Aloha! Our Week in Paradise

We just got back from our amazing trip to the beautiful Hawaiian island of Kaua'i. We had such a great time- it was a true adventure. Some places were so beautiful, it's hard to believe it's real. Looking at Kilauea Lighthouse was one of those moments. It doesn't get better than this.

Then again, maybe it does!The beaches were incredibly beautiful. The tide was high, so it was fun to watch the surfers out catching waves. We weren't brave enough to try surfing, but we did boogie board and snorkel.An awesome place we passed on the North end of the island, Hanalei.The timeshare Rob's parents let us use was great. It was in Poipu on the South Shore of the island. We had a 2 bedroom condo with full kitchen, washer and dryer (very, very handy!), a grill, the ocean, and a great view. Our condo is the corner one on the 2nd floor. It was perfect.Rob loved the huge exercise room. I was lucky to have enough energy just to get through all our activities of the day, let alone extra exercise. I kept thinking, next time we go to Hawaii, I won't be pregnant! (Oh, have I not announced that yet?! Oops- I'm 14 weeks along) It did complicate things a bit; I was tired a lot, and always had to have food on hand. We really didn't modify our activities much because of it (I don't know that I would have surfed any way!) I did pretty well, and only threw up once. Sorry, too much information!The pool was huge, and perfect for families.This is the view from below our complex, Shipwreck Beach and the Makewehi Lithified Cliffs. Our condo was next to the Grand Hyatt, and wow, that was a spectacular place. Since Hawaii is 4 hours behind our time at home, we were waking up so early each morning, sometimes even 3 or 4 a.m. We watched almost every sunrise from the beach. We caught the most spectacular sunrise however, from the balcony of our condo.

About a mile from our condo was Spouting Horn, where water is thrust through an opening in the lava shelf, causing the water to shoot out the blow hole. Another hole right by it sounds like a dragon breathing. I got such a kick out of it.

Our real adventures started with kayaking the Wailua River. Instead of taking a guided tour, we just rented our own kayak. It was so much fun! We paddled about 2 1/2 miles up the river, then hiked through the jungle to Secret Falls. It rained the whole trip up the river, but it was warm and felt great. It left the trail, however, a muddy mess. We slipped and slid the whole way to and from the falls. It was worth it! We took pictures of our kayaking adventures on a disposable, water-proof camera, so we'll have to post pictures when we get them developed. The kayak places have an easy way to carry our kayaks on the roof of our rental car. Who knew!

Here's a view of the Wailua River from up above. The river is so calm, it really didn't make any difference whether we were paddling up stream or down. It was beautiful!We drove to Wailua Fallsand Opaeka'a Falls. They were incredible!

We had so much fun kayaking Wailua that we decided to rent kayaks another day and do two more rivers. We did the Hule'ia River, and saw where they filmed Indiana Jones swing on a vine, jump in the river and swim to a waiting airplane in Raiders of the Lost Ark. Nathan is going to be Indiana Jones for Halloween, and was way excited to hear that we saw the real place.

We drove to the North Shore and kayaked the sweet Kalihiwai River. It was the most scenic of the rivers we paddled. We tried to hike up stream to a waterfall, but didn't find it. The rocks in the river were too slippery with moss, and we turned back. I had a pretty hard fall that didn't feel too good. We got poured on all the way back down the river, and looked like drowned rats by the time we got to our car. After a shower and food, we headed to a lu'au at Smith's Tropical Paradise (sounds authentic Hawaiian doesn't it?!). It was fun, and the dancing was good, but the setting was awesome. It wasn't real authentic, but it was, as they say, "the best lu'au on the island."Our ultimate adventure was the 10-mile hike we took on the West Side. It was unlike any hike we'd ever done. We hiked almost 4 miles down the Nu'alolo Trail down to the Lolo Vista Point. What an amazing view! We could see down the Na Pali Coast. The trail was crazy! We had been warned that if we hiked it while it was muddy, to bring our bobsled. It hadn't rained that day, but was plenty muddy, steep, and slick.We didn't take any pictures of the really hard parts of the trail because we had to concentrate too hard. It was definitely the most technical trail we'd ever done. This is the first time we'd ever hiked with hiking poles. They actually came in handy quite a few times.

We are disappointed with the pictures from our amazing hike. It was so overcast and foggy, that the pictures just don't do it justice.
We then hiked 2 miles along the Nu'alolo Cliff Trail. There were signs warning that some of the cliff trail was washed out, and to proceed at your own risk. We did. Mostly it was fine, but there were a few hairy places where the cliff was really narrow, and there was nothing to hold on to. I wish we had pictures of that part! We've never seen a trail like this! Every ten minutes we were seeing a totally different landscape and vegetation. It was too cool.This 8'+ tall grass was our least favorite. We took a wrong trail that took us in a circle headed back the way we came. In some places it was so dense, we couldn't see anything beyond grass.We were excited when we found wild goats. They were so agile on the rocks and ridges. We also heard wild roosters all along the trail. Kaua'i has an amazing amount of wild chickens and roosters every where.
When the Cliff Trail meets the Awa-'awapuhi Trail there is the most spectacular view
The pictures here just don't show it's grandeur.We had such a great time, and were thrilled at every turn, every view...I found some pictures on the web that show the same sights, just on clearer days.
After taking in the beautiful views, we had to, as our guide book said, "pay the piper." The hike up the Awa-'awapuhi Trail was over 3 miles of up hill. It wasn't a bad or hard trail, I was just so tired and sore by mile 8.5 that I must have looked like an old grandma with how I walked. I shouldn't say that, because we met an 84-year-old lady that had hiked down the Awa. trail. We told her son that he probably didn't want to take her on the cliffs trail, nor up the Nu'alolo trail. They headed back up the trail while we took in the views, and we didn't catch them on the way up. Way to go Granny! I hope I can be like that at 84! We made it, but I may have paid the piper several times over. It would have been hard while not pregnant, but that certainly added to the soreness factor. Don't worry, I didn't over-do it (ok, maybe a little). My Dr. didn't seem concerned when I told him about it. When we got to the road, Rob left me put and had to hike another 2 miles to get the car from the Nu'alolo trailhead. I felt bad- bad for him having to walk another 2 miles, and bad referring to how my body seized up as I sat there. I got up and started walking (if you can call it that) down the road too, but didn't get very far before Rob picked me up with the car. My bottom half was sore for several days (like I feel after playing basketball, but as if I played for 6 hours straight). It was well worth it! I'd do it again, even knowing the soreness. Rob was so good and patient with me, making sure I rested enough, and kept the food and water going down. What an adventure!

After our hike, we visited Waimea Canyon- the Grand Canyon of Hawaii. It was amazing, but also very foggy. It was getting dark, and we were so tired that we didn't stay long.The next day we packed up, checked out of our timeshare, and went golfing at the Wailua Municipal Golf Course. I'm not much of a golfer (I'm terrible really!), but it was a lot of fun and the setting was amazing. Rob lost 4 balls, with at least one of them going into the ocean. He thought that was pretty cool. He hit a wild chicken with one of his shots on the fairway. It was so funny. Don't worry, the chicken was fine- no chicken for dinner that night.

A group of 5 elderly players was starting just ahead of us. They invited us to play through. They oohed over Rob's great hit (he's a really good golfer). I was pretty nervous about taking my first swing at a golf ball in over a year, in front of a bunch of people. It ended up being my best hit of the day. They even oohed me too. That made me laugh pretty hard.

Certainly this is the most scenic course we'll ever play. Rob kept saying that he could get used to the sound of waves crashing on the beach while playing golf.

After the 12th hole I was too tired and sore to play any more. I was content to just watch Rob enjoy himself, and take pictures of him. He is so good for me to golf with. He gets excited for every little good or semi-good hit I get. He helps me figure out which club to use, even helps me line up right (I can't seem to point myself in the right direction). I would be lost without him- not just on the golf course either! I love you lievert!!!

Hee hee hee!

We were so happy when we found a Costco on Kaua'i. We about died when we went to the grocery store and found milk for $8.99 a gallon! At Costco it was only $4.99 (it's sad to be so happy about that). Most food there was much more expensive than at home, but still it was a lot cheaper than eating out every meal. After waiting an hour for a sub-par burrito at a Mexican restaurant, we decided that fixing our own meals was a much better option. We got a pack of steaks at Costco, among other things, and ate great the whole time. And no, we didn't eat steak every night. We also bought our body boards there, as well as their yummy chicken Caesar salad for dinner... What would we do without Costco? I love that store way too much! We had such an incredible time in Kauai. It was fun to just have to two of us. We don't get that very often. We had lots of adventures, fun at the beach, plenty of relaxing time, and some of the most beautiful views in the world. Rob is my best friend and the love of my life. We almost turned down the opportunity for this trip because it was so spur-of -the-moment. I'm so glad we didn't. What memories we will always have. When it was time to come home however,, we were ready. We missed our kids. We were glad we got to talk to them everyday, and we knew they couldn't be in better hands than those of my mom.

We owe a huge

THANK YOU to Rob's parents for letting us use their timeshare. We wish you would have been able to use it, you would have loved it!

And a huge

THANK YOU to my Mom and Dad for watching our kids. Nathan told me that he had so much fun that he didn't hardly even miss us. Matthew, on the other hand, was terribly mad that we left him. When we got home he gave me a little hug, then remembered he was mad, and wouldn't have anything to do with me for several hours. I knew he may react that way, but it still made me feel lower than dirt. He went to Rob fine, just not me. The first night we were home, he wouldn't go to bed. I think he was worried we wouldn't be there when he woke up. Sarah's a trooper, and had a great time with Grandma. Every day she gave me play-by-play of what happened that day, including tattling on Nathan if he didn't eat his dinner or whatever. We love you kids! We love you Mom and Dad! Not only did my Mom watch the kids for 8 days and 9 nights, but she canned my tomatoes, did my laundry, and even covered up my tomato plants so they wouldn't freeze. We were pretty tired after flying home all night, so while Matthew napped, she took Nathan and Sarah to the park so I could get some sleep. She is amazing! Thank you!