Our daily trips to the pool while we were on vacation seem to have helped Jason overcome the fear he had of being on his back in the water. It's made rinsing his hair a lot easier.

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Nikon D40, Nikkor 50mm f/1.4G
f/2.8, 1/125, ISO 200
Vivitar DF-383 @ TTL, bounced off the ceiling

You might think that we'd have saved our big fancy dinner (at which, miraculously, Jason was very well-behaved) for our last night on vacation, but we actually did it on our second-to-last night. We timed it just right to catch a nice sunset. Of course, I was more interested in looking elsewhere.

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Nikon D40, Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 DX
f/2.8, 1/320, ISO 200

"That's Squirt."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. Squirt is in Finding Nemo."

"Oh, OK."

"He has a daddy. His daddy is Crush."

"That's right. Does he have a mommy?"

"Yeah, he has a mommy."

"What's his mommy's name?"

"His mommy's name is... Beeona."

"Fiona?"

"NO! BEEONA!"

"Oh, OK. That's nice."

"SHE'S BEEONA, DADDY!"

"OK, Jason."

"SHE! IS! BEEONA!"

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Nikon D40, Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 DX
f/2.8, 1/640, ISO 200

Last week was the first time that Jason ever really went into the ocean. He's been to the beach many times, and he's even been in up to his ankles in the surf before, but before this trip, he'd never really been out in the water. It was a nice day and the water was calm and warm. He had a blast.

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Nikon D40, Nikkor 55-200mm VR DX lens @ 86mm
f/4.5, 1/1250, ISO 200

Jason slept remarkably well on this trip; some of his naps were nearly three hours long. And he mostly woke up in a great mood. I'm not sure whether to attribute that to the fact that one of us was always in the room with him when he woke up or if it was just the Hawaiian atmosphere loosening him up.

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Nikon D40, Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 DX lens
f/1.8, 1/125, ISO 800

The birds at the resort where we stayed last week have apparently learned that they have nothing to fear from tourists. Except, perhaps, having "HELLO BIRD!" yelled into their tiny faces over and over again.

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Nikon D40, Nikkor 55-200mm VR DX lens @ 55mm
f/4, 1/250, ISO 200

"Why is that her name?"

"Well, because her mommy and daddy liked that name."

"Oh."

"What do you think we should name the baby in my tummy, Jason?"

"I think her name should be Tinkerbell!"

"Tinkerbell!"

"Yeah, because that's her name. Her name is Tinkerbell. She's a princess!"

I first posted this photo back in December, but I'm revisiting it today because it illustrates something that makes me smile.

One of the people I follow on Twitter asked this question yesterday: "Why . . . do babies enjoy being thrown in the air? How terrifying would it be if a giant repeatedly tossed you above their head?" When you stop and think about it, she's got a point. If some twelve-foot-tall man picked me up and threw me in the air, I'd probably find it pretty frightening.

Look at Jason in that picture, though. You can see from his face that he's having a good time. But look at his hands, too, and you'll see something else: absolute trust. He's not even trying to hold on, because it doesn't even occur to him that Juliette might let him fall.

Even when I actually toss him up so that he's no longer touching my fingertips, he never gets scared, never tries to grab on or secure himself, never has a moment's doubt that I will catch him. He squeals with delight, spreading his arms and legs wide as though he can fly. And when I finally get winded and have to take a break, he shouts "Again! Again!"

To be trusted so completely, to know that he knows he can count on me, it's a wonderful feeling. I hope I never give him a reason to stop.

I mentioned that I went and checked out the MIHO Gastrotruck last week, well, there was also a coffee truck which was parked right behind it. Sadly, it was about 85 degrees out and, people not really being in the mood for hot drinks, the barista was left to his own devices for most of the time that I was there. I'm not sure what this woman ended up ordering, but I was waiting to get an iced tea when I snapped this picture.

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Nikon D40, Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 DX lens
f/2.8, 1/640, ISO 200