Hawaii Part 2

The following morning was Saturday...the boys didn't have to go to work...so we got up early, got dressed and headed over to Pearl Harbor.  We were glad we arrived a bit early before tickets to different things were not sold out yet and the larger crowds had not arrived.

We went inside a WWII submarine...I think it was WWII.

Newel barely fit through the doors.

Although I found this interesting, this was definitely something the guys were into more.

Of course as we were going to different areas we would take photos specifically for our kids...like the Styrofoam cup at the museum, so Arden could see the pressure under water.

It was odd for me to see real war battleships parked not too far from us.

Later it was our turn to take a boat ride to the USS Arizona's remains.  Perhaps it was because we had seen the video of the bombing prior to getting into our boat, or perhaps because we knew this was a burial site, there was a quiet and even reverent feel to the memorial.




After our visit at Pearl Harbor, we drove to the other side of the island to Haleiwa.  We made a mistake and stopped at Cholo's...once you've had Red Iguana in Utah, Mexican food at other places may be a disappointment.  This wasn't the worst food I've had, but it wasn't on the top of my list. However, we had a great time.  We also enjoyed some delicious ice cream at the North Shore Market Place...it really was yummy.   Newel was on a hunt for a Hawaiian shirt.  He finally found the shirt. He's posing for us, imitating Arden. When we ask Arden to pose for a photo this is how he poses.

Arden imitation

Then, off we went...to a fun beach...and since I waited too long to post this, I don't remember the name of the beach. However, the weather was good enough we could be in our swimming suits and even get in the water.
I even climbed a rock.

I wish I had one the photos Judy took where we're rinsing off the sand and water and Newel is in the middle of two Hawaiians...It was pretty funny.  He looked like an Oreo sandwich.
We continued our adventure around the island and made a quick stop at BYU-Hawaii and the Laie Temple. It was gorgeous.

We were having such a wonderful time.  Although we kind of missed the kids, it was fun to be just us with friends.  I've missed that.  I've forgotten what it's like to have that much time uninterrupted.


The following morning we went to church.  We went to a ward in Honolulu.  The building was gorgeous.  It was like a tabernacle...or our version of a cathedral.

We met up with Judy and Clarke after they were done with Mass and headed down for more driving.
After lunch, we headed over to some waterfalls.  It was kind of funny because I thought some of those plants and scenery looked kind of familiar...and it turns out that Lost, the show Newel and I watched for years was partially filmed at that location.

Weird bugs for Arden

Of course we couldn't pass the opportunity to take photos of interesting insects.  Arden even assigned us to take photos of spiders.   On our hike to the waterfall, Newel and I searched hard for a spider, we didn't have such luck.

Flowers for Maya

Our hike was fairly easy, although muddy.  I got so muddy on our way back from the waterfall. The waterfall was nice, although we weren't allowed to get in due to too much rain and rock slides or something like that.

After our hike, we headed over to another beach to go snorkeling.  Here's a photo of chickens...yes, they were as common as stray cats or dogs you'd find in another country.  Speaking of another country.  Hawaii reminded me a bit of Nicaragua...although Nicaragua is not as nice, but it is just as green and anything grows.  I wish one day the situation in Nicaragua would be better so foreigners could come to appreciate the true beauty of my home country.

I don't remember the name of the place we went snorkeling, but before you could get in, you had to pay a fee and watch a video about how you should be careful with the reef.

Arden's spider

We also finally found a spider.  She looked mean.


The beach was great, even if it was a bit windy, partially cloudy, and higher waves than usual.  Newel and I had fun relaxing, climbing trees, and taking silly photos while Judy and Clarke went snorkeling.


We had some good laughs.

Then it was our turn to go snorkeling.  I was of course a bit scared, but I tried it.  I'm still scared of the water.  After almost hyperventilating and doing some breathing exercises, I calmed down and I enjoyed it.  I was wishing Arden and Maya were there to enjoy it with us. Then, I was bummed since we ran out of time.  The beach was closing.

That was okay, we got dressed and hiked to our car and headed to another beach where the sand was so fine it reminded me of some of the beaches in Florida.
Since it was Judy and Clarke's last day, we wanted to try something "Hawaiian" so off we went to the Rainbow Drive-in (one of the places listed in Dine and Drive) where they served us a typical Hawaiian meal.  It was good, but it wasn't what I expected.   I guess I was expecting something with coconuts and pineapples and pork.  We got rice and eggs and other yummy meats.  It was still good.  I guess sometimes we shouldn't have certain expectations, but be open to whatever may come.

Hawaii

At the Chinese Restaurant

A view from our building. 

Early in March was told he needed to go to Hawaii for work. He was told on a Friday night and needed to leave the following Wednesday.  He tried to convince me to go with him, but I thought, what are we going to do with our children.  It would be too costly to go with them.  Finally, on Monday, he tried to convince me again and said Judy (Clarke's wife...Clarke is Newel's boss) said she didn't want to go if I wasn't going.  When we went to Texas in December, Judy and I had a blast hanging out. So, we called our family and friends and were so nice to take turns watching our kids.  Our kids, by the way, were happy we were going to Hawaii...their request was for us to bring back photos of bugs and flowers.  They were also so glad to have a week full of sleepovers.

Wednesday morning we got on the plane bound to Hawaii.  That night we arrived Newel and I went to a Chinese restaurant for dinner and walked around downtown Honolulu. The food was pretty yummy.
Clarke and Judy arrived very late that evening.  While the boys went to work, Judy and I hung out.  We wanted to go to Waikiki Beach.  Instead of taking a bus or taxi, we decided to walk.  It was such a fun walk.  We saw King Kamehameha's palace and other neat buildings.  We learned about Hawaii's history as we made a stop at an old missionary house.
We also learned that all things grow well in Hawaii, including snails we found on our walk.  Those suckers were huge!

At the fancy hotel

As we approached Waikiki we stopped by some fancy hotel and walked around.  Since we didn't have a specific agenda, Judy and I made a couple of stops, including the Ferrari store were a lunch box costs over $50.00.

Then we checked out the King's guard shopping area and Museum.  We also made a rest stop at the Island Cafe for lunch.
The weather was fabulous.

King's Guard

We finally made it to the beach and the weather turned yucky.  It would get windy, chilly, cloudy, and then back to sunny.  When the guys were done working, they met up with us, at the beach...unfortunately by the time they arrived, it started to rain....
The weather was kind of uncooperative and everyone who lives there kept apologizing for the crazy weather they were having.  We went window shopping instead...We checked out the Stupid Store and had a good laugh and then headed over to International Market Place.  I loved it! The Market  lies underneath a huge tree.  It's pretty cool.

Finally at the beach.  See my white legs

That evening we checked out Murphy's Pub.  It had the best Sheppard's Pie I've ever tasted.  We love food so, it was fun to check out the Dines and Drive places mentioned in the show about  Honolulu.


The following morning the boys had more meetings and work...so Judy and I got dressed and headed over to the museum.  We also chose to walk to the museum and we made some fun stops, like the market in Chinatown.  We saw weird looking fishes (that photo was for Arden) and bought a variety of fruits and breads we don't have in Utah. Judy and I were heaven.  Trying out all sorts of interesting things.  We were so giddy and felt adventurous.  We were actually kind of glad the weather wasn't cooperative because it gave us and opportunity to do other things, instead of just lounging by the beach...although that wouldn't have been a bad thing either.

Being adventurous

Love the market

After walking past homeless people and other shady looking people, we finally arrived to the museum.

Dragon's eye

We decided going to a Lua out would be too costly and wouldn't have enough time...so the next best thing was learning how to Hula at the museum.  Judy and I were having a lot of fun with that. We also had a story teller (who looked a younger version of Barack Obama) relate the story of King Kamehameha.
We also checked out the other building in the museum and and I was in love with the wood in the building with the whale.  It was so beautiful inside.

When the boys were done with their meetings, they waited for us back at the hotel, while Judy and I used Honolulu's awesome public transportation.  Pretty much everyone we met were really nice and helpful...perhaps I just looked lost and felt sorry for me.  

That night we went to another Dine and Dive place, Joe's Fish Market and Restaurant...or something like that.

Tuna

Anyways, the food was fabulous!  I learned a new thing...I love raw tuna.  That stuff was amazing and well, everything was so delicious.  That evening we made a stop at Costco...Clarke loves Costco.  We found treats to take back home to share with our family and we also bought desserts (Hawaiian style) to eat back at the hotel.  It was a great night.

Sleepovers and other things

 In January, we had a cousin sleepover at our house. It always surprises me how they can manage to fit in our tiny house.  They always have so much fun.

 Neighborhood Watch:
In February, a friend/neighbor sent us this pretty fruit bouquet for doing some neighborhood watch.  Someone was at his house, whose car I wasn't familiar with, so I called him on his phone and wanted to verify if this stranger wasn't a stranger, or to call me back so I could call the cops.  It wasn't a burglar, it was a guy fixing up our neighbor's motorcycle, but he appreciated us keeping an eye for him.

 Swimming Lessons: 
In March, Maya started swimming lessons.  She loves to attend her classes. We'll usually help at Arden's school for a little while and then go to her lessons.  It's so fun for her, but she's so cautious.  Just recently, she learned to put her face in the water. Once she's learned something and is no longer scared...you better watch out!
 It's kind of sad for me to see her taking these lessons because I see how grown she is.  She's definitely not a baby anymore.

World History

Recently, I finished reading a book called The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom.  It was such a good book I wanted to tell the kids about it.  So, tonight we went out dinner.  While we were waiting for our meal, I started telling the kids about the book and the stories in it about this family and the good they did during WWII.
                Arden became really interested in the story and about who was Hitler and the Allies and our war with Japan. It was so enjoyable for me to sit next to him and to be able to answer his questions about world history.  Often, he'll ask me questions about science and most of the time I'll answer, "I don't know."  Or I'll briefly explain the question, but I can't go into specific details because I don't know the answers or I can't explain it in detail.
          Our conversation continued after we arrived to the house.  He even got dressed for bed quickly so I could tell him more about this woman, Corrie Ten Boom, and the courage she had to do the right thing.  We snuggled in bed and I told him more about her and the years of the Cold War. Funny, how our history lesson also turned into a gospel lesson.  We discussed agency and how Hitler and Japan were taking it away from the world.  We talked about charity and how some people, despite the harsh laws, went out of their way to help friends and strangers.  We talked about how the world continues to have wars and rumors of wars...he recognized it as a sign of the times.  We discussed how there isn't going to be peace until our Savior comes to the earth again. We talked about how we try to have peace in our home despite the ugly out there. How we try to live the gospel and watch good movies and serve in the church. I loved the peaceful feeling I had as we talked about these things.  I hope he felt them as well.  I'm grateful for our history lesson.

Nothing Much

It's been a while since I've blogged.  I haven't had much to say even though we've had some adventures these last couple of months.  I think it's because I was in a writing rut.
January was pretty boring...or normal, so I didn't feel that there was anything really interesting to write about.  However, I do realize it's important to write about the mundane things we do around here.  I know years from now I'll want to remember what our ordinary days were like.
Here's a summary of January and a view of our current routine:  After the break, we got back into our daily routine.  I volunteered at Arden's school once a week.  During the days Maya was at preschool, I blogged, worked on her baby book, or tried to work on genealogy.  During the weekends we would hang out with family.  We were/are busy with our callings at church and that takes some coordination in our part.
On weekday afternoons I work  with Arden on his school work and homework.  That's still my least favorite part of the day.  We're both tired and cranky...not a good combination...therefore, after school time can be a drag.  On the bright side...Arden is trying harder at school to behave better and tries to stay focused...which is really difficult for him.
Maya plays pretty independently and is full of imagination.  I'm trying to spend more one-on-one time with her.  We also decided to not try to place her in kindergarten next year.  I want to keep her home for a while longer.  She might be our last child and I need to spend more quality time with her.  She has a strong personality that can be good or bad...I hope I can be an influence for good in her life.
Our Friday is the beginning of the weekend, so we clean the house and usually have DVDo night with popcorn and treats.   On the weekends we don't do much, since we spend most of the morning encouraging/threatening Arden to complete his weekly essay.  Our January weekends were uneventful, except we would go to the Walters and hang out.  That was fun. Also, Grandma moved to UT and we're happy she's here.
So, there's my January report.
I'm pretty close to finishing Maya's baby book, so I better get back to work, before it's time to pick her up from preschool.  Next week is my week to teach preschool so I won't have time to finish the book.