Hawaii - Day 8 Last Day

We saved one of the boys, favorite activities for our last day in Hawaii: MINI-GOLF! This was actually our first time playing glow in the dark mini-golf with the kids. The course was Hawaiian themed with a little story for each hole. The ocean holes had really neat decorations and made me want to re-do Mikie's mini-golf birthday party. Michael and I think we should open our own mini-golf course once he retires, but I would have to change the theme every year to satisfy my "obsession."

This video captures Mikie's reaction to hole #18:


For our final meal in Hawaii, we took the boys to another one of our favorite places: Bubba Gumps Shrimp Co. The little boats that their meals came in kept them entertained for the whole meal.

All too soon it was time for our vacation to come to an end. So, until the next time the Navy sends us to paradise..................

ALOHA!

Hawaii - Day 7

This was my favorite day on our vacation. We went for a hike in the rain forest at Manoa Falls. I was expecting a lot of whining and fussing but instead was pleasantly surprised by Mikie's enthusiasm and eagerness to explore the paths ahead of him and willingness to cooperate when I asked him to take pictures of each rain forest layer. We didn't have to carry him at all! Zachary was also cooperative even though he was very tired.

1st Level: Forest Floor

Zachary found some blue seeds that were perfectly round ball shaped.
Stream on the forest floor.

Having fun on the forest floor.A perfect hiding place.

They'll never find me here.

Is someone coming?

A giant leaf on the forest floor.

A great spot to take a rest (but not for too long....the mosquitoes were out in full force)

Peek-a-boo, Mikie, we see you!

2nd Level: Understory

Standing on the forest floor with the understory behind him.

Climbing in the understory and pretending to be a lizard with his tongue hanging out.

Zachary in the understory.

A tree tunnel with planks that look like train tracks provided a lot of fun for two choo-choo loving boys!

But it also caused a few frustrations (see video below):

3rd Level: Canopy

My little monkeys in the jungle love to climb.

After about 45 minutes we finally reached Monoa Falls

Good thing Daddy brought the camel back. The boys loved drinking out of the hose.

I think it took us an extra 15 minutes to walk back from the hike because we had to stop every 100 feet for one of them to have a drink.

4th Level: Emergent Layer

Zachary insisted that he wanted to walk all by himself on the way back. The trail wasn't easy and had a lot of exposed roots. This was about the only time I let go of his hand just for the picture.

All that walking tired him out pretty fast!

Look at how huge this plant is!

In case you need another visual reference:

He fell asleep about 10 minutes before we reached the car.

Back to the hotel for a qiuck change and then off to the Hale Koa Luau.

The boys in front of the emu pit (where they roast the pig). See the rug burn on Mikie's head. I told you I wasn't joking!

The YUMMY Kalua Pig!

"Let's Eat!"

Enjoying the hula show.

Video of Poi Ball Twirling:

Hula Dancing:

Mikie has been watching little video clips on National Geographic about ancient sea creatures. We were singing songs on the way to the rain forest and then he started reciting word for word (and tone for tone) what the narrator says on the clips. It's pretty funny to hear words like "Modern" and phrases such as "What is now" come from a four year old. Enjoy the video:

Hawaii - Day 6

On Sunday morning, we ate those delicious coconut waffles again and then left Zachary and Boagie to play on the playground while we took Mikie out on the submarine. He couldn't go with us because they had a 40 inch height requirement. While riding on the boat to get out to the sub, we saw a pod of dolphins leaping out of the water right next to us. Once in the submarine, Mikie spotted the depth gage right away and from then on it was all about the numbers. I honestly think he was more excited about watching the numbers increase, as we sank toward the bottom of the ocean, more than he enjoyed seeing the creatures outside the porthole.

Daddy and Mikie playing "Hot Hands"

The dolphins are on the left.

The Atlantis Submarine

Checking it all out.

You can see how excited he is in the video below:

Reaching 100 feet:


It was finally time for my kindergarten reunion. Five of the students that I taught at Christian Academy were able to meet us at the pool on base for a potluck organized by Cyndi and Sarah (2 moms that I am very grateful for). It was great to see my kids again and catch up with their families. Several of them shared their favorite memories of kindergarten and I was touched that they still consider me one of their favorite teachers. I really miss that group of kids as it truly was the best year of my teaching career! I can't believe they are already in 5th grade. I'll be back in 7 years for their graduation to throw them a party.

Thank you Cyndi for all you did for me!

After a happy reunion, it was time for a sad goodbye to Boagie as we dropped her off at the airport and resumed the parental duties 24/7. It sure was nice to be able to walk hand in hand while someone else chased our kids. THANKS MOM! WE LOVE YOU!

For dinner, we took the boys to The Top Of Waikiki, a revolving restaurant, where we watched a pretty sunset and practiced our man on man defense again.

The two pictures below show how the boys occupied themselves while in the hotel room. Even though we had brought and bought a lot of toys, they still found great pleasure in this dark adventure. By the end of the week, both boys had rug burns on their foreheads from crawling through so many times. (I'm not joking!)