Surfin' Santa Strikes Again

I'm not sure how the old guy fits the boards in his sleigh but this is the second year (not in a row though) that Santa has left a surf board towering next to the Christmas tree. The first one was a 10 ft board for Daddy and his elves to share. This year Daddy asked for a small board so he could teach his girls to surf. Christmas Day here was rainy so Boxing Day we headed to Lanikai to practice paddling.

It was definitely time to get her a small board, she's been trying to get her arms around the big board but its hard to paddle when it has the same wingspan she does. She took off on her new board and her Dad had to run to keep up to her. She especially likes to use it as a jumping platform.

Meanwhile sister was working on her tan.

Holiday photos

I love this picture! They are so stinking cute. My amazingly talented girlfriend Lisa of Windwardskies Photography took it as a promotion photo for her new studio and I thought, "Awesome! Holiday card, check!"

The trouble is there is no beach or Hawaii and Jason says they're not smiling. Ugh. Last year we had a great photo shoot at the beach but my old camera didn't catch them smiling, or kissing or being themselves. Instead it caught their confusion and unease as a busload of Japanese tourist arrived at Lanikai and starting oohing and ahhing over them and taking much better photos of my baby blondes then I did!



So it looks like I'm going to have to decide on outfits and somehow hope the moon and planets
align between naps and rain showers so I can play with my fancy new camera and get a Hawaiian holiday photo. Wish me luck!

Jumper

At the end of the summer we were invited to a party at a house with a pool and diving board. Hannah had never gone off one before but all the other kids were doing it, so away she went! She loved it.

This past weekend we were at a local pool with a diving board and slide but she had to pass a swim test to use them. She had to swim 25 meters non-stop of either front crawl or breast stroke followed by 2 minutes of treading water and the little fish did it! It is a tough pool to swim in, its really deep and has its own current. The lifeguard explained they had to be able to swim against the current. I felt for her as she fought her way to the end. I certainly couldn't have done it at five! Here she is enjoying the fruits of her labor!

Happy Halloween photo album

Here are some photos for Grandfolks and Aunties and Uncles. Miss you all. xox

Nap Fairy

Its a gray, soggy day. We spent the morning at the botanical garden learning about turtles and feeding the ducks. Its such a wonderful, beautiful and simple place to take the kids I don't know why we don't do it daily. They can go forever and never run out of ways to amuse themselves.

After that we had to pick up a new terarium and some crickets for a little lizard who likes to hang out in our front doorway. He used to like to hang out in the hose hanging on the wall but appears to have gotten his leg squashed by doing that. We're trying to help him out while his leg hopefully heals.

And then without warning, the nap fairy attacked. Poor Ella was defenseless! She was minding her own business working on her alphabet puzzle on the floor and then, Boom! Down for the count. I've tried moving her lately and she's woken up so today she'll stay there.

Ugly Feet

This morning we got to do something we've never done before, we went for a family jog! Jason and I used to run and jog when we were dating but he has had problems with his hip for awhile and has limited running to PT tests. However all that seems to have changed with his very own glass slippers, 5 Fingers. http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/

Newsweek ran an article this summer describing the 5 Fingers as being so ugly they make Crocs look like Manolo Blahniks and I have to say, I agree. However they are easy to run in and have changed my running form so its kind of a neat experiment. We also both read this amazing book "Born to Run" by Christopher McDougall which promotes the benefits of barefoot running.

We had a nice run around Lanikai Loop and spent some time playing at the beach with the girls (Mermaid princesses continues to be the narrative of choice). I had gotten up ridiculously early to do the Dash and Splash race but had the best race I've had in a long time. I'm looking forward to more Five Finger training. The girls are already asking when can they get them too!

Its raining, its pouring

Ella is snoring, but that's not anything new. Here is something new,



our own little jack-o-lantern has lost her two bottom teeth and the new ones are right there ready to sprout!

We haven't done too much beaching, we've been getting a lot of rain in our neighborhood and while its still warm, you do get spoiled living in paradise and you do expect there to be sun if you're going to haul all your gear over to the beach. We did hit a friend's pool this afternoon and have another pool date lined up for tomorrow morning. But we'll be beach bound again soon.

Mom did have an awesome beach morning Saturday. Dad got up bright and early and headed to North Beach for an incredible surf and then met us at Kailua beach for Daddy Duty at the playground. I got to meet up with my favorite training partner for a run around Lanikai and then a swim down the buoy line, out to Flat Island and back.

The water was a little murky near shore but out near Flat Island it cleared up. One of the great things about swimming with Kelley is that she always spots turtles!! I never see them and luckily she points them out. Usually they swim away from us but the one on Saturday was happy to let us swim around and check him out while he enjoyed his seaweed breakfast. It was a perfect day.

Afterwards Hannah had a birthday party to attend in Waimanalo at the pony stables near the Polo Field. It was so beautiful to watch the horses running through the fields with the spectacular mountains in the background. They had pony rides and a small petting zoo and barn cats as far as the eye could see. While the beach is by far my favorite thing about Hawaii, I am starting to fall in love with its mountains too.

October

Beach Babes

Just wanted to wish everyone in Canada a Happy Thanksgiving! The trade winds have died and we're enjoying some incredible beach weather, way too hot for a turkey but we are planning a blueberry pie with ice cream.



Elle, Ella & their Elmo floaties

Tomorrow is Ironman Hawaii and its going to be a hot one! Can't wait to follow our friends progress on line. One day we'll check it out in person. For now we're just chillin' at the beach.

Time machine

This past weekend we took a time machine to a more carefree time, where children ran free and parents didn't fret over their children's whereabouts. We went camping and Hannah and her friends had the run of the whole campsite, the beach, the kitchen, tents and volleyball course. Roughly ten families from the Hawaiian Homeschool Association camped at Kualoa Regional park with nothing more organized than 2 potluck dinners and a ride in the park's outrigger canoes courtesy of the C&C lifeguards. Friday night there was a passing "squall" according to some campers but aside from the occasional Hawaiian blessing rains it was a beautiful weekend.

The park is equipped with a huge industrial kitchen housing walk in fridges, grills and a covered picnic table area. I understand its difficult to book but so worth it. The kids just ran, swam, paddled and played from Friday afternoon until Sunday afternoon with many expeditions down the coast to Secret Beach to play on the swings. The parents relaxed, chatted and played with the kids uninterrupted. Its nice when you can still share the good old days with your kids.

For Granddad

used completely without permission
Sand-Between-the-Toes

I went down to the shouting sea,
Taking Christopher down with me,
For Nurse had given us sixpence each-
And down we went to the beach.

We had sand in the eyes and the ears and the nose,
And sand in the hair, and sand-between-the-toes.
Whenever a good nor'wester blows,
Christopher is certain of
Sand-between-the-toes.

The sea was galloping grey and white;
Christopher clutched his sixpence tight;
We clambered over the humping sand-
And Christopher held my hand.

We had sand in the eyes and the ears and the nose,
And sand in the hair, and sand-between-the-toes.
Whenever a good nor'wester blows,
Christopher is certain of
Sand-between-the-toes.

There was a roaring in the sky;
The sea-gulls cried as they blew by;
We tried to talk, but had to shout-
Nobody else was out.

When we got home, we had sand in the hair,
In the eyes and the ears and everywhere;
Whenever a good nor'wester blows,
Christopher is found with
Sand-between-the-toes.

-from When We Were Very Young A.A. Milne

Morning dip

Yesterday was a difficult homeschooling day, I was starting to wonder why I was attempting it at all. I found my answer this morning, a beautiful Tuesday morning family swim/paddle to Flat Island. Jason had prepared breakfast to go so we loaded up the kayak and the girls and headed to Kailua Beach. I had a wonderful swim, starting behind the market out to Flat Island and back with Daddy and the girls escorting in the kayak. The beginning of the swim was a little distracting as Ella yelled,"Mama!! Uppy, uppy!" However Dad settled her down and she spent the rest of the ride sighting sharks, turtles and coral in every ripple on the water. Its been such a long time since I've got to do this swim and it was beautiful. When we got back Daddy and Hannah decided to swim out to the buoy.


Since she has absolutely no body fat baby sister gets chilly quick so we decided to warm up by playing in the sand.

Baby mermaid.


Learning how to Shaka for the camera.

Exploring some tree roots with Dad.

This morning instead of trying to get a cranky Kindergartener out the door with her lunch and homework we spent it as a family swimming, paddling and playing at one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. We prefer going to the beach during the week since its not as busy. Dad will occasionally go in on a weekend so he can go in later on a weekday. He spent Saturday afternoon at the lab and is now back at work while the girls and I enjoy some lunch. Now that she's sufficiently worn out we can start some homeschool work while we're all in a good mood!

That been AWESOME!

Sunday we had the most amazing family day at the beach. We attended a Na Kama Kai ocean clinic.

http://www.nakamakai.com/

We arrived around 11 and were scheduled to do the clinic at 2 so the girls and their buddies spent the next 3 hours body surfing, boogie boarding and playing in the sand at this beautiful beach, Kahana Bay on the Windward side North of Kualoa Ranch. I hadn't been there before but its now one of my favorite beaches.


At 2 pm Hannah and her buddies loaded in an outrigger canoe and took a ride.


After that they helped shape a Koa surfboard for future keiki surfers who would be doing clinics in California.




Last but not least she got to try stand up paddling and catching waves on the surf board with her instructor.



Even with all these amazing things to try it was plain old body surfing with Dad pushing her into the waves that won the quote of the day, "That been AWESOME!!"

Sleep

So I haven't been able to blog lately, here's why. We're having some sleep issues. Notice none of these pictures involves a bed? Once she goes out, she's pretty easy to transfer but as you can tell she lays where she falls, fighting to the end. I'll return once we're a little more rested.

Withdrawl

So there is a funky vibe in our house this week. We haven't been to the beach in over a week and I think its starting to bug us. I did sneak in a quick trip last Friday for a Mommy swim date but was promptly attacked by a flock of Portuguese Man of Wars and packed up in defeat. The plan was to swim in preparation for this weekends Na Wahine Triathlon and then for Jason to bring the kids to me at the beach. However taking my kids to the ocean and saying, "stay out of the water" is just plain mean. They are water spirits like their Mom and would end up in the water and stung at some point. I suspect that this funky vibe is withdrawl. We need salt water in our hair, sand between our toes and sunscreen tucked into the folds of our ears. Its how we're most comfortable. So tomorrow I think we need to go visit the beach. It doesn't have to be for long. Doesn't even have to involve swimming. But we do need to get sandy and we do need to get our feet wet and then all will be right with the world.

Mommy's Playdate (s)!

Its Mommy's turn! As mentioned in my profile I'm a wanna be triathlete and I have one coming up next weekend so I figured it might be a good idea to do some training. Luckily my favorite swim/bike training Mom Kelly is back in town and healthy so we met up early Friday morning to get a bike ride in. Her husband is a surfer too which means we have the same schedule for Daddycare availability- when there are no waves! We're a great match in the water but she is a much better and more experienced biker so I'm learning tons. We had a great ride and I even let go of the brakes on some of the descents! After our rides we usually meet up with our husbands and trade the little people off but this morning I got a double pass and headed to the beach.

Mommy playdate #2! I haven't been to Kailua Beach in a while due to all the Portuguese Man of Wars, the winds are strong right now and that usually brings them in in droves, but I was hopeful. I met Catherine and Kristy, two Mommy friends there and the three of us hit the water while their kids played on the beach under the watchful eye of a Dad. Since it was choppy, we walked down the beach so they wouldn't have to swim against the chop. We swam the distance from one buoy to another, I decided to swim out to the buoy line to get some extra mileage in before Jason showed up with my girls. It was tough going but so nice to be out in the water!

That's when they got me! I was rounding a buoy when my throat began to sting, I tried to pull it off me, fearing the stingers were wrapped around my neck when I saw the offending Man of War directly in front of me. I lifted my head to make sure I wasn't going to swim into it again when suddenly both of my legs began to burn. It started at my thighs and rapidly spread down to my ankles. I must have swum through a patch of them and just wanted to get out of there! I sprinted to shore and think the adrenalin burst helped lessen the pain. I've been stung a few times this summer and while this was the most stings I've received at one time it definitely wasn't the most painful. I accepted defeat and headed to the shower to rinse off any residual stingers but did enjoy hanging on the beach and catching up with my Mommy friends.

#3 In preparation for the Na Wahine a local triathlon shop offered a guided ride of the bike portion this afternoon. I waffled whether or not to go since I do already know the course and the area and but I'm so glad I did, I learned a ton. I was fortunate enough to get to ride with Michelle, who was there to offer her expertise and experience for the newbies and us wannabes. She had some technical, practical and even fashion advice for my race, it was very helpful.

I have enjoyed my long weekend of playdates (even a Mom's Night Out/Book Club on Saturday) but now its back to the grind. Hannah has decided she's ready for a North Shore Surf lesson so I need to schedule that, time to get back to my primary job which I love, Beach Mom.

This is an older post but due to technical difficulties, which almost sent the Mac through the lanai window in frustration, it is being posted now.

Cockroaches

Hawaii may be paradise but there are some drawbacks, namely cockroaches everywhere. They love my snack strewn minivan and usually stay out of sight until dark. Unfortunately my Odyssey Cockroaches have gotten cocky lately and have been popping out from behind my visor and walking across the ceiling while I'm driving. Until recently this sighting would have been enough to send me screaming hysterically into the closest telephone pole. However I've grown tired of them, they have lost their "eek" factor for me. Instead I managed to calmly reach over for the box of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese sitting on the middle console (why I drive around with a box of macaroni and cheese is another story) and slam it against the roof squishing the offending bug without diverting my eyes from the road. Some mothering skills must be acquired through experience, the parenting books never mentioned bug squishing while driving 45 with two screaming girls in the backseat. I guess I wouldn't have believed it if they had.

Kryptonite

Some days being a Beach Mom requires a cape and ingenuity, especially when faced with our own menacing Kryptonite -Flash Flood Warnings. And don't think its cause I'm a wimp and don't take my kids out in the rain fretting over dirty clothes or catching colds. No, flash flooding means things flood and things get backed up, like sewers, and then crap washes out into canals and heads to the ocean, aiming directly for our favorite beach parks! Nasty. We've seen this before, spring 2005 brought 40 days and nights of rain. We're talking Biblical proportions of rain and as a result sewers were backed up, manhole covers popped off from all the pressure, people were sandbagging their front lawns and beaches were shut down. And Beach Moms were stranded indoors with their children. Thank heavens for bathtubs.

My children are happiest (and truth be told so am I) when immersed in water. Could be the ocean, a bucket, a sink or a public fountain, doesn't seem to make much difference to them. So being a resourceful Beach Mom when it came time to buy a home I knew it needed to include a pool. A maintenance free pool mind you. I spent enough summers as a lifeguard scoping dead rats and frog out of pools to know that was more hassle than I could handle as a Mom. So after visiting many different townhouses and condo complexes we found one with the perfect pool. It took us about 6 months to find the right unit, which in my view was secondary anyways, that's just where we sleep, pack lunches and throw our stuff on the floor.

So this afternoon, after 5 days of rain,books, play dough, fighting and more PBS than I think even my daughter could stand we tip toed through the rain drops and hit the pool. The girls had a great time swimming, they used up a lot of energy and I think we all felt better being back in the water, regardless of the weather.

Rainy Day

The sun can't shine everyday but that doesn't faze my girls. Today we've got crazy, torrential downpour, can't even see the mountains, rain. We spend the first part of the morning reading, coloring, watching PBS but then its time to dance in the rain! The girls throw on their swimsuits and run up and down our driveway. It has a nice slope to it which can make learning to ride a bike difficult but is perfect for floating boats down the stream to the storm drain.

Family Fun

Luckily we have a Dad who likes to be a Stay At the Beach Dad, however his day at the beach usually needs to involve some sort of movement or action so a kayak, surf board or even bikes are usually loaded up when Dad is coming. We haven't had the kayak out in a while so we decided to head over to Kualoa Regional Park and paddle down to Secret Beach. Last October we went on a camping trip with the Hawaii Homeschooling Association to this park and had a great time. I believe the beach is on the ocean side of an old fishing pond and can only be accessed by taking a boat operated by Kualoa Ranch Inc. across the pond or coming around from the ocean side. We've always been the only people there whenever we've ventured down the coast. I believe "Lost" used it as a location if that gives you an idea of how isolated it is. Hannah tried our her new paddle and, as she has done every single time we've put her in the kayak, Ella fell asleep. I guess its the rocking motion and the fresh air but it does her in every time. Ask her what she does in the boat and she immediately makes the sign for sleeping.

Sunday Dad got up early and headed back to the ranch, this time for the Mountain Man triathlon. We've been waiting for Hurricane Felicia and heard a prediction of 4-6 ft waves for the swim but she has continued to be downgraded and for that we are thankful! As a result the water was relatively flat and Dad had a great swim, dodging the large coral heads in the shallower parts on the course. He also had a gorgeous bike ride and run and finished injury free! Go Daddy! Next Mom got in a nice long 3 km swim to make up for wimping out of the North Shore Challenge on Saturday. We finished the weekend with dinner at the Kailua Pub and chocolate cake and lilikoi cheesecake at the Kalapawai Market. Delicious!

On Sunday

The Adventures of the Jellyfish Hunters

Once upon a time there were two little girls named Hannah and Rian who went to the beach with their Moms and little sisters. The girls were busy playing princess in the ocean and didn't realize there was a jelly fish right behind them. "Ouch!" yelled Hannah, "A jellyfish stung me!" The girls ran out of the water and while Hannah's Mom ran all the way back to the van to get her vinegar (which should have been in her beach bag along with the Benedryl), Hannah used buckets of water to try and rinse away the sting. The vinegar helped with the pain but it still hurt, Hannah was very brave.

"Maybe you should check the rest of the beach for jellyfish," Hannah's Mom suggested. The two girls grabbed their buckets and started scouring the beach for the dreaded Portuguese Man of War Jellyfish (or Pork and Cheese as Rian calls them, too cute!). Over the next two hours the girls found 50 jellyfish, they scooped them up with their shovels into their buckets being careful not to touch the long tentacles. They decided to warn others about the creatures. While they were showing their bounty to the public they came across many other swimmers who had been stung and some of them had pretty good sized welts to show for it. Before leaving the girls buried the jellyfish deep in a mass grave so other people wouldn't step on them and get stung. Despite a rough beginning it was another great day at the beach.

When we came home this is the story Hannah and I wrote (illustrations by Hannah are included in the paper edition) to remember our day. She's creating quite a little library of stories of the adventures she has with her friends. We always research our stories and were quite surprised to discover the Man of War isn't actually a jellyfish and isn't a single organism but a colony! Check it out
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/printable/portuguese-man-of-war.html

Beach dates

Its a rainy morning, that doesn't usually stop us from heading out to the beach but our beach playdate is this afternoon so we're having a mostly quiet morning of playdough and puzzles. We're taking a Sesame Street break and I'm happy to report a refreshing update they've done to fairy tales. The princess kisses the frog, he turns into a prince, they become friends and live happily ever after! Last year Hannah and her preschool pals went through a whole prince/princess phase which was very difficult if anyone was out sick and we were short a prince. Their next phase was playing dead and throwing flowers on each others dead body on the playground. It was a little disturbing but I guess this is how kids figure out and deal with life's issues.

One thing I've discovered about playdates is that they often work best in a neutral zone without any toys to fight over, that's why the beach is such a great location, there is plenty of sand, waves and space for everyone. Although nothing is fool proof, I've had kids fight over sticks and even imaginary babies. The other Mom and I actually had to ask the kids to take turn holding the invisible baby. The best playdates are ones where everybody gets a playmate, and this afternoons is one of those! Her girls are the same ages as mine and she's a super cool chick so everybody wins. We've got our fingers crossed for sunshine and a fun beach date.

This season it’s all about the bag

The beach bag that is, a successful Beach Mom is prepared for anything. Your beach bag needs to be portable, well stocked for any situation, organized and if you can manage to make it trendy kudos to you. The basics:

• Sun block: To be most effective it should be applied at home and then reapply throughout the day. At our house this is very often a cardio event involving running, hiding and heavy lifting. A few strategies that have worked sporadically for us have been having the kids put sunscreen on us, pretending its make up and of course bribery.

• Cell phone in a zip lock bag: Because at some point a juice box or bucket full of sandy water is going to land on it. All veteran Beach Moms have an assisted cellular death story.

Mine was two years ago, I was checking out this great beach that could only be reached by wading around a cove when a wave came out of no where and soaked my beach bag complete with unprotected cell phone (I was more focused on making sure the child didn’t wash away). My poor phone, it was horrible, it shook and flashed and beeped, trying to find some reception and then it stopped, forever.

• Benedryl cream tube: The day you forget it is the day your child will have a jellyfish tentacle entangled in their swimsuit leaving behind barbed wire style welts all over their tiny body accompanied by heartbreaking sobs and excruciating pain.

• Swim wear: If you’re going to be spending long hours at the beach its worth the investment to get long sleeved rash guards. We use a lot of EXCEL, Lands End and an awesome Hawaiian brand Oiwi Ocean Gear.

• Don’t forget the hats and sunglasses: Yes, it’s a battle of wills but even if they only wear them sporadically its better than nothing.

• Beach toys: Doesn’t need to be anything fancy; a shovel, bucket and watering can will entertain them for hours. Due to the trade winds here, I avoid inflatables, my attention needs to be on the kids not chasing after a lousy beach ball which has suddenly become my daughter’s most prized possession as it floats off to the Moks.

• Beach friendly snacks: Nothing works up an appetite like being in the middle of nowhere, with no option to purchase food. We have a small lunch bag with a cooler. My kids like PB & jelly sandwiches, cheese sticks, yogurt tubes, granola bars, raisins, tangerines and packages of seaweed.

• Water: While juice boxes are easy and convenient, they do produce garbage you will have to lug back to the car and the fruit sugar will only make the kids have to pee, just like your morning coffee. If we’re going to a facility free beach, I’ll often skip the morning coffee by promising myself a trip through the Starbucks drive thru on the way home.

Despite great preparation, its important to remember that there is nothing you can put in your bag to fix overtired melt downs once they’ve started. As a result it is essential you can carry both this well stocked bag and a teary, sandy, wet child back to the car in one trip.