Aloha!

After 5 years of Tadj's mom watching our kids once a week we thought it would be fun for her to come along with us to Hawaii. All we needed was an excuse like a wedding to get us back to Oahu. We had a great time and already miss the sunny weather and lazy days by the beach. A week in paradise may not be enough. Here are the highlights...

Day 1

We arrived in Oahu the afternoon of November 4. Our first destination after reaching the rental house was to check out "our" beach. Bellows beach is one of the most beautiful beaches on Oahu with only one problem:

More about those little nuisances later. We then headed to Costco to stock up on food for the week. Tadj and I finished the day with moonlight stroll on the beach. Ahhh, so romantic!

Day 2

We headed up north to Laie and our first stop was the Temple. While Marj and I were inside, Tadj and the kids went to the visitors center and played on the grass.

We then spent the day at the Polynesian Cultural Center. We visited here on a previous trip to Oahu and decided that once was enough but Marj and the kids have never been so we (me and Marj against Tadj's wishes) opted for a second visit.

Day 3

Beach day! We spent the morning at Bellows beach and then headed to Hanauma Bay to snorkel. We saw beautiful fish and were up close and personal with a turtle. It was awesome! I didn't take my camera with us but Marj snapped a shot of the bay.

Day 4

We decided to check out Lanikai beach just a bit north from where we were staying. The sand at this beach is so soft. We enjoyed playing in the water and building sand castles.

Tadj went a little crazy in Photoshop with these next ones!

But it was here at Lanikai beach that Tadj and I were both stung by jelly fish -- twice! Fortunately, it didn't hurt bad enough to make someone pee on the stings. I've already been there and done that! Here is what the little stingers look like.

After I was stung for a second time I was ready to leave the beach. We spent the rest of the day at Ko'Olina lagoons on the west side of the island. This is the perfect place for kids.

Day 5

Today was the day of Jen's wedding. Jen is Tadj's good friend from grad school. This wedding invitation is what spurred the vacation to Hawaii. They were married at the Halekulani resort. The wedding was beautiful.

The reception was very different (but still beautiful). I have never been to a traditional chinese reception. A lion dance is performed to bring the newlyweds good luck and ward off evil spirits. After the dance, the lions then go around and "eat" money from the people in attendance. Here is Kendall feeding the lion.


The food at the reception was fantastic. It definitely cured my craving for seafood and sushi.

Day 6

Our Sunday in Oahu started out with sacrament meeting at the church just down the street. So here I am just to prove I was on the vacation (the one taking all of the photos!) At the wedding, everyone who flew in was given a lei. I was glad I got to wear it one more time.

Since this was our non-water day we opted for a trip to Peal Harbor. This actually turned out to be one of Hayden's favorite spots.

Then we headed to the swap meet and the Dole Plantation.

The kids wanted to go on the train ride to check out the crops.

The ride wasn't as exciting as Kendall thinks it is!

We ended the day watching the surfers on the North Shore at sunset.

Day 7
We started the day at Bellows beach but there was a really strong current. The big waves sure were fun though!

After getting knocked around we decided to head back to Ko'Olina Lagoons so the kids could enjoy the water more and Tadj could snorkel. We played again until sunset.
It was a good day.

Day 8
Our final day! After we packed up Tadj took us on one more adventure. We hiked down 75 feeet to a little isolated beach.
Writing this post makes me nostalgic, especially with the rain and cold weather we've had. It was a wonderful vacation. And we are very grateful that Marj was able to join us on our trip to paradise.