Califoregon Living

David snorkeling with the boys at Kaanapali…

Me and my babies…

We spent one day driving around the west end of the island from Napili to Wailuku.  Along the way is a very remote, tiny town (Kahakuloa) that has a woman (Lorraine) who sells shaved ice, banana bread, and cream pies, etc. from her home.  When we take this trek, we will always stop by to visit with her.  This time, a Japanese tour guide was there with a family.  He was showing them card tricks and the boys joined them…

Yummy banana cream pie…

David giving a ukelele lesson to the boys…

Heading up to Haleakala, it gets a little chilly.  Putting up the windows…

The summit of Haleakala at 10,000 feet.  In the far distance, from here you can see the big island of Hawaii…

Heading on a trail toward the Haleakala Observatory…

Uncle Paul took this shot…

ALOHA!

Here are a few shots of my favorite fella and beloved hubby for almost 15 years!

At the pool of our timeshare.  Life is good!

Sunset at the Hula Grill…

David picked up a ukelele this time.  We had been talking about it for a few years and we all enjoyed learning about them before buying the right one.  This is a picture of David receiving an impromptu lesson from a ukelele master.  We ended up buying his CD and enjoyed listening it to it while tooling around in our convertible Jeep…

We had such fun with the boys this year.  They are very comfortable in the water now, and we spent many hours snorkeling, bodysurfing, swimming, and just hanging around.

Our precious ones…

Feeding the koi…


Turning ‘A’ into a merman…

Goofballs…

Hula Grill…

This is one of the many plumeria trees in front of our lanai at the place we stay in Napili.  The boy learned how to climb the tree and make us a little nervous as they pushed the envelope climbing higher…higher…higher…

On top of Haleakala…

Coming down from Haleakala, we were all famished and stopped at a sweet little market in Kula.  Snacks and treats in their protea garden and we were happy campers…

Our Nature Boy
It has been such a joy getting to know the unique traits and interests of ‘A’ and ‘R’.  They are both so different and it’s wonderful to witness.

‘R’ engages his senses to a degree that I envy.  He is the first to notice color, flavor, scent, texture and brings them to my attention.  He loves all things of nature and often asks that I take pictures of his little collections (taking a picture is our agreement over taking all the items home).

The beginning shell collection…

We all got a little too much sun one day and our little guy crashed on the couch…

The pod of a Signature Tree…

‘R’ and Albalucia created a little "corral" to hold ‘R’s shell collection.  It was made out of seed pods from the kiawe tree…

Hula boy…

‘R’ with Breadfruit…

We were blessed to spend one of our two weeks  with Fabio and Esperanza (AKA Dado and Dada), staying at the same property, two doors away!  They brought two couples with them, visiting from Colombia.  FUN was the operative word!

Good times snorkeling…

Dado and Dada…

Amigos de Colombia…Alejandro, Isabel, Roberto, Albalucia


We had a feast one night.  Tons of food…

David and Fabio grilling the meat…

Dada and the spread…

What do Colombians do when they get together? They SALSA!!!

Isabel stood on a ottoman to dance with David 🙂

Lovely Miss Shannon, Uncle Paul’s beloved…

The group sans moi (someone had to take the picture…)

The group with me (Isabel took the shot)

One night, after dinner with John and Ann, we were all walking at Whaler’s Village, and outdoor shopping mall.  They had a hula show and we noticed a familiar figure on the stage…

Every time we visit Maui, we also get to visit Shannon’s family.  They are such wonderful people, and we are blessed to have them as friends.  Carol always goes above and beyond, making an incredible dinner, and opening her home with loving ‘hookipa’ (hospitality.) 

The boys adore Nick.  We will miss this Army-bound young man…

The sistahs…(Shannon and ‘A’…)

The mamas…me and Carol

The papas….David and Cowboy

The lovely couple, Uncle Paul and Shannon…

On our last full day on Maui, we spent the late afternoon with Paul and Shannon.  Paul took us to the beach where he practices on an outrigger canoe team.  This is their boat…

We did not intend to visit Maui this year.  With the move, it just did not seem feasible.  BUT, when we heard that our Noth Bend friends (John and Ann), our Roseville friends (Antone and Cynthia), and our family (Fabio and Esperanza), were all coincidentally going to be there at the same time, how could we say no?!

John and Ann have a timeshare the same place we have one, so we were able to spend time together for dinners, walks, pool, beach, and church!

John and Ann at Leilani’s…

…and Hula Grill…




…the guys taking a break from our post dinner walk at the Westin hotel…


Our California friends, Antone and Cynthia, stayed in Kihei.  We met up with Antone for church and lunch on a Sunday…

…then, on our second to last night, they came to our place in Napili for dinner, and they taught us a fabulous card game called ‘3-13’.  David won!  Beginner’s luck…

Visiting our tidepool…

Cynthia climbed the tree with the boys.  She rocks!

The biggest treats we were unable to catch on film.  These are the unbelievable variety of fish we saw while snorkeling, and the sea turtles.  Best snorkeling was an Kaanapali Beach by Westing KOR North, and sea turtles at Napili Bay.  We actually had a turtle swim right along our feet! 

This bird lives in the koi pond at the Westin Kaanapali Villas North.  every year, we enjoy watching him track and catch small fish…

The koi…

The geckos…

This little fella jumped off of a tree to what we thought was the ground.  I later discovered while removing my barette, that he was on my head!  He them jumped onto my chest and I was able to take him back outside (after screaming, of course…)…

I still can’t believe ‘A’ found this one.  This gecko is about the size of a child’s finger.  Can you see it on the black strip?

Little crabs were all over this little beach in Kihei.  The had holes dug in the sand and would pop out of them if you were quiet.

I took a ton of pictures for our trip to Maui.  Many are not making it on the blog, but many are.  I decided to group them in themes; otherwise, this would be the longest post in the history of this blog.

This first post will focus on the beauty of Maui.  We visited in the summer for the first time.  Typically, we go in the winter.  It was a joy to discover flowers in bloom that do not occur in January.  so, sit back, turn on some Hawaiian tunes, open the window, and breathe in ALOHA…

Leaving HNL to Maui…

My favorite flower…the plumeria…

The view from our room at the Westin Kaanapali Villas North…

Da Palms…

This is from the "Shower Tree".  In all the years I have been going to Maui, I have never seen this tree in bloom.  I love it!!



Variety of lovely flowers…


Beautiful foliage on the road around Kahakuloa…

The gorgeous sunsets…



Views heading up Haleakala…

Overlooking Wailuku and Kahului…

You can see the island Kahoolawe and Molokini crater …

Haleakala summit.  10,023 feet!!!

The summit has an observatory that is closed to the public.  OK, so it’s not so pretty, but it’s still kind of cool.

The Haleakala crater…

The silversword.  This plant only grows on Haleakala.  It’s lifespan is 50 years and will bloom only once.  After it blooms, it dies.

Kihei…