7/17 - 7/27 - Kauai summer vacation
Sunday arrive
Monday 18th - beach/grocery shopping
Tuesday 19th- - fishing - $900 - booked
Wed - Waimea Canyon
Thurs - 21st tubing - booked - 1:30pm, be there at 1pm - booked
Friday - move from one place to another
Saturday - Hanalei bay, beach
Monday 25th - napoli boat ride - $180 each. Noon-4pm, cash for tip - booked
Tuesday - beach
Wednesday - head home
7/17 - We had a long day of travel to Hawaii. We drove to the airport and Grammy and Gramps took our car home. We got to say hi, give them hugs and have them take our picture. We ate lunch at Friday's in Dallas airport, we had dinner at LA airport. In Dallas Greg started playing Pokeman Go just for fun. Lets just say this became a bigger deal during vacation :)
Our flight landed after 8pm Hawaii time in Kauai which was after 1am Dallas time. We got upgraded to a 4 door red jeep which was fun. We drove to area we were staying - Poi Pu and decided to stop at the store quick for some water and breakfast items. The kids were pretty tired, but stayed awake.
We got to our place at Poi Pu Shores, got everything upstairs and got the kids to bed. This place didn't have AC except in the master bedroom, but it was right on the water and patio looked out into the ocean.
7/18 - With the time change Greg and the kids woke up about 6am. They had a little to eat at our place then went exploring down the coast. They were gone about 3 hours, saw several turtles, chickens, a few seals and even had 2nd breakfast. They were gone until about 9. Since I had just been in China and hadn't slept much the night before I was still alseep :) I finally got up, ate the rest of Landon's pancakes and we got ready and headed to the beach.
We all did some snorkling and we saw many fish is all kinds of colors. Kasey liked the pink fish and I liked the green one. The boys even saw an eel.
We went back to shower. I had gotten pretty burned on my top half and the kids even got burned some. We had a new sunscreen the we decided we wouldn't use anymore. We didn't have dinner reservations so we went to a nearby area and ate at a place called Savage Shrimp. It was pretty good. Greg and Landon split a platter, I had shrimp tacos, and Kasey ended up eating salad because she didn't want shrimp or fish and chips.
We went to a shop and Kasey found a new dress and flower barrette that she was excited about.
We got kids to bed close to 8 to see how they did.
7/19 - We had scheduled a 6 hour fishing trip - trying something new. Originally we were supposed to meet them at 5:10am. With some rain and weather they wanted us to call in the morning and see how it was. We ended up meeting them at 7:45am. I had taken Bonine the night before and that morning. The kids took natural dramamine. I was still a bit sick at times - just didn't want to eat, drink or be inside.
We started out and didn't catch much for the first few hours. It rained on us some. Then we started catching fish. They were larger fish most were 20+ lbs. They had 4 big fishing poles set up on the boat with fake bait on each of them out in the water at different lengths. Once we did start catching fish they would have whoever was doing it sitting on the chair at the front with the pole in front of them and reel the fish in. Kasey started out and we took turns. A few times there were 3 or 4 on at a time and we were all trying to reel them in. Greg and I enjoyed being on the water, fishing, catching cool fish, and enjoying the scenery. Kasey enjoyed it at the beginning help catch the fish, but then she was sick quite a bit over the side of the boat. Poor thing. Landon enjoyed it as well reeling fish in and seeing the fish. He did not like at all that they killed the fish. He didn't like seeing them get killed or once they were dead. I still think that Landon will become Vegetarian at some point. He's very conscious of cruelty to any kind of animal.
Greg and I got picture with all 13 fish that we caught. Landon didn't want to see them, and I think Kasey thought she would get sick again if she saw them.
We took a little more scenic road back to the house that afternoon. We had some snacks instead of lunch. We went to the pool for a little while then showered and headed to dinner at Eating House. Kasey and I wore flowers :)
Yummy dinner with cauliflower and brussel spouts. We had short ribs, fried chicken and teriyaki fish with rice. Very yummy.
7/20 - It was Greg's Birthday. Kids and I got up and made kids breakfast. Kasey made scrambled eggs. Landon and I made bacon. We also had orange juice and cinnamon rolls. We had yummy breakfast together.
We got ready to head out and for first time the kids played by themselves some. They were playing Go Fish. We played some games on trip. The kids played go Fish several times just the two of them.
Our day had planned to drive to Waimea Canyon. We drove up a scenic way and stopped a few times along the way. There were a few overlooks that were pretty. Then we got up to the main lookout. It was nice but a bit cloudy. It rained a few times throughout. It was fun doing a little hiking. We even took a .3 mile Iliau trail which was nice. Kids found a plant that looked like mini palm tree. They were cute. During this we took a panarammic where kids stayed on one side and then ran to the other side to be in both ends of the picture (fun idea from co workers). We got to see the waterfall from a few angles which was cool. At one lookout there was a big puddle of water. The kids thought it looked like mickey mouse or mickey mouse pancake that wasn't quite finished. :)
We went to the very end of the road to Pu'u O Kila lookout where you are supposed to be able to see the top of the Napali coast. The Napali coast side was fogged in. We hiked around for a bit hoping that it would clear up some. No Dice this time. I guess we have to come back :)
On the way back down the mountain we made a cool stop at a good place to see the waterfall or Waimea Canyon. It had been raining so there was a rainbow that was cool. We even got a picture of Greg pointing to the waterfall :) which is a joke from previous trip.
That night we went to a restaurant called Keoki's. It was a greg restaurant. Greg got fish special prepared two ways and I got Ahi which was really good. We had yummy Mint Chocolate chip and mac nut ice cream cake (2 separate ones) for Greg's BDay. Yum and fun place to. There was a lady singing live which was nice
7/21 - We started off the day walking down to closest beach for a little boogie boarding. Both kids did it for a little while and then Kasey got beaten up a bit. There were 2 local kids there. Their dad said to them "I'm going to work for a few hours I'll be back". Interesting. They were really good in the water, but kids were Landon's age and younger.
Greg also lost his sunglasses in the water. This happened in Kauai 11 years ago last time we were here. Greg was sure they were gone then a girl next to him found them and handed them back. He's lucky :)
We came back after the beach, jumped in the pool for a bit and got ready for tubing.
In the afternoon we went on a fun Tubing trip with Kauai Backcountry Adventure. They fitted us with helmets with lights on them, gloves and we all wore water shoes. We started on a ride onto their property. We had a funny tour guide BJ and another guy name Kai. They were fun telling us about the property and some of the plants. They showed us one plant that you could squeeze and get liquid that they used as a good conditioner (so they say). They also joked about red rock sidings being good for skin. :)
Anyway we got to the loading area, left our dry bag with them and got into the intertubes. No one really wanted to go first so we did. I went first then Landon then Kasey then Greg. They had us stopped in an area and Landon and I ended up getting out in the front with some others. We tubed for about an hour. We went through 3 or 4 tunnels where we had to turn our headlights on. We kind of got separated but we were able to find each other ok. At the very end they go through the last tunnel without lights - Kasey somehow was away from us and wasn't to sure so she told us. The guide said she was one of the first to turn her lights off and be ready. At the end they took us to a little area for a snack. sandwiches, maui onion flavored chips from Plano, TX and chocolate chip cookies. Our guide BJ gave us a few extras. Overall it was a lot of fun. Pretty greenery all around and the tunnels were fun too. The water area is on an old sugar cane plantation. Only one plantation for sugar cane is in Hawaii in Maui and they won't grow sugarcane after this year.
After that we went home to shower and get ready for dinner. We had dinner at Brenneke's. Good Mai Tai, good Ahi Shashimi, and overall good meal. Open window and we could see the ocean a little bit from our table.
After dinner we headed to Lepports for some ice cream and a little Pokeman Go of course. Yum
7/22 - Today was the day for us to switch from the south side of the island to the north side. We hung out in the morning getting packed up and enjoying our view. We had lunch at Olympic Cafe in Poi Pu. We then stopped by Spouting Horn to see what happens when lava tube from the ocean spouts up water every time a wave comes in. It was pretty cool, but it was hot
Then we said goodbye to the southside and headed North. We checked into our new place. In the south our place was nice, but wasn't air conditioned and
was pretty simple. Our place up North was bigger (3 bedrooms), had AC, full kitchen with Granite countertops. It was really nice - but no view but little garden area and part of golf course.
We then changed into our best Hawaii gear and headed south some to Luau Kalamaku. We checked in, got our seats for the show and went on a little train ride. First we got drinks to take with us. We learned a few things on the train ride. Cashews raw from the plant are poisonous, Hawaii's made production these days are coffee beans and macadamia nuts. Not much pineapple or sugar cane anymore. We stopped and got to feed chickens, pigs and a donkey some bread. The kids enjoyed that.
7/23 - Today was a beach day. We went to Hanalei beach for the day. We did a little snorkling, some swimming, some playing in the sand. Greg walked to get us burgers to each for lunch from Bubbas. The kids and I walked down to the pier. Its pretty high up but you can jump off then climb a pretty scary slick ladder back up. Landon jumped, Kasey jumped. We had to help Kasey up some because she thought she would fall. We decided we'd all jump in and swim to the shore. Landon jumped in, I jumped in, and Kasey couldn't jump in. She got scared and thought she would get hurt. So I was rushing up the scary ladder to get to her. Kids were pushing Landon out of the way so he was treading water for a long time. We made it to Kasey and walked back. She was fine, not sure what scared her the 2nd time.
We played a lot of frisbee in the water and enjoyed just hanging out. Sometimes in rain, sometimes not.
That night we had dinner reservations at Happy Talk at Hanalei resort. Fun restaurant with menu that changes, live music and normally a pretty view. It was raining a lot but we enjoyed the music, food and drinks there.
7/24 - today we had to wake the kids up because we had an appointment to go ride horses. It was at Silver Falls Ranch. We were just doing an hour and a half ride because we weren't sure how much the kids would enjoy it. We got there and it wasn't raining, but was supposed to rain most of the morning. Landon got a horse named Chloe, Kasey's horse was named Kayle, Greg's horses nick name was Elvis and my horse was named Ikaika. We enjoyed our ride. It was pretty muddy with all the rain they have been getting but the grounds were really pretty. We saw many different plants including several types of palm trees, we saw a small waterfall and e.
njoyed being on horse ride. My horse didn't like having another horse behind him so I had to be in the back. Kasey's horse started up front and was sweet but sometimes slow. Greg's horse really wanted to be in front. It rained a few times on our ride. Landon and I put on our rain coats a few times but it didn't rain to long. I asked Kasey if she wanted us to stop so she could put her raincoat on. She responded no, you don't get to do this all the time in Texas. This is what we keep telling the kids in Hawaii and made me laugh.
Kasey loved riding the horse. They also got to pet a chicken and cat on the ranch. Overall we all enjoyed it.
There was a tropical storm coming our way so we weren't sure what we could or couldn't do our last few days. We had some lunch - left over pizza for the kids, Greg got a sandwich and I got some sushi. Landon tried the sushi and liked it.
After lunch we went to do a little Snorkling at Anini beach. We basically had the whole place to ourselves. Snorkling wasn't as good as it was on the south side but we saw a few fish. There was some wind, but no waves at this beach. Greg and I remembered being there from 2005 with the boys.
We left about the time is started raining. We headed back so we could all take showers. We didn't have reservations so we headed to Dolphin Restaurant early to get in. We got there a bit after 5 and waited til they started seating at 5:30. Landon shared some sushi with us - he tried Ahi shashimi, Ahi roll and ate most of the shrimp tempura roll. Kasey even tried a few rolls and ate 2 pieces of Ahi Shashimi.
The kids are enjoying having fun drinks. Landon likes Pina Colada and Kasey likes Strawberry Daiquiri.
We came home and started playing some poker, teaching the kids the play. Kasey shared that her favorite things so far are the tubing and horseback riding. Landon's favorite was the chickens or so he said :(
7/25 - We had yummy breakfast - bacon, eggs and cherry turnovers. Today was Napali coast Hanalei Boat Tour. We went out on UFO boat with Captain Tyler and Red. They were pretty cool. We went by several parts of Napali coast on the way out. Beautiful. We also got to see some dolphins swimming by the boat which is one of my favorite things in the world. My video was horrible, but it was fun to see. They even had a little baby with them. So cool.
They shared with use about the coastline, some history, some about major hikes along the coast. A few hours in we got to go snorkeling. We all got in the water. Kasey got freaked out a bit because her mask wasn't working right a few times. Then they got it figured out. There were a bunch of cool fish right by the boat waiting for food. We saw a few other fish, a few turtles and a longer skinny fish that we don't know what it is. Pretty cool overall though.
After snorkeling we got back in the boat had some lunch and then headed back. We fed most of Kasey's sandwich to the fish and they ate it in about 4 seconds.
we had given Dramamine to the kids so they didn't get sick. Kasey was ok on the way out but tired and slept most of the ride back in. Landon was pretty tired most of hte day - bummer. But no one in our family got sick on or off the boat.
On the way back they didn't really stop, but had good music on and we had amazing scenery to look at. Definitely one of my favorite things even though I've done it before. When we got back the van was full so we had to wait a bit. Greg and Landon went and jumped off te pier which Kasey and I waited.
We headed home and Greg cooked a great dinner for us - steak, corn, sweet potatoes, shrimp and salad. While he cooked I took the kids to the pool. I got in to cool off then sat out. The kids finally found a way to play together in the pool. I had to threaten that we wouldn't play poker if they didn't get out. I'm sure other parents thought i was horrible but whatever - poker is a good life skill :)
after dinner the kids and I did play poker. Greg took a nap though. He was a bit tired.
7/26 - Today we had yummy pancake breakfast. We had beach day so we were taking our time. By the time we headed out it was 10:30ish. We decided to stop at Bubbas for some burgers so we didn't have to worry about lunch later. We ate at Ha'ena State park then walked to the beach. The sand was hot but there was a little stream there that ran and went into the ocean.
Landon and Greg went snorkeling. Kasey played with water and sand as I stayed with stuff. After the boys came back I went and did some snorkeling. I saw a few turtles.
One looked upset with me. I was where he would have floated to, so I moved and he floated to where I was and took a breath. Pretty cool. I was a few feet from him. Big over 1 foot turtles.
I made my way back and we spent the day watching and being in the water with the kids. The current was rough in some places which the kids liked. They both got knocked around a bit but enjoyed it.
After a fun beach day - no sunburns, we headed home to shower. We had dinner back where we were for day at the beach. We went to Mediterranean Gourmet for dinner. Food was different but pretty good. They had guy singing and two younger girls dancing. They asked Kasey to go up with them but she wouldn't even if I went with her. Makes me sad when she won't try new things. Although I'm pretty sure as a kid I woulldn't have done it either.
That night getting ready for bed Landon hid in Kasey's room under several pillows. As I told her goodnight he popped out and scared both of us. I was pretty impressed that he did that (they had been playing hide and seek in the house), but he really scared Kasey.
7/27 - Our last morning in Hawaii. We woke up and had another really good breakfast together. We finished packing up then we headed to the light house. We got there just before it opened. There was a lookout over the ocean looking out on cliff with many birds. Also in the area of the lighthouse is a bird sanctuary. It was pretty cool to see the birds flying around, see the water and the light house up close.
After that we drove into Lihue to do a little last minute shopping then we headed to the airport. We got through everything. We decided to get some food. We had one more Firerock beer, I had Ahi tacos. Our flight was delayed a while because they had to find 13 volunteers to get off the plane because we were over weight. They were offering $1100 and rebooking - we thought about it but lady behind me said she wasn't sure they would for sure get you booked on the next flight.
Then when we got to LA we were supposed to leave at 12:50 on a red eye. We ended up eating chips and snacks for dinner but waiting for a while. First the plane wasn't there, then an empty plane showed up. They had to get trash out, but then we had to wait on pilots and flight attendants. I kept thinking they would be over their time and not be able to fly. We finally got on the plane then they said we couldn't leave until they put catering on the plane - really they couldn't have done that in all the time we were waiting. It was after 2am LA time that we left.
Gramps texted me to ask if we were still on the ground. This was about 3:30am his time :)