It's a great place and did I say just off the beach? Pretty cool. We got settled in, ate some lunch and then Garrett found a hike to some Secret Falls so we ventured out and explored the area. I see why Kauai is called the Garden Island.
Day 2: The guys rented some scuba gear and went to Koloa Landing, a great spot on the South shore to scuba dive.
While they were doing their thing, Zandra and I went to Poipu Beach to get some sun. I did some snorkeling while Zandra played in the water and on the beach with Jorie. I saw some pretty cool fish while snorkeling too. We even saw a Monk seal that was napping on the beach.
After getting enough sun we went and checked on the guys and to have lunch with them. They saw some pretty cool fish, a moray eel and some sea turtles. Garrett even saw a flounder. Dale had a run-in with a sea urchin, when he put his hand down on a rock without looking. His middle finger got stuck pretty good with some of the quills and his finger looked swollen and sore. Poor guy. Dale and I went out snorkeling and I saw some sea turtles and an eel and some cool fish too. Loved it!!
After lunch the guys went back out in the water to explore and Zandra and I went and saw Spouting Horn, a place where water shoots up out of a hole in the rocks when the waves crash in. It reminded me of a mini Old Faithful. We also checked out some of the wares that were being sold at the park there. I bought some sea turtle earrings, a ring, and a cloth bag. There were chickens running all over and Jorie loved to chase them.
We headed back to Koloa Landing and got the guys. They had come upon a bunch of sea turtles that appeared to be caught in a channel and were migrating. Dale grabbed onto the shell of a big one and got a free ride for a bit. (Naughty, naughty) They thoroughly loved their scuba time.
We headed back to our place and had a nice home cooked meal, walked the beach, watched some guys wind surfing, and played cards. I got the backs of my legs fried from snorkeling. Why didn't I think to put the sunscreen on my legs? Live and learn.
Day 3: Garrett and Zandra had gone to an orientation meeting when they checked in our condo and won a half day sailing excursion along the Na Pali Coastline for one with Capt. Andy's Sailing Adventures, so they bought another one and left early to sail the seas while Dale and I enjoyed the sunrise on the deck, and hung out around the beach by our condo.
Dale went to the condo orientation meeting while Jorie was taking a nap and came back with a full day excursion for one with Holo-Holo Charters on a Power Catamaran to Nihau (the forbidden island) and along the Na Pali coast for us, so of course we bought another ticket and got a reservation to go!!! Pretty crazy that we won an excursion as well, huh?
It was a bit chilly and pretty windy so we weren't out on the beach as much as we would of wanted, but we had fun bonding with Jorie. We went on a walk around the area and played in the sand.
Garrett and Zandra got back and loved seeing the whales and dolphins and sea turtles out in the water. They had a great time.
We all jumped in the car and headed over to the north shore to get in a Hawaiian sunset. We stopped and saw the Kilauea Lighthouse, (I love lighthouses) and then we went to Ke'e Beach and watched the waves, which were pretty big because of the windy weather, and the sunset. We even saw a couple get married there on the beach. Ke'e Beach is where you start the Na Pali Coast hike. The area is all green, lush and just beautiful. The sunset was pretty too. (My picture doesn't do it justice)
Day 4: Dale and I got up early and headed to Port Allen on the west shore and boarded our catamaran for a day on the water.
We were fed breakfast and lunch on the trip and were able to get out and snorkel by the Forbidden Islands. The water was so clear and blue. We saw a lot of cool fish again while snorkeling. It was just so neat!! Definitely the highlight of the trip.
On our way back we drove up into Koke'e State Park and saw Waimea Canyon. It's known as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific. Dale and I went on a hike to a cool lookout over the canyon while we were in the area. Just breath-taking.
Garrett and Zandra played on the beach and checked out some of the shops while we were gone. They even had a spare rib dinner ready for us when we got back. Talk about royal treatment! After dinner we walked the beach and played cards. I could get used to this life, it's been heaven.
Day 5: We all slept in and then packed up our bags and left them in a room at the resort. We headed over to Wailua River State Park and saw the Opaekaa Falls, and the Wailua River Trail and falls. I love waterfalls and Kauai has a lot of them. So pretty.
We went to Lydgate Beach and did some more snorkeling, played in the sand, picnicked, and watched Jorie chase the chickens. She was so cute and would just follow them all over.
We went back to the resort and used their hospitality room and got cleaned up and ready for a night on the town. There was an outdoor farmer's market festival going on so we walked around town and checked that out and then we loaded up the car and stopped to eat our last meal in Kauai out. We ate at The Lemongrass Restaurant and had some pretty tasty fixings. We gave our cook the night off tonight.
We got to the airport and Garrett and Zandra had a little stress because the flight they were going to go home on got cancelled, so they got put on stand-by on the flight Dale and I were going to take back.
Luckily they made it on, we boarded at 11:55pm and flew through the night. Sleep was spotty, more like a nap, but Jorie did pretty good on the flight.
Day 6: We landed in Seattle around 7:45am and had a pretty long lay-over so we called Nate and he played chauffeur making two trips to the airport to take us all to his place. He even made us a tasty breakfast of bacon, toast, and eggs with juice. I'd say we got the royal treatment. We visited, played with their dog, Meru, and Nate even pulled out the sofa bed and we laid on it and watched a climbing documentary on Netflix called Meru. (Some of us got in a nap even) Then we all loaded up in his Passat wagon (Dale was in the back, back) and he took us to the airport to catch our flight to Salt Lake. It was great seeing Nate and catching up with him. We missed seeing Kim, she was in Arizona for her sister, Chris', birthday. Thanks Nate for being such an awesome host. We'll let you stay with us anytime you're in our neck of the woods.
We landed in Salt Lake with sunburns to show everyone we'd been in the sun, and great memories. Thanks Garrett and Zandra for inviting us to join you on this fabulous adventure. We had a great time.
Dale and I both jumped right back into life at home.... I served in the temple, Dale and I helped man a nursery for a Stake Valentines event for the Married Student Ward, I helped with a book sale for The Friends of the North Logan Library, and Dale sang with the American Festival Chorus in a benefit concert for the Cache Valley for Hope Cancer Foundation. Danica came up for the weekend and went to the concert with me. It was great to have her around for a bit. The chorus had a guest pianist, Bruce Lee, join them for the concert. He was amazing. I also ushered for My Fair Lady at the Eccles. It was a great production, put on by Music Theater West, a local theater group.
Nate and Kim have been getting snow in Seattle as well and making the most of any time off to get out in it. They've done quite a bit of back country skiing around Mr. Rainer. Meru, their dog, is loving the snow just as much as they are.
For Valentines Day Titan went to his first Valentines tea. Lindsay went to it with him so Andrew had a little Valentines tea party at home while they were gone. Pretty cute, huh?
I gave Dale some tickets to Sky View's Little Mermaid and gave him some new shoes to go with the new suits he got for Christmas with the saying "Out of all the fish in the sea I shoes you to be my Valentine" in his card. Dale gave me some beautiful flowers with a card and we went out to dinner at Apple Spice Bakery.
Andrew and Lindsay gave us some valentine decorations the kids had made, valentines, and cupcakes, and we got pictures from Jaxson and Kennlyn showing us the Valentine boxes they made for school. Garrett and Zandra went ice skating and Jorie loved it!! Love is in the air <3
For President's Day we went bowling with Andrew and Lindsay and then ate at El Sol.
Eloise turned 4 this month. She had a Troll birthday party with some friends and then grandpa and grandma Olsen and Dale and I went to Andrew and Lindsay's for dinner to celebrate. Happy Birthday Eloise!! She made her Troll crown all by herself at her party.
Andrew's been home all month, so he took each of the kids out skiing to spend some one on one time with them. They're getting to be pretty good. Titan even attempted Gentle Ben. Andrew's also made use of his season pass to Beaver and gotten in a lot of good skiing with all of the snow we've been getting.
They took the kids to The Children's Museum in Salt Lake for the day before Andrew headed to Missouri for work. This kids loved it. He's been making the most of his time home.
Nora's 2 months old now and is doing pretty good since her surgery. Her breathing sounds a lot better and she had her hearing test done again, this time they sedated her though. She has severe hearing loss in her right ear and moderate hearing in her left ear. She'll have to get fitted for a hearing aid for her right ear.
Grandma got her to smile for her a lot. She's a cutie. We hope all goes well for her.
Lindsay's got 8 weeks or so until they'll be adding another little one to the family. She's holding her own while Andrew heads to Missouri for work. What a trooper.
Zandra's got around 10 weeks before they'll be adding another one. She's holding her own as well.
Garrett was able to close a loan for his cousins, JC and Kristen Hansen and also went to a work meeting/conference where he met Mark Eaton. He is one tall guy!!
Danica gave VASA a two-week notice on her job. She's planning on staying on to fill in as a sub only. She got a new job with Dave Hardman's office of State Farm Insurance in Ogden.
It will be full-time, is closer to where she lives, and has benefits. We wish her the best.
To celebrate, her friend, Jason, took her to a Jazz game.
She lost her hedgehog, Willow, for a bit, but ended up finding her in her snow boot. I'm just glad she saw her in the boot before trying to put it on.
Danica came home for another weekend and went to Twin Falls, ID with Dale and I to watch Jaxson play in an all-day basketball tournament. Amie helps coach the team and the 5th grade Oakley boys went 5-0. Most of the teams they won quite handedly and two of the games were against 6th graders. It was fun to watch the team play as a team and see that they knew what they were doing. Great job Jaxson and Amie!! The team went 16-1 for the season. Not bad.
We had a good time hanging out with Matt and the kids during the games and were glad we went. We also went and saw Shoshone Falls, Idaho's little Niagara Falls. Pretty cool!
Matt helps coach the Oakley Hornets Girls Basketball team and they ended up placing 3rd at State in their division. Great job Matt and team!!
Kennlyn's also doing well on her Rec. team. The Mallory gang will get a rest from sports for a bit now. A much needed break for them I'm sure.
Langston and Mazin are good to just go along for the ride in all that's been going on with all the basketball games.
On our drive there we saw some of the aftermath from all of the flooding they had in the area. They've had a bunch of snow days due to snow, rain, snow-drifts, and flooding.
Dale's brother-in-law, Val Potter was sworn in as a State Legislature last month and has been serving in that position for almost a month now. He's fitting in pretty good. Way to represent Val.
It has definitely been a Funky February for us with all the fun and crazy things that have been going on.
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