Alena in Hawaii

Alena's first plane ride went very well. She played and stayed up the entire time on the way to Hawaii, with layover's and car rental and all it was about 12-13 hours. Aman surprised us with first class tickets so Alena got to experience a nice, easy flight. She slept the entire way home. We left Hawaii around 9pm on Thursday and we arrived home Friday around 4:30, which was around 14-15 hours. We stayed at our home resort in Kona on the big island (the resort side). It was a really nice resort. Aman, Alena and I stayed by ourselves until Saturday evening when Trent and Yvette joined us for the rest of the week. It was so much fun to vacation with friends! Also, my Aunt Marian and Uncle Jerry were amazingly enough on the big island the same time we were. They were staying at a resort right down the road and it was a blast to get to spend time with them and for them to meet Alena.

On Friday we took it easy and woke up late. We drove to a coffee farm, which was really cool. Then we went grocery shopping. We went downtown and saw the oldest church on all Hawaiian Islands. Alena liked all the lava rock walls, she wanted to touch them. We had dinner with my Aunt and Uncle when they got in at a great little place right on the beach. It was so fun to watch the sunset and get to visit with Marian and Jerry.

The next day we went to two farmers markets and got tons of fruit and a cute watch. We saw some scenic views along the highway. Then we headed to the beach and it was so funny because Alena hated the sand at first. Every time we put her close to it she cried. Finally, we put her sand toys on a blanket and eventually one of the toys rolled onto the sand and she touched it. It took her an hour, but she now LOVES sand. We found sand in every nook and cranny of her tiny little body. I was still getting sand out of her eyes 2 days later, poor thing. She even tried to eat the sand. The ocean was another story. We kept trying to put her in the ocean, but I think it was too loud, cold and scary with the waves for her. Hopefully she will have fun in the water in SB when we go in a few weeks. There was a great pool at the resort and she loved the water there - we went a couple of times. Aman picked up Trent and Yvette and we met my Aunt and Uncle at an amazing pizza place in Kona - the Kona Brewery!

On Sunday we went to an informal church on the beach. It was so cool to hear the waves. It was a very unusual day because the waves were really, really high. Even the locals were totally shocked. It turns out that twice the beaches we tried to go to were closed due to shark attacks (or rather one person eaten and then a whale was attacked - so scary). I didn't find out why the beaches were closed until the day I left or I would not have gotten in the water. After church we went to a java/food restaurant - yummy. Then we went to a fabulous beach. We were pretty much the only people on the beach - it was very peaceful. There were sweet turtles on the beach in the water and we watched the sunset. Then we went out for Thai food.

Monday was our BIG day. We left early and drove 2.5 hours to get to Volcano National park. Alena did GREAT in the car. It was a really long day for everyone, but it was amazing. We saw the smoking volcano and went through the museum. We ate at the museum in front of a huge window displaying the volcano. It was really cool. We got to walk through old lave tubes, which looked like big caves - it was so incredibly cool. Trent and I walked in one that had no lights and it was really cool. Then we ran into my aunt and uncle who were on a full day tour of the island. It was so fun to run and totally unexpected into them at the park. Then we had a quick dinner and drove to the place were the lava is running into the ocean. It was on private land, but they allow visitors. We had to walk a long way on very unstable ground and you have to wait for it to be dark to see the lava spew out red - wow - it was mind blowing - totally incredible and beautiful. It was a long way back in the dark, but we all had flashlights and we were all fine including Alena. We drove through Hilo (the 2nd biggest town in all of Hawaii). It looked like a cute town. We will have to go back another time to see it. We drove all the way around the island to make it home 2.5 hours later - super late. Alena slept and was fabulous.

Tuesday we went on a plane ride over the entire island. We went on the earliest flight at 7am and it was so worth it. The pilot said it was a very clear day and it was so beautiful. We got to see so much. I am so glad we did that. I took way too many pictures, but I was just in awe. Yvette was so sweet to watch Alena for us and Trent came with us. Then Aman and Trent went golfing and Yvette, Alena and I just hung out and relaxed. We went to the pool and then the Hawaiian show at the resort, which was so good. For dinner we went to a burger place on the water. Jerry and Marian were able to come with us for dinner that night too. It was awesome to see them. The food was okay, but not great.

Wednesday we went to the farmer's market and got more fruit. Wow, the fruit was amazing! Trent, Yvette and I went snorkeling. The snorkel trip was supposed to swim with dolphins, but we didn't swim with them. We did see them though. Then we walked around downtown and got some ice cream and snow cones. We saw the Hawaiian kings home (under construction) and saw the oldest church on the islands again (this time I went inside). For dinner we went to a great Italian food restaurant on the beach with my aunt and uncle - it was so yummy. We all loved it.

Thursday was our last day on the Big Island. We went to the beach early (but some beaches were closed due to the shark attack. We had to be out of the resort by 11am so Marian and Jerry were so kind to let us leave some luggage at their place and to spend the day with us. It was so fun to be with them. We saw some Hawaiian history then had a quick bite to eat at the java restaurant on the beach and then Aman took Trent and Yvette to the airport. Alena and I stayed with Marian & Jerry for a few more hours and then we left to the airport for the LONG trip home.

It was a fabulous trip!

Here are the links to the pics:

http://picasaweb.google.com/nichols.juliana/HawaiiBigIsland#5250161624181041954
http://picasaweb.google.com/nichols.juliana/Hawaii_Sept_2008#

Alena Saylor at 7 months

Alena got to hang out with her Aunt Susan this week since Susan was in town from Seattle. We went to fun restaurants like The Melting Pot and we went to the LBJ 100 birthday party down town. We pulled out a new toy for her, which she loves. It plays music and teaches her ABC's and 1-10. We were also packing for Hawaii. It was a really fun week. Pictures are below:

http://picasaweb.google.com/nichols.juliana/AlenaAt2829Weeks#

http://picasaweb.google.com/nichols.juliana/AlenaAt27Weeks#