Final Day

Our last day began with some major packing. Cute stuff was jumping on the bed and fell. So now she has a scrape above and below her eye. We then went swimming and finished packing. After checkout we headed to the aquarium. The aquarium was a hundred times better than the one in San Francisco. There was a lot of interactive activities for the kids. There was a small pond that had star fish, fish and other sea animals that the kids were allowed to touch. The fish and sea creatures were amazing. Some of the sea life there included turtles, sharks, fish, shrimp, lobsters and coral. They have a program where they get pieces of broken coral from the ocean and help it grow enough to be released back into the ocean. The kids were bummed that there weren't any dolphins. After the zoo we went to Walmart to pick up some wipes and a plug as Cute Stuff lost her plug the day before and i left the wipes at the hotel. Next we went to the mall to pick up the Doctor's phone and to have a quick lunch. Then to Costco for a bag and then off to the airport. At the airport let the girls get their souvenirs as they hadn't found anything they really wanted before then. They all picked small bags made in Hawaii. Had a quick dinner and then waited for time to board the plane. The ride was hard as Cute Stuff barely slept so we barely slept and when she was sleeping we would hit turbulence. When we landed in San Francisco they had already begun boarding our flight to Denver. While waiting at the front of the plane the flight attendants were trying to convince people to check their luggage at the gate as there was no more room on the plane. This took them twenty minutes people were just standing in the back of the plane looking at all of the bins that were full hoping some space would magically appear. As the flight attendants were getting nowhere with these people they finally had to go to the back of the plane to accomplish this. We left 3o min late other people still had another plane to catch. Cute Stuff was very active on this flight also. People behind us made a comment about it but hey what do you do? She crashed 15 minutes before we landed. When we got back to our car it would not unlock so I use the regular key and the other doors won't unlock. Somehow a few lights were left on so we had to wait for a jump. This took awhile as they sent the guy to the wrong lot. By the time we leave it is lunchtime and the kids are starving. We run a few errands, pick up the dog from my Dad's and headed home. Daisy Duke was spoiled while she was gone with being inside a good portion of the time and her own full size bed all to herself. The pass still had snow off to the side and a few inches in certain places. Our mail box was crammed full. The kids went to bed around eight, we fell asleep around 9:30 and everyone slept until 9:45 this morning making us an hour late to church which starts at 10. It is always nice to sleep in your own bed. Vacation was great and we all had fun but I am glad we are home. I hope to post pictures tomorrow after I download them.

Museums in Lahaina

Yesterday we took a walk around town and visited a few of the museums. We went to the old sailors prison, the courthouse, and the Wo Hing museum. Out of all of these I think the kids liked the Chinese museum the best. We also looked around the shops for a little had a late lunch at cool cats again and then headed for the beach one last time. When we got there it was raining and a little cold. The water was getting pretty rough so we only stayed for an hour. Then we hit the shops for the kids to find souvenirs. Today we plan to pack, swim, go to the aquarium and the mall and then catch our flight.

The Princess's view on heat

It is very hot and muggy for the kids now that they are no longer acclimatized to the California weather. We have gone by many cemeteries. One day as we were going by yet another one, the Princess announces that all of the people in the cemetery "probably died from the heat" here. She was very serious. Sometimes the kids think they might melt. Colorado is the perfect climate for them. Not too hot.

Royal Lahaina Luau

Yesterday while typing up my blog Cute Stuff was standing on part of a window. While she was bouncing on it it of course broke. Thankfully she didn't get cut. She is so crazy. The doctor and the two older kids swam around the beach while the two younger ones and I walked around. We then came back and swam in the pool before the Luau. At the Luau they were taking pictures of everyone which could have been cool to have but when it came to us he didn't even wait for everyone to get together before he took the picture and said we were done. The Luau was a Tahitian Luau. The dancers were great and the food was pretty good. I especially liked the coconut cake. (Good thing I went for a run yesterday). Even Cute Stuff had a good time and screamed very little. The kids favorite part of the Luau was the fire dancer. The girls had their picture taken with one of the guy dancers. We all had a great time and were exhausted at the end of the night. Today we hit the many museums.

The road to Hana

Yesterday we took the beautiful but curvy road to Hana and the Seven pools. Going to Hana wasn't too bad even though there are a lot of one lane bridges and curves it was going to the Seven pools that was scary. Especially on the way back. While there the Doctor, and the Dude went swimming in one of the pools while everyone else waded in them and I sat on a very hot rock. I don't like slimy things on my feet even when I can see it. We were going to to go to the red sand beaches as Tanya had mentioned until we were listening to a CD that said they were nude beaches. On the way back we stopped at waianapanapa state park. There we walked through a lava tube, down to the black sand beach which was really rough and had all kinds of warnings (the Princess stuck her feet in), and also through to some caves. In one of the caves was a large pool of clear water and people were swimming so the Doctor and the Dude decided to get in. A little later after walking around I decided to jump in as well as the Dude. by then it was only us, so it was a little scary. We jumped in and it was Lake Tahoe cold. Probably a pool of fresh water like rain. We then finished the nice drive back and went to dinner. On the way to dinner a lady stopped the Princess and told her that she was a true Princess and gave her a flower. The girls also got flowers at dinner. Today we are going to the beach.

Kaanapali Beach

Went to a different beach that was much more suited to snorkeling and practice for body boarding for the kids. The Princess and the Dude became braver and were out in the ocean more. The Dude practiced his snorkeling a lot and loved body boarding. Afterwards we went to Bubba Gumps for lunch and then walked the shops a little bit. After naptime we decided to get the other three kids pictures done. The guy was amazing and only charged us for two of them. Cute stuff was as good as she could be for him and he still did a great job.

The beach in Kapalua

Yesterday we went to the beach in Kapalua. We built sand castles that Cute Stuff would knock down as fast as we could put them up. The doctor worked on the wall that turned into Cute Stuffs swimming hole and slide. Brought cute stuff back for a nap and then took a very long walk through the houses in town went for a swim and then to Hard Rock for dinner. We had an excellent view of the ocean. The kids picked out their souvenir pins and we headed back and went to bed. Today we are headed for a different beach.