Hawaii

The view of the main pool at the Hyatt. All of the resorts have the prettiest landscaping. I took some videos (that I'll put up soon...hopefully!) that will do the grounds justice because these pictures just don't cut it!

There were penguins in our lobby! (Keats is convinced that a penguin would be a nice addition to our family....uh oh)

You would not believe how many pictures and videos I took TRYING to get a good shot of a whale. I bet there were close to 75 and this is about the best I got of a whale spouting.

It was so frustrating because I'd have a good shot but when I'd zoom in, I'd zoom too far and miss it. Such an amateur. The pics below I stole from Sarah. She took surf lessons again and they take pictures of you during them and the guy also got pictures of some whales that were playing around behind her.

Tyler and Keaton at the beginning stages of digging...shirts on.

It got pretty intense...shirts off.

"Aw man, we didn't make it wide enough. Only one chair fits!"

The end result. This looked hilarious when looking at it from ocean level. They were getting so many laughs from people walking by!

More pretty landscaping at our hotel. The bridge takes you to the flamingo and swan area.

This was the awards luau for United Life and the decorations were SO BEAUTIFUL! It was an Asian-style luau which was fun to see since we had just seen the traditional Polynesian-style luau the night before. Matt was the top annuity producer for 2011 and the Jennings and Hall Financial Group was in the top 25 again, so they were honored very nicely.

I forgot to take a picture of the soup before I chowed it down but it was a soft-shell crab sort of chowder. This very interesting salad (accompanied by goat cheese and walnuts) came in a baked apple. It was pretty delicious but my first question was "How the heck do I eat this?" Can't take me anywhere fancy.

The main course was absolutely delicious. I saved the menu but somewhere between Hawaii and Colorado, it got lost. Who woulda thunk?

Pineapple upside down cake for dessert. That was a first for me and I loved it of course.

We visited the Banyan tree one afternoon. The tree was brought to Lahaina from India in 1873when it was only 8 feet tall. It's now over 60 feet tall and has 12 major trunks plus a ginormous core. It stretches over a 200-foot area and shades 2/3 of an acre. (Didn't think you'd be getting a Banyan tree lecture today, did ya?)

The boys on a field trip...

K and I standing in front of the core. I think we're wearing the same outfits and standing in the same positions in an old picture on the Chapungu bridge. Ay yai yai.