Paradise

I love the surf motif that adorns the front yards of the houses in Laie. Surf boards on gates, mailboxes that look like pelicans or dolphins, ocean scenes painted on homes walls, and schools all invite you to relax and enjoy the care free life style of the island. One of our tourist stops was the end of Naupaka St. a.k.a Laie Point. It used to be the street on which I lived. Remember the picture of the shack a few posts ago? I always enjoyed the view and often walked to this place to sort through thoughts. Standing on the cliffs literally feels like standing on the edge of the world.

Legend tells of a giant lizard that used to stand guard in this spot ready to kill any who dare intrude. The Lizard killed many people until a brave warrior named Kana killed it and chopped it's head into 5 pieces which now can be seen as the five pieces of rock jutting out from the ocean jus toff of this little peninsula. Pictured above. I hate jumping from heights, but some off my friends would jump from this cliff. The beach shore you can see is Bikini Beach.

The girls had fun looking for animals in the cracks of the reef.

We found a crab . . . It's dead so it didn't run from us.

This is also on the same street. It is a private entrance to Bikini Beach. My brother, Chris, didn't know it existed. He had always wanted to take Sarah to this beach but thought it might be too hard. He thought you had to scale the mountian to get to this beach. I was happy to know that I could teach my little brother something about my island home. This little adventure took place on a Sunday afternoon. We had come home from church and the kids needed to get out and I was anxious for adventure as well. Kai and Raia needed to stay home and nap though and that is the reason for them not being photographed.

The kids thought this stairway was so cool and I have to agree. It is carved right out of the rock. I don't know if it is coral or lava.

Cambria and Kiera collected tiny piece of coral to bring back to each kid in their class.

Can you see the coconuts in the back ground of this picture? Bubba was afraid of the water because he thought you had to swim in the deep part.

Since it was Sunday I told them they couldn't swim. You can see how well they obeyed. It started out really slow. First they just soaked their feet and inch by inch they got wetter and wetter. Are you forming analogies in your head?

This was Bubba's sand castle. He picked up fist fulls of sand and then threw them in a pile and was so proud of himself. I just loved to see his excitement.

Hawaii was such a big part of my life. It had a lot to do with shaping me into the woman I am today and sharing these beaches and stories and places with my children feels so meaningful.

This is Kiera fulling succumbing to temptation. It was a beautiful day, one of the very few days of bright sunshine. I miss this day and the sound of the waves lapping on the shore and the squeals of delight peppered with splashes and dives and my toes in the sand. I would go back to this day in a heart beat if I could.