Wednesday, June 14, 2006

Surf

The boys learned to surf on this Hawaii trip. We have lots of pictures taken by a photographer who was on a board, on the water, following them around during their lesson. The pictures are amazing - and so is the absolute joy and pride on their faces as they managed to stand up and ride a wave for the first time. The pictures are priceless and we are so glad to have them. They had a ball and are 'hooked'. B. is already planning to surf in Santa Cruz, etc. Of course, he doesn't realize that the 25 degree + water difference temperature will dampen his enthusiasm for California surfing - but for now, he wants to add surfing to his list of 'favorite' activities.

They also experienced scuba diving for the first time and loved it as well. Their amazement at the 'world' under the ocean was priceless and they were so excited about another new 'sport' to get into. J. and I enjoyed snorkeling almost as much as the boys enjoyed diving. Seeing fish in the ocean that you've only seen in pictures or salt water aquariums was amazing - and as J. promised, those beautiful fish are everywhere and easy to see with a snorkel and mask. The sailing/diving cruise we took for a day last Saturday was well worth the $$ - though the blistering sunburn I got has taken 3+ days to recover from. I emerged from my self-imposed confinement today and headed to the beach with the guys for some playing in the surf.

The waves today are between 4-6 feet. The water is so clear that you can see into the waves as they crest. The boys got sand in their pants, naturally. We stopped for Starbucks iced tea and Hawaiian shave ice before returning home for a quiet evening. Dinner plans are cheap chinese from the local mall shop. I am hoping to remain awake until at least 11PM when we will be within the 24 hour window to try to (please, oh please may we be able to) upgrade our flight to 'Economy Plus' for a bit of extra leg room. We are hoping/trying/praying we will sleep on the way home - so that extra leg room is a BIG difference when you're trying to sleep sitting up.

Hawaii has been wonderful - an amazing place to 'escape' to and enjoy the sand and sea and wind. I want to come back and even think that when we win the lottery, we might just retire here.

But I'll be glad to be home. And even returning to work on Monday will be OK - I sort of missed my friends there and the students that keep me young. But we'll be back. We're already planning B.'s senior trip and it will probably be here, though we'll probably do another island next time.

Sunday, June 11, 2006

About

Things I won't forget about Hawaii:

I have never seen such blue ocean water. NEVER. It is amazing. We sailed for a couple of hours yesterday and the water was the most amazing shade of deep, deep blue. I've never seen anything like it - and I grew up spending a lot of time on the water in Mexico. The water there was all shades of green. Even out sailing, there wasn't much truly blue water around. But Hawaii is all blue, all the time. It's amazing.

Sunburn. I have one. Stupid, I know. We were snorkeling yesterday and in spite of carefully applying sun screen all day, I AM FRIED. So sore I can barely move. It will most definitely blister and peel - so that's surely something to look forward to next week.

Beach hair. Since my hair's always been short until the last couple years, this 'long hair blowing in the wind' thing is all new. And I'm sort of enjoying the 'beach hair' thing. It looks fantastic with salt water in it from swimming. I can get away with washing it every few days and NEVER have to 'style' it since wind blown and wavy suits it just fine. It's pretty cool...by 'short hair' standards, it looks terrible - but everyone here walks around with tousled, unkept hair - so I fit right in.

And everyone here wears beach clothes all the time. Since we've been here, I've worn the same basic outfit - swim suit and a 'shift like' coverup. Period. Brought a zillion other outfits that I haven't needed and probably won't. Will probably 'dress up' a bit (i.e. put on shorts and a top) if we go to a lua later this week - but for the most part, I could have left most of the clothes I brought at home and just used a carry on for luggage. Have to remember that for next time.

More to come -

Thursday, June 08, 2006

Aloha

1/2 gallon half and half for morning coffee: $5.99.

Burgers, fries & shakes for lunch at a local Maui hangout: $52

Watching your teenage sons make a sand castle together and having the photos to prove it: Priceless.

Saturday, June 03, 2006

Travels

There's something about leaving for vacation that compels me to clean like a maniac. J. is chuckling as I scrub baseboards, cupboards, move rugs, etc. I can't help it. I have a friend coming over every few days to take care of the cats, bird & frog (dogs are going to a kennel) and while I know she probably won't even notice the state of my baseboards and even if she did notice dust, she wouldn't care - I still have to clean them. Partly 'cuz it will be so nice to come home to a clean(er) house and partly 'cuz if we tragically don't come back, the house will be presentable to the Wells Fargo trust employee who's responsibility it will be to take care of what needs to be taken care of.

We have a couple days before we leave for Maui and my mind is abuzz with list after list of what needs to be done before we leave. I am so exhausted at the mere thought(s) of all that needs to be done that when J. talks about getting up at 4AM to see a volcano crater ('we have to be there before sunrise; that's the whole point of going - it's a spiritual experience', I want to run from the dinner table. The boys chime in 'it's OK Mom, it'll be like 7AM here'. It will feel like 4AM regardless.

My sister K. and niece H. are in San Fran unexpectedly and we are meeting them for dinner tomorrow night. A fun way to celebrate my 46th birthday. YIKES. That sounds 'old' and the big FIVE OH is not too far ahead.

B. survived his freshman year. Finished yesterday. Received a citizenship award from the school district. H. received a citizenship award as well and improved his GPA by .7 in just one trimester. Amazing what insisting he CAN and WILL do stuff on his own can do. He studied on his own, kept track of his own assignments, etc. We were 'bystanders' for the first time EVER with H. and it sure felt good.

Aloha.

March

I'm starting to think maybe I will just do a monthly post and call it what it is - whatever month we're in.  Here we are winding dow...