But, I digress...
The morning after our indulgent dinner and dessert, we had a slow start because of two little stinkers who didn't want to put on sunscreen (I might have thrown a fit, too...wouldn't you like to know). Jeff and I had planned to go on a run together, but ended up needing a little solo time. So he went first ;)
After some pool time with our little fishes,
I headed out for 4 miles (still documenting my training, and glad I'm doing that as well--I know I'll at least be curious to look back at it in the future); stopping on the way back for a delicious iced coffee. I took my time walking back, and it was nice.
Mid-afternoon, I dropped my parents off (in the mini van, no less) at the mall. They strolled in holding hands and looking like teenagers (side note: As we were boarding the plane to go home, one of the stewardesses thought K and A were my mom's kids. She really does look so young). They went to happy hour and enjoyed adult time, and I'm really happy they "allowed" themselves to do that.
The Collinses (there it is again, ladies--I'm doin' it just for you!) went down to the beach for an evening stroll. We walked quite a ways before realizing that we had two young children with us that had to walk back. Oops. They were troopers for most of it, even having to watch every step for bees (who apparently can't fly at/after dusk??). Austen was a bit nervous, but we were able to talk her down. K thought it was pretty cool to be able to walk on the lava.
We made it back, and decided to go out to dinner, just the four of us. We ended up at a Mexican restaurant. It was okay. Austen had a traumatizing bug experience: We were sitting there talking and all of a sudden, she's totally freaking out and trying to jump out of her chair. Scared the bajeebus outta me.
The poor thing was okay, and even finished her dinner. And, we lived to giggle about it.
Bed after dinner.
I got up extra early the next morning for my last run of the trip. Eight miles, starting on the beach, middle on the boardwalk, and ending on the road through town for a bit. Perfect last one, if you ask me. I even got to see a bit of wildlife, which you know I was excited about. Don't think I don't notice everyone else casually strolling by the wandering (yes, it was "walking") sea urchin without so much as a glance as I screeched to a stop to take 35 pictures of it, at every angle. No shame.
Oh, I also found a gigantic snail. Score!
We spent the last full day enjoying our beach. Actually, Jeff and I drove 10 minutes to go snorkeling at a nearby beach. It's apparently called "Turtle Town," which I'm still trying to figure out since we didn't see a single turtle and Jeff and Papa saw their share back at our beach. I'm not complaining (although I would have love to see one under water), just smirking.
There is a small story behind me and and snorkeling. I used to love it on our Hawaii trips growing up, but since becoming an ultra-sensitive (read: scared of sharks when I fall waterskiing on a LAKE), anxious adult--not so much. On our honeymoon, Jeff really wanted to go (he'd never been) and I decided I'd be a good little wife and suck it up for my new hubby.
We got out there (confession: I started hyperventilating the second I put my mask on, but thought I could possible fake it till I made it), and as Jeff surfaced to see how I was doing, he looked back to see me halfway back to the shore already. He swears that I was making a rooster tail.
Sue me. I tried.
Anyway, I again decided to suck it up and give it a whirl. One part of snorkeling that has given me trouble is worrying about staying afloat (I know you float on salt water...blah blah blah) at the same time as breathing through a small tube and potentially defending yourself from wildlife. I brought one of the girls' Floatie rings with me, which turned out to be just the ticket.
I love my husband for not being embarrassed to go snorkeling with his 32 year old wife wearing a kid-size inner tube, and for offering to hold my hand. He never let go, and popped up every few minutes to see how I was doing. I eased into it, and ended up really enjoying it (even sans turtles).
We returned the snorkel gear and met my parents down at the beach. It got stormy for a bit, dumping cooling rain on us. Bring it on, Maui, we are Seattlelites and will take your rain any day.
The girls jumped in the waves with Grammie and Papa (and Mommy and Daddy), Austen made apples and fishies in the sand, and it was good. Jeff headed up to start the BBQ, and the rest of us grudgingly made our way off the beach shortly after. We enjoyed a dinner on our patio: Chicken skewers, mac n cheese, garlic toast, and carrots (using up the food creates somewhat of a buffet).
At some point, Austen and Jeff found what has made my life complete: A baby gecko.
My mom stayed back to pack (ie calm her nerves about getting everything done) while the rest of us walked to the shopping center to get t shirts for the girls (and Daddy). And oops, one more ice cream cone for good measure.
We walked back on the beach. There were a ton of frogs in the pond we were at before, and two were even giving each other a piggy back ;)
The girls earned their keep by walking all the way back without being carried. They were taking us to "see the reindeer." Every sign we passed told us whether the reindeer were open or closed for the night. We didn't end up seeing them, but saw lots of geckos and one crab.
We packed our suitcases and went to bed. Go figure, I got more sleep on the last night than I had for the entire two weeks.
Showers, more packing, and cleaning (and peanut butter in one suitcase) in the morning, then down to the vending machine for two patient girls who were told that they could finally pick something on our last day. They did not let us forget.
A few family pics by our favorite pool, one last peek at the beach, and it was go time. Pile in the mini van one last time (with its glorious automatic doors), a slight detour on the way to the airport (men), and a shuttle bus from the car rental place.
I won't say much about the next 45 minutes, other than going through the whole airport process with a bunch of luggage and two little kids is not my cup of tea. I was happy to plop myself down in my seat in row 32.
The girls loved taking off again, and the flight was so-so. Little Miss Austen Jean was a bit of a pill for the first half or so. The poor thing was tired and didn't really know what to do with herself. Mama saved the day with Monsters Inc. and peanut butter crackers. She sat back, watched her movie, and strategically picked the peanut butter off of each cracker, leaving the cracker parts behind. It was a big giant mess, but I wasn't going to interfere. Mom and Dad actually got to watch a movie, too. That was a nice hour of the 5 ;)
Side note: K watched Brave for the first time since being totally freaked out by the "burping" scene. She loved it. Then Mama left all of the DVDs on the plane, so we'll figure out in 3-4 weeks whether she'll be watching it again.
There was, again, squealing, at the landing, chaos while maneuvering everything and everyone off the plane, on the subway, to baggage claim, to the shuttle bus, and into the car, and a detour through Ballard (men), and we finally made it home.
Stay tuned for a follow-up post. Yippee.
