Hawaii - Day 4

Nathan went and picked up our rental car first thing in the morning. We started the day off by going to Leonard's Bakery, well known for their Portuguese donuts called malasadas. I wasn't impressed with them, but Nathan liked it. After our bakery stop, we continued on to the Dole Pineapple Plantation. We arrived just in time to take the first tram ride of the day at 9:30. The ride was about 25 minutes and took you through the pineapple fields and buy some other crops as well, including bananas, apple-bananas, macadamia nuts, sugar cane, and more. I never know what type of plant pineapples grew on and was surprised to see it was a low bush. I figured it would be some type of big tropical looking tree.

After the Pineapple Plantation we continued on to Turtle Beach, which is just north of Hale'iwa, a small surfing town on the north shore. Unfortunately there were no giant sea turtles sunning on the beach, and Bryce was having a bad attitude about sand in his shoes, so we went into Hale'iwa and had lunch at Jameson's on the Beach. Lunch was decent, but nothing to write home about. After lunch everyone was in a better mood so we stopped to see if we could see turtles before going to the Polynesian Cultural Center. There weren't any on the beach, but we did see a couple swimming close to the shore.

We got to the Polynesian Cultural Center around 2:15, just in time for their big canoe pageant, where people from each of the villages put on a show in their river on the back of canoes. Bryce loved all of the dancing, especially when it was done by pretty girls. We then went village to village seeing their individual shows, model huts, and other cultural things. Our favorite two villages were the villages of Samoa and Fiji. The main performer in the Samoan village was very funny. Bryce sat on Nathan's shoulders to watch the show and was cracking up every time the rest of the audience laughed at a joke. At one point, I think more people were watching Bryce and listening to his wonderful giggles than the performer. In the Samoan show the main performer started a fire using sticks, and another climbed a coconut tree. In the Fiji village we were taught some songs and played with stick instruments. The kids also were invited to the front (some adults went up to) to learn a dance.

We didn't leave the Center until closing, which was about 6 o'clock. Once again we were tired and hungry, but much to my dismay we decided to wait until after we drove to the Pali Highway lookout to get dinner. We didn't want to miss the sunset. Unfortunately, we got a little lost along the way, and by the time we got to the turnoff for the lookout, the sun had set and we decided to just go back to Waikiki without driving to the lookout. When we got back to our hotel it was about 8:30. We decided to go to an all you can eat buffet, but when we got there after a much longer walk then anticipated and looked at the food we changed out minds. We finally settled on IHOP, and after requesting to move to a new table when the one we were originally seated at smelled like throw-up, we ended up having a decent meal - breakfast for dinner, yummy. It was well after 10 before we got back to the room.

Hawaii - Day 3

We took a bus that dropped us off on the main road lading up to Diamond Head. The walk from the bus stop to the trail head was about 1/3 of a mile. The hike from the base of the trail head up to the top of the summit of the crater is .8 miles, all up hill with about 225 steep steps, dark tunnels, and switch backs. I carried Faith on my shoulders most of the way and Nathan carried Bryce on his shoulders. It was also very hot. However, the view at the top was well worth it. The 360* view from the top, was amazing. After a short stop at the top to eat a few snacks and have some water we started back down. At the base of the trail, we got the kids a smoothie as a reward for their good behavior and positive attitude. While we were sitting down, a Department of Land and Natural Resources Cop started talking to us and told us to go to Hanauma Bay before 7 am in order to get free parking and save the $7.25/adult admission.

We continued our walk back to the bus stop. Along the way a taxi driver pulled over to us and offered to take us anywhere in Waikiki for $10/person. We passed up this chance thinking that the bus would be only $2.25/person or possibly free if our transfers worked. We waited anxiously for 30 minutes for the bus. When it finally came by it didn't even slow down as it was completely full. By this time it was 2:30 and we were all starving and the kids were very cranky. We decided to walk the 2.4 miles back to our hotel rather than wait another 30 minutes for a bus that could be full again. The walk back was hot and I carried Faith on my hip most of the way. By the time we got back to our hotel everyone was totally beat and it was after 4 pm. We didn't even go back to the room.

Instead we went into Giovanni Pastrami's an Italian Restaurant that advertised a great happy hour. We first ordered drinks, Mai Tia's for the girls, beer for Nathan, and water for the kids. Being completely dehydrated and hungry, it didn't take long for the alcohol to kick in. With any purchase during happy hour you get two free slices of pizza (Round Table Pizza). We thought this meant two per table, so we ordered a big plate of nacho's to get us started and personal pizzas for all of us ($5/each during happy hour). After ordering the waitress brought us each 2 free slices of cheese pizza. We had so much pizza we ended up taking over a whole pizza back to the room.

That evening we took the kids down to the pool. The one thing we weren't crazy about at the Wyndham was the pool. For a big resort, the pool was small and was a touch on the cold side.

That night the kids went to bed early. Nathan and I slipped out and went to the Trump Tower intending to have a drink and watch the sunset. After seeing the $15/drink price, we decided to just enjoy the view for a few minutes and get a drink somewhere else. We had a drink at Shore Birds, which is right on the beach, but the service was bad and it was so noisy we couldn't really talk.

Hawaii - Day 2

We walked a couple of blocks from our hotel and caught a bus to Bishop Museum. Bryce and Faith really liked riding the bus. From this point on in our trip, when Faith saw a bus, she would point at it and say, "Me, me ride" and then hit herself in the chest.

The bus stop was a couple of blocks from the museum, but the walk wasn't bad. The museum was very neat. First we listened to a talk about the native plants at the museum. Faith and Bryce weren't too interested in this, so Nathan and I spent much of the talk chasing the kids. The two highlights were the Polynesian Hall, where the architecture of the building alone was worth seeing with its tall wooden pillars and beautiful railings, and the Science Hall, complete with a model volcano, a show where they actually melted lava, and a melted wax model of how lava flows. Bryce thought the snail statue, which he called a "snail pistachio" was really cool. The kids also enjoyed turning the wheel that made the hot melted wax flow like lava.

After the Bishop Museum we got "directions" to China Town. What was supposed to be 5 - 7 blocks turned into almost an hour of walking in the hot sun. By the time we got to China Town, all the stores were closing as it was Sunday and apparently everything closes at 3 pm on Sundays. We were all hot and cranky by this point and in desperate need of ice cream. Thankfully we found the bus stop and took a bus to the Ala Moana Center. This is the world's largest open-air shopping center. After getting our much needed treats, we watched a dance recital that included many of the native Hawaiian dances. Bryce loved watching all the girls. After roaming around the shopping center for a while, we took a bus back to Waikiki.

By the time we got back to Waikiki it was dinner time. While waiting for our table at the Yard House, we watched a musical performance on at the Beachwalk's outdoor stage. This was a great distraction for our tired and cranky kids. Dinner at the Yard House was excellent. I ordered a turkey burger and it was the best I'd ever had. It was hand made with lots of tasty spices and veggies mixed in. It came with sweet potato fries drizzled with a touch of maple syrup. Yummy. The kid's got chicken fingers. They were huge pieces of chicken breast battered and fried to perfection. Nathan and Nanny got huge burgers that were wonderful too. Nathan also enjoyed selecting from the largest selection of draft beers anywhere.

By the time we got back to the resort we were wiped. We gave the kids a bath in the huge jetted tub, put them to bed, then crawled to bed ourselves.

Hawaii - Travel Day/Day 1

Rather than wake up in the middle of the night to catch our flight, we decided to stay in an airport hotel with free parking during the duration of our trip. I'm not sure if this allowed us any more sleep since Faith didn't fall asleep until 11 ish, was up a couple of times in the middle of the night, and then awake for the day around 4. Oh well, it was at least cheaper than paying for parking for 11 days. The kids were great on the flight. Faith slept for the first couple of hours. Then she entertained herself by playing with the plane's satellite phone, eating snacks, and making friends with the people around her. Towards the end she got restless, so we walked up and down the aisle for 30 minutes. Bryce sat quietly in his seat for most of the flight. He listened to the in-flight kid's radio show, watched an animal planet type show, and played with his toys. When we arrived at the airport we were supposed to be picked-up by a Pleasant Holidays shuttle, however our travel agent messed up and didn't reserve this for us. We were however met by a representative of Pleasant Holidays for a lei greeting. She was nice enough to help us find a taxi. When we arrived at the Wyndham Resort, they had our room ready early. We lucked out and got all of the upgrades I requested - 9th floor (highest floor with the exception of the penthouses) with a beachwalk view. The room/condo was great. It was very tastefully decorated, spacious, had comfortable beds, and a view of the ocean from all three balconies. After we got settled in, we walked to the International Marketplace for lunch. Following lunch we had a late rest time and then went to Waikiki Beach for the evening.

Bryce 3 Years, 11 Months

Bryce has just two weeks left at Brush Creek before summer. He has really enjoyed his time there. All the teachers are really good with him, especially his teachers Miss Nancy and Miss Vicki. Next year he'll move up to the front class - the 4 year old class. After much debating, I think we'll stick with the Tues/Thurs morning program. I was really thinking of switching him to the afternoons, but he'd have to go three days a week instead of two and I want to be with him as much as possible, especially since kindergarten will be here before I know it.

Bryce's behavior has started to take a turn for the worst lately. He has been arguing a lot. He also gets so angry and yells anytime something doesn't go his way, anytime you correct him, or anytime he makes a mistake. He hates to be wrong, not know an answer, make a mistake, etc. Basically he is a huge perfectionist. We try very hard to explain that he is still learning and that making mistakes is okay, but he looses it and you can't reason with him while he is like that. In my current Bible Study, we've been learning about reality discipline (making the consequences fit the action). We've been trying to put this into practice, but it is tough. We also keep trying to be firm, loving and consistent.

We suspect that one reason for the change in his behavior is the upcoming life changes (summer vacation, knowing that he will be in the front class when school starts again, and turning 4). He went through a similar phase last year before his birthday. We started talking up how big he was getting and telling him that his birthday was coming up. I think he feels pressure from this.