This post is to explain the new slide show with the same title. The first set is from the bbq we had over and Uncle Bob DeRyke's house. We had a lovely time until Chris was attacked by a man-eating moth. It was about the size of my palm and I wear an xxl glove. Cool huh. Next, is Hannah and the parrot. A repairman came over to work on the shower in the studio and he brought this parrot with him. It was very tame as you can see and weighed about the same as hannah. It talked to her on her shoulder and april snapped a couple shots with her phone. Sorry for the lower quality photos. We also went to turtle bay for a quick visit while dropping off a few of Lindsey's friends, most of you know Anne and Mary Jane, the Dunkley girls. They are in Liae for a few months. We found this cute (and tasty) little crab shell by the beach. Nifty eh. The last set of pictures have a story behind them. Now, for those of you who don't know, we live in an area called enchanted lakes. we are really close to a fresh water lake, well its more of an overgrown pond, but with it comes all sorts of animal life, birds, mosquitos, squirrels, mosquitos, and toads (and mosquitos). We get these palm sized toads in our yard nightly, they have a very nice chirping croak. Actually it is kind of nice, not at all annoying like the bullfrogs back in the U state. We snapped these pictures during the first few days we got here. Shockingly they aren't mean at all and just act like normal toads. Funny for something so TOXIC. Yeah maw, we found that out a few days later that the toads we were playing with have a very noxious spit and excrete poison from their backs....they're only deadly to dogs and such that would try to make a tasty morsel out of them. We had to convince Chris that frog legs and toad legs aren't the same...
Cool huh. We also went to sharks cove yesterday and had an absolute BLAST snorkeling and seeing all the fish in the tide pools. We don't yet have an underwater camera so you can't partake in the excitement, yet. But be forewarned. This snorkeling is definitely habit forming. (pics comming soon).
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Hawaiian revenge...
So in light of our abuse of the Hawaiian beaches, this being that we've used the free public beaches three times in the last week and a half its only fitting to bring you another story. Drum roll please *dddddddddddddddddd* (ominous thundering voice) HAWAIIAN REVENGE!!
The first two times we went to the beach we had cloudy days the blocked out the sun most of the time we were there. This last time, we bought body boards (pics comming soon) and went to a different part of the same beach, about 2 miles down shore. The waves were better there and the sand was cleaner. This time the day was BEAUTIFUL, and the waves were great. The sun was shining, the bird were chirping, the water was blue and clear, the japanese girls were chirping, it was a perfect day. We traded kid duty so we all got a chance to ride the waves on our new Walmart body boards, oh what fun. After a few hours we really got the hang of it. Lindsey and april could bring in almost any wave all the way to the shore. (again pictures comming soon). All was well until one last ride when April smacked her foot on something hard and limped to the beach. She sat down on the sand just a little higher than where the waves would roll in and looking rather normal took some time out. A few minutes later she beckoned me over and I stumbled through the crashing waves to get to her. Now, its important to know that I twisted my ankle earilier in the day at that same beach. You see, about six feet out into the water the sand bar dropped about 12 inches then rose again by about 10 inches, so a very effective, hidden hole, I managed to roll my ankle is this hole and it made it pretty sore for the rest of the day, but not sore enough to detain me from enjoying the beach. So, I made my way through the waves to where April was sitting on the beach, instead of the joyful comment I was expecting, I got the solomn news, "I think I broke my toe." Now for those of you who don't know, April broke her little toe at crystal springs in Brigham City UT when we were first dating. So, at this point the first thing that, naturally, goes through my mind and then procedes undauntingly out of the hole in my head is "AGAIN!?" Insensitive, yes I know. Followed quickly by (in the sweetest most kind and sensitive tone I can muster) "What happened?" She said she thought it was jammed but she wasn't sure. Another point of context, when April was younger she had corrective surgery done on that foot to straighten out the bone before her big toe, she now has a pin in it to maintain the fissure. She and I spent the next few minutes, ok seconds, discussing what to do and after a few more wave rides, I went back to where she was sitting and helped her climb onto my back piggy style and ferried her over to the shady spot where we had put our towels.
By this time we had been at this beautiful beach for several hours. The Girls (when I mention Girls in caps I am refering to Hannah and Abbigail) were tired and ornery. So we got Lindsey and Chris's attention and motioned to them that we were leaving. Did I mention that the sun was beautiful all day? It was. Strong too. I took Abbi in my arms and headed for the parkside showers, imagine that will you. FREE cool fresh drinkable showers in the grass next to the beach. Designed for the prompt removal of sand and debris. What an incredible feature, and FREE too, coming from UT where you pay for even the right to look at a geographic feature and then again to use any sort of amenity, free showers is an amazing thing!! For the love of Hawaii, there are free showers here. I showered myself and abbi and set her down on a towel in the grass. I went back to help April who was escorting a very upset Hannah down the trail, very slowly too. I picked up the screaming child still in her life suit (like a wetsuit with foam imbedded int the chest and back to serve as floatation) and arm floaties, with snot dripping down her face and tears strewn about her cheeks, and promptly whisked her toward the spectacular free showers. She wanted nothing to do with that cold refreshing water and screamed like a madman while I removed the sand and snot from her body. A few older folks just looked on and laughed in recollection of 'those days with kids' while a few others wondered if I was abusing the poor child. I stripped her of the life suit and de-sanded her (she had a normal bathing suit on underneath) and stood her up next to April who had started toward the car. I noticed at this point that my back was rather itchy and a little sore. I swooped up abbi who was rather content to feel the spongy grass in her fingers and headed off for the car. I started the car, turned on the AC and headed back to help April with her walking bundle of heavenly joy (sarcasm rears it ugly head again). I picked up Hannah and rushed her to the awaiting car seat, and helped april load the diaper bag and such. April seated herself and homebound we went. This part of the beach is about 8 minutes from home, during the ride I noticed that April although she was dealing with a broken, or so we thought, toe didn't seem to be in distress unless she tried to move her foot. I also noticed that my back was tingling now. Once home and cleaned up, April sat down on the couch and I finally got a good look at the sun's handy work. I am now more sunburned than I ever had been. Completely burned beet red from head to waist. Oh what a beautiful day it would have been to wear sunscreen...yeah I've got no one to blame but myself. April and the Girls had all slathered up before we left. Shortly thereafter Linds and Chris pulled in and announced that they were totally fried too. Sure enough the three of us look like a trio of boiled lobsters. So bad infact that wearing shirts is impossible and were it not for Tylenol and Aloe Vera, we'd have killed ourselves already. April on the other hand while she did get some sun, decides it best to head off for the local clinic even though we have no medical insurance yet. She returns a few hours later with crutches, a fancy black velcro boot and the news that she did indeed break the bone above her toe. Just higher than the pin. The doctor may decide that surgery is the only way to ensure its proper healing. For the past two days she's hobbled about the house taking it easy while I tend to the kids at arms length. Trying to avoid contact with anyone or anything. Sleeping is not easy nor effective for me. At least I can walk though. To make matters difficult the Elders stopped by and asked if I could accompany them on a visit. How do you turn down the appointed servants of our Lord? So I mustered my courage and all the mettle I had and put on a g-top and a shirt, tie and slacks and fought my way through some missionary work.
So in a nutshell, Oahu got its revenge on the adults of our adventure, either through complete charring of our upperbodies and faces or by taking out its anger on our toes. So there you have it folks, our now, much sadder existence here in paradise.
Oh and did I mention we're going over to the De Ryke's tonight for a BBQ? Crap that means walking....with clothes......aaarrrrrrggghhhh (pics comming soon).
The first two times we went to the beach we had cloudy days the blocked out the sun most of the time we were there. This last time, we bought body boards (pics comming soon) and went to a different part of the same beach, about 2 miles down shore. The waves were better there and the sand was cleaner. This time the day was BEAUTIFUL, and the waves were great. The sun was shining, the bird were chirping, the water was blue and clear, the japanese girls were chirping, it was a perfect day. We traded kid duty so we all got a chance to ride the waves on our new Walmart body boards, oh what fun. After a few hours we really got the hang of it. Lindsey and april could bring in almost any wave all the way to the shore. (again pictures comming soon). All was well until one last ride when April smacked her foot on something hard and limped to the beach. She sat down on the sand just a little higher than where the waves would roll in and looking rather normal took some time out. A few minutes later she beckoned me over and I stumbled through the crashing waves to get to her. Now, its important to know that I twisted my ankle earilier in the day at that same beach. You see, about six feet out into the water the sand bar dropped about 12 inches then rose again by about 10 inches, so a very effective, hidden hole, I managed to roll my ankle is this hole and it made it pretty sore for the rest of the day, but not sore enough to detain me from enjoying the beach. So, I made my way through the waves to where April was sitting on the beach, instead of the joyful comment I was expecting, I got the solomn news, "I think I broke my toe." Now for those of you who don't know, April broke her little toe at crystal springs in Brigham City UT when we were first dating. So, at this point the first thing that, naturally, goes through my mind and then procedes undauntingly out of the hole in my head is "AGAIN!?" Insensitive, yes I know. Followed quickly by (in the sweetest most kind and sensitive tone I can muster) "What happened?" She said she thought it was jammed but she wasn't sure. Another point of context, when April was younger she had corrective surgery done on that foot to straighten out the bone before her big toe, she now has a pin in it to maintain the fissure. She and I spent the next few minutes, ok seconds, discussing what to do and after a few more wave rides, I went back to where she was sitting and helped her climb onto my back piggy style and ferried her over to the shady spot where we had put our towels.
By this time we had been at this beautiful beach for several hours. The Girls (when I mention Girls in caps I am refering to Hannah and Abbigail) were tired and ornery. So we got Lindsey and Chris's attention and motioned to them that we were leaving. Did I mention that the sun was beautiful all day? It was. Strong too. I took Abbi in my arms and headed for the parkside showers, imagine that will you. FREE cool fresh drinkable showers in the grass next to the beach. Designed for the prompt removal of sand and debris. What an incredible feature, and FREE too, coming from UT where you pay for even the right to look at a geographic feature and then again to use any sort of amenity, free showers is an amazing thing!! For the love of Hawaii, there are free showers here. I showered myself and abbi and set her down on a towel in the grass. I went back to help April who was escorting a very upset Hannah down the trail, very slowly too. I picked up the screaming child still in her life suit (like a wetsuit with foam imbedded int the chest and back to serve as floatation) and arm floaties, with snot dripping down her face and tears strewn about her cheeks, and promptly whisked her toward the spectacular free showers. She wanted nothing to do with that cold refreshing water and screamed like a madman while I removed the sand and snot from her body. A few older folks just looked on and laughed in recollection of 'those days with kids' while a few others wondered if I was abusing the poor child. I stripped her of the life suit and de-sanded her (she had a normal bathing suit on underneath) and stood her up next to April who had started toward the car. I noticed at this point that my back was rather itchy and a little sore. I swooped up abbi who was rather content to feel the spongy grass in her fingers and headed off for the car. I started the car, turned on the AC and headed back to help April with her walking bundle of heavenly joy (sarcasm rears it ugly head again). I picked up Hannah and rushed her to the awaiting car seat, and helped april load the diaper bag and such. April seated herself and homebound we went. This part of the beach is about 8 minutes from home, during the ride I noticed that April although she was dealing with a broken, or so we thought, toe didn't seem to be in distress unless she tried to move her foot. I also noticed that my back was tingling now. Once home and cleaned up, April sat down on the couch and I finally got a good look at the sun's handy work. I am now more sunburned than I ever had been. Completely burned beet red from head to waist. Oh what a beautiful day it would have been to wear sunscreen...yeah I've got no one to blame but myself. April and the Girls had all slathered up before we left. Shortly thereafter Linds and Chris pulled in and announced that they were totally fried too. Sure enough the three of us look like a trio of boiled lobsters. So bad infact that wearing shirts is impossible and were it not for Tylenol and Aloe Vera, we'd have killed ourselves already. April on the other hand while she did get some sun, decides it best to head off for the local clinic even though we have no medical insurance yet. She returns a few hours later with crutches, a fancy black velcro boot and the news that she did indeed break the bone above her toe. Just higher than the pin. The doctor may decide that surgery is the only way to ensure its proper healing. For the past two days she's hobbled about the house taking it easy while I tend to the kids at arms length. Trying to avoid contact with anyone or anything. Sleeping is not easy nor effective for me. At least I can walk though. To make matters difficult the Elders stopped by and asked if I could accompany them on a visit. How do you turn down the appointed servants of our Lord? So I mustered my courage and all the mettle I had and put on a g-top and a shirt, tie and slacks and fought my way through some missionary work.
So in a nutshell, Oahu got its revenge on the adults of our adventure, either through complete charring of our upperbodies and faces or by taking out its anger on our toes. So there you have it folks, our now, much sadder existence here in paradise.
Oh and did I mention we're going over to the De Ryke's tonight for a BBQ? Crap that means walking....with clothes......aaarrrrrrggghhhh (pics comming soon).
Friday, June 6, 2008
FOR THE LOVE....Of Hawaii
Being a first time blog hoster, expect a great deal of nonconforming and disgruntled behavior following what would be a better laid out profile after a great deal of experience, with that out of the way.....*drumroll*
Welcome to April, Chad, Hannah, Abbigail, Lindsey, and Chris's Hawaiian blog. The purpose of this blog is simple, to avoid sending out an email to the entire population of North Ogden, Harrisville and all other reaches of the earth that our families have spread out to. Nothing personal against anyone, its just a mindblowing task to keep everyone informed as to how things are going for the six of us here in the middle of the Pacific. SOOOOOO, without further adieu, feel free to post any (appropriate) comments and or questions for any of us to answer. And remember, when you stub your toe, or nothing goes right, just yell: FOR THE LOVE and remember that we are missing you all too.
Welcome to April, Chad, Hannah, Abbigail, Lindsey, and Chris's Hawaiian blog. The purpose of this blog is simple, to avoid sending out an email to the entire population of North Ogden, Harrisville and all other reaches of the earth that our families have spread out to. Nothing personal against anyone, its just a mindblowing task to keep everyone informed as to how things are going for the six of us here in the middle of the Pacific. SOOOOOO, without further adieu, feel free to post any (appropriate) comments and or questions for any of us to answer. And remember, when you stub your toe, or nothing goes right, just yell: FOR THE LOVE and remember that we are missing you all too.
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