Amy graduated from BYU in April of 2011. She spent her last semester of college at home doing an internship. When graduation was approaching we talked about going to Utah so she could "walk" and enjoy the graduation festivities. But Amy chose not to do that. Since I didn't walk at my college graduation I was not one to argue with her. So we talked that as her gift we would go on a trip.
Well, we looked at possibilities off and on. We looked into traveling to Florida or Seattle or Boston. Nothing really grabbed Amy's attention enough to really go for it. So we kept going through the day to day living and were happy.
Amy's boss and his wife went to Hawaii. Amy was telling me about their trip and I got to looking at how much it cost to fly there etc. I found a great deal. So I said to Amy, "Do you want to go to Hawaii?" The answer was YES! So we booked it.
Happy graduation Amy! I love you!
Here's a few highlights of our trip. We just "happened upon" the great airfare and that seemed to be the way our trip went too...
We "happened upon" the most beautiful beaches around! So gorgeous...clear, blue, warm water!
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| Youngest Surfer in the Competition - 20 years old |
We "happened upon" the Opening Ceremonies of the Quicksilver Surfing Competition (in Memory of Eddie Aikau) and were introduced to 52 surfers! Didn't know any of them, but it was fun to see!
We "happened upon" some soft sand to remember some of our favorite boys! (Jason's name only got a picture with Amy's phone. Sorry don't have one of those!) We missed them all and were happy that they were kind to us even though we traveled without them this time!
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| Jackie was holding up her chins! |
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| Dave wouldn't turn the face around...He WASN'T DONE YET! |
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| The workshop was FULL of so many creations of Dave. He does amazing work! |
We "happened upon" Dave and Jackie (missionaries at the Polynesian Cultural Center - PCC). Well, really we planned to see them. We stayed with them! They were so nice and it was so fun to talk to them about their mission. Talk about WORK! They never quit! They had just finished the "season" of the Haunted Lagoon at the PCC and now were working feverishly on getting things ready for the Christmas Lagoon, which began soon after we left. Dave creates the most amazing things--darling, fun, and so happy! They help a the singles ward there at BYU-Hawaii so we met some of their young friends at church and then that night attended a Break the Fast dinner with all the senior couples that serve at the PCC or BYU-Hawaii and their families. They are humble missionaries - giving all the credit to the Lord and have had some amazing experiences.
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| A day at the Polynesian Cultural Center |
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| ICE CREAM! |
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| A little spear throwing in Tonga! |
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| BULLS-EYE! |
We "happened upon" the beautiful temple and were able to do some service there and enjoy the Visitor's Center. What a blessing temples are to unite families together forever!
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| Christmas tree decor at the Visitor's Center - complete with a Russian ornament! |
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| They warned us that the waterfalls were only a "trickle today"! But there wasn't even a TRICKLE! I was disappointed... |
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| But the garden areas that we walked to get to the "falls" made up for it! BEAUTIFUL! |
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| I want a tree like this in my yard! |
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| A very beautiful place! |
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| Decided to try this out for lunch! |
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| We were NOT disappointed! The banana bread was to die for! and I don't even like banana! |
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| But the farm out back was the real treat! The banana trees took me back to my semester abroad days in 1984...working in the banana fields at the Kibbutz in the Galilee! Oh my goodness! Great memories! |
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| see the bananas?! |
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| The Dole Plantation! |
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| Complete, of course, with PINEAPPLE ICE CREAM! |
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| Everyday was beach day! We loved every beach and every ray of sun! (and yes, we got in the water too!) |
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| We stayed at the beach til we couldn't stay any longer! The sunset was perfect! |
On the plane headed to Honolulu, Amy "happened upon" a calendar of events in the airplane magazine . WICKED was in town! Amy melted my heart by buying the tickets as a "thanks for the trip, Mom" gift! What a girl! It was WICKED!
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Like I said earlier, the rest of the family were good sports about us leaving them behind. We would have loved having them with us. I know it wasn't easy for any of them. Here's a few examples...
from Scott -
"Amy and mom be safe in Hawaii! Take pics for me and think of me freezing
my rastafarian ne'ne's off here in Russia while you're on the beach."
"Take some pictures for me in Hawaii you lucky ducks! I got the ones Amy
sent and it looks like great weather and everything. Here the weather
isn't bad yet. It is probably in the 40's during the day and rainy most
nights. It snowed once but melted pretty fast."
Jay and Jason survived without us - missing us most, I think, on Sunday when they realized they didn't have anything for dinner...and couldn't go out! They had told me not to leave them any food, except cold cereal because they were just going to go out everyday! I believed them because the last time I left town I left a lot of food and they didn't eat any of it! So I didn't leave them much...hmmm. Funny boys.
and our favorite text from Taralynn and Bowen - "enjoying a duck in the tub rather than sand in the ocean. much cleaner!"
Taralynn had double duty at work with Amy gone and one day she even had triple duty with another employee gone. She was a trooper and deserved the Most Dedicated Worker and kindest Sister/Daughter award! Luckily she had Bowen's smile! He's the cutest boy EVER!
So there you have it!
with love always,
Lori
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