Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Aloha 2009

After earning some spending money by taking in short term tenants, I was lucky enough to travel and visit Adrianne and Elliott for an entire week over fall break. We had lots of time to catch up, relax and enjoy each other. The house they are renting is adorable and so spacious. I had my own room and plenty of space to enjoy. (side note, the garage attic they lived in before was fabulous and spacious enough that there were five of us there for a few nights a couple of years ago!)


I arrived on a Saturday night and after we got back from the airport, Elliott went and picked up a pizza and we just visited and it was SO good to be with them! We got up early Sunday morning and made our way to the marina at Kaneohe Marine Base. Adrianne and Elliott had just gotten their boating licenses and had reserved a pontoon boat. Their friends (and now mine!) met us and all together there were 8 of us (Andy and Traci (and her parents),Rahul, Adrianne, Elliott and myself). Everyone brought a breakfast item and we had an outstanding buffet served from the back of the boat.

captain hultgren

view from our anchored spot

Elliott drove us around the bay and anchored at the sandbar. There were only a few boats there when we arrived but before we left it was packed! The sandbar was huge and we got off the boat and enjoyed the water. The boys played bocce ball in the water and the girls took pictures and sat in the water and visited. Others had grills out, footballs, floats and all kinds of things. It was so much fun!

Rahul, Andy, Elliott during a bocce ball break

Later that afternoon, while Elliott did homework, Adrianne and I set off to the other side of the island to the new Target store! We loaded up on items to decorate the sunroom (my self imposed project for the week!) We had so much fun and got lots of good stuff. We also stopped in a furniture store to look at coffee tables for the living room. Sunday night we went to Tammy and Ben's and had a wonderful italian feast prepared by Traci and her parents.

For most of the rest of the week, my time was spent as such:
wake up in the morning at leisure, have a cup of coffee on the lanai, pack up and walk to Kalapawai Market where I bought my favorite coffee (Hawaiian Hazelnut) and an oat bran muffin, continue out to the beach, find a spot that had shade and sun, spend the day reading and moving between the sunshine and the shade with my book! The only thing that changed was which beach park I went to and whether I walked or rode the new beach bike! It was glorious!

favorite coffee stop

trail leading to a shaded spot


entrance to Kailua Beach (marine base in background)

how i spent most of my days



different day, different beach park!

Mid afternoon each day I walked or rode the bike back to the house, ate lunch, showered and worked on the sunroom. I had a blast assembling and rearranging.

room before

room after


On Thursday, Adrianne took the day off work and we went for a morning hike to Maunawili Falls. We used directions from a guidebook, parked in a neighborhood and set off for the falls. We thought we were following the printed and posted directions but ended up walking past the turnoff. We met a group of friends hiking together and together we backtracked and found it. We walked further and took longer than planned but enjoyed every minute of it!



got a little wet crossing the streams

The Falls!

great hike and beautiful spot!

new friends met while looking for the trail

Elliott took a half day off work and was already home when we got back. We cleaned up and headed out toward the North Shore. We stopped for lunch at Aloha Salads (and Subway) and ate in the car on the drive north. It's a beautiful drive along the Kamehameha Highway with views off the ocean all the way north. We drove through the town of Haleiwa almost to the edge of the island to Camp Erdman, where the LOST scenes of the "others" community is filmed. We planned on exploring the 'homes' but then realized that there was a camp in session. Elliott pulled over on the side of the highway and I ran up for a quick picture!


We drove back through town and looked in a couple of shops. Got an iced coffee at McDonalds (at the same location I had my first one a few years ago!). We stopped at Turtle Beach (Laniakea) and observed the turtles resting on the sand. It's a protected area for them and there are areas roped off but you can get very close. The sun was setting and it was a beautiful spot.

35 year old turtle

Elliott and I at Turtle Beach

sunset at Turtle Beach

We continued south on the highway (after Elliott went back and found my shoe!) and stopped for dinner at one of the many shrimp trucks along the way. We ordered three different flavors and shared them all. The "hot" ones were so spicy and the garlic ones were my favorite. We also got fresh fruit smoothies that were delicious. It was a great day and we were all exhausted but managed to stay awake for Survivor when we got home!

Adrianne and Elliott waiting for our shrimp dinner!

On Friday morning I hung out at the house in the morning and then rode the bike to St. Anthony's for Adrianne's first grade classroom Halloween Party! I got to help with the games and snacks and could not get over how many moms brought stuff in and helped. When they were introducing themselves to each other they told whose mom they were and when it was my turn, I said Miss Hultgrens! The kids were cute and funny and were bouncing off the walls until they were dismissed (early on Fridays). Adrianne had her staff meeting to attend so I rode home, changed, and spent my last afternoon on the beach.

Adrianne's first grade class

great beach bike, the "mokes" in the distance

That night we drove across the island to Honolulu and ate at a restaurant overlooking Waikiki Beach. Elliott had a group class meeting and after dinner he left for that and Adrianne and I walked around, looked in shops, got coffee and sat on Waikiki Beach for a long while just talking.

restaurant overlooking Waikiki Beach

We set alarms for super early the next morning and hiked up to a lookout point in Lanikai to watch the sunrise. The hike was quite a ways up and dark when we started but the sky began to lighten and we sat on an abandoned military bunker/lookout point and wait for the sun. It was quite a sight and we had fun waiting. Elliott was the master photographer this morning, willing to do contortions to get the perfect shot!

Elliott willing to risk life and limb for the perfect shot :)

worth it!

hike back down

happy hikers

We went to breakfast at a delicious new crepe cafe and all ate heartily! My flight was in the afternoon and by the time we got home, showered and packed it was time to leave. I had a fabulous time (as always) and can't wait to go back. I hope that more of us can go the next time.



Aloha!








Thursday, December 10, 2009

Happy 19th Birthday!


We celebrated Danny's birthday 2 days early in Franklin. The Grizzlies had a game on the Saturday afternoon. Emily drove up from Birmingham for the weekend and drove over from Bloomington for the game; John, Sarah, Dan and Cali rode together and Bailey and I met everyone in Franklin.



It was a beautiful fall afternoon and after a great game we went to one of Danny's favorite Mexican restaurants to eat. We went back to the fraternity house afterward to visit and give presents. Emily spent the night in Franklin and headed south the next morning.



Happy Birthday Danny (from Cali and Bailey)


Wednesday, December 09, 2009

Bailey LOVES soccer (and Danny!)



Bailey and I went to almost all of Danny's soccer games in the fall. She and I traveled to several states and across Indiana. The team is young and talented and ended up 2 spots higher than last year and the best they've ever done. Danny played well although he was hard on himself. Bailey lived for the few moments after each game when she got to see Danny for a quick kiss before he left for the vans and/or showers. Definitely missing the beautiful fall weather and evenings on the pitch!