Our Getaway

That's right, this looks delightful, I know. And, this is where we are headed for a little getaway just the three of us. Our plans for this weekend and all of next week have changed several times as a wedding was postponed, we thought we'd go somewhere new, but then we realized I would be too pregnant to drive 12+ hours across the country to visit that vacation site. So, we settled on a mountain town that I used to go to quite a bit as a child, but neither Kevin nor Brooklyn have been to. And, when I say settled, I mean we decided, reached a decision after much pondering and brainstorming, not that this place isn't fabulous, because it is! And, what's really better than fresh mountain air?!

Starting tomorrow, Kevin and I have a glorious week and half off (I actually have 13 days off because of my work schedule) just to spend with our precious little daughter. We wanted this time so badly because with the baby coming at the end of the summer as this will be our last chance to have a vacation, a nice family getaway, just the three of us. We love our time with our Brooklyn. It's something we will always treasure, as I am most definite we will with our little man too.

Let me just say, I cannot wait!

Maui is really PARADISE!

Our vacation was simply perfect. We were in paradise getting to spend 8 glorious days on Maui, only 60 steps from the beach. The first thing we did, sink our toes in the sand! Brooklyn was a little hesitant of the beach and the ocean at first, but as the days wore on, she became more familiar, but didn't like it when mommy pretended to be swept away by a wave crashing on the shore. Our first morning in paradise, Brooklyn, Kevin and I took a walk on the beach before the sun came up. It was such an incredible experience. So peaceful and serene. We spent quite a bit of time relaxing by playing in the pool or boogie boarding at the beach. I'll admit, I was a chicken, a huge chicken, the first day we tried boogie boarding. I was quite aways from shore and told my mom who was swimming with me that I pretended my boogie board was a door off the Titanic. I know, chicken!! But, I finally warmed up to it and was the person who used the boogie board the most, next to my sister. And, boy, were my muscles sore too.

We got to visit Lahania, the shopping district of Maui. My grandma warned us that during the day it was darn hot there because there were no tradewinds like were we were staying, but did we listen, no. We went there in the middle of the day, and not the end, and boy were we warm! One of the most interesting things about Hawaiian shops is almost every store carries alcohol. The grocery store pretty much has a full liquor store on one side, and the all famous ABC Store has quite a liquor selection too! There's definitely something to be said of the ABC Store, where you can buy a pint of milk and a Hawaiian dress in the same purchase. The ABC Store was our go to store for chocolate covered macadamia nuts - the best candy I have ever tasted. My parents had the right idea bringing home a "briefcase" of them. But, knowing my dad, the chocoholic, they're gone now!!

We got to attend a luau at the Maui Prince Hotel in Makena. The host, Warren Molina, left us all with a chuckle. He made no attempt to conceal he wanted to rip off the tea leaves of the hula dancers as personal conquests and half the women in the audience too! And, all with the smile of a used car salesman. Brooklyn was very wide-eyed when the fire dancer came out and started to eat the fire! She wasn't sure what to think! My sister fell in love with one of the male hula dancers. She wanted to take him home!! My dad caught 47 minutes of the luau on his camcorder, but cut it off when the male dancers came up to do a dance that indeed made my sister turn all shades of red.

On Thursday morning, my mom, dad, sister, Kevin and I headed to our zip lining adventure. We got on all our gear, and headed for our 1/2 mile hike up onto Haleakala Ranch. The guides taught us the history of the ranch and each zip line course was named after a Hawaiian bird. There were 5 zip lines, and each one became longer, faster and higher up than the last. The key was to stay straight and land feet first. However, we seemed to struggle a bit with this as we landed backwards quite a few times, to the point where the guides were making little jokes that they knew we were all related. The last zip though it didn't matter how you were positioned, just as long as you didn't hit the pole on the other side. This zip was 750 feet across and 100 feet up in the air. You had to run off the cliff and once you got going, the ride was like 20 seconds to other side at a speed of 40 m.p.h. One of the guides had to grab you by the feet and pull you onto this movable ladder for you to walk off of. We all had such interesting experiences with the landing. Kevin was the first to go on the last zip and he said the guide freaked him into thinking something was wrong. I was second, the guide had trouble guiding me to the ladder. My sister came next, and the guide pulled her shoe and sock off when he tried to stop her. My mom's landing was the most classic. The guide grabbed for her, and she lifted him about 6-7 feet in the air. So, she took him for a ride! My dad being really tall, got on the ladder very easily. It was such a rush and so much fun that we all agreed we should do it again. While we were on the adventure, Brooklyn and my grandma stayed at the condo, went to lunch at the Sand Witch, walked along the beach and took a nap.

The only downside to our vacation in paradise was our plane ride home. And, I will just leave with this post Kevin put up because it sums it up and is pretty funny too!!

Maui is such a beautiful place that we would love to get back to again! ALOHA~~~

Moakalakaleauke....

ALOHA!

Tomorrow (and for 8 days),
my family and I will be doing some of this... building some of these...
learning to do this...
watching some of this...enjoying views like this...

and even this...
and pretty much doing a lot of this...as long as we don't come back looking like this, we'll be okay...so have a good week and remember to...

I'm TOO excited to sleep!!

This video is PERFECT and describes what I am going through. I seriously feel like a kid on Christmas Eve having to go to bed so Santa Claus will come.

Kevin and I tucked Brooklyn into bed shortly after 8 a.m. last night. Then, the real festivities began! Packing! I will admit that I love, love, love to pack; to find new ways to stuff everything in; to prove that I only need two suitcases and not more; to get everything organized before it finds its place beneath the elastic arms that hold everything put. This is all very exciting to me! Maybe it's because I know that my impending vacation is very close by as I don't pack weeks in advance, just days. So, there we were with two suitcases, two pairs of tennis shoes, a Dora the Explorer boogie board, a travel booster seat and piles of clothes. My first plan on attack, get Kevin's tennis shoes packed, because they are so big (size 11). I put my size 6 tennis shoes in as well, and we were off...shirts, shorts, skirts... One suitcase down, one to go. Boogie board, Brooklyn's apparel, a few leftover Mommy & Daddy clothes, and then the travel booster seat. And, then, it hit, uh oh, out of room for our getting ready stuff (shampoo, soap, toothpaste, etc.)

I proclaimed to Kevin that I will just repack because I really didn't want to have to check a smaller third bag. Yuck! So I popped open the first suitcase that already had it's lock on it, and began reorganizing, rethinking wardrobe choices, pulling things out and leaving them behind. Kevin sat there watching the Rockies game, with much doubt that my repacking would make any difference. I got more in the first one, and when I got along to the second one following the same restructure plan, I ended up with plenty of room for our getting ready stuff. Ha Ha! I won the suitcase challenge! I wanted to take only two suitcases, and that will now work. Yeah!!

After working on the carry-ons for a bit, we watched a little TV (we had DVR'd Kid Nation..that will have to be another post!) and then headed to bed. At 12:30, I sat up wide awake. I couldn't get back to sleep. Kevin was snoring very lightly, Brooklyn was deep in a sleep and Shiloh was passed out on Brooklyn's floor. I read a magazine for a little bit, but then decided to go to the office and download all the pictures off the camera to clear our memory card. I decided to email myself a few pictures that I had on the camera, so I went online and took care of that. Still not feeling tired, I headed downstairs to watch some TV. I got the notion to go ahead and set our DVR to tape our shows while we're away. I got that done, and watched a little TV, until 2:30 a.m. when I finally decided I should just go to bed and keep my eyes shut. After all, I do have to work today. So I laid there for about thirty minutes and the last time I remember looking at the clock, it said: 3:00 AM. When the alarm clock when off this morning, I was ready to get up and get going. I'm not even feeling tired today. Too much adrenaline and excitement I guess!!

I am just TOO excited to sleep!! I know, I'm such a big kid!

Zip zip zipping along...

In the midst of me stressing over illnesses in my household, wondering when my family members would get better, wanting to make them feel better right now, and not really wanting to work on a Tuesday, I talked to my mom about our Maui trip.

We have all tossed ideas around about doing a fun, adventurous activity for some time now. I mentioned that we should try a zip line tour, after kayaking with the sea turtles was turned down because of the fear of swimming with animals and my husband's dislike for kayaking.

After much consideration and discussion, I just booked our reservation on the zip line tour. For those of you not familiar with a zip line, here's the Wikipedia (wink, wink Kev) definition...
"Zip-line consists of a pulley suspended on a cable mounted on an incline. They are designed to enable a user propelled by gravity to traverse from the top to the bottom of the inclined cable, usually made of stainless steel, by holding on or attaching to the freely moving pulley. Zip-lines come in many forms, most often used as a means of entertainment. They may be short and low, intended for child's play and found on some playgrounds. Longer and higher rides are often used as a means of accessing unusual areas (a rainforest canopy for instance) or found at outdoor adventure camps where they are usually one element on a larger challenge or ropes course." NOTE: for those of you with kids, think the show Go! Diego Go!
Our tour is definitely not something you would find on a playground! We'll be soaring over gulches and through the trees along the slopes of one of the world's largest volcanoes. The tour blends a short hiking experience with five zip line crossings, an “Indiana Jones” style swinging bridge, and an introduction to Hawaii’s unique and fragile landscape. The tour website promises a one-of-a-kind adventure giving us memories that we'll "talk about for years to come."

I just got the email confirmation and in the notes section, it says "customer should not have an extreme fear of heights." Well, I am pretty afraid of heights in that I won't go more than 2-3 rungs on the ladder at any given time, but this is going to be an adventure, so I'm all in!

17 days and counting...

We're heading to Hawaii, the island of Maui, for 9 glorious days in paradise! It's going to be a family vacation as 7 of us are going: Kevin, Brooklyn, my Mom, Dad, Grandma, Sister and I. All of us are very excited, and can't wait for the day to be here. It will be so nice to sink our toes in the sand. Here are some pictures of where we are staying...are you drooling, Mom??

This is the resort we'll be staying at.
The pool is the largest in Kihei.

Our condo is 60 steps from the beach...
and you can take a 5-mile walk once you get on the beach.

Oceanside tennis courts!
I have already challenged my Dad to a match.

Isn't the grass really green!?!

Oceanside BBQ grills...how fun!!

Photo Highlights of our South Dakota trip

We're back from our South Dakota travels. All three of us really enjoyed ourselves, and would definitely love to go back some day. As promised, here's a few photo highlights of our trip.


We drove about 10-15 miles outside of Wall, South Dakota, to a town called Creighton. Kevin's dad grew up here, in this farmhouse. We got the chance to walk all around the farm, looking in the barns, and walking around inside the farmhouse. The farmhouse originally started out with just the kitchen/dining room, enclosed patio and living room. Later, they built on two bedrooms, one for the parents and the other for the four children. It was really something watching Kevin's dad explore the land where he was born and was raised. The Denke family lived on this farm until 1965, right after Kevin's grandpa passed away. Kevin's grandma then moved to a house in Wall, across the train tracks from the infamous Wall Drug Store.


It's fitting that the Denke farm would be located on Denke Road. Of course, it was my idea to have the family line up for a shot under their road sign. The last time all three kids have been in South Dakota together was in 1989.


Wall Drug was much more than I could have anticipated. It is very large, and they keep adding more and more to it. The Wall Drug became famous beginning the summer of 1936 when Dorothy Hustead came up with the idea of advertising "Free Ice Water" along Route 16A. After five years of struggling, Dorothy and her husband, Ted got more business than they could have imagined. Now there's a lot of billboards on the roads coming into Wall not only advertising the water, but everything else the drug store has to offer, including 5 cent coffee, free donuts to Vietnam Veterans and a T-Rex that Brooklyn became very afraid of. The shot above is Brooklyn playing in the Wall Drug backyard. They have water shoot out of the little holes in the ground in correspondence with the music. Brooklyn had a blast running in them, but she just was never quite to sure where it was coming from when it hit her since the water shoots out like a rope and lands quite a ways away from where it came out of the ground.


Here's a shot of Kevin and Brooklyn sitting inside the Wall Drug, along their "Main Street." Brooklyn really got a kick out of all the real-life sized structures. Nothing scared her more than the T-Rex or the buffaloes, though.


While we spent the majority of our time in Wall, we spent some time in Rapid City on the way there and on the way back. On the way back, the whole family stopped in at an enchanted place called Storybrook Island. It's all for the kids. Nursery rhymes and fairytales come to life in animated and real life scenes. Brooklyn just had an absolute blast playing in and around all the characters. This is a shot of her in Geppetto's workshop.


No trip to South Dakota would be complete without stopping at Mount Rushmore. I was really in awe as we turned around a corner, and there were heads on the mountain. Brooklyn didn't really get it, but she enjoyed all the people that were around. We checked out the museum and I was amazed to find out carving Mount Rushmore really only took 6 1/2 years. The idea started in 1927 and by 1941 it was complete. There was a few years and time spent on gaining approval and financial support. We were interested in checking out Crazy Horse, which began in 1948 and is really no where near completion, but the cost was more than what we were interested in spending, so we looked at it from a distance. I was way more impressed with Mount Rushmore!

Free Ice Water, Presidents on a Mountain...here we come!

We're going on a road trip to Wall, South Dakota - home of the famous Wall Drug and their "Free Ice Water." I've never been to South Dakota, but Kevin has many times as his dad grew up in Wall. With all of Kevin's family driving there too, plus all his aunts and uncles from his dad's side, it should be quite a good time.

We're leaving tonight, driving through the night seems like it will be so much easier on the princess. Tomorrow morning, we're stopping in Rapid Çity for breakfast and I have a historical district tour planned for us to let us see all the sites before heading to Wall where we can check into our room and rest a bit before the rest of the family gets there.

I can't wait to see all the billboards advertising the "Free Ice Water" that extend for 200+ miles outside of Wall. From what the family has told me, the ice is a necessary element in the water as the water is taken out of the ground and is like 80 degrees. According to some South Dakota research I have done, about 20,000 people stop by the Wall Drug on a good summer day. This is something I want to witness for myself!

Then's there Mount Rushmore (which I will admit I didn't know too much about), Crazy Horse, The Badlands (which sounded like a terrible place to go at first before I learned what they were) and Storybrook Island (a fun place for Brooklyn and her cousin to play).

We are all looking so forward to it. In fact, Brooklyn was so excited, almost out of control, last night as she helped me pack her toys, books and clothes. She ran very, very fast from her room with an armload of clothes to Mommy and Daddy's room to dump them on the bed, to only return to her room to get another load. She even helped pack her best friend, the puppy's belongings as he is going to grandma's house for a weekend of pampering and relaxation. I'm sure he'll miss her, but I don't think he will miss getting hit over the head with her new golf clubs!

I'll be sure to post some pictures of our adventures!

A week in paradise?? Sure!!

HOORAY! I can make a new entry...trust me I have been trying for about a month to get my blog to allow me to type a post with no success, until today!
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Kevin and I decided last weekend that we should work on scheduling a summer vacation this year. We began to toss ideas around about where we could venture, not coming to any conclusions though. Another plane ride for Brooklyn or an in the middle of the night drive to our destined location?

A few days later, I got a call from my grandma saying "Would you all like to go to back to Hawaii??" We went with my family to Hawaii in spring 2005 for my mom's 50th birthday. We visited Kona and Oahu during that vacation and had a blast. We went para-sailing, experienced first-hand a luau, went to Pearl Harbor, went on a boat to see whales (which we didn't), went swimming in the ocean, ate pineapple, visited a dormant volcano getting to walk through a lava tunnel, got to eat amazing food, and really got to spend a little more than a week in paradise. It was wonderful. Kevin and I had often talked about going back for a vacation, but we figured it would be later down the line.

So, when my grandma called and proposed the idea, I was so giddy! I would LOVE to go back. This time though, Grandma said that she would like to go back to Maui. Her and my grandpa spent many Octobers in Hawaii, and she hasn't been there in like seven or eight years because she couldn't imagine going without him here, but she said that she really wants to do this. With approval from my mom, dad and sister, our vacation plans went into full swing. We now have two condos, round-trip plane tickets and a SUV reserved, and we're already making plans about sights we can see and what our days can be consumed with... How does walking along the beach for 5 miles sound?? Great, huh!?!

We just have to wait until late September before we'll be sinking our toes into any sand. I cannot wait to take Brooklyn to Hawaii - I think she will just absolutely love it!!