Maui, Hawaii - Round 1

My amazing in laws treated all of the kids and their spouses to a trip to Maui in remembrance of Bret's grandparents. No grand kids were allowed (no complaints here) so my amazing parents offered to watch my kids at my place for the week we were gone. We left on Tuesday at 4am and pretty much flew all day (3 hour lay over in Phoenix). We arrived in beautiful Maui that afternoon and the women were quickly presented with our first fresh flower lei's. They were gorgeous. We then ran some errands, ate some pretty yummy BBQ, and hit the pool for a crash course on how to snorkel. The next morning we headed to Big Beach and snorkeled for several hours. It was AMAZING! I say all kinds of ocean life including an up close and personal with several sea turtles. Careful no touching or you will end up paying $10,000. Pricey I know. After playing in the waves, a much needed shower to de-sand my body, we had some yummy fish tacos and off to Hilo Hatties where I got to open an oyster and chose a setting for my new pearl. It was a true highlight. That night we at Buzz's Wharf. Yummy. The rest of the days followed suit with 3-4 hours of snorkeling, lunch, and tourist sites, and then dinner. One night we went to a high class, open air restaurant called Mama's Fish House. It was a dream. We started off down the beach watching the wind surfers, then went to Mama's, which is right on the beach. Not only was the food OUT OF THE WORLD, but I got to see the sun setting from our table. It was wonderful. We also went to Paia, a true hippy town, and Lahaina for some great shopping. The trip all went too fast and was just amazing.

A normal avocado (itty bitty) and a Hawaii grown avocado (ginormous)

Sunset from Mama's Fish House

Wind surfing. One day I will learn...

The Black Pearl. Yes, it is all edible, and Bret ate it all...

Moray Eel

Humuhumunukunukuapau'u
Cole's favorite fish. Yes, he can say the name.
It is also the Hawaiian State Fish

Practicing in the pool

Sea Turtle. Amazing.