THE BIG ISLAND…

Aloha from HI!  We’ve been surprised by this delightful island!  All that we’d heard about it before coming made us think we wouldn’t enjoy it all that much, but to our surprise we’re rating this our #1 choice so far!  We flew into Hilo on the east side of the island and then drove to our hotel in Kona on the west side of the island… a 2 1/2 hour drive, by the way… in the dark, late at night, crazy curved roads, very high cliffs, tired kids, more tired mama, in a sweet Crown Victoria, just like my grandpa used to drive….Jody was diggin’ it 😉

Hawaii has interesting weather due to the active volcano on the southeastern portion of the island.  The days start off sunny but by 2pm the volcanic smog rolls in so it becomes really hazy.  Not my preferred vacation weather but interesting nonetheless simply because we liked this island so much.  Our hotel was located on one of the few sandy beaches as most of them are volcanic rock, which was nice because we could walk out and snorkel right there. Especially nice since snorkeling and being two don’t typically mix. So Jod and I took turns building sandcastles with Eli while the other took the girls snorkeling.  If you’re headed to HI, we’d highly recommend this property, especially if you’re taking the kiddos!  

We made it to a luau; very touristy but fun just the same;-)  We learned a lot about their polynesian culture through the dancing, food and activities.

The fam!

Kids at the luau

BTW, I have to brag on Lexie for a minute;-)…these are two of the dresses that Lexie made! I don’t even know how to turn her sewing machine on, let alone produce something like this! So pleased with her sewing skills progress.  

Kids with luau dancers

Kids got to enjoy a smoothie in a pineapple.  I think they thought they’d died and gone to heaven!  So fun to watch their joy in the lil’ things;-)

Jody got some fun pictures on the rocks outside the hotel one evening.  I picked the ones that really showed their personalities at this phase in their lives;-)

LOVE this kid! She brings so much joy and laughter to our fam;-) A fiesty one she is!  Never met a stranger- ever!  

The babe! So cautious and sweet…and spoiled by his sisters! We’re working on it!!  Obsessed by all the rocks;-) Also ‘s gone from calling me ‘mom’ to ‘mommy’ this trip! Sounds super cute, I might add…

Oh, she’s getting so big- turning into a beautiful young girl;-)! Full of questions, intrigue, adventure and….a true 1st born- a rule follower!

Some sweet sister time; Jod was able to get a close up while they chatted about who knows what!

You know our obsession with National Parks so we had to hit Volcano National Park! SO COOL!  The weather wasn’t great the higher up the mountain we drove, which was a huge bummer as the smog made it really difficult to see lots of amazing views.  

One word- YUMOLA! We got lunch from this great lil’ spot! We thought it’d be fun to go here since it was on the way to Volcano NP and it was as far south as we could go;-)

At the Kilauea Caldera

Kilauea Iki; was a 400 foot deep lava lake just 40 years ago!

Entrance to the Thurston Lava Tube…. hot lava rushed through here years ago… powerful stuff!

In the lava tube…

Leading the charge on the trails…

Hiking along the Chain of Craters….all extinct volcanoes at this point.

Girls earning their Junior Ranger badge;-)

We’re off to our last stop…Maui!

WE HEART KAUAI!

Aloha from Kauai!  

We stayed on Poipu Beach on Kauai

We stayed at a great resort that had super fun Hawaiian culture activities scheduled throughout the day….so, of course, we signed up for all of them!  It was schooling on the road;-)  Turned out Mr. Sonny was the teacher for all classes so we got to know him pretty well.  He was born and raised in Hawaii, owns a floral store on Oahu and contracts out to several Kauai resorts to teach tourists Hawaiian specialties as well as create their lobby floral arrangements. 

We started with lei making class. We used red hibiscus and literally sewed them together with very large needles.

The finished projects;-)

Next we hit hula class…

Eli getting some time with Mr Sonny

Hawaiian canoe making class…

The almost finished project…. hopefully it makes it home without breaking!

Sweet pic of Elijah with a rare smile for the camera!  He tends to be pretty camera shy.

Night time tide pool class- kids highly enjoyed this class!  We had a great guide, Mr Mike, who was studying to be a marine biologist.  So armed with flip flops and flashlights we headed out to the beach.  Don’t know if I’d recommend it with a 2-year-old but we’re always willing to try anything, at least once!  Only have two pics (and they’re not very good) as my battery died- worst timing ever!

A beautiful Spanish Dancer! Again, sorry pic isn’t great;-(

Checking out cool stuff!

Ukelele class…. not Emily’s favorite as her lil fingers had a hard time getting to where they were supposed to be!

Notice Em’s face;-)

Poi ball class; these are the balls that are used in traditional luaus.  The hula dancers make it look WAY easier than it is!

Eli loved swinging these!

The final class was flower arranging- Mr Sonny’s specialty!  The lobby flowers are re-created each Tuesday so the girls got a little class in flower design;-)  

Gettin’ started…

The goods they were working with- gorgeous flowers!

The finished arrangement!

Some night time laughs around the fire!

A sweet family approached us on our first day here and gave us their boogie board;-)  They told us, in ceremonial fashion, that we were the 11th generation to receive this board and to pass it on to another family when we were departing.  So fun!

Em gettin’ a saltwater face plant on the board… she hadn’t quite figured out the balancing yet;-)

Jody taking a turn

Shave ice is big here… and yummy!  They are HUGE and put in these fun plastic “flower” cups to prevent against spillage- a mama must of created this one! They’re as big as Eli’s face!

We took a road trip up to the north side of Kauai, Princeville area, to Hanalei beach.  They had 18-20 foot waves the day we were here- CRAZY big!  The power of the water was never more apparent!  There was NO SWIMMING at any of the beaches along the North Shore, similar to Oahu’s north shore beaches.  Just absolutely gorgeous, God created scenery! So we soaked in the beauty, enjoyed some of the local flavors and snorkeled along the eastern beaches.

 

Awesome old tree on the shore!

They don’t have squirrels here…. they have chickens. No lie! They’re everywhere!

We stopped along Hanalei to explore a shallow cave…

Girls thought it would be so cool to drink out of a coconut so we stopped at a roadside stand and supported some local commerce;-)

And received a lil coconut lesson from a sweet lady with it…

We came across a Monk seal tanning on Poipu beach- so cute!

Late one night, Eli decided he’d had enough so put his jacket over his face and went to sleep!;-) He was done…

Overall, we truly enjoyed Kauai.  It’s a low key island with way less people than Oahu and it’s natural beauty is awe-inspiring.  

 

 

 

 

ALOHA!

…from Honolulu!  We started our 11.5 hour travel Monday am to Oahu.  With a short layover in D.C, we headed west and then south for some fun in the sun;-)

Kids waiting to board plane in Detroit

Em gettin’ comfy

We were super fortunate that the plane wasn’t full so we had several rows to ourselves!  

We finally made it to the hotel!

We arrived in Honolulu about 6:30pm HI time…. 12:30pm MI time so we were all tired!  We hiked our way up to the room and crashed…. until 3:30 HI time!  We were having jet lag flashbacks of China;-)!  When the sun finally came up we were pleasantly surprised to find this awaiting us…

Beautiful view of Waikiki Beach

Down the coast at Waikiki Beach

We explored the pool and beach.  Elijah had fun burying Emily;-)  I think he was secretly getting back at her for a multitude of things….look at his face!!

Who me?!?! Caught red-handed!

We rented a car and spent the morning at Pearl Harbor.  Ok, for you history buffs this is going to be very offensive, but I knew very little about this horrific event in history and therefore have passed on very little to the girls.  SO GLAD we took the time to visit this National Monument and learn about a major piece of American/World history!  Over 4,000 visitors pass through its gate daily!  And, of course, they offered the Junior Ranger program so guess what the kids did??;-)  

Kids reciting their Pearl Harbor Junior Ranger oath to the Ranger

Pearl Harbor’s a beautiful setting with a serene atmosphere.  It’s a living memorial and honored as such in all aspects.  After going through the museum portions of the monument, we watched a very informative movie and then were taken by boat to the USS Arizona Memorial.  It was difficult not to tear up as we walked on sacred “ground”, if you will.  I had similar emotions as when we visited the Oklahoma Bombing site this fall…. it’s very somber to think of all the innocent lives lost.

Arriving at the memorial

A memorial wall naming all the amazing sailors and marines that lost their lives as well as the survivors that have chosen to be buried there over the years.

Lexie looking at the remains of the USS Arizona.

Bubba hasn’t quite figured out which way’s up with the shades;-)

We then headed north to the Dole pineapple plantation.  We took a train ride into the fields to see the different phases of growth and then partook in some pineapple ice cream.  If you enjoy pineapple, this is the place for you!  They have pineapple everything!

Despite his SUPER enthusiastic look, Eli was TOTALLY digging this experience.

Other than the ice cream being extremely overpriced, it was pretty tasty;-)

We continued heading north to the infamous North Shore!  We couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see the big waves of the international surfing competitions! In fact, the waves are so big there that they have permanent signs posted that forbid swimming.  It was so beautiful!

The North Shore!

It was fun to watch the surfers out there!

Overall, Oahu’s a beautiful island…. it’s bustling with tourists, famous for its beaches & shopping, and gives an international flair with its many Japanese and Australian guests.  

 

 

 

AN AWAKE CHRISTMAS!

Well, last year we were just three days home from China and SEVERELY jet lagged so Christmas was somewhat of a blur!  This year we were ready!  We spent Christmas Eve with the Coes, which is always a pleasure.  Christmas morning was enjoyed as a fam… sweet, laid back and appreciated.  We were able to get some cute, joyous expressions of the kids while opening presents.

Next we packed up the kids and headed up to Papa & Gigi’s.  Papa, especially, enjoys gifting so always makes this a special time for the family.  Lexie made fleece pj pants for the ENTIRE family as well as five friends this Christmas season… she was a busy bee!  (She made both the top and bottom pjs for Eli in the first pic.)  We decided to all wear them on Christmas day;-)  Papa, Gigi and Aunt Andrea received MSU fleece, of course;-)

We also got to celebrate Christmas with Grandma, Grandpa and Connor several days later!  Always great fun to extend the occasion out as long as possible, although I have to admit, our Christmas gear was dusted and packed away on the 27th.  With all the new items coming in, we spent a day purging and organizing, which made my heart so very happy!  Come on- you type As know what I’m talking about!  Just needed a tadbit of semblance in my life that week;-)

P.S. Emmy is wearing her newly received gymnastics leotard; shockingly not a bathing suit, which is her clothing of choice year round;-)

Overall, Christmas was a huge celebration of Jesus’ birth for the Medfords.  We did our best to keep our focus on Him, which can be a challenge during the Christmas season.  I suppose we’re seed planting with the kids in this area;-)  So thankful for grace!