The Dog Park

Bella was boarded at the Dog Park while we were in Hawaii.  We were so happy she passed her interview for boarding.  Yes, that is right, all dogs must be interviewed before they will accept them to board.  I was really nervous for her interview since she usually doesn't get along well with other dogs.  We gave her a bath, put a bow in her and, and prepped her for her interview questions (wink, wink).  When I took her for her interview they took her away from me.  When she returned I was informed that she had passed her interview.  Phew!

When I picked her up upon returning from vacation, I was presented with a report card for Bella.  Bella has new friends, Chewy, and Luna, and according to the report one of her favorite activities is "getting her butt scratched".  Oh, my!

Bella came home healthy and happy, and seemed to have had a great time at the Dog Park.

Knee Injury

The day after we arrived home from Hawaii, I tore my meniscus.  We hiked a lot in Hawaii, which weakened the disc in my knee.  The hikes were steep, and very rocky.  They were fun, but not too good on my knees.

According to Web MD, "The meniscus is a rubbery, C-shaped disc that cushions your knee.  Each knee has two menisci one at the outer edge of the knee and one at the inner edge.  The menisci keep your knee steady by balancing your weight across the knee.  A torn meniscus can prevent your knee from working right.

A meniscus tear is usually caused by twisting or turning quickly.  As you get older, your meniscus gets worn.  This can make it tear more easily.

In severe tears, pieces of the torn meniscus can move into the joint space.  This can make your knee catch, pop, or lock.  You may not be able to straighten it." That is an exact description of how I felt when it tore while I was walking down the stairs.

I couldn't have been sadder, since it was just hours before our appointment for Mike and Kate to go through the temple to receive their endowments.  Instead of spending time in the temple, I spent the evening in the ER.  They only gave me pain pills at the ER, but that is all I needed to get me to my visit to the Orthopedic Surgeons appointment the next morning.

The Orthopedic Surgeon decided that with all the major events going on in my life, that he would "buy" me time with a cortisone shot.  If the cortisone shot didn't make a great difference by Friday, he would preform surgery Saturday.

The cortisone shot made it bearable to put weight on my injured knee.  I quickly called the temple and scheduled Mike and Kate's endowment session for that evening.  What a wonderful evening we had enjoying the temple with these cute missionaries.

Friday, the surgeon preformed surgery.  He wanted to make sure the kids had made it to the temple before he scheduled my surgery.  The surgery went very well.  He repaired my torn meniscus, removed some unusual tissue, and took out some arthritis.

I have had very little pain, and have been able to move forward with all the plans for the double farewell, and the departure of Mike and Kate.  I feel so blessed, that this happened at home, and not Hawaii.

Onward, and upward!

Aloha - Kauai 2013

Did you know Aloha means hello and goodbye in Hawaiian? If you have watched Miss Congeniality, you probably already know that.  Depending on the way in which you say the word, lets a  person know whether it means hello or goodbye.

Our vacation to the charming, and beautiful island of Kauai had to come to an end.  We had so much fun, it was sad to see it come to an end.

Until we meet again Kauai.....Aloha!

Enjoying the pool and beach.

The is a reason all the gold fish flock and fowl flock to us.  We may have gave them a small sample of our gold fish crackers:).

The hotel.

Aloha

Secret Beach - Kauai 2013

Kauapea Beach is nick named Secret Beach.  Only those willing to brave a steep 10 minute hike (it seemed like an hour to me), will find their way to this secluded beach.  The hike is down a lush hillside, and very beautiful. The beach has golden sand that drops off into the ocean.  To the left are lava rocks and lava pools.  To the right is a beautiful view of the Kilauea Point Lighthouse sitting on the hillside.  No matter which way you look, the views on Secret Beach are absolutely stunning.

After spending the day at Secret Beach, we returned to our resort to relax in the pool, and spend time on our beach.  We finished the evening off dinning at Kauai Pasta, one of our favorite restaurants.  The boys' spent their after-dinner-time hunting for frogs.  They were a little zealous with their frog catching.  If you know what frogs do when they are caught it may disgust you as much as it does me.  Eww.....and they caught so many....yuck!  Ben was proud to catch the King of the frogs.

Exploring the lava pools; boogie boarding; buried alive.

Relaxing in the sun.

Frog hunting.

Queen's Bath

The Queen's Bath is one of Princeville's favorite attractions. The short 10 minute hike is beautiful as you pass a waterfall down a rocky landscape to the lava rock.  Another 5 minute trek over lava rocks leads to the bath.  The bath is about the size of a swimming pool.  It is a natural tide pool with some fish in the bath. Water spills over the lava rocks to refresh the pool. Although the scenery and bath are a pleasant summer time excursion, like many ocean attractions the area should be approached with caution.

Mike quietly took a picture of this plaque along the trail numbering the drownings, and deaths.  It was a good thing I saw this one on way up the trail rather than on the way down.

Stunning view from above.

I was slow in my approach to the tide pool.  Before I could ask if it was safe, Ben was jumping off the rocks.  I was quite surprised by his bravery.

Enjoying the pool.

Another beautiful view.

Shopping and lunching at Hanalei.

Shopping at flea markets on the way back to our resort; Ben's traditional mermaid pose; and aww.....diet coke relief.

Spouting Horn, and Poipu Beach - Kauai 2013

Located on Kauai's South Shore is the spectacular Spouting Horn blowhole.  The Poipu waters channel into a natural lava and releases a huge spout of water during large swells.  Since this is one of the most popular tourist sites on Kauai, I thought my family would be impressed.  Not so much.  "I've seen larger spouting horns in Mexican", several stated.

Poipu Beach is nestled in the Poipu resort area.  Poipu is known for it's marine life. It is most famous for the endangered Hawaiian monk seals that sometimes sunbathe on the shore. We were fortunate to see these amazing animals first hand.  The beach was quarantined off with signs and yellow tape protecting the sunbathing monk seals from beach goers.  It was fascinating!

Snorkeling in Poipu reveals a variety of colorful fish.  Those in our group who snorkeled were able to see many colorful fish, but nothing too spectacular.  The park was quite crowded so we only spent a few hours there.

Puka dogs were our lunch choice.  The Puka dog menu includes polish dogs, (or veggie dogs) with secret sauces and relishes.  I was a little apprehensive, however, they were quite good.

We always end the afternoon back at our amazing resort, at the beach and the pool.

We celebrated Mike's high school graduation at Duke's restaurant. Duke's is located on our resort property.  It has an amazing oceanfront view, with a great ambiance, with Hawaiian musician serenading at dinner.  The presentation of our meals was almost as great as the taste.  Duke's was definitely our favorite place to dine.

You can't go to Duke's without topping off the evening with a slice of Hula Pie.  The Hula Pie has a chocolate cookie pie crust, macadamia nut ice cream, drizzled with hot fudge, and topped with whipped cream, and chopped macadamia nuts.  It is a mountain of pure dessert indulgence. Our waiter said it would feed 4 adults.  There were 9 of us, so I ordered two.  Not enough for our crowd.  As they say, "it's all about the Hula Pie".

Spouting Horn

Puka Dogs

Dinner and Hula Pie

Dukes

Waimea Canyon and Kalalau Lookout - Kauai Hawaii 20213

Waimea Canyon, is on Kauai's West side.  It is described as "The Grand Canyon of the Pacific."  Although it is not as big, and ostentatious as its Arizona cousin, it stretches 14 miles long, one mile wide and more than 3,600 feet deep. Pretty impressive!

During our last visit to Kauai we drove up Waimea Canyon, but stopped our trek at Waimea Lookout due to a car sick passenger.  This time, we made it to the top.  The Kalalau Lookout provides you with a panoramic view of the Kalalau Valley, the largest valley on Na Pali.  Since the day before we were on the Kalalu Trail it had even more significance to us.  Those that made the 11 mile hike down these steep sea cliffs, were especially in awe at the view.

There are numerous trails to traverse for beginners and seasoned hikers, but we had hiked enough from yesterday.

After our adventure in the canyon, we stopped for lunch at the Shrimp Station, and ended with shaved iced at Jo Jo's.  Many people rave about Jo Jo's, but in my humble opinion Shaved Ice Paradise is much better.  Jo Jo's has slacked off in its ranking with me.

After a yummy Mexican dinner, we took a drive to some of Kauai's most beautiful waterfalls.  Wallua Falls and Opaeka'a Falls were made famous from the TV show "Fantasy Island", and the movie "Blue Hawaii".  They can be seen from the road side.

We love our resort.  The ambience at night is especially delightful.  We played cards in a cove with a view of the beautiful pools.  There is nothing like a warm, Hawaiian night.

Kalalau Lookout

Jo Jo's and the Shrimp Station.

Site-seeing, and Sarah getting a drink;).

Wallua Falls

Opaeka'a Falls 

Hawaii mexican style at Mariachis.

Card night with a view.

The Napoli Coast - Kauai Hawaii 2013

The Napali Coast is truly majestic.  It is located on the North Shore of Kauai with panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean.  Velvet green cliffs and cascading waterfalls plummet into the deep narrow valleys.  The terrain is rugged and is not for beginners.

The only land access to this enchanted area is via the Kalalau Trail, an 11-mile trail that starts at Kee Beach, crosses five different valleys and ends at secluded Kalalau Beach.  Reviews list this hike as one of the "most challenging, and sometimes even treacherous, Kauai hikes with narrow sections and muddy topsoil from rainfall."  Most hikers choose to break the trail up into two days.

Meagan, Quinn, and Mike, trained for this treacherous hike.  They were hoping to hike 11 miles in and catch a boat ride back.  However, there were no boats that day.  They began at 4:00 a.m. and Mike called around 8:00 p.m. to tell us they were completing the hike.  There is a little more to the story, or maybe a lot, but I'll spare you the details.

We have seen the video Quinn took of Meagan on "Crawler's Ledge", and hear that it is not for review.  It is under lock and key, and is only rented out for a large fee.  In defense of Meagan, a very narrow trail with a plunging (very plunging) drop off into the ocean would scare anyone.  I think she is very brave!

The rest of us leisurely hiked the same Kalalau Trail later that morning.  We hiked for about 2 1/2 hours.  The trail is rugged, but absolutely stunning.  I think I prefer to consider myself a "non-hiker" and enjoy the amazing scenery of the Napali Coast from a boat tour.

We spent the afternoon in the charming little town of Hanalei.  We ate lunch at the L & L Barbecue, and browsed the shops.  The afternoon wouldn't be complete without shaved ice from Shaved Ice Paradise.

Back at the resort we enjoyed the pools, and ocean, waiting for our hikers to return.

North Shore Before Hike.

North Shore After Hike.

Hiking

Blisters for the mother. Nurse Kate at attention.

Views

Shaved ice from Shaved Ice Paradise.

Nighttime fun.

Goofing around.

Dinner at JJ Broiler