Our First Summertime Adventure...

Last weekend John and his dad arranged for us to camp at Chatter Creek Campground by Leavenworth. The only catch was that the road to the campground had been closed a few years ago because the road was washed out. We decided to take our bikes into the campground, carrying all of our camping gear and food in our backpacks. We got there late in the afternoon. Amanda was so excited about the hike (have I told you that she loves to watch "America's Next Top Model" ? This is her "Fierce" look:
Nate had to carry the most gear of all the kids because he brought in food for the Boy Scouts who joined us later:
Nicole helped pitch our tent (and yes, it is hot pink!):
Amanda helped Grandpa pitch his tent. Notice how she's in a skirt - that's our princess:) :

First thing the following morning (at 6:30 am) we woke up to Nate and his crew "moving out" to the Boy Scout campsite:

While we were camping, we played games:

We went fishing:

And made s'mores. I'll add more to another post because I don't want to lose everything.

Hawaii - Day 11 (our last full day on the island)...

We had another amazing day! We finished up some last minute shopping for souveniers and then met Euvah, Steve, and my Aunt Jacque and Uncle Van at the City of Refuge. We had a cookout at the beach close to the City of Refuge (Uncle Van cooked some yummy steaks) and explored the wonderful tide pools in the lava on the beach. After our cookout, Euvah, Steve, and our family continued on to tour the City of Refuge and explore more of the area. It was amazing! We got lots of wonderful photos and learned a lot about the Hawaiian culture. What a wonderful ending to our trip:)

Hawaii Day 10

On Monday, June 7th, we went back out to the Waikoloa Resort Hotel and spent the day bouncing between their awesome pools. We also had lunch in Grandma's room overlooking the water and golf course. John and I really needed the time relaxing by the pool to recuperate from the rest of our Hawaii trip. The kids stayed busy for hours, going down the waterslide, playing in the sand, and jumping and swimming in the pools. We gathered the kids up late in the afternoon, and made our way back to the house for a restful night.

Hawaii - Day 10

We woke up bright and early and headed out the door on our first kayaking adventure ever! Aunt Euvah and Uncle Steve joined us on our adventure, as we rented three kayaks (one 3-person kayak and two 2-person kayaks) and paddled across a bay (about a mile) to the Captain Cook Monument in Kealakekua Bay. We had a picnic near the monument, and then went snorkeling for most of the day. We saw so many amazing fish, and were even able to capture them on film thanks to my sister Euvah's underwater camera. We went home exhausted after such a wonderful day and so glad that we went on this adventure together:)

Hawaii - Day Nine (Guest Post by Nicole!)

On Saturday morning, we got up and went on a sightseeing trip with Aunt Euvah and Uncle Steve. We went down to the Kona waterfront and walked along the water, taking pictures of fish, a memorial, and the family as we went. Nate bought a Hawaii shirt and we got some Hawaii postcards along the way. We had lunch in a small restaurant across from the water and then took them to Grandma's hotel up the coast. We showed them the Kona Pool, the Ocean Towers Pool, and took them on a boat and train ride around the resort. We had such a great time! Love, Nicole

Hawaii Day Eight (Guest Post by Nicole!)

We spent the whole day at Grandma's hotel today. First, we rented a paddle boat and went around the ocean. My mom and dad sat in the back of the boat and it tilted way back:) We decided that they needed to move forward in the boat. I would share pictures of this but my mom forgot to put a memory card in her camera. Grandma got pictures, so I'll try to post them later. We paddled around the private ocean bay at the hotel. We saw lots of fish, a sea snake, and five sea turtles. After we got done paddling the boat, we went swimming in the Kona pool again. We went back to the hotel in time for dinner, and got to see Aunt Euvah and Uncle Steve right before we went to bed. I was so excited to see them:) Love, Nicole.

Hawaii Day Seven (Guest Post by Nicole!)

Amanda and I always knew we wanted a Hawaii dress. We went shopping in an International Swap Meet, but they only had the types of dresses with elastic in the top that feels itchy. We finally found some Hawaii dresses at Target:) I got a yellow (cheese colored) dress and Amanda got a purple dress. After we got done shopping, we went to Grandma's hotel and went swimming in the Kona pool. The Kona pool has a water slide, several water falls, three hot tubs (one is inside a cave!), a set of caves, a suspension bridge, and a sandy pool. We loved playing there! The Kona pool is so big it makes a huge pool look small. I hope we come back again to this pool. Love, Nicole.