Week in Review

 After returning from Hawaii very late Sunday night, we spent most of Monday doing nothing but resting.

On Tuesday, Stace returned to work, and we took Cora to a private aerial class with her instructor's house, so that Sue and Gord could see Cora in action. They loved watching her!

After Cora's class, we met up with my friends Christina and Tiffany and their kids at International House of Pancakes, which was having a special free pancake special. It was great catching up with them.

I think Spencer didn't want Nan and Pop to leave! At least they got to take home reminders of him and Seb, by way of the cat fur.

Cora and I took Sue and Gord to the airport Wednesday, after a lovely 2-plus weeks together. It's always wonderful having them with us!

Later on Wednesday, Cora and I did some back-to-school shopping for her. For the first time, she's showing an interest in clothes, and starting to be curious about makeup and other girly things. It's an interesting change!

On Thursday, we went to Long Beach for the official grand opening of the wedding studio where Melanie is doing her wedding floristry work.

Her workshop is adorable!

I'm so proud of my hard-working little sister! Such the entrepreneur.

We had a great evening, with snacks and drinks provided and games in the front lobby.

On Saturday, Cora had another swim meet.

Hawaii Tidbits

A few tidbits from our trip... Our home's owner graciously supplied us with a welcome basket, complete with a pineapple. It was delicious!

We'd heard great things about the food trucks, and had an outstanding lunch on one of our days.

All the yums.

The chickens! They're everywhere, and were happy to peck through any leftovers from the lunch crowd.

We took one last morning beach stroll Sunday, before finishing up packing and loading the van.

Snapshot from the airport waiting for our flight... this sweet girl used some of her Hawaii spending money to buy her mama a Hawaii bracelet. Thanks, my Violet!

What a great trip, full of memories we'll treasure!

Until next time, ALOHA!

Haleiwa Beach and Cruising

Saturday was our last full day, and I was in desperate need of some more beach! We ended up at a beach park in Haleiwa, and we had a great time boogie boarding and body surfing.

We cleaned up and drove around to the harbor, where we had booked an evening sunset cruise on a catamaran.

We had clouds on a good part of our trip, but thankfully Saturday evening cleared up just for us.

My dad and his good camera - he captured some lovely shots with us and the setting sun.

Our captain took a liking to Cora - she and Violet were the only children aboard - and let her steer us into the harbor, all the way up to our dock. Cora was a natural!

North Shore Fun

We spent our Friday closer to our home away from home, heading up the coast into the North Shore area. We stopped at a fruit stand for island delights, where Sue and Gord tried (and were less than impressed) with the juice of a green coconut.

The mango and kiwi were delicious, however, and the fresh cut sugar cane was an interesting thing to experience for the first time.

Stace and Gord are very familiar with the North Shore breaks, from the many surf films they've watched. This Waimea Bay beach is famous - funny that in the height of summer, the waves are practically nonexistent. We stopped at a beach not far from here for a dip and some more snorkeling.

A friend who frequents Hawaii said Teddy's Bigger Burgers in Haleiwa was a must-stop, and we were up for a big burger and beer. 

Yum!

Haleiwa (Holly-Eva) is a fabulous surf town. We all found shops to hold our interest - art, knick knacks, tourist stuff, surfboards and gear...

Waikiki

After leaving Pearl Harbor, (and after finding coffee - there are priorities!), we headed for famous Waikiki Beach.

We got a bite to eat in the shopping district and took it to the shorefront to enjoy near the sand. The girls ate quickly and jumped into the sea. 

We found the beach to be just gorgeous.

Before heading home, we did a little more shopping, and got a Dole Whip in an ABC Store. Only in Hawaii!

Remembering Pearl Harbor

One of our main reasons for choosing Oahu to visit was our desire to take in the Pearl Harbor sites. We did this on Thursday, when we visited the U.S.S. Missouri, the Pacific Aviation Museum, and the monument to the sunken U.S.S. Arizona.

We boarded the Missouri, or Mighty Mo, first, after a shuttle carried us from the visitors' center onto the military base.

Gord is a history buff, and this ended up being his favorite day of our trip.

While World War II began for the United States with Japan's bombing of Pearl Harbor, it ended here as well, on board the Mighty Mo when it was anchored in Tokyo Harbor in 1945. On this spot, the big players signed the document detailing Japan's surrender, ending the war.

Violet ended up losing a tooth while we listened to a docent tell us about the ship! See the hole next to the top tooth that's coming down?

After our tour, Grandpa treated the girls to a Shave Ice. Nice and refreshing on a warm, tropical day. (P.S. I love this photo of my dad with the girls!)

Next up was the aviation museum. We could have spent hours in here, but our timed entry for the U.S.S. Arizona film and boat tour got in the way.

One of the hangars open to the public still shows damage from the Dec. 7, 1941 surprise attack.

Outside that hangar was a lineup of helicopters that my talented husband has worked on. So proud of him.

Cute photo op inside the museum.

Lastly, we watched a movie about the Pearl Harbor attack and boarded a boat for a harbor cruise past the Arizona memorial. Sadly, the dock showed cracks weeks before we arrived and was closed to visitors.