Saturday: Elliot's First Flight

We awoke at 5 am, Elliot ate breakfast, we got dressed (sans coffee) and the shuttle arrived promptly at 6am to take us to OAK. So far so good. We got some Peet's at the airport (I love airports with good coffee) and we got settled at our gate and waited for our plane to board. I fed Elliot at 5, so he would be wanting to eat again right as we were ready to board the plane and I was happy about this because I heard that nursing your baby during take-off and landing can help with the ear pressure and aid in a happier baby which equals happier passengers traveling near baby. The plane lifted off right on time and we landed in hot and sticky Honolulu five hours later...what about Elliot you ask? He was AMAZING! He ate, played and slept the entire flight! I don't like to brag, but more than one person remarked at what a great baby he was (insert proud mama glow here).



Saturday Evening: The Grocery Store

When we finally arrive in Kauai we dropped Elliot, Grandma and all of our luggage off at the hotel and headed for the grocery store. Thanks to Papa and Grammy we were staying in beautiful two-bedroom condo equipped with a full-kitchen that only lacked some fresh food from the market. Dale and I headed back to Lihue to Star Market. We picked up some salami and cheese for lunch/snacking, yogurt and cereal for breakfast (yummy haupia, liche, papaya and mango flavors), beer, diapers (too big to pack), milk, ice cream, bread and water...all for the low, low price of $165.00 and I did not leave anything off the list! Ouch! A 1/2 gallon of milk was $6.00! Mid-way through our shopping excursion we called Grandma to inquire about flavors of yogurt she would like to eat when we learned Elliot was having his first Hawaiian breakdown...so we grabbed the last few items and jetted back to the hotel. By the time we arrived our sweet boy was fed and fast asleep, whew!




Sunday: Elliot's First Swim

This was our first whole day on the island and we chose to acclimate ourselves at the pool. I slathered my son with chemical free sunscreen, put a hat on him and we headed for the pool. We cannot say that he loved the water...but he didn't hate it.



After a long day at the pool (long day in baby time = about 2 hours) we explored our dinner options and tried Tomkats Grille in Old Koloa town. The food was good, not great. We headed to a more "economical" grocery store after dinner to pick up a few items so we could BBQ our own dinner the next night...BIG SAVE market was another 100 bucks for a few steaks, some PB, sandwich bread and not much else...so it wasn't quite a BIG SAVE.

Monday: Hawaiian Farmers Market

We awoke bright and early I drove Daddy to the golf course (so we could have the car to go out and about), came back to the lovely condo and by the time Elliot ate, Mommy and Grandma had coffee and breakfast, Elliot decided to nap and then eat and then before you new it, it was almost time to pick up Daddy...the space time continuum is quite different with a baby. I read about a Farmers Market in Old Koloa Town and thought it would be great to experience and also to pick-up some produce for the dinner that night. Grandma and I drove over, I put Elliot in the Bjorn and we walked towards the market. Though it was fun to see and buy some of the unique local produce, it left a little something to be desired when you are used to California Farmer's Markets. They had some HUGE (and tasty) avocados, wonderful sweet cucumbers, yummy Apple-bananaas, super-sweet pineapple and fresh cold coconut juice (served in the coconut). We loaded up and then went to meet Daddy for lunch at the golf course. And that night Daddy grilled some mean steaks, we microwaved some potatoes, sliced up the yummy cucumbers and avocados and had a wonderful minimalist dinner (condo's don't come with a spice cabinet).


Tuesday: More Pool Time

We got up, drank our coffee, ate our breakfast, etc., etc. and finally made it to the pool around lunch time. I packed us some PB&J's and some other goodies. We got Elliot back into the pool; we certainly enjoyed it more than he did. I must admit I was feeling a little blue about our trip at this point. I felt like time was moving so quickly and here we were on this beautiful island and most of what I saw up to this point were the walls of the condo and the hotel pool. I had pre-vacation fantasies of putting Elliot in the Bjorn and taking long walks along the beach...not realizing the beach was not very long and babies shouldn't be in the sun (especially tropical sun) for too long. Things were about to look up as we had a special activity planned for Wednesday.

Wednesday: Horseback Riding & Pineapple Upside Down Cake - Oh My!

For the last 14 years I have been dying to go horseback riding with Dale someplace special (Wine Country, Hawaii, you get the idea). So my dear hubby finally made reservations for us. We got up bright and early and headed to the northern side of the island (Princeville). We were on the road about 10 minutes when I realized I forgot my tennis shoes (flip flops are not appropriate attire for horseback riding). This little slip-up put us a bit behind. But thinking quickly on my feet (as I generally do), when I grabbed my shoes I grabbed a bottle and the pump too. My original plan was for us to arrive a 1/2 hour early so I could nurse Elliot and then Grandma would have a happy baby for the 1 1/2 hours we would be riding. Now we would arrive just a few minutes before the ride, so when we were about 20 minutes from the stables I pulled out the pump and got down to milk-making business and by the time we were there I was done and ready for the ride.

Dale rode a really slow horse named Big Blue and I rode a sweet obedient guy named JJ. The ranch was about 2500 acres and was home to some sweet cows as well. We rode to the edge of a cliff with breathtaking views all along the way and altogether had a wonderful time. As we took our final steps back to the stable I heard the faintest sound of my sweet son crying his eyes out. We are not 100% certain, but it seems that he sensed us riding in because he was the happiest little boy until Mommy was within reach. He settled down and had a little nap for the ride home.

After the ride we cleaned up and headed to the Poi Pu Shopping Center to have dinner at Roy's. I was skeptical of this chain-like restaurant, but was so glad I gave it a chance. I had the Short Ribs which were so tender and mouth-watering that I am salivating just writing about them. The Pineapple Upside Down Cake was amazing, it is one of my favorite deserts and I commend Roy's for a job very well done. The cake was a tab bit crispy, the pineapple was sweet and a little caramely (yes, caramely is a word)! Mr. Graham talked and giggle (no crying) during the whole meal and even though we new he was tired (rubbing eyes and ears constantly) he wouldn't sleep out of a fear of missing something and he hung in there like a trooper and let us enjoy our wonderful dinner.


Thursday: Honeymoon (Round Two)

The day started out early with me driving Daddy to golf up in Lihue. I got a little lost on my way back so luckily Grandma had a bottle for Elliot. Time once again got the best of us and right as we were into Old Koloa Daddy called and needed to be picked-up. We headed back up to Lihue, came back to home base to so Daddy could rinse off, we had a snack and then finally made it to Old Koloa town. A cute touristy town with Shaved Ice, a candle shop, a few restaurants and plenty of "Hawaiian attire" for sale. We then headed back to get ready for our special dinner. Roughly 2 1/2 years ago Dale and I honeymooned on Kauai and had a very special sunset dinner at The Beach House. When Grandma offered to baby-sit so we could have dinner out, we decided to re-visit The Beach House. The first time we ate there the dinner was just okay...but we think they got a new chef in the meantime because not only was the sunset amazing, so was the food! I know it doesn't sound very tropical but we had the best blueberry tart for desert!










Friday: Our Day Out

Our last full day, so we decided that some site seeing was in order. I know my dear husband sensed that I really needed to get out so he planned a lovely little day for us. We headed northwest to see Spouting Horn. I saw it as a child and though it is not that big of a deal it was still fun to experience with hubby, grandma and baby. Next we headed to Hanapepe which has a ton of galleries that were ALL closed (typical Kaiser-Federighi luck). But we did make our own fun...we happened into a bookstore where I found they had a wonderful selection of used cook books. I bought a wonderful 1940 copy of The American Woman's Cook Book and I kick myself for not buying Island Recipes for your Microwave Oven. I seem to remember having a cookbook like this when I was growing up, I will have to do some research. I know have a new hobby...collecting old cookbooks! Dale and I also played on the swinging bridge which seemed like a cheesy thing to mention as a tourist attraction but when we got there it seemed to entertain us well enough. It does swing quite a bit when you walk on it, so much so that neither of us were brave enough to walk all the way over. We ended the day by picking up pizza at a spot recommended by locals - Brick Oven. For Kauai I am sure this was great pizza, for how hungry I was it was decent pizza. I judge a pizza by its mushrooms and if they are canned...no good. The rest of the pizza was pretty darn tasty so I won't take as many points away this time.

Saturday: Almost Home

Don't fly ATA! I have never had so little leg room on a flight, not to mention it felt like the temperature was set to 80 degrees! I was sweaty, my baby was sweaty and even though we arrived 30 minutes early we spent 40 minutes waiting for a gate (though this was more of a fog issue than an ATA issue). Not to mention the only seat with 2 oxygen masks (necessary for person who holds the baby) was the window which meant every time I need to change his diaper I had to have Dale and Grandma get up. It then took the baggage another 1/2 hour to arrive. We should have been home around 12 and we didn't get home until almost 1:30 in the morning. I have to give props to our shuttle company for being on-time when we departed and waiting for us when we came home. Elliot was the least cranky of us all - another successful flight with my happy baby!

Mahalo Mucho if you actually read this whole damn thing!

Labels: Adventuring, Kid-ing