We threw all caution to the wind and bought tickets to Hawaii in July. What can I say--we missed our tropical home and island family. My Grandma's family actually had a reunion planned on Oahu (which is its own post, coming soon) and it was the perfect excuse for us to go home. I was so scared to take my crazy 20 month old on a cramped 6 hour plane ride (and we certainly weren't paying for him to have his own seat.) I did so much researching and perusing the toy aisles for fun, non-annoying little knick-knacks. In the end, he slept for about an hour each way and the rest was crazy, climbing all over the place, with only a little bit of screaming and throwing up. Whew. But we made it through. And the trip was still totally worth it:)
We flew in late at night and met up with family at our vacation rental in Kaneohe. When we woke up the next morning, this is what we saw.
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| We were right on Kaneohe Bay. |
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| A little blurry, but this is the view of the rental from the water. The two-story white house. It was a dream. |
As soon as Trooper saw the water, he just had to get in. This was at 8am our first morning there.
He must be a Hawaiian boy.
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| This became a familiar sight. |
We went kayaking a lot. With the ocean as our backyard and all...
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| Mom and Traci |
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| Dad and Brent |
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| Brent and Grandpa |
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| Brent and I |
We went to the beach...
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| Brent would dig a big hole for Trooper and the waves would fill it up. Trooper loved his little pool. |
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| Nice jump! |
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| He LOVED the sand! |
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| Best buds. |
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| I thought these baby footprints in the sand were just the cutest things I'd ever seen. |
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| Our cousin Michael took us jetskiing out to the Kaneohe sandbar. One of the coolest experiences ever! It's awesome having family in Hawaii! |
We ate lots and lots of yummy food...
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| Seven Brothers in Laie. |
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| Kise Reunion food. Always beyond delicious. |
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| Kahuku Shrimp and Ted's Chocolate Haupia Pie at Sunset Beach. |
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| Reuniting with our Kahuku Farms family! |
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| Hey! I designed that poster! |
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| Troop had lots of fun playing around the farm and getting dirty. |
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| Ah. I could eat this stuff all day every day. Seriously though. |
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| Matsumoto's Shave Ice. |
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| Of course we stopped for some of Leonard Jr's malasadas... |
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| ...whenever we had the chance. |
We took in the beautiful scenery...
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| Dad went on an adventure to get some beautiful photos. |
And we lounged around...
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| At Cherie and Kenyan's. |
We had the most amazing vacation. While I was sitting there, watching the pure joy on Trooper's face as he rolled in the sand and splashed in the waves, I knew I wouldn't trade that experience for anything. It was so worth it. Yes, it was a lot of money that we definitely could have used elsewhere, but this was exactly where we wanted to spend it and I wouldn't have it any other way. It is worth all the other small sacrifices we're making financially to be able to take that special time as a family. My parents took my family on a lot of trips growing up. They taught us that this is where they chose to spend their money so that we would have meaningful experiences and time together. We never had the newest cool electronics at my house or the biggest pile of Christmas presents, but I've gotten to see a lot of neat things around the entire country. More than that, my siblings and I love spending time together. We have so many fun memories of being crammed in the back of the van for long roadtrips or going to timeless concerts, historic sites, theme parks, and baseball games. That's the kind of parent I want to be. That's what I want my kids to remember and how I want them to feel about each other. Taking the time and money to go to Hawaii this year, I felt like we had started on that journey. And it is already so rewarding. Now I'm not trying to bug anybody who didn't go to Hawaii this year;) Sometimes it's just not a possibility. But if there is a slight possibility, make it happen. You won't regret it. I'm making that one of my lifelong goals. So here's to many more vacations, sacrifices, memories, and miles. Aloha!
