Bryce and I decided to drown our sorrows at becoming empty nesters by spending the first 2 weeks of September in Hawaii. It was an excellent way to focus on the positive and we had the best time! We started our trip with a week on Maui just the two of us. We drove up to the top of Mt. Haleakala at 3 am to watch the sun rise and it was pretty spectacular to watch the sky go from pitch black loaded with stars to a gorgeous sunrise.
We also went hiking once the sun was up, which was also fun.
We went snorkeling at Molokini, a crescent shaped rock a few miles from shore with super clear water and tons and tons of tropical fish. We also snorkeled in other areas where we saw lots of large sea turtles. All in all, this was our best snorkeling trip ever.
We spent plenty of time relaxing on the beach and playing in the waves. I enjoyed some sunshine and Bryce did this:
We took an evening and drove to Laihana for a dinner and magic show that a friend of mine recommended. It was AMAZING and so much fun! If you ever go to Maui, ask us about it - you should definitely go!
We drove the road to Hana and hiked through the bamboo forest, which was so surreal because the wind was blowing and the bamboo was knocking and it literally sounded like some creature was chasing us through the forest. It was beautiful and fun and only a little creepy.
Also on that side of the island, we stopped at a State park with a black sand beach that had some fun hiking and high rocky cliffs. I told Bryce to go stand on the edge of the cliff by the ocean so I could get a picture of him with the wave breaking over the rocks. Here's what happened next:
Let's just say that I was super grateful Bryce wasn't swept off the rocks since we were about 30 feet above the ocean. But it all ended okay, and the pictures are pretty awesome. :)
After our week on Maui, we flew to the Big Island where we met up with my brother Bill and his wife Mia and my sister Kim and her husband Tim. We had another fun week in paradise. We played at the beach some more:
There were lots of people who took pictures of our sand dolphin, but the funniest was a woman who asked if she could take a picture with it and then proceeded to pose as if she was riding the dolphin. :):)
We took a snorkeling at night tour to see manta rays. Easily one of the coolest things we have ever done. The mantas are 10-16 feet across and you go into the water and hold on to a surfboard like platform that is shining lights on to the ocean floor below. The lights attract plankton which attract the mantas who feed on the plankton. We saw at least a dozen huge mantas and they would swim right under us, then glide on to their backs with their bellies skimming the surfboard we were holding on to, literally brushing us as they swam by. It was majestic and awesome!!
We took a super fun ziplining tour that was so scenic - amazing!!
We hiked through the jungle to a few waterfalls
We spent a couple of days at Volcano National Park. The volcano wasn't erupting while we were there, so no lava, but we did have fun exploring lava tubes, steam vents and old dormant craters.
It was sad to head back to Utah and reality, but there were also good things that happened here as well.
We went to the Remembrance garden in Sandy with Seth, Delaney, Devin, Beth and Levi on 9/11 and spent some time among the flags that commemorate each life lost that day before going to "The Secret Garden" at Hale Center Theater that evening.
Devin got together with some neighborhood friends to celebrate one of his friend's mission homecomings. These guys have been friends since high school. :)
Seth participated in a Lone Peak highschool alumni choir to commemorate the school's 25th anniversary and the retirement of their beloved choir director, Mama J. The choir had members from all of the years since Lone Peak opened and they sounded AMAZING!!
Bryce and I celebrated his birthday with a hike through the mountains above our home. It was so beautiful and a perfect way to celebrate his birthday since we both love hiking and LOVE the fall in our mountains!
young moose
We attended my nephew Hayden's wedding to his long time girlfriend, Tasia and were happy to welcome her as an official member of the family. :)
Megan and Mitch continue to do well in Boise. Megan is enjoying her new job and was just called to serve as a counselor in the RS presidency in her ward. Mitch is serving as a Priests quorum advisor. Autumn got a new calling as an FHE group coordinator, too. She is loving her ward, her roommates and her classes at UVU. Seth and Delaney are literally counting the days until they get married next month and both are staying busy with school and work. Levi is enjoying his master's program at USU and Devin is still searching for a good job at a lab in Cache valley and has taken a job at Walmart as he continues his search.
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