Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Living La Vida Aloha

Well, hello there!


We took a long break, then a long last look, then a long plane ride, and now we're here.

Living in Hawaii.

Pinch me; I still sometimes can't believe it's true.

Many of you have kindly inquired about what life's been like now that we're somewhat settled into our new routine and location, so I've assembled a mini primer for you with lots and lots of photos!

OUR NEW ISLAND LIFE IN REVIEW: DOMESTICITY EDITION

Every Friday we try to make a trip into "town" to visit John on his lunch hour.


Sometimes we pack a picnic, as we did when we watched the Royal Hawaiian Band perform on the grounds of the Iolani Palace.



Sometimes we visit prominent Hawaiian cultural sites, like the statue of
King Kamehameha in front of the Aliiolani Hale, the home of the Hawaii State Supreme Court.


And sometimes we simply venture into Chinatown for amazing noodle dishes and fresh produce.


Bourgeois as it may seem, Saturdays are generally reserved for chores and household cleaning and repairs, (and more recently, soccer games, but more on this in a future post), but every Sunday we try to explore a new beach. I think there are enough on this island to keep us busy in this pursuit for years.



But on a day-to-day basis, it's really just business as usual around these parts.

Since it's been quite hot and humid, the kids seem to subsist on the standard summer diet staple across the nation: Popsicles. The only twist is that most of theirs are homemade, and should really be called
POGsicles.


There is also much Play-Doh action in the backyard.



The biggest news, I suppose, is that little Finn -- my firstborn who it seems only just recently came home from the hospital bundled in a baby blue onesie -- started KINDERGARTEN.


Shea's also leaving babyhood behind at an alarming rate by doing extremely well in her potty-training adventures. I think (*fingers crossed*) that we're just days away from finally throwing away all the diapers and Pull-Ups. (Or at least tucking them away in the back end of the closet.)


Other regular activities include:
Costume dress-up...


Tandem skateboarding...


And bandying about in only bathing suits...


or even less.

Yeah, we pretty much love it here.

7 comments:

Shannon said...

Oh, it looks wonderful! I am so happy for you!

Anonymous said...

Discovered your blog a few weeks ago, glad you've survived your move:-) We lived on Maui for 13 years and it got a bit boring, but we miss HI and are considering a move back to Oahu (Kailua). There's much more to do on Oahu, so I know you will love living in HI. It's a wonderful place to raise children, and yours are adorable by the way:-)

KarinGal said...

Hi Shannon - thanks for not giving up on my blog! Hang in there, it's almost autumn.

And welcome, Janice. Nice to have you stop by. We LOVE Kailua, by the way - it's Finn's favorite beach so far.

Anonymous said...

I just got a Canon XTI and I'm so jealous of those photo ops you Hawaii folks have EVER single
day:-) There is an active Flickr group on Oahu you might enjoy. They have family "meet ups" at the beach once in awhile. Here are 2 links from that group:
www.flickr.com/photos/lucy96734/
www.flickr.com/photos/hawaii

Anonymous said...

glad you finally made it here.

Patricia Marie said...

Checking in from Florida this week. We are on vacation. Anyway, I am so glad you have finally posted. I have been checking nearly everyday.

Anonymous said...

Hi Guys!!

So glad you finally posted!! Miss reading your blog! Glad you all are happy! Say Hi to John for me!
And keep the wonderful pictures coming!!

Kim