Dad is always good at finding us deals to go on fun vacations. This year, out of the blue, he found us some good tickets to Oahu for Spring Break. The only catch was we had to stay 10 days and fly out of Denver. Both were things we were willing to do.
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| Makai stayed awake the entire flight from Denver to Oahu. Once we could see islands I made him put down his DS and enjoy the scenic view. Within a few minutes he was sound asleep. He missed flying over the islands. Live and learn. |
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| Finally in Hawaii. Make no mistake. These boys were HUNGRY!! |
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| We tried to find an L&L Hawaiian BBQ per Tyler's request, but had no luck, so we hit up Rainbow Drive-In which we had seen on the Travel channel. I didn't like it as much as L&L, but what I couldn't finish the birds were more than willing to help out with. While I was up taking this photo a few birds decided to help themselves. |
It was a pretty cool coincidence that we landed on March 15th at about 1:30 Hawaii time. Tyler was born on March 15th at about 1:30 in Hawaii, so it was a fun stroll down memory lane. Right as we landed everyone was all smiles! The air was warm, the trees were green and the smell of flowers and birds chirping was so welcomed as Omaha is still a winter wonderland!
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| Tyler 17 yrs later in front of Tripler Army Medical center. (kyle is always the camera man on our trips) |
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| For his birthday treat Tyler decided with a little help from ME that we wanted Leonards Hot Malasadas. These things are so delicous |
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| Haupia, custard, or chocolate filled.... |
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| Fresh Haupia filled and he is in Heaven!! Happy 17th Birthday buddy!! |
After traveling all night, and flying all day we were pretty exhausted. We decided to find out first hotel in Kapolei. Some of us took naps, some of us played in the pool and because March Madness was going on a few boys watched a college basketball game.
The next morning we were all still suffering from being fresh off the plane and we were wide awake by 5am. With the 5 hour time change staying in bed till 5am is hard. Tyler and Kyle decided to go down to the gym and while in the Lobby they ran into a friend of ours from Nebraska!! He wasn't even staying in our hotel, but rather, was just there to pick up a friend. Small world. We decided to eat breakfast, which was delicious(an omelet bar) Dad went to the guy with Tyler and the rest of us hit to pool. The weather was beyond perfect!!
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| We had the pool all to ourselves. First thing in the morning it truly felt like paradise!! |
The weather was beautiful so we decided to hit up a beach. Ko'olina Coves seemed like the perfect first stop.
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| Pretty excited to be back in the water. Makai didn't even stop for sunscreen. He literally grabbed goggles and walked right into the water. The other boys put sunscreen on their shoulders, but sadly it was not enough. After a winter in Nebraska even two hours of Hawaii Sunshine and even these poly boys were burnt!! |
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| Always ready to play around |
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| Everything becomes a competition with these guys |
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| We decided to head over to Electric Beach, but the waves were way to big. Sadly Tyler, Kyle and Dad had a rather scary encounter with some waves and we didn't stay long. But, Makai, Trey and Kory had some fun in the waves up at the shore. Never go to Electric beach without fins if you plan to leave the shore. Thankfully, Monty listened to the spirit and followed Tyler and Kyle out. Kyle was tired, but a little too prideful to come in. Tyler didn't want to leave Kyle out by himself. Monty got out and realized how rough it was and made them both come back in. He even ditched his snorkel halfway in. You can buy a new snorkel, but you can't buy a new life! |
After hitting the beach once again the boys were hungry and more stops from the food network were in the plans for the day. Of course, we needed to get a Spam Musubi. Spam Musubi is a favorite of all the boys, and a tasty treat you can even buy at 7-eleven in Hawaii.
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| Kyle eating a Katsu Musubi from 7-eleven |
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| We had heard of a few fun places to eat in Chinatown. While there it was fun to enjoy some culture. We don't get tons of culture in Omaha, but Hawaii is FULL of cultures from all over the world. We have no idea what most of them mean, but they are still pretty cool. This statue was on the way to Royal Kitchen where we got some Baked Manapua. None of us had ever had a baked Manapua and it did not disappoint. They also had a wasabi sauce there that made your mouth burst with excitement. Not your everyday meal. |
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| Just across the canal from Royal kitchen was this Cultural Plaza. The architecture was amazing. The rituals involved washing your hands, ringing bells, and praying. Very culturally interesting. |
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| Eating a steamed Manapua from Char Hung Sut down the street from Royal kitchen. We all agreed taht the baked manapua was better, but enjoyed tasting both. |
We enjoyed out time in Chinatown. It isn't the cleanest part of town, but it is an experience. We learned that during the week it isn't too crowded, but come Sunday the place is hoping with people. We stopped by the last day just before we left to get a few more baked Manapua and had to take a number to wait to order.
Later that night we ended up finding our next hotel which was in the hear of Waikiki just a few miles from where we use to live when Dad, Tyler and I lived there. We got to Hawaii just one day after Greg's family left Hawaii. For fun his kids left our kids a treasure to find. They left us a few clues and we went on a hunt to find it.
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| Start at the Duke Statue and walk toward the shore. When you get to the shore turn right and walk past the surf board rental |
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| Walk till you see the trashcan that looks like it is halfway buried. |
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| Look for the treasure under the rock at looks like the island of Oahu. |
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| Started at the Duke Statue |
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| Found the trashcan that was halfway buried, but a man was stilling by the rock! Haha |
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| Found the rock, but it had been moved |
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| Started digging, but no luck |
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| Found a bag with a treasure--but it was on the wrong side of the trashcan. |
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| Monty carrying around the strange gift, till he realized it wasn't the right treasure. Then he ditched the bag!! |
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| Went back later and found the right treasure. Greg had the exact measurments, without the rock and within only a few minutes of digging we found the right treasure. |
Trey was the winner
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| Honolulu Cookie Company!! Such a fun treasure hunt!! Thanks for the fun!! |
As we were planning our vacation we realized we had never hiked Diamond Head. Diamond Head is one of the most popular things to do in Hawaii and we had never done it. So, we put it on the list. Makai was not exactly thrilled to go on a hike, but we were excited to check the box and see some amazing views. It did not disappoint!!
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| Kory at the top |
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| Monty and I at the top. I even found a plumeria flower on the trail. A sweet gift. They have such a sweet, gentle smell. |
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| Trey is a goof ball!! |
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| Pondering--what Tyler does best. |
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| Honolulu |
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| Makai, not very happy to be on a hike! |
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| Resting |
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| Hydrating! |
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| Success!! Diamond Head--check!! |
After Diamond Head we hit up Aloha Stadium for some cheap tee-shirts and necklaces. The sun was blazing and felt so good. At Aloha Stadium we actually got HOT. We went back and enjoyed our night walking around Waikiki. The boys thought it was so fun to see some of the stores they have only heard about. We visited the International Market place. This shopping center looks TOTALLY different from what it was 10 yrs ago. However, when we were still able to find SHARKA! I remember when Tyler was born we bought him a Sharka. He was part of the family for a long time, but during one of our moves we got rid of him. However, we have all missed him.
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| It seemed fitting to buy another Sharka. This guy is much smaller, but still brings a smile to all of our faces! |
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| Just relaxing under the banyan trees |
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| Makai found his name everywhere in Hawaii!! This was on a street corner! |
Sunday Morning we got up for church. We wanted to take the boys up to the Honolulu Tabernacle. It was the building we use to go to when we lived there. When we woke up I realized my lip had been sunburned the day before. It was actually kinda funny. People pay a lot of money for lips like this!!
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| Yikes!! Can you believe I still went to church!! |
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| A beautiful church. This building will always bring fond memories. |
After church we went to Pearl Harbor. It seemed fitting to go to Pearl Harbor on Sunday.
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| Trey--future Model!(he told me to write that) |
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| Military history is right up these boys ally. |
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| Even Makai, our little crazy man felt something here. A reminder that freedom doesn't come free. |
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| Oil is still coming up. |
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| Makai was so excited to be in the hot seat. |
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| Super hot model. |
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| He must get it from his dad! |
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| Who is taller???? |
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| I feel safer!! |
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| We then decided to drive the island and enjoy the beauty of the earth!! This earth is beautiful!! Kyle took some pretty great photos. |
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| Plumeria--taken from someone's front yard! |
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| A cute little fish Monty caught with his bare hands at Lanikai beach !! We will never go hungry with him around. |
Monday was our Hanauma Bay was our first stop Monday morning. Only downside was that the weather turned rather cold Monday morning! However, we were ready to snorkel.
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| We didn't take many photos at Hanauma Bay, but one of my favorite moments of the trip happened here. Makai is like Monty--he is very comfortable in the water. He put on a snorkel and went out with Monty to snorkel. I was having a little trouble feeling comfortable in the water. Sometimes it takes me a while to feel at ease in the water. Monty came back to get me so I could snorkel with him and Makai. Makai talks through his snorkel while he snorkels so I started talking to him. I saw an eel in the water and told Makai. When he saw it he screamed the highest pitched scream I have ever heard out of his mouth or out of a snorkel. This made me laugh which isn't good when you are wearing a mask. I started taking in water so had to twist to my back, try and swim to a clear area where I could put my feet down and finish laughing. I tried to get away fast so I didn't loose any toes to that eel. We saw some amazing fish and enjoyed out time, but the cold made it hard to stay past a couple hours. |
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| The hike back to the car. |
We headed back to Hawaii Kai where we planned to meet our Omaha friends. While waiting for them the other three boys decided to try and see if they had the skills to climb a tree.
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| And of course I had to stand in line for some more Malasadas! |
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| More vicious Hawaiian wildlife. |
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| Brotherly Love! |
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| Buddies forever! |
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| Trey found a rusted bullet on the beach. Makai thought it was too cool. They were both convinced the bullet was from Pearl Harbor. Makai was rather jealous of Trey for finding it. It said, "Mom, I think I am an ordinary creation of God because Trey found a bullet and I didn't." Trey was nice and shared. He would have even given it to him if I would have told him he didn't need to. |
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| Handsome men! |
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| There is beauty all around! |
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| I love that he loves to take photos |
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| photo bomb |
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| burrrr.... |
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| Starting to feel the cold. |
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| Never seen a kid so comfortable in water. |
Time to head up to North Shore and enjoy the north part of the island.
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| The Laie Temple. |
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| Outside the PCC is a NFL Polynesian Hall of fame. The boys were pretty excited to see this. |
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| Kyle's favorite player |
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| Kyle's dream come true. And mine too!! |
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| Kory really enjoyed the PCC. In fact, he said it was his favorite day of the trip. He was a great partner in this Tititorea stick game. |
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| New Zealand's show was pretty awesome. We watched it twice. |
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| Ali'i luau |
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| Samoa--This guy knew how to climb a tree like a boss |
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| Nothing like walking through the PCC and having someone come up to Monty and say, "Hey Monty." Turns out Monty's cousin, John Milford, works at the PCC. We hadn't seen him in about 15 yrs, but he still recognized Monty. It was fun to talk and catch up with him. He works in the Tongan village. |
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| Canoe show--rain!! |
Although it rained the entire day we enjoyed the day. I will say my feet couldn't wait to get dry that night, but it was a wonderful day and one I was so happy to experience with the boys. It was pretty fun to see the PCC and show the boys where their Nana worked when she was going to school at BYU.
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| Laie Point |
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| Ate at this foot truck in Kahuku and it was delicious!! |
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| Matsumoto's shave ice was not as good as the reviews made it seem, but it was still fun to try. |
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| Monty's cousin Sherif lives in North shore and it was fun to spend some time with him and his wife and children. Monty and Sherif had a good time reminiscing and catching up. |
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| Sharks cove was cold, but the fish we saw were pretty amazing! |
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| why does everyone stick their tongues out in pictures |
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