Wildlife

Of course my favorite wildlife spotting in Hawaii were the marina mammal kind. On our snorkel sail we were blessed to see both dolphins & whales! It was an amazing experience!!! To see whales jump & leap out of the water is such a different experience then just seeing them blow and maybe show their tale as I've seen on the Oregon coast. These whales were enjoying Hawaii just as much as we did.

And to have dolphins swimming along the boat - that was AMAZING! It was tough to not jump in the water and swim with them which unfortunately is not allowed. But we took a picture of their every move.

Hard Weekend

I don't know how many of you who follow this blog know through facebook or other means but my Aunt Emma passed away on January 16th. It was the day after we got back from Hawaii.

I will be honest and say that I am struggling with it. I know that she is at peace now and not suffering through this debilitating disease that stole her ability to walk & talk. But I miss her dearly. We prayed so hard for a miracle and God answered not with a miracle of healing but with the miracle of taking her to be with Him for eternity. But it's still a hard pill to swallow when we wanted to see her body restored here on earth.

This weekend we will be traveling to Portland for her memorial service. I will be glad to see my family and have them there so we can support each other during this difficult time. She was so unique and stood out as a adventurous, crafty, fun-loving, giving person in our family.

Please pray for us as we prepare to say our goodbyes and celebrate her life together this weekend.

Flora & Fauna

One of my favorite parts of Hawaii was the greenery and flowers. Palm tress, plumerias, birds of paradise, red ginger and so many more. Most of these pictures I took at the Garden Tour of the Dole Plantation on Oahu. Oh and don't forget baby pineapples - they look so cute and grow up to be so tasty!

Aaaahhh Beauty...

Hawaii is its own kind of beautiful.

Hawaii Bound

Well blogger friends today we leave for Seattle and tomorrow we fly out to Hawaii! We have been looking forward to this trip since March - when we booked our Marriott employee discount hotel room on Kauai!

We be spending 3 nights on Oahu to tour Pearl Harbor, Diamond Head, and the Dole Plantation and then 4 nights on Kauai where we will go to a luau and hopefully see whales and do lots of snorkeling.

One couple from our small group is going with us! I think it will be great to spend more time with them.

Have a great week and I'll look forward to catching up on your blogs when we return.

Minute to Win it Pics

The internet was being so SLOW the other night and so my picture download failed. Sad. So here are some pics of us starring in Minute to Win It games!

Extreme diving to reach the bag on the floor using only your mouth

Using a spaghetti noodle to hook pop can taps and build a three can pyramid.

Inverted can pyramid.

Pizza box egg mover.

Stacking nuts using a chopstick. I made it to 9 and the 10th one made the stack fall.

And the girls win...

NYE Minute to Win It!

We spent New Year's in Spokane at our friend's house. Dusty and Erin are great friends and great party planners. Last year we had a great (but frigid) time snowmobiling, sledding, and gathering around the bonfire on New Year's Eve. Well this year there was no snow so there had to be a Plan B. So Dusty & Erin came up with a fun alternative. They gathered all their great household supplies and we played 2 hours worth of Minute to Win It games.

If you have never seen the show - Minute to Win It gives contestants the opportunity to win money by playing silly games using everyday household products. For instance the first game we played required the player to move an egg across the room using only a pizza box as a fan. So you get the idea. Quite entertaining!!

Overall it was a great night and a great weekend spent in Spokane.