We are HERE. Here we are.

Ahhhh.....

After a week of temps reaching as low as -50....
After worrying this past week for my boy, his nasty cough and ear infection and then watching the rest of my family drop like flies...
After a winter that has been spent 95% indoors...
After adding to our crazy with a third babe... (albeit very sweet babe)
After a month long move  ;)
After a long flight with 2 toddlers and a baby...

We are here.

Hallelujah

 We ARE rejoicing.

For a long time, my parents (mom especially) have wanted to do a family vacation in Hawaii. We had no objections! Back in August, we found this house that is only two blocks from the Kailua beach access, and quickly booked it.

I have been looking at pictures of this area for the past half a year and dreaming of 'living' in the tropics (especially as this winter has dragged on and on) Now that we're here.... ahhhhhhh. It feels good. The pics of 'our' house that I had seen online were definitely a little nicer than what the actual house is like. Things seem dated, but it kind of fits the laid back lifestyle of the area.

Our flights to get here went well. Our kids have flown quite a bit (except for Zav, of course. This was his first time), so I wasn't too worried, but the 6 1/2 hr flight from Vancouver to Honolulu did get long. My parents were on the same flight as us, which at this stage of the game for us, was a God-send. That long flight didn't have any in-flight entertainment (TV) either, so we relied on our own"stuff." Grandma had packed lots of little activity books and games for the kids, which was great. We made sure that all of our seats were together when we checked in online 24 hrs before the flight.

We were tired, but excited when we landed in Honolulu. The warm tropical air is the most wonderful greeting. My mood was dampened, though, when we collected our checked luggage and found that one of our suitcases hadn't made it. I've never actually had that happen. Of all the suitcases to lose, of course it was the one with ALL of Zavi's stuff. I spoke with a West Jet rep and expressed my frustration over not having what I needed to adequately care for my baby. I was promised $100 compensation and they did find the suitcase and send it on the next flight. They even sent it with a courier directly to our house and we had it the following morning. All in all, not so bad.

On our way home, we are taking the "red eye." We've never tried it, but our hope is that our children all sleep through it... we'll see how that goes. ;)

I found some pics and maps of the area. Kailua Bay is much smaller than Honolulu and the beaches are much less crowded than Waikiki.

The island is gorgeous. I love the contrast of the mountains against the ocean/beaches. On our drive to Kailua (You can see on the map the airport) we took hwy 63 and that H3 interstate. Parts of the hwy drive went right through mountains and had these beautiful tunnels. I will try to get some pics of them later. ;)

It is a nice two-block walk from our house to the beach. There are mountains at our backs, ocean in the front. :)

That two-block walk culminates in the most beautiful beach that deepens very gradually and is PERFECT for kids. My little hooligans are in their glory.

Before we left, I had really wanted to find a good beach tent that packed up nice and small to take to Hawaii. Mitch and I found this gem at Target only two days before we left! We stumbled upon it on the clearance rack for $34.99, which we were thrilled about. When it was rung through at the till, it came up for $20.99! It was definitely meant to be. The tent is perfect for our littlest beach bum, Zav, to enjoy the fresh air off the ocean while kicking happily out of the direct rays of the sun.

Jett and Kalena LOVE the ocean water/waves and they also love to play in the sand. It doesn't even bother them that every so often a larger wave comes and flattens the castles they're building. Jett loves what he calls "gooey" sand and both J & K cake their whole bodies in it. I'm sure it's good for their skin. ;)

Both Jett and Kalena love to "swim." We talked with them about how it is actually their life preservers holding them up and stressed the importance of them wearing them. They have no fear and swat your hands away so they can float independently. "I do it myself!" is Kalena's proclamation for many things these days.

A few of these pictures, like the one above, are taken at a different beach we found when driving around. It is in Waimanalo, which is not very far from Kailua, our home base. It was a nice beach (they all are) but we really love and prefer 'our' beach that is so close to where we're staying.

The best frenemies you could find ;)

Sweet Bella Mae 

(and Tim & Sherry- My brother and sister-in-law) ;)

Fun on the beach with Papa and Gramma.

It has been so great to spend time with uncle Greg and aunty Karmen, too! They just finished their teaching contract in S Korea and are on their way home... with a Hawaiian pit stop. ;)

Beach bums

We've been using the pool at our house everyday, too! It is a great (non sandy) way to cool off and it can entertain the kids while meals are prepared. 

 We are very thankful to be able to do this trip. Without the help and support of family, this is not something we'd be able to do right now, but we LOVE it. The colds that have plagued us since last week linger on. Jett is pretty much better, but Kalena's cold is taking it's time. Mitch is feeling better, but it finally caught up with me and I'm in the thick of it; this stinkin' cold. We really haven't been sick all year. Crazy that it came on now. The tropical air helps and so does our relaxed non-schedule. We're still loving it, just with alot of mucus...

The biggest and most obvious void in this family trip is the absence of Braden, Carrie and Lucy. When we booked this trip, we never considered there would be an issue for my sister travelling while pregnant. We now know that there is NO insurance that will cover you past 31 weeks pregnant. We found insurance for Carrie through a European company, but they wouldn't cover the baby. It's just too big of a risk when you think of how hospital bills for a Canadian in the States can accumulate by $10,000 per day or more. We learned this first hand with Mitch's emergency appendectomy in Galveston, Texas a year and a half ago. (You can read about it HERE, if you like) Insurance is important, but we sure wish that Braden, Carrie and Lucy could be here with us. I was snuggling Kalena the other day and she looked up at me with her big blue eyes and said, "I yuv Carrie." (That one's for you, sis) I decided not to be offended that she didn't say she loved ME in that moment we spent snuggling ;)


Anyhoo, time to close up my computer and head outside. I have enjoyed this time I had to relax and blog while my family napped. That's another perk from being in the warm tropical climate. My kids play hard for hours outside, then they ASK to go down for a nap! That never happens at home! LOVE it!