February 2.0

We left for a trip to Oahu on February 7 and got back on the 15th. While there, I attended a conference for anesthesia providers with a friend of mine from school. Kevin's mom and sis were with us in the same condo and we all had a great time! It was a very relaxing trip. Here's a few highlights:

Our condo was located in Waikiki at the "Wyndham on the Beach Walk". It's a time share complex so there was some "selling" that went on. But we didn't sit through the presentation. The condo was two bedroom two bath so it was perfect for the four of us. Very clean and decorated well. We all agreed that we would stay there again if given the choice.

We did have to pry ourselves away from this very persistent lady at the front desk who wanted to get us into their selling presentations...she wanted us to call her "Aunty Aloha"...should have taken a picture of her. Anyway, it was kind of a running joke with us after that meeting...we would pass her desk at a distance and say under our breaths "Hi, Aunty Aloha!" 

We ate a lot of our meals at the condo but did go out a few times. It was a pretty lively spot right where the condo was located, a lot going on on the street at night...fun to watch.

We were just a few blocks off the beach so the first morning we were there, I couldn't sleep past 6 am so I got up and walked down to the beach to get a picture of the full moon over the water...so beautiful!

I ended up painting the scene in watercolors later in the trip. I also met an artist while walking through a hotel lobby that was painting in watercolors but using a very unique technique. He was happy to tell me about it so I tried it while painting this scene. I was so excited to try it because I've always had frustrations with watercolor and his technique was something I recognized as a way to get around some of that.

Anyway, I think it turned out well but I still have some things I want to change.

Just more scenery of the beach that same morning...a shot of Diamond Head under a tree :)

 Every Friday night, there is a fireworks show on the beach. We all went and watched. It's a very popular thing. I'll bet most of the hotels on the beach are empty during it because the crowds were dense! But that made it more fun.

 Kevin and I met up with my friend Kathy and her husband Topher for a sunset cruise that takes off right at the beach. We all had a blast...weather was perfect. Kevin and I have taken this trip before a couple of times but have always had to bundle up due to the cooler temps on the water. But this time we didn't have to put on the jackets.

 Our traditional pose in front of Diamond Head! Three years in a row now.

 Kevin on the boat, wind in his hair (you can't tell from the pic).

 You can see my hair...all over the place!

 Kevin's sister Teresa, his Mom Cathy, and I went a lot of places together too. Spent some time on the beach, drove to the North Shore so I could visit my grandmother (98!)  and so that they could attend a temple session (temple closed on Mondays and we went on a Monday so, doh!) We also tried to go to Hanauma Bay on a Tuesday (the next day) and it's closed every Tuesday so we were really striking out! We'll know better next time I guess. 

I thought this was a funny shot...Mom on a beach with China man's hat in the distance...:) She knew I was taking it...

 So, a very fun trip, lots of relaxation time. Didn't do too much but had enough activity to keep us all happy and worn out.

Now it's back to work and the rental project...no pics yet and I forgot to take a before shot! Kevin has already ripped into the bathroom vanity and has it out. Oh well...

Early February

As per my New Year's resolution, I am posting at least twice every month. I didn't specify that I had to post a lot in those two postings...

Kevin and I decided to get some bookshelves for the livingroom in keeping with our plans to continually make our house a little slice of paradise. We found these at Costco. I had measured the wall (kind of) and told Kevin that these would fit side by side and it would be perfect! I went and got them in the truck while Kevin was at work. We put them together in our livingroom...(well ok, mostly Kevin) and stood them up against the wall, and guess what! They had not 1/2 an inch to spare (whew!). They went up so nice! I was lucky we didn't get all the way to installing these only to find out they were an inch too wide or something because we had granite on one side and the end of the wall on the other!

We put a string of rope lighting inside and on top of the bookcases (looks nice at night) and now we have room to display all kinds of cool stuff like my Jane Austen collection from Barnes and Noble, my copy of Lord of the Rings (hard bound, all three books in one ;)...ok I'm a Tolkien nerd), How to Win Friends and Influence People, and some pictures...oh and of course, the busts of my children that I made out of clay and that they would probably rather I didn't display...

Let's see, what else...We celebrated Polina's 25th birthday at PF Changs at the end of January as a family. That was really fun. She is neck-deep in school and loving it. She is also very busy so we don't see her enough to satisfy us.

Our rental is empty and we are in the middle of redoing one of the bathrooms so it will be a while before that project is done. I really don't even like to remember that we have to work on it. It's so pleasant to just forget all about it. Then we get back from vacation and, oh yeah...that freaking project is still waiting to be done! The next Feb post will be about our vacation to Hawaii along with some before pics of the stupid bathroom project. Stay tuned!