Fallen Tree

January 2009: One Sunday night, Ben and I were sitting in the front room and we heard a crash. Ben thought someone had hit the light post in the front yard and I thought it sounded like someone was walking on the roof.

The snow was falling fast and heavy. The tree was old and should have come down a long time ago...luckily for us the snow knocked it down for us. As it crashed it it pulled the roots out of the ground, a branch hit the roof and scrapped down the side of the house. We were lucky that it didn't hit the front window.

The tree hit an old phone line and pulled it out of the house...luckily, it wasn't a line we were using.

Ben and I decided that we wouldn't cut down the tree until Spring. We had many people offer to help cut it down...we even had a complete stranger stop by our house and leave a note with his phone number stating we could pay him to cut it down. In the end, AWESOME Tim came over and used his new chainsaw and chopped it down for us.

Too many shoes...

Well, Ben has finally decided that I can move into the house; I finally get to move in from the garage. Actually, we have been so busy doing everything else, that I never moved all my stuff in from the garage. I think that Ben was really surprised when he saw everything that I had to fit into his little house.

The thing that surprised him the most...the amount of shoes that one girl could have. I tried to tell him that this is normal; he didn't believe me. It was a very sad day, I had to end up giving about half of them away.

Maui 2009

January 2009: Maui, Hawaii



January 9 -16, 2009 Ben and I had a chance to go to Hawaii with Dad, Mom, Dave, Connie, Kyler, Kaylee, Jake, Kohl, Kenzie, Sue, Steve, Big Ben, Tanner and Amy.





We had nothing planned and really looked forward to spending time with our family, hanging out on the beach, and enjoying the sun (it was still snowing in Utah).

We stayed at a condo about 5 minutes from mom and dad's hotel. We were so close to the beach, the weather was BEAUTIFUL and so was the food, activities and sun!!

One day, we played on the beach with the family and Kenzie buried me (with Ben's help). It was fun, but Kenzie didn't realize that every time she moved she flipped sand up...she is doll and we had fun.


Ben liked that I was stuck in the sand...

Surfing

Another fun thing to do in Hawaii...surfing!!

I have been a couple of times but this was Ben's first experience. We both LOVED it.



Surfing is such a fun experience and an easy hobby to pick-up. It takes some practice learning how to push off the surf board into a standing position and not end up face first sucking sea water.

Surfing was a family event...Dave, Connie, Kyler, Kaylee, Jake, Kohl, Amy, Ben and me. Kenzie sat with Grandma Craig on the beach watching us all catch waves.

Whale Watching

One of my favorite adventures while in Hawaii is Whale watching!

On a cloudy rainy day Amy, Connie's and Sue's families as well as Ben and I ventured to Buzz's Wharf to embark on a whale watching tour...what a blast.



Our tour was through the Pacific Whale Watching Foundation; on board was a marine biologist who was very knowledgeable and shared so much information. I loved it. I love to hear all about the whales, the way they eat, migrate and take care of their young.

This plaque shows just a bit of what the whale does...amazing.

While out on the water our boat was treated to some amazing whales. We saw whales head slap, tail slap, head raises, fin slap and best of all breach!

To see a whale propel 2/3 (or more) of their body out of the water is AMAZING! It is indescribable. The event happens so quickly and it has everyone who sees it pointing and yelling...one of the most amazing things to witness. The splash that accompanies the breach is also amazing. Like I mentioned before...a whale watching trip is indescribable...I would strongly encourage you to go whale watching if ever given the opportunity.

In the picture below you can see a tail and fin...sorry it isn't closer...my camera doesn't zoom too well.

Old Lahaina Luau

Traditional Hula & Feast


The Old Lahaina Luau is one of the best on the island of Maui. Of course the food, the dancing, and the ambiance is amazing.

Below is a picture of the sun setting over the ocean just behind the stage of the Luau. The other picture is a view of the city of Lahaina.

We went to the Luau with Dave, Connie, Ky, Kaylee, Jake, Kohl, Kenzie, Steve, Sue, Tanner, Big Ben and Amy. These are just a couple of the pictures of the family. For some reason I didn't get any pictures of Sue and her family...?

I like this Luau because it is all you can drink tropical drinks, you get this awesome fresh flower lei, the dancer as cool and the food is awesome. I am not sure what I was thinking but I didn't get a single picture of them taking the pig out of the ground, any of the dancers or pictures of the area...Real Cool Paizier

IAO Valley State Park

IAO Valley State Park: This was the first time I have visited IAO Valley State Park. Ben and I were trying to decide what we should do one Sunday afternoon; we looked at our map and decided it didn't look too far to drive...so off we went. It was beautiful. We went from the seashore with the palm trees and beach to the rigid mountains and beautiful green vegetation. In the picture above you can see the main attraction at the park. Soldiers used to climb to the top of the hill and watch for enemy attacks. It looked like a huge climb.

Down below the IAO point there was this cute little garden. It had this awesome hut; beautiful plants and trees and awesome hiking trails.

This is what we found on the hikes...a small river that flowed down through the lava rocks and cascaded into a stream. It was so beautiful.

I have such a hard time describing how we felt from what we saw. Beauty that cannot be described or caught in pictures.

The Road to Hana…

The Road to Hana is pretty dangerous. There are approximately 600 hairpin turns and 54 bridges and many narrow one-lane roads. Often times you come to a yield sign because the road is simply to narrow for two cars to pass. The Road to Hana is filled with constant traffic, distracting views, beautiful waterfalls, amazing vegetation, and steep cliffs.

It is hard to put the appropriate words to the experiences we had along the Road to Hana.

These are some of the amazing things to see along the road...

As we drove along the road to Hana we listened to a CD that told us all about the surrounding area. It gave tips of when to pull off the road to experience and exquisite sight or visit a historic landmark. In this case we found a small beach that was amazing. It was in a cove surrounded by huge hills that were green with vegetation.

One of my favorite things in life is waterfalls. I don't know why I love them so much, but I do. As we drove along we could see breaks in the cliffs and watch the cascading water as it fell to the pools below. One thing that we found so beautiful was the vegetation that surrounded the falls. Of course it was wild and it framed the falls so beautifully.

Just past the city of Hana is a national park called Oheo Gulch. It is where you can find the Seven Pools. A lot of people know them as the Sacred Pools. I recently learned that there is nothing sacred about them. Tour bus drivers used to make up stories about the pools.

It was a beautiful place. There were two hikes a person could take that lead to waterfalls. Unfortunately, Ben and I were too close to dark to be able to hike. We did spend some time at the Seven Pools. It was a beautiful sight...the pools started at the top and water cascaded down to the next pool, eventually it lead to the ocean below. People were swimming and jumping from cliffs.

As Ben and I were hiking to the pools we stopped to read sings about the park and surrounding areas...it strongly urged you to stay out of the Ocean because of the infestation of Hammerhead Sharks...you didn't have to tell Ben and I twice.



Ben and I had two choices to make...go back the way we came (which is what all of the maps and signs told us to do) or go on around the island where there were washed out roads. It mentioned on the map that if you drive between certain points it violates car rental agreements. Ben and I discussed it and even asked the park rangers...we decided to go along the other side of the island. It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. I can't describe beauty and cameras can't capture it. You just have to go experience it...

This road was a lot more scary than the road to Hana. There were few signs, it was very narrow, no lights, and a lot of the time we were driving on a dirt road. But it was amazing. The beautiful tall green hills to the right and steep cliffs that lead to the sharp volcanic rock with waves crashing against it to the left.

Close to sunset Ben and I came across a beach and decided to pull off. There were huge pot holes leading into the beach (I was scared we were going to get stuck...Ben wasn't). There was only one other group on the beach. We watched the sunset here. It was so beautiful. We walked along the black rock beach and had so much fun.

The trip took about 9 hours and I did get a little car sick but it was worth it. If we ever go back we will do it again...except this time we will leave early and take all the side trips.

The Hawaiian Aquarium

The Hawaiian Aquarium...Maui's Ocean Center

Ben and Heather

(L to R) Sue, Big Ben, Tanner & Steve

We went to the aquarium with my sister Sue and her family. Big Ben and Tanner are 8 years old. It was such a blast to go with them. They were so excited to see all of the marine life and to share their knowledge.

There were so many amazing display of fish, marine mammals, sharks, turtles, rays, and a living reef. As we walked through the different displays you could see fish that looked almost electric, some hid very well and others were so big it felt like they could jump through the glass and attack you.

Big Ben and Tanner were especially cute; they would get the camera and take all these pictures and run to the next display. I think they really liked the sharks...

One of my favorite stops was the Tide Pool. This was a pool of water with starfish, sponges, small fish, etc. This was the interactive part of the tour. You could reach in and touch the marine life; hold it; move it around; watch it squirm from your fingers. It was awesome!

A small display of the cool marine life...

Maui's North Shore

The North Shore...this is the North Shore in Maui and it was amazing. On the last day we were in Hawaii a huge wind storm blew in; they thought it was going to be so bad they closed all the schools for the next day. Anyway, the wind created enormous, beautiful and amazing waves. Ben and I don't know how big the waves were but I think it was about 10 -15 feet high.

Below is a panoramic view of the North Shore at a spot just past Mama's Fish House.

This is a better view of the waves.


Ben loved to his body boarding experience. However, we really didn't get any great waves most of the time we were there. The last morning we were there we decided to go to the North side of the island and see what we could find...the waves were probably around 6 - 8 feet high...Ben and I both made an attempt...I was successful once; but as the wave pulled me back out I got thrown around a bit and slammed into the ground. Also, the beach wasn't made of sand...it was made up of little pebbles. From the time that both of us spent in the water we both had rocks in every crevice of our bodies.

Ben was tough. He had a lot of fun catching waves and playing in the surf.

The picture below will give you an idea of how the waves looked. Ben is standing up...check out the wave behind him.