Aloha 'Oe Hawaii

Just as we were surprised on Easter Sunday by a gaggle of guests from NY (DT and Heidi Slouffman and Brennan Mahoney and his wife and his daughter, Grace, plus Tara and John), we spent our last few weeks in Hawaii with many unexpected visitors from The Big Apple. First came Janellie - her trip was the only one planned far ahead of time, and she stayed with us for almost two weeks. Next Donna and her daughter Sumia arrived; they were in town for a last-minute business trip. They overlapped for a night with Cynthia, who threw together her vacation plans as soon as she heard that we were moving. And after Cynthia left the Moltz family stayed with us until just two days before we left Hawaii for good.

Donna, Sumia and Daniel at the airport.

Kristin, Steven and Josiah Moltz (1 year-old Aaron is asleep in the car); Cynthia and Sophie

It was great to have so many visitors to share our last days in Oahu. We repeated many of our favorite experiences: many days at the beach; lunch at Kua Aina Burgers in Haliewa (Obama eats there!), fresh shrimp drenched in butter and garlic at the Giovanni's shrimp truck in Kahuku; the scenic drive around the Windward side of the island, with familiar sights such as the Makapuu'u lighthouse and Chinaman's Hat island.

Sophie and Daniel at Ala Moana Beach Park

We picnicked with Uncle Rick and Allison, Daniel's Bible Study Buddy

Waiting for shrimp. Daniel in dreamland.

We also got to do a few new things: swimming with sea turtles at Lanikea Beach and snorkeling at Hanauma Bay, where you are literally exploring the inside of a volanic crater, amidst coral reefs populated with brilliantly-colored, and very friendly fish. And Ryan was introduced to the best poke on the island, at the Suprette in Kahuku, where we also saw, in the parking lot, our first wild boar, lying in a truck bed surrounded by the poi dogs that had hunted it. (poi dog=mutt). We also attended a luau at the Polynesian Cultural Center, which featured music and dance from seven Pacific Island cultures. The PCC is run by The Church of Latter Day Saints. This may explain why the female Polynesian dancers were so unusually . . . clothed.

Cynthia and the boys at the Polynesian Cultural Center

We are glad to report that Sophie was similarly sartorially inclined when she performed a hula with her 2nd grade class from Noelani Elementary. She danced using four smooth, polished stones called 'ili 'ili - she clicked them together to accompany the song she sang.

Saturday, we had a cleaning party at our house with friends from our fellowship group. They contributed the elbow grease - the real grease was all ours. We fueled up with take-out from Bangkok Thai and mango malasadas from Leonard's. (I was reading Pidgin to Da' Max in the airport and the official definition of malasadas is as follows: Potagee donut. No hole.) That night, we had a family dinner at Aunty Debbie and Uncle Karl's house, and Sophie made the observation, "Wow, I never knew I would get so many presents when I moved!"

Sunday, the night before we left, we had our last day at City Church, and said goodbye to our friends there. Afterwards, the kids got to go to a science-themed birthday party for Irina Quinn, and we had a group over for bbq. That evening, we had dinner with DeShannon and Rocky at Ninnikuya, a garlic restaurant. Garlic, as you know, is the perfect ingredient in which to indulge when you're going to spend 14 hours the next day on planes, squeezed into small, enclosed, poorly ventilated places with hundreds of people.

Monday morning we finished packing our bags, did a walk-through with the realtor to prove that we'd actually cleaned, fixed the disposal that broke at the last minute, and headed to the airport. After stopovers in Seattle and Atlanta, we arrived in Jacksonville Tuesday morning, where Ryan's dad picked us up and whisked us to the International House of Pancakes for breakfast . . . or whatever meal we were supposed to be eating.

So far, we are staying with Ryan's parents and grandmother at their home on the Southside of Jacksonville. We are planning to move into Grandma Ardie's 1 bedroom condo - just as soon as the bugs move out. Seems roach infestations aren't limited to New York City and Hawaii. Either that, or they've been following us.

(We also have just as many lizards here in Jax as we did in Hawaii. One showed up in our toilet, to the kids' delight. I was just glad it wasn't an aligator. More about those later.)

Uncle Blaine and the kids at the Disney Resort

This past week we drove down to Orlando for the day to meet our friends Darcy and Blaine, who were in town for the big PCA General Assembly taking place at Disney's Coronado Resort. Blaine was desperate to get out of Disney territory, where they charge $7.50 for a small, limp egg roll and only sell Coca Cola products (hence, no Mountain Dew, Blaine's elixir of life). So he took us to Gator Land, where we endured the 97 degree weather to watch a guy wrassle a gator, although not the thousand pound one, and see rare white gators: blue-eyed, white and uncanny as ghosts, but with a wickeder sense of humor.

Everything is bigger on the mainland.

Ryan has been busy meeting just about everybody in Jacksonville, it seems, thanks to many, many family contacts, especially from his mom. Please pray for wisdom for him as he discerns what church position to pursue next, and for God to provide the opportunity.

Thank you for all your prayers as we moved here from Hawaii! We are enjoying the time with Ryan's family, although we miss all of our friends and family in other parts of the country. As soon as we get settled, y'all are invited to come stay with us down South. (Like my Southern dialect? Don't it just sound so natural like?) We'll enjoy the sun, swim in the pool, and then you can join Daniel for a nap in the glorious central AC. Hopefully with more clothes on. (Modest attire, or its lack, has become a real theme in this post.)