Hiking!

Below are some pictures I took around the beaches on our tour on Monday.










































We wanted to be sure to take pictures of the kids while at the beach, so they didn't feel neglected! We are such loving parents! We took several pictures of the kids around the area, here are just a couple of them! :)






























Tuesday, today, we took a hike around the area (with a guide of course!) Here are just a few of the pictures. There are a lot of interesting looking birds and plants that have adapted to the area and are now unique to Hawaii. Check out the Cardinal! The area we walked around is considered a rain forest. They get over 100 inches of rain a year. There are some areas that get something like 440 inches of water a year and others that get around 20 or so.

We have really enjoyed this trip. Next time we come we'll have the kids and more family with us. I could live here forever. This is a very beautiful state. I can't wait to see the other islands. Tomorrow we fly home. I hope you've enjoyed my pictures of Hawaii and that it makes you want to come here! It's just beautiful here!!!!!

Hawaii!!!

Friday night we went to a local restaurant that my cousins suggested. It's called Onos. Ono means delicious in Hawaiian and that it was! We had several local dishes and that included Poi! Poi is made from pulverized taro root. It is a staple in the Hawaiian diet. Some people hate it, others love it. It's supposed to be something you dip your meats and other foods into, it doesn't have a strong taste of it's own. I guess it's like eating tofu. I enjoyed it, Greg loved it. We'll see how my kids like it.

Saturday my cousins took us to the Dole Pineapple Plantation. We had a lot of fun in the maze.

We also went to see the North Shore Soap Factory. It is in an old sugar plantation building. It was fun to see what the big girls and boys do!

We had Shave Ice while sightseeing on the North Shore. It's not the same as snow cones, it's finer. And the place my cousins took us is one of the best in the area. Apparently even the locals will line up to have some. There is a sign in the shop explaining how you are to order so that the line can move quickly.

Dinner was at a place called Side Street. It was an interesting looking place, but the food was really good. After dinner, we went to Senor Frog for some drinks and a little entertainment. My cousin knows the owners so we got special treatment. I had a drink called Lava Flow, it was yummy! The music was incredibly loud and it was a lot of fun. The waiters were fun, except for ours... I think he was a little intimidated at the fact that my cousin asked if one of the managers was around. We didn't have any complaints, he just seemed to be a little cautious after she did :)



Sunday my cousins took us to Pearl Harbor. I didn't realize how shallow the water was and how close you were to the sunken ship. It was an incredible experience. I want to take my kids to see it when we come back.

















We also went to The Punch Bowl. It's Hawaii's version of Arlington.
We went to see some sights today with a tour, but I will have to share those pictures later.

Hello from Hawaii

Tonight is the last night we will have internet connectivity. Greg won't be working all day, so I won't have so much free time to hang out and be lazy. Tomorrow we go check out the North Shore and Pearl Harbor. Not sure what the plans are for Sunday, but Monday we'll take a tour to see the countryside and wildlife. Dinner tonight is at Shorebird and tomorrow is at Ono's. Sunday we do Passover dinner at my cousin's MIL's house. We leave Wednesday, get home early Thursday. And then we'll get some time with Greg's parents for a few days. I want to come back here again... my sister said she's never been here, I think we'd have fun shopping and laying around on the beach!

Have a great week! I'll post more pictures tonight if I can and then the rest when I get home! enjoy!!!

We went to the Army hotel, Hale Koa. Dinner was delicious! I had a Mai Tai. I had my first one the first night we were here. I have decided I like them only if they go light on the rum! WOW those can be strong! I had Mahi Mahi for dinner. I have never tasted it, but I thought it would be good to try. It was delicious. Greg got something that resembled stew, he said it was really good too.




We took the kids out to dinner with us! Now they can't say we didn't take them to Hawaii with us! Greg did this for his first Valentine's Day when he was first deployed to Germany and I hadn't yet joined him. I was still in school finishing my BA in Math. So we are just carrying on the tradition!












After dinner, we went for a walk on the beach.


















I even got Greg to walk barefoot and got pictures to prove it!










And a picture of me too!

A Walk Around Waikiki

Check out this incredible sunset!!!



There are some really interesting trees.













While walking to do a little shopping, I saw these two playing on the sign! I love this place! Wild parrots!

I'm on vacation with hubby in Hawaii. I have always wanted to see this state, just never made the time. I figured it was really expensive, so it wasn't on the top of my list. But it is a beautiful state. We are on Oahu in Honolulu. The sunsets are beautiful, the pace is VERY slow. This is a business trip for Greg, but not for me :) I could live here. You have mountains and beach very close together!

Next time we come, we'll come with my kids. I think they would love it here too.

I had my very first massage yesterday. I don't know why I never had one before. It was a traditional Hawaiian massage called Lomi Lomi. What an incredible experience!

Starbucks has a special coffee flavor that they only sell here in Hawaii. It's a coconut frappuccino! yummy! But ya gotta love coconut for this one, you can definitely taste it! And it was made much better than at the Dallas airport. I couldn't get all of the coffee out of that one, the ice was not blended into it all that well.

I spend most mornings moving slowly. I get up and enjoy some coffee, read some email and the paper they leave in front of the door. I finally get out around lunch time, take a walk around the shops or the beach. I met my cousin that lives here yesterday for lunch. It was very nice. We've had dinner with them and will see them at least for Friday night and all day Saturday.

The plan is to see Pearl Harbor, the North Shore with their Shave Ice, the Dole Plantation, and a soap factory that is in an old historic sugar mill. I think we'll be taking a tour next week that shows you lots of local wild life. We're staying on this island this time. Maybe we'll island hop next time :)

I'm sitting here enjoying the heat and on the news they are talking about snow in colorado! yech!