5.6.7

 I thought that the 5th, 6th & 7th of July were low-key days.  In some ways - that is true.  But when I started to download the pictures, I realized that even down days require photos :)

We are lucky to celebrate a lot of July birthdays while we are here - the first being Papa Lord's birthday on the 5th.  The kids and I woke up, and while they were being somewhat quiet...I realized if we got out of the house than perhaps Papa & Nana could sleep in a bit...so off we went to Ted's Bakery to pick up some treats.  I didn't get a photo of our goodies - but their homemade doughnuts are lighter than air and taste so divine!  We got a set for breakfast and then remembered that Papa likes pies for his birthday - but since they didn't have Banana Cream pie - we went for the local favorite of Chocolate Haupia pie.   It did not disappoint!

After our breakfast we did some jobs around the house - I kept saying that I could clean on my own during the next few days, however it was amazing how fast everything got done with everyone helping out.  Papa even fixed the bike tire on a bike that Madeleine has been waiting to ride here...yeah!

We then went over to BYU Hawaii campus to see it...because believe it or not, we didn't even go on campus the last time we were here visiting.  We kept meaning to...but other things sort of won out.  This time - we were determined to go!  It's a small campus, but has a very genuine charm to it.  It reminds me a lot of BYU Idaho (still Rick's College in my mind), but even smaller.  We wandered around the Aloha Center, mainly in the Bookstore area -but they didn't have the chocolate covered cinnamon bears that both other bookstores have!  They didn't even have chewing gum!  However-  they did have some flashlights that I scooped up to try and surprise Bugaboo for his birthday - but I have a feeling the surprise was ruined when I left them out on the counter.

After our lunch, which included the Chocolate Pie (yummy!) - we had a quiet afternoon.  The boys & Papa played the Wii, while I did some computer time, Madeleine read and rode her bike & Nana rested up for the plane ride back.  It was a nice & quiet afternoon :) 

We drove into Honolulu - by way of the Pali Highway and lookout.  The lookout lets you see out over the 985 foot cliffs of the Koolau Mountain Range.  It's really one of the best views of O'ahu!  It was here, that in 1795 King Kamehameha and his warriors defeated the O'ahu armies by sending them over the steep, forested cliffs and claiming the victory which united all the Hawaiian Islands.   

                                                      

{not my best picture - but this is the highest point up from the lookout.  My small lens on the camera isn't working, so I only have my extra long zoom lens.  Not great for regular shots I need to take!}

I took these pictures just a few steps down from the van where there was an opening in the trees to catch just a part of the view of what you see from the terrace where the lookout is.  It really is breathtaking - in pictures yes, but even moreso in person!

                                           

I was hoping we'd all get out to get to see the view - but this little one fell asleep on our drive.  He was so tired from all the fun since we arrived!  . 

However, while we waited Bryson Jr. (he didn't want to walk out with the others) watched the chickens that run EVERYWHERE around here!  I know the state bird is not the chicken - but it should be.  There are so many chickens....on the beach, at the side of the road, in parking lots, grass....wherever you are, you most likely will find a chicken!  

Which always leads to the joke....'Why did the chicken cross the road?'

Madeleine was our photographer for the little outing out to the lookout.  She had my point & shoot and did a rather good job.  It doesn't get the view that much....but what a nice picture of Nana & Papa! :)

And she said that some nice lady walked by and offered to take one of Madeleine with them....

We drove into Honolulu to eat a birthday dinner for Papa before they needed to check in.  The problem with this - is that I was going on my memory of where we were supposed to do, and I put an address into the GPS of where I thought we were going, only to realize it was for another shopping area.  So, I really just drove us around in a circle for about a half-hour, until we found where we were going.  It was a nice dinner looking out at the harbor - but suddenly we were little more than an hour for when a flight needed to be caught, and so off we zoomed!  Lesson learned - plan for an extra 1/2 hour into the days' activity.  Or don't get lost!

We are so glad they were able to come out and enjoy part of our vacation with us!  We are so lucky to have such incredible family! It made for a very enjoyable long-weekend.  We look forward to more time with them while we are in Salt Lake, and hope that one day we can maybe come back to Hawaii again....and that Bryson would get to join us for that time!

The following day - the 6th - became our recuperation day.  We lounged around the house, or the kids played outside with the neighborhood kids.  I loved checking on them through the front door and seeing this sight.....

Then Bryson realized I was watching and tried to hide!  

And quickly decided to become the disappearing boy!

Later that evening, we had an after-dinner walk with Acie the dog.  I'm having a love -dislike relationship with the dog!  The kids are so attentive to her....even in the middle of a meal, that it's hard to keep them focused!  And, she stands at the door whining while we try to eat our food.  However, they are so happy to have a friend that they get to take care of while we are here.  So - in the end I suppose it's enough of a like that I can manage while we are here, and be grateful we don't have a dog in our own life that we have to take care of all the time!

Birds of Paradise.  I have always loved these flowers!

We walked down to Temple Beach - straight down the boulevard from the temple.  It was very windy on the beach - the waves were much more choppy and full of white-caps than usual.  However, a beach is a beach....and there was still some fun!

The next day our skin was not feeling quite so red and tender....so ventured back to Malaekahana Beach.  Madeleine continues to be helpful...sometimes a bit too helpful according to her brothers :)  But overall, they love the attention that she dotes on them!  

Bryon enjoying a quiet moment of solitude...creating his own little Zen moment.

We got back and had a quiet afternoon....until I heard the kiddos playing outside.  And shrieks of laughter.  I walked outside to find that they had created a car wash in the parking lot....

Which I thought was funny - but water is expensive here.  So the neighbor nicely suggested that they put the water up on the grass so that it could provide entertainment and provide watering for the lawn.  Ahhhh - the grown-up way of looking at things is so practical at times, right?!

And that is why the kids sleep SO deep and peacefully at night.....so much running around and fun is had during the day!  And yes, this is a bear that he sleeps with.  1 of 3 actually - but the one that made the cut to come on the trip.  It's his black bear that we got in Yellowstone last summer, and he will curl up with it each night.  I love his rough and tumble nature...and yet at heart, this little guy has the softest heart!

p.s. I was thankful they were sleeping so well - as I have become completey engrossed in the Hunger Games trilogy.  I stayed up this night reading and reading until I had finished the 2nd book.  I can't get over these books - they are hauntingly amazing!  Here I come Book 3....maybe I should try to finish it before Bryson comes into town - that way my nose won't be in a book when we finally get to have him around!  

firecracker FOURTH!

The Fourth of July - what an incredible holiday! I love this day - so much to celebrate and as I heard someone say.....one of the best ways we can celebrate the freedoms we enjoy in our country - is to use them. That makes sense. Although, the school teacher part of me & always within in - would like to throw in a history lesson as well! Some years that works - others the history lesson is a little more part of the daily life that we enjoy here in America - and helping the children to understand how even a simple day is a blessing.

We could say that for this holiday, we exercised our right to assemble this day...although not in the sense to state anything was wrong...everything was done in a tone of celebration. However, there are areas in the world where people are not even allowed to assemble at their will. For fun or enjoyment. Thankfully we are!

Also in honor of America, we enjoyed living out some of the words from favorite patriotic songs.

Such as ~ 'God Bless America'

From the mountains, to the prairies

To the oceans, white with foam

God Bless America! My home sweet home!

{Bryson was helping to count down when he could go into the water after a routine sunscreen application break!}

We are in the state that was the last to enter the United States - making it the big 50 for the states, and taking the Aloha State into formal statehood.

As we sang the song 'America the Beautiful' in Primary on Sunday I thought of the words....

Oh Beautiful for Spacious Skies....

For Amber Waves of Grain
{or sand in this case}

For Purple Mountain Majesties...

{and purple sunsets if there aren't purple mountains close-by}

Above the Fruited Plain! {let's pretend he is holding a pail of fruits that he worked hard to collect...he did work hard to collect this - although it's sand. Not fruit. Still - let's keep playing along!}

America! America!

God Shed His Grace on Thee

And Crown Thy Good

With Brotherhood

From Sea to Shining Sea!

We came home from the beach feeling toasted and rather pink....actually we were red-hot like a firecracker from all the sun that day! Shoulders were tender and eyes were bloodshot - it was a very successful day at the beach, with a lot of swimming, boogie boarding and loads of fun with Papa Lord out in the waves & Nana sunbathing on the beach and keeping tabs on our things.....we just went a little overboard on getting too much red in the day!

We ate our American meal of grilled hamburgers (cooked on the stove - that grill is going to be my nemesis for this trip here. Oh well - everything can't be completely perfect!) and then we got ready to go see the fireworks at Turtle Bay Resort. We went there 2 years ago - but 2 years ago there wasn't a large crowd that attended...this year we couldn't park in the resort but had to park outside on the street and then walk in for a good 10-15 minute walk! We were working off the burgers I suppose :)

After I took a few pictures of the kiddos in their patriotic colored outfits - we tried to find a spot to sit and watch the show. There are SO many people here than 2 years ago...the crowd was at least 3 times the size. We finally found a spot and set our chairs and blanket out - and realized 1) it was drizzling with light rain coming down and 2) when the show started we realized we were facing the wrong way! We quickly adjusted and enjoyed an amazing show of fireworks booming almost directly over our heads, and for coming in so late and not knowing how big the crowd would be - we did fairly well! There were a few times when the fireworks were lower in the sky and due to trees around us we couldn't see them clearly - but overall it was a very impressive show and we were amazing at the variety of colors and the differences in the fireworks that lit up the sky!

{proof - although not great - that we saw the fireworks. I can't figure out what the dots are - maybe they were the rain drops left over from the earlier shower?}

After the show ended, we packed the chairs and blanket back up, and started the walk back to the car. We definitely got some nice casual exercise that night! On the way back, the drizzling started again - and then it picked up until it was coming down rather heavily and we started to become a bit soaked. Thankfully the car was ahead - and although we did have to walk quite a distance both ways....at least we got into our car which was parked on the grassy area by the road and pointed in the direction we needed to drive....and pulled out within a few minutes and driving home while other cars were still lined up and waiting to even get out of the resort.

America - what a great land of opportunity! We love you America & are so thankful for the blessings, opportunities and freedom that you provide! May we never take what we have for granted and help us to always honor your name, the memory of those who fought and struggled to make your existence come to pass & to keep the wonderful legacy of freedom in full bloom within our country - and to allow it to help others throughout the world. We are indeed so fortunate to have our freedoms....they are such a part of us, that I know there are times when I forget how lucky I am to experience these on a daily basis - while others do not. I want to be more conscious of my freedoms & to truly be grateful for them each day.

America - God Bless You!

thankfully.....a day of rest!

I'm so thankful that within our church, the practice of keeping the Sabbath Day sacred and set apart from other days is a part of what we practice.  Not only is this something that saves my sanity during a regular week of life (how nice to be able to know that there is one day that we don't run around and keep the busy schedule of other days!), but there is a day to refuel my spiritual battery and to learn and grow in wisdom.  I also really look forward to this day, even while on vacation.  I enjoy visiting different wards, also known as our congregations, in different parts of the country....and sometimes around the world (when we are lucky to travel to other countries).  I love to see how people really live, and by visiting a ward you see the ins and outs of an area - more or less.  It's a quick snapshot - and not entirely accurate, but it's something different than people watching at an event.  I also love getting new thoughts on lessons and life - because we are different as people, we have different experiences and upbringings....we view things and have opinions based on the scope of experience that we've been given.  This past year, it's been interesting to see the different lessons in Relief Socity in both our home ward in NYC, our old ward in Florida, and now our ward that we are visiting here in Laie, Hawaii.

{Bryson in the morning ~ thinking about getting ready for church....he's not our morning person!}

I love the differences that make up each group of people.  The gospel is the same in each place - however, it's the culture, the traditions and again the people that make it different.  And I love learning from different people.

This particular Sunday we arrived at church a little bit late - that's something we are used to, but I thought we were doing okay here as the ward is about a 5 minute walk.  However, we realized that every single clock in the townhome we are renting displays a different time --- I have no idea what clock we were going by that morning, but we were about 3-5 minutes behind the schedule I had wanted!  I'm also used to our ward starting a little bit late as they tend to gauge how many people have arrived, and might start a little later based on transportation issues.  If you have 10 families that all travel on a subway line that is having issues, you might begin 2-3 minutes later so that they can come in and get their seats :)   Anyway - because we were late we sat in the back cultural hall.  I think we'll work to get to church on time next Sunday - as we couldn't hear a thing!  By nature the cultural hall isn't the best place for sound to travel....or at least for times when there is a church meeting, the sound seems to travel just perfectly when it's ward basketball!  It was so hard to hear anyone speaking into the microphone.  We have a lot of children in our ward in NYC - but the amount of children here was at least 3 times to what we have, and so the noise level was really loud.  The ironic part of the noise level being so high - is that everyone speaks so quietly in this culture!  I noticed that whomever was at the podium up front giving their testimony (it was Fast Sunday), spoke in a very low and very soft voice.  For some reason I didn't notice how soft they speak last time we were here....perhaps that is because we hadn't moved to NY where it's loud ALL THE TIME!  Probably because our family was still a little younger - with the boys ages now, they are loud.  ALL THE TIME - and it's getting louder each year!  I couldn't believe how quiet everyone was, and yet because there were so many people together that the noise just carried.  It was so strange to have it so loud and quiet at the same time.

{after church we came home & the keiki's (Hawaiian for child) convinced Nana & Papa to play Phase 10....they had a fun time, although I know the adults were wishing it was nap time!  Jacob again came through with some hilarious facial expressions that I was able to capture.  That keiki cracks me up!!!} 

In Primary, the children were welcomed with the traditional 'HELLO' song, but the words were changed to Aloha & Talofa (hello in Samoan) & everyone is Auntie - not Sister ________ as we are used to back home.  I loved Sister Jo that lead the Primary music.  I got some ideas in watching her work with the children, which is another favorite part that I love in going to different wards.  Idea sharing :)

The best part, probably comes with how warm and welcoming the culture is.  The members are getting ready to hold their annual Ward Camp-out - which is another religion in and of itself!  They go to a nearby campground that is by the beach and they camp for 5 days!  We had a few people ask us if we were going to come over for the camp-out, they told us we didn't necessarily need to camp, but we could come and enjoy the activities each day.  And the days have some very fun events!  There is an opening pot-luck and a closing pot-luck, there is Zumba many mornings, and a Children's Carnival one day, tie-dying for the children another day, swimming at the beach every day! (except Sunday - and yes they camp over Sunday!  They said that someone stays back and watches everyone's things, while the members go to church for the 3 hours and then they come back to spend the remainder of Sunday together).  I have the schedule up on the fridge, and I think we are going to wander over for a few events - which we are all excited about!  I am secretly hoping that for the Talent Show the brother in the ward that does Fire Dancing will bring his gear and give a show!  Two years ago the members said that during the program, he came running from the back and jumped onto stage with his fire knives and wowed everyone with a performance that he learned growing up in Samoa.  You don't see that very often in mainland wards! :)
It's great to feel so welcomed even while we are here visiting.  People here just seem to know how to open themselves up - sharing more than a smile and a hello.  It's part of the Polynesian culture and I really love and appreciate how warm these people are!

 After Phase 10, we enjoyed a dinner which was supposed to be steak on the outdoor bar-b-que, however Keith/Papa Lord checked out the grill and realized that the people have changed it over from propane to charcoal, and it hadn't been properly looked after.  So sad - I was really looking forward to grilling!  Thankfully Leslie remembered a recipe to do steaks on the stovetop and then to finish them up in the oven - they were still mouthwatering and we enjoyed mounds of Artichokes as well.  The kids were in heaven!

After dinner we took a walk to the Temple Grounds.  We are so, so lucky to be this close to the Temple when we stay here.  If we look out the back door, we are looking into the Temple Grounds.  The glow of the Temple shines in my bedroom each night, and I fall asleep to the beautiful white glow that shines from this sacred and special building.  There is a very special feel here - and although we felt something special about this location on our previous visit - there is an added measure of peace and tranquility, and I truly believe that it comes from the Temple being renovated and being rededicated once more to the Lord's work.  Temples just bring something extraordinary to every day areas.

I'm not sure on the story behind this statue and piece, however it's at the top of the waterfalls and is part of the sustaining wall that is in front of the Temple.  I love it - but I want to know the background of why it was chosen for here.  

This is the view as I was walking up the steps over to the right side --- the buildlings are 2 church meeting houses.  We meet in the back building - again look how close everything!

Family....isn't it about TIME?!  This was right before we started to feel a pitter-patter of raindrops.  We hurried up to the Temple and watched under the cover while the rain fell steadily for about 5 minutes.

 This is the view from the cover by the front doors to the Temple - looking down the avenue, the beach & water are straight out ahead!

 And again from the cover right by the front doors - this is the walk that goes down to the gate.  Open the gate and you walk down a little path and you are right at the town homes where we are staying.  We are so, so close!

 This is a view from the stairs going up to the temple - the town home on the end of the right side is the one we are staying in....you can see a little bit of the blue/black netting that is up around the trampoline that the family has (and yes the children love having a tramp as well for these few weeks!)

The rain left behind a gorgeous colored sky....

 

                                      

When we got home we had a little talent show, the children played their piano recital pieces for Nana & Papa, and we had a surprise treat of a duet from these two!....

It was a very wonderful, restful and special Sunday that we spent all together.  I'm so thankful for the gift of a Sunday - and I'm thankful that we were blessed to spend it with extra family while we were on our trip.  It was one of those days, that you just want to bottle up and keep right at the front of your memory!