I was nervous to be away from Tate for a week considering we have been inseparable since he came into existence. I think the longest we have been apart besides Hawaii is one night - not even a full 24 hours. He is with me constantly and even when I worked as a tutor I brought him with me! Anyway, before we left I went to go say goodbye, bracing myself for an emotional melt down (from us both). I gave him a hug, said I loved him and was leaving but would be coming back soon and asked if I could have a kiss. Want to know what my sweet child did in return? He slapped me. Right in the face.
Honestly, it was kind of perfect. It made it a lot easier for me to leave! Obviously I wasn't mad at him or anything but imagine if he had reacted in any other way. What if he started crying and tried to follow us outside and I could hear him screaming as I got into the car? I would've been a wreck. I'm grateful for that little bit of sassiness because it got me on my way to Hawaii tear-free, although I still felt a little emotional inside.
The flight was fine (Tate was definitely on my mind all throughout) and we arrived in Honolulu in the evening. By the time we got to our little cottage it was pitch black. I couldn't appreciate the cuteness of it till morning.
The picture doesn't do it justice - the cottage was DARLING. I absolutely loved North Shore and would definitely stay here again if we ever go back. I love the laid back, surf-town feel and definitely enjoyed this much more than our second rental in Waikiki.
As for the rest of our trip, I'll let the pictures do the talking.
We took a trip to the Dole Pineapple Plantation as suggested by my dad. I would probably not recommend it to other couples (maybe it's cooler to kids?) but it was interesting to see how pineapples grow!
Gorgeous North Shore. I love the personality up there - so different from anywhere else on the island!
We were able to go to the temple during our trip - it's so pretty (of course)! I love the temple.
Hanauma Bay - my favorite part of the entire trip. Snorkeling was unreal. Jordan and I cruised around for hours and saw all sorts of ocean life - sea turtles included.
Although it was a little stormy the day we went, Lanikai Beach in Kailua was by far my favorite beach on the island. In my opinion it was WAY better than Waikiki. If we ever go back, we will not be staying near Waikiki again - we will definitely stay in Kailua.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: Hawaii was amazing. I'm so glad we were able to go, especially before all this moving across the country/grad school craziness got started (more on that later). Visiting Hawaii really made me realize how beautiful the Earth is and how much more of it I want to see! I'd love to travel more some day but for now I'll be sticking to the east coast.
