Ringing in 2010 in Hawaii!

I had an incredible gift given to me by the Burlingham family this year-- they gave me a trip to Hawaii over the week of New Years! I got to spend 7 days with them in Kailua, Oahu, and enjoy the beauty of the ocean (and a home right on the water) and breathe in the salt water for 24 hours a day. 

Making the decision to go, however, was really difficult. Up until Dec. 24th I was in the hospital, really sick, and knew that if I were discharged in time for Christmas that I would be taking IV meds home with me for a week. I also knew that traveling would be hard, doing my meds away from my home would be hard and that it would especially be emotionally draining to be away from my family and being vulnerable with a whole new family. Not only did God bless me and get me out of the hospital in time for Christmas, but I was given the "ok" to go from my doctor as long as I kept up with my IV schedule and medication regimen. It was a huge leap of faith, and I know that without God's help in healing me just enough to go, I wouldn't have been able to spend that week there. 

I relaxed, slept a lot, listened to the waves crash for 24 hours a day, looked at the beauty of Hawaiian ocean, surfed a little, paddled a little, and spent wonderful time with the Burlingham family who welcomed me in and took care of me with open arms. Thank you, Burlinghams for an incredible vacation that was much needed....and thank you, Lord, for allowing me to go and teaching me to trust you in that time.

Here are a few pics from the beauty that is Hawaii....ahhh, oh how I miss it....

~Em

Ps. Yes, the Obama family was staying on the same beach, about 5 or so houses down....haha. No we didn't see them, but did see a ton of secret service and military boats!

Above: the beach in front of our house..... Below: military boats lined up protecting our pres.

Me at the Royal Hawaiian hotel....famous, and very pink :)
Diamond Head....
Another pic of the beach in front of the house....
Judy and I all dressed up for dinner!

The big island of Hawaii!

I spent the week of labor day on the big island of Hawaii, I absolutely love it there. It was such a gift to spend the week taking care of my lungs, spending good time with my parents and enjoying the beauty all around the island. I actually noticed my lungs get better by the end of the week! It might possibly be my favorite of the islands...here are a few snapshots of our trip :)

~Em

We enjoyed many a sunset....

Hiked from the top of Pololu'u Valley...

...to the black sand beach below.... (And yes, back up again)

taught my dad how to stand-up paddle surf....
...in probably the most crystal clear water and cleanest beach i've ever seen....

yep....watched another sunset....

snorkeled....a lot....

...another one.......thanks Mom and Dad, it was a really wonderful trip....

Back on the grid!!

Hello!!!

I know, it's been a few weeks since I've posted but now that I'm back from a wonderful trip to the Outer Banks of NC I am glad to be back and I'll be catching up on the blog this next week or so :). For now, here are some great pics from a wonderful vacation with my family. We had a great time at the beach, I surfed a ton, we cooked some great meals and had some quality time to spend together. Since we don't see each other often (We all live across the US), it's nice to really be together for that time....and you can't beat such a beautiful place.
Enjoy the pics, and stay tuned for some more posts this week catching up on fun summer events :). Anyone been anywhere fun?
Much love!!
~Em

My family on the ferry ride...

The cousins....tan after 2 weeks :)

Hello, OBX!!

That's right...the fam and I are hitting the beach on Ocracoke Island for the next 2 weeks, its great! So if you don't hear from me, i'm here....just sitting on the beach and surfing a lot :). It feels great, I love the east coast :).

When I get back I'll get some pics from Pipeline up here, but until then- I'll be surfing!

Love to all!

~Em

January Fun

YAY for Road Trips! Especially random ones through random states...
I spent Presidents Day weekend in the Midwest! It was a little spontaneous trip that turned out to be a blast. I headed first to Indiana where Bethany and I met up with Judy, stayed there one night and then we hit the road...here are some highlights :).
It was -16 degrees when we left Fort Wayne, Indiana...check out the snow-covered Indiana as we drove...

We lasted about 10 minutes playing in the snow the night we arrived...we were determined to make a snowman, but alas, the snow was too powdery...
On the road, one of our BIG goals was to see the GIANT BASKET! That's right in Newark, Ohio, the Longaberger Basket Company has a 7-story office shaped like a basket!
AWESOME...
We stopped for lunch in Zanesville, Ohio to visit with my grandparents and aunt. It was a blessing to see them, I love them so much...

We arrived in Pennsylvania after a memorable trip across Indiana, Ohio & a little bip into West Virginia...good times, random sights and good laughs. We arrived and stayed the rest of our long weekend with dear college friends, Kimi and Mike who live just outside of Lancaster, PA. This is the whole group :).
We played as the snow fell...
It was a beautiful, cold, snowy weekend...we visited all over Amish country, downtown Lancaster, and Hershey, PA.
Celebrated Kimi's Birthday!
Visited Hershey's CHOCOLATE WORLD...that's right...a free ride of how chocolate is made with a free sample at the end? And then a giant gift shop with every Hershey candy known to man? Good times indeed...


It was a great weekend to catch up with family and friends. Thank you, Kimi and Mike for hosting us, I am so thankful for your friendship. Can't wait for us all to be together again!
Thus ends my little excursion in January...the end :)
~Em

Hawaii (Part 2)

As I said in my earlier post, see Hawaii Part 1, the Mauli-Ola foundation graciously sent me to Hawaii with a team of people to help run two events to raise awareness and funds for Cystic Fibrosis. Also part of that trip was ton of networking with surf companies and surfers to share with them about CF and the connection between CF and surfing/salt-water. We got to go to the O'Neill Sunset Contest and then the Pipe Masters contest (though the contest wasn't going the day we were there- it was all set up and ready to go). Through it all I got to meet some amazing people and share my life and story with them- and hopefully people know a little more about CF and want to get involved!
Here are a few pics of the contests, and awesome waves at Pipeline and fun people I met :)
~Em

Pipeline Masters 2008

Watching the waves & the pros surf at Pipeline- 15 ft. this day.

The crew watching Pipe at Mick O'Brien's house

Meeting CJ Hobgood- he won the Sunset contest that day!

Erin and I at the Sunset Contest

Where to start?

It's been about a week since I've posted, thats because...I've been in Hawaii! I didn't get a chance to post on here before I left, it feels like it was a whirlwind of getting there and then getting back today, but it was an incredible trip!! The purpose of the trip was to go with the Mauli Ola Foundation and put on a few events to benefit Cystic Fibrosis and kids with CF by putting on a surf day for them. It was a great trip- I learned a lot, had so much fun and fell in LOVE with the North Shore of Hawaii :)

I'm so wiped out and headed to bed (we took a red-eye flight last night and I didn't really nap much today), but I will post more soon (I won't wait forever to post) and write about all the fun adventures that were had...until then, Aloha!
~Em

Glad to be home :)

I finally made it back home, to the earthquake-shaken california :).

After 2 weeks away, and over 24 hours of traveling to get home (American Airlines is not my friend), I finally arrived home this morning and am SO glad to be here!

Being away was awesome- I had some great time to really reflect on life, be with God, and spend some very quality time with my family from all over the US. However, I wasn't feeling too great physically and our bummer-trip home with cancelled flights and staying the night in Dallas, TX was not the best for me. I'm gonna need some good recoup time just from my vacation, haha. I ask for your prayers for my body- I'm tired, and my breathing hasn't been the best the last week or so...thanks.

Anyways, good to be home. I look forward to posting more stories of my vacation, pics, and many more stories and pics from the Pipeline to a Cure event that happened 2 weeks ago. God is really changing me, and I believe, leading me to use my life even more for Him. I look forward to sharing on this blog, all that God is doing and sharing all the fun that's happened in the last few weeks!
More later :)
~Em

Vacationing on the OBX

Thats right, I've been a little lax in posting on here because I don't have much internet access while on the island of Ocracoke with my family :).
We've been enjoying a 2 week vacation on the Outer Banks of North Carolina (OBX), in a house by the beach with the whole fam...cousins, aunts, uncles etc...Its awesome!

The beaches are warm, the water is clear and beautiful (and really warm), and the town is so small we get to ride bikes around to little shops. We play tons of games, make lots of food, go to the beach all day, I surf everyday, and we get to catch up after a year of not seeing each other.

Its amazing to be away from things, i've journaled a ton and read a ton- its been great to see the beauty of God's creation- this place is beautiful and quaint. I love it...Here are a few pics from our trip thus far, let you into life in the Haager family, Ocracoke Vacation :)
~Em