Sunday in Oahu

We started off the day Sunday at a Sacrament Meeting in Laie.  There were quite a few options, so we just picked one and headed on in.  The Church is still true, even in Hawaii!  I love how you can be anywhere in the world, yet step into a church and feel like you're right at home.

After church we decided to get in a hike.  We had hoped for a really scenic hike with a big beautiful waterfall.  Can't say our hike really met the criteria, and actually was probably the least favorite outing we had on our trip, but Jacob and I had fun talking and laughing at each other along the way.  It had rained the night before, so we encountered A) mud, and B) a healthy dose of humidity.  Not sure how you feel about humid hikes, but it doesn't exactly add to the ambiance of it all.  Quite the opposite.  And this was pretty much the extent of the waterfall we saw: 

We weren't quite sure how long this little venture was going to be.  We just kept going up and up.  This is the view of the mountains from the top:

Can you spot the lizard?

Aw, someone took the time to carve me into the Hawaiian mountainside.  I'm SO glad they dotted the "I" with a little heart.  That is so me:

After our hike, we decided to stop in at Laie Point.  It's basically a chunk of land that stretches off the mainland and out into a point.  It actually is made up of harsh lava-type rock.  Here is Jacob breathing in all that fresh sea air.  He managed to trip and send the car keys down into a bit of a hole.  Thanks heavens it was a successful recovery!  So fortunately, I can't give you any advice on what to do if you lose the car keys to your rental car.

 

You can take note that I don't do sheer drop-offs so much, therefore I tried to keep my distance from the edge.  Laie Point is known for cliff-diving- but I decided to be a spectator to that particular event-  then just had to walk away before I threw up.  Poor Jacob can't say he married the most adventurous of people.  Hey, don't forget the parasailing!  That's major adventure!

After this we basically just went for a drive along the coast deciding what to eat.  We ended up at a little Mexican stand in Kahuku, which is farther up the Kamehameha Highway from where we stayed.  It was right next to Giovanni's famous shrimp truck.  I wish I would have gone for it.  I'll just have to go back!   After a bit more driving, we called it a day and headed back to the condo.  A fairly low-key day, but we were ready to gear up for Day 3!

Paradise Day Two

Saturday morning we decided to head to the temple.  We barely squeezed in just in time for the 8:00 session.  I LOVED the Laie, Hawaii temple.  First off, the backdrop of the green Hawaiian mountains is amazing.  What more incredible place is there to be when learning about the creation?  This world is so beautiful.

While we were finishing at the temple, I got chatting with another woman who I ended up sitting by.  Get this:  she and her husband were in Hawaii celebrating their 10th anniversary also!  AND they have 4 kids, just like us- almost the exact identical ages.  They are just flip-flopped from us with two boys, a girl, and a boy.  We just giggled the more we found out about each other and our fun similarities.  Then a few days later, we ran into them AGAIN at Pearl Harbor!  Go figure!  They live in Northern California and I really doubt we will ever see them again, but it was such a fun little coincidence.  Of course, I really think the people we pass in our lives are much more than coincidence.  And we managed to NOT get a picture of the 4 us.  Darnit.


After the temple we headed down the street to this popular joint:

The Hukilau Cafe!  We grabbed some breakfast here.  They supposedly have an amazing burger, but we never did make it back here again to try it.  Boo.  I was actually sort of bummed, because my stomach was off for the most of the trip so not too much really sounded good.  This whole being a woman deal didn't time itself very well.  You're welcome for the info.

After the Hukilau, we changed our clothes then headed back into Honolulu for the rest of the day.

The ride was so beautiful.  Both Jacob and I were absolutely amazed at the freeway system.  It was obviously quite a job getting all the infrastructure set up.  We just gawked at the tunnels going straight through the mountains.  So amazing!  It was so refreshing to see mountains covered in something other than cedar trees. 

Oh, and for any Hawii-goers, don't be dumb like us.  Practice your Hawaiian pronunciation!  If you ever drive on the Likelike Highway, don't sound it out like a hick.  We, until the last day of our trip, were hicks.  We kept pronouncing it the way it looks- the word "like" twice.  Well, when in Hawaii do as the Hawaiians do and say "lee-kay lee-kay."  Just a little tidbit.  

Our first stop was the swap meet at the Aloha Stadium.  If ever you want a great Hawaiian souvenir, this is the place to be!

Let me set it up.  The Aloha Stadium is the big football stadium for the University of Hawaii.  So obviously, it's a fairly big place.  The entire perimeter of the stadium is filled with tent after tent of vendors.  It's a tourist trap heaven!  We got some great stuff to take home with us.  Granted, a lot of the stuff is the same and got somewhat repetitive, but it still was so fun to walk around and look at all the goods.  The swap meet is held 3 times a week, every week.  One gentleman I spoke with puts his tent up, sets out his wares, then takes his tent down 3 times a week.  I was so shocked when he said he has been doing it for over 20 YEARS!  Unbelievable!  

So this wild and wonderful man known as my husband had a major hankering to do some parasailing.  He passed it up in Catalina and really wanted to give it a try.  Initially I told him I would cheer from the sidelines, but NO WAY would I find myself flying in the air, over the ocean, attached to a rope behind a boat .  I'm still not quite sure how it all worked out, maybe he drugged my coconut water, but I agreed to go parasailing with him.  After we left the swap meet, we got our time booked then wandered around the harbor for a while until it was our time to head out.

So Hawaii is hot.  Not killer hot- it was in the low 80's.  The killer is the humidity.  LOTS of humidity.  I think I did my hair one day then decided it simply wasn't worth it any of the other days and stuck with a pony tail.  So here we are enjoying a cold one.  In the background you can see part of the Ala Wai Yacht Harbor and part of downtown Honolulu. 

We took our drinks over to this great little beach that is near the west end of Waikiki.  It's called the Duke Kahanamoku Lagoon, and is set back just off the ocean right near the Hilton Hotel.  It was such a great place to just kick back and relax for a bit:

This was one of the few times (if not the only time) I thought it would be fun to have the kids with us.  It really is a great place for children and families.



Hmm..... 
Locals?  Definitely not.
Albinos?  Possibly.
Happy?  Absolutely!!

The pigeons over there aren't above a hand-out.  Literally:

I wanted to break out into "Feed the Birds" from Mary Poppins.  Okay, maybe I actually did.  And of course every time Jacob and I have to disagree on the lyrics.

Our time finally came to get saddled up and head out on the boat for our parasailing adventure!  Here is Jacob on the rail getting ready to hop on the boat:

We got on the boat with a group of about 8-10 other fellow daredevils.  Jacob of course loved chatting with the group who was from Sydney, Australia and talking about different places over there.  Jacob and I ended up being the last ones to go up, but I was perfectly okay watching others do it first!  It was so fun as all of us on the boat cheered for each group that went up.  Everyone went up as either a double or a triple.  That is probably why I agreed- Jacob would be with me!  We got all situated in the harness, then sat on the edge of the boat as we got attached to the rope and sail.  Yikes!

(And no, that is not us.  I'm too cheap to pay the extra 30 bucks to buy the SD card of the pictures from the parasailing company.  We all looked the same!)

 Then it was up, up, and away!

So I was wrong about this whole parasailing dealio.  Really really wrong.  It was SO FUN!  Once we got up there it was so calm and peaceful!  Jacob and I just drifted along loving every second of it.  It was such a smooth process.  I have to say I was so glad we did it!  Mostly because I got to do it with him:

Oh ya!

After this we headed back to our condo for the night.  On the way home, we stopped in at a little local diner right off the road.  While we were there, we ran into a couple we had met while we were living in Richfield!  It was the craziest thing!  How often do you randomly run into someone you know while vacationing in Hawaii?  So fun!

So this little place was obviously run by some religious people because the walls were full of scriptures (which I thought was great).  But I found this one little bit on the wall which I had never seen before and loved it:

What's missing at church?  Well, you are!  Love it.

And with that we called it a night. 

Insert

Okay so I realize I'm in the thick of posting all about Hawaii, but while I'm waiting to get some pictures off Jacob's phone, I have to start inserting a few other things or I will really get backed up!

I have to document some stuff about our Ty Man.  He is such a funny little cuss.  We're not 100% sure where he got it, but for the past little while he has been the "mighty pirate!"  Here he is pulling his mighty pirate face- aaarrrgh matey!

We even had to make up a mighty pirate song.  He is so fun! 

Well, usually fun.  After all, he is technically still 3 and still drags his feet when things don't go his way.  Walmart trips don't always end in success.  This one was my lack of catching on to his I'm-really-tired-and-grumpy cues.  Here he is taking a time out in the mirrors:

You may notice his shoes are missing.  He threw them across the aisle along with his glasses. 

At least Miss Eyebrows here was happy!

To make a long story short, I ended up abandoning ship and left the store with a screaming little dude in my arms.  The good news is when I went back a few hours later (WITHOUT Ty) my cart was still there with my stuff in it!   


Along with his mighty pirate phase, he somehow also has an infatuation with flags.  Every time he spots a flag he yells out, "There's a grand old flag!  Sing it, Mom!"  We then have to break into a robust version of, "You're a Grand Old Flag."  We usually have to repeat it a couple times, too.  Just warning if you're ever with us when we pass by a flag, you will probably have to join in.

Here is Ty with his favorite little helper singing his favorite flag song:

 

Speaking of Ty's favorite little helper, we better squeeze in a little bit about Miss Lexi Lou:

She and Ty have a bit of a love/hate relationship.  They can't live with each other and they can't live without each other! 

Last October Lexi had her tear ducts probed to help get rid of her watery eyes.  Her right eye still needed a bit of help, so yesterday I took her in for her second probe.  She couldn't have anything to eat or drink after midnight, so while we were waiting for the nurse to take her back for the procedure she got pretty ticked at me that I didn't have her sippy cup for her.  Poor Lou:

She wasn't gone more than ten minutes before she was back in the room with me.  It didn't take too long for the anesthesia to wear off and we were on our way home.  Before long she was back to normal and you'd never know she'd had anything done.  Way to go Lexi!  I sure hope that eye clears up because every tear you leak seems to cost us a pretty penny.  Sheesh.

Ten Years!

Ten.  TEN YEARS!  The beginning of May, Jacob and I celebrated our ten year anniversary.

A lot can happen in ten years.

A lot has happened in ten years.

We started as a family of two and are now a family of SIX.  SIX!  It's really amazing what ten years will do.  Yes, yes, I know it's all relative.  Many people have been married for a lot longer than that.  Someday in our gray hairs we'll look back and giggle.  But for now, it's a big deal and we wanted to celebrate!

For the past few years Jacob and I have talked about doing a big vacation for our 10 year anniversary.  We toyed around with a few options but eventually decided on.....

....HAWAII!

Can't you just hear the waves?  Taste the pineapple?  Smell the salty sea air?  Want to pull your hair out from saying "Aloha" 76 times a day?  I miss it already.  It was beautiful.  So without further ado, I hereby document OUR HAWAII TRIP.  

Since we flew out of Vegas Friday morning, we decided to get a cheap room in Mesquite the night before.  We made it down just in perfect time to hop on our plane and be on our way.  With the exception of the first hour, this is what I saw the remaining 4 1/2 hours on the plane:

 Water.  More water.  I always love being able to watch out the window when I fly, so I got a window seat.  Well, I didn't clue into what it would mean to be squished next to the window for the nearly 6 hours we would spend in a plane.  So I got smart and changed our returning flight seats to an aisle seat.  I prefer leg room over the hours of watching the Pacific Ocean and figuring out a new way to move my legs to get comfortable!  But, we made it, and it didn't take long for me to turn into the ultimate tourist and start taking pictures at the airport.  I just couldn't help myself.  I WAS REALLY, TRULY IN HAWAII!  Pinch me, Jacob!

We made it out of the airport, found the shuttle for our rental car, got a car all situated and headed on our way to our new home for the next 7 days.  I just have to add it was a HUGE bonus to have packed the GPS.  That little device saved our bacon and made our trip so much better!

We took some appreciated advice and decided to get out of Honolulu and stay in a condo out near the North Shore.  The drive up there was amazing.  I felt like I was driving through the exotic plant section of the Home Depot.  We were both in awe.  The vegetation was gorgeous!  And the flowers- oh the flowers!  Jacob loved all my little pit-stops to get pictures of flowers.  Like this:

And this:

And these too!

 Oh my heart.  So amazing! 

Here is the view from our lanai (balcony):

Um, can you say heaven?  I LOVED listening to the waves each night and morning.  

Speaking of night,  Hawaii is 4 hours behind us.  So what that means is that by 7-8:00 Hawaii time, we were so beat!  Thank goodness the sun goes down early so we didn't feel like we were missing out on anything.  Early to bed, early to rise.  Like, 5:00 in the morning rise!  Not too bad considering we got to watch the sun come up.  This was our little welcome gift for our first morning in Hawaii:

The best things in life really can't be bought.  So incredible.

Okay, all this talk of flowers and sunrises got me off track.  I need to finish off our first day.  So, we got to the condo then decided to get out and tour around our new little area and grab some groceries to have on hand.  While out and about, we drove past this awesome little fruit stand.  Pull over, Jacob!

I MUST try some coconut!  Grab a good one Jacob!

This guy and his wife own the fun little fruit stand.  For all you BYU football fans, come to find out the man who runs it is the father of Reno (Junior) Mahe.  Kind of fun!  He was a really nice man and cracked open my coconut in no time: 

First, drink the coconut water:

Second, try not to gag on coconut water.  Who really pays for this stuff?  Bleh!  I wanted so bad to like it!  Nope.  Not gonna happen.  I didn't want to offend the Mahe's so I had to pretend.  Did you know there is a LOT of water inside a coconut?  Well, there is.

Third, eat the coconut.  Ok, so here's the deal.  Jacob botched the whole getting a good coconut deal.  I at least like to throw some blame his way.  I think mine was a really young coconut because the inside was....how do I explain it?  Gooey?  Chewy?  Soft?  Rubbery?  Once again, disappointment.  But hey, the flowers were amazing.  And it makes for a great drinking-out-of-a-fresh-coconut picture, right?  Of course!  At least we came back to the condo with an amazingly fresh and ripe pineapple so it more than made up for it.

And well, that pretty well sums up our first day getting into Hawaii.  Oahu, to be exact.  So far...amazing!  Despite some coconut issues.  Stay tuned for day two!  And three and four and five and six and seven.  And wishing there was eight and nine and ten and eleven and.........