We have had so many amazing adventures, I hope I have tom to go back and cover them all. The best adventure thus far has been the birth of our amazing son, Finnegan, in 2019. He's already over a year old! He is walking and babbling and making us smile every moment we get to spend with him.
Our world has been turned upside down, but it's nice to have what was always missing in my life. In other news: I quit my job as a car salesman, it had been a good 8-9 years of my life, but I wanted more time with my new family. I had been doing a bit of online schooling, but we realized that I would never graduate unless I just went in person, kicked it in gear, and stopped wasting time. So I applied to BYU-Idaho, BYU-Provo, and BYU-Hawaii. I was already going to Idaho online, so getting in there was pretty much a given. I was not so lucky with Provo, and so I assumed Hawaii would be out. We started shopping for apartments in Idaho while we waited for an answer from Hawaii. And wait we did, weeks after we were supposed to get an answer I finally called them to find out what was going on. Apparently, they were just reviewing my case when I called. See, typically the cutoff for attending there is 29 years-old, and I was 31. Luckily (divine intervention again in my life) I was able to talk to them and after a brief interview, I was told I would have an answer within 3 days. The morning came, and I opened my email. Accepted! Hawaii here we come.
It has been amazing! We loaded all that we thought we might need into four sturdy Rubbermaid totes and moved to the islands. We now live on campus at BYU-Hawaii and we couldn't be happier. We feel so blessed to be here.
I remember when we first moved in how much I loved snorkeling. It is like a different world. You may think you see a lot through the crystal clear waters, but as soon as you put on a mask and stick your face in the water you really see how much life you are swimming with. The feeling of awe hasn't really worn off either. I love to be in the water whenever I can.
I got scuba certified in my first semester but sadly haven't gone diving since getting my PADI card. I hope to go soon. McKenzie has been certified for years, but due to an eye injury, she had to wait before getting new contacts that will enable her to use a dive mask.
We have both tried to take up surfing. I was frustrated at first because I would go and be horrible at it. My chest would ache, and my skin would be rubbed raw. Due to this lack of success, I only went once every six weeks or so. Finally, Kenzie encouraged me to step up my game. I now go three times a week before work, and it is paying off. I no longer get sore from surfing, and I can pretty reliable stand up and catch three waves per half-hour session.
Finn loves the sand, he makes friends everywhere we go, and total strangers keep walking up to us on the street to tell us how cute he is or to get a picture with him. You'd think that seeing turtles, whales, dolphins, and pristine beaches would be the highlight of my life, but in reality, it is being able to raise such a fun wonderful son with my wife.
Yes, we see Sea Turtles quite regularly; it's so fun to be paddle boarding above them through a transparent bay. We have seen humpback whales a few times now. First, we hiked up a lighthouse trail with such a great view that we could actually see three of the other Hawaiian islands. We saw small pods of two or three whales swimming along through the channel. It was hard to get a good view without binoculars, but it was still cool to see. 
Next, we went on a whale watching tour aboard a 50-foot catamaran. Sadly they never put the sails up, but I may be getting converted to the multihull way of life.
Then when we were enjoying a stroll by our favorite bay we saw a few whales jumping not too far offshore. They flipped and splashed, and waves their flukes in the air. We tried to follow them by car and on foot. By the end of our excursion, we had counted 41 breaches where the whales jumped and splashed. That was a magical day.
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