time in hawaii!!!

brett and i left for hawaii on saturday, february the 12th. we had an amazing time and created so many awesome memories.

on saturday we finally arrived in kahului, maui, hawaii around 5 or 6pm. we had been delayed at lax for at least 3 hours. we were so happy to have arrived, even though it was pouring rain! the weather was perfect, warm and balmy. we had dinner (which we didn't like very much) at a place my parents like. mahi mahi with lemon butter sauce and capers. mine tasted fishy and brett thought it could have been chicken. oh well. we got over our not so tasty dinner and went to bed.

on sunday the family got up and we all went to snorkel bob's to rent snorkel and boogie boarding gear. we were there for about an hour. the girl at the front was making us all laugh. she loved joey's and brett's sunglasses and talked about who looked like which parent. she guessed the in-laws correctly. after going to snorkel bob's, we headed to the closest abc store to get towels, sunscreen, and some other stuff. after that we went back to our little beach and played around. later we went to fleming beach. brett, joey, and dad all boogie boarded while i watched from the beach. it was fun to watch the surfers and all the people boogie boarding. brett unfortunately lost his wedding ring during a tumble in the water. i was sad, but i figured there was no better place to lose his wedding ring. we planned on going to get a new one the day after we got back into town, but brett got sick so we're going this weekend to get a new ring. we went to the hula grill for dinner. brett had fish tacos and i had a bbq pork sandwich. it was a delicious dinner. then we all went to front street in lahaina. we walked the boardwalk and went into some shops, then we headed home and went to bed.

monday was valentine's day. brett and i decided to take the day for ourselves. after breakfast we got ready and went back down to front street where we could peruse the shops and take our time without anyone waiting on us. brett got a new pair of sanuk shoes (very cute, might i add) and i got a pair of very comfy sanuk flip flops. we went into an art gallery where we found original picassos, chagalls, renoirs, and also, oddly enough, sir anthony hopkins original art. we were told that it was the only gallery in the world that carried his art, and that if we bought a piece (starting at $1900) we would be invited back in June to a get together with mr. hopkins. we decided to save our money instead. brett and i went to lunch at maui brewing company. he had the plate lunch with kalua pork and i had kalua pork sliders. we sampled their beers and had a really fun time. later that night we decided to go to the abc store and we got some mini bottles of wine for me, and some beer for brett. we got home and snuck off to the beach to enjoy each others company and and our drink of choice. we sat outside for a long while watching the dark waves crash into the shore and listening to the beauty of it all. it was a perfect valentine's day.

tuesday was our day to go to anjela on the big island. we few to hilo and met anjela at the escalator. she and mike picked us up and took us on a drive to their house. on the way, anj asked if we got carsick. we both said no and she then proceeded to take us on the bumpiest road i had ever been on. we may as well had been on the ocean! they didn't grade the road because it was so hard to do with volcanic rock. it was a fun drive. we stopped at a coffee mill and got a coffee. anjela drove us to the lot she and mike had purchased and were working to build a house. we went to the house anjela, mike, and their kids lived in, along with anj's parents. they had just added a room to the house as their bedroom. we ate papaya and lilikoi (passion fruit) with pound cake and whipped cream. it was a delicious treat. we went snorkeling in these beautiful pools which were just a couple minutes from anjela's house. the snorkeling was amazing. the water was so salty i couldn't sink! but i tried! we saw beautiful fish and i even saw a turtle. brett took my hand as we snorkeled and i thought it was the most romantic thing i had ever experienced. it's on the top of my list of things that i hope to re-experience... and it's on the top of my list of things i've ever done in my entire life. i could have swam with brett's hand in mine forever. after we got our fill of snorkeling we went to a couple of the vacation properties that anjela's parents manage. the first was an amazing place right on the water. the first floor was up a flight of stairs and had the living room and kitchen. there was another outside flight of stairs and then the next floor had 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. this place had 2 amazing decks with a hot tub as well. when we go back to hawaii, i hope brett and i can stay at that location. it was beautiful and right on the water. we went to another property just down the road. this place was a little more homely, but it had a lovely lanai that looked out over the ocean and pools. we went back to anj's place and hung out for a while til we were all hungry. then we headed back to hilo and went to dinner at a japanese restaurant called miyo's. brett and i both had tuna sashimi with tempura vegetables. it was a very yummy dinner, even if we did have to wait quite a while for our food. after dinner we stopped at a little piece of beach and hung out. it was the only sandy beach i saw on the island, as most of the big island is made up of volcanic rock and doesn't have sandy beaches, just very rocky beaches. after a little longer anjela and mike drove us to the airport and we flew to honolulu, and then finally back to kahului. we drove back to "our house" and went to bed. it was quite late when we got home. it was an amazing day, possibly my favorite.

on wednesday, brett and i went with my dad and tom to mile marker 14 to snorkel. there was coral reef all around us and we had to find little channels to swim through. there were lots of fish and it was quite beautiful, but i kept thinking back to how amazing snorkeling in the big island's pools was. we had a great time even though it wasn't quite as pretty. i got out into the ocean much farther than i thought i would, and i only got a little nervous. i just had to concentrate on my breathing.

on thursday, i went with my parents, the girls, and ian to a beach in paia where we looked for sea glass. i found a decent little collection, much to my delight. everyone found some sea glass. i didn't even mind that my 2 favorite pieces came from my dad. the water was much more rough than my mom remembered and we got batted around in the waves some. after we were done at the beach, we went into paia and had a wonderful lunch at a fish market and restaurant. i had seared ahi tuna with coleslaw and fries. it was so good! after lunch we went through a few shops and i found a very cute pair of labradorite earrings. kristin found a cute ring and a bracelet. we shopped around a bit and then headed back home. i found out that brett and my brothers had been on an adventure of sorts. they all went to front street and had an... interesting, but successful time. then they went disc golfing at kapalua adventure center. brett got eaten to bits by mosquitoes.

friday we were supposed to go to the iao needle, but we had decided to go snorkeling instead. hiking was put off until sunday. we (myself, brett, kristin, joey, tom, and dad) went snorkeling at mile marker 14 again. this time the water was lower and the coral was sticking up out of the water. i was a little bit freaked out as it was kind of difficult to get out into the deeper water before, but we managed. i didn't snorkel for very long until i was over it for the day. i went back and sat with brett on the beach and waited for everyone else to finish up. after snorkeling we went and had lunch at maui tacos. brett and i both had fish tacos with black beans and rice. after snorkeling we headed back home.

one day, i can't remember which, brett and i went to lahaina and tried to find souvenirs for the haws'. we found a cool little wood bookmark for hannah, and we found shirts for hannah, ben, and maya. we had a fun time and went all over front street. we went into the little mall and stopped in lots of little shops. we met a lady who told us about the local musicians.

on friday or saturday night we went to canoes restaurant. it was too pricey, but my dad insisted. the food was all right. the salad bar was the best part. brett and i both had mahi mahi for dinner.

we went and got wine and beer another night and went and sat on the beach again. we noticed all these little crabs that would quickly climb into their little holes in the beach when we shined the light on them or got closer to them. we also saw 2 bigger black crabs that ran into the ocean as soon as we shined lights on them. it kind of creeped me out. we had an amazing time just sitting on beach watching and listening to the ocean and waves.

to be continued.