day 2 of Hawaii

We were awakened bright and early (1:30am Hawaii time) with a phone call. In all the confusion, I thought the alarm was going off and was about to jump in the shower but it was actually the phone ringing and shelby county schools on the other line telling us school was closed. Closed? Why was school closed? We called Martia and Jerry and to our amazement....they had received snow!




So much for Craig planning our trip so the kids could be in school to make it easier on Grandma and Grandpa. Would you believe the snow kept them out of school for 2 days! I'm pretty sure the kids didn't complain as they went to the Children's Museum and Chuck-E-Cheese.






Back in Hawaii....later that morning, we flew to Maui before sunrise. We rented a cute little red jeep (specifically a jeep for the adventures ahead!)

We found a McDonald's and a convenience store (for some dramamine) and took off for the winding road to Haleakala crater. The road was so windy Craig even got a headache. We really didn't have a lot of time to enjoy but got out of the car for a few photos. We weren't really prepared for how cold and windy it would be up there!







We didn't last long before heading back down to find our next destination....skyline eco-adventures for ziplining. There were 5 ziplines. They started off small and got a little longer each time. The last one was quite a drop.













After that exhilarating activity, we jumped in the car and started the next adventure (the whole reason why we have a jeep...)

We started the drive for the south route of the road to Hana. Yes, I said south route. When you look on a map, it's only indicated by dotted lines (because it's not even paved for part of the way.)

We stopped and ordered a burger...(which tasted pretty gross...something about the Hawaiian cattle tasted funky) and across the street was a winery right before getting on this crazy road. The winery gave free tastings of the local wines (probably not a good thing before getting on one of the most dangerous roads in America!!!)





At first, the south route wasn't bad with wonderful views of the ocean. But then the road turned into a bumpy mess. It looked like a truck just dumped large puddles of cement everywhere. This made the pace slow but funny. Eventually the road turned into a dirt road.






It wasn't that bad, actually better than the bumpy one. Eventually we got to a very windy road with lots of 1 lane bridges. The scary part about these bridges is that many of them you entered blindly, not being able to see if someone was coming from the other side. We had to honk the horn to make sure they knew we were coming. Occassionally we'd meet up with another car on the one lane bridge and one of us would have to back up and be careful to not go over the cliff (with no guard rails). The ride was quite scary but we did make it to Hana!

Reporting on Hawaii

Many of you are my friends on facebook and saw the pictures but now I am officially going to blog about the trip. It was a wonderful trip that Craig planned for the 2 of us. We are so lucky to have family (Martia and Jerry) to watch the kids so Craig and I could have some much needed "us" time.

In the planning Craig did not consult me on the departure date, and of all the dates, he picked Superbowl Sunday! Of course, out of all the Superbowls, my Colts were going to be playing! Now looking back and watching replays....glad I didn't have to suffer that loss but at the time...I was suffering. Lucky for us, we befriended a stewardess who would periodically report scores to me!


I was also sad to be missing a birthday party of a dear friend. Just so she knew I was thinking of her, I posted a picture on facebook so she'd I really hated missing her party! I heard later, she actually saw the picture while she was at her party. Makes me smile to think in some small way I was there!

Here are some pictures from the flight. Craig had enough miles for us to fly first class. Having flown to Hawaii in coach and now first class.....first class is DEFINITELY worth it! Maybe you could find a deal on first class?






This particular plane's first class was premium! Lots of room, a footrest, personal tv (only movies and games, no Superbowl), large down blankets and real pillows, and nice headphones. My seat controls looked like the cockpit! It took me a while to figure it all out. That definitely helped make the flight length not seem so bad.



We were definitely spoiled. Continuous drinks, warm towels before eating, nice meals with dessert and snacks...and Superbowl updates!

Stay tuned for Day 2 of the trip.....

Hawaii trip

I promise to blog about the Hawaii trip soon. I need Craig to show me how to post pictures from this computer to the blog and then I can get started. I had posting pics down with the old computer but now that we are officially "mac" users...I'm still in training! Pictures of Hawaii coming soon!

praying for a friend of a friend

I just received an email from a friend that her sister's friend is needing prayers. Here is a link to her blog to pray for this precious family. http://goingtoethiopia.blogspot.com/

Cheer Competition

Would you believe Channing has already participated in her first cheer competition? I was really worried after the last practice where parents were able to see the routine. Channing pretty much just stood there and held her pom poms. Craig looked at me with that look of..."we are not signing her up for this again, right?"

We were able to video the routine and practice at home though that was like pulling teeth. Already at 4 she feels like her mom doesn't know anything! If it's this bad at 4 what's it going to be like in the teen years? We practiced some but she did not know the music routine before the competition.

Her competition was Saturday morning in Jackson. After being glitterfied with blue eyeshadow, body spray and lip gloss, the girls were ready to cheer. Collierville young champions were the 1st team to go. Surprisingly, Channing did pretty well. She started the routine very well, just lost some steam during the routine....but she never stopped. I was very proud of her and she looked awefully cute.

Channing's cheer group won 2nd place in the large division which means they can now compete at the State level in Nashville in January. After all was said and done, she did enjoy the competition. We haven't decided yet if she'll go on to compete in Nashville. Starting in January, she will be advancing in gymnastics to a group called Gym Cubs. This is an invitation only group getting these young girls ready for gymnastic competition. We can only do one thing...cheer or gymnastics and I really think she enjoys gymnastics more right now. I am a little worried with the new level at gymnastics though...it's 1 1/2 hour practices 2xs per week which may be a little tough with her attention span. I'll keep you posted on how that goes!

I think it's funny that every child that competes gets a trophy...no matter how good/bad they are. The kids that placed also got a ribbon.




Yes, I'm a proud momma! I made my shirt to support Channing and the Collierville young champions.



This is Channing and her coach Jen.

Dalton's Music Program

My sweet Dalton had his 4th grade music program Thursday night. All the 4th graders are required to learn the recorder, but since that instrument can't be played with one hand, he plays the xylophone. He performed for the school and many of the kids were talking about how great he did. I couldn't wait to see his little part. He had a little solo part to Up on the Roof Top. When his time came to play, he was so excited, I was afraid he would mess up but he did great! I was so proud of him and he was proud of himself too.

Happy Times Farm

Channing's school had Happy Times Farm come one day for the kids. My future veterinarian loved it!

She loves all animals and was in her element. Even with the baby pig squealed loudly, Channing held her arms out, she was ready to hold him. All the other kids backed away, not Channing.





She held every animal there to hold. The poor baby chicks. I'm not sure she's mastered "soft touch" yet.




I think she liked the bunny the best though she really liked them all.





She was even lucky enough to feed a calf a bottle of milk. The bottle was pretty heavy so lots of classmates helped.


After petting, holding and feeding the animals, she got to ride on the train and ride a horse.



She wasn't scared at all. Maybe it's all the animals she's been around with Dalton riding horses.



She looked like a natural!