Part 2 Hawaii: May 4, 2010 Hilo, Big Island

When we arrived in Hilo, it was rainy and chilly. I didnt think that you would really need a sweater or coat in May in Hawaii, but it proved me wrong. Luckily i had a sweater with me. It was about 60 (maybe a little less) but with the humidity and breeze, it was pretty cold. So we started off the day renting a car. We drove down to Volcanoes National Park. Like almost all drives in Hawaii it was beautiful. As you get into the park you can see steam pockets all over the place. It is kind of scary to think that we were on top of an active volcano and that the steam we could feel and see was because of that volcano. We went to the museum they have there that over looks Kilauea. The view was cool, even though it was overcast and raining. You could see the volcanic gases being released through the vent. It was neat to see. Due to explosions and excessive volcanic gas you can no longer drive around the caldera or hike to the crater. So we were forced to be happy with a distant view. We did take a very pretty jungle hike down to the caldera. It was jungle on one side and old lava on the other. The pictures below are of Rob on the trail to the Caldera, then a picture of the vent gases at the bottom of the hike, and then us on the caldera. it was amazing.

After we hiked back to the car, we took the Chain of Craters Road down to its end. You can see in the pictures why the road ended. I believe the road used to go all the way around but now is in 2 separate parts. The sign that i am standing by says "Road Closed." I believe that we can all see why. We hiked around on the lava flows for a little while trying to get a peak at the active lava flow but it was to far for us to see unless we walked for a while. On our way back up we found this cool arch made of lava. It was scenic. We looked at a map to see how close we could get to the active lava flow and found the other part of this closed road and decided to see how far we could go...


And we got CLOSE!!! It was awesome!! We saw the steam flow all the way down the mountain. We took this road that was carved over lava flows out a little farther and you could walk pretty much to the active lava. It was kind of intimidating that you had to reverse park so you could get out faster if needed but we proceeded. We walked up the road a little more and came to a "viewing" area. This area was different all the time because the lava was pushing it back all the time. We were told all the lava we saw came in last night and covered a large section of the road. The man out there in the picture was monitoring the flow for the safety of the spectators. We saw a few trees catch on fire and it really wasnt that far from us. We saw many pockets of lava break through the thin surface and we were able to see red hot lava. It was amazing to be so close to such a force of nature.

After spending a long time watching lava bubble, and burn trees, and seeing the steam where it hit the ocean, we had to get back to the boat. As we were leaving the Active lava site we came across some prime real estate. Anyone interested in beach front property? As we were leaving Hilo on the boat Rob and I were deck side watching the city fade away. Right as I said I wish I could see a bunch of dolphins, one jumped out of the water followed by many more. There were a ton of them jumping, diving, spinning and playing. It was so cool. I have never seen that many dolphins before.

Well our boat took us to Kilauea to see it at night. Rob and I went to the front decks to get a good spot. As we were watching the Lava flows draw near, there was the most amazingly bright shooting star I have ever seen. It was bright green, blue, and white, just amazing colors, that flew for a long time in the sky just above the volcano. Words cant describe the majesty of the view. We could see Lava coming down the hill side. Unfortunately our camera couldnt capture

all that much of it but it was surreal. What an amazing sight. Hawaii has so many things to do and see. You could go there several times and not do the same thing twice. So this ended our day in Hilo. I will add more later...

HAWAII~~

This is a picture journal type blog of our amazing trip to Hawaii.

These pictures are of the first day, Friday April 30, 2010. The first is of Rob and I on our plane. Nonstop to Honolulu. The second is our arrival at the HNL airport. Rob arranged a Lei greeting for me. It was so sweet. After checking in to our hotel (it was a hilton on waikiki) we went up to our room on the 36 floor. This is a view straight out in front of us. There were some great views if you look to the side too but that would be too many pictures. The next 2 pictures are of us on Waikiki beach. There was a peir we walked out on and the other is of a tree that is crazy looking. It seems to have branches or something that grow down ward and once they hit the ground they become roots. it is really weird. the last picture is of the sun set of course. It was the best one we saw due to clouds. The next one is of Rob and I on our cruise ship. We boarded Saturday afternoon. The ship set sail at about 7 pm so we spent the morning lingering around at the beach, and then boarded in the early after noon and lingered on board. The next 2 pictures were on our day at sea. We sailed around the Molokai coast and saw the leper colony. This is a rescue operation "code oscar" as it is called because some one fell overboard. It was a crew member and he was saved. It was kind of crazy. I noticed the ship was turning and heard the "code oscar" so i went up higher to see and noticed we were doing "donuts" in the water and then saw the rescue boat and the man in the water. Once they pulled him he must have passed out because he went completely limp. We stopped near Maui where a boat took him to shore. I believe he was fine. This other picture is of us off of one of the uninhabited islands on our at sea day. There were lots of things to do on board. this is one of us playing shuffle board.May 3, 2010. Maui. We were only able to spend 1 day on Maui. There is so much to do on each Island it was hard to narrow it down. We rented a car and drove the road to Hana. It was beautiful. It was a long and windy road that took several hours to complete. We stopped a few times and hiked a little and took pictures. There were some

waterfalls and just beautiful scenery.

Rob is the dare devil of the 2 of us. he climbed the

rocks a little way up and jumped into the water hole. I am a chicken and didnt

even get it. It was pretty

though. There

were lots of jungle vines growing from trees so Rob took

them for a spin. they held up pretty nicely. It was a beautiful place. Minus this

crazy spider we saw at a look out point. At the end of the Road to Hana we were able to go into a lava tube. It was through some mans property but it was fun. this is the entrance to that tube.

It went down the stairs into the ground. then this is one of me in the tube. it was pretty cool. Really dark down in side more. You couldnt even see your hand in front of your face if you turned off the flash light.

Maui was beautiful. There were lots of colors as seen here in the scenery. After we made it back, we didnt have much time before we had to be back on board so what did we do? We went to walmart. We got a few snacks, Coke and reeses pieces, and some souvenirs and headed back to the boat for dinner. It was a great day and we loved it. It was a little over cast but still beautiful.

Well i need to take a break so I will continue to post more about the other days later. Til then...

Spring!!

I love the spring. I am not a winter person. Out doors is the best. My kids are outside every possible minute they can. This picture here is a favorite pass time at our house (and in our neighborhood). We have proof that you can use boogie boards in Utah. This one is of Taylors first ride. Now everytime they come out of the garage she gets excited. The kids play a type of chase game with them. The goal is to jump on it when some one is pulling it. It is great to watch. There are a lot of kids that get
involved. It is great to have our circle alive again. We have been able to go see the baby sheep and cows and the kids love it. We have worked in the garden and already have things growing. The flowers are coming up. It is just great. Plus in 4 days Rob and I are going to Hawaii. I am so excited for our cruise. We are going to the Polynesian Cultural Center and doing ziplines, Who said there arent any uses for happy

snorkeling, and hiking. it

will be awesome. meal boxes?

We went camping for the first time this year on

April 16. We went to the west desert. Out toward Dugway.

We went with Michael, Adam, Rebecca, and then some other friends (banks) and theleannas brother. We did lots of Paintball, and shooting.

I was able to finally shoot our AR-15. I actually hit the target several times. it was awesome.

I did better than expected. The kids

got to shoot the paintball gun and pellet gun.

They loved it. They

would collect any pellet and paintball that fell to the ground and didnt break then find rocks and smash them . It was great. Steven bought a gilly suit which made paintball harder. Rob is wearing it in this picture. Their team is ready to go out.

the kids loved to play in the dirt. They dug a huge

hole and played in it. Taylor wouldnt leave on a hat so i

got a picture when she

finally did. The first night was a little cold. Ethan also had a meltdown because he got to tired. Rob and I

didnt

really sleep we were constantly checking on the kids to make sure they were warm. Taylor did better than expected sleeping. That was a miracle. The second night was not to bad. We were all a lot warmer. On our way home, just as we got over the mountain, our tire popped. We had to unload some stuff to get tools out but we didnt know how to get our tire out of the car. Luckily Bryan and Christy left shortly after we did and came to the rescue. Bryan showed us how to use the pully system to get our tire down and helped us get back on the road. We were blessed. We made it home and got cleaned up. The smell of a

campfire filled our

house. I had to wash my Hair 4 times to get the smell out. Ethan had the battle would in our family. He was climbing a tree and fell and got a big scratch down his body. It wasnt too bad but he really flipped out. He wouldnt even let us come

near it and screamed for ever. Rob and Chris held him down while i cleaned it and put a bandage on it. But other than that things were great. Taylor loved her first camping trip. (as you can see she loves donuts too)

Well i am glad that it is spring and things are warming up. we have more camping and gardening in the future. I cant wait. but first.....Hawaii!!!!

these are from our St. George trip. We had lots of fun and completely wore ourselves and our kids out. They absolutely loved it though. Espcially the pool. They believe that is what St. George is all about. it is funny.

Well not much has been going on. Rob made it home safely from Puerto Rico. That was a long 2 weeks. I am so glad that he is home. Church was pretty much impossible with out him. Well at least sacrament meeting. Taylor was trying to crawl everywhere and cry. So i had to hold her. Ethan decided to throw a fit and scream and cry when i told him he had to share his fishies with his sister. When i went to take him out he flipped out even more and went limp so i had to kind of drag him out with Taylor in my other arm. So we were in the foyer for a while (all 4 of us) when we finally went back in Kaylee decided to run out when the door opened. I went out and caught her. I was very mad and frustrated. Ethan and Kaylee both had to go to the bathroom 2 each. I was a little flustered. We made it though all intact. I left with 3 kids living and breathing.

Another annoying thing that happened that was my own fault was that I ordered some pictures

8x10 from walmart. I did it online and didnt check

to where i was sending them.

Last time ordered pictures i sent them to springville for my sister in law. Unfortunately that is where they were sent to. I forgot to change it. So there they sit. I need to go and pick them up. Besides it being far, the weather has been bad and i have 3 small children. So hopefully some day i will make it down there.

Taylor took her first fall down the stairs last week too. I was right near her and told her to stop. she got excited when i started to come and went to crawl head first down the stairs. I got there just in time to feel her leg slip under my hand and she tumbled down our first set of stairs (about 5 steps) she landed right on her face and skinned her nose a little bit. I felt horrible. She has since learned to go down backwards feet first.

Ethan is my hard child. he has a stubborn streak like no other. He is either really helpful and nice or the complete opposite. Things are always calmer when he is not around but he can be a lot of fun. He is such a busy body. Maybe that is just how boys are. He is gaining such an imagination and loves to play with his "buddies". We clash at school time. I am doing preschool with him and many times he wants to just go and play and it turns into a battle of will. I usually win. I know that i have that stubborn streak in me too. He is doing well in his preschool though. Hopefully I will get him ready for kindergarten. He is looking forward to going.

Easter was fun. We are not ones that do a whole lot about the Easter Bunny. My kids know that i am the one who filled the eggs. We did a little hunt on Saturday in the house due to the weather. The kids had fun and loved all the candy. Besides that we didnt do much. We watched conference and had a nice little dinner with our family. It was nice. We talked about the real meaning of Easter. The following day i was looking at pictures in the nursery lesson manual with Kaylee. She saw the one of Christ and Mary at the tomb and told me how Christ was resurrected and came out of the tomb. then she said to me "I want Jesus to come to our house." i replied "you want Jesus to come to our house?" Kaylee replied "yeah, I love him." it was so sweet. I must be doing something right. Hopefully she will hold on to that thought her whole life. I am glad that my kids are learning the gospel. Thats all for now. the kids are calling.

What a day

Well today started out pretty nice. Taylor slept through the night, Kaylee did too and stayed dry in underwear. I was feeling pretty refreshed. The kids ate breakfast pretty well and were happy...until 8:30 am when Kaylee started having a meltdown. Mainly over a binky. (i am so ready to cut hers and throw it away but i was told i have to wait until her birthday.) I wouldnt let her have it. She is supposed to only have it at naps and bed. We fight about it ALL the time it seems and she will cry and scream for a very long time. So today was no different with the binky thing. I tried to convince her to do everything i could think of to take her mind off the binky. We sat and rocked for a little bit and all 3 kids were fighting in my lap. I decided i need 3 legs. (this number could go up if i so happen to have more children) Taylor decided to join in on the crying and screaming and wanting me to hold her too. They both followed me around crying. Nothing seemed to help them be happy. The 2 girls are great competitors. I gave in and sent Kaylee to bed at 9:45. I laid Tay down at 10. Around then Ethan went to Mary's house to play. I was able to get laundry started and unload the dishwasher, and sign Ethan up for baseball when Kaylee came out and walks right in to Taylors room and wakes her up looking for me (i was down stairs) only to tell me she has to poop. so it is now 10:45 and i have a screaming baby again. I think Taylor is teething and that is the main reason she was grumpy today. I gave the kids a snack and then Mason (a neighbor kid) came over to play. Besides the fact they seem to need to come over the gate every 5 minutes this was a welcome visit because it made Kaylee happy and no more crying. Ethan and Kaylee were happily playing downstairs while I fed Tay and began to clean the kitchen. I went down to check on the kids. We have had bad weather today, rain, snow, hail, wind. There was enough snow and hail accumulated that the kids decided to open the back door and have a snowball fight in the house. I walked down to see snow everywhere and the door open. It was on the walls, stairs, couches, floor, and in their hands. Well Mason went home after that and the kids were on clean up duty. This wasnt real successful. We were left with wet walls, couches and floors. Kaylee went to bed shortly after this for real this time. And after Ethan ate lunch i let him watch cartoons for a little bit. Tay was already in bed with medicine so i had some quiet time. I cleaned a little...learned how to do the self clean on the oven and then did some more laundry. Then Ethan calls me down to tell me the portable heater is not working. He was standing near it with a robe on covering the heater to get warm. This must have over heated the heater or something. It works now though.

Kaylee woke up from her nap at 1:30 pretty happy and again told me she had to poop. At least she didnt wake Taylor this time. So i got her some lunch and made Taylor some too because she was due to wake up. They were happy for a while. Mason came back over and he and Ethan went out to play even though it was cold. Things went pretty well the rest of the day. We went to Marys for dinner. It was a sort of birthday dinner for Rob (who is out of town). We enjoyed Cafe Rio. Kaylee was a little bit tired and fought with Nate and then decided she was done and wanted to go home. She put on her shoes and coat and left. I ran out to get her to convince her to stay a little longer. She was hard to bargain with. But i won. So we stayed for dessert. When i told the kids it was time to leave Kaylee came running. Ethan began to cry. We finally got everyone home and called Rob and set up the web cam. This was fun for a few minutes but it is very hard while you have 3 kids competing for attention in my lap and doing weird things in the camera while in my lap. Then Tay began to scream and we called it quits shortly there after. By this time Ethan had said his tummy hurts and i kind of brushed it off. We went upstairs to get ready for bed. I got all 3 in jammies (ethan because he wasnt feeling well needed help). We read our scriptures and by then Tay was screaming because she wanted to eat and was tired. So i sent Ethan and Kaylee to their rooms...they actually went and were being quiet...I fed Taylor. In the middle of feeding Kaylee starts to cry. I ignored her until i was done. I laid Tay down and went to the other room. Kaylee is crying and pointing at something. I look down and see dark spots on the floor and bed. I look up toward Ethan and see lots of Barf. I laughed. I probably should not have. The look on his face was so pathetic. He didnt say a word. Not even to call me after it happened. He was covered along with his bed, pillow the side of the bed which it ran down and dripped on Kaylee's bed, the floor, her leg, blanket, the ladder. It was every where and disgusting. So i got Ethan down bathed him cleaned the mess up started laundry, got the kids beds remade and in bed and Here i am writing this. What a crazy day. I am left with an oven to wipe out , a dirty house and more laundry.

What can I say: I am a mom. This is my wonderful life. I wouldnt trade it for anything. Days will always be tough but there is just something so sweet when your kids ask you to sing them one more song at the of a day like this or Wish their daddy a happy birthday via web cam and make funny faces in the camera. Kids are wonderful and i have the hardest but most awesome job of all. I am a Mom.

Time Flies

Well i am back again. And of course my baby just started to scream....

Taylor has taken her first steps!!! She did on March 4th. We are excited but at the same time that means she can get into more stuff. It keeps me on my toes that is for sure. She is doing well. We are working on weaning and sleeping through the night. Hopefully we can accom

plish both quickly. We are going to Hawaii in just over a month an she needs to have both done by the time we go. She is a good girl though.

here is a clip of her walking. Taylor gets so excited to do walk. it is great. Ethan is doing well. with the warmer temperatures lately he has been outside a ton. It is only March and the boy is tanning up nicely. Just like his dad. He is constantly playing with his friends.

We were able to go to St. George last weekend. It was a nice little get away.

Unfortunately the weather could have been nicer. It rained for a

while on Saturday But we were able to enjoy our time. We went hiking just above the city. The kids loved it. Tay loved to eat the red s

and. We

also went to the volcano cones around the area. It was cool. Unfortunately we didnt make it to the top of the c

one. Kaylee was a little to tired and it was kind of cold and windy so we called it quits. The trail also wrapped all the way around the volcano and was longer than expected. Maybe next time. We didnt get much sleep on the trip either. Taylor had a very hard time sleeping. The Kids loved the hot tub and jumping on the beds in the room. They could live there and be f

ine. Kaylee thinks that hotels are called "St. George." Its funny. this picture ethan took

my kids love to get the camera and take pictures. Too bad that ended in a broken camera once so now i am a little more protective. They did get a hold of it a few times and took about 50

pictures of Taylor. and some of eachother. here are a few:

These are of Mason (the neighbor) and Kaylee. I think they were playing a house like game. They are funny.

this picture is the kids in Dress-ups. I made Ethan an Emperor robe. I wonder if i

should be concerned that he likes the bad guys so much. Especially ones like the emperor. Kaylee is in her princess dress ups as alwlays.

this picture is just how happy tay gets with her daddy!! so cute.

Well we are good. I miss Rob who is in Puerto Rico. He will be there for his birthday. I look forward to seeing him on his return. Hopefully i will be sane. We are excited for spring. We have planted flowers and some of our garden already. We got Hibiscus, Daisy, Lilies, planted strawberries, lettuce and an onion and will hopefully get some more planted in the next few days. I have worked hard on the garden and hopefully will have a nice productive garden. Life is crazy. but i love it. The world is even scarier. I just pray that we will be fine.

take care for now...renee