So We Went to Hawaii Again...

...Rob got Chris a buddy pass and off we went in three separate groups. John and Chris flew to LA on Thursday and on to Honolulu Friday, where they rented a car and visited the North Shore. They climbed Temple Hill, ate at the Seasider, walked out to Goat Island, visited John's old office. Our old house from 18 years ago is torn down! John took photos of everything, and I'll try to get copies up on the blog.

Nicolle, the kids and I tried for the direct flight to Honolulu Friday morning but ended up traveling via LA, and were about 4 hours later getting there than we'd planned. Rob got off work early and came 2 hours after us. We rode the bus to Waikiki from the airport and went straight to bed. Above is the view from our hotel lanai. The next morning, John, Chris, and Rob climbed Diamond Head while Nicolle, the kids, and I went to the beach. Nicolle was working on a paper for her class so I had the babies and didn't take photos.

Colette was very impressed with her mom's beautiful beach dress and wore it Saturday while we rested back at the hotel.

We totally skipped lunch but had an early dinner at the Cheesecake Factory.

Chris practices his suave look:

John, Chris and I took the kids to the beach so Rob and Nicolle could go off on their own. It was brightly lit and beautiful. The water was warm. Sort of warm--by the end they were freezing of course.



Sand fight! This can only end badly.

John found a green inner tube abandoned on the beach. And an orange one. And two beach mats. And then we had to carry them back to the hotel along with the sandy, shivering children.

Mermaid Colette:

The next morning while Nicolle worked on her paper at the hotel, the rest of us went back to the beach.

Chris worked on his tan.

Everybody else used sunscreen.

Little clam Colette:



After showers and lunch we checked out and rode the bus around the island to Sea Life Park.


The coral tank was the most interesting and beautiful part of the park. We watched the rays and other fish.

We watched them feed the turtles.

We saw the dolphins and sea lions.




We saw a few birds as well.


Colette found a hibiscus blossom.

We rode the bus to the Ala Moana Mall for dinner, and some of us shopped while the rest waited.

The flight was not bad coming back--there were enough empty seats to stretch out and get some sleep. Even so, Chris and I were pretty useless the next day. However, John went straight back to school and Rob to work, dedicated souls that they are. I tried that last time and was grateful this time for a day to recover.

Below, feeding the rays at Sea Life Park:

Pix from Costa Rica

John and Chris have photos here (facebook).


Nicolle has a few up on her blog.

Costa Rica

John, Nicolle, and Chris are headed off to Costa Rica. I decided to stay back with the babes and let John and Nicolle explore for a possible study abroad thing there. We bought Chris's ticket of course, but John and Nicolle used flight benefits from Rob's job at Delta, and are flying free on standby. Because Nicolle had such a hard time getting back from Ft. Worth, we were worried they might not be able to get on their flights to Atlanta and then to CR. They allowed a whole day to get there before Chris if they missed a flight or two and had to go later. But both John and Nicolle got on both legs of the trip on their first try.

It's harrowing for a worry-wart like me. Now I don't have to worry. Or I guess I will worry about Chris making his transfer by himself tomorrow in Denver. But that's less worrisome than thinking about Chris arriving in San Jose, Costa Rica, and nobody there to meet him.

Rob called from the airport this morning and said he and the babes are going to Orange County and then to the beach today. We'll see them tonight.

Colette's Third 5th Birthday Party

Nicolle and the babes came back from Ft. Worth, after a huge amount of trouble trying to get on standby. But we were glad! We drove up with the bunk beds to trade for the queen-size for A&J, and had a PARTY (Colette's 3rd birthday party of the year, according to Nicolle). That's just the way we do it.

And here's Colette singing a song (to a music video on Nicolle's iPod--I'm not exactly sure what song it is).



By the way, both Chris' and Brett's CD's are now in the mastering phase. I will put up any links as soon as I get them. Chris played us an acoustic song from his CD that he feels like is finished, and it's beautiful.

Happy Birthday Nicolle

...and John of course (same day). Rob and Nicolle had tix to The Daily Show in New York, and Nicolle called me yesterday after they got out. Fun! We've got the kids while they're gone.