Family

Chris' Grandfather passed away recently and he flew to Minnesota less then 24 hours after we returned home from Hawai'i. These are just some family pics.

Easter Morning

So last night Nathan informed me that he REALLY wanted to make breakfast for Chris and I since we always do such nice things for him. I'm thinking, whatever kid. We'll see how you feel about that in the morning.

This morning I woke up to Nate in my bed informing me he was ready to cook. He made pancakes all by himself. Measured, stirred, and cooked some amazing pancakes. He was sure to let me know how to make the "perfect" pancake. Ahh, yes. The 11 year old does know it all.

It was nice to have a relaxing Sunday morning and I didn't have to cook all day. I've been informed he will make dinner tomorrow. It's suppose to be Ham, deviled eggs, and strawberries. Obviously not all together. He might be a pretty good cook afterall.

On another note. Nate found out today that the Easter bunny wasn't real. Just Dad and Mom. He tells me he's having serious doubts about Santa. He's got to know right?

USS Arizona

USS Bowfin

Polynesian Cultural Center. Loved this place. The evening show that they do is FABULOUS. All those who are military you should contact Hickham ITT for tickets. It saved us about $35/person.

The Luau at the PCC.

Hawaii

A sea turtle. We were excited to see one in the wild. We didn't stay for very long because it started to rain.

The top of the look-out.

The rocks below the look out that I told Nate he couldn't climb on because the tide was coming in. So, what does Chris do? Climb down the hill on top of the rocks. Thanks Dad for rubbing it in.

Can you tell that I thought it was unfair that only Dad could go down. I did break down and allow Nate to go down too. Thanks Chris for being such a shining example of how to listen to adult supervision.

The Hawaiian Temple.

The Falls. Kind of puny but the hike was beautiful. It was like being in the show LOST.

On one of our hikes we went through the lush vegetation. This hike was VERY muddy and while going up wasn't too bad imagine muddy hills ALL the way down. None of us actually fell but it was close once or twice. I love this picture because it makes you realize how huge these trees are.

Do you notice how Nate's shirt is billowing in the wind. It was so windy on top of this lookout I seriously thought we might blow away.

Looking for wildlife in the tidepools.

Checkin' out the tidepools. I LOVE tidepools and have missed them a lot since leaving Oregon.

So to any child is to appreciate this problem. Waves, shoes (no sandals), and the urge to constantly try to "outrun" those waves. Needless to say. Waves-1, Nate-0

More Hawaii

We were not afraid to ask strangers to take pictures of the whole family. It's nice to have some shots with everyone.

So Nate did start off with the backpack but that lasted for less then 5 minutes. It was pretty heavy though so...good try Nate.

At the top. What a view. The breeze felt SO good. There wasn't much air moving on the hike up.

Chris and Nate at the top.

This hike was a great workout. Plus I carried the backpack. I was sweating by the time we reached the top.

Oh Look. Stairs.

Oh Look. More stairs.

Yes, We are hammin' it up.

Chris and Nate enjoying a shaved ice. It was very refreshing after our hike up Diamond Head.

Nate LOVES all things that involve war and history. The only other person I know who ever got this excited about WWII stuff was my brother Don.

I'm steering the Missouri.

So you have to have seen Night at the Museum 2 to appreciate this shot. Nate loves those movies. Anyway, there is a part of the movie where "Thinker" strikes a pose and says Fire Power. That is what Chris is doing with those huge guns (actual guns NOT his arms). We thought it was funny. I'm not sure the other people in our tour did though. They were probably thinking....Stupid Americans.

Some of the walkways on the ship. You wouldn't want to be too tall or else you'd knock your block off.

The Memorial for the USS Oklahoma.






There is a beach on Hickham AFB where you can sit watch the planes take off from Honolulu International Airport. This was our 1st day on the island and we were still fighting off jet lag. Well, Nate and I were. Chris does just fine because he sleeps on airplanes (when he's not flying them of course).

Hawaii

The beach was a short walk (5 minutes if that) from our hotel room. We had a private access beach on Waikiki. I saw the public access beaches and I was very glad we didn't have to hang out with the rest of the general population. Nate didn't want to see the sunset so Chris and I got to spend some adult time. This is our "money" shot meaning that the lady who took it totally lucked into this one since she didn't have a clue what she was doing.

Everybody always wants a swimsuit shot. I love Hawaii because rashguards are the fashion. Chris got burnt but I used my 90 and 100 spf sunscreen and was nice and dandy. For a white girl I actually got some color.

Nate practising his snorkeling. We bought him a mask/snorkel and rented some from outdoor rec for us. The water here wasn't great for snorkeling but it did give him the opportunity to get use to the breathing before we went to Huanuma Bay. I always get a little claustrophic the first little while and have to slow down my breathing.

Check it out

Chris has a new blog that's devoted to his picture taking life. He actually posted pictures and I'm not going to redo what he's already done.

www.stitchspictures.blogspot.com