Here is the post about our wonderful trip to Hawaii. Enjoy the pictures, I know I will!!
This is the beach the day we got to Hawaii. I'd tell ya the name but I can't remember it is a beach that is near Angie's house. Angie and Heidi are enjoying the paddle ball game going on in the water. Eric's dream is to play a wiffle ball game on the beach...too bad the wind is always blowing on the beach. Oh yeah, Eric and Heidi were there for the first week of our vacation. It was good to see them and spend that time in Hawaii.
Drake is still a not feeling well and wasn't so sure about the water. Eventually he warmed up to it.
You would think that Logan had had enough sleep since he slept the whole time on the plane.
Here we are on the beach at Bellows Air Force base. One good thing about Dan in the military I got to use my military ID to get us on the base. It was the most beautiful beach I have ever seen.
Angie lives on the rainy side of the island. Every morning there was a rain and mist. Finally on the morning we were leaving I got to see waterfalls coming down the mountain. This is the view from Angie's back porch. Isn't it amazing?!
Angie, Eric, all the kids, and myself went to the PCC. Heidi was feeling sick and she had been there before so she stayed back. It was so fun to see the different areas of Polynesia. We got to play with the sticks at New Zealand, witness the tree climb and coconut opening in Samoa, the drums and spear throwing in Tonga, and much more. The big show that night was awesome. We had great seats thanks to a friend of Angie and Nate's.
Drake had a great time fishing. You get a stick, line, hook and bait. If you can get it past the little fish you might get a nibble from a big fish. Eric, Brock, and Austin were trying really hard to get the big one.
We were trying to learn the Hula. I was standing next to Eric but Drake decide he wanted out of the stroller and fell out on his head. But this picture of Eric is priceless.
Well since I couldn't hula I decided to try some poi. It was kinda bland but not disgusting
Here we are having quick family Kodak moment, and I mean quick Drake was trying to get away.
Every now and then at Angie's we could hear a gong. This Japanese temple is basically in their backyard. It is an exact replica of a famous temple in Japan. The grounds were beautiful with big fish, turtles, wild peacocks, swans and a really big Buddha.
Drake ringing the gong.
You can buy bird/fish food and if you hold really still the birds will land in your hand and eat. Unfortunately Drake could not hold still long enough to get a bird on his hand but he could hold still and feed the birds that were gathered on the ground.
Drake feeding the birds
While we were visiting, Brock was Drake's favorite name to call. Whether it was really Brock or Austin, Drake called them both Brock and was happy to play with either. This is Austin playing catch and Brock and Drake enjoying the game.
Angie had to run to Honolulu one day to get her Hawaii ID. Drake, Logan, Alyssa, and myself were sent to roam around until she finished. Here is on of the huge Mangrove trees. They were so cool.
Since we missed a day of snorkeling when I was sick we decided to go to Hanauma Bay. We got there early and there weren't too many people there. The beach was nice and the kids were building sand castles. I didn't make out to snorkel but along the shore we got to see three or four types of fish and there were some big ole black crabs. Angie offered the boys $25 to catch one but they didn't try very hard.
After Hanauma Bay we went Bellows again. I was texting and took this picture with my phone first and sent it to him. He thought it was a painting, so I took a picture with the camera and it is a beautiful picture and beach.
On our second week in Hawaii Nate's brothers family came to visit also. Poor Staheli kids were unable to sleep in their own beds for two weeks. I hope at least they enjoyed our company. So here are most the kids getting ready to hunt Easter eggs. Not only was this conference/Easter Sunday but it was also Drakes second birthday. That's right, Drake got to celebrate his second birthday in Hawaii. Too bad he won't really remember.
We decided an appropriate place to visit on such a Sunday would be Pearl Harbor. It was kind of a rainy day which to me fit the occasion. We took a boat ride over to the Arizona Memorial; saw the oil still leaking from the ship and read the names of those who were buried with the ship on that fateful day. It was a very somber place and a reminder of how quickly life can change.
You can buy bird/fish food and if you hold really still the birds will land in your hand and eat. Unfortunately Drake could not hold still long enough to get a bird on his hand but he could hold still and feed the birds that were gathered on the ground.
Drake feeding the birds
While we were visiting, Brock was Drake's favorite name to call. Whether it was really Brock or Austin, Drake called them both Brock and was happy to play with either. This is Austin playing catch and Brock and Drake enjoying the game.
Angie had to run to Honolulu one day to get her Hawaii ID. Drake, Logan, Alyssa, and myself were sent to roam around until she finished. Here is on of the huge Mangrove trees. They were so cool.
Since we missed a day of snorkeling when I was sick we decided to go to Hanauma Bay. We got there early and there weren't too many people there. The beach was nice and the kids were building sand castles. I didn't make out to snorkel but along the shore we got to see three or four types of fish and there were some big ole black crabs. Angie offered the boys $25 to catch one but they didn't try very hard.
After Hanauma Bay we went Bellows again. I was texting and took this picture with my phone first and sent it to him. He thought it was a painting, so I took a picture with the camera and it is a beautiful picture and beach.
On our second week in Hawaii Nate's brothers family came to visit also. Poor Staheli kids were unable to sleep in their own beds for two weeks. I hope at least they enjoyed our company. So here are most the kids getting ready to hunt Easter eggs. Not only was this conference/Easter Sunday but it was also Drakes second birthday. That's right, Drake got to celebrate his second birthday in Hawaii. Too bad he won't really remember.
We decided an appropriate place to visit on such a Sunday would be Pearl Harbor. It was kind of a rainy day which to me fit the occasion. We took a boat ride over to the Arizona Memorial; saw the oil still leaking from the ship and read the names of those who were buried with the ship on that fateful day. It was a very somber place and a reminder of how quickly life can change.
As I mentioned earlier Drake was attached to Brock and Austin to he didn't want to sit with me on the boat he wanted to sit with the boys.
Here is Drake and his Mommy on his birthday on the boat ride back to shore. After walking around Pearl Harbor and reading about many of events from the war Angie, Nate, Alyssa, Drake, Logan and I once again used my Military ID and went over onto Ford Island and visited the USS Utah Memorial. It was pretty interesting also, 58 men lost there lives when that ship sank.
When we got back to Angie's we were unloading kids and this was what my cute Logan looked like so we decided we needed a picture of it. He is such a good baby!
That evening we had a party for Drake. I made cupcakes and we stuck a couple of candles in one. I'll tell you what we were having a hard time keeping them lite. Drake was blowing them out before I could finish lighting one. It was funny and cute. He got a lot of books and things to help keep him entertained on the plane ride home, and a Cars backpack to put them in. Now there was a item of contention for he and Alyssa. I couldn't believe how they fought over that bag. It was always a race to see who could get to it first.
Drake didn't eat much of the cupcake but he loved the frosting. Happy Birthday Good Looking!
The day before we were leaving we headed to Laie. On our way we pulled over at some beach and there were three sea turtles in water right off shore. It was pretty cool. Too bad they wouldn't come up on beach.
Here we are at the Temple. It really is a awesome temple with beautiful grounds. I wish it had been open so I could have done a session, oh well.
After the Temple Angie took me to get some lunch at Kau Aina's for some world famous burgers. The avocado burger was huge and very delicious. Angie to the pineapple burger and it was good too.
And of course what trip to Oahu would complete with out a visit to Matsumotos for some shaved ice. I don't remember the flavors but it was gooood with a little ice cream on the bottom. This was are finally full day in Hawaii. The next day we packed up and headed to Honolulu early so I could see Waikiki and the Punchbowl. At Waikiki there is a statue of Duke with a camera pointed at it. I called my mom and she pulled it up on the Internet to we waved. The ladies at her work thought that was pretty cool. When we got to the airport we asked the airline if we could get a special pass for Angie to help me get through security with my two car seats, double stroller, two small children, four carry ons, and one unsure Mommy. Once Angie left I started to panic. Especailly when Drake started crying, Logan was hungry and we neede to figure out how to get all our stuff to our seats. Some concerned passengers made sure there was a flight attendant to assit me to my seat. There was and all the flight attendants were great. The attendant that was on my side of the plane offered to hold Logan for me if I needed to use the bathroom or get Drake out of his car seat for any reason. Thank You Angie and Hawaiian Airlines for being so understanding and helpful.
Here is Drake and his Mommy on his birthday on the boat ride back to shore. After walking around Pearl Harbor and reading about many of events from the war Angie, Nate, Alyssa, Drake, Logan and I once again used my Military ID and went over onto Ford Island and visited the USS Utah Memorial. It was pretty interesting also, 58 men lost there lives when that ship sank.
When we got back to Angie's we were unloading kids and this was what my cute Logan looked like so we decided we needed a picture of it. He is such a good baby!
That evening we had a party for Drake. I made cupcakes and we stuck a couple of candles in one. I'll tell you what we were having a hard time keeping them lite. Drake was blowing them out before I could finish lighting one. It was funny and cute. He got a lot of books and things to help keep him entertained on the plane ride home, and a Cars backpack to put them in. Now there was a item of contention for he and Alyssa. I couldn't believe how they fought over that bag. It was always a race to see who could get to it first.
Drake didn't eat much of the cupcake but he loved the frosting. Happy Birthday Good Looking!
The day before we were leaving we headed to Laie. On our way we pulled over at some beach and there were three sea turtles in water right off shore. It was pretty cool. Too bad they wouldn't come up on beach.
Here we are at the Temple. It really is a awesome temple with beautiful grounds. I wish it had been open so I could have done a session, oh well.
After the Temple Angie took me to get some lunch at Kau Aina's for some world famous burgers. The avocado burger was huge and very delicious. Angie to the pineapple burger and it was good too.
And of course what trip to Oahu would complete with out a visit to Matsumotos for some shaved ice. I don't remember the flavors but it was gooood with a little ice cream on the bottom. This was are finally full day in Hawaii. The next day we packed up and headed to Honolulu early so I could see Waikiki and the Punchbowl. At Waikiki there is a statue of Duke with a camera pointed at it. I called my mom and she pulled it up on the Internet to we waved. The ladies at her work thought that was pretty cool. When we got to the airport we asked the airline if we could get a special pass for Angie to help me get through security with my two car seats, double stroller, two small children, four carry ons, and one unsure Mommy. Once Angie left I started to panic. Especailly when Drake started crying, Logan was hungry and we neede to figure out how to get all our stuff to our seats. Some concerned passengers made sure there was a flight attendant to assit me to my seat. There was and all the flight attendants were great. The attendant that was on my side of the plane offered to hold Logan for me if I needed to use the bathroom or get Drake out of his car seat for any reason. Thank You Angie and Hawaiian Airlines for being so understanding and helpful.
We arrived in Las Vegas at 12:15am Utah time. We were by far the last ones off the plane and with help got the stroller and things settled. My wonderful parents were there to pick us up. We made it back to Santa Clara and went to bed. It was a wonderful trip! Thanks to the Stahelis
