A Quick Post...I am Tired!

Monday we went to the yummy Dole Plantation.  Not tons to do there, but it was enjoyable and yummy.  First we rode the 2 mile train around the plantation and saw the big variety of plants....from Mangos, bananas, coffee beans, Ti, sugar cane, and the obvious pineapple.  Did you know it takes around 22 months to grow a pineapple?  It takes an additional 14 months or so to get the second pineapple off the same plant and that's all you get.  They have several variety of pineapples.  It is such a cute plant...very unique. 

After the train ride we went in their store and purchased some yummy Dole Whipped Ice Cream....Homer drool.  I want another.  They top the sides with fresh pineapple...so yummy.  We then took a self-guided and a guided tour of a garden they have there.  Various plants and vegetation that are so unique and so beautiful.   It was a fun visit.

Onto Waimea/the North Shore....those beaches are CRAZY!  The waves are huge and crash into the sand and then push up the hill....to crazy for me.  It really takes an adult and good swimmer to attempt to swim in the waves.  We then took the drive to La'ie and saw the temple in the light.  The sun was going down, but we did see it this time.  It's being renovated (it makes me sad) until 2010, so the white has been striped on the outside and it looks gray, but it is still beautiful.

Long day and still a long drive home....but we made it home and ate dinner after 7 that night!

Tuesday we went to Chinatown.  It was an interesting experience.  Not something I'd do again with my double stroller and kids.  It was fun seeing the fish, vegetable, and fruit markets.  It was very difficult trying to push a stroller around the packed shops and it wasn't quite the food I really wanted to eat.  We did however go to a restaurant that Jason's boss recommended.  It wasn't bad.  It was called Little Village.  I was grateful to go there and sit down in a very clean, cool, and enjoyable place.  I didn't really want to eat in the Food Court of the fish market....you know pregnant women and there sense of smell.  

Another trip to Wal-Mart in Honolulu.  I am so proud of myself that I was able to find it from Chinatown through the very crowded streets of Honolulu.  It's a busy city and I am locating things pretty well in our car.  Yea me!  We live in a city that is far away from the popular things to do here, so navigating this place has been a great learning experience.  I know all the freeways, highways, and I have almost memorized all the cities and where they are located.  That's especially helpful when you are trying to use coupons and see as much as you can in a certain amount of time.

Today, Wednesday, we did the swap meet thing again.  I hoped to go early (it's open as early as 6 a.m.), but it just had to be the morning my kids chose to sleep in!  I have needed Eli to do it for some time now and he chose today to sleep in.  We didn't get out of the house till after 9 a.m....so the swap meet got hot quickly.  My poor kids are tired of that place, but it was more to allow the aunt and grandma to get in some good shopping...it's the only place to go for good prices.  The first time we went I got an adorable baby quilt for $35.  They told us it was cost around $60 or so in Waikiki.  We eventually found it in a shop in Waikiki for $55.  We've also seen various other items in other shops priced a lot higher than the swap meet.

We then went to Aiea and I found some cool and cozy pregnancy pants at Motherhood Maternity.  Relief, but still in need of some cooler shirts.  I packed horribly wrong for this trip.  It has been humid and hot most of the time.  With no a/c and a growing tummy, it has been difficult.  I packed a few items that don't fit the tummy anymore and a few shirts that are maternity, but are too hot to wear.  Big arms and g's make it extra hot for me.

Thanks to my wonderful babes and aunt...dinner was yummy.  Spaghetti is always good.  It was fun to come home and chill to AI...We knew the results prior to the show, hence the 3 hour time difference in LA.  It was posted on Facebook and the web.  

I am too tired to find the camera for pictures.  I wasn't going to type this much.  I am TIRED!  Goodnight and Aloha!