Hawaii

My many days and nights of travel have finally paid off--I used my hotel and airline points and we just returned from a wonderful week in Kauai where we joined Grandma & Grandpa Handl and Unckee-T and Auntie Meg.

I apologize in advance for this long post, but I wanted to capture all of the fun we had, as this blog now functions as my scrapbook as well!

Madeline checking out the minivan that we rented for the week:


We spent lots of time at the pool and the beach and this little girl absolutely loves the water! I don't think I have ever seen Madeline so happy or animated as she was when she was in the pool. She would splash, put her mouth in the water, giggle and kick. We had a baby float for her and by the end of the week she was trying to climb out of it! She also seemed to love the ocean just as much as the pool.




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We took one day and drove up the coast to explore the north shore area.

The girls at the end of the pier looking out over Hanalei Bay

View of the valley

We drove all the way to the end of the road where we took a short hike to see some caves:


On our way back, we stopped at the Kilauea Lighthouse, the northernmost tip of the Hawaiian islands. The views were amazing:

If you look closely, you can see a bunch of white dots on the hillside in the distance. These are the red-footed boobies getting ready to lay their eggs. There were hundreds of them.

Family photo time!

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May Day on May 1st is a celebrated day with craft fairs, dancing, luaus and lots of beautiful leis. We drove into the town of Lihue to check-out the Lei contest. The leis were amazing--bright colors, creastive arrangements and wonderful smells. I had no idea there were so many different types of leis! Here are a few pictures.



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Brian, Unkee-T, Auntie Meg and Grandpa were thrilled with the close proximity of Puka Dogs to our condo. These are Hawaiian style hot dogs served with garlic sauce and your choice of tropical relish. I'm not a big hot dog fan myself, but since they had a veggie dog I did try one. The guys raved about them and they were lunch on more than one occasion!


Madeline didn't get to try a Puka dog, but she was introduced to some new foods. She loved pineapple, papaya and even enjoyed poi!

Grandpa cooking dinner

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One of the supposed 'Must-do's" in Kauai is a helicopter ride. I was told if you were going to do the helicopter ride, you should go all-out and ride with the doors off.....so we did! What an incredible experience! Grandma and Grandpa were more than happy to keep Madeline for the morning while Brian and I snuck away to the airport.

Our helicopter, coming in for landing. After a quick refuel, they got us strapped in and made sure we knew how to use our two way headsets, and then we were off!


Kauai is even more rugged than I expected. Approximately 80% of the island is inaccessible and the only way to see it is from the air. It truly is a beautiful tropical paradise!




I have no idea how many waterfalls are on Kauai, but we saw what seemed like hundreds!





This area is supposedly the wettest spot on earth. We could feel the temperature drop and the humidity rise as we flew into the canyon.

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Yay, we survived! What a great experience! Thanks Mom & Dad!

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Madeline didn't sleep well while we were in Hawaii. I think it must have been a combination of a different bed, the 5 hour time change, excitement about the swimming pool and all of the daily activity. Brian and Madeline got to spend some early mornings together on the beach while mommy tried to catch a few extra winks of sleep. Apparently the beaches were pretty bare during these early morning hours, except for a few other baby/daddy pairs! They caught some cute pictures to document their daddy/daughter time together!

Hi-ho, hi-ho, it's off to the beach we go.....








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We took another day to explore the south end of the island. We started with a trip to Spouting Horn blow hole:


We wanted to drive up Waimea Canyon (known as the Grand Canyon of Hawaii) to explore, as the views from the helicopter were spectacular:

Unfortunately, by the time we reached the canyon it was pouring rain and thick fog had rolled in. Visibility was so poor that we decided to turn around. Luckily on the way down, we did catch a glimpse at one of the overlooks, but the rest was left to the imagination!


On the way back to the condo, we stopped at the Kauai Coffee Plantation for an afternoon pick-me-up of coffee samples.

The grounds were beautiful and provided a nice backdrop for a few photos



We had heard about the 'autograph tree' and finally saw one at the coffee plantation. The thick leaves can be etched with a rock to leave your message.

Caught in the rain!

Playing with Grandpa's new hat. Check out my teeth!

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We decided to go to a Luau one night. It was pouring rain, so they moved the festivities inside. Madeline did quite well and ended up sleeping through most of the performances:


Until the fire dancers took the stage:

and then she was captivated for the rest of the show:



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Mommy and Madeline on the beach:

Family photo:

Madeline loved her Unckee-T:

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Date night! Brian and I were able to sneak away one evening for an official date night. We ate at a delicious restaurant right on the beach and watched an amazing sunset.



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On our last day in Kauai, we saw two monk seals who claimed their spot on the beach and spent the whole day lounging in the sun...

...just like the rest of us!