aloha...

We have just returned from ten glorious days on the Big Island (aka Ethan's second home as far as he is concerned.) The day that we were supposed to fly out was the day of the "Seattle Snow Storm from Hell". It was all over the news that Seattle was going to be getting dumped on and the worst of it was supposed to happen right when our flight was supposed to depart.

Luckily, Jeff had the awesome idea to go and stay near the airport the night before so that way if it did snow like they were predicting we would just have to take a short shuttle ride to the airport. On the day of the big snow storm we were thankfully able to fly out, and were only an hour and a half late out of the gate. Let's just say that we have had our fill of Denny's for the year now.

Once we got to Hawaii we were in paradise. We reserved a condo at the Waikoloa Beach Villas and they did not disappoint. Our condo was located on the bottom floor which worked out perfect for us. We got to run outside and play in the morning and even had our very own BBQ right outside the patio. Every day we had sunny beautiful weather which equaled spending our time between the beach and the pool everyday. We got really good at digging holes in the sand and Ethan got really good at knocking down sand castles. We did venture out a couple of times to visit Bubba Gump and Kona Brewery. Plus, I got Ethan and Jeff to join me on a tour of Hula Daddy coffee. *Their tour is free and you get to sample some great Kona coffee to boot!

 (View outside of our condo patio overlooking the golf course. Too bad we don't golf.)

 (After dinner sundae at the Macaroni Grill @ the Queen's Shops.)

 (Walk down to our favorite snorkel beach at the Mauna Lani Resort.)

 (Ethan making his award winning "Fish Soup". He mastered the recipe by the end of the trip.)

 (Ethan's favorite thing to do in Hawaii, besides the pool of course.)

 (Our fill in pet while we were on vacation.)

 (Ethan showing off that he can swim with his floaties all by himself in the pool.)

 (A typical Hawaiian lunch plate.)

(Ginger and Lychee shaved ice with a sno cap from Anuenue Shave Ice. My absolute favorite shaved ice on the Big Island.)

Aloha from Hawaii!

We made it back safely from our trip to the Big Island of Hawaii. It was definitely an adventure to be had but I guess that traveling with a two year old that is somewhat expected. We left on a Saturday and surprisingly Ethan was fantastic on the plane ride over. We were a little nervous about this and packed accordingly but ended up not bringing out any of the toys we had purchased prior. He slept almost the entire five plus hours over there and when we arrived we knew something was amiss. He ended up coming down with a viral flu so we spent three days of our six days cooped up in our hotel room. We even had to venture twice to the E.R. because his temperature was up to 107 degrees which was extremely frightening. While we were frantically trying to get him there he was excited that we got to ride in the security golf cart to our car and go underground the hotel through the staff areas. After an x-ray and some blood work they found out it was a viral infection so we had to wait it out. Luckily on the fourth day things were finally looking up and the fever had passed so we were able to enjoy the last three days of our vacation.


The hotel that we stayed at, the Hilton Waikoloa Village, was amazing, especially the expanse of the property. On the first day that Ethan was back to normal we spent several hours swimming in the salt water lagoon at the resort. He really enjoyed it once we got his SpongeBob water wings on him. Jeff and I were able to take turns and go snorkeling and we saw a ton of eels and a turtle which was very cool. That evening we drove to Kona and went to our favorite spot “Bubba Gumps”. In case you ever get to go there you have to order the Shrimp Dippin’ Broth. Yummy!

The second good day Ethan, Jeff, and I got to swim with the dolphins at the resort we were staying. This was a highlight of the trip and I recommend this for anyone visiting this resort. That evening we walked to the Queen’s Shops and we got to watch a local Hula Dance company perform that Ethan enjoyed.

The third good day we ventured to one of our favorite beaches at the Mana Lani Resort. Ethan help build sandcastles on the shore while Jeff and I took turns snorkeling. This is a great beach to go to for snorkeling and for little kids since it is very protected. After snorkeling we headed back to get ready to go to a luau at the resort. The luau was a bit of a disappointment since the MC was very much Love Boat meets Don Ho esque. I would say to skip this one if you visit the resort.

Other than the sick incident we had a great time and if you ask Ethan the highlight of the trip would be the tram at the resort. Since the hotel property is so huge they have trams and boats to take you to the different areas of the property and Ethan absolutely LOVED the tram.

We are glad to be home however I could of used another week there in the sun and sand.

Here are some pictures from our travels, enjoy!

(Hotel Swimming Pool)

(Another swimming pool)

(Palace Tower Lobby)

(Ethan and Jeff walking near the Ocean Tower)

(Ethan on the tram, his favorite thing to do there)

(Buddah point at the hotel)