DAY 6 in HAWAII

We slept in this morning. We've been going full speed the last few days and wanted to slow down a little today. Our plan was to ocean kayak in Kane'ohe Bay on the windward coast.

KAYAKING TRIP

We got ready and ate breakfast, then went over to a kayak rental shop just around the corner from our hotel called "Go Bananas". They helped to attach our kayaks to the top of the jeep, and we were off for Kane'ohe Bay on the windward coast.

We were told that the place we were heading for was one of the most dramatic kayak trips you can take on Oahu, and one with the smoothest waters. It's to a sunken sand bar of over 1,000 acres that you can't see from the shore. It's Hawaii's version of Atlantis. At low tide, part of it is exposed as a beach that has risen from the sea. We knew it was high tide today, and it was possible we wouldn't be able to walk on any exposed sand, but we decided to paddle over and see the sand bar anyway.

It was a really sunny day, so before our trip over, we put on some sunblock. Then we jumped into our kayak (we each had our own), and took off from the pier just north of He'eia State Park. Almost immediately we started going over shallow coral and fish that we could see through the clear water. We were just barely above it. It was intriguing! Then after a mile of kayaking, suddenly there was a sand beach 2-3 feet beneath us. It was strange yet totally amazing. We seemed suspended above it as we were gliding through the water. Since the tide wasn't cooperating today, we didn't come upon the disappearing beach, but we jumped out of our kayaks and walked along the shallows of the beach for a little while as we rested from our trip over.

In the distance, just beyond the sand bar about a mile away, was Kapapa Island. We decided to paddle over to it. As we left the sand bar, the water was calm, but as we got closer, the colliding wraparound surf was annoying. The sea wasn't peaceful anymore. We had our water shoes on, so we jumped into the shallow reefy water and braved the surf as we walked our kayaks towards the rocky shore. We looked back to see how far we had come. It was a long way from where we started. We figure we kayaked about 2 1/2 miles. Kapapa Island was deserted, although we saw a camping site with a tent and a few propped-up fishing poles, but no one was there. We walked around and explored the island, then rested awhile before gong back. I put on more sunblock and offered some to Joshua, but he said he was alright -- something he really regretted later.

Of course, the trip back was a lot harder. Our arms were really tired from paddling. When we arrived at the sunken sand bar, we both laid back and rested in our kayaks while the waves and wind moved us closer to the pier where we started. After a brief rest, we paddled the rest of the way to shore. We had probably paddled about 5 miles that day! We looked at the clock in the jeep and it was 4:00 pm! We started at 10:00 am.... Wow! We couldn't believe that we had been out for six hours. It felt like only half that time. We tied the kayaks back on the jeep, and drove back to Waikiki. We were so tired from kayaking -- six whole hours! Boy, did we get a good workout!

Joshua on the sunken beach. Too bad the sand wasn't exposed that day. The tide was too high.

Julie in her kayak above the sand

The island in the distance is Kapapa Island.
We kayaked there next.

On the shore of Kapapa Island. We would've liked to fall onto a sandy beach to rest, but alas, it was too rocky. We explored the island, then sat on a couple of big boulders to rest up before returning.

POOL-TIME AND
DINNER AT SHOREBIRD BEACH BROILER

After returning our kayaks, we went back to the hotel and I rested by the pool while Joshua went up to our room to clean up and take care of his sunburned legs. Then he met me by the pool with a small BBQ chicken pizza that we shared. Afterwards we relaxed in a pair of canopy-chairs so we could get Joshua's legs out of the sun. Poor Josh - His legs were beginning to blister.

We had reservations for 9:00 that night at Shorebird Beach Broiler. It was at the Outrigger Reef Hotel on the beach. We heard that it was the kind of place that people look for in Waikiki to eat at. It's a great location, right on the beach, with a good view of the ocean. The meat was served to us rare...very rare....Okay, raw. You actually cook it yourself on their enormous grill, with the salad bar included. I had the beef shish-kabob, and Joshua had some kind of fish steak... don't remember what kind it was. A fun place, but very busy. There was also karaoke. Joshua dared me to try it.... but I didn't. We just listened to others sing. After dinner, we stopped by an ABC Store to get some aloe for Josh's legs.

Joshua was grilling our meat at the Shorebird Beach Broiler

DAY 7 in HAWAII

We spent the entire day in the town of La'ie. La'ie has a 94% LDS population, and church buildings all over the town. There is also BYU Hawaii, the La'ie Temple, and the Polynesian Cultural Center.

LA'IE TEMPLE

In the morning, we drove up to the town of La'ie, which is on the northeastern shore of Oahu. It takes about an hour to drive there from Waikiki. We went straight to the La'ie Temple which can't be missed since it's directly off of the Kamehameha Hwy just off the Pacific Coast. We immediately noticed that the temple was under construction. It had scaffolding around it and was stripped of it's white paint. We went into the visitor center to inquire. They told us that the temple was closed for extensive remodeling and refurbishing, inside and out. It is a very old temple, dedicated in 1919, and was undergoing some major structural and mechanical upgrades that the temple really needed to improve and strengthen it once again. There is one other temple in Hawaii, the Kona Hawaii Temple on the Big Island that the Hawaiians will use while this one is under renovation. The La'ie Temple will be rededicated when it reopens in 2010.

We spent some time walking around the beautiful temple grounds. The temple is surrounded by gorgeous Hawaiian flora, with cascading pools and a large fountain. A sister missionary took a picture of Joshua and I in front of the temple.

A few interesting temple facts: The La'ie Temple was originally named the Hawaiian Temple. It was the 5th operating temple and the first temple built outside of the continental United States. The concrete exterior is made of native crushed lava rock and coral, reinforced with steel. The temple design is suggestive of the ancient temples found in South America—shaped like a Grecian cross with no tower (one of three temples with no towers or spires). Construction of the La'ie Hawaii Temple came to a standstill when the supply of lumber ran out. Prayers were uttered, and two days later, a freighter was discovered stranded on a nearby coral reef. The captain offered his entire cargo to the saints if they would unload it for him. What was his cargo? Lumber—enough to complete the temple.


THE POLYNESIAN CULTURAL CENTER

After the temple, we headed towards the Polynesian Cultural Center. We wanted to be there at noon when it opened so we could see as much as possible. We were told that there is almost too much to do and see at the Cultural Center, so it's always a good idea to be there right when it opens.

The PCC is a collection of re-creations from seven different island villages from around Polynesia -- Hawaii, Tahiti, Samoa, Fiji, the Marquesas Islands, New Zealand, and Tonga . Each village showcases their different lifestyles and traditions. Joshua and I started by taking a canoe trip to the other side of PCC. We were awed by the beautiful atmosphere. With the coconut and palm trees, drums, huts, lagoons and waterfalls, it certainly looked more like an island atmosphere than anything in Waikiki. After the canoe ride, we wandered around at our own leisure through the villages. We saw various styles of huts, demonstrations, dancing, and pretty much got an education in all things Polynesian! We spent the majority of our time going from one performance to another throughout the villages, which was actually the most interesting part of PCC.

Josh was chosen out of the audience during a performance in Tonga to assist in a drum demonstration. He had to repeat whatever the "drum-master" did. Of course the "drum-master" started out really slow, which was easy for Josh, but then got fast and complicated, and Josh had to keep up. It was fun to watch and I laughed a lot! For being a volunteer, the "drum-master" gave Josh a braided palm frond headband. We saw other people wearing the same headband during the day, and we knew they were chosen during a different drum demonstration in Tonga. Also through-out the day, various people would call out to Josh, "Hey, Michigan guy!".

During the afternoon, we watched their "Rainbow of Paradise" canoe show on the lagoon. Each village has their own canoe filled with performers and/or dancers during the pageant. It was a lovely pageant, but it was so sunny and hot. Joshua's legs were burning in the sun, so at the beginning of the show, we decided to move towards some trees for shade. The view wasn't as good, but at least it was out of the sun. We noticed that one of the dancers was our hotel breakfast hula dancer, the one who told us that she was LDS and also worked at the PCC. Funny!

In the evening, we went to the dinner luau. We were greeted with a beautiful flower lei, then found a seat in their huge outdoor pavilion. There was lots of entertainment and an all-you-can-eat buffet of authentic Hawaiian foods including Kahlua pork, poi, taro rolls, Hawaiian sweet potatoes, pineapple & other fruits, and lots of different kinds of fish. The dessert table had coconut and pineapple flavored treats. At one point in the evening, they asked the couples who were celebrating an anniversary to stand up. Josh and I stood up with about a dozen other couples. The emcee invited all of us to come on-stage and slow dance while he sang a Hawaiian love song.

After the luau was over, we walked over to the outdoor amphitheater for their 90-minute evening show called "Horizons." There was lots of dancing, singing, spear-throwing, fire-dancing and much more. It was amazing, and a great end to our day at the Cultural Center. We didn't get back to our hotel in Waikiki until pretty late that evening.

We took a ukulele lesson in the Marquesas Village

Joshua performing on the drums in Tonga

... and his palm frond headband for being a volunteer

The Rainbows of Paradise Canoe Pageant

Another boat in the Rainbows of Paradise Canoe Pageant

Our lei greeting before the luau

Julie at the luau

Presenting the Kahlua pig at the luau before the feast

On the island of Rapa Nui

DAY 8 in HAWAII

Today was our last day... sigh.... but we wanted to make the most of it! Today we mostly stuck around Honolulu. We went to Pearl Harbor, and visited a few historical sights in downtown Honolulu.

PEARL HARBOR and the USS ARIZONA MEMORIAL

We grabbed breakfast first thing in the morning, and then drove out to Pearl Harbor to see the USS Arizona Memorial, the most popular visitor attraction on Oahu. Parking can be difficult at peak times and the free passes go quickly, so we wanted to get there early. There was some serious construction going on beside the harbor. We discovered that they were in the midst of building a new USS Arizona Museum and Visitor Center to be opened in early 2010. Too bad we saw the construction and not the final product. We got our free passes, but our group didn't leave for another 45-minutes. So we called home to talk to the kids, and looked around the gift shop.

When it was time for our tour to begin, we went into a small theater where we watched a 20-minute documentary with actual news footage from the day of the attack on Pearl Harbor. It left a very somber attitude on everyone in the room. I could tell because as soon as the lights went up, it was completely silent, and everyone got up and walked slowly out of the theater. Then we boarded a navy boat that shuttled us to the Arizona Memorial. The large white Memorial is suspended over the sunken USS Arizona, the final resting place for many of the 1,177 crewman who lost their lives on December 7, 1941. I read that the architect of the Memorial wanted to suggest that where the structure sags in the center, it represents the initial defeat, but where it stands strong and vigorous at the ends is where it signifies the ultimate victory. It wasn't until I was standing on the Memorial that the reality of this event finally hit me. The battleship was directly below us. You could see it just below the water's surface. It's so sad to know that the men entombed inside died in a terrible assault that stole their lives, but in return, pretty much galvanized our nation. Then, looking at the massive marble wall with their names engraved was heart-rendering. Joshua and I spent a good half-hour on the memorial before heading back on the next shuttle.

The USS Arizona Memorial

The entrance of the Memorial

Joshua looking at the sunken Arizona
Parts of the ship, like this one, stuck out of the water

The giant marble wall with the names of the men entombed in the battleship

The Battleship Missouri behind Joshua
On the deck of the "Mighty Mo", the Japanese signed a surrender agreement ending the Pacific war

DOWNTOWN HONOLULU and FLYING HOME

We went back to the hotel, packed up and checked out. Before leaving, I stood on the lanai in our room and admired the view of the ocean once more. I shed a tear or two. I was sad that it was our last day. We had a great 8 days in Hawaii!

We drove to eat lunch at a restaurant in downtown Honolulu called "La Marina Sailing Club" that was recommended by one of our guide books. We weren't too impressed, but we sat down and ordered anyway. During the hour before lunch, I could feel a headache coming on, but I took a couple of Tylenol in the car hoping it would go away. As we sat there waiting for our food to come, a terrible, massive migraine hit me really hard. I told Josh I was going to the car to lay down while he ate. He could box up my food and I'd eat it later. I reclined the chair, threw a sweatshirt over my head (for less sound and light), and tried to sleep it off. When Josh came out, he told me he was going to drive around and sight-see as I rested. I think it was between and hour and two hours before I came out of it, and Joshua was halfway up the western leeward coast of Oahu. We pulled over to sit on one of the beaches and lay in the sand for awhile. I think we both fell asleep. My conclusion? We must've been a little bit worn-out from vigorously sight-seeing the past week.

After feeling rested, we made our way back to Downtown Honolulu. We wanted to take a tour of the Iolani Palace, the only example of a royal palace in the United States. The Hawaiian Islands were a kingdom until 1893, and in 1882 Hawaii's last king, David Kalakaua ordered this palace to be built to show the world that Hawaii had a monarchy just as grand as any other. It contains the thrones of King Kalakaua and his successor (and sister) Queen Lil'uokalani. But by the time we got there, it was already closed, so we walked around admiring it from outside.

Across the street from the palace is the King Kamehameha Statue which pays tribute to the Big Island's chief who united the Hawaiian Islands into one kingdom at the turn of the 18th century.

Iolani Palace

King Kamehameha Statue

Queen Lil'uokalani Statue
She wrote the song "Aloha 'Oe" and was a baptized member of the LDS church

It was dusk, and we decided there wasn't any more we could do that day, so we went to the airport to check in even though it was a little early. We had a few hours to kick around at the airport, so we browsed a few stores and had a nice dinner at one of the airport restaurants. We reminisced on our week in Hawaii and thought about the day we'd come back again, maybe to one of the other islands.

Our flight left at 9:30 pm on Wednesday night..... and we didn't get back into Michigan until 11:30 pm on Thursday night! We were so exhausted from the small amount of sleep we got on our flights back. We crashed at the Marriott Metro-Airport Hotel and slept until 11:15 am the next morning! My parents and our kids came to pick us up after we checked out. It was good to see them again and be back home, but we'll never forget the wonderful, amazing trip we had to Oahu for our 15th wedding anniversary.

It took us between 3 and 4 days to get back onto Michigan time again. I especially had really bad jet lag! Plus we lost a night of sleep as we flew back (I can't sleep on planes). But it was nice to be back with the kids again, and still have most of the summer ahead of us.

Our next big trip?? Don't know yet.... We've been brainstorming where we want to go for our 20th anniversary in five years. Any ideas?

Our Summer Good Behavior Incentive Program

The last couple of summers, Joshua and I had a good-behavior program for the children. It was a "Star Chart" in the kitchen on our dry erase board, and the kids had to earn a certain amount of stars each week for good behavior here at home. This was to help us keep the fighting, bickering, and disobedience to a minimum, and it really did help. They would each start out with zero stars at the beginning of the week, and depending on good or bad behavior, we would add or subtract stars as we went about the week. By the end of the week, usually during FHE, we would see if they got enough stars to earn individual prizes. It really worked well the last few years, but we thought if we tried it again this summer, it would probably be stale and unmotivating. So I've been brainstorming the last few months to come up with a new program.I call it the "Don't Move-Your-Name List". Here is how it works.

Instead of working on it weekly like we did last year, it is a daily incentive program. The kids each have their name on the fridge next to my "list". At the start of each day, their name begins next to my smiley face at the top of the list. Throughout the day, if they get in trouble or make a bad choice, I tell them to go move their name. They must move it down one step on my list. They also have to do what it tells them to do, such as 10 minutes in time-out -- See picture with the list below.

At the end of the day, if their name is still on my smiley face, they get to choose a reward, or "token" as we call it. I have 4 different tokens that can be redeemed for whenever they want to use it. We stick the token next to their picture on the fridge so we can remember which ones they've already chosen. They are: 1- Invite a friend over; 2- Stay up one hour later; 3- Free pass on a weekly chore; 4- One extra hour of video games (Normally, I only let them play one hour each day). The video game token has been the most popular, but all the different tokens have been chosen this week (this is our first week with the program). Spencer said they are equally good and he has a hard time choosing which one he wants most. It has been such a great week with this new program. Everyone has been very well behaved -- I love it!!

(Click on picture to enlarge)

2008-2009 Elementary School Teachers

The kids had GREAT teachers this year....

Jessica and her teacher, Ms. Ebbitt

Alex with his teacher, Mr. Chris

Logan and his teacher Superman, oh... I mean Mr. Ingram

Jessica, Alex and Logan with thier principal, Mrs. Mytych

Kindergarten Graduation

Logan's kindergarten graduation was on the last day of school. I spent a lot of the morning before the graduation putting butterfly tattoos on each kindergartener's face. They sang songs for their parents and had a slide show of pictures of the kindergarteners that year, most of which I took. Then the certificates were handed out along with a goodie bag for each child. It was really cute, but again, very hard for me to watch. Having Logan graduate kindergarten and Jessica leaving elementary school.... It's a big, transitional year for the kids, but really hard for their mom! They grow up way too fast!!

Logan gave me a cute smile. Can you see him?
They were singing a butterfly song

Logan getting his kindergarten certificate from his teacher Mr. Ingram

Jessica's 5th Grade Graduation

On June 11, the evening before the last day of school, was Jessica's 5th grade graduation from elementary school. It was a rainy evening, so instead of the BBQ and water games outside, we all went into the cafeteria for the dinner and graduation. I can't believe that next year she'll be going to middle school! I'm glad I worked in the school during her last year. I was able to see her many times in the hallway, cafeteria, and her classroom. The graduation was a sad evening for me, but an exciting one for Jessica. She is excited to move on. I know that feeling -- I remember my last year in elementary school ... feeling like I was too old for elementary school. That's how she is feeling. No tears for her... but many for me that last week of school.

The next day, which was the last day of school, the entire school did a "Clap-Out" at the end of the day. All the classes K - 4th grade, lined up and down the hallways in the school before the bell rang, and when it did the 5th grade classes came out and everyone clapped for them. I was crying so much that I didn't get a very good picture. Good luck in 6th grade next year, Jessica!!

Jessica with a few friends from class

Class of 2016 -- Jessica with her closest girlfriends:
Sahara, Beatrice, Jessica, Amanda
(Wearing the hats that their classmates signed)

Jessica receiving her diploma
(from L to R) - Jessica, Mrs. Mytych (principal), Mrs. Everard (other 5th grade teacher), Ms. Ebbitt (Jessica's teacher)

Jessica and her friend Adrianna directly after the 5th grade "Clap-Out"

Jessica's 11th Birthday

Jessica turned 11 years old on June 2nd. Her birthday was on a school day, so in the morning before school, we went to McDonalds for her birthday breakfast. After school was over, she came home and the whole family went to see the movie "Night at the Museum 2". Then we went out to dinner and came home for cake, ice cream and presents. She got lots of good stuff. What a fun day!

Second Grade Luau

The second grade classes at Alex's school had a family Luau night at the end of May to celebrate the end of the school year. Since I am a room mom for Alex's class, I helped a lot with the decorations and food. It was a fun evening. First, we had a big buffet dinner. Then we had several perfomances while we ate. Two of the second grade teachers, who are also both professional dancers, performed several polynesian dances for us. Alex's teacher played several songs on his ukelele. Then each second grade class perfomed and sang for their families. I took lots of pictures. Here are some of them.

Mrs. Hirvela and Ms. Dubay (the two 2nd grade teachers on the right) performing a polynesian dance

Mr. Kozacynski (called Mr. Chris b/c his last name is hard say) played the ukelele

Alex's class singing a song; Alex's teacher playing the ukelele

Alex is in the left top corner, ready to perform a dance/song

Alex and Logan's Learning Fair Night at School

In May, Alex and Logan had a Learning Fair Night at their Elementary School. Logan's class had an "Animal Poetry Night". Logan was a tortoise. We made a shell out of a cardboard box for him. During the presentation, he had to say -- "Out in the desert in a hole so deep, I spend many months fast, fast asleep."





Alex's class also had a poetry night. He read his favorite poem that they studied this year in class and also read one that he wrote himself. He told me not to take any pictures. It would be "too embarrasing". I was able to sneak this one though.

The Toothless Boy Wonder

Alex FINALLY lost his first tooth in April. Alex has been watching all his friends lose teeth and has been wondering when it would happen to him. We told him it could be anytime between kindergarten, when Jessica lost her first tooth, and second grade, when Spencer lost his first. Looks like he was on Spencer's same time schedule.

It was one of his top front teeth, and it was on the school playground. His teacher told him to take it to the office where they gave him a cute little "tooth fairy" envelope to put it in. He put that envelope in his pocket. At dinner, he took the envelope out of his pocket, and the tooth was not in it. He was devastated, mostly because he thought the tooth fairy wouldn't bring him any money. I came up with an idea. I told him that he should write a note to the tooth fairy and tell her the situation. Maybe she would understand and still bring him some money. So that's what he did. He got to work and quickly wrote a note to her before bed.

A few weeks later, Alex lost his his other top front tooth at school. This time, he didn't lose it. He made sure it landed safely under his pillow that night for the tooth fairy.