Hawaii – Week 2 ... Dec 27th - Jan 3rd 2010 Paradise on the North Coast

We just loved the contrast of the North Coast to Waikiki. One was full of hustle and bustle and people and shops and generally high energy and the other was quiet, calm, peace ful and the perfect place for rest, relaxation and some more family bonding……

The house we rented was just amazing. It was situated right on the ocean literally steps from the water in Mokuleia about 20 minutes from Haleiwa. Haleiwa is the home of Matsumoto Shave Ice – people line up for an hour just to experience flavoured ice - including Blake – go figure! Meanwhile back at the house - the view was indescribable and we were so happy to just sit and soak it all up – so relaxing, so meditative, so fabulous!

We swam and snorkeled in the shallows with the turtles, the boys joined the surfers some distance out from the shore and used boogie boards to catch waves, we walked along the beach, played on the sand with a frisbee and generally just enjoyed seaside living. We ate breakfast each morning outside overlooking the water watching the experienced surfers do their remarkable stunts on the waves, read books, played cards, and just soaked up the beautiful sunshine. Inside we played pool, watched some tv, read more books and just relaxed. Shelda’s creative juices were flowing and not only was she writing poetry, she was also writing down her goals for the coming year – you go girl! She has had 8 of her poems published and is on her way to a very successful future in that arena. We discovered Josh’s talents in the kitchen and he prepared most meals – including shopping, cooking and cleaning up - what an asset and a wonderful person - what a package – I think Larissa is a very lucky lady!

We spent a day exploring the island and drove along the east coast of Oahu Island stopping at Waimea Bay where surfers had enjoyed 40ft waves only a week before – unfortunately we missed the really big waves (we were actually very happy experiencing the 10-15ft waves each day in front of our house). We then drove south along the Koolau Range, a mountain ridge that extends along the entire east coast, to Kailua where we crossed the mountain range back to Waikiki and Honolulu. We stopped at Pearl Harbor so Blake, Jonno, Josh & Shelda could experience the attraction and they captured their fascination on camera to share with us.

We celebrated New Year’s Eve with dinner at Joe’s Seafood Grill on the Marina and then Josh entertained us with fireworks back at the house until the heavens opened and wet all his Roman Candles (the rain only lasted 15 minutes – just enough to make them all dysfunctional). Fireworks are very popular and sold at the local shops and the smell, the smoke and the noise of these explosives could be seen and heard all over the island – in fact driving back from the restaurant at about 9pm felt like driving through a warzone with bombs dropping – a little scary really!

We put a positively profound message in a bottle and a shark fisherman took it 3 miles out to sea and threw it overboard for us – now we will just wait and see if it turns up in Chile or perhaps Japan or maybe even New Zealand…….

New Year’s Day was warm and sunny – I think the Queensland logo fits the North Shore perfectly – “beautiful one day, perfect the next”. John & I rose early and headed out for our second 10 mile training walk. It was really interesting seeing all the residual fireworks debris scattered everywhere – the night was obviously celebrated all around. We walked into Haleiwa and back – just the best way to start a new year.

That night we were woken from our sleep with a very distressed Blake who couldn’t breathe properly and was in extreme pain. Of course we all thought it was baby related and quickly dialed 911. Within 10 minutes we had an ambulance and a fire engine at our house with lights flashing and all in all quite a sight. Of course we were all too worried for Blake and the baby at the time and on reflection thought it would have made a great photo. Anyway Blake was taken into Waikiki Women’s & Children’s hospital by ambulance with John & I following the ambulance. Of course we couldn’t keep up as we had to stop at red lights and keep to speed limits which meant of course that we got lost and actually found ourselves driving down the wrong side of a freeway!! How scary is that! Lucky it was 2am and not another car in sight! Meanwhile back at the hospital Blake and the baby were given a clean bill of health and she was told that it was probably an anxiety attack. It was extremely frightening for Blake (and for all of us) and we were all very relieved knowing that the baby was ok and that she wasn’t having the heart attack she thought she was having! (This photo was taken a couple of days later outside the hotel - just for the memory!)

Our week on the North Shore had come to an end and it was now time for Josh to fly home and we farewelled him on the 2^nd Jan. Shelda was next to leave on the morning of the 3^rd while John & I departed on the evening of the 3^rd. Blake & Jonno were flying out on the 4^th – so many farewells, so many trips to the airport!

We had the most memorable time together and enjoyed every minute. So many celebrations, so many activities, so much time together – it was just perfect.

Although it was sad saying goodbye I know it won’t be too long before we see each other again. John and I have already booked our tickets to NZ – I will be there toward to end of February with John joining me 3 weeks later (due to work commitments!!) and then we both return in the middle of April so I will be there for 2 months – yay!

This year is going to be really exciting – stay tuned for the arrival of our newest family member (currently referred to as Elmo Jellybean) ……..