Day 5-Pics

Rainbow Falls, but we saw no rainbows due to no sun.













Can you see the little blue frog?













Ne-Ne














Feeding the donkeys

















Ninna loved the monkeys














This tiger was beautiful and spent the whole time pacing his enclosure, which was about half the size of the whole zoo.













The kids thought this guy was real--sorry Sam!












Akaka falls














Bridge in to the lava tube

















lookout over the crater.














windy south point

















there are cows in Hawaii













wind farm by south point

Family Trip-Day5

This is taking longer than I thought to get these entries all posted. Oh, well. At least I'm making progress with something these days.

So day 5 was a Friday and we decided to take an all day tour of the far corners of the island. We spent a couple of previous evenings deciding what all we wanted to see and locating them all on maps. Then, we packed up food and supplies and all and headed out early Friday morning.

We headed to the southern most point in the U.S. first, since it was a ways of the beaten path. Nothing too exciting in the way of a destination, but it's kind of a fun thing to check off your bucket list. Once we got off the freeway we headed out into grassy pastures filled with cows. It was pretty in a non-tropical way and very windy. We had a bit of a downside to our vacation here though.

The map we had showed the south pint right down by the beach, so we actually passed the marker for it and headed to the beach area. But once we were headed onto the beach drive, it didn't look right. We decided to turn back and as Adam was backing up he crunched the back corner of the van's fender into a wooden post he couldn't see. Yes, it was a rental; no, we didn't purchase their insurance plan. Grrrr!

The Volcanoes National Park was next and it was pouring rain by the time we got there. The one thing we forgot to bring, our rain gear. It was all snugly packed away in the suitcase in the condo. Whoops! After a brief visit to he visitor's center, we picked out three spots in the park we really wanted to see. We went to the crater, which was still cool despite the clouds and mistiness. The museum there was a hit with the kids. They had a spot where you could jump on the floor and create your own earthquake on a seismograph(sp?) Our family all together was able to get the needle really bouncing! The video of lava flowing impressed them too.

We took the short hike through the rain forest to a lava tube. The kids liked the hike, but not he lava tube, which is like a cave. It was lit up, but it still made the kids nervous. We only travelled half way through it and decided to turn around. Very cool!

We stopped at another scenic overlook to see a bunch of steam vents and such that had been created by lava and underground pressure, etc. Then it was on to some waterfalls. Both falls had short hikes to view them, which our kids loved. A chance to get out and stretch and climb!

We picked up some lunch from a Subway in Hilo. Our kids loved the meatball sub--never had it before--there were no leftovers! Then we took off to the highlight of the day: the zoo! It was about a third the size of Hogle zoo with almost as many animals. All of the animals there were from the rain forest and local area. The best part--it was free admission! The kids even got to feed the feral donkeys with some grass given them by a zookeeper! My favorite part--the rain stopped the whole time we were there!!!

Another waterfall and a quick stop at a local food joint for a pick-me-up treat. We chose some chicken katsu and Portuguese sausage. The katsu was described to me as chicken strips with rice and a side dish of macaroni salad. It was chicken strips, but of whole chicken with the fat and skin still on, breaded and deep fried that you dipped in this bbq-like sauce. The sauce was great, and the chicken was tasty, once you removed the skin and fat. The macaroni salad was just mac noodles mixed with pure mayo. EYEW! It's easy to see why the local people are on the hefty side! The sausage with rice and eggs was ok. The spices in the sausage were a bit strong for me, but everyone else liked it. That's how it goes when you take a food adventure!

Finally we headed up the volcano. We found out later that rental vehicles were not supposed to travel up this road, but we didn't have any problems with it. I guess we were lucky. We only made it to about 9,000 feet and the observatory there. There were points higher up that you could visit, but they strongly recommended that children under 6, those with respiratory problems, or pregnant women, should not go any higher. So we wandered their gift shop, saw part of a video about the area, and headed back down the mountain.

We took what the kids dubbed the roller coaster road back to the condo. Lava rock is almost impossible to drill through, so for the most part the roads are just paved over existing areas. This made for some interesting turns and ups and downs, a lot like a roller coaster. To add to the fun , we took it in the dark. There were very few houses along it and no street lights. We encountered a lot of blind turns and drop-offs.

It was not hard to get everyone into bed and asleep that night!

Family Trip-Day 4 Pics

crabs



























exploring with Daddy













whose is the reddest?













the closest we could get to a tongue shot

































































mmm! the other people in line got a kick out of our kids' excitement over the giant snow cone!

Family Trip-Day 4

Today we went to a place called magic sands beach. When the tide is high and the weather rough, like in winter, the sands disappear from the beach, sucked out further to sea by the current, and reappear in the calmer weather. I didn't take any pics because by the time we got there it was packed and I didn't want to take my camera out where it might wander off. It was a very small beach, but the sand was soft, white and powdery--the kind you picture when you think tropical getaway.

The drawback, for our little ones here, was that the surf was pretty strong. Ginny and Aviendha totally avoided the waves, but really had fun with the sand. But, for the beginning boogie boarder, it was great. Adam had a lot of fun sailing in and out of shore over and over and he figured out how to get the board thing down. Sharra and Sam both had fun with it. Since Sam had his boarding debut here, I was sad not to have my camera to capture it. He kept going for several tries; until he got dumped really hard. Then he just spent the rest of his time chasing Sharra and Adam into shore.

Sharra returned again and again to the water to try, even after a couple of hard spills. Both Adam and Sharra got their knees bruised by rocks buried in the sand along the shore, but said it was so fun that it was worth it!

After dinner that night we wandered down the street in front of our condo to see what we could see. We found a Scandinavian Shaved ice shop that we decided to try. It was fun to watch them make. They have big circular blocks of ice, like they'd frozen water in ice cream buckets, that they put on a rotating press. As the block spins very fine shavings fall into the cup. The workers pack it together like a snowball and then put whatever flavors of syrup on it you want. We were tame and chose Strawberry and Cotton Candy (that was after talking the kids out of grape, root beer, blue raspberry mixed).

We sat at a little beach across the street to eat it. Adam was a thinker ahead of time and brought disposable cups and spoons from the condo, so we could split it up for the kids to each have their own. It worked out well and we all have bright red tongues and lips after!

We took some time to explore the shore before the sun went down. Up on the pier wall we discovered the far side to be covered in little black crabs. On our way home the kids started pointing out things they wanted for their souvenirs. We decided we'd keep looking and narrow it down and in a few days, we'd do our shopping.

Day 3-Pics

Ginny loved throwing rocks in the water. Luckily, with so many people, her aim was terrible.













Sharra and Daddy going for another ride. Sam didn't want to try the boogie board this trip, he was too busy chasing fish, birds, and playing with some other boys on the beach.



















Ginny did have fun on her tow-ride with Daddy, but the ride in to shore was boring, due to all the people they had to maneuver around. I love this shot!













Daddy and Sharra having fun together.












After another turn boogie boarding, Adma nd Sharra emerge from the water. This was one of the many groups of people they had to thread through to get in and out of the water.













Gnome, Sam, and Ninna taking a snooze.













This was the view of our little spot and the cove we played in all day. The pile of rocks on the right ran up behind us and if you went out and around it, you were in the snorkeling area.













Aviendha loved the beach chair.


















Ginny and Sam down by the water, chasing little fish. See how not crowded?




























Sam kept his hands on his knees although he wanted to poke the turtle so bad to see if it was "real."














This was the only turtle we saw on the beach. We knew you weren't supposed to touch them, so we scootched as close as possible to get a cool picture. We were lucky to get this close; later in the morning there was a coast-watch lady out making sure people stayed at least ten feet away. This little guy took off for a swim later in the afternoon--the kids thought it was neat to watch him actually move.

Family Trip-Day 3

We had no trouble getting up early to get ready for our first day at the beach, due to the time zone difference. One of the benefits of a condo over a hotel, is we were able to use all their beach gear. A closet in the bathroom was full of beach chairs, coolers, straw mats, and boogie boards. There were also some pool noodles and sand castle equipment! We were set.

We got to the beach parking lot a few minutes before 9am and they were already letting people in. it was good we got there early; by the time we had unpacked all the kids and gear from the car, the parking lot was already half full. We already knew this was one of the most popular beaches, but what we didn't know is that this was also a cruise ship day. Wednesdays and Saturdays cruise ships docked and the town filled up with cruisers. The ship provided a shuttle/bus right to the beaches.

I was bit surprised that such a popular beach had so little actual beachfront. Most of the beach was lava rock that created wonderful little tide pools and harbors for sea turtles and crabs. Also, and this is the main reason this beach is so popular, is that the lava rock out in the water created a wonderful little habitat for the tropical fish--snorkeling paradise! Adam and I took turns using the mask and fins we rented. Adam took the underwater camera out to take some shots. I have to get them developed still, but the views were awesome, even with about 100 plus other snorkelers in and out of the water.

We tried to get the kids to take a peek in the water with their goggles. The closest they came was to lean over the edge of the boogie board and look down at the fish from the surface of the water.

They had more fun exploring the shore and taking turns riding on the boogie board. We spent most of the day here at the beach. Sam had fun at lunch chasing the little birds away from our towels. A soon as you pull out food of any kind at least 6 little guys would show up looking for crumbs.

I was the only one unlucky enough to get burned, and mine was only across my back where I couldn't reach well enough to get good sunscreen coverage. At first I was a bit self-conscious about not looking good in my swimsuit, but five minutes on the beach was enough to put my mind to rest. Women, and men for that matter, of every size and age were shoved into bikinis (speedos) and wandering freely up and down the shore.

The afternoon was spent back at the condo resting and vegging in front of the tv.

Side note

Of course Adam had to take my camera for work today! I decided to sit and pay bills this afternoon while the kids were playing out back. Quicker than lightning Ginny and Ninna got into the large bucket of potting soil on the patio. Black soil everywhere! They took turns climbing in the pot and covering each other with dirt. Then they mixed in a little water and threw clumps of it off the patio, after lobbing two or three into the kitchen. I squashed that one in a hurry! I now have the kitchen floor mostly clean and the girls are soaking in the tub, but no pics to show for it! You'll just have to use your imagination on this one.

Our Trip-Day 2

Sam decided the water's fine!













Ginny and Sam testing the water temp.













Sharra building in the sand













Aviendha running from the waves













a royal residence in days gone by

Our Trip-Day 2

Day 2 started very early Kona time. Because of the 4-hr time difference all the kids were up by 4 AM, so Mom was up at 4 Am. Luckily Cartoon Network runs 24-7. I plugged them all in front of that while i tried to steal an extra 40 winks. It kinda worked. after breakfast, we skimmed all the travel brochures we'd picked up the day before and made plans for the next several days.

After a quick run to the grocery store for supplies (by the way, milk was not $5 a gal, but eggs were $3 a doz., bread was $4 a loaf, and if it was on sale, the shelf was empty or nearly so--gotta be an ad shopper in Hawaii or you'd never afford to live), we scouted the nearby shops and sights. Only about a block up the road was a little farmer's market. We went there almost everyday they were open for a fruit called apple bananas. They are a smaller, fruitier version of bananas. We all loved them and couldn't get enough. We also saw some historical buildings, but due to a recent earthquake all were closed for renovation and repair, so we just took pics outside. We found a little half beach off the docks that we let the kids explore. They were in heaven and tromped through the surf and threw rocks in the ocean and Sam even waded out into it in his street clothes! :) This made all the stress and hassle of getting here, worth it.

Our Trip-Day 1 pics

Views from our lanai (this is the hotel we get to stay in on our "extra" day)















LA airport















SLC airport

Our Trip-Day 1

Ok, I have no where I have to be today so I thought I would try to get the details jotted down, before I forget them all. Hopefully my kids won't notice I'm on or I'll have to try and do this with them bugging me to play Webkinz every two minutes. ;)

So, we left for our trip on a beautiful, snowy day in SLC. Adam's mom was nice enough to drop us all off. We got to the curbside check-in with many other families headed out to Florida for Disneyworld. They were all on a charter flight and everyone just assumed we were part of the group, so we were shuttled right through all the check-in locations and security checks. A process we expected to take an hour was in truth only about 20 minutes!

That was nice so we didn't have to wait in lines, but our flight didn't leave until almost 11 AM and we made it to our gate by 9 AM. The novelty of the airport was enough to keep the kids entertained for most of it though.

Our first flight was only to LA, so the kids had fun with it. Not long enough to get bored or restless, and they had the bonus of free cookies and soda to make it truly awsome. Ginny did not like take-offs or landings. She sat tight-lipped in her carseat, holding tight to mine or Adam's hand through the whole thing. Sharra and Sam cheered like they were on a roller coaster! Aviendha napped the first leg of the trip.

After a bit of a layover in LA we were able to board for Kona, HA. This flight was packed and we were unfortunate enough to get a pair of childless gentlemen and a grouchy old lady in front of us. The lady kept complaining to the stewardesses about someone kicking her seat and I was reprimanded several times about it. Since I had Ninna, asleep most of the time, on my lap and I was directly behind this old person, I think she just had to find something to complain about. After the third comment from her, I should have started kicking her seat so she'd know what it really felt like!

To make the trip more interesting, I had Sam on my left and he was holding out pretty well, for such a confined trip. He slept and read and played with his action figures. About two hours into the flight the gentleman in the seat in front of him stood up, glared at me and said, "Could you please make him stop?" I was shocked and I said, "Stop? He's only playing." The guy gave me a withering look and said, "He's shaking the seat." I was really mad now and I said as calmly as I could, "He's doing his best. We've got four hours ahead of us." The guy rolled his eyes and said, "Yeah, I know." Adam heard this exchange from across the aisle and commented loudly that maybe some poeple shouldn't be so cheap next time and fly first class if they expect first class treatment. :) We didn't hear from them again for the remainder of the flight.

With only an hour to go, Sam and Ginny both had meltdowns. Frankly, I was expecting both of them, but that didn't make it any easier! Those two both have serious issues if they don't eat on time. Sam cries about everything and can't see sense until he eats, and Ginny just gets grumpy and this time it translated into a full tantrum. We hadn't had a full, regular meal since breakfast and I'm amazed they held out as long as they did.

We finally touched down and got to the rental place. We lost Ninna's binky somewhere between the plane and the rental place, so our first stop was to Walmart for a new one. We picked up some burgers and drinks at the McDonald's inside Wally's and headed for our condo.

Real food for everyone did wonders. And then we had the fun of exploring our "hotel". We were up on the 5th floor and our lanai/deck, looked right out on the ocean. The kids were thrilled to have cable tv too. The kids all went to bed early so we could start to recover from crossing all those time zones. When it was 6pm in Kona, it was 10pm in Hyrum. Adam and I should have, but as soon as all the kids were asleep we found Heroes coming on. Of course we stayed up to watch!

I'm back, but...

Ok, we've been home for a couple of weeks now, (really? weeks? man, am I behind!) and the time zone change between here and Hawaii really kicked my behind for the first week we were back. Then back to school and holidays and visitors, etc. etc. I have posted some pics on facebook, but I want to give a more complete account of our fun vacation here. I just don't have time today! Hope all had a great Easter!