Underclassmen Awards Ceremony

Andrew and Daniel had their Underclassmen Awards Ceremony.  Since Andrew was at ICDC, we let them know that he wouldn't be coming so he didn't get this cool graphic like Daniel got.  That was a bummer.  

Both boys have above a 4.0 GPA and we're so proud of both of them!

Andrew's ICDC trip for DECA

Andrew had a great time on his ICDC trip to Orlando for DECA.  He came home pretty tired, but it was a wonderful trip.  Papa came to meet him and take him to lunch while he was there, so that was really nice.  

Andrew's Track Season

This is Andrew's third season of running hurdles in track.  We are so proud of him and so impressed by how much he has improved over the last two years.  

Track meet at Valley Christian, 300 meter hurdles

Track meet at AZ College Prep, 300 meter hurdles

Track meet at Hohokam Invitational at Westwood High School, 300 meter hurdles

Way to go, Andrew!

Mom's Tennis League

I had so much fun playing tennis this past year.  It was especially nice to just show up to play and not be the captain anymore. 

Hawaii!

Michael and I had a fantastic trip to Hawaii! We are so grateful to my dad for watching the boys for us!

We left on March 27. On Monday morning, we got up and got ready and packed and said goodbye to Dad and the boys. The flight was fine. We landed a little bit early but it took us forever to get our bags and get the rental car. There was a mix-up with the rental car but they got it figured out for us. At the hotel, they took our bags and we went in to check in. We stayed at The Royal Hawaiian and it was absolutely gorgeous!

It was a little odd because we stood there waiting our turn at check in and then as soon as it was our turn both of the agents disappeared. When they finally helped us, the agent was very helpful and said that we were somehow automatically upgraded to a club room, whatever that means. It doesn't seem any different. 

After we got settled, we decided we would walk to the Hula Grill for our dinner reservation. We walked over behind the resort and the mall is in the back right next to the resort. It's called the Royal Hawaiian Center and it's kind of like Santan Village, but much prettier. The Hula Grill is right on top of Duke's Grill where we are going to eat lunch tomorrow. It was a beautiful setting. We could hear the band downstairs at Duke’s and it was very pleasant. I loved sitting next to the water. We got a crab wonton appetizer which was amazing and their focaccia bread was really good. I got the coconut seafood chowder, Michael got the ginger pesto fresh catch of the day, and we got some coconut creamed corn to share. 

We still had a resort credit to use so we walked back to our hotel and went to the Mai Tai Bar to get dessert. Michael ordered a guava juice and we ordered a coconut snowball and a tropical cheesecake. By then it was 10 PM, which is like 1 AM to us so we were pretty exhausted.

Tuesday was a glorious day in Hawaii. We slept in and lollygagged so long this morning that by the time we were ready to leave the hotel room, it was time to go to our 11:15 AM lunch reservation at Duke's. We stopped by the pool desk to check in for our lounge chairs. They said they would set them up and put the towels on them so they'd be there when we got back. We went to Duke's Canoe Club Waikiki and the food was amazing! The restaurant is so close to our hotel. While I'm sitting on my lounge chair, I can see the restaurant and it's basically next-door. They sat us at a table right at the edge so we were closest to the water. I loved being near the ocean. The seating area that we had been above last night is turned into an area for lounge chairs during the day. I guess they set it up with restaurant tables and the performer in the evenings. Anyway, we got the lunch buffet and I especially loved the Kalua pork with cabbage and the macadamia nut fish with the lemon caper aioli sauce. Normally that doesn't sound like something I would like but it was great. They also had really good teriyaki chicken but the Kalua pork was my favorite. Michael also had a big salad. 

We couldn't resist having the hula pie for dessert. It's enormous! It's a very tall piece of ice cream pie with chocolate and macadamia nuts on an Oreo crust. I don't know how we finished it but we did. 

After we filled our plates for the first time, it started to rain. At first it was light and then it was pretty heavy and then it lightened up again. We were under this big umbrella hut-looking thing so we stayed relatively dry but Michael said he got some rain on his back. After that, we walked over to our lounge chairs. The guy had switched out our towels for us because of the rain so that was nice and I felt like I was in the lap of luxury. I took a ton of pictures and then Michael went to the water to play. He was out there for a good two hours.  

I sat down and was just so grateful to have this time at the beach that I've been dreaming of for months. Well, years really, if you consider the fact that I wanted to come here back in 2020 and we had to cancel the trip. Just as I was getting settled in, I got a text from Jonny asking if I had completed the Register My Athlete registration. I was pretty sure I had done it but I searched my emails and I couldn't find anything and I couldn't log into the website because I forgot the password. As I was trying to login, Jonny called me. I guess he was at the school and they were supposed to start practice today. Nobody told me. The last thing I read in the weekly newsletter was that there's tryouts for sports on Thursday but that's all I had heard. Nothing from the track coaches or anything. I told him to go ahead and go to the practice and if the coaches had a problem to just explain that I was out of town and I would do it as soon as I could. Then I called Daniel and had him look up the password and he couldn't find it on the list but he went to the computer and got it for me so I was able to get into the account and I saw that it was already complete. Like fully complete and I had done it back in January. Anyway, I told everybody that Jonny had practice on our group chat to Dad and the boys and I was finally able to relax. I spent the afternoon reading scriptures, doing Duolingo, doing a couple tasks I had written down, and other stuff like that. It was wonderful to sit in my lounge chair on the beach and listen to the waves and do the things I needed to do and completely relax. Michael came back to the chairs after a couple of hours and then went back again. He came back again at 4:30 PM and we discussed what we should do for dinner. We decided to change our 5:30 PM reservation to 7:45 PM. That was the next one available for the Aloha Steakhouse. We put his snorkel mask together and then he went out to do some snorkeling. This time I had him take his watch so that he would know what time it was because we only get these chairs until 6 PM. By the time Michael came back to the chair, we were literally the only ones left. All of the other umbrellas and chairs had been put away. We laughed and guessed that everybody else had early dinner reservations. 

Our reservation wasn't until 7:45 PM at Aloha Steakhouse so we came back to the room and rested a little bit and got ready. It was kind of near that Royal Hawaiian Center area but just a little bit beyond it. That Royal Hawaiian Center is beautiful. It's the prettiest mall I've ever seen. This hotel is the prettiest one I've ever stayed in. It's so cool to have that center nearby. We walked into the restaurant and there was no one to greet us so we stood there for a while and then the hostess finally saw us and sat us right away. For the prices they were charging, I thought the ambience was lacking but Michael says it was on purpose to be more of a casual, fun setting. We both got the sweet corn soup and it was amazing. I don't know how they puréed the corn so much that you couldn't see any kernels and it was completely smooth. Michael got the ribeye and I got the salmon. Both were delicious. 

Afterwards, we walked through the Royal Hawaiian Center and did a little shopping at the ABC store. They have a lot of good souvenirs. I'll probably go back there to buy T-shirts for Dad and the boys and also some candy. 

I was having so much fun shopping that I forgot that we were going to go to the Mai Tai Bar again and use our resort credit. We got there just in time. She brought us the dessert first. It was a flourless chocolate cake and it tasted kind of like a brownie. It started raining while we sat there. Everybody got up and moved and it got much quieter so that was nice. Then she brought us the guava juice and macadamia nut gelato and fried green tomatoes. We enjoyed our dessert and then we headed back to the room.

It was wonderful to sleep in on Wednesday. Unfortunately, my body was still on Phoenix time, I think. I spent quite a bit of time getting ready for the day. Michael wanted to go to Duke's breakfast buffet but I was still full from yesterday so he went and did that while I got ready. There were no reservations available but they put him on a waitlist and he didn't have to wait long for a table. He said the French toast was really good. By the time he got back to the room, I was almost ready to walk out the door. I went down and got our lounge chairs and he met me down there. I settled in on our chairs and then Michael came down and he spent most of the afternoon in the water. We had to spend a few minutes dealing with the boys. There was a mix-up about Andrew's track meet because I thought he wasn't going to be in the 110 hurdles event but he was, but luckily dad was already there and was able to watch both events. Andrew wanted to stay so Dad just drove back home and it all worked out. Andrew beat his personal record by a second so that was great. I spent the afternoon doing all the same things as I did yesterday. Michael went out and back a few times. 

I felt so bad for this poor little pigeon!

I promised him that I would go down to the water by 5:30 PM and I did. I thought the water was pretty cold but he thought I was crazy. I got in far enough to get wet up to my waist and that was about it. We used every minute of our lounge chair reservation until 6 PM. Yesterday we were the last ones left but today there were a few other people who were still there at 6 PM when we left. 

I thought this door at the hotel was so pretty.

We went back to the room and relaxed a little bit and got ready for dinner. I originally had our Azura restaurant reservation for 5:30 PM but I changed it to later so we wouldn't have to leave the beach too early. I had requested a table closest to the water and they asked us to wait about five minutes and then they seated us at a table right near the railing and right by the beach. It was a very nice evening and the weather was great. Our waiter had a mustache that he had curled on the ends and I was reminded of my Latin teacher. 

All of the food was really good. Even the butter for the bread was exceptional. I especially liked the beet salad, which was surprising. For the second course I had hearts of palm and Michael got the scallops but they were cold so I'm glad I didn't get that one. We both got the strip loin and short rib for our third course. It was pretty good but there was barely any there. Then we each got a different dessert and shared. We were there for about an hour and a half and I really enjoyed it. 

This is a cool sand sculpture at the hotel

Next, we walked over to the ABC store to buy T-shirts and candies for Dad and the boys. We walked back a different way and went back to our room and got ready for bed.

Thursday was long and exhausting but also pretty awesome. We got up and got ready and at 10 AM we went to breakfast at Surf Lanai, which is the breakfast restaurant at the hotel. It's the same place that the Azura restaurant is during the evenings. I've been looking forward to trying the pink pancakes for a while and they did not disappoint. Michael got a works omelet. 

After breakfast we stopped at the back of the hotel because I wanted to get a few pictures. Then I stopped at the bakery and got a package of the pink pancake mix to take home. 

We went up to the room and got organized so we could go to the Polynesian Cultural Center today. It took us a little extra time to get organized and then to make matters worse, we didn't remember where we parked the car. We hadn’t used it since we parked it on Monday. I thought it was on the fifth floor but it wasn't and then we checked the sixth and it wasn't there and the seventh was the roof so we knew that was wrong so we went back to the fourth floor and it was there, thank goodness. It took an hour and a half to get to the Polynesian Cultural Center even though it was only 35 miles away. The roads here are very inefficient. What they call a highway is really just a road. The drive was pretty, though.

We really did get the VIP treatment all day. Right when we walked in, the girl was helping me look for the tickets and she immediately radioed to the people to let them know that there were two people with super ambassador passes and to get ready for us. They took us to this cute little tent with nice couches and chairs and snacks and water. 

Then we met our tour guide. His name was Chito and he is from the Philippines. He joked that his name is just like the junk food and we thought that was pretty cute. He was a really nice kid and very knowledgeable. He kept asking us questions about what we knew about different Polynesian countries. He was telling us that he goes to BYU Hawaii and we told him that that we met at BYU Provo and that we have two kids there and a daughter-in-law who just graduated. He gave us the fancy shell lei necklaces and Michael and I gave them to each other and then we started our tour. The first country was Samoa. He showed us a family hut and the chief’s hut. We learned that in Samoa, the men do the cooking. Then he took us to an activity of learning to twirl sticks. It's the same sticks that they use in the program at the end of the day and they put fire on the ends. It just had duct tape on the ends. 

I actually caught on pretty quickly. He took a video of us.

Samoa village 

They had a cold coconut stand so we tried one of those. I was pretty disappointed.  The water didn’t taste like much and I didn’t like the meat, either. Michael ate most of it. Next, we went to New Zealand, or Aotearoa. He took us to a little show. It was nice because for all the shows they had reserved seats for us in the front row or close to the front row. We enjoyed the presentation. They did some singing and games and stick throwing and then the Haka. It was pretty intense. 

Chito took us past the boat that the Disney people used to model Moana's boat after. We were told that it takes more than one girl and a goofy chicken to sail it, haha. They said it actually takes 15 people. 

Next, we went to Tahiti. First, they taught the women and then the men how to shake their hips and dance. I'm definitely not cut out for it. 

After that, we went out the back and they had samples of coconut bread. Then we went to Fiji. They had a cool music demonstration and we got to pound some bamboo sticks to the beat. There is a three-beat pattern, a two then three beat pattern, and a four beat pattern. It was pretty cool. Next, we went to Hawaii. 

They did a cool hula demonstration and we tried poi. I thought it was pretty nasty, actually. Maybe if it's prepared with something else, I'd like it? They had some at the luau but I didn't try any. Then we rode the canoes. It was a short little ride. 

When we got back, he showed us the Easter Island statues. 

Then he gave us instructions on what we do after he's done being our tour guide. He explained that there's some time in between the luau and the show and I really wanted to use that time to do the tram tour of BYU Hawaii and the temple. He showed us a boat that they take out for two weeks at a time for the students go out in if they are in a certain major and there's 15 students and two instructors on a boat for two weeks and they're completely off the grid as far as phones and technology. That sounds crazy. We asked Chito what his major is and he said business management with a minor in visual arts. Then it was our last stop, Tonga. There was another fun demonstration and they called three different guys up to do some dances and play the drums. Michael was pretty relieved that he didn't get chosen to go up there. Those guys were hilarious but they really did make fools out of themselves. 

After that, it was already 5 PM in time to go to the luau. Chito walked us over there and we took a picture with him and then we had our picture that we got for free, or included, and then it was time to go into the luau. 

I really loved the fact that they gave us a real flower lei when we came in. 

He thanked us profusely for our donation of the super ambassador package because that helps with scholarships and with jobs at the center. We gave him a nice tip and he was very grateful and said we didn't have to, but I was glad we could help him out. He really did a good job showing us around and making sure we had everything we needed. The luau was fun, but not exactly what I had pictured. The first thing they did was bring us piña coladas in actual pineapples and those were delicious. We even got a refill. 

I liked many of the foods that I tried, especially the desserts. The pineapple crème brûlée was amazing. The entertainment was very nice. 

They wished us a Happy Anniversary

By about 6:15 PM, we headed over to the tram ride. The trams were running behind so they made it a super short ride and we didn't get to go close to the temple or anything but it was a nice little tour. They dropped us off right by the theater to watch the Ha Breath of Life show. The show was amazing! My favorite part was at the end when they were twirling the sticks with fire on both ends. Another cool part shortly before that was when the guys had fire and they kept putting the fire out with their skirts and then walking over the fire and sitting on the fire. It was crazy! When they were twirling the fire sticks, that was so amazing. They throw them and spin them and throw them to each other. It was unbelievable. 

Pictures after the Ka show

After the show, I bought a flower for my hair and we were on our way. The drive back was just over an hour.

It took us quite a while to get packed up on Friday morning. We certainly didn't want to leave. I think it was about 10:45 AM when we went downstairs so I could shop at the cute little souvenir shop in the hotel. I bought a magnet and a little pouch. I took a couple more pictures and then we went back upstairs and got all our stuff completely packed up. We checked out and headed to the car. 

I couldn't resist a few more pictures and some video of the beautiful hotel.

Luckily, this time we remembered where we parked. I really wanted to look in the Tiffany and Co. store. It looked so cool and I just wanted to go in and see what there was. Unfortunately, when we got there, there were two couples in front of us and we had to wait our turn to go inside. It was taking a long time and I didn't want to risk being late for our appointment for the USS Arizona, so we never got to go in. Here we are waiting in line. I guess Tiffany and Co is too good for us, haha. 

We drove over to the Pearl Harbor National Memorial. They gave us instructions and then we got on the boat to go to the memorial. I didn't realize that the travel time on the boat there and back was included in the 45-minute tour, so we didn't have very much time there. 

Michael told me some interesting facts and we looked over the side and saw what was left of the USS Arizona. We went into the sacred room with the list of all the people who died there and all the survivors who were later buried there. We took a bunch of pictures and then it was already time to leave. They had said there would be plenty of time to take pictures outside after we were done inside but they rushed us to the boat to go back. 

Once we got back, it started to sprinkle a little bit. 

We followed the signs to the place where they have the shuttle for the USS Missouri.

The tour was very cool. We just missed the start of a tour so we caught up with them and the tour guide was really good. After that, we went down into the ship and toured all of the living quarters and where they ate and where they bought snacks and worked and the officer’s quarters and all that kind of stuff. It was pretty cool. 

After that, we took a shuttle over to the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum. I was glad Michael got to walk around the museum. I looked around for a bit and then I saw Michael outside and took some pictures. There was a whole other building but it was starting to rain so I told Michael that I would go back to the main building and wait for him so that's what we did. As we were waiting for the shuttle, I called Dad and the boys. They had gone to Osaka for dinner tonight and they even took a picture and sent it to me. 

Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum

We thought this mural was cool because that is our hotel!

We caught one of the last shuttles. I think it was about 4:50 PM. It took us back to the Memorial and then we went to our car. We had a reservation at a place called Uncle’s Fish Market and Grill. Our butterfish was amazing but there wasn't much else. The vegetables they brought us were a pretty small serving. I wasn't really even full after we ate. It was at a mall so we went inside the mall and went to a Cookie Company shop and Dunkin' Donuts and then left. The cookies were very underwhelming. There was a Leonard’s bakery food truck that sells malasadas in the parking lot so it took us a little time but we found it and we each ordered two of those. They were huge but delicious. 

Then we headed to the airport. We checked our bags and then we had to go through an agricultural check which was easy but I didn't realize we would have to do that. Our gate was pretty far away so we took a little shuttle that was called the Wiki Wiki shuttle. The guy was pretty entertaining.

This is a picture of a pond at the beautiful Honolulu airport 

We stopped at a couple souvenir shops in the airport. At one of them, Michael got a soda and I got a macadamia nut ice cream to share. It's called Hawaiian Island ice cream. We didn't have very long to wait once we got to our gate. It was difficult to sleep on the plane, but I think I got a good amount of sleep considering the length of the flight was only about 5 1/2 hours. It took forever to get our luggage at baggage claim but we were easily able to get to our car and get home. Dad had taken Andrew to the track meet this morning and took him to the bus at the school. We got home and greeted everybody and put a few things away. Later, we went to the track meet. I was so proud of Andrew! He ran so well and beat a couple of the guys in his heat. 

Later, we sat down to watch General Conference. We also played a couple rounds of Herd Mentality. Then, I showed everybody pictures from our trip and we got ready to go to our reservation at The Keg. We had a fun time. The waitress brought out two huge slices of pie because we told her it was Dad's birthday. 

When we got home, we watched a couple of episodes of Young Sheldon and then everybody went to bed.

I am so grateful we were able to go on this trip! Michael and I had a fabulous time and I can’t wait to go again!