Well, it may have taken about 6 months of convincing but Cade finally agreed to take me somewhere warm and relaxing before baby #5 comes. He had a wonderful year of sales and got a bonus that we could use toward some Hawaiian Vacation time. Since I wasn't sure how I would be feeling and how my pregnancy would be I wanted to be able to go somewhere and relax and not have an agenda that we had to follow and busy around to. Lets just say that after the first 24 hours, Cade had had enough of relaxing :). I, on the other hand loved being able to read, play games and sip Pina coladas by the beach. We had a wonderful vacation together and the girls got lots of time with Gma and Gpa Close and Boose. They were SO gracious to allow us to leave together.
Day 1- We drove to the airport around 9:00 am and flew out at almost noon. We got to Oahu at 4:00 pm Hawaii time and after picking up the rental headed off to Turtle Bay Resort on the north shore. The drive from the airport to the resort was absolutely BREATHTAKING!!! Cade and I were in such awe at the gorgeous island Heavenly Father has created. The green was never ending and driving on the street that is right up against the ocean is amazing. The mountains and diversity of trees and plants were awe inspiring. Once we checked into the resort, we went to Lei Lei's for dinner and was not disappointed in the amazing seafood. We then just walked around the resort to see what was around and walked by the ocean some.
Day 2- We started with an amazing breakfast at the resort- that was probably one of Cade's very favorite things about our trip- the buffet was incredible every morning. Then we rested for a bit and got into swimsuits and read books by the ocean and drank a Pina colada. After Cade got bored :), we drove to BYU Hawaii campus and walked around a bit, then drove to the Polynesian Cultural Center PCC and ate lunch. In the afternoon, we had the most AMAZING couples massage by the ocean (well, not right by the ocean- it was still private but could see and hear the ocean). It was probably the best massage I have had and I was pregnant too! That night we ate at Ray's Beach House and the food was amazing...again.
Day 3- Sunday. We had trouble finding a sacrament meeting to go to. We drove to one chapel thinking it was far enough from the stake that was having stake conference but when it was 10 min until it started and no one was in the parking lot we realized they too were part of that stake conference. Soooo....we drove to the stake conference and enjoyed it AND go to see Sister Sydney Wootton who used to live next door to us in Apple Grove and not is serving in Hawaii. After church, we drove to the Dole Pineapple plantation and ate lunch (not very good) and pineapple soft serve (AMAZING). We then went back to the resort and took a small nap. In the evening, we drove about an hour to my friend, Brighton's house. We were good friends in high school. It was fun to talk and catch up with Brighton, Sam and their 4 kiddos.
Day 4- We did our usual morning routine (I sleep in while Cade works out and swims, then we go to breakfast at 6:30 am, 9:30 Utah time). Then we drove to a Botanical Garden that we hiked/walked through. Cade got in the water and swam to the waterfall. I wasn't smart enough to wear my swim suit (didn't think about the waterfall). It was so beautiful and worth the walk. In the late afternoon we went to the Polynesian Cultural Center and ate a yummy buffet dinner. After dinner, we got to see the incredible Breath of Life show. It was so neat. It pretty much shared the gospel and the plan of salvation in a creative and cultural way. We thoroughly enjoyed it!
Day 5- This was the day that probably was too much relaxing and not enough doing for Cade ;). Tuesday was the first day that the Laie LDS temple was open since being closed for cleaning. We loved being in the Lord's house and LOVE visiting new temples. It's a favorite thing we do together. Then we soaked in some sun by the beach and drank Pina coladas....the best. But after a couple hours of reading and relaxing by the beach, Cade decided he needed to go find sea turtles. So I went up to take a nap while he rented snorkeling gear and drove to a beach where he was able to boogie board out and swim with two sea turtles! I wish I could have done that too but didn't feel comfortable boogie boarding while pregnant. That was another highlight for him.
Day 6- The last day we drove to a town that had lots of stores and shops to make sure we had souvenirs for our girls. Then in the afternoon we went back to the PCC and got to see some little shows in the villages and the canoe pageant they do. We bought a ukelele too to have our family learn how to play. The PCC is a pretty cool place and I am glad we got to go. The girls would have loved that part of Hawaii. Maybe someday they can experience it :). After that we drove back to the airport for our LONG red-eye flight back to Utah. I'll be honest...I almost put myself into labor on the flight home, that's how much I HATE flying. But I am so glad that me and baby were safe (even though I didn't get any sleep at all).
It was an amazing vacation for just Cade and I full of reading, relaxing, talking and eating amazing food. I know we won't get a trip like that for quite some time. I am grateful for the sacrifice Cade made to take off work and his church calling to spend quality time with me. We missed our babies and were excited to see them again!
