Hawaii--day 8-9

Miss J rocking Auntie's hat

We spent day 8 in Maui snorkeling at Black Rock Beach. I've learned it is easier to get in and out of the ocean when I put my fins on in the water. I snorkeled until Miss K was too cold and then we swam back to the shore. We didn't see any turtles, but we did see different varieties of fish. At one point, the fish were swimming all around us as we floated. The current the schools of fish created made my fins move which was an odd sensation!

After we snorkeled, we had a swim in the pool. The girls sure have improved their swimming skills!

Pineapple and assorted fruits for breakfast hasn't gotten old yet! We went to Ohana Tacos for lunch. In addition to delicious shrimp and fish tacos, the business is family owned and operated. Then we went on a shopping mission for me; but, I didn't find what I was hoping to buy. James drove us. I wanted to buy an embroidery kit for the girls; but, I wasn't successful.

Pool swimming

We did find a shave ice which everyone enjoyed on a hot day. Then it was back to the condo. I took a nap which felt great.

Bob and Nicole walked down to the ocean from where we are staying and saw a number of turtles. The approach is too rocky for me They made plans to snorkel there later; but, then saw a sign that that section of the beach was private.

Dinner was salad with refrigerator leftovers. Nicole purchased some lobster salad at the fish market and a round loaf of sourdough bread.

I'm generally not excited about lobster; but, that salad was delicious. (If I ever get to Maine, I might change my mind about lobster!) Bob hollowed the bread, stuffed it with brie and baked it until the cheese melted. That was a great addition to dinner!

Shave ice is a great way to cool off on a hot humid day

On day 9, We got up early and went to Napili Beach to snorkel. We arrived just in time to snag one of the last of the public parking spaces. This was a nice place to snorkel as it a little bay that it five to eight feet of water in a lot of places so it is easy to get around. James and Amanda saw octopi; Nicole saw an eel and we all saw lots of different types of fish. It was cool to see schools of the different varieties swimming near each other.

On the way back, we dropped off our snorkel gear. We also stopped for a coffee at the shop in the Napili Marketplace. James determined that this was the best coffee spot in the area. He taste tested a number of spots!

We finished the first "Rabbits of London" book

Once back at the condo, we spent some time in the pool. The girls' swimming skills are improving. Miss J can roll easily from her front to her back and Miss K is figuring out elementary backstroke and rotary breathing.

We had a huge salad for dinner and Bob barbecued chicken thighs that tasted a lot like the chicken that we had at the luau.  He even grilled some zucchini. Nicole added a bottle of wine that Jérôme had picked. Wow, it was a delicious meal.

Good bye to this view

The girls and I finished reading the first "Royal Rabbits of London" book. It was a chapter book and we read a few chapters of the book each day. We might get started on the second book tomorrow.

We played another round of pinochle. The first night, Bob and Amanda were the winners. This night, Nicole and I were the winners.

Tomorrow, we will have an early swim in the pool and then we will pack up as check out is at 11am. I've really enjoyed staying at Polynesian Shores and would recommend it to anyone coming to this part of Maui.

Hawaii--Day 7

Sunrise

To begin this day, we had coffee and watched the sun color the sky over the ocean. After sunrise, we had a breakfast of papaya, pineapple, dragonfruit, banana and star fruit. We also had a variety of breads, granola and yogurt.

Breakfast platter

We took a road trip to Iao Valley and Iao Needle which is a state park. It was about an hour drive. We took a little hike around the park to see the water falls and the vegetation. It was cooler in the mountains and a little overcast so my sunburn didn't become any greater than it already was!

The "EE-OW" of the needle

Iao Valley was the site of a huge Hawaiian battle in 1790. So many warriors died that stories say that the rivers ran red with blood. Now it is about a half mile walk around the elements in the park which was a perfect distance for the girls.

I enjoyed the visit reading about the restoration of native plants that the volunteers have been doing the work for a number of years. Bob took a photo of a plant with red leaves because he thought it looked like a quilt. I think he may be right!

Possibly a future quilt project

Nicole taking in the scenery

We did see people taking a dip in some of the pools; but, we didn't try it. The water would have been cold!

The girls checking out the water

Taking a little rest

Reading

Returning home, the grands and I read a couple chapters in our book while the rest of the adults made lunch. We were reading, "The Royal Rabbits of London, " by
Santa Montefiore and Simon Sebag Montefiore.

Ready for dinner

I picked up this copy and the sequel in London when I was visiting Nicole earlier this year. It is a great story with an even better message.

We had salami sandwiches and watermelon for lunch. Most of us took a nap to be fresh for the luau experience. The kids swam off some energy in the pool and then they took several walks.

The luau was a great experience. There was plenty of informal activities before the food was served which was perfect for the girls. The dishes were delicious and the evening entertainment was terrific. It was a fun three hours!

Dinner 

Hawaii--day 5-6

Ready for our snorkel tour

On day five, we rose early and were out the door by 6am so that we could catch the 8am snorkel tour to Molakini to see fish and to the Turtle Arches to see turtles. Unfortunately, there was too much wind to snorkel at Molakini so we spent all our time at the spot to see turtles. Josette and Bob saw a huge turtle. Amanda and Nicole saw a turtle while they were on a reef tour. I saw a turtle surface while I was in the boat!

Visiting the aquarium

I probably saw about the same species of fish as well as about the same numbers as we saw when we snorkeled at Airport Beach. We were served breakfast and lunch on the boat. For a five hour tour, had Mother
Nature cooperated, we would have snorkeled in two locations. On our return trip, we saw three bottle nosed dolphins which was cool.

One grand succumbed to the ocean waves and was sea sick; but, fully recovered by the time to tour the Aquarium. It was a nice tour and the consensus regarding the aquarium visit was it was well organized, really kid friendly and interesting. Bob and I enjoyed a cool drink and we walked around the Marina.

Bob flying upside down

James bought poke (raw tuna), sashimi, rice rolls, macaroni salad and tahini shrimp for dinner. It was a good and different sort of dinner. Even though I used sunscreen and reapplied it, I still picked up a sunburn. Ouch!

On day six, Bob, Nicole and I left at 6am for a zip line tour. We had a Starbucks coffee and a little something to tide us over until lunch. Doing a zip line tour has been on my bucket list for some time. I thought it would be cool to be above the tree tops and see the view. I had no idea of all the tricks that can be done or that people would want to do them!

Nicole during the spinner jump

The zip line is located at Camp Maui where the famous fighting fourth division of Marines were stationed during WWII. So not only did we have a fun experience, we also picked up some of the history about the site. The NorthShore ZipLine company rocked.

Me during the leap of faith jump

Bob, my husband, is absolutely fearless. He immediately went upside down, backwards, and spun during his first zip line trek. Each time, he just got better.  Nicole did some awesome moves as well. She spun so fast during one of the jumps that I wondered how she could stand up at the end!

Me? It was exhilarating to step out into air and feel the gear connect to the line and start you on your journey. I surprised our guide to just fall backwards off one of the platforms. They call it the leap of faith. I liked spinning. Although, it
sure made me dizzy.  In fact, I got a little motion sickness out of the deal.

The views from the tree top launches were spectacular. I am so glad the three of us got to have this experience it was special!

Miss K and Miss J with new found friends at the park

On our return trip, we stopped at Costco to refuel our larders and we had lunch. We each had a hot dog which came with a drink. Total amount for
our three lunches was less than $10!

Miss K working on a piece of blackwork

There was a Fabric-Mart nearby Costco and I should have stopped. Both Miss K and Miss J are enjoying learning the backstitch for embroidery. There could have been a little kit suitable for a kid there.

The girls, Amanda and James, spent the day at Baby Beach and playing at the playground. They had lunch at a nearby deli and in the afternoon, they all went swimming in the pool.

Salmon dinner ready to eat

For dinner, Bob barbecued a couple salmon fillets, we ate green beans from the market, rice, green salad with cucumber dressed with

a Maui onion sauce. We even had a baguette. Dessert was Mochi. It was a tasty dinner. Miss K got into Auntie's suitcase and modeled all of Auntie's clothes. It was a great fashion show and most of the outfits looked great on her. What a great end to a terrific day.

Oh and since I'm posting the last day of the month, I taught 29 participants in 29 Basic Life Support CPR (189 YTD)-- This is a total of 29 for July (total 324 YTD)!! I'm glad I'm tracking how many people I'm teaching this year as I had no idea how many people I reach!

Modeling Auntie's clothes

Hawaii Day 3-4

Hawaiian pineapple is the best

After a breakfast of English muffins and fruit, we headed out to pick up our rentals from the snorkel store.

James was our driver; Nicole was our navigator. Bob and Amanda were squished in the back seat next to a grand while a grand and I took the middle seats. The great news was we all fit in one vehicle! We picked up our mask, fins and snorkel from the rental store and we went to Airport beach to see the fish.

I did have photos of our feet trying on the fins; but, unfortunately, I took my phone snorkeling so went the rest of the trip without it. i-Phones don't work after a one and a half hour snorkel session in the ocean! It was a stupid mistake; but, not the end of the world! To those of you who I timed out with Words with Friends. . .now you know why!

Photos for blog posts came from others' cell phones. . .mainly from Nicole! Thank you Nicole!

I am so impressed with how much masks and snorkels have improved since we last used them in Hawaii when our girls were about 8 and 11! Josette loved snorkeling.

Most of the crew

Keira didn't like the taste of the saltwater on her snorkel and somehow, she kept getting water in her mouth. She, her mama and her auntie practiced in the pool and auntie switched snorkels with her so next time, Miss K will have an even better experience. I saw a lion fish and I look forward to the next ocean session.

Auntie the navigator

Auntie is a great navigator. Although, Miss J and Miss K are also good with passing the verbal directions to the driver!

After our morning swim in the ocean, we returned to the condo to shower the majority of sand off our bodies. Then we headed into town to have a burger. The snorkel rental place recommended the burger spot. The burgers were huge, delicious and came with a root beer float. Then we walked around and window shopped.

Orchids grow easily here. This plant was outside our condo. It was so beautiful! There were other orchids too; but, this one had the most blooms!

Orchid 

The views from the patio at the condo were picturesque. We could also see the pool from the patio. It was in the upper 80s and humid; but, the breeze helped it feel not as warm!

Day four was a massage day. James, Amanda and Nicole scheduled a massage with a local and each one said she was great. While they were getting their massages, Bob and I took the girls to the park where they had a blast playing on the play structure and they had fun climbing the trees. They even met a couple new friends who were from Silverton, Oregon. Gosh, it is a small world!

After the park, we went to a farmer's market and picked up a couple pineapple, other fruits and vegetables. Then we went to the fish market and finally, we made yet another stop at the grocery store.

We had hot dogs, cantaloupe slices and chips for lunch. Then we spent a few hours splashing about in the pool.

Dusk from the balcony

Dinner was grilled corn on the cob and zucchini, grilled mahi mahi and Ono fish, steamed rice and a green salad. It was a great day.

Sunset from the balcony

Amanda and Keira enjoying the sunrise

Hawaii--day 1-2

Escapees captured after a night out

For the last 15 years, youngest daughter, Nicole, has been the impetus behind a family trip that happens every five years. The destination has to be somewhere we haven't experienced. . .or experienced in a really, really, really long time. The first time, we went to New Orleans over spring vacation and the second time, we went to Australia. (On the Australia trip, one grand was two and half and the other was four months old!) This year our destination was Maui, Hawaii!

Hawaii here we come

The day before we left, three of our neighbor's turkeys escaped. Bailey caught one; but, let it go on command. The turkeys left our property and the neighbor's couldn't find them.

A little Auntie loving

We took Bailey to the "spa" also know as the kennel later in the afternoon. She has been there several times and likes it enough to not even say good-bye to us!

Early the next morning, my husband caught site of the turkeys in the pasture. We "herded" them into Bailey's kennel and waited for their owners to retrieve their birds. These three seemed happy to get back behind wire. They sure looked like their night out had been a rough one! They and their owners were just leaving the driveway when our ride to the airport arrived!

In my lifetime, I've "wrangled" a number of animals; but, this was a first for turkeys!

It has been a sort of tradition to photograph one's feet on the carpet when leaving the Portland airport. We followed tradition.

Gran--Photo by Miss J

The grands sure love their auntie. While we were in line to board the plane, I heard one grand say, "Auntie, come down here." I heard the other grand say, "Auntie, we need you!" Then there was a whole lot of squeezes, kisses and "I love you so much!" What a fine bunch of loving!!!

What do you do when you are on an airplane for several hours? You put together puzzles, color, take photographs, read stories, eat a few snacks and you might even sleep! It takes a long time to get to Hawaii; but, the arrival is sure worth it!

Auntie provided the hip packs which were stuffed with fun items. There was plenty of space remaining to be colored on the trip home. As for the items, they were eaten, played with and zipped in and out of the bag numerous times!

Coloring

The airport at Kahului, Maui had this interesting roof detail at baggage claim. It looked like a quilt design to me. Unfortunately, not all of our luggage arrived with us. We were missing the car seats. We will catch up with how we reunited with them later.

Roof detail at the airport

We arrived at our hotel, checked in and then found a Mexican restaurant a short walk from our hotel. It was called Amigos and their chicken mole and beef fajitas were delicious! I went to bed at 8:30pm Hawaiian time which was 11:30pm Oregon time!

The next morning, we were up early and trekking to Starbucks for a cup of coffee. James decided to try the local coffee. While we sipped our coffee, we viewed a mural. On our return to the hotel, we stopped at a Whole Foods type of market and purchased items for breakfast. We purchased two types of local bananas, a small basket of mountain apples, a jar of jam, a couple types of yogurt and some almond butter. There were also vegan pastry items so we purchased a few of those too!

Mural at Starbucks

After breakfast all the girls had a dip in the pool. The swim felt great and the oldest grand commented that she could now check swimming in Hawaii off her bucket list!

Amanda had researched a spot to have lunch. It was called Tin Roof; business hours were from 10am to 2pm.  Most of us ordered something different from each other so there were a variety of menu items to sample. I had the chicken sandwich and Bob had the pork belly entree. Both were good.

Pork belly entree

We had to amend our departure plans a bit because neither car seat arrived with our luggage. The airlines delivered one car seat to our hotel while most of us were sleeping. The other car seat took a later flight and didn't arrive until after 1pm the following day! Bob, James and Nicole went to retrieve the car seat and pick up the rental car we had reserved.

The rest of us hung out at the hotel until Bob, James and Nicole picked us up. Then it was off to the condo! The girls were excited about swimming in both another pool and the ocean!

Dinner on our first night at the condo

That afternoon, we swam at the condo pool. We had a terrific dinner of green salad with poppyseed mango dressing and barbecued chicken. Some of us enjoyed the beer that those who went to the brewery tour brought back.  Who knew coconut coffee would make a good porter?

Tis the Season for Swimsuits Take 2--Fifth Finish for 3rd Quarter Finish-A-Long 2018

Four suits cut--ready for stitching

After finishing the first swimsuit, it was time to tackle the second. I stitched the second suit and lining. Next, I inserted the lining into the suit and basted the edges. I trimmed the lining away from the edges.

I was making great progress! I started to apply the elastic. I didn't have enough! I bought this elastic years ago. There was 100 yards on the spool.  I bought it on sale. I don't remember the price; but, I I'm thinking that I paid about $40 for it.

I wasn't able to buy that amount/product where I purchased it before. I tried a couple other outlets; but, ended up buying a 144 yard spool online for about the same price/yard as was listed on this spool!

Empty elastic spool

Stitching the elastic

Because my daughter was coming for a visit, I so wanted to have the suit finished and waiting on her bed when she arrived. If I waited for the elastic to arrive, I wasn't going to have the second suit finished. I decided to purchase a five yard package of elastic at Joann Crafts and Fabric. The elastic from Joann's wasn't as firm as what was on my spool; but, it worked.

It was a relief to be able to finish the suit before my daughter arrived. I was short about 1 3/4 yard of the elastic. I'm glad that I could purchase the product near me!

Finished back of suit

I wasn't able to cut two complete suits out of this print. I was short one back so I used a piece of black swim fabric that I have on hand for my "uniform" suits. I like the placement of the lines and I hope she won't be bothered with the black fabric. In years past, I would cut the back out of a different fabric all together. Sometimes, I could cut the suit out of different fabrics so it was more of a color blocked suit. I use different approaches to use the greatest amount of the fabric!

Finished front

I like the front of this suit. Although, I hope that the setting sun placement is in a good position!

This was goal number 24 on my Finish-A-Long list. I used two yards of fabric. (One yard for the suit and one yard for the lining.) I have now used 22 yards from my stash. I have 28 yards to go to achieve my goal of a net loss of 50 yards from my stash this year.

Tis the Season For Swimsuits--Fourth Finish for 3rd Quarter Finish-A-Long 2018

Making the pattern

Youngest daughter asked me to stitch her a new swimsuit as our trip to Hawaii was approaching. She said to use my pattern; but, to make it a couple inches longer! First, I needed to see what fabric was available. She stated the, "I would prefer not to have flowers," comment which was followed by, "but, if that is all that is available, that is okay." She sure didn't apply any pressure did she?

I did have a couple pieces of fabric that I'll be able to get a swimsuit out of that doesn't have a floral motif; but, the pieces were about two inches too short to get a suit out for her. I did have two other pieces that would work. One piece did have flowers; but, the flowers were more geometric than floral.

Fabric 

I haven't purchased printed swim fabric in years. People, cleaning out their fabric stashes, have gifted me pieces over the years. These are two such pieces! I did purchase some black swim fabric last year as when I teach lessons the "uniform" for instructors is a black suit.

Next, I drew a pattern that would have the appropriate alterations. The pattern fabric, I think, was originally for piecing miniature blocks. I picked it up from the free table at a guild meeting a couple months ago. It worked perfect as pattern paper though!

Cutting out the fabric was interesting because of the print in the purple. That is a sun setting which I thought would be great for a suit. The challenge was where the sun was going to be on the body. I sure didn't want it hanging over one side of her chest! After much consideration, I ended up putting it on the rear of the suit. I hope the print is above her waist!

There wasn't enough of the print for two whole suits. I did cut out two fronts, one and a half backs and one strap. I used the black fabric to cut one back and one strap. Then I cut out the lining fabric. Commercially made suits generally are lined in the front; but, I can get more mileage out of the fabric if it is totally lined so I line the front and the back.

Finished back

I bought a bolt of black lining fabric and I try to choose fabrics that work with the black lining. I do have a printed fabric on white that will need beige lining. I was on a hunt for beige lining last fall. I haven't found it yet. I may need to go online to purchase it which surprises me. Although, I imagine that there aren't many people who make swimsuits! The bolt of black lining fabric will keep me in suits for many years and I have enough gifted fabric on hand to make half a dozen more suits.

At some point, I'm going to be receiving more gifted fabric so I'm not concerned that my stockpile is a little low! (A friend who is clearing out her sister's stash offered me the swimwear fabric. I said I would take it all as chlorine treats all lycra fabrics equally!)

While I was cutting, I cut out the black swimsuits that are goal number 18 on my Finish-A-Long list. Cutting out the fabrics is always my least favorite part of the process. Then, it was time to sew the suits!

Finished front

I generally serge the edges as this process makes the seams more stable. . .besides, having an extra stitching line is good insurance against unwanted exposure! In one sewing session, I stitched the body of the suit and the lining. The second sewing session, I pinned and basted the two together. In the evening, I trimmed away the lining next to the basting line to reduce the bulk. During the final sewing session, I applied the elastic.

This was goal number 23 on my 3rd Quarter Finish-A-Long list. It is my fourth finish this quarter! I used two yards of fabric. (One yard for the suit and one yard for the lining.) I have now used 20 yards from my stash. I have 30 yards to go to achieve my goal of a net loss of 50 yards from my stash this year.

I'd better get going on her second suit!

Miss K Is A Sewing--Third Finish for 3rd Quarter Finish-A-Long

Chef K eating the first dinner she cooked

Miss K asked to stitch a skirt. Since we make better progress when we are one on one, I invited K for a sleepover.

She was excited; but, she let me know that she would have to wait a day because she was cooking dinner for the family. I asked what she was serving. She said, "macaroni and cheese with tomato soup and vegetables. I'm cooking the pasta and then I think the soup will flavor the pasta just right. I'm taking out some pasta for J and then adding cheese for Mommy, Daddy and me. It's going to be so good!"

Dinner was a hit and her mama sent a photo to prove it!

The following day she arrived after lunch to work on her skirt. She approved of the pattern and we had fun taking turns cutting out 10 panels. She thought that 10 panels was a lot! As they were lined up on the ironing table, she was trying to figure out how to sew them together.

Tall enough to stitch on her own

I showed her how to pin the edges and then we started the sewing process. She has grown since the last time that we stitched together. She is tall enough now that she can provide the power to the machine. So she did and of course she LOVED being in control.  Her smile speaks volumes!

Project at the end of the day

After every step, she would take her project out to show her papa/granddad. She was so pleased with how it was coming together.

We stitched all the panels together. I serged the edges and we took turns pressing. She decided stitching a narrow hem was really hard; but she liked getting to stitch with a different presser foot during that step!

After about three hours of stitching, she decided that she was ready to call it a day in the studio. We almost finished. We needed to stitch the casing in the waist and insert the elastic.

She did this the following morning. She was up and ready to finish about 5:15am! I'm up around 4:30am. The early rising is a throw back from my full time working days, so her awakening wasn't too early for me!

Stitching the casing with the number 10D foot was fun. Manuvering the elastic through the casing was not! We made it work though! When she was almost finished with the elastic, she wanted to know how we were going to join the ends.

Triumphant finish

Good question because as she said, the way it was now, it wouldn't stay up around her waist. Good thinking ahead, Miss K! We stitched the elastic and then she understood how it worked. (She also was concerned that it wouldn't be stitched in circle. She has quite the mind in thinking of pitfalls!) She liked stitching the casing closed and loved putting on the skirt.

She didn't pack a t-shirt so I don't have a photo of her wearing her skirt. I asked her if she wanted to look through some patterns to see if there was a top that we could make. She thought it might take too long and she wouldn't be able to finish before it was time to go home. Valid point, Miss K

Besides, there was a bath to be taken, smoothies to be blended; blueberry muffins to bake and yoga cards and magnets to play.

We used 1 1/2 yards of fabric which means that I have now used 18 yards from my stash and I have 32 yards to go to achieve my goal of a net loss of 50 yards from my stash this year.

This was goal number five on my 3rd quarter Finish-A-Long list. There is plenty of fabric left for another skirt for the other grand!