Woohoooo! We should all live our lives with such abandon - I'm trying to be like my dogs in 2009!

Today we had a family outing including the puppies. We drove up to Flagstaff to play in the snow. The puppies have never seen snow let alone played in it so we had no idea what to expect.

I was slow to get going with this darn virus and ear infection but once we got on the road it was all good. Brendan worked on his essay for school, the puppies were all over the place with excitement the whole way!

If we had any doubt about how the girls would like the snow it was gone the minute we parked. They were dying to get out and play. They weren't put off by the snow at all. They hit the ground running and didn't stop for an hour. Brendan had a lot of fun running through the snow and plyaing with the girls too.

We probably would have stayed longer but in the middle of playing and having fun I heard a siren going off like when highway patrol buzzes you and talks to you through the PA system. Charley ran back down to the roadway where the Durango was parked and was told by my police man we had to move. There were no signs that said No Parking and we were off the road but I guess he needed someone to bug this afternoon and we were it. So we decided to pack the girls up and head for some hot cocoa.

Off we went to get cocoa and warm the girls up. Poor Gracie and Emma had the coldest tummies I have ever felt. We got our cocoa and got back on the road for home. The girls slept most of the way home they were so tired. Over all a great way to end a not so great week!

Swimming With The Spinner Dolphins Video

Here are a couple of videos from our boat trip. The video imports kind of small in this blog so it's hard to see some of the details in the videos. I have also posted them on myspace and if you click the links below you can see them in a bigger format.

This first video if you look just beyond us in the water you can see the dolphins slapping the water and swimming toward us. They literally swam back to us and went all around and below us. It was one of the neatest things I have seen.

This video is a quick clip of the dolphins following our boat and swimming along side. Clearly when you watch the video you will hear how excited I was about it.

Here are a couple of spinner dolphins entertaining us. Sorry it was really choppy on the water so the video is a little bumpy but so worth the watch.

Here are the links on myspace if you want to view them in a bigger screen

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=49315731

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=49296409

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=49393178

Saving The Best For Last Apparently

The last full day of our vacation was as close to the perfect as it could get! We had booked a 5 1/2 hour snorkel trip on a 55 ft yacht. We were all pretty psyched for this adventure. To say expectations were running high would be an understatement.

We had to be up and out of the house by 5:00 AM to head to Port Allen. We got to Capt Andy's and soon we were on our way. We started out of the port before sunrise but shortly after we got under way the sun started to come up and it made for some gorgeous pictures. We had a quick continental breakfast and then we were up on deck to check out the sights.

It is Hump Back Whale season in Kauai so we were on the lookout. It's early in the season and apparently the whales are a little bashful at first. We saw one quick blow hole during the trip but that was it the whales weren't wanting to put in an appearance that morning. We were on the lookout for sea turtles too but no luck on that front either. We did however see an amazing rainbow, beautiful sunrise and the Napali coastline is so peaceful and pretty. On our way up the coastline we saw a handful of Spinner Dolphins.

Brendan and I were standing toward the front of the boat and we were getting soaked from the waves since it was a bit choppy but we didn't really care because we were having a great time. Charley as usual was busy snapping away with his camera and in his own world.

Once we got up the coast there was enough wind and the waves were strong enough that the captain had the crew put up the sails and we sailed for a bit. It was really nice but after awhile several people were kind of queasy from the choppy waves and we fired up the engine again and we were on our way.

We headed back down the Napali coast looking for a spot to stop and snorkel. We were a bit let down when we were told that we wouldn't be able to do any snorkeling but apparently the massive rainfall had created a bad run off situation and the waters were all murky and cloudy and not fit for snorkeling. However the captain did make the decision that he would try to stop along the way so we could do a free swim off the back of the boat in the middle of the ocean.

While we were looking for a spot to free swim, we came upon roughly 200 Spinner Dolphins. It was amazing and Charley got lots of good pictures and video of them swimming behind and beside the boat and a couple of them jumping out of the water and spinning in the air. It was so cool! But the best part was yet to come. When Capt Rock stopped the boat so we could jump in and swim, the dolphins turned around and came swimming back towards all of us in the water. The actually swam back to us and were swimming around and below us. It was one of the neatest things I've ever seen. Charley was jealous - he has been on over 200 scuba dives in his life and has never gotten to swim with a dolphin. He was up on the boat taking some pictures and getting his mask ready to come in with me and Brendan when the dolphins were swimming under us. By the time he got in the water they had gone past us.

After our swim we climbed back on the boat and had a delicious lunch capped off with some wine. Then it was back on our way down the coast to the port. The waves were huge white caps and we were getting air on some of them. This was incredibly good fun especially for Brendan. Charley and I had gone to the back of the boat to sit and relax and Brendan had stayed up front with some new friends he had made. Capt Rock was having a great time throttling up and down and making sure everyone in the front of the boat was getting soaked with big waves. On one or two occassions the waves came shooting over the front of the boat across the cabin and down on us in the very back of the boat - remember it was a 55 ft boat! so those were some big ol waves coming our way.

One of those ginormous waves actually took Brendan's glasses right off his face!! We thought they were gone to the ocean and I had just resigned myself that I needed to come up with a couple extra hundred bucks ASAP when we got home to get him a new pair since he is legally blind most days without his glasses and he can't drive without them. Well about 20 minutes later a woman found his glasses hanging on one of the ropes that go along the railing of the boat. It was unbelievable that they had caught on the rope but it was good fortune for him. They have a couple of scratches so we will still need to get new ones but it's not a dire situation now.

By the time we pulled back into the port we were all soaked with water, toasty tan and in great spirits. We all three agree this was the absolute best day of our entire trip. If you ever go to Kauai and want a great adventure take the Capt Andy's Napali Coast Snorkel trip and try to get Captain Rock and crew for your trip. It's pricey but it's well worth the money!

When we left Capt Andy's we went in a few of the shops to see what they had to offer and then started the drive back to our side of the island. We stopped at a craft fair to see what they had and then toward our condo to make dinner and relax.

We had a yummy steak dinner grilled by Charley and then relaxed and watched House Bunny together while I did laundry so we could pack up in the morning. All in all a wonderful day and evening with my boys.

Merry Merry Christmas From Kauai

We actually for the first time in my memory slept in on Christmas morning - now if you know us then you know sleeping in is like 7:00 AM but still we did things differently this year. No tree, lights or traditional homemade muffins that I make on Christmas morning. This was a different kind of Christmas and the very first Christmas in my 40 yrs on this planet that I was not with my mom on Christmas day.

We got up and I set up our chocolate Christmas tree and put out the couple of gift bags that we had to be opened. This year with the trip and expenses on top of how hard it is to drag big bulky gifts with us on the trip we opted to keep it really low key and simple. A couple of Brendan's gifts were actually back home for him to open when we got back. Charley opened his Geoffrey Bean tie and cuff links along with his cologne. Brendan opened his House Bunny video, aftershave soother, cologne and his newest hot wheel for his collection which was a totally cool VW bug with a surf board on top. I got a IZ CD that I have been wanting for awhile now and a Hawaiian calendar too.

- Special Note - It was brought to my attention that I never mentioned what I got for my birthday. I received a gorgeous sapphire and diamond tennis bracelet to match my earrings and necklace from last year. And Brendan got me a cool CSI field kit which is actually for kids but he knows I like forensics so he thought I might like playing with it. lol

After we opened our gifts we split the chocolate tree up and ate it. Then we made a nice breakfast and tried to decide what we should do for the day. We were supposed to go on a snorkel boat trip but the company cancelled on us last minute on Christmas Eve so we had to think up something fun to do. I did manage to schedule a boat trip with another company 4 minutes before they closed on Christmas Eve for the day after Christmas so that was luck!

We went to the Coconut Market and some of the local shops to see what they had to offer and I got a cute t-shirt for the grandbaby and a gift for my mom and my niece that was house sitting for us. After shopping we went up to Wialua Falls and took some pictures. Then we grabbed a glass of wine at a place on the beach. The rain moved in shortly after that so we headed back to the condo.

We were supposed to go see the movie the Curious Case of Benjamin Button however there is only one tiny theater on Kauai and they were only showing it one time on Christmas. When we got there the parking lot was overflowing and there was a line out the building. We opted to take a pass on the movie and see it when we got back home.

Overall, a nice relaxing day with the boys and it all worked out in the end.

Christmas Eve On A Beach

Christmas Eve we woke up and it was raining... We had a nice breakfast and tried to figure out what we could do for the day even if it was raining. As luck would have it by the time we ate and cleaned up the rain had started to dry up some. We decided to brave it and try to find a good beach in the area to hang out.

We found a really nice beach in Kalapaki and settled in. It was great the rain stopped, the sun came out and the wind calmed down a bit. We plopped ourselves down on our beach mats and let the relaxation and reading begin. Later the boys went up to Burger Hut and grabbed some burgers and fries and we had a perfectly nice picnic lunch on the beach.

I decided to try out the water and after much manipulation and nagging on my part I convinced Brendan to join me in the water. Slowly but surely I got him further and further out into the ocean into bigger waves. We had an excellent time and couldn't stop laughing. Charley opted to stay on the beach and read and snap pictures of us being silly in the water.

After playing in the ocean we headed to the shower and then we hit some of the little shops along the beach to see what they had. Everyone was closing up early because it was Christmas Eve so we headed back to the condo to clean up and make some dinner.

This wave snuck up on me from out of nowhere. Brendan found it amusing.

Brendan was worried his mommy was going to drown so he kept trying to save me.

We got splashed, knocked down, pulled by the under tow and we had a GREAT time!

Not So Happy Birthday To Me...

As you may know this trip was originally planned to celebrate my 40th birthday in a BIG way because generally my birthday gets overlooked, forgotten or combined with Christmas and that just sucks. So to save Charley trying to find people to come to a 40th birthday party two days before Christmas we opted for this trip.

We have had rain more days than not on our vacation but we had sun on Sunday and Monday so I was excited for my birthday to be sunny. I had every intention of doing something bold for my birthday to make it memorable and kind of as a screw you to cancer as well. But when I got up Tuesday almost as if on queue the rain started. So there went the birthday plans.

So after a bit of a crying jag from me - honestly I think the crying was more due to some pent up emotions from the cancer than anything else but of course I was disappointed that the day was rained out. Our day was spent sitting around the condo watching a marathon of NCIS on cable. Exciting eh?

We did eventually go back to Mariachi's for dinner but I felt kind of cruddy and really wasn't in the spirit of being excited that it was my birthday. Charley did give me a lovely card and a diamond and sapphire tennis bracelet to match my earrings and necklace from last year.

So there ya have it.... the less than eventful way my 40th year was ushered in. I think I'm just gonna give up on my birthday at this point - it's the curse of being so close to Christmas I guess.

This is a link to the video of my birthday morning http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twcLE3oDGUA

This is our friendly amusing waiter at Mariachi's and clearly he was having a better time that night than I was.

Waimea Canyon Trip

Monday was our second sunny day and we decided to take a drive to the west side of the island to check out Waimea Canyon - "The Grand Canyon of the island". It was a nice drive and we got some pretty pictures of the views.

Before we started up the winding road to the top of the canyon we stopped at Jo Jo's Shave Ice for a yummy treat. They have over sixty flavors and you can mix and match three if you want. I got Peach, Banana Colada and Blackberry. It was divine! Next stop I want to get Banana Colada, Chocolate and Coconut. Anyway we had a nice treat and enjoyed some time in Waimea.