Aloha and Aloha and Aloha (A Random Collection)

Did you know that Aloha is the Hawaiian word for "Hello", "Goodbye", and "I love you"?  Seeing that that is the case, this post is a little of all three... We said "Hello" to a beautiful place, we're saying "Goodbye" to it on Thursday, and we kind of love it here.

I know - cheesy.  Sue me.

Mike and I went for a walk tonight and seriously felt like we were in Japan.  There are so many Japanese tourists here, it's easy to feel that way.  In lots of ways, that makes us feel right at home because we've become quite accustomed to not having too many white folks around us in Vancouver.  I like the way that feels.

If most of the tourists here under 50 are Japanese, then all of the tourists here over 50 have grey and white hair.  There are a lot of retired people here.  Mike and I were wondering the other night over supper if we'd be happy retiring that way.  Meaning - a lot of the retired people we've talked to here spend many weeks here in the winter.  They sit by the pool, sit by the beach, go for walks, and sip their Mai Tai's at Happy Hour.  That's all well and good for a week or two - but wouldn't that get a little old every day for weeks on end?  Perhaps.   I think I'd need more.

Groceries are freaking expensive in Waikiki.

Our girls have spent more time in water over the past 10 days than in their entire lives combined.  Nothing makes me happier than looking over at the pool and seeing and hearing them belly laughing together.  What would they do without each other?

This holiday has felt a lot like a family holiday and a little like a couple's holiday.   So thankful for the ability to have both.

Mike and I feel like negligent parents today.  We'd been doing so well making sure the girls were slathered in sunscreen every day.  Yesterday we dropped the ball big time.  We were at the most amazing beach where the sand is like powder.  We were all coated with sand, and it was hard to reapply sunscreen.  Admittedly we've also been getting a little negligent.  Red skin today in honor of Valentines day?  Poor Ellie's eye-lids are burned too, and she never burns.   We're not sure how that happened.

People in the States must eat a hell of a lot more than I do.  We've been overwhelmed with how huge the portion sizes are in restaurants here.

We've had a two bedroom condo for our time here and I can't imagine doing it any other way.  I love space and room to breath.

Waikiki smells really good.  Imagine a combination of coconut and pineapple and Hibiscus.   I like it.

Happy Hour is a good idea.

I've had some great relational exchanges with people.  One was particularly significant, and I'll write more about that one when we're home.

Hannah started reading Life of Pi at 10 this morning.  She finished it at 4 this afternoon.  She's that quick a reader and it's that good a book.

One of Hannah's heroes is Bethany Hamilton.  She's extra excited for tomorrow when she, Mike and Ellie are going for a surf lesson.  They are guaranteed to get up or their money back.  We'll find out tomorrow which way it's going to go.

One of my favourite treats here has been frozen wedges of pineapple on sticks they bring us at the pool.  Why have I not thought of this before?

On one of our first days here we sat through a 90 minute time-share sales push.  It took us a few hours to decompress afterward.  We got $150 dollars off of one of the activities we did in return.  We're pretty sure it was worth it, but only by a hair.

Nothing brings love and romance back into a marriage like playing ping-pong.    We are fierce competitors.  So far, Mike is leading me 16 games to 8.  I'm determined to reclaim my status as ping-pong champion that I earned a few years ago in Mexico.

It's so good to spend time with your kids when you're not telling them to practice violin or do their homework.

For our trip to Kailua beach yesterday we ended up renting a huge white Cadillac.  Mike looked like a Cuban mobster behind the wheel with his fedora and aviator sunglasses.

The sales tax in Hawaii is ridiculously low - 4.7%.  We're always shocked when we pay.

The lettuce wraps at P.F. Changs should be illegal - they're that good.  I may have had the sauce you put on top of the filling running down my chin on a few occasions.  I'm not ashamed to admit that I dream about them at night.

On the topic of P.F. Changs - if you ever get a chance to have the Banana Spring Rolls for dessert, you must.  Trust me.

I like hearing the stories of how our different servers in the restaurants we've been to ended up in Hawaii.

The love the sound of crashing waves.

Snorkeling with your kids is pretty amazing.

Mike and Ellie get really really dark really fast.  If it wasn't inappropriate to post a little partial nudity of your kid on the Internet, I'd have to post a shot of Ellie's strikingly white bum and her chocolate brown legs and back.   She looks like a real Hawaiian.  Me, Hannah, and Sasha - not so much.  We've got lots of freckles though.

Tomorrow is our last hurrah.  There will be lots of posts and pictures to come when we return home.  Stay tuned.