Hawaii: Day 7

Before we headed to Hawaii, a few people we know recommended things to do, places to eat, and places to go. One of Eric's co-workers has a condo on Maui and was full of incredibly helpful information. Two of the restaurants she suggested were put on today's to-do (to-eat?) list.

We had breakfast at Kihei Caffe and, oh my goodness, was it ever good! Eric had "eggs any way" (scrambled, duh) that came with a biscuit and Spam (Eric was one happy guy!). Annika had the fluffiest buttermilk pancakes we've ever seen ... and to make them even better, she had them topped with strawberry slices. Conor had a Belgium waffle topped with chocolate chips (another happy guy!). I chose the crab cake eggs Benedict. So good! We were all completely stuffed, but in a "I couldn't eat another bite, but I would if I could" sort of way.

After breakfast, we popped back to the condo to digest. Around 10, we headed north to Lahaina, which started out as a whaling town way back when. The drive up was very pretty with ocean views much of the way. The town's architecture was unexpectedly old. There were a few from the 1800s! We peeked in a bunch of the souvenir shops along the way and quickly realized we were just seeing the same shirts/dresses/necklaces over and over again, which made the shopping a relatively quick experience after awhile. That said, Annika did find a cute sundress and Conor found a sweatshirt to wear back at home when the cool weather returns. (Not now! We keep seeing alerts that the PNW is experiencing a heat wave.) 

Lahaina felt very touristy (at least, where we were) and I realized we kept seeing the same things store after store. What really stood out to me was the architecture. The old colonial feel was still very present in the buildings along the main street. At one point, there was even a wooden plank section of sidewalk. It felt a bit like a trip back in time. We even saw the Baldwin Home, which was the home (turned museum) of Rev. & Mrs. Baldwin, two of the original missionaries in Lahaina. 

One of the things I really wanted us to see was the Lahaina banyan tree. It started out as a single-trunked 8' tree that was planted in 1873. Now, the single tree that is 60' tall and spans an acre of land. Apparently, banyan trees not only grow up, but out. There are trunks all over the park and the leaves/branches have created a gorgeous and refreshingly cool canopy. Someone really thought ahead with that tree and the park! Initially, the park was planned to give the local working class a place to escape the heat and find a comfortable place to relax.

On our way back from Lahaina, we stopped at another place that Eric's co-worker recommended, Leoda's Kitchen & Pie Shop, which is in Olowalu. We picked up a to-go lunch and some of their mini pies. Once back at the condo, we sat down for lunch (due to COVID, there was no in-house dining at Leoda's). To say the sandwiches were tasty is an understatement. They were fantastic. The bread is made right there at the restaurant and if I'd known how good it is, I would have inquired about buying an entire loaf of it. It was a delicate wheat bread that had great flavor and texture ... basically, the prima donna of bread.

After all of that delicious food, we needed to burn it off. We donned our swimsuits and headed to the pool. The water felt marvelous! Eric and Annika busied themselves by having races from end to end while Conor and I practiced our underwater handstands. We also had fun standing with our heads under the waterfalls, which are part of the rockery at one end of the pool.

Eric decided to take full advantage of being on vacation and opted to take an afternoon nap. To help him succeed in his endeavor, the kids and I decided to go for a walk. (Quiet condo = better nap!)

Annika, Conor, and I quickly got detoured when we noticed the shaved ice van (Gus the Bus) was parked outside. Win! Gus the Bus is a converted blue/white VW van from the 1960s, and it is beyond adorable as a shaved ice food van. We'd heard of this famous Hawaiian treat, but hadn't gotten around to trying it yet. We decided it was high time to right that very great wrong! I had expected a snow cone, little chunks of ice bits that are flavored with a syrup of some sort. Boy, was I was wrong. It is more like eating fluffy snow, and it is quite delightful. I ordered a POG shaved ice, which was literally POG juice frozen in a huge cylinder and then shaved. Annika had POM (passion, orange, mango). Conor chose a lemon/lime option. 

Gus the Bus

We took our treats to the Kamaole Beach Park I (aka the beach that is across from the condo complex) and happily sat on the sand while digging our toes in the sand and enjoying our shaved ice. After the kids finished their treats, they happily put themselves to "work" creating a variety of sand art and sculptures. I happily sat on the beach, watching the kids have a great time and taking in the glorious ocean views. The breeze kept us from feeling too hot... as did the occasional dips of toes in the ocean.

Annika's "sandman" creation

By the time we made it back to the condo, Eric was up and ready to hear about our adventures. I promised to take him back to the shaved ice van tomorrow so he could find out how tasty it is first hand. He is definitely in for a treat!!

The rest of the evening was very low key. We picked up dinner from the food trucks (Aloha Thai Fusion and Kina'ole Grill) that park outside the condo complex each day. With our yummy food in hand, we happily kicked up our feet for the remainder of the evening. I read my book, Eric and Annika watched a movie they found on TV, and Conor played a video game. 

Tomorrow will be another activity day, so a little R&R evening was just what we needed.

Home Town Tourists

While Annika is off jet-setting with Bestemor and Bestefar, the reaming three members of the Olson Four hunkered down for a Seattle-based weekend,

Eric got his shingles vaccine Friday evening and felt the effects of it Saturday. (Fortunately, the "get ready to feel like you got hit by a truck" scenario didn't come to fruition, but he definitely didn't feel great on Saturday.) Knowing that Eric would be feeling cruddy on Saturday, Conor and I made plans to go to Archie McPhee (we are slacker parents and had yet to take our kid there!) and then to Molly Moon's for some ice cream.

As an added bonus, we went on our adventure with another family from the kids' school. Playing hometown tourist is great. Playing hometown tourist with friends is even better!! (Thanks for going along with us, Kate, Sophia, and Ben!)

If you've never been to Archie McPhee, you must go there! It's quirky, zany, and altogether goofy! There are pranks galore, silly hats and masks aplenty, and more "why on earth would I have an excuse to need this" items than you can shake a stick at. (Note: Giggles abound at Archie McPhee ... A-BOUND!!) Oh, and did I mention the rubber chicken museum wall? People, you really need to go!!

Our fierce viking boy

Oh deer!

Has anyone seen Conor?

I've heard of chicken fingers, but duck fingers?????
That's a new one to me!

We followed up our Archie McPhee expedition with some much-needed ice cream. It was sunny ... of course we NEEDED ice cream!! The kids happily sat at the window licking their desserts, completely oblivious to the rivers of sticky melted ice cream running down their chins and arms. When spots opened up outside, the kids bolted to the "grassy" area and swings. (The people who designed this ice cream store, really had kids in mind!!) A perfect summer day experience for kiddos, if you ask me!

Conor slurping up the last of his ice cream while lounging on a swing

Playing Tourist in Seattle

On Wednesday, my sister arrived from San Diego. And it was good.
On Thursday, my sister's daughters arrived from San Diego. And it was even better!

Wednesday was loads of fun because Suzanne and I got to have some much-needed sister time. We went out to dinner at a fun local French-ish restaurant called Gainsbourg. We shared a to-die-for burger and plate of amazing Brussels sprouts. We also tried some fun cocktails that were very lovely and things we'd never make at home because of the rather uncommon ingredients (namely things like celery shrub!) After dinner, we really cut lose and went grocery shopping together. I know, we party HARD when we're in the same area code.

My sister's girls arrived bright and early yesterday morning. The poor things were bleary eyed, to say the least, from having to be up at 4:30 to make their flight. Once we picked them up at the airport and showered Emily with lots of happy birthday wishes, we made our way to Starbucks so everyone could fuel up a bit.

Our main attraction of the day was the Chihuly Garden and Glass display in the Seattle Center. Oh... my... goodness!! I've heard about this place, seen pictures and TV footage of this place, and read articles about its construction (safest place to be during a Seattle earthquake), but none of that prepared me for the eye-popping nature of the art. Just wow. The shapes, colors, and artistry all hit your vision in waves. Even now as I think back, it stuns me that this form of artistry is even possible. Beyond the glass, we got to see some of Dale Chihuly's paintings that served as "rough sketches" for the glass pieces. If given the option, I think I'd almost prefer having one or more of the paintings in our home instead of the glass pieces, just to avoid the breakage issue. All of it was just absolutely incredible!!

This looks like a row boat full of candy!

Reflection

Under the sea

This is actually a ceiling

In the event/banquet area

A very tired birthday girl getting a hug from her mama

Space Needle

And .... INSTAGRAM!

Anna, stop being so darned serious all of the time!

Reflections of thistle-y flowers and the Space Needle

This "tree" looks like it was plucked from the world of Dr. Seuss

I call this "seals and Advent candles" ... no clue what Chihuly calls it

Reflections of a tree

It amazes me how the foliage so perfectly
coordinates with the colors in the glass art throughout
the entire garden

After our eye-popping time at the Chihuly exhibit, we made our way to Ballard for a quick lunch (Scooter's Burgers ... wonderful onion rings, who knew??) and for a little wine tasting/shopping. We wound up at Portalis, which is a lovely wine shop with a very knowledgeable shop keeper. She was very welcoming and definitely is in the right profession! That lady knows her stuff. She was able to not only talk about various wines and regions, but also some of the science behind wine making. Cool stuff! We brought a couple of bottles home, as well as some port for Eric (happy Father's Day, Sweetie!) and a bottle of a Belgian beer that Emily pointed out. (She has become so worldly since her recent 3-month stint in Brussels!)

Ruby port for a very deserving father

We made it home around 2:30 and the girls were practically falling over with fatigue by that point. The three of them curled up on the couch, watched a movie, and basically sat comatose for a bit. Our kids briefly disturbed the peace and quiet when they got home from the park and very eagerly greeted their cousins and showed them their latest skills and abilities. (not to mention, Annika did a little "I have new glasses" fashion show.) ;)

Later that evening, we had a lovely "it's Emily's birthday!" dinner of Uncle E's famous chicken, pasta salad, cheesy bread, and strawberry shortcake for dessert. Basically, we were all stuffed ... but in a good way.

Happy birthday, Emily!!!

Happy birthday, sweet Mimi! We love you so much and hope your birthday was as fun for you as it was for the rest of us. You're cherished and we are so grateful to have had the chance to celebrate your day with you!!

Sprinkle Park Fun

It's no secret that we've had one heck of a warm streak of summer weather. Yes, people in other parts of the country are probably shaking their heads at how we react to temps over 80 degrees, but we aren't used to it and typically don't have AC, people... give us a break! ;)

To beat the heat one day last week, I packed up the kids and took them to a local park that has a sprinkle/water area. The kids hadn't been there before, so that was an added level of intrigue for the outing. Before we left home, I told them they needed to put on swim suits but wouldn't answer their questions asking where we were going. Muahahahah! I'm such an evil mom! ;)

As soon as we came over the top of the grassy knoll, the kids realized that we were in for a good (and watery) time. Annika was all in from the minute she saw where we were going and the fun that was about to be had. Conor was more hesitant; he wasn't quite sure of the "big kids" (aka the 8-10-year-old kiddos) who were also running around in the spouting water. Soon enough (and with a little encouragement from big sister), Conor go the hang of having fun at the sprinkle park.

The sprinkle park is basically made up of three concentric circles of sprinklers/water features. The outer circle is the most tame (for the small kids), the middle circle is more involved in terms of water activity, and then the inner area is comprised of some tall poles that have yellow half globes of water than fill with water and then tip over ... spilling water on anyone below. Conor mainly stuck to the outer ring of water fun, while Annika was EVERYWHERE... you've heard of tornado chasers, yes? She was a sprinkler/water chaser!! That kids darted here, there, and everywhere. She was in Heaven.

After an hour or so, the sun began to set, putting the sprinkle park into shadows, and chilling our soaked-to-the-bone kiddos. I wrapped them in towels, piled them into the warm car, drove home to a chorus of "when can we go back???", and took them home for warm baths.

Definitely a summer win for Annika and Conor. :)

Conor trying to control the spray

Water 1, Conor 0

Annika darting everywhere

She took a moment to clean her teeth... good oral hygiene is so important to her

Fun at the sprinkle park

Nothing like water up your nose to make you feel alive

Annika plotting her next move

Waiting, waiting, waiting for the water to fall

On to more important activities

Water run

FINALLY, the water fell

Conor attempting to lick the water off of his leg (I have no clue why!)

The cascading water feature

Conor, King of the Sprinkle Park

Conor's Sprinkler Fun

We have had an incredible summer this year. Some years have provided cool temperatures, cloudy skies, more rain that we knew what to do with, and many failed outdoor plans. This year, that is not the case. Our kids have had ample opportunities to play outside, run in the sprinkler, and enjoy a beautiful summer.

A couple of days ago, Annika wanted to ride her bike after dinner. Conor wanted to run through the sprinkler. Easy! I set them both up in the back yard and let them do their thing. I parked myself on a camp chair under the shady trees and happily watched the kids make the most of their evening. It was tranquil and fun ... the epitome of what a summer evening should be. And, yes, Conor held that stick the entire time he played in the sprinkler!

(Look closely, you can see our new hedge behind him!)

 

Best Sprinkler Day EVER

Summer has finally arrived in Seattle, and much to our shock, it was here in time for the 4th of July. The common joke around these parts is summer officially begins on July 5th, because we usually have soggy fireworks on the 4th.

It has been warm enough over the past few days for the kids to don their swimsuits and run through the sprinkler. Last year, Conor was a bit apprehensive about the sprinkler, but this year had no qualms about diving right in. Annika was an old pro at the sport and could hardly contain her excitement at the idea of running through the sprinkler.

The kids had an absolute blast running around getting wet and cooling off. Their giggled and laughed the entire time they were outside. Even when they were shivering and cold, they resisted leaving the sprinkler behind and wrapping up in their towels.

As we walked into the house, Annika proclaimed, "Best sprinkler day EVER!!" (Made my mommy heart so happy to hear that our kids are enjoying their childhood.)

Starting out with getting fingers wet

Conor enjoying the spray

Annika speeding through the sprinkler

Conor figuring out how sprinklers work

Sheer joy

Summer fun

Stopping for a little refreshment