​The last time we were in Oahu together we kayaked to Lanikai beach in a double kayak and had the best time. This time we decided to do single kayaks and I soon realized that was a bad idea. This was the kayak trip that tested my strength and endurance. The headwind was so strong it seemed like I wasn’t moving at all. With my little T-Rex arms it was very hard to steer the single kayak. Mike got to the beach first and eventually I made it there also. Getting there was hard, but the reward was sitting at the most beautiful beach for the rest of the day. It was well worth it. The breeze was a little too strong and chilly for me to want to go snorkeling, so Mike went ahead and did some snorkeling on his own while I sat on the warm sand and enjoyed the warm sun. We relaxed for quite some time and snacked on crackers, cheese, and grapes. It was the perfect beach snack! The kayak trip on the way back was much easier since we were moving with the current and the wind was at our back. Once back at the car we put on some normal clothes and headed to the mall for some shopping. We found the older girls some clothes at Uni Qlo and some treats at the Aloha sugar shop. We aren’t big candy eaters, but it was still fun to browse around this ridiculous store filled with more candy than you think is possible. Since we were getting hungry, we headed back to Waikiki and ate dinner at the Udon restaurant. We waited in line outside for about 30 min before getting our fill of the most wonderful Udon outside of Japan. This famous Udon restaurant is always packed with a line of people anytime of the day. It is that good! 
 

​For today’s adventure we decided to head to Kokohead first to do the Hawaiian version of the Incline. It was just like hiking the Incline in Colorado except the views were more spectacular and there was so much oxygen. I kept thinking that it was amazing that I didn’t need to stop. Halfway up to the top there is a little side trail called Murphy's Bypass. We took that instead of continuing on the railroad ties since that little section is sketchy with no ground underneath the ties and there were too many people who didn't know what they were doing. After passing that we got right back onto the main trek. After we made it to the top, we ventured over to the crater rim and hiked along the ridge line. Up at the highest point of the ridge the wind was so strong that my visor blew away. It was so sad, and I felt so dumb for not holding onto it because it was actually Mike’s visor that he let me borrow since I forgot to bring a hat on this trip. We headed down into the brush to try and find it but it was long gone. We headed back along the crater rim and made our way down the railroad ties to the bottom of Kokohead. We were still up for some adventuring, so we drove to the Makapu’u Trail and decided to run/hike the paved trail to see the views and the lighthouse. Our legs were a bit tired from Kokohead hike and it was a bit hotter than earlier in the morning. The views at the top were amazing and well worth the run to get there. We stopped on the way back to Waikiki to get Leonard’s donuts which are some of the best donuts ever. We ate our donuts on the way back to the hotel where we showered and relaxed for a few hours before heading back out to Secret Beach to enjoy the ocean before eating dinner. Mike went snorkeling while I sat on the sand and had fun watching the seals that were sleeping in the cove. We eventually made our way on foot to eat dinner at Monkeypod at the request of some of our friends. The food was pretty good but the dessert not so much. We ate it anyways and then headed back to Secret beach to watch the sunset. It was a pretty perfect day!

​I wasn’t sure Mike’s reserve duty was going to happen this year in Hawaii. With all the holds on funding in the government, his approval kept getting pushed. So, we planned a Hawaii trip with the kids for spring break and had a marvelous time. Then the approval finally came through and I found myself preparing to go back to Hawaii for just a few days during my birthday weekend. I couldn’t have made this happen without the loving kindness of one of my best friends. Myisha didn’t hesitate when I asked her to come and stay with the kids. She always jumps at any chance to be with my kids.
 
To my surprise, when I checked into my flight, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Mike had upgraded my ticket to First Class. I was on a smaller plane, so we didn’t have separate pods, but the service and extra space was so incredibly nice. It was like flying on what used to be business class. I felt so spoiled and special and blessed all at the same time. When I got to Hawaii, I took an Uber to the hotel and headed up to our room. There was a fun bag full of Japanese candies and a note from Mike. He had booked me a massage at the adjoining hotel. So, I got on my comfortable clothes and headed out on a walk before indulging myself in an hour of bliss. I love a good massage and this one didn’t disappoint. My massage therapist was a native Hawaiian with the most incredible spirit about him. He started out with a prayer and placed his hands on my head. It was a spiritual experience and I immediately relaxed. I have never experienced anything like it before and I will never forget the feeling of gratitude I had for this stranger who I knew had a good soul. If every adventure could start out this way, then watch out world because that is pretty freaking awesome!

Well, all good things usually come to an end at some point. Today was our last full day in Maui and we lived it up at the resort swimming in the pool for the first time all week. Madeline was overjoyed with her flamingo floatie and had a blast in the lazy river. Since we had a red-eye flight back to Colorado we took advantage of all that we could at the resort and spent the entire day playing in the pool, eating at Duke's for dinner, and walking along the boardwalk one last time. On our drive to the airport, we even stopped along the way to enjoy our last sunset. Our week in Maui couldn't have been more perfect. I hope it's not too long before we return to this island for some more fun in the sun!

We got up and did another beautiful run along the boardwalk and back along the beach before heading out for the day with the kids. After driving and hiking the day prior we needed a day to just chill at the beach. We decided to head back to Oneloa Bay Beach and were happy to see it wasn't crowded again. The weather was a bit windy and overcast so there wasn't much boogie boarding since the waves were crazy. We opted for building cool sand structures and animals, turning Madeline into a sand mermaid, walking along the empty beach, wading in the shallow water, and snacking on the last of our treats. It was definitely not as adventurous as the other day at this beach but it was still super chill and fun nonetheless. After getting our fill of sun and sand, we headed back to the resort. Mike and I headed out later in the day and walked along the entire beach front from our resort all the way down to the end and then walked back along the boardwalk. We saw the most beautiful rainbow and then headed back to the kids for a quiet evening with the kids and another fabulous sunset. 

Sometimes, there are touristy things on websites or in guidebooks and you wonder if they are really worth it. The road to Hana is one of those things. It's become kind of a destination thing and there are a million possible places to stop along the way, so you really have to figure you out what your priorities are when you make this trek. For me, the priority was not sitting in traffic all day. If I've learned one thing living in Washington D.C. it's that you want to be going against the flow of traffic during your morning commute. The same is true in regards to the Road to Hana.

With that as our guide, we got up early and headed out before the other sleepy heads on Maui were awake and ready to go. By daybreak, we were well on our way to making our first of six hundred and twenty twisty turns on our way to the other side of the island. We didn't stop at the first set of waterfalls, or the second. We made a beeline for the end of the road with the idea of hitting things on the way back.  It was definitely the way to go. 

One stop we did make on the way was at the Hana Farms store. The banana bread there was legendary and with good reason, it was delicious and clearly made with bananas that had been crossed with cocaine. I could have eaten five loaves myself. It was so good. They also had cookies that were bigger than Madeline's head. In fact, a lot of things on this trip were bigger than Madeline's head....cookies, flowers, whales.

After filling ourselves with banana bread, we continued our twisty journey. We did have to stop by one of the dozens of roadside waterfalls because everyone got a little car sick, but we didn't stop for long! The drive itself was ridiculously beautiful with glimpses of the ocean, waterfalls, tropical forests and stunning vistas. Even if you are stuck in traffic, it's probably amazing. It's also very narrow in places which ads to the time it takes to make it all the way to the National Park. 

When we arrived, it was raining gently, which is ok on a hike in Maui because its 80 degrees outside. The Pipiwai trail is well worth the drive. It's an easy trail and it is stunning. The giant banyan tree is incredible, but we really enjoyed the walk on the boardwalk through the bamboo forest. The bamboo would knock together in the wind and it sounded so cool. On the way to the main waterfall, there was another amazing waterfall. Truthfully, the whole hike was fabulous and we barely noticed the 1.8 miles to Waimoku falls. Once done with the hike, we hiked down along the seven sacred pools and had lunch by the ocean. That was just as stunning as the hike in many ways. As we sat by the ocean, the sheer power of the waves against the lava rocks was fabulous. The vistas were stunning and the wind refreshing. 

After lunch, we began our journey back to the other end of the island. As we made our way back up the road, it was clear to see that we had made the right decision. There was a line of cars trying to get to the National Park. As we cruised back through the six hundred and twenty curves, we made a few stops. The first was for some coconut ice cream that was supposed to be super amazing. It was not. It was the most overrated ice cream I have ever had. Not worth the stop. The second was to see the wonky bark on some of the Eucalyptus trees. They were cool. The final was at a garden aptly named the Garden of Eden. A little pricey, but certainly worth the stop. The views were amazing, and all the flowers and trees were beautiful. It was a nice place to stretch the legs after being in the car for so long on the way back. After that, we headed back to the resort. We laughed at all the signs that had been changed to be somewhat inappropriate and marveled at all the broken-down cars. In fact, I thought it would be clever to just make those junked out cars mile markers, there were plenty of them to see.

All in all, the road to Hana was an amazing and fun filled day. It was well worth the drive and the one thousand and forty turns. 

Sometimes you wake up and you hope that it will be a great day. Sometimes you have a great day and sometimes you get handed a ball of garbage. Today was filled with hope for a great day, and that hope was realized with a perfect day on the beach. It started out with a beautiful run along the Kapalua coastal trail. The run was part boardwalk, part lava rock, and amazing views. The weather was perfect and the scenery divine. It's hard to believe that places like this exist.

After running and making breakfast, we headed up to Oneloa Bay Beach. Whereas Kapalua beach is known for its snorkeling, Oneloa is known for a great place to boogie board. It lived up to its claim. The beach itself was fantastic and there were very few people there. In fact, for much of the day, we had most of the beach to ourselves. The sand was wonderful, and we made various sculptures throughout the day and castles that went from our beach chairs all the way down to the crashing waves. Speaking of crashing waves, at first, the girls were pretty wary of trying to ride them. Some of them were pretty big, and the ocean loomed large behind it. There was an amazing sand bar about 100 yards out where the waves crashed perfectly. Mike gleefully spent most of the morning riding waves and then got the girls to go out with him. Soon, they were catching waves and riding them all the way back up onto shore. Even Madeline ventured out on a board with her dad holding her tight. It was all smiles as everyone got in on the action. It was a phenomenal day. The highlight was one wave that Sara, Emma, and Mike went to catch. It was quite tall. As it began to crest, a giant sea turtle popped its head out of the top of the wave, its mouth open as if it were gawking at this group of humans who grabbed the wave with it. It was a moment that will never be forgotten! 

After an amazing day at the beach, it was back to the hotel for dinner and the sunset. It couldn't have been a more perfect day in paradise. 

While the beach in Maui is amazing, our skin tone dictates that if we spend three straight days on the beach, we will spend the rest of the vacation applying Aloe and feeling miserable. So, we decided to spend today enjoying one of the other amazing aspects of Hawaii: hiking. The first place we headed to was the Waihee ridge trail. We brought our hiking poles and sturdy shoes with us on this trip for this very trail. It's steep and muddy. The views are amazing and the forest divine, but it's a solid climb. At least it's at sea level! The climb starts out in a really cool forest and quickly gains the ridge line where you can look out over the lush, green valley. It really is an amazing hike with gorgeous views. If you want to know more about it, check out Mike's website: whatmikeyliked for a more detailed description of the hike itself.

On the day we went, the clouds blessed us with some solid rain, making the trail more muddy but keeping us cool. We saw lots of people sliding down the steep trail and creating lasting stains on their clothes. We were grateful to have proper hiking gear. Teva's are a great sandal to bring to Maui as most of the hikes are doable with Teva's except for maybe the trails around the summit of the volcano. At the top of the trail, there is a little viewing platform where you can sit, have a snack or lunch, before you head back down. All in all, it was a great little hike that got us off our butts and onto the trail.

On our way back into town, we stopped and got ice cream cones and then headed to Iao Valley State Park. There is a little fee to pay to access this area. The hike to the cool views is super short and on a paved trail. It's a pretty cool little vista, but the real gem here is the creek that flows out of the park. There is a dirt trail that parallels the creek and there are endless little pools that you can sit in, jump in, and play in. We spent the rest of the afternoon here in the shade of the trees rejoicing in the cool waters. It was an unexpected find and it is very accessible.

After we had played in the river, we headed back to our condo for dinner, sunset, and a walk along the ocean. Maui couldn't be any more paradisiacal.

This morning, Sara and Mike went for a run down the boardwalk and to the state park. On the way, there was a monk seal sleeping on the beach. We decided to make that Monk seals example our template for the entire trip: sleep, swim, eat, sleep, eat, sleep some more. It worked out well. After breakfast, we packed all our stuff in the car and headed down the road to Kapalua Bay Beach. This bay is a protected little spot just 10 minutes away from our condo and is well known for its smaller waves and clear water and excellent snorkeling. It did not disappoint. We saw oodles of fish, lots of turtles, and built castles and figurines in the sand. It was a great place for Madeline to explore the ocean without getting pummeled by powerful waves. It was also a great place to snorkel because it was quite deep, but the water was very clear, and you felt pretty safe with the reef keeping any bigger sea life away. In the early morning, we saw whales eating just outside the reef. I couldn't believe that we could see the whales so well from the shore. It was a perfectly pleasant day at the beach. Before we all turned too red, we headed back to the condo, ate dinner, and spent the evening strolling down the boardwalk. Then we made like the monk seal and went to sleep.​

Excited to be in Maui, Sara got up and went running, followed by going again with Emma. They just like feeling superhuman running at sea level. Meanwhile, Mike went to the store and got the rest of the food we needed for our trip and made breakfast for everyone. We ate breakfast out on the lanai and enjoyed the perfectly pleasant warm air. It was delightful. Following breakfast, we got ready to go to the beach. The condo we stayed in came with beach toys, beach chairs, a beach umbrella, and a cooler. It was perfect for a day at the beach with the kids. We walked down to the beach by our condo, set up shop and spent the day playing in the sand, snorkeling, and watching dolphins and whales play offshore. It was amazing to have all this right by our condo. Watching the kids play was very rewarding because the smiles were genuine and the thrill of the ocean apparent. After a long day in the sun, we headed back to our condo, made dinner, and then went for a walk along the ocean. The sunsets in Hawaii are magical, and this first day was no exception. The only thing missing to make this the perfect day were our boys. Sorry guys, but at least you are having fun in Calculus! 

​Alright, so Spring Break got off to a little bit of a Colorado start. On Wednesday, we saw that a storm was moving through the Rocky Mountains. A big one. So, we had to act fast. The worry was that we wouldn’t make our flight in the morning to San Francisco or that our flight would be delayed and then we would miss our connecting flight to Maui. So, we got online and booked a hotel by the Denver airport so we wouldn’t have to drive to Denver in the storm. Also, we could leave our car at the hotel and not have to worry about parking, rather, just take the shuttle from the hotel to the airport in the morning. Crisis one averted. Second, we called United and because there was a winter storm warning for the morning flight and there was a likelihood for it being delayed, we got them to change us to a later flight...only this flight was direct from Denver to Maui! What a steal! So, we got booked on the direct flight to Maui for the same price as we paid to fly to San Francisco and then to Maui. Thank you winter storm.
 
We got the to the airport in ample time with no stress taking the hotel shuttle. Then, we went to the American Express lounge and had breakfast, just chilled out and relaxed. What we didn’t realize, is that we needed to do our COVID forms and get a special bracelet from the United people prior to boarding our flight. So, we leisurely walked to our flight right as they were getting ready to board, and then were told that they didn’t do the bracelets at that gate, only at a gate 1/2 way down the concourse....so we ran!  We ran down there, butted in line with our stuff that we had pre-filled out, got our bracelets, and ran back to the flight. It was tight, but we made it just in time to board with our bracelets. It wouldn’t have been so bad, but there were a dozen retired people trying to figure out how to use their phones and do the online forms.... painful.  
 
Once on board, we were only delayed for just a bit. They had to de-ice the wings before we took off. Since we were sitting right next to the wings, we got to watch the entire thing. It was fascinating. The flight itself wasn’t too bad for a long flight, although it was on a rather small plane for such a long flight. As we came close to Maui, we circled around the volcano, and it was amazing to see the lush tropical coastline. Just earlier that day, we were in a blizzard, freezing in Denver. It was refreshing to step off the plane and be bombarded with warm, humid hair. Sara’s hair immediately curled up like a perm, and my skin rehydrated instantly. It felt wonderful.  
 
We grabbed all our bags and then sat in line for our minivan at the least organized car rental place on the earth. It was a disaster. We waited for 45 minutes just to get to the counter even though we had a preferred reservation through Avis. I got there, and then the lady said that they didn’t have the minivan and it would be a two hour wait till it was ready. I told her that we had somewhere to be and had already paid for the car, and the reservation was guaranteed, and I would be fine if they upgraded us at no charge to an SUV. So, they gave us a big ol’ Ford Expedition and we were comfy for the rest of the trip.  
 
We headed from the airport to Costco (as I think everyone does) got our food and meals and towels and snorkel gear for the week, then headed across the island to our condo. It was a really pleasant drive and not stressful like Honolulu can be at times. We got to our awesome little condo at the resort, unpacked, had dinner, and then walked down to the beach for sunset. It was awesome. Maui, I love you!
 

​We got up early and got all of our swim gear together and headed on over to Hanauma Bay for a fun day of snorkeling. We wanted to get there before the parking lot filled up. We made it by 8am and although we found a parking spot without any problems, the weather was iffy. It was raining, cloudy, and much too cool to sit by the water. So, we waited it out in our car for about 40 minutes. Then we headed into the park and found the most perfect spot on the grassy area behind the sandy beach where we strung up our hammock. By this point the sun was out and it was warm enough to get in the water. We grabbed our snorkels and headed out to explore the entire bay. Snorkeling at Hanauma Bay was incredible. We saw lots of interesting fish. It was such an incredible experience to snorkel across this entire bay. At some points the reef was incredibly shallow. We had to make like a board and float right on top of it. I was worried that I would get scratched on my belly but that never happened. At one point we saw an entire school of fish feasting on the reef. There were probably over a hundred fish in the group. We just followed them until they swam away. It was pretty neat. After about an hour of snorkeling I was starting to get cold, so we got out and warmed up in the sun and just laid in the hammock and snacked on fruit and nuts. We spent a good couple of hours just relaxing in the hammock and talking. Then Mike headed to grab us some lunch. By the time we were done eating, we were ready to get back in the water for one more round of snorkeling. It was really hard to leave the bay and head back to the hotel. I just didn’t want this day to end. Since I had a red eye flight back to Colorado, we had a little bit of time to eat one more dinner together and grab some treats to bring back home for the kids. We decided to eat at the Tonkatsu place just one more time. We got really lucky and grabbed the very last table at the restaurant. It was just as good as the first time and would have to last us until the next time we would be in Japan in the fall. It was hard to leave Hawaii and Mike, but I was super grateful I got to spend a glorious 4 ½ days soaking in the sun and spending quality time with my best friend.  

​This morning we actually slept in which was awesome. Then we put on our running clothes and headed out on quite a morning run. We ran all the way down Kalakaua Ave. until we came to Monsarrat Ave. and then turned toward Diamond Head. It was about 3 miles until we reached the entrance to Diamond Head State Park. Once at the bottom Mike was kind enough to let me run on ahead. I ran up until I got to the paid entrance gate. We both went in together and then once at the actual trail, we took off on a run up to the top. Since it wasn’t super early in the morning the regular crowds were out and about on the trail. It was fairly easy to continue running up the trail, having to stop here and there, to get around people. Once I reached the set of stairs, I waited for Mike who I knew wasn’t too far behind. For a brief moment I decided to just head up the stairs, then turned around because I thought I had better wait to ascend the last section together with Mike. Turns out that as I was heading down to wait for Mike, he was heading up. Neither one of us saw the other as we were so focused on our footing. I waited for another 5 minutes at the landing at the bottom of the stairs for Mike and then decided that I had better head up. It truly was crazy that we had missed seeing each other in passing. The views from up on top were ridiculous. As we were starting to head back down and small rain shower fell on us. It actually felt really good. We stayed together on the descent and were able to run most of the way down. We ran together all the way back to Kalakaua Ave where we stopped at Lanikai Smoothie for some amazing smoothie bowls. It was a smoothie on the bottom with a layer of granola and topped off with freshly cut up fruit. It was the perfect recovery meal. We walked over to the beach to eat our smoothie bowls and then walked back to our hotel along the beach. We got back and relaxed for a while before getting showered and ready to head to church. In typical Hawaiian fashion, someone must have been a little too relaxed and didn’t update the meeting house times on LDS tools because when we showed up at 1:00pm for church, no one was there.  Oh well…at least we tried. We hurried back to the hotel, quickly grabbed a sandwich and headed over to our sales presentation. It was more of the same as the Marriott presentation. We definitely were not interested in what we think is a total scam. However, we listened, got our free 25,000 Hilton points and headed on out to Ko’Olina for a nice evening of watching the sunset and dinner at Mina’s Fish House. The sunset was magnificent. We stood up on the rocks behind the Four Seasons and just watched as the sun went down. It was absolutely the perfect sunset. There were plenty of people out doing the same, even a recently married couple getting their photos taken. While we waited for our dinner reservation, we continued the walk down to the Marriott resorts and by the time we got back to the Four Seasons they were ready to sit us for dinner. Dinner started out a little rocky with a super casual and not very attentive waiter.  However, the food was pretty amazing and the views unparalleled. It was a beauty evening of eating dinner right next to the water and a great way to end our fun day.

​We got up early today and put on our swimsuits, grabbed our snorkeling gear and provisions for the day and headed out for a day on the east shore. With a quick stop at the airport, and to my surprise, we parked Mike’s government rental car at the airport and picked up a black mustang convertible for the remainder of my time in Hawaii. That was such a fantastic surprise. We drove on the Pali Highway towards Kailua. We stopped briefly at the Nu-uanu Pali Lookout and marveled at the beauty from where we were. It wasn’t much further from the lookout to the Kailua Beach Park where we found a parking spot before the lot filled up for the day. We got out and walked along the beach and then headed on the private roads to Lanikai Beach to see what it was like. Wow…Lanikai Beach was pretty spectacular. We spent some time walking on that beach before heading back to where the car was and then on over to Kailua rental center. We rented a double kayak, bought a cute double hammock, new swim goggles for me, and some Chums to keep our sunglasses secure while on the kayak.  We watched the safety video about kayaking in the area then loaded up our kayak on the wheeled dolly and headed back over to Kailua Beach. We loaded up our drybag with all of our food and extra clothing, secured our snorkeling gear in the kayak and then headed out into the ocean. It was fairly windy as we headed out to Popoia Island first. It took some time for us to find our groove paddling together but we made it safely to the island without too much trouble. We docked our kayak on the small sandy bank and got out to walk around the small bird sanctuary island. The view from the island was pretty remarkable. After spending a short time exploring this island we hopped back into the kayak and headed straight for Lanikai Beach. The original plan was to head on over to Moku Nui Island, but the winds were so strong that we decided to just hang out at Lanikai instead of kayaking against the wind for another hour. It was still fairly early in the morning and the beach wasn’t at all crowded - partially because it is not as accessible as Kailua Beach. It is a good 15 min walk from the Kailua Beach parking lot. After docking our kayak on the beach, we got on our snorkeling gear and headed out into the crystal-clear blue water and had fun seeing all the different kinds of fish swimming around the shallow reefs. It was pretty incredible to snorkel at Lanikai. We spent most of the day snorkeling and laying out in the warm sun. I can’t remember the last time I got to lay out in the sun without kids. I was really careful to put on sunscreen frequently so I wouldn’t burn. It was hard to want to leave the beach but eventually we headed back into the kayak and paddled back to where we started. It took no time at all to get back since the wind was in our favor. We returned the kayak, grabbed some ice-cream, and laid in our hammock for a while before driving back to Waikiki. We drove back via the Kalanianaole Hwy stopping at the Makapu’u Point State Wayside overlook to see the beauty of where we spent the day. It was a remarkable view from where we stood, and I just felt grateful that I got to spend the day with Mike. After showering and getting ready back at our hotel, we headed out again to eat dinner. We decided to stand in line to eat at Marukame Udon Tempura Musubi. Apparently, this famous Udon shop, always has a really long line out front. The good news was that the line moved rather quickly. We met some really nice people in line and that helped the time to pass quickly. The Udon was really tasty and definitely authentic. It seems crazy to be in Hawaii but feel so close to Japan. 

DAY 1

​​When Mike told me that he might be able to do his reserve duty at Tripler in Hawaii, I got right on trying to find someone to watch the kids so I could join him over the holiday weekend. In asking around, my awesome friend Dionne volunteered to come and stay with the kids with her son Lucas. I already knew Dionne was amazing, but I did not expect such a nice gesture. I got a direct flight from Denver to Honolulu on Thursday morning and got to Hawaii in the early afternoon. I grabbed an Uber and headed to our hotel where I met Mike after he was finished with work. When I got there, they had put is in the wrong hotel. After a rather long phone conversation with Hilton Grand Vacations, we got everything sorted out. We ended up staying at the Grand Islander at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach Resort right on Waikiki. This was their newest tower and the feel was modern yet classy. In the mix up with the room, we ended up upgrading to a one-bedroom suite where we had our own kitchen area and lots of room to spread out. We wasted no time and headed right out to go for a walk on the beach. It was glorious to be somewhere so warm and peaceful. We walked all the way down the beach past the Hale Koa and then we headed towards the shopping strip and to the International Market Place which is a fairly new outdoor mall area with shops and restaurants. Mike had made a reservation for us to eat dinner at the Eating House which is one of Roy Yamaguchi’s restaurants. The food was outstanding, and it felt surreal to be eating outside. After an amazing dinner of steak and potatoes for me and scallops for Mike, we were too tired to wait the 25 minutes for some of their amazing desserts, so we grabbed the check and headed to the Japanese grocery store to buy our favorite Japanese ice-cream sandwich and devoured it on our walk back to our hotel. With the 3-hour time change, I was out like a light the moment my head hit the pillow.