Snow & Maui

Today we had our first snow day! While we usually seem to see snow flurries every year, it's not often that we actually see sticking snow. Maybe once or twice a year - if we're very lucky. Today we saw accumulations of 3-4 inches by the time it was done, and since temps aren't expected to rise above freezing this week, it'll be sticking around longer than usual. We already know that C won't have school tomorrow. I'm actually hopeful that my office won't close because I'm really ready to have a break - you know, a little time with just adults around.

What a contrast: last Sunday we wore short sleeves and sandals to church, and this week church was cancelled on account of snow. I was a little reluctant to send the girls out to play during the day since it was also rather windy, but the wind seemed to die down as the sun went down, which is when we headed out to romp in the snow. Even Jasper jumped and ran around like a young pup. I hope he doesn't pay for it tomorrow.

Since I've already written the narrative for our trip, I won't bore you with a lot of details. Here's some of my favorite pics of our vacation.

Humpbacks and dolphins and parrotfish, oh my!

Sunday morning we went to church in Lahaina.  You know it's a small world when you run into someone from our last congregation there.  It quickly became apparent during church that the sabbath would have to be a literal day of rest for the family.  The girls were beyond tired and irritable.  I guess it figures - getting to bed late, no naps, no sleeping in - it was crazy of me to have hoped for different behavior. So we headed home and spent half the afternoon sleeping, or trying to get the girls to go to sleep (because suddenly they're not tired when they're told it's okay, nay, mandatory, to take a nap).

After naps we took a short trip up the coast of West Maui.  It was truly beautiful.  Unfortunately the sun went down, forcing an early end to our excursion.

We tried in vain to get to bed early Sunday night because we had to leave by 6:30 Monday morning for our Lana'i Wild Dolphin Snorkel Tour. Surprisingly, we managed to get up and move everyone out the door in time with a minimal amount of drama.  We were a little concerned about having committed to 5 hours on a boat when 4 out of the 6 of us are prone to motion sickness.  However, with Dramamine and mercifully calm waters we fared pretty well.

The boat took us to two snorkel sites.  The first one was rather choppy and the only ones (from my family) who got off the boat were P and my dad.  We tried to get M out there but she was sucking down too much water and P didn't feel it was safe for her, so to her GREAT dismay she had to climb back into the boat.  We had some tantrums and then she eventually settled down.  The second site was much calmer and they were able to get M out with them.  I made it into the water, but when it actually came right down to C getting in with me she had a change of heart so I had to stay on the boat with her.  I sent P and dad out with a disposable waterproof camera, so hopefully we'll have some photos to see what we missed.  They did see a lot of fish though.

You'll notice that our tour mentioned something about dolphins.  Well, we didn't see any.  However we were fortunate that our timing coincided with the time of year that humpback whales come to warmer waters to have babies because we saw a lot of flukes (tails) and even a breach (2/3 of the whale's body comes above the water's surface). It was pretty darn cool.  Sadly, none of our photos captured nary a fluke, so you'll just have to take my word for it.  I would highly recommend the Pacific Whale Foundation for their eco tours if any of you are in the islands and looking for an excursion.

We came home and swam in the pool for a few hours, and then headed over to Black Rock to view the sunset.  The beach was beautiful and the colors of the sunset were stunning (although not adequately captured by our cameras).  We strolled down the boardwalk thru Whalers Village and then headed for home.  It was a sweet end to our little vacation.

We toyed with the idea of doing more sightseeing before we had to catch our plane on Tuesday, but in the end we decided to let my mom rest, and not coop up the girls in the car for a few hours before they were then cooped up again on the plane.  

When we arrived at the airport we were in for a fun little surprise.  On the flight to Maui M had been waving, smiling and making faces at a kind young woman a few rows back.  If I had to guess, I'd say she was about 21 and she was super nice.  She teased and played right back with M.  It turned out that she was also on our flight back home.  So on the trip home the girls took turns going back and sitting with Makenzie.  It made for such a nice diversion for them, and Makenzie and her family seemed to be loving it as much as the girls, so the ride home turned out far more pleasant than our earlier flight.

So that concludes the trip commentary.  Tomorrow I'll try to post some of the photos.  

The road to Hana

Yesterday we planned to do a road trip - the curvy but scenic road to Hana. I wasn't convinced that it was the best option for the girls, but P really wanted to do it. At our first lookout we met an interesting man who not only made "designer" jewelry out of Job's Tears beads but is also a spiritual advisor. We weren't aware of the latter until after our purchase when he gave us a card with his website; we mostly just bought because his wife is from Willamina and he was really nice. As we were leaving, he gave us a blessing for our trip, but as you'll soon read, it obviously didn't work. I wonder why?

We were only on the Hana Highway for about five miles before C puked up the water and Cheetos she'd just consumed (I know, thanks for the visual), and begged to return home. My mother and I were also both experiencing a little carsickness, so we didn't complain about the change of plans. We returned back to our first lookout to eat our picnic lunch while we watched the surfers and wind surfers.

On the way back we stopped in Paia in search of the perfect Hawaiian Shaved Ice. What we found was good, but still couldn't beat the shaved ice we had at a Hawaiian Christmas Bazaar a couple of weeks ago at home.

I'd thought that maybe we could salvage the day by taking the girls to the Hawaiian Nature Center, but once we finally found it, it didn't look terribly enticing for our little ones so we decided not to go in. We looked around the nearby Asian gardens and enjoyed what we could see of the Iao Valley. We stopped at another lookout on our way back and were able to see a whale in the distance.

After a little shopping in Lahaina we returned home, swam in the pool for a few hours, and then did our traditional pizza and movie night. Poor M was so tired she begged to be put to bed while Wall-E was still playing.

Today we spent the morning strolling down Front Street of Lahaina. We really got a kick out of a man that had like six parrots that you paid to get your picture taken with. He was super nice and talked to the girls about the birds and even let them hold one before he had some paying customers. It was fun to see him and the birds work with this family of three. The dad had a small parrot on his shoulder, a large red parrot on his head, the wife had a large white parrot on her shoulder, the little boy had a parrot on him, and then they were all holding a bird in their hands too. When the trainer/photographer said "Ready Freddie" the red parrot spread out his wings for the photoshoot. He said something else to a large blue bird laying on his back in the dad's hand, and the bird dropped his head backwards so he looked like he was dead. It was fully entertaining to watch, but I can't show you any pictures because, naturally, pictures (besides the photographer's) were not allowed. It would have been fun to have our family picture taken, but P still has his totally irrational fear of birds, so that would have been impossible.

We also really enjoyed the Banyan Tree park. There was a market underway so I wasn't able to get particularly great pics since there was so much else going on, but the fact that it was just one tree that was spread out over the entire park was pretty darn cool.

After finishing our window shopping, we joined my parents for lunch at Bubba Gump's. We met a server/bartender from there while out yesterday and she convinced us that Bubba's was the place to go. We were thrilled that she was on today and asked to be seated in her section. It was a great meal & the service was great. Even P thought that everything was perfect, and raved the rest of the day about his Catcher's Net Shrimp - which is really something if you know P.

When we returned home we decided to hang out at the beach just out our back door, but all the while M was begging to go to the pool. She has absolutely no interest in getting another mouthful of salt water! So we spent another three hours poolside

Once again, tonight the girls were so worn out they had to be carried to bed and were nearly asleep by the time their heads hit their pillows.

Aloha

So we arrived in Maui yesterday after a very long flight. I had really thought that the girls would travel relatively well. C did do extremely well, but for M it was a rough flight. The highlight of the trip for her was after the landing. She and P were waiting at the front of the plane, thinking that we were behind them, when the pilot offered to let M in the cockpit. She wore his cap and got to push all the buttons. Unfortunately, we were ahead of them on the way to baggage claim, so C missed out on that experience.

Last night when C said her prayer, she gave thanks for the neat, awesome, fun, (about five more adjectives that I can't remember), best day of her life. Way cute!

Today we went to Napili Bay where we swam for three hours. It was great fun! After her first mouthful of water, M asked Daddy "who put the yucky water in here?"

Surprisingly, both girls were excited about getting in the water. I was so impressed with how well C did - she wasn't scared at all! When M was trying to get out of the water, she'd let a wave wash her ashore and then say "thank you, water."

Much to my chagrin, the girls both decided to roll their wet little bodies around in the dry sand before returning to the water. When we finally pulled their suits off, M seriously had about 1 1/2 inches thick of sand in her crotch. I fear her suit may be ruined as I can't get all of the sand out of it!

Immediately after our sun exposure, M had turned black, which has now faded again to a darker shade of brown. Meanwhile the rest of us have turned varying shades of red, which are becoming darker and darker as the night wears on.

We wrapped the night up with dinner at Aloha Mixed Plate. It's traditional Hawaiian fare with rice, macaroni salad and your choice of various meats. We enjoyed the music from the luau next door.

After picking up some Aloe Vera Gel and some other odds and ends at the store we returned home and called it a night.

We are fam-i-ly (sing it with me!)

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Since I'm extremely short on time, I'm just going to let the photos speak for themselves. My apologies for being so verbose!

Cousin Cal's baptism

C with cousin Kellene visiting from out of state. M was the photographer above.

Kellene is my youngest brother's daughter, but he couldn't make the trip.



Celebrating Kellene's 2nd and my 3xth birthday

Grandpa and Grandma "Beachy" with Kellene

Aunt Nikki with Kellene and Grandma

Halloween

First of all, I have to comment on what an exquisite fall we have enjoyed this year. This is my most favorite time of year! I love the crisp juicy apples, eating pumpkin foods, the gorgeous colors, sunny but cool days, and piles of dry leaves on the ground. What made the season so exceptional this year was that we had a extended period without rain, so the leaves stayed on the trees longer than usual. Sadly, that has all changed now - but it was wonderful while it lasted!

So now to back track, after C's final soccer game I took the girls and their cousins Neo & Grace to the 1st annual Harvest Fest at the park. It didn't quite meet my expectations, but I guess for a first time event they didn't do so bad.

There had been pumpkin decorating, but all the pumpkins were gone when we got there. They had a little petting zoo set up, a treasure hunt in the hay where the kids could find candy (big hit), the presence of radio Disney and a few small sponsored booths - plus of course the regular playground equipment. They kids ended up spending most of their time on the playground, but they did enjoy taking a little hayride around the park once that was back up and running. The girls were also pleasantly surprised when the state Miss Teen visited. It turned out that she was C's swimming teacher this summer - and she remembered C by name!

On the hay ride.

Since the Harvest Fest didn't quite satisfy my fall itch, I took the girls to the local pumpkin patch a few days later. Each of us picked out the perfect pumpkin. M's and mine were small, round and perfect, but C's was 38 lbs and rather funny looking - but it did have a nice flat side for carving. I also picked up a huge bag of apples with great plans for apple crisp and applesauce. The apple crisp was good, but sadly I burned the applesauce when I decided to let it simmer longer to evaporate some of the excess liquid. The applesauce was quickly forgotten once I sat down at the computer. It was probably almost an hour later when my mom made the discovery. Bummer!!! You'd think that after all these years of burning foods, I'd finally follow my husband's pleas and set a timer. Nope, not gonna happen.


After placing the pumpkins carefully in the back of the van, the girls were free to play in the kids pavillion - riding John Deere tricycles, playing in the corn box, riding on the kiddie merry go round, and checking out the farm animals on display. I thought the little pigs (not pictured) were particularly cute.





A few days before Halloween our church had it's annual Trunk or Treat. I love that the girls get a couple of opportunities to wear their costumes. Grandpa Mod was pretty impressive in his too!

This Halloween my parents came into town to enjoy the festivities for the first time with the girls. It was a lot of fun to share this holiday with them!

Late Halloween afternoon I told the girls that they needed to clean their rooms before they could go trick or treating. C set off to work relatively quickly, but not her sister. M pretty much trashes her room on a daily basis. I swear that she must put on a minimum of five outfits a day - and everything ends up on her floor, including the clothes she had to dig past to get to the ones she wanted to put on. Needless to say, I am sooooo tired of putting the same things away day after day after day. So on this occasion, I told her that she made her mess by herself so she was going to have to clean it up all by herself. I figured that the incentive was big enough that she would manage to get it done. I repeatedly reminded her of what she needed to do, but she was simply not interested. Finally I warned her that if her room wasn't cleaned up, then she was going to have to take a bath after dinner and go straight to bed. Imagine my surprise when I heard the bath water running just a few minutes later. I left my dinner preparation to go upstairs to see if she was actually in the bath, and she was. Not long after she came downstairs in her pajamas, just as happy as could be.

So I eventually figured out that M did not want to go trick or treating. The little girl that only wants to watch movies that I assure her have scary parts, and begs me to sneak up on her and scare her when I come home from work didn't want to go trick or treating because she didn't want to be scared. Go figure. P left to take C out, and so Grandma decided to assist M in cleaning her room, at which point M decided that she did want to go out after all. So finally at 8:30 I head out the door to take my little three year old trick or treating. Yeah, what a good mom, huh?

I was surprised to see how many households were not participating this year. I wonder if it is the economy, the opening game of the local professional basketball team, or since it was a Friday if more people than usual were just going to Halloween parties. At any rate, the girls had to work a little harder than usual to earn their candy. Since M and I were among the last of the trick or treaters out, people were shoveling candy into her bag. On the loop one block up from us, people were telling us that they had only had 20 kids all night long. At each house, M would proclaim that she was too scared to go up, to which I would respond "ok, we can go home now." But then somehow, she would summon up the courage to knock on the door. At one house she knocked on the door at about 8:50. We could hear someone come to the door, and then the lights went out. "How rude!" I thought to myself. Then the lights flickered back on, and then off again. I turned around to see that the entire bowl of the valley was engulfed in darkness. Well, actually it wasn't that dark of a night, but all the lights were out anyway.

So we had an abrupt end to our trick or treating. Luckily it wasn't that far to get home. It turned out that there had been a car accident, and we were out of power for several hours. It did make for a fun twist to our Halloween night. I counted the left over rice crispy treats when I got home, and figured that we'd had 150 kids at our house.

C with Grandpa R. I don't know why she wanted him to hold up her book, but she was very adamant!

M trick or treating our neighbor Uncle Jeff (with Grandma Mod behind him). He has to bribe her to give him kisses!