Hawaii

**Be prepared for a lot of pictures. Mike and I were very lucky to have planned and prepared for this trip since February 09. For those of you who don't know, Mike lost his job a few months ago and this Hawaii trip was somewhat on the rocks...thankfully we worked hard to be able to still head on our trip and enjoy every second of it.

This fountain was easily an hours worth of fun for Grace.
This is our resort, Marriott's Ko'Olina Beach Club Resort, on the island of Oahu.
I really wish Mike and I would have taken pictures of our room on the first day but we slacked and snapped shots on the last day while we were trying to pack up...soooo please excuse the mess. The picture was taken right as you walk through the door.

Bathroom vanity

Tub looking into the bedroom

This living area is right off the kitchen
She wasn't a fan of the sand at first but tolerated it thereafter. I don't think she ever really "enjoyed" the sand. The feeling of being dirty or having things on her fingers doesn't appeal to Grace much. LOL



Just soakin' in some rays but of course she was lathered up with sunscreen and I don't think there was anyway the sun could break through that barrier! Translation: mom put A LOT on.
This resort had the neatest pools. Here is a picture of Grace and I under a little cave and you can see the water slide in the background. I can't wait to take my children when they are older and can truly appreciate all of the man-made waterfalls, slides and caves this beach club offers.
"Give me 5!"

Grace and I on the rocks with some beautiful scenery. It was a little overcast outside on this particular day. The perfect day for a walk on the beach...so that's what we did!

Precious!

It's "the" face again.........after thinking about it, I think Grace gets this from her dad! :)
This is a must see! Mike and I enjoyed everything about the PCC.

This is Gracie anxiously awaiting for the water parade to begin.

Each water float had dancers from the different islands of Tonga, Samoa, New Zealand, Tahiti, Fiji and Hawaii.

We also made a stop at the Laie Hawaii Temple. The temple is closed due to some remodeling for the next 18 months but the grounds have been kept up impeccably.

We actually ate cooked shrimp scampi from this rundown RV that has been ravaged with graffiti by tourists from around the world (we received rave reviews from the hotel staff on Giovanni's Shrimp Truck). I must admit it was delicious, although I did sanitize after. Ewww!!

Our resort hosted a Luau called the Fia Fia Polynesian Dinner Show. Mike and I sat by a bankruptcy attorney from Washington who bragged about how well business has been this year (in light of the failing economy). That guy wasn't the greatest company to have while eating dinner and "trying" to enjoy a fun show.

While in Honolulu we felt the need to visit the Pearl Harbor Memorial and indeed it was very special. Grace was a pure gem which also made our visit extremely memorable.

Part of the USS Arizona.

These monuments (behind Mike) post information about the fallen boats, submarines, planes and soldiers who died not only in the Pearl Harbor attack but also during the World War.

I love this picture.

And lastly, we visited the Dole (pineapple) Plantation.

We paid $15.00 for a 10 minute ride on this train. Was it worth it?? Come on we're on vacation..of course it was!

MAHALO!!!