Wickedly Awesome!

Waimea Bay

Started the morning heading to Waimea Bay. We were going to hike to Waimea Falls but they weren’t open yet so we decided to hit the beach. Waimea Bay is absolutely incredible!! We were swimming by 8:00 and it was heavenly.

Waimea Falls

We opted out of the hike, but got some awesome souvenirs including matching flowers for the girls! We saw this beautiful peacock and a peacock even in the tree!

A taste of Hawaii

We stopped by a roadside fruit stand and got some amazing pineapple and a papaya to try for dinner.

A tour of the Windward Side

We took the scenic coastal route to go sight seeing. We saw so many beautiful things. We went to Kailua Beach which was voted as one of the Best Beaches of America. It was GORGEOUS!! You wouldn’t believe the color of the water! The kids were in heaven for hours!

(Chinamans Hat)

Wickedly Awesome!

Ok, so I have found my favorite place so far!!! It is at Laie Point. This GREAT book was recommended by a friend (thanks Patty!) that tells all the fun out of the way places. So, we found out about this cool rock that looks like an arch because in 1946 a killer tsumani tore through the actual stone! So, we went to check it out. It is one of the most amazing places I have ever seen. When you walk down to the point across the water from the arch, the water comes in so strong it splashes up. We plan to go back because it was amazing!!!!

(See the arch??)

ALOHA! From Oahu!!

Aloha from Oahu!!

We made it! After a VERY long day of travel and some issues and security check point and turbulence on the plane- we are here! It’s so beautiful and we are so in heaven! My blog entries will be more like photo blogs while we are here.

Things we learned on the way….

1. Just because YOU know what should and shouldn’t be brought on the plane (liquids, lotions, etc), it doesn’t mean that your KIDS know! Good grief people! We created quite the scene at the CR airport as Kayla was selected for random screening, I had to watch them go through our bags and pull out tons of shampoo and crap the kids put in without me seeing and we lost Kayla’s cell phone only to find out later that Tyler had it in his pocket!

2. We all tried a Chicago Dog! We had a layover in Chicago and all (well most of us) tried a Chicago Dog full of onions, pickles, and bright green relish. Another cool thing to knock off our bucket list.

3. Planes suck: People are still rude (kicking my seat for 9 hours that guy almost lost his face!, NO leg room, and they didn’t serve a meal like they said they would. We got water (or juice)…twice! On a 9 hour flight. I almost ate Alayna for dinner. They sold food but they had a ½ sandwich which would cost you your 1^st born and a salad that would require you to take out a second mortgage. But we didn’t complain because we are so happy and excited!

4. Never show “Mega Shark Vs. Giant Octopus before you go on a long flight over the pacific. Poor Alayna was getting a little concerned that Megaladon would jump from the sky and rip us into shreds. She was so great on the plane by the way. Even though the 2 movies that were supposed to be shown in-flight didn’t work.

5. Hawaii TOTALLY rocks! We ate at a restraint called “Big Kahuna” that supposedly has the best pizza on the island. We ate so fast Im not sure we could made a fair judgment but pizza with BBQ sauce and Hawaiian slow cooked pork is a winner anytime!

(At the airport)

(Big Kahunas!)

6. But NEVER EVER try to navigate to or through the Wal-Mart in Honolulu! Enough said!

7. You truly cannot beat the landscape or view! We stopped along the coast highway to take pics and look at fun stuff, but we didn’t get into our beach bungalow until late. We didn’t get into bed until 2am our time.

8. Beach Bungalows rock! We are staying in this quaint 2 bedroom bungalow cottage and I LOVE IT! The ocean is literally off our deck!! We open the windows and sliding doors and listen to the ocean and EVEN feel the ocean spray into our bedroom and living room. Its heaven, people! Truly heaven!

(The view from our deck.  The rocks completely disappear in the afternoon- huge waves replace them.  The sunrise was incredible!!)

Memorial Day Fun

(Alayna “laying out”- notice how she keeps her towel from flying away)

(Creating a lake in the sandbox.  Notice the head phones)

(Garden is all in and starting to grow)

(I took a huge step and planted my baby christmas tree outside.  Ive been raising it inside since it was a baby.  I hope it can weather the Iowa summer storms…)

(Teaching Alayna how to drive the mower)

Summer is here and we are free!

Summer is here and we are free!

This felt like the longest year of all time and we are so thrilled that summer is here and school is done!!! We were concentrating hard on just trying to survive the week so I hardly got any pictures. I have learned a couple things this week though…

1. Be careful what you pray for

Ok, just so you know, when you pray to lose weight so you look good and feel confident in your swimsuit on the beach, make sure you specify exactly how that should happen. I was hoping any extra “jiggliness” would simply disappear, however I ended up getting a nasty stomach flu for the week. I was so sick and it was NOT fun! Now I am very worried that all 4 kids will have it on the trip.

2. Taking That Giant Leap of Faith

Sometimes you decide you just need to take that “Leap of Faith”, but then you find yourself hanging over the grand canyon and you aren’t sure where to put your feet down, or even if you will drop to the depths below.

I made a huge leap of faith and resigned from my job as a teacher. There is a huge story that accompanies my decision to do so. I felt I needed a change. Long story short, I have a few options on where to land and I have to make a decision by Tuesday. Stay tuned to find out the rest of the story…

Miscellaneous

*I am proud to say that both Marisa and Kayla earned the Stake Presidents award for seminary!

*Bob and the kids headed to Nauvoo this weekend for the youth temple trip.

WE LEAVE IN 3 DAYS AND WE MAY NEVER RETURN!!!!!!