I need to blog the last couple of days before I forget what we did.
SOOOO, Saturday we decided to go visit Waimea Canyon, otherwise known as the grand canyon of Hawaii. We saw some of it from the helicopter, but I'm not gonna lie, I probably wasn't as appreciative of it as I would have liked to be given the "bag of shame", as it has come to be known, that accompanied my helicopter experience (P.S., did I tell you how when we got out of the helicopter I had to bring said bag all the way across the parking lot in full view of the next group waiting to get loaded on the helicopter to put it in the dumpster? I had a small consolation in seeing many other bags of shame in the dumpster as I dropped it off, guess I wasn't the only one who wasn't forewarned....). Anyway, Waimea Canyon was breathtaking. Rose really wanted to do like another 8 mile hike, and that probably would have been awesome, but my body was tired and when Addison voiced the same opinion I had to side with him to appease my aches and pains. We were going to find a shorter one, but I guess no one really looked to see where the trailhead was, and we were running out of gas when we drove up there, so we just went to the lookout point and then came back. Loved the views, though, definitely worth the trip.
Rose was less sure of her inner rockstar, but she gave it her best shot.
We came home and wandered the stores at Poi'pu beach resort, then Rose and I cooked up a bunch of vegetables and rice for dinner, then watched the Dailai Lama on CNN until we fell asleep.
The next day was Sunday! Best day of the week. My mom and I got up early and went to church nearby. The ward we went to on the south side was much bigger than the branch in Hanalei, and the people were very friendly. I'm still amazed at the faith of the people in our church all over the world. It was like I was home. Afterwards we came home and Addison and Rose were tanning on the back deck. We went out as it was getting later and walked to Poi'pu beach at this lookout point to watch the sunset. I decided not to bring my camera so I could just enjoy it, but I couldn't help but snap a few with my iphone while we were there. It was one of those blazing life changingly incredible sunsets and I again sat and marveled, as I did over the whole trip, how beautiful this world is that God has made for us.
Monday was our last day in Hawaii- we spent the morning packing and getting ready to leave the condo we were staying in, then loaded up the car and went to the McBryde and Allerton Botanical Gardens. We heard both were beautiful, but the McBryde gardens had a self-guided tour, which we were more interested, and it was $15 a person instead of $45 a person. We opted for McBryde half-heartedly, mostly because of the cost, but then later on the tram back to the visitor's center the tram driver informed us as we drove by Allerton Gardens that it was on National Geographic's top ten places to visit in the world. Bam. Regret. Oh well, the McBryde Gardens were beautiful too and it was a nice relaxing way to end our trip in Hawaii.
After the gardens we drove out to Lihue where the airport was and dropped of the rental car and headed to the airport. We were a few hours early, so we headed over to Starbucks to plug in our phones to charge for the overnight flight back to the mainland and watch the helicopter ride video. It was far less "shameful" watching it from the DVD than it was in the actual helicopter. I didn't watch the whole thing, I'll have to watch the rest later- my mom and I went and used one of those massage chairs in the lounge while listening to some live Hawaiin music in the lobby.
Our hearts were a little heavy as we left, and maybe a little heavier when we got home, but I can say that I was very excited to be reunited with my family again. Odell didn't forget who I was (hooray!!), I feel like Craig and I are far more appreciative of each other this week after a two week separation, and the kids are back to climbing all over me and enjoying the outside summer weather!
Our hearts were a little heavy as we left, and maybe a little heavier when we got home, but I can say that I was very excited to be reunited with my family again. Odell didn't forget who I was (hooray!!), I feel like Craig and I are far more appreciative of each other this week after a two week separation, and the kids are back to climbing all over me and enjoying the outside summer weather!
It was a much needed reunion with my Mom and brother and sister over the whole trip. It truly is a paradise out there, people don't just say that, and I'm grateful that I was able to experience. Next time I go out there it will not be without my eternal companion and kids by my side, all I could think about the whole time was how much they would enjoy it there. When their older, I think. And we aren't broke. :-)
Aloha Hawaii!!!
Aloha Hawaii!!!
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