like I said vanilla no rainbow jimmies, no waffle cone just plain ol boring vanilla.

However like with everything else in this life with one extreme comes the other so it would only make sense that my weekend self (Friday night to Sunday afternoon) likes to live life undetermined and much more spontaneously. I like to stop thinking about schedules, time or money and I like to just go off and do whatever it is I feel like doing. I like to jump in my car and drive or go for a walk until I find what I am looking for. I like to wake up on my days off at 6am (just because) and lay in bed thinking of all the amazing things I want to go and do. I love feeling the excitement of endless opportunity and the unknown.

So with all that being said this weekend was no different. I woke up at 5:30am on Saturday with thoughts of beaching, hiking, traveling, exploring or camping running through my head. Around 8am Colt got up and asked what his options were, a few hours later we were out the door.

…and we’re off, destination Hana! drive time 3 hours, purpose camping at 7 sacred pools, coolness factor it happened to be a full moon! Car packed, bags packed, dog packed…ready, set, gooo!

The road was so busy and so was the campground! This was the most construction, cars and groups I had ever experienced when driving up to Hana!

But even with all the unexpectedness we still made great time and we were chilling & grilling in no time.

Later we were joined by Anu and Joe who also decided very last minute to come up and join us!

We gave them lots of props for driving all the way to Hana on a moments notice but I think the full moon, the fire pit and the s’mores made it all worth it!

Sunday morning we woke up with the sun, it had rained pretty hard over night but it was so peaceful to listen to while we slept. The smell of rain and damp grass embodied us in the tented moonlight and it made the experience that much more memorable.

Once we were up Colt cooked breakfast for us all. He made bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches on a croissant and I’d have to say he gets the best breakfast for campers award because these were nothing shy of delicious!

Shortly after breakfast we cleaned up and hit the rode. We had a long trip back and a few more last minute pit stops on the way.

We have seen this sign for Thai food every single time we’ve been to Hana but not until recently had we paid it any mind and today it seemed to be screaming my name. We stopped by and I honestly felt like I had been time warped into the heart of Thailand! The restaurant Thai Food by Pranee, the sign, the people, the fresh made house specials they were all so perfect and lucky for me a lot closer than Thailand!

One of todays specials was the green chicken curry and we both loved it! It was so delicious and the closest taste to Thailand we have got since being back on the island. I am so happy we stopped to experience it!

After our Thai stop I wanted to photograph this sign (with my new Nikon) to canvas for the house! To me it is a great reflection of organized chaos and makes my wanderlust skyrocket.

I really just love it so much!

I photographed it from all angles since each side had a new variation of wonderful-ness!

After this stop Colt was on a mission to get home so I kept myself entertained.

WARNING objects in the mirror and in the car may appear closer or more naked then they really are;)

and last but not least for anyone who has ever been to Hana with Colt & I no trip would ever be complete without making a pit stop in Pāʻia at flatbreads! hmm hmm good!

As the week begins and it’s back to reality I cant help but think how thankful I am for my day to day life and my spontaneous weekends.

I am so blessed to live in such a beautiful place with a wonderful job and the best people surrounding me. I have Colt as my best friend, my husband, my life partner as well as my partner in crime. I love that we can do anything or nothing together and still be happy. I love that he loves me like no one else ever has. I love that our love is deep, real, fun, funny, passionate and supportive.

I love who we are, who we are becoming and that we love with a love that is more than love.

Until next time…love whenever possible, it is always possible….

Do you even Blog anymore?

07 Friday Jun 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Thoughts from Jenn

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Freedom, Happiness, Life, married life, self discovery

Was the question that came from my husband’s lips as we pulled up the drive from the gym at 6:30 a.m. and as his hazel green eyes stared at me waiting for an answer I couldn’t help but laugh. Looking confused he asked “well I mean I was just wondering because I thought you were going to start writing full time and get us free trips and cool stuff...” this sentence of course sent me into a fit of giggles, my husband he sure does make me laugh.

But all laughs aside his question did get me thinking and the short answer to his question is yes, I do still blog. The long answer is, not in the traditional way. I have been thinking about his question all day and it’s been bugging me because I really do LOVE writing, blogging, note booking or anything else that allows me to release some creative freedom. However, lately it seems I haven’t done a whole lot of it. As I continued to wonder why it suddenly hit me that the reason I wasn’t sitting down to blog about my life was because I have been too busy living it. I have actually been living so freely that instead of escaping to my blog I have been blogging out loud.

Rather than finding my freedom in blogging (as I have for the last year and a half) I have found my freedom in living. I have spent so much time doing the things that I love and have had less time to sit down and write about it. When I was working for corporate America the hour or two of freedom I got to myself per day I would spend blogging, I would come home or sit down on my lunch break and escape my reality. It was a time for me to connect with myself and the world and anyone else that wanted to listen because I didn’t have enough time to connect any other way. My blog in so many ways has been the only way I could slow down and reflect on everything that was spinning around me. It also allowed me to later go back and read about it from my own perspective and re-live it. I have spent many days and hours re-reading my blog from last year and re-living my wedding and all of the other countless adventures we have been on and I couldn’t be more thankful that I am able to do so.

Life recently has been simple. No drama, no bullshit, no doing things that don’t serve us, make us grow or make us happy. It has consisted of falling in love with each other again and again and living each day to fullest. We are living a life of gratitude and it seems to be blessing us daily. We have so much to be thankful for including our health, our job, our relationship, our love, our amazing family and best friends. We are building a brand new foundation as a married couple and it couldn’t be more exciting, which in turn reminds me, we have so much to be excited for but that’s for another day…

Life Lately

11 Saturday May 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Thoughts from Jenn

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

free bird, free living, Happiness, Laughter, leaps of faith, Life, love, Maui life

I have honestly been so busy redirecting my life that my blog has taken a serious backseat. This has come as a big surprise to even me since I thought it would be the exact opposite once I had more “time” to give to it but the reality is most of my time has actually been spent working and I couldn’t be more happy.

Now let’s be honest we have all heard the below saying a million times but finally for the first time I am the person screaming it from the roof tops and meaning every word of it:

“Do what you LOVE and you’ll never work another day in life”

It is honestly an unexplainable feeling to know that I am now in this very rare yet growing group of people that wake up every day excited and eager to go to work and I couldn’t be more grateful for that. A few months ago I watched the Alan Watts – What do you Desire video that was circling many of my friends blogs and Facebook pages (if you haven’t yet taken the time to watch it you really should Google it) but of all the memorable and moving points that were made the one that stuck with me the most was “do what you love and the money will follow…” and from there on that’s exactly what I have been doing.

Recently along with working for my father in law at Lightning Electric LLC I have also taking on the job and title of assistant gymnastic coach with Maui Tumblers LLC. Maui Tumblers is a locally owned mobile gymnastics company that provides noncompetitive learning to children in a fun and safe environment. I am currently assisting the owner (coach) with 9 different classes 12 hours a week and it is honestly the most fun, rewarding, exciting and humbling job I have ever had. Not only do I get to do gymnastics (one of my favorite sports ever) and get a killer workout I also get to teach, learn and mentor kids ages kindergarten to 5^th grade 3 times a week. The last 3 classes that I assisted in Melissa actually allowed me to be the lead coach in warm up’s and one way street (tumbling passes) which was awesome. She later told me that she couldn’t believe that I had never coached before because I was such a natural with the kids and the coaching. This was obviously a huge compliment and boasted my confidence in knowing I had made a great decision coming on board with her and her company. Since the school year is almost over I will also be assisting her with her summer programs and I can’t wait to see what opportunities will unfold as I grow and develop with the company, classes and students.

Although having a new job has been so fun my work at Lightning Electric has also been very exciting and rewarding. After several months of hard work we finally just launched our website for the company (www.lightningelectric.net) and I couldn’t be more proud. To experience first hand the happiness this has brought my father in law is unexplainable. Building this company has been a dream come true for him and I couldn’t be more grateful to be standing alongside him and my husband as we work our asses off to make it happen.

On top of working two jobs (that I love) I have also been training hard to get back into shape and ready for my first marathon in December. I am back in the gym full time and starting May 1^st my running schedule went from running 10-15 miles per week (or about 40 – 50 miles a month) to running 15-20 miles per week (or 70-80 miles a month). I am only 5 miles away from hitting my yearly running goal of 200 miles so I figured it was time to turn up the heat and boy can I feel it! This week Colt has been giving me a run for my money on our Nike running app and although I love seeing him so motivated and determined it’s a tough pill to swallow to have him sitting in the number 1 spot for the week (especially when he keeps taunting me about it) but the good thing is he pushes me to run harder and I can already feel the difference. Previously when running I would burn out by the third mile were as recently I am getting my second wind by the third mile which leads me to believe I am getting stronger and becoming more of a distance runner. Between the running, lifting and gymnastics my body doesn’t know what to do anymore expect fall in line and it feels great to be in such control. I can honestly say it is the first time in my life that I feel so connected (mind, body, soul) and it is euphoric.

I honestly can’t believe how much has changed in just a few short months but I guess I am living, breathing, proof that when you learn to free your mind, let go and take the jump the possibilities are endless…doing what you love is freedom, loving what you do is happiness, counting my blessings daily…”

Happy Days

16 Saturday Mar 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Life on Maui

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

family, Fun, Happiness, Life, Maui, Play, wife, Work

Lately I feel like I’m watching my life from outside my life. I know that probably doesn’t make much sense but its the only way I know how to explain it.

It has been 3 weeks since my last day at the Hard Rock and its been a whirlwind of beautiful chaos. I’ve been much busier than expected and I’m loving every second of it!

The Job:

I’m filling my mornings and early afternoons working for Lightning Electric LLC. Basically I keep my hubs and father in law in line about billing clients, receiving and recording payments, keep his taxes in order as well as organizing the mess of what use to be before I came on board. I work out of my father in laws cushy loft and I’m learning so much everyday! As we get busier I will also start to do the marketing and advertising. Mark has built a great foundation with a steady flow of clients and I’m excited to see the company grow. Its so fun to work alongside Colt, I’m so proud of him and look forward to watching him grow.

My new digs! This is actually Colts truck I get to ride my bike to work, I also get to wear a t-shirt, jean shorts and flip flops:)

The new Jennifer Stewart!

The “boys” working hard. It’s really awesome to see the whole process of a small business. So much goes into it from the field to the books.

Like me, Kailea also seems to be adjusting to her new life just fine hehehehe!

My work station at the office

Me and the boys!

Wife Life:

I typically wake up around 6:30 now a days and relax and snuggle for at least 15 minutes. Once I get up I start breakfast for Colt and I start to pack lunches. Once breakfast is ready and lunches are packed I bring Kai for a walk. When I get back Criminal Minds is usually on from 7-8am while I get ready (this is one of my favorite parts of my new morning schedule) I leave the house around 8:15 and head to work.

After work Monday – Friday I head to the gym to run my miles (we have had family in town the last two weeks so my workout schedule hasn’t been the best but I look forward to getting back in it) I also pick one project a day to do at home. We have such a cute ohana but I have never had the time or energy to really make it ours. I have so many DIY projects already on my list but the last few weeks I’ve spent deep cleaning everything from floor to ceiling. Its getting there but still has a long way to go.

Cooking:

This is a new adventure for me. I think I’ve cooked more meals in the last 3 weeks than I ever have in my entire life. I have also been shopping (Costco & Safeway are my new hot spots) a few times a week. Besides quickies like eggs, oatmeal, fruit, sandwiches and salads for breakfasts and lunches I’ve been experimenting with a lot of Mexican food! Some of the new dishes I’ve tried are chicken faijitas, taco casserole, Monterey jalapeño turkey burgers and white enchiladas. All of them actually turned out really good and I’m getting more confident as I go. I’m also blessed that Colt is so easy and eats about anything. He’s so sweet to me and always so encouraging.

Taco casserole made with turkey instead of beef

Chicken enchiladas! I was most excited about these, they came out so good and were so easy to make!

As if cooking hasn’t been enough of a new adventure I also have to be pretty creative right now because I gave up bread for lent. Its been a little over a month and man has it been so much harder than I thought it would be. I guess I really love bread because deciding what to eat on a daily basis has been so hard! Sandwich no bread, turkey burger no bun, tacos sub corn tortillas and the hardest one NO PIZZA (my ultimate weakness) I can say overall I feel a whole lot lighter but my energy during workouts is down. Without the carbs to burn during my runs I burn out way faster and I feel a lot weaker. This has peaked my interest and I have been researching substitute bread options for a cleaner healthier diet.

Every day life:

My days have been very free. Even though I’m still on a schedule its flexible and mostly consists of things that I love. After leaving my job I was so scared I would be stressed or depressed but its proven to be the exact opposite. Feelings of gratitude, abundance, appreciation, happiness and joy are things I feel freely now. It sometimes seems so surreal I will stop and make myself feel every ounce of it (as if at any moment its all going to be taking away) I feel like the more present I am in acknowledging these feelings the happier I become.

I’m also learning a lot about me and its making Colt and I’s relationship soar. My love language is acts of service so its no surprise that I’m much happier now that I can spend a lot of my time caring for Colt. If you haven’t read the book the 5 love languages I suggest you and your partner do. Colt and I read it before we got married (our friend Anu suggested it to us) and it continues to teach us how to communicate better as a couple as well as what makes the other one happy.

Since my love language is acts of service actions such as cooking a meal, setting a table, washing the dishes, sorting the bills or walking the dog all which require thought, planning, time, effort and energy are in my language the highest expressions of love which is why I’m currently so happy. I always joke with Colt that the easiest way to get me in the “mood” is to take the trash out. Even though that’s a bit of an exaggeration it makes us both laugh because its true!

Overall I’d say these last 3 weeks have been filled with learning, happiness and fun and although its not what I was expecting, it’s everything I’ve been waiting for….

Chasing the Maui Son ✨

Tag Archives: Life

An open letter to my husband •

My favorite time

Gone. The saddest word in our language…In any language.

Our December

Random

Kona-teering

Spon·ta·ne·i·ty

Do you even Blog anymore?

Life Lately

Happy Days