Our Fall Characters

Our Halloween line-up was quite eclectic this year.  We had a repeat with Captain America.
(He had a new costume for this year but didn't like it once he tried it on.  And he insisted on wearing his slippers, a.k.a. flip flops, with his costume.  Only in Hawaii!)

We had a doe, a deer.

We had a strawberry.  Isn't she berry cute?

And we had Audrey Hepburn.

It was a fun Halloween for everyone and now we're stocked up on candy for the next 6 months!

Just another day at the beach!

At Kaneohe sandbar

And Kailua beach

Moloka'i

Friday was Len's 40th birthday!

We did a surprise cake and song to him with friends on the 4th.

We had our own family dinner/celebration on the 6th.  And then Friday the 7th, Len and I flew off island for a little weekend getaway!  It was a combo birthday and anniversary present.

We went to one of the neighboring islands of Moloka'i.

Molokai is small, quiet, and incredibly rural.  There are no stoplights on the whole island.  There are 2 gas stations on the entire chunk of land.  Everything is very country and laid back.  The "airport" is just a building and one small flight line in the middle of the field.  There is nothing fancy on Moloka'i, but it was the perfect place for a relaxing weekend away.  

A big shout-out to my grandfather, a.k.a. Tutukane, who encouraged us to go to Moloka'i and tour the former leper colony there.  He went on this exact same trip 40+ years ago and insisted that we do the same while we were here.  

Molokai is shaped like a glove/hand extended out with the thumb on top.  That thumb is a peninsula jutting out from the top of the island but it is cut off from the rest of the mainland area by high sheer cliffs.  This created a very natural isolated area and back in the mid/late 1800s it became a leper colony.  

We took a mule ride down to visit this "thumb" peninsula and learn about the history of the leper colony and the amazing men and women who came there to minister to them.  It was a scary experience (going 1700 feet down a cliff on a mule) but also an incredibly humbling encounter to hear the stories and see the sacrifice people made.  

the peninsula, Kalaupapa

the mule ride down

the sheer cliffs

These cliffs are the highest sea cliffs in the world.

Leper colony church started by Father Damien

Our mule ride took most of the day on Saturday.  The rest of our time was spent relaxing and enjoying the laid back life of Moloka'i.

We had views of the islands of Lana'i and Maui from our hotel.  Plus we had a great ocean view right off our balcony.

Lana'i on the right and Maui on the left in the distance.

Thank you Tutukane for a memorable weekend get away!  Happy Birthday to Len, and Happy Anniversary to us!

Mokoli'i

We tackled a big Hawaiian adventure today and kayaked out to Mokoli'i, also known as Chinamen's Hat.  I am so proud of the kids!  All 4 of them climbed to the top, which was not an easy feat!  Another check off our bucket list.

Before we left:

View back at where we had started:

View from half way up the hike:

The view from the top:

After we came back down, we walked around a bit at the bottom and explored the little island.

Kid pics

I've posted a few pictures recently of R, but not of everyone else.  I love, love, love pictures, so here's some more pics of all the kids.

B playing volleyball:

N:

All of us walking the North Shore:

Silly pictures at the North Shore: