Part 2 - Pearl Harbor

Here is Hawaii Part 2!  I have been having a miserable time uploading pictures, which has been a partial reason for not blogging!  

Here is Waikiki Beach , with Diamond Head in the background.  

We also went to Pearl Harbor.  It was amazing.  It is definitely a MUST if you ever visit Oahu.  I didn't realize the effect it would have on me to see the sunken ship, museum, and memorials.  I didn't even know that the USS Arizona Memorial was built on top of the actual ship that was bombed.  

Here is a picture of a part of the boat sticking out of the water, and oil still leaking out daily from the ship. 

This is the USS Missouri - We were able to take a tour - it is HUMONGOUS!  The great part about it was that this was the ship that Colin's grandfather served on.  It was very special.

This is the tourret (I don't know how to spell that...) that Papa shot.  Look how big that is.  

Beautiful pictures ahead!!!!

Aloha Cousins! Part 1 - Diamond Head

Aloha cousins!  I am sorry I have been such a bad blogger lately!  Things have been pretty busy getting ready for a trip to Hawaii!  We went the first week of February, and I have to say, this is my new FAVORITE place that I have ever been.  I am pretty confident that Colin and I will make it back there (hopefully within the next couple of years!).  I never had a strong desire to go to Hawaii, and now that I have been, I can't wait to get back.  I have NEVER seen any place so beautiful, serene, astonishing!  I will try to create several blog posts to show you the different things that we did while on the island.  We went to Oahu, and stayed near the famous Waikiki beach.  

The first two days that we were there, we went shopping in some of the fancy shmancy malls (well, WINDOW shopping!) , we went to the Chinese New Year celebration in China Town, and we hiked a crater near Waikiki called Diamond Head.  This was a beautiful hike, and what is interesting about this crater is that the military built lookout stations on this volcano in the early 1900's before there was radar, to look for any military attack.  There were bunkers and stairs going up to the top, and you could tell with the material that they used that they were trying to disguise the spot.  

Here are some pics from our first weekend:

A view of Waikiki Beach from Diamond Head - the clouds and water look like a painting, don't they?!

A view of the other side of Diamond Head (you can see the valley of the crater from this picture.  It was too big to get the whole crater in one pic!)

Another view of Waikiki

A view of the bunkers (is that what you call them?) that were built into the volcano.

The door from the stairs to the lookout points

Real Hawaiian Snow Ice - It was so yummy after we got done hiking! ( I don't know why this looks like a link, I must have hit something.... sorry!

A view of a Hawaiian sunset from our room.  We were on the Waikiki Harbor.  Beautiful!!!  We opened up our windows every afternoon - the weather was amazing, as was the breeze that was a constant on the island.  

The Dragon Dance in China Town - it was SO crowded!  We ate at a TRULY Chinese restaurant, too.  We acutally weren't sure what we were going to get after we ordered, but it was good :)

Christmas 2007

We had a great Christmas this year - we were able to see both families and we also were able to celebrate Christmas with Colin on Christmas Eve before he had to work on Christmas day. We went to back home to see my family and celebrate with them. While we were there, we saw Santa fly in on a helicopter! Hudson was pretty impressed by that, although I think he was in awe of the helicopter, not Santa. We also visited friends and family that we don't get to see too often and had a Happy Birthday Jesus cake and sang to Jesus with the cousins.
We came home and then the Clantons came to visit for Christmas. We went to the Christmas Eve service, had a full course meal, played golf, got locked out of our car, and had great fun with Guitar Hero and the doggie glasses that Ruger got in his stocking. :)
And, of course, Hudson was overwhelmed with generous gifts from friends, family, and Santa. He has had a great time grilling hot dogs on his new grill, shooting some hoops, playing golf, playing with his bulldozer, mowing the lawn, lounging in his new chair, listening to cd's and crawling through tunnels. Needless to say we have been busy since Christmas!
Despite all the activity, we try to remember and are thankful for God's most precious gift - Christ, and for all the many other blessings that we have been given including precious friends and family that sticks close and loves one another.

Here is a little slideshow of our Christmas pictures. It seems to be showing each picture twice, but it is easier to watch them on the blog than it is to click to view the slideshow on the other website. It was a little complicated to make, which is why it has taken so long to get up on the blog.

Hudson in his new chair - this is now his favorite spot to drink his morning milk :)

Christmas Outfit

Here is a picture of Hudson's Christmas outfit... Isn't he handsome?  I think we have a future golfer on our hands, look at his form!  He has really enjoyed hitting the golf balls around the house with his golf clubs, and he pulls his golf bag around everywhere!  It is just amazing the transformations that are taking place.  His vocabulary increases daily,  he loves making animal noises, he knows and likes to show you the parts of your face  (we are still trying to teach him what the word "gentle" means) .... It is exciting to wake up in the morning knowing that he will do or say something new.  I just love my little buddy so much.  

A Favorite Spot

Here is one of Hudson's favorite things to do when I am in the kitchen...  :)  The noise level sure does increase, but I enjoy the company!

Showertime Fun

I almost didn't put this on the blog, but it was just too cute not to share :)  

Disco Fever

Colin was playing around and made this - it's pretty funny! :) It's Hudson and his friend Caroline!  Hope everyone had a very merry Christmas - we celebrated yesterday since Colin is working tonight!  Much love!