Hawaii 2012. Day eight.
Saturday was another one of Jason's exciting days he was really looking forward to. He has been gushing for months about how amazing the snorkeling at Hanauma bay is, he could not wait to go.
For me, it wasn't such a fun day.
While we were in Hawaii, we quickly learned that the easiest way to travel was with Decs in the front pack. Now, I am a HUGE car seat freak, so I had major issues with this the entire time. But that's how everyone gets around there, trolleys, shuttles, buses, vans, etc. Most without seat belts. Which means car seats are worthless and they won't let you bring them on anyway. The shuttle to Hanauma Bay, we couldn't even bring the stroller. So not only were we carrying Declan, but also an overflowing beach bag, two beach mats, the diaper bag, and the camera. J had gotten Declan dressed while I was getting ready and what I wasn't aware of is that Declan was in a swim diaper. This is a mommy no-no. Swim diapers are garbage. They leak like crazy. So here I am, with Declan strapped to my front, sitting on top of my Leland belly. And as soon as we are at Hanauma bay, it starts raining. We walk as fast as we can to the top buildings for cover- which were all the way across the property. As soon as we are under the cover, my belly is warm and my dress is soaked. It was not from the rain. It was from the stupid swim diaper.
There was nowhere there to change a baby and we had to wait at the top of the hill for our turn to watch a really intriguing film about not feeding the fish or touching the reef that everyone who goes to this nature conservation area is required to view. The theater did not have seats, only poles to lean yourself on. It was hot, muggy, and I, of course, was nauseous beyond belief and covered in baby pee. This day was not going according to plan. At all.
At least it was beautiful though...
Luckily there was a tram to ride down the hill instead of walking with our pile of stuff. As it was, I was nearly in tears in the most beautiful place I have ever seen. It really was stupid and irritating. We got set up on the beach, all of us covered in the baby sunscreen. Jason took the snorkel gear and headed out at my insistence. He really felt horrible and kept offering that we could leave. I refused. If I had come that far, he was going to snorkel, darn it!
Declan and I got as comfortable as we could. The sky was alternating between showers and full sun with a touch of random wind gusts. I covered Declan and shielded him with a towel when I was able. He went out swimming with Jason for a little while at one point. It was the first time that he actually got adventurous in the water. With daddy's hands holding him, he actually started splashing in the water. They both were smiling. It lifted my bad mood as I took pictures of them playing in the waves together. The sand at Hanauma bay literally sparkled. It was so cool. I sat snapping pictures of the sand, my guys, my sparkly toes, the sky.
Eventually Jason brought Declan back to me, and went back out to snorkel. Declan started to fuss and get hungry, just as a wind gust picked up again. It was really fun trying to make a bottle. On the beach. With a kicking angry baby kicking the bottle of water I was trying to pour. Wind kicking up the sand around us. That was a trick and a half to the say the least. D drank his bottle and passed out completely. I set him on one beach towel and shielded him from the sun with the other.
I sat on the mat and just watched the waves and the people. Jason hadn't come back for nearly an hour and I remembered him saying he wanted to go explore past the reef, but the lifeguards had advised that only expert swimmers should venture past the reef due to the currents. As it was registering that I hadn't seen him for awhile, and I was hoping he was being careful, I watched three lifeguards rush into the water, and a four lifeguard back his truck in with the body board right near Declan and I. Talk about a moment of panic. I was looking up and down both sides of the beach trying to spot Jason while the lifeguards were searching the water beyond the reef. I have never been so relieved as when I finally spotted Jason walking up the beach, smiling, telling me about the sea turtle he'd found.
At that moment, I was VERY ready to go. Haha.
We packed up everything and go back on the tram. Just as I sat down with sleeping Declan in my lap, he looked up, smiled, grunted, and I felt my lap get warm. Sigh. Stupid swim diapers. We rode up the hill and found a place in the shade to change him. Too bad we couldn't change me. Ugh.
I was okay with the less than glamorous day at Hanauma bay because I was SO excited about the pictures I had been snapping all day. My excitement went away pretty quickly when I went to put my memory card in the computer to take a look at them and edit them, only to find my memory card already in the computer. Never before has my camera let me take pictures when there was no memory card inserted. It never prompted me, it just let me snap snap snap all day. I was pretty disappointed to discover I was snapping and had nothing to show for it. Oh well. Maybe some things from that day are best forgotten... Like my dress covered in baby pee...
We got ourselves changed into clean and dry clothes, and headed out for dinner. We found a restaurant called Cheeseburger in Paradise on the beachwalk and decided to give it a whirl. We'll go ahead and add that to our list of favorites. I had a Hawaiian chicken sandwich with grilled pineapple. Jason had the BBQ'ed ribs. Their food was delicious.
As Saturday came to a close, we were realizing it was our last full night. As we walked back down the strip, we hit the stores we had been eyeing all week for last minute shopping. The boys had been so excited hearing about Jason's snorkeling that Avery had asked his dad to go shopping there for a snorkel set to spend his birthday/tooth fairy money on. When we found kids' snorkel sets on Saturday night, we just had to get them, along with beach towels, and some little trinkets for family members. Really we ended up with a pile of stuff if we're being honest.
It was a really fun last night, as on Saturday nights the Waikiki strip comes alive with performers. We walked down and stopped in front of two little boys playing on a keyboard and singing in microphones from the power of a car battery. Those boys had remarkable voices, the kind that made dozens of people stop and drop money in their bin. Watching them sing, and their mom sit to the side singing along with a smile from ear to ear made for a really great "boy mom" moment. When they sang Rylan's favorite song, "Soul Sister" by Train, I teared up a little. Another "I wish my boys were here" moment for me. I made sure to record it for Ry to hear later. We finally moved on, and walked the rest of the way back. None of the other street performers even came close to the boys playing their music from a car battery, but it was still fun regardless.
We vowed to not even touch the packing that night and opted to go to bed instead. Good choice in my book.
For me, it wasn't such a fun day.
While we were in Hawaii, we quickly learned that the easiest way to travel was with Decs in the front pack. Now, I am a HUGE car seat freak, so I had major issues with this the entire time. But that's how everyone gets around there, trolleys, shuttles, buses, vans, etc. Most without seat belts. Which means car seats are worthless and they won't let you bring them on anyway. The shuttle to Hanauma Bay, we couldn't even bring the stroller. So not only were we carrying Declan, but also an overflowing beach bag, two beach mats, the diaper bag, and the camera. J had gotten Declan dressed while I was getting ready and what I wasn't aware of is that Declan was in a swim diaper. This is a mommy no-no. Swim diapers are garbage. They leak like crazy. So here I am, with Declan strapped to my front, sitting on top of my Leland belly. And as soon as we are at Hanauma bay, it starts raining. We walk as fast as we can to the top buildings for cover- which were all the way across the property. As soon as we are under the cover, my belly is warm and my dress is soaked. It was not from the rain. It was from the stupid swim diaper.
There was nowhere there to change a baby and we had to wait at the top of the hill for our turn to watch a really intriguing film about not feeding the fish or touching the reef that everyone who goes to this nature conservation area is required to view. The theater did not have seats, only poles to lean yourself on. It was hot, muggy, and I, of course, was nauseous beyond belief and covered in baby pee. This day was not going according to plan. At all.
At least it was beautiful though...
Luckily there was a tram to ride down the hill instead of walking with our pile of stuff. As it was, I was nearly in tears in the most beautiful place I have ever seen. It really was stupid and irritating. We got set up on the beach, all of us covered in the baby sunscreen. Jason took the snorkel gear and headed out at my insistence. He really felt horrible and kept offering that we could leave. I refused. If I had come that far, he was going to snorkel, darn it!
Declan and I got as comfortable as we could. The sky was alternating between showers and full sun with a touch of random wind gusts. I covered Declan and shielded him with a towel when I was able. He went out swimming with Jason for a little while at one point. It was the first time that he actually got adventurous in the water. With daddy's hands holding him, he actually started splashing in the water. They both were smiling. It lifted my bad mood as I took pictures of them playing in the waves together. The sand at Hanauma bay literally sparkled. It was so cool. I sat snapping pictures of the sand, my guys, my sparkly toes, the sky.
Eventually Jason brought Declan back to me, and went back out to snorkel. Declan started to fuss and get hungry, just as a wind gust picked up again. It was really fun trying to make a bottle. On the beach. With a kicking angry baby kicking the bottle of water I was trying to pour. Wind kicking up the sand around us. That was a trick and a half to the say the least. D drank his bottle and passed out completely. I set him on one beach towel and shielded him from the sun with the other.
I sat on the mat and just watched the waves and the people. Jason hadn't come back for nearly an hour and I remembered him saying he wanted to go explore past the reef, but the lifeguards had advised that only expert swimmers should venture past the reef due to the currents. As it was registering that I hadn't seen him for awhile, and I was hoping he was being careful, I watched three lifeguards rush into the water, and a four lifeguard back his truck in with the body board right near Declan and I. Talk about a moment of panic. I was looking up and down both sides of the beach trying to spot Jason while the lifeguards were searching the water beyond the reef. I have never been so relieved as when I finally spotted Jason walking up the beach, smiling, telling me about the sea turtle he'd found.
At that moment, I was VERY ready to go. Haha.
We packed up everything and go back on the tram. Just as I sat down with sleeping Declan in my lap, he looked up, smiled, grunted, and I felt my lap get warm. Sigh. Stupid swim diapers. We rode up the hill and found a place in the shade to change him. Too bad we couldn't change me. Ugh.
I was okay with the less than glamorous day at Hanauma bay because I was SO excited about the pictures I had been snapping all day. My excitement went away pretty quickly when I went to put my memory card in the computer to take a look at them and edit them, only to find my memory card already in the computer. Never before has my camera let me take pictures when there was no memory card inserted. It never prompted me, it just let me snap snap snap all day. I was pretty disappointed to discover I was snapping and had nothing to show for it. Oh well. Maybe some things from that day are best forgotten... Like my dress covered in baby pee...
We got ourselves changed into clean and dry clothes, and headed out for dinner. We found a restaurant called Cheeseburger in Paradise on the beachwalk and decided to give it a whirl. We'll go ahead and add that to our list of favorites. I had a Hawaiian chicken sandwich with grilled pineapple. Jason had the BBQ'ed ribs. Their food was delicious.
As Saturday came to a close, we were realizing it was our last full night. As we walked back down the strip, we hit the stores we had been eyeing all week for last minute shopping. The boys had been so excited hearing about Jason's snorkeling that Avery had asked his dad to go shopping there for a snorkel set to spend his birthday/tooth fairy money on. When we found kids' snorkel sets on Saturday night, we just had to get them, along with beach towels, and some little trinkets for family members. Really we ended up with a pile of stuff if we're being honest.
It was a really fun last night, as on Saturday nights the Waikiki strip comes alive with performers. We walked down and stopped in front of two little boys playing on a keyboard and singing in microphones from the power of a car battery. Those boys had remarkable voices, the kind that made dozens of people stop and drop money in their bin. Watching them sing, and their mom sit to the side singing along with a smile from ear to ear made for a really great "boy mom" moment. When they sang Rylan's favorite song, "Soul Sister" by Train, I teared up a little. Another "I wish my boys were here" moment for me. I made sure to record it for Ry to hear later. We finally moved on, and walked the rest of the way back. None of the other street performers even came close to the boys playing their music from a car battery, but it was still fun regardless.
We vowed to not even touch the packing that night and opted to go to bed instead. Good choice in my book.
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