Maui

We spent 3 days on Oahu and 4 on Maui. I am so glad we went to Oahu to the Polynesian Culture Center and Pearl Harbor, but Maui was my favorite by far.

WE WERE IN PARADISE.

Benjy was watching the whales that were right off of our shore.
The little bungalows by the beach were the best.
The grounds were gorgeous and smelled like fresh flowers and coconut.
The views were amazing. Benjy kept saying, "This Island is making me sleepy." I told him that it was called being extremely relaxed!

The kayak's looked so serene in the mornings and in the evenings.
Our view by the pool of the beach. It's hard to believe we were still there a week ago.

The USS Bowfin Submarine

was a very neat experience even for a claustrophobic person!

I don't really know why I started out with my sunglasses on. The day was a little foggy, still recovering from the gyro.

Lots of fun little gadgets.

Little spaces to crawl through, not my favorite part.
Some places in the submarine are bigger then you think.

The boys playing with the guns.

I think we were all glad to be out on top again. I can't imagine what it was like to be confined to this space for weeks at a time. I bet when the time came, they were really glad to be out on top again, too!

Pearl Harbor

It is hard to believe that this was once the scene in this serene bay.

At the memorial for all of the fallen sailors during World War II, it brought me to tears to read the simple, yet powerful words, "ON ETERNAL PATROL."

It is a sobering experience being at Pearl Harbor.

I stood and thought about what it must have been like for the suicide bombers to drive this into their target and yet today we still see methods of suicide bombers. We would hope that through time things would improve. In some areas we as people do improve and in others it seems to just get worse. I couldn't help but feel proud to be living in such a great country and to have men and women who sacrifice so much for us to have the freedoms that we enjoy.

Dukes

On Oahu we stayed at the Outrigger on Waikiki Beach. One of the restaurants in the Hotel that we frequented was Dukes. We had the breakfast buffet every morning and the views were gorgeous!
One night we went for dinner and the boys had fun pointing out the fish they had already scoped out while snorkeling.I asked them to pose for the picture and Shalayne was the only one who showed some liveliness.

I didn't realize I was covering the Duke statue. Oops.

Polynesian Culture Center & Temple

Although I woke up feeling horrible from a food borne illness I was still so excited to start our trip off with a visit to the Temple and the Polynesian Culture Center.

Everyone is so friendly and you get use to hearing Aloha and Mahalo.
It was fun watching this young man climb the tree.

Benjy and Danny perfected their fake laughs as we waited for our canoe tour of the villages.
There were so many favorite things about the Polynesian Center that it is too hard to pick from t touring the villages, to the canoe tour, to the Luau and then finally to the AMAZING show.

I can not even tell you how nauseous I was but when Benjy actually found a little part on his pork that belonged to a mama that would have suckling piglets, I couldn't eat anymore. My travel companions thought the food was fabulous! I am sure I would have enjoyed it also, if I wasn't already suffering. (I know, no one has any sympathy for me, what better place to have to be sick then in Hawaii, right?)

If you are on the Island of Oahu, I wouldn't miss the opportunity to go to the Polynesian Culture Center....It was a once in a lifetime experience! I wouldn't have missed it for anything...food borne illness included! The only thing you have to remember is that everyone here is your COUSIN. They constantly call everyone, "Cousin."

Hawaii Day One

It was so warm when we stepped off the plane. I had a sweater on and I was dying! We brought the computer so that we could skype with the kiddos. I am so thankful for technology! It was 81 degrees when we landed.We didn't waste any time getting on the beach.

Danny and Benjy couldn't wait to go snorkling.

Benjy and Danny were so excited on their first trip out, they saw tons of fish and a turtle. Now, the story has changed numerous times. At first the turtle was three feet wide and now they claim it was as big as a car. First it was a story on how Benjy rode it, until we found out it is illegal to touch a turtle, so the story is that the turtle attacked him!
It was just so nice to finally be on the beach and in beautiful Hawaii. It is everything and more then I imagined it to be!
We had lunch at a questionable spot that looked somewhat like a stand at the State Fair. I decided to go with my favored gyro. Let's just say, that I won't be eating a gyro, anytime soon!

It's Finally Here...

the day we leave for Hawaii. We were a little nervous about getting out in the middle of a snow storm. It was a great day to leave on. As we said, "Goodbye," to the kiddos, I fought back the tears so that Karsyn wouldn't cry. It felt like I was leaving part of myself behind as the girls waved out the window. I hadn't spent a night away from Kyce, so it was a little hard but we are so ready to have an adult only vacation. We had an hour delay which gave us some down time to enjoy our books. Then we were off to Seattle to spend the night with some of the Villarreals and Criddles.
We got in pretty late and Benjy's parents drove up to his sister, Laurel and her husband, Kevin's house in Seattle. They had to leave to go back around midnight to drive over 3 hours home. They needed to transport some missionaries in the morning. We loved seeing them, even if it was for just a short time.

Danny and Shalayne flew in right before us from Salt Lake City. We had so much catching up until 4 in the morning in their beautiful home! Laurel had made some awesome soup (like the kind you get at Olive Garden) and some homemade rolls! Yummy...