Hawaii Never Disappoints (even when it rains)

This was my FIFTH trip to Oahu, but my very first time it wasn't hot and sunny.  I was disappointed, since it was Summer and Clayton's first time in Hawaii.  But, since it is HAWAII, we still were able to have an amazing vacation (and do some things I had never done before).  Here are some highlights:

1.  The Vickers:  A definite highlight was meeting up with Kya and Clayton.  We hadn't seen them since Christmas, so it was fun to hang out and catch up.  

2. Our Airbnb: Finding a place to stay in Hawaii was a challenge.  Despite the elevator situation & the parking garage ($47/day) & the bathroom door that didn't really lock...or close, it was the perfect little place for us.  My favorite part was the patio (we were on the 28th floor) where we sat and chatted most nights. 

3.  Waikiki:  Our Airbnb was just about a 10min (or less) walk to Waikiki beach.  Our first night we walked down to the beach and ate at Duke's (after waiting over an hour for a table).  Over the  next few days we went to all the ABC Stores, visited the "Duke Paoa Kahanamoku" statue, and attempted to watch the fireworks (they were cancelled due to weather).

4.  Waimea Beach Park:  This was our first full day in Hawaii and we had to take advantage of the warmer weather, since a storm was forecasted for later in the week.  Kya and Clayton jumped off the huge rock, Mike sat alone in the shade, Mom got knocked over by a wave, and we all floated on boogie boards in the waves until Mom and Kya got sea sick:/

5.  Luau:  This was at the top of my list of things to do on this Hawaii trip...although, it was about the same as the "Luau" at the PCC.  I was hoping for a ceremonial pig roasting--oh well, maybe they don't do that anymore.  The show was amazing, the food was delicious, and the location was beautiful.

6.  North Shore:  A lot of the things we did were in the North Shore.  We spent the first 3 days on the north shore (2 of which we spent hours waiting for Kya and Clayton to go skydiving only for it to be cancelled due to weather moments before they got onto the plane (twice)--not a highlight--super disappointing).  We stopped by Dole Plantation and got Dole Whip--amazing.  We stopped by Matsumoto's for shaved ice--amazing.  We got tacos at North Shore Taco's TWICE--double amazing.  We tried to watch the sunset and eat Bonsai Bowls at Sunset Beach--it was overcast and kind of raining so we couldn't see the sunset, and we were all too full for Bonsai Bowls:(  The beach was beautiful though.

7. Visiting Old Friends:  Mike's old coworker from LA (James) lives in Hawaii, so we met up with him for dinner and a walk on the beach.  He brought Mike a lei his wife made:)  We also visited Mike's mission president, Pres. Aki and his wife.  It was a lovely visit.

8.  Waimea Falls:  Entrance to Waimea Valley was included in our Luau tickets, so we went back to do the waterfall.  It was just a short (paved) hike to the falls.  At the top they had life jackets and change rooms, so we braved to icy water and swam to the falls.  It was one of the coolest experiences of the trip!  Summer opted out, but took lots of pictures for us.

9.  Lighthouse Trail:  This trail was listed as the most popular kid-friendly hike in Hawaii.  It was just 2 miles round trip up the coast.  The drive to the trailhead was so beautiful, so we pulled over many times before we got there.  One of the viewpoints was a blowhole.  We walked all the way down to it!  It was some of the most beautiful coastline I've seen.  Summer and I almost got took out by a wave.  After getting drenched she opted to head back up to the car:(

10.  Shark's Cove:  This was one of my favorite things we did.  Luckily we were there when the weather was nice.  We got to see a few different tropical fish.  The only bad thing was walking on the rocks.  I think most of us stubbed our toes or scraped up our feet.  It was so beautiful and the highlight was definitely the huge turquoise fish was saw.

11.  Laie:  The Hawaii temple grounds are incredible, even in the pouring rain.  We got a little soaked, before we realized the visitor's center had umbrellas haha.  Then we headed to BYUH which unfortunately was under construction.  We drove around and I was impressed that I remembered enough to get us to Jordan's old dorm (Hale 8) and show everyone where she lived (since I was the only one who took her there).  

12.  Lanikai (and other beaches):  This is my favorite beach!  Luckily it was warm enough to get our swimsuits on...the water was too cold for most of us, but we had fun playing in the sand.

13.  Kualoa Ranch:  Our last (and rainiest) day was spent at Kuala ranch.  We booked a "half day" which included a Movie Tour, lunch, and Boat tour.  It was absolutely pouring buckets the entire time we were there!  We bought ponchos and just sucked it up.  The ranch was actually incredible and one of my favorite things we did.  We got to see places they filmed "Lost" and "Jurassic Park" and "King Kong"...we saw and learned all about Hawaiian agriculture and history, we saw an actual army bunker from WW2...and the boat ride was pretty cool too.  We got to go to a private island and see sea turtles swimming in their natural habitat.

Overall the trip was fantastic.  As we were leaving Clayton said "I don't think I want to come back to Hawaii, it's too cold"  I know he was kidding haha, but he definitely needs to go back and see it all in the sunshine:) 

New State Unlocked

Florida!

Since our cruise left out of Port Canaveral and we had to fly to Orlando, we thought we'd spend a couple extra days in Florida.  They didn't turn out quite as we planned...

Day 1 (in Florida)

Our flight landed around 11:30pm, so basically we just Ubered to the hotel....which Mike booked...which wasn't great.  We got up, turned our nose up at the continental breakfast (it really was BAD), and ran across the street to Waffle House.  The food was ok (except they brought Summer her eggs with gluten toast on top), but the AC was blasting and we were frozen.  There was a little confusion about when we were supposed to check into the cruise, so we had a few panic moments and left earlier than planned (and had to cancel our uber and lost a bunch of $$).  So we really didn't get to do anything "Florida"

Summer always gets to be wedged in the middle

Orlando

After the cruise...

Day 2 (in Florida)

Picked up our rental car and drove straight to Kennedy Space Center.  I was actually excited for the museum (I had heard such good things about it).  I don't know if it was the heat, or if we were just tired, but none of us were into it.  We did a bus tour, looked through one or two buildings, and then we were done.  Definitely not worth the money...at least for us.

Doesn't Summer look excited?!

We checked into our hotel...which was across the street from the first hotel and also wasn't great...and was also booked by Mike ;)  This is when Mike started to not feel so good.  We got pizza delivered to our room (which was nasty--under cooked and super saucy).

Day 3 (in Florida)

Unfortunately the next morning Mike was still not feeling well.  AND our toilet was clogged--ugh.  Summer and I would have to do the swamp tour alone, even though Mike had always wanted to do one!  It was sad.  So Mike got to oversee the fixing of the toilet, while Summer and I got to go on an airboat and hunt for alligators.

The swamp tour was one of my very favorite things from the entire trip (cruise included).  We were on a 6 passenger boat, but it was just me, Summer and the tour guide!  He was an expert on all things swamp and could answer any questions we had.  We saw tons of alligators (big and small), and so many birds.  The boat ride alone was worth the money--so fun.  Summer was an expert at finding the alligators--sometimes even before the tour guide.  She would just point and say "gater" haha.  

The views as we drove through the swamp were unreal

Mama bird guarding her nest

Our tour guide

This guy was HUGE and we even got to see him move!

Baby gators

Day 4 (in Florida)

By the time Sunday came, we were ready to go home!  It had been a long trip.  Luckily Mike was feeling better.  We stood in some of the slowest lines at the airport...along with every Disney fan in Orlando, barely made our connection in Portland, and ended with a 27min flight into Seattle.  It was sure good to be home, even though it was dark, cold, and rainy.

Who wouldn't want to come home to this cutie?

Quarter of a Century

Want to hear something crazy?  Jordan thinks that 25 is old!!!  

If this is what old looks like, sign me up!  We love you Jordan--Happy Birthday!

She and Summer finally got to go see Cirque du Solei together 

(after having to miss it in Vegas because Mikel was sick)

The cake looks so tiny haha--its a bundtini:)

We took her to her favorite restaurant Din Thai Fung 

(had to wait TWO HOURS!!)

In honor of her birthday, I'll give a little Jordan update:

-She is working on her Master's degree in Elementary Education

-She and Louis moved in with us back in December (and we love having her home)

-She finally quit working at Ariztia (just before Christmas)

-She is working/teaching preschool in Seattle

 

Here's a couple adorable toddler pictures, just to remind you that time is flying by WAY too fast!

Cruisin' with My Homies

 Going on a cruise has always been on my "bucket list".  Since I was considering a Mediterranean cruise for my 50th birthday, I thought maybe we should try it out first, to see how we like it.  Where better to "try it out" than in the Caribbean, right?!  So, we did 7 days & 6 nights on Royal Caribbean's Adventures of the Sea, stopping in Grand Cayman, Jamaica, and Bahamas (Perfect Day at CocoCay).

The Cruise (Itself):

Being on the cruise ship reminded me of being in Vegas (minus the smoking).  Lots of people, restaurants, theaters, shops etc.  There were endless things to do!

Food--Each guest was assigned a table & time at the main dining room for dinner (if you wanted, you could always opt out).  You ate at the same table, with the same waiters every night, they just switched the menu.  Each dinner had a theme (Mexican, Caribbean, Italian etc).  They even had two "fancy" nights where everyone dressed up.  The food was great, but the best part was that you didn't have to make any decisions or plans!  There was also a Cafe with pizza open just about 24hrs where Summer could get a gluten free pizza made for her whenever she was hungry:) They also had 2 gluten free deserts every day.  The buffet (The Windjammer) was also open 24 hrs, but Summer and I didn't love it.  So many people (and so noisy) and the food wasn't as good as the dining room.

Entertainment--Summer and I swam at the pools both sea days.  It was a little colder (and windier) than I would have liked (74 I think), but it was still fun.  Every night we'd do a show...singing, dancing, ice skating, magic, comedy, arcade...even a Taylor Swift version of Name that Tune.  Mike also did a pickleball tournament!

Everything Else--Our room was perfect.  Super comfortable bed. little couch and desk, bathroom and a tv.  We were on level 2 which was a bit close to the water, but we got used to it.  On the first night there were some loud banging noises which made it hard to sleep, but after that it was great.  

The thing I was most worried about was my motion sickness!  I bought every medicine I could find and hoped for the best.  When I first got on the ship, I thought it was a lot rockier than I expected. so I took medicine.  After that I was completely fine (while taking medicine each day)...well, until the last sea day.  The last sea day was super rocky the entire day.  I felt fine until after dinner, then I was not doing well.  I put patches behind my ears and I started feeling ok enough to go to bed.

The pools (deck 11)

Our scheduled dinner time was 5pm, so we could go watch the sunset after we were done eating--when it wasn't too windy (and cold)

Summer and Mike hit their heads too many times with this bed "situation"

Summer usually got potatoes and veggies for dinner--

this night it was rice instead of potatoes (not as good)

Doesn't this look casino-like?  Fancy.

One of our towel animals:)

Our desserts from the last day

Grand Cayman:

This was our first port day, so we didn't really know what to expect.  It turned out to be quite different than most ports.  Our ship couldn't dock (they don't have a dock big enough for cruise ships), so everyone who got off the ship took tender boats.  Since we had an excursion booked through the ship (dolphin encounter), we had to go with our group.  There was a lot of waiting around but finally got on our boat and then straight to our bus.

Once we got to our excursion, we went to the Turtle Center first.  We only had about 30 min there, but it was enough time.  We saw lots of HUGE turtles up really close.  It was very cool.  Then we headed over to the dolphin encounter where we waited FOREVER for our turn.  

We had about 30 min. with our dolphin (Capi).  We got to touch him as he swam past, shake hands (fins), touch his nose, make him spin, and lean in for a kiss.  It was amazing!

Unfortunately, once we finished our excursion, we had to get back on the ship.  I really was hoping to also have time to check out a beach, but there wasn't time.  Once we got on our tender boat, it started POURING rain!  It was probably the hardest rain I have ever seen, and we were on a boat in the ocean getting absolutely drenched.  It was crazy!  Our clothes were completely soaked through when we got back to the ship.

On our drive to the Turtle/Dolphin Center

(there were tons of wild chickens running around)

We were able to get sooo close to the turtles

We only bought one picture of the dolphin encounter--don't ask how much it cost 

Our dolphin, Capi

Jamaica:

Getting off the ship in Jamaica was way easier than the Cayman Islands.  We just walked out haha.  There were people singing and dancing and a line of shops right off the cruise ship.  I loved the Jamaican vibe.  

Our excursion in Jamaica was a dune buggy ride through the jungle.  We got on our bus and geared up for the 1.5 hr ride to the jungle.  On our bus we had a Jamaican' tour guide who told us all about Jamaica and what we were seeing out the windows.  She was funny and made us all say "yeah man" instead of "yes" when we talked to her.  I actually didn't mind the long ride because she was so entertaining.

Once we got to the dune buggy place, we had our lunch of red beans, rice and jerk chicken.  It was delicious and even Summer ate it (except the chicken).  We then went over to the bird sanctuary where we fed the birds out of our hands.  It was super cool to be that close to all the tropical birds.

The highlight was of course the dune buggies.  I was a little nervous, but it ended up being one of my favorite things we did on the whole trip!  We followed a tour guide, racing through the jungle, over bumps and through giant puddles.  To say Summer didn't like this is an understatement.  She cried just getting into the dirty buggy...and then cried again when we went through the muddy puddles.  Hopefully one day she'll look back on it as a positive experience, but right now, I think she's still a little mad that I got her all muddy.  

Summer was the first one in the group to get all the birds on her--he just filled her hands with seeds

Eating our Jamaican lunch

MUDDY

Bahamas:

I was super bummed that we didn't get to go to the beach at our previous two ports, so I was so excited that all we had planned for the Bahamas was hanging out at the beach.  It was perfect.  Good food (all included), sun, sand, lounge cots, hammocks, swimming, snorkeling--it was perfect.  

The only damper was Summer cut her foot, so she had to limp back to the ship once our day was over...oh and Mike had another traumatic snorkeling experience where he was blinded by the sunlight and salt water and couldn't see where he was going...and the water was cold.  But my day was perfect:)

In front of our boat!

In Heaven;) 

 I was so worried their wouldn't be enough lounge chairs on the beach, 

so Mike bet me that there would be...I lost

Overall, it was a great experience! I'm not sure I'll do a cruise again (motion sickness & not enough time at each port being the main reasons).  We'll see...