Hawaii was one of those trips. Here we are at a luau in 1997 with the older 1/2. Rochelle was already married by then & couldn't take the time off work to go. Ben decided not to go because he had other plans & these kids actually had to pay for their airline tickets in order for us to afford the trip back then...
The younger 1/2 didn't have to pay for their own tickets, but they were responsible for any souvenirs they wanted to bring home. Leah actually turned 14 on the 1st trip & just finished her 1st year at DeAnza College here. She got to go with both the older group & the younger group! Here we are at the same luau in 2002!
We had such a great time on these trips & enjoyed showing our kids an awesome "high adventure" experience. We hiked & kayaked & snorkeled & boogie boarded & took surf lessons & experienced a luau, etc...it was so much fun & we wore everyone out with activities!
When we inherited a timeshare in Kauai (several years ago), we thought it would be super fun to take our g'kids when they were old enough to appreciate the experience & repeat the trip for them, too. So we've been planning our 2nd generation Hawaiian adventures as each group of cousins reach their teens. This trip, with our four oldest grandkids, has been in the works for a couple of years now...scheduled for the 3rd week of January. My mom knew we were excited about the trip & she was worried that we would cancel it because I was worried about her health. She tried to keep Kristi from giving me updates so I wouldn't drop everything & come to Bakersfield. Mom didn't want to "interfere" with our plans or "inconvenience" anyone. Thank goodness Kristi knows me well & called me anyway! I'm so glad we were able to be there for her!
Flashback to January, we came straight from the airport (visiting kids in AZ & UT) when Kristi called us to let us know that Mom was going downhill fast. We decided then that Paul would go ahead & take the kids to Hawaii without me & I was prepared to stay with Mom indefinitely.
Paul helped me arrange for extra hospice help with mom, bring in a hospital bed & rearrange her apartment so I could stay long term. Then I sent Paul home to get ready for the trip - he barely got home when I called him to tell him Mom had passed. Under the circumstances, I decided I would still stay back to take care of arrangements for my mom & tie up any loose ends in Bakersfield.
I knew Mom had pre-arrangements made already, but I needed to go through her things & make sure nothing was pending...it took me less than a day to go through her papers - everything was organized the same as it was when I helped her move in five years ago. She walked me through everything many times because it was important for her to know that I knew where everything was...she's amazing! The kindest thing you can do for your grieving family is to make these decisions ahead of time & then TELL THEM WHAT THOSE DECISIONS ARE! Her rent was paid through the month so there was no hurry in moving her things out right away - so the next morning Kristi & I met with the funeral home to finalize plans (so easy & relatively painless because she had pre-planned everything), then she dropped me off at the train station after lunch. I got home in time to pack, take a short nap, & I was able to join Paul & the kids for our Hawaiian Adventure!
It was truly a tender mercy to be surrounded by the kids & have the distraction of a packed schedule! I'm not gonna lie, I didn't sleep well & consequently neither did Paul. I couldn't turn my mind & feelings off at night...I just cried & cried & Paul would just hold me & let me cry. The kids were super sensitive to me, too, & they did a great job of cheering me up & helping me remember how wonderful life is - especially when you are surround with the love of family! We truly packed it in!
DAY 1 - Excited to be up at 5:30am? Maybe not...definitely NOT excited about my camera being in their face but super excited about the trip!
ALOOOOOHAAA! We made sure they got the customary leis...& after a Costco run, we didn't waste any time hitting the beach!
I enjoyed watching the kids play in the waves & taking in the beautiful scenery. I felt like I could finally breathe & relax. I took a quiet moment to reflect with gratitude & remember a wonderful women...
The water was warm & the waves were perfect! I wished that time would just stop!
Had to grab some shaved ice from my favorite stop in Kapaa...
Then they wanted to try a different beach! You can see it is getting dark...
Trevor was having so much fun! I've never seen him laugh & smile so much! He would catch a wave & get up & do a little silly "happy dance" even though he knew I had my camera out...I was laughing so hard - too bad the pix are blurry!
We finished the night off with games back at the condo & talked about the plans for the rest of the week. They were pretty tired after fighting with the waves. Although Avery & Ethan were always up for games at night, Trevor & Adia crashed earlier & earlier each night! We truly wore them all out!
DAY 2 - Taking in the scenic view on our way to kayak the Wailua River & hike up Fern Grotto, then up to Secret Falls...you can see how excited they are about taking pix, too!
Even though these pix are blurry, I love how we got a glimpse of a smile from da boyz & how cute Avery is with her arm around me - she was extra sweet all day, I think she might have been worried about me.
We had to cross this little stream on our hike to our lunch spot at Secret Falls...
We found a little jumping spot on the way back...the pix aren't great, but it documents the activity...
G'pa is giving a little snorkeling instruction so they can enjoy the marine life...they were naturals!
DAY 3 - Ready for our long hike (8 miles total round trip) on part of the Kalalau Trail along the Na Pali Coastline to Hanakapiai Falls. The lighting wasn't great to grab this pic of this cool cave with its small lake...
The views are spectacular along this trail, but it's quite a bit of a challenge & you can tell how excited they are about my need to document this experience...
The girls were cooperative because they knew their mother wanted them to send her some pix, but Ethan ran up ahead & he was fascinated by every little side stream we came across. He enjoyed exploring...
Half way there we had to cross the Hanakapiai River that flows from the falls to the ocean here at Hanakapiai Beach...
There are warning signs all along this beach to stay out of the water. It has an unusually high surf with dangerously strong rip currents - beautiful but deadly! You can see the cairns in the back ground (prayer stone stacks) - I started to stress when Ethan started knocking them over, but when I explained to him that people from all over the world build them as prayers or wishes, he decided to build his own...
Back on the trail heading up to the falls are several clusters of giant bamboos. The guava tress along the path were not fruiting, thank goodness! When they get ripe, they fall off the trees along the trail, attracts a ton of fruit flies, smells awful, & tempts "some" hikers to throw them at each other (at least that was our experience when we took the oldest 1/2 of our kids!)...
The falls are huge, the water is brisk, & comes down with great force - but it is refreshing after the long hike!
The luau we took our kids to actually burnt down several years ago, so we have found that Smith's puts on a great show! At first I thought the kids were just humoring me, but they really seems to enjoy the show - I think the Haka (tribal war dance) & the fire dancer brought some excitement to the evening!
DAY 4 - We started our last day snorkeling at a different location, then a little shopping with the vendors at Spouting Horn before we headed inland for a zip-lining expedition. I think it's safe to say that they loved the zip-lining through the tropical forest...
I love this pic AND these kids!
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I think some of us were a little nervous, but they were all smiles in the end!
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Upside down attempts - it's harder than it looks! Adia & G'pa, Ethan & Trevor, then Avery & I...
G'pa got some great footage on his GO PRO...
It was a great way to end a great trip! Many thinks to these kids' parents for trusting us with their precious kiddos & letting us have this experience together!
Aloha, a hui hou kakou!
(Farewell, until we meet again!)
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