Hawaii Day 2

Day 2:

Day 2 started out early as well. Sadie woke up at 5:30 a.m. and entertained herself with all her fun stuff in her backpack until about six when Jim and I got out of bed. We got dressed and went down to the pool area to get our breakfast and take it to the beach. The hotel gave us two little coolers to fill up with breakfast stuff (cereal, muffins, pastries, coffee, and such) and then we walked over to the beach and ate. After breakfast and a leisurely stroll along the beach, we took off for a trip along the coast. We stopped to check out a blow hole and then made our way to The Sea life Park where we got to check out the sea life, feed some sea turtles, and watch a sea lion show and a dolphin show. Then we headed further up the coast to The Polynesian Cultural Center where we got to see a pageant, learn how to hula, got tattoos, took a canoe ride, and enjoy a wonderful luau. I would recommend this place to anyone going to Oahu. We learned so much about the different cultures and everyone was so friendly and excited to be there. We all enjoyed ourselves very much. After the luau we decided not to stay for the big evening show because we were all so tired so we made our way back to Waikiki and went to bed.

Hawaii Day 1

We took a quick family trip to Hawaii a few weeks ago and I am finally getting around to blogging it. This picture was taken from our hotel room in Waikiki. For more pictures visit our new picassa gallery.

Day 1:

Our trip started out early with a 6 a.m. flight (we had to leave the house at 4:30 a.m.). I was sure that Sadie would sleep as soon as we got on the plane but I guess she was excited about our trip because she didn’t. That was okay though because she had plenty of activities in her backpack to keep her busy so the first flight from Salt Lake City to San Francisco was quick. We had a two hour layover in San Francisco so we ate breakfast there and waited for our final flight. The flight to Hawaii was smooth as well. We lucked out with the movie; it was Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Sadie and I had seen it in the theater and Sadie was excited to watch it on the plane. So after eating a meal on the plane (something else that Sadie was excited about) and watching the movie we only had about another hour to entertain ourselves. Sadie did finally sleep for the last 15 or 20 minutes of the flight.

We landed in beautiful Honolulu at 11:30 a.m. (3:30 p.m. Utah time), collected our bags, and proceeded to pick up our rental car. We had to stand in line at Hertz for 30 minutes and then wait another 20 minutes for our car. But like Jim said, we were on vacation and didn’t have anywhere to be. It was a quick 20 minute drive to the hotel (Resortquest Waikiki Beach) where we got checked in with no problems. Sadie received a bag with a coloring book, crayons, cards, beach ball, bucket, and shovel from the hotel and a card that got her into pretty much everything for free. It was really nice. The hotel was great: clean, comfortable, and right across the street to the beach. The only complaint I would have is the parking. They don’t have self-park, only valet and it costs $20 per night for that (not including tips).

The first item of business when we got to our room was a nap. We all slept for about an hour and then went to Tikki’s grill and bar for dinner. After that we walked along the beach and put our feet in the wonderful, warm water. We walked up and down the beach for a while watching the sun set and then we went back up to our room and called it a day (we were all in bed by 7:30 p.m.).

New Job

I'm sorry that I have neglected the blog but I do have a job now. I work as a paraprofessional at an elementary school. Basically I am a teacher's assistant - I work with a wonderful special education teacher. I tutor reading and math to kids individually and in groups from kindergarten to third grade. It's a very rewarding and fun job and I was suprised how much I love it. It can be challenging at times but that keeps it from being boring. The school I work in (North Star Elementary) has a large hispanic population so I have had opportunity to show off my knowledge (or lack thereof) of spanish. Another great thing about this job is that I have holidays and summers off to be with Sadie and I get every other Friday off so the schedule is a perfect fit. I feel as if I am making a difference and I look forward to going to work and trying to make learning fun.