Saving Time in a Bottle

relishing the life God has given us

The Guys Come to Hawaii // Sightseeing

March 2019 | Exploring the Island with Our Friends

If we weren’t on the trails or under the water when our friends were here, we were usually out exploring the island through different scenic spots, historic sites, or trying out foods unique to Hawaii at different restaurants. Here’s the final post sharing what we did with our friends while they visited us on Oahu for a week:

Halona Blowhole

The highway along the South Shore of Oahu has plenty of scenic spots where you can pull over and enjoy the incredible views. After our time at Hanauma Bay, we stopped at the Halona Blowhole to see both the blowhole and walk down to the beach cove just to the West of the parking lot.

Japanese Cultural Center

I’ll be honest, our primary interest in visiting here was for the National Park Site cancellation stamps for a new national monument that is still in its early stages of development. However when we arrived we learned that the stamps for this site are currently kept at the Pearl Harbor gift shop. We still spent a little time here learning about what this new national monument site will feature. It will eventually be located on the Leeward side of Oahu, but we aren’t sure if we’ll still be here when it opens.

Don’t ask why I have a picture of the tea eggs rather than the delicious shave ice cream!

The real highlight of this stop was walking down the street to get ice cream and discovering another place that sells shave ice cream (before this, we were only aware of Snow Factory) so we got to introduce the guys to one of our favorite island treats! This place is called Frost, and we liked it just as much as Snow Factory! Also on the menu was something called the Tea Egg, so naturally the guys all had to try that.

National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific

Curtis and I really enjoyed our visit to the National Memorial Cemetery last December, so since it was on our way home we made a return visit. Along with having plenty of history to read about, it also offers great views of Honolulu and Waikiki.

It should also be noted that during our time downtown between the Japanese Cultural Center and the National Memorial, we made our first ever visit to a Walmart on Oahu. I could say that’s another thing checked off some non existent Oahu bucket list, but in actuality I’m more disappointed that I can no longer say I’ve never been to a Walmart on the island.

Waikiki

In my last post, I mentioned one thing I had never done in my 1.5 years of living here before the guys came: snorkeling. The other controversial thing I hadn’t done was visit Waikiki. Curtis and I attended a dinner downtown one evening in our first few weeks of living here, but hated the traffic, crowds, parking costs, and prices at the restaurant and were in no hurry to ever return. However, with the promise of mai tais on the beach, I was persuaded to join the guys for an afternoon/evening in Waikiki on Saturday while Curtis was on duty.

So how was it? For the most part, it was exactly what we were expecting, but there were a few highlights that made it worth it. It turns out Waikiki is a great place to enjoy activities such as PokemonGo and people watching. We also found a relatively cheap parking area across from the Army museum, where military ID holders can have their tickets validated at the Hale Koa hotel, and had a delicious dinner at the Hale Koa. And yes, the mai tais were also good, and made being around all the tourists more bearable. We also enjoyed a beautiful sunset on the beach. Most of all, it made us appreciate the other parts of the island even more!

Pearl Harbor

We saved Pearl Harbor for a day when Curtis was at work so that we could meet him for lunch afterwards, and that worked out perfectly. We started with the USS Arizona Memorial tour — you might have heard that it’s currently under repairs so the boat no longer docks at the memorial and you can’t walk around, but I thought it was still absolutely worth doing. We were still able to take a boat into the harbor and go near the memorial and the Missouri Battleship, and a volunteer veteran spoke to us as we made our way around the harbor. Our tour was timed perfectly so that we were out on the water during the national anthem being played on the navy base. Direct quotes from the guys were, “The most patriotic moment of my life,” “In that moment, my blood went from just red to red, white, and blue,” “I just kept telling myself to keep it together,” and “That was the most emotional I’ve been all year.”

Afterwards, we took a tour of the USS Missiouri Battleship, and I gave a short driving tour around Ford Island, pointing out other historic sites and sharing memories from when Curtis and I spent 2 months living there. When Curtis was finally on lunch break, we met him at 604, which is a favorite restaurant of ours that’s located right next to the historic sites and the Ford Island bridge.

Kailua

Throughout their visit, we spent a lot of our time around Kailua town, at Kailua and Lanikai Beaches, and the Kawai Nui Marsh. Restaurants we visited in town were Kalawapai Market & Deli, Zippy’s, Boots & Kimmo’s, Maui Brewing, and Nico’s. Several of these were new for Curtis and I as well, and we especially enjoyed the banana pancakes with macadamia nut sauce at Boots & Kimmo, and the poke nachos at Nico’s.

North Shore

On their last day on the island, we went for a drive around the North Shore. Typically when Curtis and I visit the North Shore, we go to do hikes, and on our way we’ll consider possibly stopping at a beach when we’re done, but usually after hiking we’ll find that there are just too many people out and we’ll return home without any more stopping. However, since it was a weekday, traffic wasn’t bad at all and we had a very enjoyable time driving around and stopping at several beaches. We stopped at Waimea Beach briefly and saw a rainbow that ended out over the ocean. We stopped at Shark’s Cove, and while the waves were too big for snorkeling, we enjoyed walking around the tide pools and seeing yet another rainbow, this one stretched out perfectly around the cove. And finally, we stopped around Sunset Beach to watch the surfers take on the huge waves. If you’re ever wanting to do a similar drive with several stops, my best advice is to go early and beat the traffic!

Thank you to Mitch and Alex for making the trip our here and giving us one of the best weeks we’ve had in a while! We value our friendship with you (as well as our other AZ friends who weren’t able to make it) so much and are looking forward to the next time we’re reunited!

The Guys Come To Hawaii // Snorkeling

March 2019 | Snorkeling with Friends on Oahu

Would you believe it if I told you that in my first year and a half of living here, I had never once fully immersed myself in the ocean or gone snorkeling? It’s true — Curtis and I are mountain people and not beach people, and we cling tightly to that label. When we found out we were moving here, we assumed that at some point we would either try snorkeling or maybe even diving, but whenever the weekend rolls around all we want to do is go hiking. Hiking is just easier — it takes less planning, we’re more comfortable and experienced, and even the busier trails are still less busy than most beaches on a sunny day.

However, Mitchell spoke so highly of snorkeling that we knew we just had to try it with him. After our first time snorkeling, our reaction was the same: “What took us so long?!” It’s actually much easier than we had led ourselves to believe; we already had some goggles and snorkels from Goodwill, all we need are the right beaches or conditions of waves. Thanks to Mitch’s instructions, we both picked up on it and were introduced to a whole other side to the island we hadn’t enjoyed before: underwater. Of course seeing and learning about the many types of colorful fish that live here is the most exciting factor, but for me, I found the coral so interesting to look at after spending over a year looking down on it from hikes such as Ka’iwa Ridge and Hanauma Bay Ridge. I’m not saying that we’re giving up our “mountain people” title, but maybe we’ll be a little more open to visiting the beach more often now.

Here are the places that we went snorkeling over the course of the week:

Hanauma Bay

After hiking Hanauma Bay Ridge for sunrise, we entered this state recreation area and prepared for our first snorkeling experience on Oahu. Hanauma Bay is the most popular snorkeling spot on all of Oahu, but thankfully on this overcast weekday the crowds weren’t too bad. We watched the short film that taught how to help protect the coral and the creatures that live here, then made our way down to the beach. Even just by wading in the shallow water near the coral, we were able to spot colorful fish, but by venturing further and going underwater we were able to see how much depth there is to this bay. Knowing it was so popular, I wasn’t expecting to see a lot — I guess I assumed that the fish would stay away from people — but that wasn’t the case at all! Mitch was quick to spot the Hawaiian state fish, the Humuhumunukunukuapua`a — which we simply refer to as the Humu-humu, or the reef trigger fish. 😉

Kaena State Park

Curtis’ first experience snorkeling came the next day, after our hike to Kaena Point. We wandered down the beach towards the Southern end of the state park, and since it was a weekday we basically had it all to ourselves. There were signs in place saying to watch out for the stronger waves, but on this day we were fine. The guys started off just practicing snorkeling in the surf and quickly spotted more Humu-humu. And as they got more comfortable with the waves they started venturing out towards a reef and caught sight of plenty more fish: tang, butterfly fish, angel fish, trumpet fish, and a couple puffer fish. The coral was also really cool; Curtis especially liked the pencil coral. One of these times we’ll take the Go-Pro with us so we can show what we’re talking about.

Bellows Air Force Beach

On weekends, most beaches tend to be pretty busy, so on Sunday we opted for a less popular one: the military access only side of Bellows Air Force Beach. The waves were much stronger on the Windward coast that day, but that didn’t stop the guys from going swimming, boogie boarding, and getting crushed by the waves. I enjoyed my spot safe on the beach with the mountain views, watching them get knocked around. 😉 We also discovered that the military side of this beach has a mini golf course, so we played a game together, with Curtis and I hoping to make a comeback after a game that took place several years ago. Alex still took first place today, but I happened to be the only one who got a hole in one, which is basically as good as winning.

Turtle Bay

For Mitch and Alex’s last day on the island, we did a long drive around the North Shore. Along the way, we stopped at several beaches and noted that the waves were much too strong to snorkel in safely. However, while we were hiking to Kahuku Point, the guys noticed that there was a perfect calm spot, so after some other obligations *coughPokemoncough* we returned and spent a few hours here. It turned out to be another great spot, with several fish spotted. Mitch also noted that it would be a great place to spot sea turtles in the summer when the water was warmer. However, the real highlight here was seeing a dog on a surfboard!

The Guys Come to Hawaii // Hiking

March 2019 | Hiking with Friends on Oahu

This month, we had the pleasure of hosting some of our best friends from Arizona, Mitchell and Alex! It had been far too long since we had seen them, and this time catching up with them was exactly what we needed. Throughout our time exploring the island with them, we were reminded of simpler times, of who we were and the life we used to live before the military took control of our lives. We were also reintroduced to ideas and habits that we’d fallen out of, including the giving and receiving of allegations, all the controversies of life, and drinking tea. Throughout their time here, we managed to show off most of the island and do a wide variety of activities, which I’ll break down into 3 posts: the hiking, snorkeling/swimming, and sightseeing. Since hiking is the area in which we have the most expertise, I’ll start with that one.

View of Koko Crater and Hanauma Bay from Koko Head Trail

Koko Head / Hanauma Bay Ridge Hike

On their first morning here, Curtis was standing duty so the guys and I got up early to go for a sunrise hike. Since we had plans to snorkel afterward, we drove to Hanauma Bay and hiked up the paved path overlooking the bay. There wasn’t much of a sunrise this morning as it was overcast with periodic showers, but we managed to stay mostly dry and still could make out Molokai in the distance. Despite being so overcast, the ocean’s color was still bright blue and we had an excellent view of the coral that we would be snorkeling around — more on that later! Other highlights of this hike are the stray cats that are all over at the beginning of the trail, and the interesting cactus plants that somehow made us think of evergreen trees.

Monk Seal resting on rocks along trail to Kaena Point

Kaena Point

Curtis was able to take days 2 and 3 (Thursday and Friday) off of work, so on Thursday we drove to the Leeward side of the island and started the morning by hiking to Kaena Point. We came hoping to see albatross, seals, and hopefully whales, and thankfully all three appeared for us today. We actually spotted the whale spouts on the drive up the coast to the end of the highway, and saw the seal on the rocks on the side of the trail rather than at the end where we usually see them, but these still qualified as sightings. There were less albatross at the end than there were when Curtis and I visited a few weeks prior, and most seemed to be moving/flying around rather than nesting. We ended our time at the point by climbing the steep path up to the pillboxes for a better look around.

View from Kuli'ou'ou Ridge Trail facing the Southern Ko'olau Mountains

Kuli’ou’ou Ridge Trail

On Friday morning, we were all ready for a longer hike, and Curtis and I were excited to introduce them to the Ko’olau ridge trails. While pillboxes and easy hikes along the coasts are always beautiful, easy, and enjoyable, hiking in the Ko’olaus is something that every experienced hiker should do while visiting Oahu. Since there appeared to be clouds coming in, we decided to go for an easier trail so we wouldn’t risk being caught on a more exposed ridge in case the weather turned. Curtis and I have hiked Kuli’ou’ou Ridge a few times, but hadn’t in a while since it’s usually very popular. However, we found it almost completely empty on this Friday morning, and were in awe of how we were able to enjoy it so much more without the crowds. Not only that, but I was finally able to see the entire view without being obscured by clouds!

Hiking through pine trees on Kuli'ou'ou Ridge Trail

One thing I have been wondering since moving here and hiking is how the trails here compare to Arizona, since it’s been a number of years since we’ve hiked there. The guys confirmed that these trails are considerably steeper, and we were quick to let them know that this was considered ‘easy’ by our standards now! Another fun thing was really being able to introduce them to somewhere new, since when we lived in AZ they were usually the ones with more experience!

Cactus plants in Koko Crater Botanical Garden

Koko Crater Botanical Garden

On Sunday morning, we set out to hike to Makapu’u Point, but were turned away by all the crowds. Here we were able to introduce them to our weekly frustration of being surrounded by tourists, and show them how we cope: by visiting the Leonard’s food truck and indulging in malsadas. Our back-up hike, Koko Crater Botanical Garden, almost fell through as well when we first arrived and found the usually empty parking lot completely full with several large vans, but thankfully after getting our malsadas and returning it had cleared out so we were able to enjoy a peaceful walk around.

View of North Shore waves from Kahuku Point

Kahuku Point

On their last full day here, the guys and I did a big loop around the North Shore and went for our last hike to Kahuku Point starting from Turtle Bay. Initially the plan was to hit the Northern, Southern, Eastern, and Western-most hikes (Kaena, Kahuku, Makapu’u, and Diamond Head), but with the crowds on Makapu’u and all the other activities we ran out of time — meaning they’ll have to come back to hit the others. 😉 But at least they were able to do the quieter, more remote hikes along the Western and Northern coast, see wildlife and witness the big North Shore waves. We even saw some more albatross here today flying over us. We walked along the beach on our way to the point, then took the inland trails back to the parking lot afterwards, where the guys learned that it’s important to wear shoes while walking under the ironwood trees.

February 2019

Thoughts and Memories from February 2019

Welcome to another monthly update post! Over the past few months, I’ve been wanting to change things up on here and write about more than just hiking adventures, and this is an easy way to add something a little more personal to our blog. The daily routine that we’ve established over the past year is about to be shaken up, and I’m realizing that there will come a point where we won’t have weekly adventures to share. Blogging has been one thing that has remained constant for me through all of our life changes and moves, and I don’t want to give it up just because I don’t have a new exciting adventure to share. I’m still figuring out what this will look like, but expect to see more variety on here thrown in along with our adventures around this island.

Whale watching at Makapu’u

Let’s start with the good: A huge blessing this month has actually been Curtis’ watch schedule — somehow, he managed to have all weekends off this month! The one Saturday he had to work, he ended up getting President’s Day off the Monday following so we still enjoyed having 2 days together. That pattern ends now in March, so I’m making note of this so I can look back and be thankful. We don’t know what’s coming for the rest of 2019, but at least he was on island for all of the first two months.

In other Navy-related happenings, February honestly started out with us expecting and hoping for certain things, but it turned out much different than we had wanted. Maybe I’ll touch on that later on this year. I always thought that by this point in Curtis’ military career, things would be more structured and straight-forward, and I’d be able to plan ahead and know what to expect. The 2+ year training pipeline was filled with unexpected hold ups, time “off” in between, and wondering what was coming next and where we’d be moving, so I looked forward to this point: where Curtis would be stationed with a command for a longer period of time and we would have a set schedule and know what was coming. Now, that whole idea just makes me laugh.

Our last hike on the Old Pali Highway…ever??

As it turns out, this phase of life is even LESS structured than before. It doesn’t matter if it’s long-term plans or the weekly duty schedule, it seems like everything is always up in the air. I don’t know where I came up with the idea that life would have more structure now, I think I was just so focused on the fact that we would finally live in one place for three years. Now all I can do is take things day by day, and find ways to be productive and creative on my own.

When I sat down to write this update, I have to say that it bothered me that the only things that came to mind were all Navy related. I spend every day working and creating and doing a wide variety of activities, and yet at the end of the day whatever is happening with Curtis’ boat is how I remember that day. It bothers me that our life is controlled so much by Curtis’ job. If he had a civilian job, would it take over my life as much as the Navy does?

Storms coming in over Windward Oahu

Honestly, I could have started any monthly update in the past year with those sentiments. However, I’m sure that soon enough I’ll be missing these days because at least I know that for most nights, Curtis will be home. That just isn’t a guarantee anymore. All that to say — Please come visit me, I’d love some more company. 🙂

I know a lot of what I’m sharing here is very vague, but unfortunately it’s not something I can talk about in depth. However, one thing that I’ve been thinking about is sharing more candid stories of things we’ve been through or done in the past that I can talk about freely now. I didn’t know much about military life before marrying into it, and while I wouldn’t change anything about our life and how we got here, there’s a lot I wish I would’ve known beforehand. So maybe I could write it as informative for new military wives…but honestly, I think it’s pretty entertaining and I’d like to look back and laugh at all those things that once gave me so much stress.

Cup of Gold Flower

Enough with all that, here’s a look at what we did in February 2019!

• Spent Super Bowl Sunday hiking a couple of trails and at the beach — it’s always fun to take advantage of this day and visit places that are typically busier on your average Sunday.

• Watched Jaws — somehow a first for both of us! We also finally branched away from our regular Netflix shows and are trying out That 70’s Show. (Our attempt may be in vain though because I just heard that Arrested Development season 5 part 2 is coming out this month…)

• Hiked the Old Pali Highway Trail on the 10th. One week later, there were massive landslides in this area, on the current Pali Highway and near the Pali Lookout. The highway is closed for what could be months and traffic has been worse than usual. Sadly we probably won’t be able to enjoy this hike again anytime soon!

• Finished reading Frankenstein — It took us about 2 months since we started reading it together in Red Hill Cabin on Mauna Loa

• Hiked to Kaena Point to see albatross and Makapu’u Point to see whales, and had success with both hikes! We hiked to Makapu’u on a sunny Sunday in the late afternoon and saw at least a dozen different whales between Oahu and Molokai. We also had a perfectly clear view of Molokai, Lanai, and Maui.

• Switched our phone service from Sprint to Google Fi — this was a long time coming and we’re so glad we finally went for it. The service is better and we’re paying less monthly! Trading our 5 year old phones for newer models was also a plus. (If you’re interested in checking out Google Fi, here is a referral code that will give you and us a service credit.)

• Visited Ho’omaluhia Botanical Gardens again, and walked around Kailua Town and our favorite walking trail many times. I have a goal of hiking/jogging/walking 1000 miles this year, and thanks to daily walks with (and without) Charlotte, I managed 108 miles this month, for a total of 262 so far this year. Not bad!

• Finished a big project working on SEO on our Pastor from our home church in Arizona’s website, neverthirsty.org. I always love learning new things about web design and maintenance, and then implementing what I learn into this site. I’m slowly making changes and adding new things on here…look around and see if you notice anything different. 😉

Currently blooming at our home – Dracaena Fragrans 

We’re also excited to finally welcome more visitors coming in March — friends, spring might be just a couple weeks away, but that doesn’t guarantee warm weather or no snow. I highly encourage you to plan your visit soon. 😉 Also, if you have any suggestions or requests for future blog posts or topics, let me know because I’m open to new ideas! I hope you all have a wonderful March!

Seasons in Hawaii

Living in Paradise | Appreciating Seasons in Hawaii

I remember very clearly the day I learned that Hawaii had year-round perfect weather. Never too hot, never too cold, and no snow. My thoughts were probably something along the lines of, “I want to move there.” Long story short, I did. I’ve only lived here a year and a half so I’m no expert, but as the months have passed by, I’ve begun to notice little changes in the weather and the scenery. In this post, I’m gathering what I’ve learned about seasons in Hawaii.

Here are some quick things I’ve learned from a year in paradise:

  • It’s a HUGE relief to not ever have to think about heating our home, shoveling, or driving in the snow.
  • Getting dressed in the morning takes no thought whatsoever.
  • I rarely look at the forecast, unless I’m planning to hike or drive to a different part of the island.
  • Before arriving on island, I used to track the temperatures and it seemed like they hardly varied; they were always between highs in the 70s-80s, lows in the 60s-70s. However, now that I’ve adjusted to the temperatures, it feels like there’s a much bigger difference between those numbers. In the ‘winter,’ I really do wear my sweaters.
  • No air conditioning? No problem! Our windows are open 24/7 and we happily welcome the trade winds that pass through.
  • After it rains a lot, people start to say, “Things are going to be so green!” And I think to myself…what color are they now? I’ve only recently begun to notice the very subtle differences in vibrancy of the greens on the island.
  • The hardest season here is fall: When everyone starts going back to school and the words ‘pumpkin spice’ begin appearing everywhere, all I want is to feel crisp air on my face and pull out my earth-tone sweaters and drink hot chocolate. However, summer just has to stick around a few months longer, to the point where all those special fall things have worn off.
  • Once it finally begins to cool down, you have to make a choice: long sleeves or hot chocolate? Doing both will make you too hot!
  • Thanks to years in the military, I’ve learned to thrive on change, and the lack of change in seasons messes with my mind.
  • I like having things to look forward to, even as simple as weather changes. At first, it seemed as though the only thing changing was the pages on my calendar; however, now that I’ve lived here a while, I’m starting to take note of the little things that change.

So what really changes? Here is my list — I’ll add onto it as I continue to notice more. In a way, I think of each item as its own season, as something to look forward to.

trail guide hiking hau'ula loop trail hau'ula hawaii beautiful less popular windward oahu hike

Summer [May-October] | Summer begins a little earlier and ends a little later here than it would on the mainland. The temperatures are in the 80’s-90’s depending on what side of the island you’re on. The forecast is drier than it is in the winter, but it will still rain occasionally.

Rainy [November-April] | The rainy season brings cooler weather, more trade winds, and of course more rain to the island. It isn’t raining constantly, but there are some weeks when it feels like it’s constantly grey and wet. I hear locals joke about how tourists are the only ones in the water. If you’re traveling during this time and concerned about a rainy forecast, know that the rain typically hangs around the mountains and the Windward (East) side of the island, so check out things to do on the West side.

Hurricane [June-November] | Hurricane season isn’t usually eventful here as it can be on the East Coast of the Mainland, but there are occasional hurricanes and tropical storms that pass by. It seemed as though there were a lot of storms last year, but none had as much impact on the islands as was predicted. Hurricane Iniki was the last one to actually make landfall, and that was on Kauai in September of 1992.

North Shore Waves [November-February] | If you’re into surfing, visiting the North Shore in the winter is the place to be. (We honestly don’t know anything about surfing, so if you’re like us and don’t plan on it, we advise you avoid the North Shore on days when the waves are bigger because traffic can be pretty backed up!) Obviously there are beaches everywhere if you want to get up close to the waves, but if you’re interested in hikes that give great views from above, check out Ehukai Pillbox and the first couple miles of Kealia Trail. For easy hikes that walk along the coast next to the waves, try Kaena Point and Kahuku Point.

Albatross [January-March] | If you’re visiting during these months, you MUST hike to Kaena Point to see the great albatross birds! We’ve visited in February 2 years in a row and seen so many birds nesting in this wildlife sanctuary. Watch the birds soar overhead with their giant wingspans, the male birds do their special ‘mating walk,’ and if you’re lucky you might spot a grey fluffy little baby albatross — ok, maybe they’re not that little!

Whale [November-March] | Late every fall, the humpback whales make their way down to the islands from Alaska. If you’re visiting during these months, there are several easy hikes you can do where you may be able to spot them, such as the Makapu’u Lighthouse hike. Our sightings have all happened on the South Shore or at Kaena Point. There are also whale cruises you could take that would get you up close and personal!

Jellyfish [July-October] | If you plan on getting in the ocean, watch out during these months because they are known to be jellyfish and Portuguese man-of-war breeding season, meaning they are found closer to the shore. We honestly don’t get in the water that much anyway, but it’s also important to watch your step while walking on the beach so you don’t step on one!

Plumeria [May-October] | The beautiful flower used to make leis comes from a tree that blooms in the dry/summer season. During the rainy season, the trees are mostly bare. If you’re visiting during the summer, Koko Crater Botanical Garden has a large plumeria grove with flowers of all colors and is definitely worth a visit!

Mango [Flower January-March; Fruit May-July] | This one likely has the largest impact on us because we have a giant mango tree in our yard. I thought that it only produced fruit every other year, but now in February it’s flowering again for our second mango season, and I’m so excited! If all goes well, the fruits will be ready probably in June or July. Right at the end of its season, it drops its leaves while simultaneously growing new ones, so the tree is never bare. And we get to enjoy weeks of daily raking. I guess you could say fall comes early for us!

Lychee [June-July] | I had no idea what lychee was before moving to the islands…but now that I’ve tried it, I don’t know how I’ll be able to live in any other place that doesn’t have it. It has a limited season and depending on the harvest, they can be a little pricey, but if you’re here in these months you should give it a try. Unfortunately we have yet to see it along a trail, so we haven’t been able to forage for it yet. However, if you aren’t here while they’re in season or can’t find it for sale, there are plenty of foods that come in lychee flavor as well, so keep your eyes out for it!

Guava [August-October] | Something that’s pretty unique to Hawaii hiking is the fact that you can sometimes forage for unique fruits while on the trail. If you’re hiking between these months and notice small red fruits on the ground and tall bushes surrounding you, chances are it’s probably guava. (Make sure you familiarize yourself with what it looks like before putting strange berries in your mouth.) We’ve enjoyed foraging on Pu’u Pia, Aiea Loop Trail, and Pu’u Ma’eli’eli, though it can be found on many other trails. It’s actually an invasive species from Brazil and is sadly taking over the native plants of the island. Consider any fruit you consume a way of preventing its seeds to be sown in the future.

Sunrises | Obviously the sunrises year-round are incredible, however I think my favorite time of year to see the sunrise is in the winter. One reason being the obvious advantage of happening later so we don’t have to wake up as early, but also because when the sun rises to the Southeast, you can see Molokai, Maui, and Lanai islands clearly on the horizon.

• • • • •

If you’re planning a trip to Hawaii and are open to visiting any month, I hope this list can help you narrow down and decide when you’d be most interested in visiting. If your trip is already planned, I hope you can take advantage of what’s in season and that our suggestions will be helpful!

If you live in Hawaii, what’s your favorite season?

Our Worst Hiking Mishap

Kaena Point | Our Worst Hiking Mishap (so far!) | February 2019

As people who hike often, there are many things we have concerns about while out on the trails. I worry about wildlife encounters often — well, I did when we lived in Arizona, but not as much in Hawaii I suppose. We worry about being caught in a freak storm or hiking after dark. We worry about getting lost on less obvious trails. Obviously the biggest concern is always safety, and we do everything we can from our hiking preparations to execution to make sure we arrive back at our car in one piece. But do you know what my second biggest worry is while hiking? It’s losing something important somewhere along the trail and not realizing it until we finish the hike. For me, it’s a toss up between camera, phone, and car keys. I always, always, always carry my camera cross-body, the only time it’s not on me is when Curtis (or another hiker) is taking a picture for me. I’ve forgotten my phone a couple times, but both times I’ve realized it was missing before reaching the car and remembered the last exact place I set it down.

Car keys, however, seem like the most immediately inconvenient thing that can be lost along the trail. Especially the ones nowadays that have the special chip in them and are the only ones that can start the car. I guess I always knew the day would come, when we would either leave them locked inside the car before a hike or lose them along the trail…but after 5 ½ years, it finally happened.

Let me share the backstory: At the last minute, Curtis was given President’s Day off of work, so we wanted to go for a hike. We remembered how much we enjoyed doing Kaena Point over last year’s President’s Day and decided to return once again. This is the perfect time of year to go and see albatross nesting in the wildlife sanctuary, and it’s an easier and safer hike to do after heavy rain. We packed up the necessary things: water, snacks, rain jackets, camera, phones, and charger cables. While sitting in the car still in front of the house, I remembered that I didn’t have my portable charging bank for my phone, something that comes in handy since my phone is 5 years old and has a 3 hour battery life. I asked Curtis if I should run in and grab it, and he said no, we’d be fine. And so we drove to Kaena Point on the North Shore, about an hour away from home.

Once at our destination, we collected our things and made our way to the trailhead. Curtis then realized he wanted his hat, so he went back to the car to retrieve it out of the trunk. I remember hearing him press the lock button and the car honking in response. We set off on the trail, doing our best to avoid giant mud puddles and enjoying the easy walk in the sunshine.

We made it to the point (about 2.5 miles away) within an hour, and took plenty of time to admire the wildlife. We spotted 2 monk seals napping on the coral, and wandered around the tide pools looking for sea creatures. Curtis spotted an eel and took a video of it. The most exciting part today though was the albatross. We spotted a mother with her giant baby in the exact spot we saw one last year, marveled at the enormous wingspan as they flew over us, and laughed at the way the males interacted with each other. After spending a considerable amount of time here, we left the gated wildlife sanctuary and wandered over to a lookout over the West side. Finally, we were ready to return to the car.

Again, we made quick time hiking back to the car, this time the trail considerably busier with lots of hikers and families hiking to the point. We maneuvered our way around the last big mud puddle, and strolled back to our car. That’s when Curtis realized…he didn’t have the keys. First we checked and double checked inside every pocket of his cargo pants, and thoroughly dug through the backpack even though we knew he didn’t put them inside. We looked all around the large parking area and around the car, and I checked garbage cans just in case. Curtis thought they could be in the trunk, but I told him I remembered hearing the car honk when he locked it. However, he had done that before going back to retrieve his hat, so maybe my mind was confusing the order of events.

Our phones were both at low battery, under 20%. Curtis handed me his phone with the phone number for his insurance and policy number, and then he set off to rehike the entire trail and look diligently for the keys. I called our insurance and requested a locksmith so that we could confirm whether or not they were in the trunk.

I was pleasantly surprised at how fast the locksmith arrived, given we were at one of the more remote spots on the island. He unlocked the car but left before I even opened the trunk. Opening the trunk confirmed that there were no keys inside, and also made the car panic for a minute and there was nothing I could do to stop it. At least I now had a spot to sit and wait for Curtis. Unfortunately I still had his phone, so all I could do was pray that he would look hard and not assume they were in the car.

After about 2 hours of retracing his steps, Curtis returned empty handed. He didn’t remember ever hearing the keys fall, and suspected that the time it was most likely to have happened was when he was taking his phone out of his pocket at the point and around the tide pools. If they had fallen in the tide pools, they were likely long gone. There wasn’t much we could do at this point — like I mentioned at the beginning, this is the kind of key that has the chip in it, so any regular spare key wouldn’t be able to start the car. I suppose we could’ve either gone back and kept looking, or maybe called a cab and returned another day, but it was getting later and we realized our only option was to have someone come and make us a new key.

Thankfully that is actually a thing — within an hour and a half, someone arrived and made us a brand new key on the spot! However, it came with a big price tag — a costly mistake to make. But now that this has happened to us, doesn’t that make the odds of it happening again much lower? 😉 I have to also give a shout-out to our old phones for miraculously not dying on us and actually finding signal while we were frantically searching for phone numbers online with very limited service. It’s like they know we’re fed up with their usual shenanigans and ready to replace them.

All things considered, this isn’t the worst thing that could possibly happen — we still ended up back at home together with Charlotte safe and sound. (How we got into our house without a key is another story, and one I won’t share on this site, haha!) And when we think about it, at least it happened here and not on a much longer trail like Aiea Ridge (there’s no way Curtis could just go re-hike it to search for keys) or in a sketchy location, or…the list goes on. I’m proud of how we handled it calmly, stayed positive, and acted like a team. However, I’ve always been the person to ask, “Do you have the keys?” when getting out of the car, and you can bet I’ll become even more obnoxious from now on. 😉

Ahuimanu Trail

Ahuimanu Trail | Hamama Falls | February 2019

This is the story of two trails: One legal, one illegal. We set out on a weekend morning with all the best intentions: the illegal trail was more enticing, but we were going to stick to our moral high ground and hike the legal trail. It wasn’t going to be scenic, but at least we could feel good about ourselves… and that’s what matters, right?

We drove to Kaneohe, a little ways North of the Valley of the Temples, and back into a residential area to the trailhead for Ahuimanu Trail. Google Maps directed us to the back of the neighborhood and we spotted a small gap in the trees with a shrine next to it. We parked on the side of the road and made our way to the trail. When we had a better look at the shrine, we realized it was for a well known hiking enthusiast from Oahu who died tragically on this trail last year – Freddie Pratricio, aka Spiderman. The trail itself isn’t dangerous at all, he was repelling the waterfall at the end.

We started the trail with low expectations, just eager to hike a new trail and check another one off the list. This trail is best known for being in an area that used to grow taro. There are plaques placed along the path sharing the history of the area and all about taro, however there is no longer any taro to be found — not that we saw at least, and Curtis is always looking out for it. (We’ve found it once before and tried potting it and growing it on our own…it may not have resulted in anything but it’s all about the experience, right?)

Right from the start, the trail was muddy. There were mosquitos everywhere. We expected that, it had rained a lot that week. However, the trail itself wasn’t the easiest to follow, and there were so many fallen trees lying across the path. We often had to stop and make sure we were on the right path. We baptized our feet into so many mud puddles that were just a little deeper than they appeared. Finally, we stopped to face the facts: This wasn’t a good day to hike this trail, and we simply weren’t enjoying any part of it. Why should we continue? Maybe someday we’ll return…but honestly I’d rather re-hike any number of trails we’ve done before than come back to this. Curtis said he thought it could have more potential if we just followed the creek back, but that didn’t appeal to me today.

Back at the car, we decided to “drive by” the illegal hike and get an idea of what it looked like…how illegal it really was. As the crow flies, it’s only 3 miles North of the first trail, but begins at the end of a completely different neighborhood, a 20 minute drive away. We drove to the end of the cul-de-sac where the trail to Hamama Falls begins. Even from a quarter-mile away, there were cars lined up on the side of the road all the way up to the trailhead — as opposed to us being the only ones on the legal trail. We reached the end of the street, and there was a giant fence blocking the trail, which is actually a service road that leads to a water plant facility. There were plenty of “Government Property, No Trespassing” signs, and yet a well-worn trail that went off to the side of the fence where it was clear that many had used to get around the obstacle.

We didn’t want to do it, we didn’t want to break the law and we definitely didn’t want to be caught and fined. However, curiosity got the best of us, and we gave into temptation. We have now joined the multitudes of hikers on Oahu who have hiked a blatantly illegal trail. We have set a bad example and you should never take our advice or follow our lead. Worst of all…we enjoyed it.

First, this just made such a good trail for the day. We walked along the paved road, and our feet stayed dry and out of the mud. We had views of the Ko’olau Mountains, beautiful flora, and a babbling brook. We saw plenty of people, but most were heading in the opposite direction. We picked up trash along the way just to clear our conscious.

After about a mile, the service road ends and the last mile to the falls is along a dirt path. Here’s the real kicker: this dirt path to the falls was one of the best maintained trails we’ve hiked on this island. Sure it was a little muddy and slick in places, but any trail would be after all the rain we’ve had. We strolled up the path, which became steeper, but led to a great reward: Hamama Falls, one of the best waterfalls we’ve seen on the island (Maka’ua Fall remains Curtis’ favorite).

This led us to a discussion of the classification  of trails on Oahu:

  • Official Trails: Well maintained and established trails usually designed for large numbers of tourists, almost to the point that some might not even consider them trails.  Makapu’u and Diamond head are probably the most notable on the island.
  • Sanctioned Hikes: Hikes that are  legal and have some active maintenance authority.  Most of the trails that we’ve hiked on the mainland would fall under this category, but here on Oahu, probably only half the trails do; and oftentimes only parts of the trails are.  Notable examples are Kaena Point, the Aiea Loop, and Kuli’ou’ou.
  • Unofficial Hikes: Unmaintained hikes with no legality status.  Sometimes, these are sanctioned hikes that just haven’t been maintained in a while.  Other times these are the trails at the end of other trails; bushwhacks that have become fairly established. Aiea Ridge, Pupu Kea, and most all of the pillbox hikes fall under this category
  • Unsanctioned Hikes: Hikes that are officially illegal, but which are loosely enforced.  Maybe we made this category to ease our conscience. Crouching Lion, Lulumahu Falls, and this hike are but some examples
  • Illegal Hikes: Don’t do these hikes. They are illegal…for a reason.  Maybe people die on these trails, maybe it’s trespassing.  Regardless, the rules are enforced here, often with severe consequences.  Sacred Falls and Staircase to Heaven are easily the most recognizable of this category.

All went well until we arrived back at the beginning of the trail and saw 2 police cars. This is it, I thought…I wanted to hide, but Curtis encouraged me to come out so we could own up to our felony together. However, we walked right past the cars and nothing happened. Somehow, we walked away free. Definitely don’t take that as encouragement to go do this hike…hike at your own discretion, I’m not bailing you out if you get caught. In all seriousness, I have no idea if people get fined or exactly how illegal this trail actually is. My suspicion is that the neighborhood/board of water supply don’t want this to become the next Manoa, Lulumahu, or Maunawili Falls, which have crowds of people every day. Of course, we saw that the trail already gets plenty of traffic as it is, but maybe they are trying to avoid becoming a stop on a tour bus route. Whatever the reason, it’s still an illegal trail, and while we enjoyed our hike we won’t be returning. We’ve pushed our luck already as it is! Still, the question remains: Why can’t legal hikes on the island be as well maintained as this illegal one?

January 2019

The Happenings of January 2019

New Year’s Eve/Day has always been my favorite holiday. I love everything about it — reminiscing over the past year, wondering where we’ll be a year from now, and dreaming up goals and plans for the coming months. While the goals may or may not be accomplished, a new year always brings about fresh motivation into even the routine and ordinary aspects of my life, and I thrive on that for the first few weeks of the year.

However, this year was different. December 31 came, I watched the clock tick over into 2019, and I didn’t feel anything. Our Year in Review posts are always my favorite to write, but I procrastinated 2018’s for so long. I can’t say why, I think it was just a mixture of a lot of things. I was tired and discouraged after a challenging year. I was homesick, missing out on the holidays with family yet again. I was already looking ahead at 2019, and slightly dreading what it would bring. And I was alone, as Curtis had to work overnight that night. All that to say, it just felt like another day, and I was disappointed that the ‘new year high’ didn’t hit me as it always does.

As the month rolled on, I’d say my perspective improved and I’m now a bit more optimistic. I set goals for myself that I’m actually interested in and know I’d enjoy doing, rather than writing down vague ideas I know I won’t accomplish. My times in the Word lately have me reading passages I hadn’t meditated on in a long time, and have encouraged me to keep pressing on with an eternal mindset. We can’t change our situation right now, but I can change my outlook and know that I’m right where God wants me. I feel like I say that a lot, but it’s honestly something I need to remind myself of every day.

January seemed to go by quickly for us this year, which is probably due to Curtis working long hours every day. I’m not complaining, it certainly topped January last year when he was gone for 3 weeks. Things are changing and progressing for him at work and he has been doing very well with the various tests and drills that have been going on. I’m still living in denial that he could ever possibly leave again, which is fine, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.

Anyway, here’s a run down of what we did, which is the real reason why I’m writing this post!

• We binged all of “Series of Unfortunate Events” on Netflix — of course we’ve watched each season as it came out, but felt it necessary to rewatch the first 2 seasons to prolong the magic. We loved this series and especially enjoyed the choice of actors for each character.

• We went to the beach and nearby park many times and hiked Ka’iwa Ridge again…I’ve lost track of how many times we’ve been there.

• We set out one weekend morning to hike a ridge in the Southern Ko’olaus, and ended up striking out at not one, not two, but three different hikes. They were either too crowded or illegal. We ended up getting Leonard’s Malsadas to make ourselves feel better about our situation, and then returned to Koko Crater Botanical Garden, one of our favorite places on the island.

• We participated in community day for PokemonGo, playing at Ho’omaluhia Botanical Garden. Some days that is our main motivation for getting out of the house and doing something, and I’m not ashamed of that.

• We returned to the Manoa Cliffs Trail in Mount Tantalus area, this time bringing Charlotte along for a rainy day hike. She loved the trail, and it reminded us of how well she used to hike when we lived on the mainland. She gets so focused and determined when on the trail, compared to when we’re taking her for walks and she has to stop and sniff everything and tries to drag us around. We wish she could do more with us here!

• We visited the Honolulu Art Museum on their free day, the third Sunday of every month, and spent several hours enjoying the pieces they have on display.

• We hiked Aiea Ridge, which you can read about here!

And just like that, the first month of 2019 is gone. Time seems to pass quickly here, and right now I’m thankful for that. This month I’m choosing to focus on the things that I really love about this stage in life, and trying to remember to delight myself in the Lord on a daily basis.

Aiea Ridge Trail

Hiking the Aiea Ridge Trail to the Aiea Summit | January 2019

Back in our first month of living on Oahu, we hiked the Aiea Loop Trail and enjoyed the easy walk through the woods, filled vegetation that was then unfamiliar to us. About halfway through the loop, we veered off on a side trail that took us to a view of the H3 from high above. The side trail continued, much more narrow than the wide and well maintained loop trail, and we learned later that it continued all the way up to the Ko’olau Summit. We noted it as a possible hike for when we were more familiar with Ko’olau ridge trails.

Since then we’ve completed many ridges, mostly focusing on the Southern Ko’olaus. The trails on the Southern ridges are shorter, and the further North you go the longer the trails are. The only ridge North of H3 that we had started hiking was Manana Ridge, but we were just doing that for fun and had no intentions of going all the way to the summit. Over time, we sort of lost interest in pursuing those longer hikes. It seemed like a lot of effort to reach the Ko’olau summit when we could get there much easier on one of the shorter trails.

Our lack of enthusiasm to take on new hikes led me to make one of my goals for 2019 to “Hike one new Ko’olau Ridge.” That’s right, ONE. I assumed it’d be months before we felt like doing a new one. And yet, here we are…it was the last weekend of January, and we spontaneously decided to go for it — even without proper hiking boots. We really wanted to go for a ‘real hike’, something longer than 5 miles, and out of all possible contenders Aiea was the shortest drive to and the shortest hike at 9 miles.

The H3 Tunnels

We drove to the state park in Aiea and started at the higher trailhead for the Aiea Loop Trail. We started off on the easy trail, playing PokemonGo as we went and ignoring the grey skies above us. We agreed that it was perfectly fine if we weren’t able to hike the whole thing, we were just out here because we wanted a ‘real hike’ on a less popular trail.

When we came to the ridge trail, we left the loop behind and began confidently on the narrow path. We had seen many hikers and joggers on the loop, but we were all alone for the entirety of the ridge hike. I’m pretty sure this is the only time we have been all alone. In comparison to other ridges, it definitely wasn’t as overgrown as Lanipo ridge, and it was honestly one of the more pristine trails we’ve seen. There were very little signs of erosion, and plenty of healthy o’hia trees.

Since this trail parallels the interstate, we were almost constantly hearing noise from the traffic throughout the hike. This definitely isn’t a peaceful, nature-sounds only type of hike, but we still enjoyed seeing the H3 from different angles. Personally, I think the interstate is better looking than the sprawling neighborhoods that fill many of the Southern Ko’olau valleys. And when facing North, all we could see was wild, uninhabited land. Somewhere up there are the Waimano and Manana Ridge trails…ones that aren’t on our ‘must do’ list, but after enjoying the Aiea trail, we may consider them another day.

I was concerned about hiking in tennis shoes, ones that don’t have any traction, but surprisingly they held up well. The week had been pretty dry though, if it had rained recently it could have been another story. That being said, I did take my time when hiking downhill.

Konahuanui is the tallest peak in the center of this picture; the tower is on the summit of Moanalua Middle Ridge

Usually when hiking new trails, my mind is constantly thinking about the return trip — how will all this feel coming back? If I’m not comfortable with a section of trail, maybe I shouldn’t continue. However, today I was taking it all one step at a time, and truly living in the moment. The result was that the entire way up, I was enthusiastic about our progress and anxious to go farther and see more. The way back wasn’t too bad either — I had just forgotten how long the trail was and we were both exhausted by the time we reached the end.

After 3.5 miles of ridge hiking, we came to a big open grassy area where we stopped for a short break. Up until that point, the trail had been easy — a few rope sections, but nothing that made me uncomfortable. After this part, however, the trail became noticeably more difficult. I would honestly consider doing this hike again, and just hiking up to this point for the sake of an easy, quiet hike. However, today we decided to continue. We were only a mile from the Ko’olau summit, which was somehow completely clear despite the sky above being overcast, and it seemed silly to turn back when we were so close.

The final stretch of trail before the true summit

The trail from here to the next false summit was more narrow, muddy, and steep, and the vegetation was shorter which made me feel even more exposed. We took it easy, making slow but continual process to the next peak.

Facing North with the Koloa Mountain range and Chinaman’s Hat off the shore

I think I’ll remember Aiea Ridge best for its false summits. We finally reached what looked to be the end, but it turned out that we were still .2 miles from the true Ko’olau summit. That doesn’t sound like much, but being able to see the narrow and steep ridge before us made it seem daunting. We took a short break before pressing on to the end. Even from the false summit, we were already enjoying some of the best views we’ve had of the Northern Ko’olau Mountains, as well as the Koloa Ridge.

Kaneohe and the Kaneohe Bay along with the sandbar – the hill in the center of the picture is Pu’u Ma’eli’eli

The true Aiea Summit was marked by a green sign with the words “AIEA SUMMIT” carved into it. Curtis found a geocache and we took in the beauty of the Ko’olaus and Kaneohe Bay below us. We were even able to see all of Konahuanui to the South. Not only that, but the sun broke through the clouds, making the ocean bright blue contrasting the white sand bar in the bay. Unfortunately the valley behind us was filled with vog, otherwise we might have been able to make out the North shore as well. We were still able to see all of Ka’ala and the rest of the Waianae Mountains, and had a great view of Pearl Harbor and Ford Island. So many new and beautiful views that we didn’t know we were missing!

Beginning the long trek down Aiea Ridge

We were about to leave, when in a moment of silence we heard what sounded like a gong. We stood there confused for a moment, when I remembered that we had seen a large gong at the Byodo-In Temple last month. We walked around for a closer view of Kaneohe right below us, and sure enough, we saw the back side of the temple. How cool that a month after visiting, we were able to climb to the top of those picturesque mountains we enjoyed seeing behind the temple?!

The Waianae Mountains across the vog filled valley

Finally, we began to make our way down. As I mentioned before, it was long and exhausting, but we made slow and steady progress along the steep ridge and picked up the pace as the trail grew wider after the first false summit. We arrived back at our car after 7 ½ hours of hiking (counting breaks). Curtis’ phone managed to stay alive that entire time, so we have our complete trail recording here. Despite feeling exhausted and sore all over, we agreed that we were so glad we did this, and it gave us a more positive outlook on hiking the Ko’olau Ridges. Maybe we’ll find our way up another new one someday…but hey, at least for now I can say I’ve already completed one of my goals for 2019!

• • • • •

When trying to decide on a ridge, we had considered Moanualua Middle Ridge, which is the back way up to the popular Stairway to Heaven hike. While the views of the H3 tunnels from the Windward side, the metal staircase, and views of the Southern Ko’olaus are tempting, we just couldn’t justify it. I have heard many reports of it, and already knew what we would experience if we hiked it: Every day, dozens if not over a hundred people hike or attempt to hike up this ridge. Often times there are groups of 20+ people hiking together. This ridge once looked as pristine as Aiea, with native vegetation growing around, but because of the constant traffic it has become extremely eroded, which has led to many O’hia trees dying and vegetation being wiped out. Looking at pictures of this ridge compared to others we’ve hiked, it is literally brown with huge, deep ruts rather than green with a narrow but clear trail. I can’t even imagine hiking a narrow ridge like that beside so many other people! All that to say, no, we won’t be hiking that ridge, and I will never recommend it or encourage other hikers to do it. There are plenty of other beautiful ridges in the Ko’olaus that will give you amazing views, and you’ll also get to enjoy native Hawaiian plants along the way. The Southern Ko’olau ridges that we’ve done have all been beautiful and scenic, but if you’re also looking for a quiet, peaceful hike, I highly recommend exploring North of the H3. It’s worth the effort!

Christmas 2018

Christmas 2018 in Hawaii | Holiday Stand Down | December 2018

The last few weeks of 2018 were exactly what we needed — Curtis had a very light schedule and we had plenty of time to relax and spend time together. I remember enjoying holiday stand down last year, but this year it felt so needed. We had a few ideas for longer hikes that we hadn’t done before, but ended up not doing anything too extreme. We used the poor condition of our hiking boots as an excuse. Instead, we filled our days with easy walks with Charlotte, and several outings and short hikes just for the two of us.

One new place we visited was the Byodo-In Temple in Kaneohe. This is located across the street from the Pu’u Ma’eli’eli Trail, and while we’ve driven by so many times we’ve never ventured back through the Valley of the Temples. The temple is found towards the back of a large cemetery and costs $5 per person to enter the grounds. It’s very picturesque, with Japanese styled architecture and Norfolk pine trees backdropped by the Ko’olau Mountains. The temple itself is a half size replica of a 900 year old temple in Kyoto Japan. After our visit here, we returned to Ho’omahulia Botanical Gardens — one place I’ve come to often, but always find something new in bloom that catches my eye.

Curtis had to work on Christmas Eve, but we spent all of Christmas day together. We continued our tradition of cinnamon rolls, watching Die Hard and doing puzzles, skyped with our families, then went to a friend’s house for a Christmas dinner.

Our last hike of the year was on December 30, when we drove up to the North shore with Charlotte hoping to do an easy hike. Unfortunately we had forgotten about the crazy surfer traffic up here in the winter months due to the huge waves, and parking was scarce. We ended up driving up to the Pupu Kea Trail, a lesser known hike which Curtis and I had done in our first month here but hadn’t really thought about since. It ended up being perfect for the day though, we just walked on the old abandoned road and Charlotte loved it. We even found an avocado on our way back!

Curtis and I attended his boat’s New Year’s party that evening, which was held on the USS Missouri in Pearl Harbor. It was our first time visiting — unfortunately we couldn’t tour the boat, but we enjoyed watching the sun set from the deck and had an enjoyable evening with friends. Curtis worked on New Year’s Eve, and I did my best to keep Charlotte calm while the fireworks boomed all night long — starting at 11:15 that morning and lasting long passed midnight. Thankfully she doesn’t get too scared, but I could tell she wasn’t enjoying the constant noise and smell of smoke all night.

Now that we’re already almost through with January and back to long work days, these last few weeks are an even sweeter memory. I’m doing my best to relish the memories rather than wait impatiently for the next ‘break’… Here’s hoping we don’t have to wait until next Christmas (or later)!

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