Leaving... on a Jet Plane : Today was the day we headed to our first BIG family vacation. We had to get up at 3:30 am, but none of minded. Brayden and I were super excited... if you can't tell :) But here is a little insight to our vacation of a lifetime...
Aloha Hawaii!!
Switching planes in O'hau headed to Maui (I also "surprised" Jarrod, well more like got talked to into renting a convertible by the rental car guy) it was fun and a great way to see Maui!
The second we got our condo keys, we headed straight to the beach. This is the view from our condo and our first time on the beaches of Hawaii! Thank goodness Brayden LOVED it. We were a little nervous because the last time we went to the Oregon beach I think I burnt his feet when I set him down in the sand and he wouldn't play in the sand at all... Hopefully he's erased those traumatizing memories! But he loved Hawaii sand, sun and water!
First Hawaiian Sunset... and it was as amazing as everyone says it is.
First Hike in Maui: This day we headed for our first family Hawaii hike. It was a fun hike, only a couple of miles and didn't take too long, but still beautiful nonetheless.
Since the hike didn't take too long to do we decided to make a whole day out of it and headed up the the top of the Maui volcano Haleakala. It was a good couple hours in the car and Brayden was such a trooper. Not realizing that it would get much much colder as we got higher and higher... by the time we got to the top, our top to the convertible was up and the heat was on! I'm pretty sure the people up at the top thought we are abusing our kid because he had no coat and the wind was soooo cold! But it was a small price to pay for the view and adventure to the top.
Here are some of the volcano's facts:
Haleakalā (/ˌhɑːliːˌɑːkəˈlɑː/; Hawaiian: [ˈhɐleˈjɐkəˈlaː]), or the East Maui Volcano, is a massive shield volcano that forms more than 75% of the Hawaiian Island of Maui. The western 25% of the island is formed by the West Maui Mountains.
The tallest peak of Haleakalā, at 10,023 feet (3,055 m), is Puʻu ʻUlaʻula (Red Hill).
Poor Brayden was FREEZING
Beach Day: I loved our sporadic beach days. It was nice going for so many days we could do the tourist things and have long relaxing beach days.
Food : one thing that we didn't lack during our trip was yummy food to eat. Now, I'm not a big fish eater, but nothing beats yummy Japanese food and a good fish taco and I know it was Jarrod's favorite meal we ate in Hawaii! Fish tacos, fried tofu, sushi, spam with rice and calamari just to name a few of our yummy delights! Here is a little glimpse into our Hawaiian meals...
Sushi Date Night : at this dinner date night the boys were nice and bought us leis from a lady who came around with a basket full of fresh handmade leis... I'm sure they were WAY over priced, but it was sweet of them.
Our little Maui shopping trip. Who are these two crazies?
Maui Ocean Center : Bringing a 2 year old to Hawaii, we needed to think of fun things to do with him and what more does a 2 year old like than fish and sharks and turtles?! So this day was dedicated to him. He loved seeing all the creepy sea creatures and all the beautiful ones too.
Banyan Tree : Everyone we talked to in Maui said that we needed to head to Lahaina and when we got there, to visit the banyan tree. It was really cool to see it up close... Here is a little history on it...
This Banyan Tree was planted in April, 1873, and marked the 50th Anniversary of Christian missionary work in Lahaina. The tree was imported from India and was only 8 feet tall. It now stands over 60 feet high, has 12 major trunks in addition to a huge core. It stretches over a 200-foot area and shades 2/3 of an acre.
These 2 kids getting ready to parasail
I found this cute little boutique while in Lahina... I think it was a higher power telling us we need to go back one day with the Belcher family!
In Lahaina there was a high school surf competition and we stopped for a minute to take in the sights. I think Brayden could get used to this lifestyle!
Pearl Harbor : Although we didn't get to spend as much time as I would have liked at Pearl Harbor, it was still so surreal just being there. The rain was pouring down and there were people everywhere. It turned into meltdown city for Brayden. But with that aside... You could just feel all the history all around you and all the lives that were los and changed forevert. Next time we go back this will be on my "to-do list with no kids" for sure.
Paradise Cove Luau : This was probably the most memorable thing we did. The whole family came and I know it was the one thing Jarrod was REALLY looking forward to. There were so many activities to do and fun things to watch. Here are a few of my favorites (Grandma Yo getting her "tattoo" and being sooo excited, Brayden's turtle tattoo, making headbands with Brayden, watching Brayden and Jarrod do the hula on stage, seeing Jarrod get picked out of the crowed to dance with one of the girls, Uncle Gordy being an amazing Hawaiian athlete and the spear throw, seeing the roast pig come out of the ground and of course the beautiful sunset)
Another Beach Day : Brayden loved sitting on the boogie board out in the ocean. I think he would sit out there all day if we let him.
Dressed for a night out on the town : One of the last nights everyone was still in town we headed out for a family dinner and walk in Waikiki. The picture of Brayden and his Great Grandma is probably one of my favorite pictures ever! I can't believe she's 90 years older than Brayden! From 92 to 2... you can't beat that beauty!
O'ahu House : Our house that we rented in O'ahu was beautiful. I loved how we had our own gorgeous pool and hammock. Brayden loved toe coy pond too! Here are some pictures from our family night out and the house.
Golfing in Hawaii : Jarrod loves playing golf and he was so excited when my Uncles took him golfing. He had so much fun and talked about it for days to come!
Hike in Kailua : The pillbox hike was really fun with amazing views. Although it was a really steep hike Jarrod did an amazing job carrying Brayden on his back the whole way up!
Hanging with Uncle Jerry. I love that Brayden gets to have bonding time with all sides of his family. He sure is one lucky kid to have so many people that love him!
Dole Plantation : Another kid friendly adventure we did was the day at the Dole plantation. Brayden was so excited to ride the train and feed the fish. It was really interesting to see where the pineapples grow and see all the different stuff they make out of it. It was a fun trip to the plantation for sure.
Shrimp Shack Time : The same day we went to Pearl Harbor and the Dole Plantation we drove around the whole island and headed up to North Shore. While we were there everyone said we had to stop at a shrimp shack. There are a ton of different "shacks" along the way and we were told that the best was Giovanni's. I even found a website for them Giovanni's Shrimp Truck. Just look at the smile on Jarrod's face... He definitely approved!
After the family was gone and it was just our little family (and Jena too) we moved from the house to a condo in Waikiki. This was the city view, although it was beautiful I don't think I'll ever stay in Waikiki again. There were too many people and not enough quiet, but it was a fun experience and the shopping was amazing!
Hello Monk Seal... Nice to meet you : We found this fun little beach that was a little hike down and we found a monk seal sleeping on the beach. I think I thought it was cooler than the boys did... but nonetheless I loved spending the afternoon at this beach. There were also a ton of surfers out which was really fun to watch.
Here is a family video from this beach...
Sleepy Night Out : we met up with Jena for dinner. Towards the end Brayden says to me that he was "ready to go home, momma", but Jena and I were talking and talking. Soon after that Brayden crawls up in Jarrod's lap and the next thing I know he was fast asleep on the table. It was the sweetest thing I've ever seen!
The last night in Hawaii we told Brayden that we could ride the trolly downtown so we headed to downtown Waikiki on the trolly and hung out on the "strip" and watched our last Hawaii sunset. I got a little bored waiting for the sun to go down (and Jarrod was on his phone doing fantasy football...) I had a little photo shoot... haha.
The crowded beach of Waikiki!
photo shoot time...
Aloha Hawaii : I hate to say goodbye to Hawaii, but this sure was a vacation of a lifetime. With so many memories made I couldn't have asked for a better family to share it with. You can't help but turn a little hawaiian while you're there and I know we brought some back with us too. We had such a blast and we are already talking about when we can go back again. I know Brayden probably won't remember this trip, but I'm so thankful I got to document it so he can look back and see how he got to spend 13 whole days with family on 2 Hawaiian islands with countless adventures and endless love. So, until next time... Aloha (goodbye) and Mahalo (thank you) Hawaii... this family enjoyed every last part of you!
