We’re off to Kauai, Hawaii, for a week with my mom and dad.
Tuesday. All packed, ready to go, and on time to the airport. Props to Kathryn for all her hard work getting us to this monumental point of the trip. Now we can begin to relax.
This display felt like the most wintery thing we’ve done all winter.
On the plane and ready to relax.
Nothing but smiles on this row.
One of Kathryn’s famous travel doodles.
Well, we made it to Kauai and look who we ran into on their way out! The kids got a few minutes of cousin time in Hawaii after all.
Mom and Dad were great hosts and got us all settled in comfortably. And props to Mom for washing all the sheets and towels and making the place look brand new for us after the Farmer crew came through.
Wednesday. We took a morning walk down to Pu’u Poa beach and walked along the beach for a bit. I loved the giant trees overhanging the water. The kids instantly wanted to play in the water, even though it was a bit chilly and we weren’t in swimsuits yet. Oh well. Let them.
All smiles with my Mākua (parents). Thanks for inviting us to come and hang with you.
Later in the day, we went over to Hanalei beach for some boogie boarding, sand castles, and good old fashioned relaxing. It was great.
While we got our sand trap kids cleaned up, Mom and Dad made us a delicious dinner. Then it was time to hit the sack.
Thursday. Off to Hā’ena State Park. Kathryn, Ashley, and I headed off to hike the Kalalau Trail while Mom, Dad, Eliza, Landon, and Zoey headed over to Ke’e beach. I was really looking forward to this part of the trip, and hiking along the Nāpali Coast did not disappoint. It was beautiful, and we enjoyed a nice chat with Ashley.
Back at Ke’e, these guys had been busy with all kinds of beach fun, making baths, and little villages, and hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa.
This was a really cool spot on the beach, right where the Limahuli Stream met the ocean.
Of course, we saw lots of Kauai’s iconic chickens, including this very stately rooster.
We stopped in Hanalei for some incredible fish tacos and shave ice. Yum. So good.
Friday. After hearing about it from her cousins, Ashley really wanted to try out a zipline. So we lucked out and found an opening at the famous Koloa Zipline. I’m sure Zoey would have loved to come, but she got to hang out with Grandma and Grandpa and she’ll get a chance another year.
Our guide pulled out a Sarsaparilla plant. It smelled just like root beer.
Kathryn and Landon about to head off for a flight through the trees.
Ashley and Eliza coming in for a landing after the super long grand finale. It was a pretty epic line.
Afterwards, we met up with Mom, Dad, and Zoey at Poipu beach. We saw some Monk Seals.
And a whole bale of turtles!
In honor of Tim, we of course went and got some Puka Dogs.
We enjoyed snorkeling, wave conquering, body surfing, getting buried, making fake sand legs, and an epic sunset.
Saturday. Zoey found some beautiful pink hibiscus flowers. So pretty!
We chartered a flight around the island. Besides me, it was everyone’s first time in a small plane like this.
Marcus was a great pilot and guide. Zoey called him Captain.
Kaloa, where we did the zipline.
Poipu beach
A pair of humpback whales
Jurassic falls
Mount Waiʻaleʻale peaking out of the clouds for a brief moment.
Ke’e and Tunnels beach
How lucky! Another pair of humpback whales.
Kissy lips!
Wow, that was awesome! Afterwards, we met up with Mom and Dad for lunch at the famous Dukes restaurant.
Along with a slice of Hula pie.
Then we rented bikes at Kapa’a and rode the bike path. Not only was it beautiful scenery along the coast, Landon and Zoey loved their tagalong bikes.
And when in Hawaii, more shave ice 🙂
Sunday. Kīlauea Lighthouse in the background.
And it’s photoshoot time.
I love these caught in the moment pictures of pictures.
Church at the Kapa’a ward was very nice.
They had a really cool open courtyard church building.
After church, we took a scenic drive around the island and up Waimea Canyon Unfortunately, it was pretty socked in and we didn’t get to see any of the canyon. At the top, we waited for a while and the clouds finally broke a little and we got out of the car for a few minutes to look around.
And then there was this moment when Kathryn realized what I had tricked her into. The kids all couldn’t believe there wasn’t a shorter way to get back to the house than this.
We made a quick stop by the Wailua falls on the way back. It was really cool to have seen all of these places from the air yesterday too.
Monday. Happy faces after Nutella and fruit covered Hawaiian pancrepes from Grandma Julie.
Even though it rained all night and was still drizzling at the house, and then at Hanalei, we pushed on towards Tunnels beach and found some sunshine. On the way, we were greeted with a fabulous Hawaiian rainbow.
Tunnels beach was awesome! You couldn’t ask for a prettier backdrop.
We lucked out with some very calm waters and sunshine, enabling us to get out and snorkel. We saw lots of fun fish with their glowing fluorescent stripes.
And even a sea turtle! So fun!
So many treasures to admire.
We enjoyed our last meal, a repeat of Thursday with another round of fish tacos and shave ice.
Then there was the mad dash to clean, pack, and roll out to the airport to catch our redeye home. Here we are looking pretty good.
And then here we are on the layover in LA. Maybe not looking quite so good. A layover on a redeye, oof.
Back in SLC. Tim and Suzanne loaded up the car with treats. So nice! Thanks guys!
On the car ride home. Lol.
And that’s a wrap on this trip, well sort of. Now we just have to unpack, get caught up on the mountain of laundry, get the kids back into school mode, etc., etc. A big thank you to Mom and Dad for inviting us to come visit and sharing their place with us. And a huge high five to Kathryn for her amazing packing skills! Aloha
