Now that I've got our vacation documented, I've got to relate a very funny story from last week. We have a little motorcycle that Sharra rides around the neighborhood with Adam. When her homework and reading are done, she's allowed to take it out after dinner. Well, this usually attracts the older neighbor boys to our home who're hoping to have spin on Adam's larger bike (yet to happen thank goodness!) Nothing different about this particualr evening except one of the boys brought a friend who hadn't seen Adam's other toys in the shed. He asked if it would be ok to show his friend the stuff in the shed. I said sure. Well, Sam followed quietly behind them to see what they were up to. When the boys were both inside and totally engrossed in the vehicles inside, Sam slammed the shed door shut and turned the lock!!!
I had no idea what he was up to until he came pelting back to the driveway laughing his head off. He said, Mom I locked them in the shed. I laughed nad said you mean you closed the door on them? He said yeah and then I locked it! Well, to be honest I didn't think he'd acutally locked it until a few seconds later, BANG, BANG, BANG came from the shed door. We laughed and laughed. And then had another good laugh when Adam got back. The poor guys had to wait until Adam reurned with Sharra since he had the keys to the shed in his pocket! Sam was so proud of himself for pulling off such a "good joke" ha, ha, ha, ha, ha Gotta watch out for that boy.
Monday, May 25, 2009
Day10/11 Pics
looking over the edge at the fish
entry into hotel
whoa! a waterfall inside!
our room's lanai
chillin at the airport; Ninna kept calling the Benedryl candy and wouldn't put it down
playing chase games across the street from the terminal
finally talking to a live person
our condo
Family Trip-Day 10
We got ready to head home today. We cleaned up the condo, did some last minute souvenir shopping, and turned in our rental car. Well that was at 4:30pm and our flight wasn't to leave until 9pm. We brought food and just planned to hang out for several hours. Until we got to the airport that is. We arrived to find out our flight was delayed until 2 am!!! It hadn't even left LA yet due to mechanical problems. Well we had to stay at the airport until the ticket counter opened at least. So we sat tight for two hours. Once there were live people to talk to, they said that it would be 3 am and we had a choice to go back to town and eat and relax then come back a board or get put up in a hotel and take the next night's flight at 9pm. We opted to get a hotel, on Delta. It took another three hours to get a shuttle there for us, but we got to stay in the hotel that was just down the street from our condo. The kids were thrilled to stay another day and have a pool to play in. We invaded the hotel's restaurant when we got there--only 30 min to close and got dinner for everyone. It was delicious luau food!
The hotel had a waterfall in the lobby and fish ponds into the entry way. The kids had fun watching the fish. Breakfast was served in an open air area overlooking the ocean. It was a beautiful view and the ocean breeze kept you cooled, but it also cooled your food in about 5 min and the open walls allowed all kinds of birds in. Some were trying to swoop down and scoop food off our plates. The kids found this hilarious and terrifying at the same time. Breakfast was tasty but an adventure all the same.
Our flight home was pulled off without any problems this time. A red-eye flight is the way to go with very little people!!
The hotel had a waterfall in the lobby and fish ponds into the entry way. The kids had fun watching the fish. Breakfast was served in an open air area overlooking the ocean. It was a beautiful view and the ocean breeze kept you cooled, but it also cooled your food in about 5 min and the open walls allowed all kinds of birds in. Some were trying to swoop down and scoop food off our plates. The kids found this hilarious and terrifying at the same time. Breakfast was tasty but an adventure all the same.
Our flight home was pulled off without any problems this time. A red-eye flight is the way to go with very little people!!
Day 9 pics
what the ancient native's houses looked like
our sandcastle and boat "roadway" next door
Aviendha insisted on carrying her dee-dee around
queen of the shade
riding waves with daddy
daddy, Sharra, and the view
Ginny's sand-nest
Sam's favorite was still chasing waves and experimenting with the tide
yes, that cheetos bag is in her tight little fist for the next three shots; empty, but she wouldn't let it go
playing in the waves
there was a little 6-in ledge in the sand where the water came up to that made a great seat for little people taking a break
the resort beyond Sharra had a great spot for boogie board and stand-surfing
Family Trip-Day 9
I'm finally getting back to this, sorry. We got up early for our last day of beach hopping. We went to a really popular beach down by the marina. It was gorgeous and it was great to get there early. You'll see in the pics that it was hardly crowded. it stayed that way until about 10-11 am, then the crowds came. Luckily the beach is one of the bigger ones, so it didn't feel crowded. We got lots of looks, as usual, with our four little kids in tow, but we had an absolute blast here. WE made one quick stop at a historical site on the way back to the condo. It was interesting, but not as much as the Place of Refuge.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Day 8-Pics
each of the kids posed for a shot with Forrest's shoes outside Bubba Gump's Shrimp Co.
no I'm not fat, I'm pregnant
this is the "tank" area we snorkeled in
Ninna with a good view of the beach behind her
filling buckets with treasures from the sea
checking out the tide pools
Family Trip-Day 8
We went to another great snorkeling beach on this Monday. This area is also a historical site. The piles of lava rock you'll see were created a long time ago by local inhabitants to create a fish tank of sorts. As the tides rise, fish swim in and are easily harvested. This is what makes it a great snorkeling site. Adam and I took turns again with the snorkel gear. The kids ejoyed tha shallow areas that had little fish, crabs, and other sea life in them. There were more turtles here, but we didn't bother heading down the beach to see them. Sharra was surprised to unearth a crab in the sand--probably as surpirsed as the crab was to be discovered.
Later in the day we wandered through the shops along our street to see what items we'd like for souvenirs. We stopped at the farmers market for some more yummy apple-bananas and took some pictures by little guys and such outside local restaurants. We went to bed early so we could be up early the next day to head to a very popular beach.
Later in the day we wandered through the shops along our street to see what items we'd like for souvenirs. We stopped at the farmers market for some more yummy apple-bananas and took some pictures by little guys and such outside local restaurants. We went to bed early so we could be up early the next day to head to a very popular beach.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Family Trip-Day 7
Today was Sunday and we went to sacrament meeting at the local branch. It was so great! The church is true wherever you go! The same gospel, the same Spirit, home is where the gospel is! We got to listen to fast and testimony meeting. Wow! Living outside of Utah gives them such wonderful missionary opportunities each day! The wardhouse shared grounds with the Kona temple. After the meeting we went out to get some pics. We were in luck. A family from another island was on spring break and we took their picture and they took ours!
After changing from our church clothes and having some lunch we piled everyone back in the van for a driving tour of the northern end of the island. This was my favorite part of the island so far, mostly because it was the closest in scenery to my beloved home in Hyrum. There were open fields, lots of wind, and some steep hills with actual pine trees resembling real mountains! The beautiful view of the ocean was an added bonus.
We stopped by Waipo (?) Valley at the overlook. Sam, Sharra and Adam wandered down the trail, but it was slippery and steep so I kept the little girls topside with me. This area is used in an opening shot of one of the Jurassic Park movies.
Then we stopped for a shot by the original King Kamehameha statue. There was a little plaque telling the story of it. This statue was supposed to have been delivered to a different island, but he ship carrying it caught fire en route. The statue sank to the bottom of the ocean, but it was in shallow enough water that it was later scavenged out again. Another statue was commissioned and that's the one in Honolulu. This one was later found by the captain of the original ship commissioned to bring it to Hawaii. he found it outside a shop, like a cigar Indian. He bought it and brought it back out to Hawaii as it was originally meant to be. But being burned and sunk on the bottom of the ocean had taken it's toll on the statue. Thus began the tradition of painting it. This current statue had 28 coats of paint on it to date!
After changing from our church clothes and having some lunch we piled everyone back in the van for a driving tour of the northern end of the island. This was my favorite part of the island so far, mostly because it was the closest in scenery to my beloved home in Hyrum. There were open fields, lots of wind, and some steep hills with actual pine trees resembling real mountains! The beautiful view of the ocean was an added bonus.
We stopped by Waipo (?) Valley at the overlook. Sam, Sharra and Adam wandered down the trail, but it was slippery and steep so I kept the little girls topside with me. This area is used in an opening shot of one of the Jurassic Park movies.
Then we stopped for a shot by the original King Kamehameha statue. There was a little plaque telling the story of it. This statue was supposed to have been delivered to a different island, but he ship carrying it caught fire en route. The statue sank to the bottom of the ocean, but it was in shallow enough water that it was later scavenged out again. Another statue was commissioned and that's the one in Honolulu. This one was later found by the captain of the original ship commissioned to bring it to Hawaii. he found it outside a shop, like a cigar Indian. He bought it and brought it back out to Hawaii as it was originally meant to be. But being burned and sunk on the bottom of the ocean had taken it's toll on the statue. Thus began the tradition of painting it. This current statue had 28 coats of paint on it to date!
Day6-pics
ancient stones game board
walls to sacred enclosures
honu
small statue outside temple area
standing on "real" lava
view of the shore
right before the wave crashed over Sam
surf's up!
cheese!
Family trip-Day 6
We had a full day on the first Saturday we were here. We headed out to a beach past an old lava flow in the morning. The ride in was bumpy and slow, long and winding, but well worth it once we got to the beach. Since you can't see it off the highway like most of the others, it was not at all crowded. I'm sorry I don't remember any of the beach names, but this one was great for the boogie board. The beach was a steeply sloped hill down to the water that had a lot of trees along it for shade. We did have to hike with all our gear about a half mile to get to the really good spots, but the kids handled it well.
At one point in the visit, the kids wanted to be buried in the sand. So Adam dug some little pits and they'd put their feet and legs in while Adam covered them back up. After a couple of times of that, Sam wanted a hole big enough for him to sit in. Once he was in and up to his chest, we got some great shots. I put the camera away just in time to watch a big wave wash up the beach and right over Sam, who was stuck and couldn't run away like his sisters did. It was so funny and he actually handled it really well. Just asked us if we'd move his hole up higher.
On our way back to the car we stopped to take some pics by the old lava flow. The kids wanted to say they stood on real lava! Sam's really a grump in the pics though. Adam headed back to the car without him and he threw a tantrum about it. He wasn't done putting about it when we snapped the pics.
Our final stop for the day was the place of refuge further south along the coast. In ancient days, this was where the king's seaside hangout was, as well as some religious sites. if you offended the king or performed any kind of wrong-doing, you had the chance to run for this place by the shore. If you made it past the sacred walls before the king's warriors got you, then you were spared and the "gods" absolved you of all crimes. They had the site set up as a self-guided walking tour. Wooden posts with numbers on each were placed outside each significant spot along the tour. The kids really got into finding the next number, like a scavenger hunt. I think they enjoyed the searching more than the actual sites presented. There were some interesting tide pools along the route that provided us yet another turtle sighting.
At one point in the visit, the kids wanted to be buried in the sand. So Adam dug some little pits and they'd put their feet and legs in while Adam covered them back up. After a couple of times of that, Sam wanted a hole big enough for him to sit in. Once he was in and up to his chest, we got some great shots. I put the camera away just in time to watch a big wave wash up the beach and right over Sam, who was stuck and couldn't run away like his sisters did. It was so funny and he actually handled it really well. Just asked us if we'd move his hole up higher.
On our way back to the car we stopped to take some pics by the old lava flow. The kids wanted to say they stood on real lava! Sam's really a grump in the pics though. Adam headed back to the car without him and he threw a tantrum about it. He wasn't done putting about it when we snapped the pics.
Our final stop for the day was the place of refuge further south along the coast. In ancient days, this was where the king's seaside hangout was, as well as some religious sites. if you offended the king or performed any kind of wrong-doing, you had the chance to run for this place by the shore. If you made it past the sacred walls before the king's warriors got you, then you were spared and the "gods" absolved you of all crimes. They had the site set up as a self-guided walking tour. Wooden posts with numbers on each were placed outside each significant spot along the tour. The kids really got into finding the next number, like a scavenger hunt. I think they enjoyed the searching more than the actual sites presented. There were some interesting tide pools along the route that provided us yet another turtle sighting.
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