Reception Photo - Day 182

Owen's mom got some pictures of the reception...here we are with our kids.

Sweet Neighbor - Day 181

Our neighbor, Virginia, brought over this wonderful basket today to congratulate us and to welcome Owen to the neighborhood.

Reception - Day 180

We had a small reception at the UP City Hall which was a great building to have it in. We had air conditioning (it was in the 90s today!) with a kitchen and a very fun building manager. Outside was a large, shady patio area where people could go sit and a lovely, wooded park to walk through and take great pictures in. Owen's sister decorated our cars with leis.

The family (that got there on time...another story) all helped pack in food, set up, refill bowls and platters when they were empty, and clean up when it was over. Owen's friend since childhood, Chris, performed a wedding ceremony that included the kids (since they didn't get to go to Kauai with us). I should have some pictures of that in a few weeks. We ended up having so much food left over, we'll be eating it for days...

Busy Day - Day 179

Today was such a busy day I thought one of Matthew's flowers would make it more peaceful and relaxing (just wishful thinking!) There's a lot of work to be done for a small reception...

Home - Day 178

Our flight from Kauai left at 10:30pm and arrived in Seattle about 7:25am. Mt. Rainier had a great cloud in front of it and the view above the clouds was just perfect!

Kauai, June 25 - Day 177

Our last day in Kauai was spent just dinging around. We had breakfast at our hotel and got the best seats!

Later in the day we filled up our rental car with gas...Costco was the lowest price at $4.44/gallon.
Our very last stop before the airport was Ninini Point Lighthouse. It was getting dark (7:30pm) so the photo is a bit dark as well.

Kauai, June 24 - Day 176

Today's adventure took us to the Kauai Coffee Company.
They have a self-guided tour through a small section of their field with signs to read along the way. They also have many flavors of coffee to sample. Owen's favorite was Peaberry.
Spouting Horn was very close to our hotel. Owen read that part of it was blown up by an owner of a sugar plantation because it was spouting saltwater on a small part of his crop (he actually had some of his men blow it up with dynamite). It was fun to watch it spout up when the water came in.

Kauai, June 23 - The Big Day - Day 175

We got married on the beach at Papaloa Bay in Wailua on the east shore.
It was very humid and it rained a bit, but it cleared up very quickly.
Originally, we were going to be married on a sand bar down the beach, but a monk seal had decided to lounge there for a while so that part of the beach was roped off and we used a location down the beach a ways. (If you click the picture, you can see the seal better.)

After the ceremony, we had lunch at Wahoo, a very good, reasonable place for lunch (dinner is very pricy!) Then we changed into regular clothes and continued our exploration of the island. This is Opeaka'a Falls.
This is Wailua Falls, where many guys jumped over the falls to prove their manhood and ended up "leaving their manhood on the rocks".

We visited Lydgate Beach and went back to our hotel for a mai tai reception, then to Keoki's for dinner (ok food, great setting/view).

Kauai, June 22 - Day 174

Today was a true day at the beach.

After breakfast, we headed down to the Sheraton's beach front area and rented a cabana for the day. It was perfect because if the sun got too hot, we could put up the top, if we wanted to dry off after swimming in the ocean, we could leave it down. When it rained, back up it went (it rained daily, sometimes just sprinkles, other times a good shower...but all you have to do is wait 20 minutes and it goes away). We had lunch at the little bar and grill right behind us and watched some locals surf on their wakeboards (some tourists were riding the waves, too, but were not as impressive as the locals who obviously practice more than just on vacation.) I finished my first book, we both got nice and tan, and we had a great day just relaxing in paradise.

Kauai, June 21 - Day 173

Today we spent all day on the West side of the island. We started with a trip up to Waimea Canyon. There are 3 major lookout areas and we took many photos from each site, each had its own special beauty.

We drove as far as you can drive to the west into Polihale State Park. The signs are nonexistent (meaning we took a few wrong turns), and the road was perfect for trucks and 4-wheel drive vehicles, which we didn't have (which means I was nervous about getting stuck). The beach looked like it was a hangout for teenagers and young 20-somethings so we didn't stick around too long, but at least we can say we drove as far as we could each way on the island!

Kauai, June 20 - Day 172

We started our day being awakened around 4:30am by some roosters that live wild all around the hotel (and everywhere on the island). We were told that the roosters were scattered by the hurricane that came through in 1992 and now live wild anywhere they want to. It was very strange to see them on the beaches and everywhere we went!
After getting our marriage license at the Pono Market in Kapua'a Town, we headed north and stopped at this scenic lookout. The beaches here are not always labeled, but this is likely the southern part of Kealia Beach.

This is the view from the Ki'lauea Lighthouse which boasts the largest "clamshell" lens in the world, though it is no longer in service. I loved how the blue water shows up here.



We continued up as far north as you can drive, stopping at many little beaches and interest spots, such as the Hanalei Valley, Queen's Bath in Princeville, and Ha'ena State Park (Ke'e Beach).

Flying to Paradise - Day 171

It was a busy day with last minute packing and a long wait at the airport. The flight was fine and as we approached Kauai, we were rewarded with this beautiful sun show through the clouds.

Perspective - Day 170

I'm so busy that Matthew's picture is going to be the photo of the day (again!). I likely won't post anything for a while (unless I get a tiny bit of time in the morning) so ALOHA! See you in a week!

Close-Up - Day 169

Since Snickers is famous again today (see my previous post), I thought it only fitting that he should also be my blog focus today. Matthew got this close-up and we also submitted it to SOMC for their Extreme Close-Up feature they do once in a while.

Newsflash

Snickers is on Stuff on My Cat again...I posted this picture on my blog last December, it's fun to see it on the site!

Going, Going, Gone - Day 168

Matthew found some gloves downstairs at Mama and Papa's and of course, this is what 14 year old boys need to do with gloves that they find...

Happy Father's Day - Day 167

This is the gift the boys gave Dan this year. It is photos Matthew has taken (other than the center photo). You may not be able to tell, but the 4 corner spots and the center are recessed which gives the frame a bit more interest. (And now that I see it closer, I realize I mixed up the two bottom pictures...the purple flowers should be in the middle with the blue flowers in the corner...I'll have to make him change them around!)

Happy Father's Day to all the fathers out there, especially my own dad. :)

Boys - Day 166

I usually take a photo of the boys around this time of year (for something special that I may show tomorrow). It was nice that the rhody was still blooming, but it was hard to get them to stand together without complaining, bumping into each other, laughing, trying to stand on tippy-toes to be taller, etc....boys. :)

Sunset - Day 165

We caught a pretty sunset tonight walking down at Grandview. Matthew took these...I'm going to have to put his name and photo on my home page since he takes so many of my photos! :)

We aren't sure what kind of flower this is, but it was pretty and a bit unusual.

Front Lawn - Day 164

I know I've posted a mowed lawn, but I think it was the back yard. Nicholas mowed the front today and I just thought it looked so nice (I know, we need a bit of work done in the flower beds, but there is just no time!!!). Having him mow the lawn just makes me happy. Thank you, Nicholas!

Chat with Syrie James, Author - Day 163

A few months ago I won The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen by Syrie James for our book group. Tonight was the chat with Syrie and we had a delightful time!



Here we have Marcie, Beth, Me, Ann
Nancy, Cheryl, and Judy.

Syrie was very interesting to talk to and enjoyed hearing our comments about her book. The next book she's getting published is Charlotte Bronte's Secret Diary which is scheduled to be out in a year, but could be out earlier and there could be a sequel to the Jane Austen story. She talked about how one non-thrilled reader told her, "Shame on you" when she found out at the end (she didn't read the prologue) that the book was a work of fiction. It is written as if Jane is writing and got wrapped up in the story (which was easy to do).

Hair - Day 162

Yesterday I had my hair appointment and got it highlighted and cut...what do you think?

Of course, this is just a wig, although I sure fooled a bunch of people at work...people who have known me for years. Quite a few people thought I was a sub, even some of my own students. Today was crazy hair day and there were some crazy hair-dos in all the classrooms. This is Nicholas's "surfer dude" wig that my grandpa sent him for Christmas about 6 or 7 years ago. We thought it was a strange gift at the time, but we have had so much fun with it!

Sun Burst - Day 161

On our way back from doing errands, we saw some spectacular sun bursts breaking through the clouds. It took a while to get the camera out, but Matthew got this shot which I couldn't even see while I was driving.

Lucky Day - Day 160

Matthew is so lucky at finding 4-leafed clovers...I love how the design on the leaves look like hearts.

Garage Sale - Day 159

Today was our neighborhood's garage sale day. Things were slower than usual (unfortunately) especically since we had triple the items for sale! We had some big items that didn't sell, such as my couch set, dining set with chairs, Owen's motorcycle, end tables, stools...Thankfully the weather held out and it was only cold, no rain.

We also had a special helper/greeter today. Snickers decided he liked a comforter that Owen was selling and slept there for a while. He also liked this cushion that my parents were selling where he could be high above the ground and watch as people went by. He let all kinds of strangers pet him and tell him how unusual he looked. I heard, "I've never seen a cat like that," quite a few times today.

Engagement Celebration - Day 158

My wonderful staff held an Engagement Celebration for Owen and me today. Patty made the wonderful cake (white cake, raspberry filling, cream cheese frosting...super yummy and exceptionally beautiful!), Sue, Jo, and Michele hosted the rest.

We played a game matching Hawaiian words to their meanings, then a Price is Right game. Did you know that a gallon of gas in Kauai is only $4.22 right now? That's how much it is here and I thought it'd be at least $1 more a gallon there. I was amazed at the generosity of the staff...we have a credit amount at our hotel from them to use for massage or dinner or room service, plus some spending money, some beach towels, all the items from the Price is Right game, manicure and pedicure for me, pedicure for Owen...endless things. Here I'm trying not to cry when my surprise guest, Lois, who worked in my classroom my first 8-10 years, gave a toast. My staff is great!

Science Fair - Day 157

Tonight was our Science Fair at school. Five of my students made a project (more than any class in which it wasn't mandatory) so I thought I should go. Evening events totally wear me out, especially at the end of the year. Now I'm going to pop in a movie and veg out for a while...see if I can build up enough energy to prepare for our huge garage sale on Saturday (wish for sunshine on Saturday for us, ok?).

Not So Good Dinner - Day 156

What I thought would be a quick, easy dinner wasn't very good at all. My bbq chicken sandwich had a bun that would break teeth so when I took it back up front, they had run out of those kind (mine must have been out since last week). I had to have snacker size buns which weren't very tasty. The coleslaw was flavorless and the bbq chicken was not mixed well (some pieces had sauce, some didn't). Matthew's mashed potato bowl wasn't nearly as full as the picture shows it to be either. It's times like this that make me wish I was mystery shopping so that maybe they would do better next time after getting a report. But at least I didn't have to cook!

Interesting Pattern - Day 155

I was looking at Snickers's head and wondering what pattern his lines made. At first, I thought I saw some sort of spider, but then I thought it looked like an old fashioned dress (Matthew said a prom dress). It also looks like sort of like a cup if you look upside down. He's an interesting cat, patterns or not.

Flying Dog - Day 154

Chico grew some wings yesterday thanks to Nicholas and an old wooden butterfly kit.

Car Show - Day 153

Nicholas went to a car show today in Issaquah with Heather and her family. The owner of this Viper let Nicholas sit it in for a picture. Now he thinks I should buy him one...