Our Visit to Hawaii

Brad took a beautiful picture of the sunset at Sunset Beach.

Ocean waves

John and I walking on the beach looking for treasures.

                      The sun rising over the Pacific.

John outside of the Kahuku Grill where he works as a cook and a busboy,

 Having a beach picnic of fresh shrimp and rice.

 The native performers at the Polynesian Culture Center.

 John's mode of transportation while in Hawaii.

 A munk seal catching some sun.

 Brad concentrating hard while catching the wave.

 Julie snorkeling

 Beautiful sea urchins that we tried to avoid getting too close to.

 Proof that you can try new things even when you are over 50.

 Deb snorkeling.

 One of many of the fish we saw up close.

 Enjoying a yummy snow cone after a day at the beach. (We ate snow that day and shoveled snow the next)

 Brad, Deb, John, Julie and Zach in front of the Laie Temple after the rededication.

 Julie and Zach and Deb snorkeling.

 Zach's prized catch: a unicorn fish.

 Thanksgiving dinner at Julie and Zach's patio.

 A statue at the PCC

 Loading up Julie and Zach's Land Rover after surfing.

 John after surfing.

 Zach, Julie and John

It was so good to see Julie, Zach and John in Hawaii. We loved spending time with them and experiencing how they live in "paradise."
They put their studies and work at a minimum and really showed us a good time:
Snorkeling at Shark's cove where we saw hundreds of fish, all different kinds and colors and shapes.  Also a Munk Seal was lying lazily on the beach. There were sea urchins everywhere amongst the reefs.  We also went to another beach where they went spear fishing while they were snorkeling. Zach speared a unicorn fish and they cooked it up for dinner after we left.
Turtle spotting. We saw them in the water several times but Brad got to see one up close and swam with it. He got a great picture of it. 
Surfing at Castle Beach, where the beginners learn, and believe me Brad and I are definitely beginners.  It was great fun to catch a wave even though I stayed down on my belly. Brad at least got up on his knees. I now see why they love surfing so much.  We also got to watch part of an International Surf competition on the North Shore.  Those guys are amazing!
Cliff jumping. Everyone but me took the plunge off the rock cliff into the ocean.
The Polynesian Culture Center.  Julie and Zach live right across the street from it and walk through it to go to classes.  We visited the villages and went to the night performance.
Eating... fresh shrimp from the shrimp farms, breakfast at the Hukilau cafe where 50 First Dates was filmed, Thanksgiving dinner complete with turkey, potatoes (brought from home), and gravy, blue Hawaiian sweet potatoes, corn and pumpkin pie. and the famous snow cones up on the North Shore.
Laie Temple Cultural Celebration and rededication. We timed our trip really well to be able to witness this special event.  The Laie Temple and grounds are so beautiful.  John lives right next to it.
Beauty. There is a unique beauty in Oahu.  The plants and trees are so lush and green.  There are flowers everywhere, in the trees, in the bushes, on the plants.  They fall off those and then the roads and sidewalks are lined with them too. The air often smells like flowers. I especially loved the Banyon Trees and the bamboo. The sunrises and sunsets are so beautiful when witnessed at the ocean, we could hardly take it all in.

It was hard to leave the tropical paradise of Hawaii but mostly it was hard to leave the kids there so far away from home.

This is what we came home to...a record breaking storm that closed schools, the university, the mall, the temple.  We had to dig our car out of the snow drift to get home.