Hawaii Vacation

Ahhh, what a wonderful time we had in Hawaii!  If a person needs to really slow down, Maui is the place to park one's brain in neutral.  Our greatest dilemma every day was where we were going to grab a bite to eat.  And knowing our children were in fully capable and loving hands allowed us time together that we desperately needed, though we didn't fully realize it til we returned.

The trip over and back was made quite relaxing with a set of Bose headphones and a fully loaded iPod, compliments of by sweet baby bro ~:o)

I was fully prepared to sleep, wanting to arrive in Hawaii without having to waste a day catching up from traveling. I had medicated (heavily), was snuggled up with my favorite guy and a soft pillow, topped off with a set of noise canceling headphones.  How could anything go wrong?

Unfortunately, I had forgotten the pot of coffee I had consumed trying to accomplish my
to-do list prior to leaving home.

I didn't sleep a wink....except for the half hour they were handing out mai tais!

Since a picture is worth a thousand words, here goes ~~~~~~~

The water, the sky, the rosy glow from the sun....a beautiful combination!

Ice cream for breakfast makes for a perfect vacation ~

Since man cannot live on ice cream alone, we needed to find

 something more substantial the next morning.

Introducing the breakfast burger...
a burger, cheese, egg, hash browns, lettuce, and tomato smashed between buns. 
gag

So I missed the DON'T PICK THE FLOWERS sign.  

Dinner on the beach.

We snorkeled in the bay below, the fish were amazing, 

but I kept a tight grip on Shannon's hand ~ 

or trunks!

Say, "Luau!"

Since I didn't have my little monkeys with me, I swung in the trees ~

The roads were enough to make a grown woman ill ~ 

but Shannon loved them!

Trespassing seems to be a theme for Maria,

she hasn't been able to break the habit since college.

Did you find any fruit, Maria???

Shannon dancing the hula with Manti Te'o's cousin.

He was about one pina colada short of having a really good time (or 6!)

We peeked over a ditch and found this taro farm.

While the sign advised against it...Shannon just kept on hiking ~

One minute it would be sunshine, then we'd be drenched while 

hiking through the bamboo forests.

Shannon could only handle driving behind people for so long,

I mean the speed limit was 40 mph max and it was rarely observed...most of the time they crept along around 15 mph. 

He found a "wide" spot in the road, using that term very loosely,

and rocketed past, potholes and all.  

Then, he arrived on the tail of a Mustang.

Then he calmly, or not so calmly, passed it as well.  

He is sold on the Chevy Equinox.

He says it drives like it is on rails ~

and can pass a 'Stang ~

A morning boat ride to spot whales and snorkel with sea turtles ~

I hung out on the back of the boat...

it was warmer, unoccupied, and the sea was beautiful!

There is just something about the sun and the sea!

Then, we spotted whales, a dream of Shannon's fulfilled ~

Shannon loved the sea turtles.  

They were always floating just off the rocks outside our motel room ~

While we aren't totally cool with the shaka yet ...

You know...when in Rome...

at least we didn't get inked!

Boys will always be boys.

Shannon was constantly on the lookout for turtles to investigate ~

Sorry Pat, I had to post this for Margaret ~

Shannon told me he'd kill me if I posted the one of him!

All you need is a cigar ~

More Mimosa?

Or more ice cream?

 Running down the hill to photograph a herd of goats 

seemed like a good idea til I turned around to hike back up.  

Ooofda ~ it was kinda steep ~

~ so I soaked in a cattle trough ~

It seemed fine at the time ~

Hopefully the farmer didn't see!

My boys would have thought they were in heaven

this tree had more branches to climb than they can count ~

Looking back at this year, I often am saddened.  The day prior to leaving on this trip I made a visit to the hospital to visit a friend. The torrent of emotions that flooded over me while getting in the elevator and almost pressing the button for the oncology unit coupled with all the other sights, smells and sounds were completely overwhelming.
But then I remembered that life is good and Theresa would have lived, soaking everything up.
At these times it is better to go and do something T would have done: jump in the waves, sneak in the pool late at night for a swim when it is supposed to be closed, pick a flower because it smells good enough to eat, skip through the parking lot with one of my cherubs, leap into the air when people are looking, run through a field chasing goats.......

This was the perfect end to a difficult year.

Life is made for LIVING!

Til we meet again, Maui!