Tuesday, June 10, 2008

The trip home




We thought about staying in Hawaii a day or two longer, but we were starting to get a little homesick for the kids. We headed to the air terminal at Hickam Airforce Base on Saturday morning and caught a flight out right away. We stayed the night in Fairfield and drove the rest of the way home on Sunday. We had an awesome time and hope to go back again!

Hawaii Day 3

Views from Diamondhead




Sea life Park





We took a hike up to Diamondhead, which is a peak that overlooks Honolulu. It was a fun hike and was well worth the effort. The views were fantastic. After our hike, we did a bit more driving and made some scenic stops at Hanama Bay and Sandy Beach park. Rowdy was amazed at the waves and had fun watching the body surfers. We went to the sea life park where we got to see dolphins, sea turtles and sea lions, along with a bunch of other fish. We watched the shows and took a lot of video to show to the kids. After we were done at the park, we went to Bellows Army Base and played in the ocean there. It was very nice because it is a private beach and there weren't too many people there. After our fill of sea water, we went back to the hotel, had a nice dinner and got ready for our venture home.

Hawaii Day 2


Polynesian Cultural Center





Lihue Temple







We decided to spend the entire day on the more northern side of the island of Oahu. We took a nice drive and stop at some differnt beaches. We made our way up to the Lihue temple and spent the morning there. That afternoon we went to the Polynesian Cultural Center. We went to a luau there for dinner and then went to the fireshow at the end of the evening.

Hawaii Day 1

Pearl Harbor Memorial









Our first day in Hawaii was very laid back. We got all situated in our room, got a rental car, bought a few groceries, and then we were ready for some fun. We went to Pearl Harbor which was so very awesome. We loved it! We were there for most of the afternoon. After that, we went to dinner at a very nice restaurant on base. It was oceanfront and very nice.

California Days 1,2 &3

Jelly Belly Factory, Fair Field California








Donner Summit in California, needless to say, we are glad we are heading to Hawaii


Hangin' at the Travis air terminalNapa Valley Vineyard
Napa Valley Wine Train


Well, we made it to Travis Airforce Base on Saturday night. We spent the time that night playing at the bowling alley. I don't think I have ever bowled so badly in my entire life, but it was a good time anyway, Rowdy did really well, it was fun to watch him! Sunday morning, we headed over to the terminal to catch a flight to Hawaii. We were there from about 7:00 to 11:30 and didn't make either of the flights. No big deal though. We spent Sunday hanging out at the hotel and walking around base. On Monday, we went to Napa Valley. The vineyards there are very cool and it is kind of a fun little town. We went to the Jelly Belly factory and out to a nice dinner. We got back to the terminal just in time to get on the flight. We were on the plane for a couple of hours, but the got booted off because of some engine problems. Because we stayed there at the base, they were very laid back about letting us re-check into our room. On Tuesday, we were off to Hawaii!!

Monday, June 9, 2008

Space A adventure

So as I metioned in a previous post, Rowdy and I tried our hand at Space A flight. This is a one of the things Rowdy gets to take advantage of because of his job with the government. Basically, military bases pretty much everywhere have different missions that fligh in and out of the base. A lot of the time they are to ship cargo from place to place. Sometimes they are for refueling other planes and some are medical flights. Anyhow, quite often there are also a few, or sometimes a lot, of passenger seats open on these flights. Therefore, the military opens up these seats to people who are military and military retires and their dependants. Depending on your status and how long you have been on the flight list, you are eligible for a seat. It is a mystery to a lot of people, even military, because people are so scared to try it because it is unpredictable. If you are willing to be patient and flexible with your plans, it is well worth your trouble because flights are free (within the US, you do have to cover custom fees traveling internationally). As most of you know, Rowdy loves a good deal, so we decided to take a chance. We dropped the kids off in Twin Falls and we drove to Travis Airforce base which is about 30 minutes from San Fransisco. We loved it because we knew if we didn't get on a flight, we could have a fun trip to California. There were 2 flights on Sunday, which we didn't make it on. The next flight was on Monday night so we played in California all day Monday and got on the flight that night. They had a problem with the plane so the flight was delayed until Tuesday. We spent some time in Hawaii and then had no problem getting back when we were ready. We stayed right in the housing on the bases, so it made our trip very easy, cheap and fun. The flight was very cool. There were about 10 passengers that were flighing Space A, besides the 15 or so crew. The seats in the plane are backward facing. There are some just normal airline seats (about 20 on the flight we were on) and then there were cargo net seats up against the side of the plane. The crew we flew with were very laid back and fun. In fact, one of the flights, there were two boys, about 9 and 11, who got to do just about eveything the crew did. They wore the head gear and listened to all the crew. They got to hang out in the cockpit with the pilot during the flight and take a nap in the crews bunk beds. When the plane landed, they got to go to the hatch and look out while they were checking all the landing gear. It was awesome and someday I want to take our boys.

Spring Soccer FINALLY done

Kylan with his soccer smile

Kylan kicking a goal
Alex's soccer team
Alex with his soccer trophey
Cheese!!

Ok, we loved watching the boys play soccer, but we are so glad it is over!! The weather was so awful about half the time. I don't think the kids minded too much, but it sure was miserable for us on the sidelines. Kylan loved every minute of soccer, and Alex, almost every minute. Alex had kind of a rough time at the end. The first few games, he loved just running all over the field. As long as he got to kick the ball into the net at the end of the game, he was perfectly happy. Then about half way through the season, there was a game where a few of the kids on his team were gone and the other team was not very good and he kicked about 4 goals during actual time of play. After that taste of what soccer is really supposed to be like, the other games were very disappointing for him. Needless to say, I think we will hold off on fall soccer and wait until at least spring to put him in again. Kylan did very well. He wasn't the best kid on the team, but he had so much fun and always had a smile on his face. He is one of those kids that pretty much everything he tries, he is fairly good at and enjoys. He did miss his last couple of games because the tournament were a last minute thing and we didn't know the schedule at all until we were out of town. He didn't seem to mind though. I think he is ready to move on to summertime stuff. That is, if summer ever gets here! I am tired of the cold!