And so it begins...

Our family made it to the Aloha State! It is beautiful—full of sunshine, blue waters, surfers, palm trees and mountains. The day of travel was the beginning of quite an adventure. Some of the most notable things about the experience were:

• 5 checked bags, 5 carry-ons, 5 backpacks, 2 golf bags, 1 surf board. Pretty impressive for 6 months, right?!
•TSA Precheck—I signed us up for this and am so glad I did! No quart sized baggies, no removing shoes, no removing items from our carry-ons. Simple. Easy. Yes, please.
•Kids sat several rows back from us—this wasn’t on purpose (totally). Cabell and I were given seats in the comfort section since Owen was going to be riding with us. And the kids weren’t given those seats. I thought we would be able to work it out when we got there, but no luck with 2 full flights. Oh well....it worked out for Mom and Dad—ha!
•Cokes and Sprites were flowing for the kids.
•No TVs on the flight from Denver to Honolulu. Apparently, they got rid of the TV’s and you have to use your own device to stream their entertainment. Well, that’s a bit of a problem when your kids don’t have their own devices. Oh well... they were several rows back and had to work out sharing.
•Awake for 22 hours—with the 6 hour time difference, we were told to stay awake as long as possible on the day of arrival. We arrived at 1pm Hawaii time and stayed up until 8pm. Wow, jet lag is the real deal. I wondered why Luke was so whiny the next day....um, this is why.

But we made it!

We do not move into our rental house until July 22, so we are island hopping for 20 days. We are staying in Waikiki for the first 5 nights. Then off to the Big Island and then Maui. The paradise pace isn’t quite in effect yet, as many of you may understand when traveling with kids. But day by day, we will get there. 

We’ve explored Waikiki Beach, driven to Kailua where we will be living, and explored beaches and bays around the island. One of my goals is to swim more with my kids (I know that sounds silly, but I’m just not a huge swimmer...I like to stay dry and watch.) Yesterday, as I was getting into the beautiful water, Luke said, “Get your bathing suit wet, Mom. That’s how the fun begins.” Ha! So I went for it. 

So far, life is good, beautiful and focused on family. Here are some pics from exploring in Oahu.