Cup Fence DONE! Almost Homecoming!

I have been seriously MIA but getting everything ready for Homecoming is melting my brain. I can’t concentrate, can’t sleep, I am just a hot mess! Just wanted to update with our STUNNING cup fence we put up to welcome the ship home!

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E Komo Mai means Welcome Home in Hawaiian, trying to add a little local flair! I’ve never done one of these for any other Homecoming, I think this just might be a Hawaii thing? (Along with the 300 leis we are giving the sailors as well!)

Super excited, we are down to crunch time and I have to get to the commissary and actually stock my fridge and pantry with man food!

Another Boring Beach Day

Good ol’ Ko’olina Lagoon. Can’t beat this beach for great weather and calm water. While my sister was hear we had a run of rainy weather up on the north shore and windward side of the island, where the best beaches happen to be! We ended up heading out west to lagoon 4 for some snorkeling and sun. The snorkeling isn’t terrible, I went out once and saw a decent variety considering the lagoons are manmade. The last time we were here a turtle had snuck in but we weren’t so lucky this time. All in all, you really can’t go wrong at too many beaches in Hawaii…

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Mckenna and her aunty Steph. These two were having way too much fun out there.DSCF1460a

 

And apparently getting a good shot of your feet while you are floating is difficult because I had about 20 bloopers on my camera… Mckenna did manage to catch a cute pic of her footsies.DSCF1469a

 

I don’t think he was grumpy? Not that I remember anyways…. tired and ready to go home though.
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Also! We were getting ready to pack up when this woman came over freaking out, she had been sitting next to us with some friends and had left a little while before. Apparently she took off her rings when putting sunscreen on her kids and set them on the blanket (!!!) When they left her friend shook the blanket off while packing up not knowing the rings were on it. The lady was FRANTICALLY looking for them so a bunch of us starting to help sift sand. We finally convinced her to talk to one of the marina staff which she did and they were able to find someone that had a metal detector to come help her and for us to stop (I guess what we were doing was possibly making it worse) We left before the guy got there so I don’t know what happened but I hope she found her rings! Anyways, that is my PSA for the day, leave your rings at home if you don’t want to get sunscreen on them!

National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific

We did the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific the same day as the Arizona Memorial. It was quite a bit to take in, but I think its important for my kids, especially because they have a parent who is in the military, to understand the sacrifices that have been made for them. This memorial which is known as Punchbowl, sits up on top of a crater with a stunning view of downtown and Diamondhead.DSC_0035

 

 

We waited a few days after Memorial Day when it had some pretty big crowds, so we had a only a few others in the entire place.  DSC_0037

 

 

It’s really interesting to walk along and see veteran’s from wars that were fought decades apart buried next to each other. You also sometimes find headstones for astronauts.

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Or ones that break your heart.DSC_0040

 

 

Alongside the stairs is the Court of the Missing, walls engraved with the names of 28,788 of military members who have never come home. I had no idea. DSC_0043

 

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THE SOLEMN PRIDE
THAT MUST BE YOURS
TO HAVE LAID
SO COSTLY A SACRIFICE
UPON THE ALTAR
OF FREEDOM

 

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U.S.S. Arizona Memorial

I don’t know why it took me so long to visit this memorial, it is absolutely stunning and sobering to visit. I guess that is the good thing about guests is that they give you that kick in the pants … Continue reading

Playing Catch Up

Okay, I think my brain is officially functioning again!

My sister was here for two weeks and we stayed BUSY. We were all over the island and now I have a huge amount of photos I need to go through.

Also we are seriously gearing up for Homecoming around these parts. I feel like I have a ton of stuff I need to do and get done. I was mentioning this to Omar and he was like ‘it’s going to take you weeks to clean the house?’ Yes, dear. I turned into a hoarder while you were gone. I am just trying to declutter, organize and make everything look PERFECT!

Unfortunately I have a terrible habit of feeling super overwhelmed and then shutting down and not wanting to do ANYTHING. Its the worst and I hate it.

So I am going to try and upload the eleventy-million pictures I took when my sister was here and show you how awesome Hawaii is! (Hint: it’s SUPER awesome!)