Paradise

 I have to admit that I drug my feet over this trip.  I didn't want to pay for it, I lost sleep over leaving my children and for some reason flying made me nervous (even though it doesn't normally).  But, once the tickets were purchased, my parents graciously agreed to come and stay with our kids and we were on our way it was amazing.  Truly a wonderful trip! 

Some of the highlights:

Jared and I hiked 8 miles of the Kalalau trail along the Napali coast.  We actually hike two miles into a beautiful beach and then cut inland to a spectacular waterfall.  The hike itself was brutal- the first two miles were okay- rocky but very well maintained with a lot of traffic on it.  Then next two miles inland were full of 5-6 inches of mud, river crossings (about 5) scaling up boulders, and a lot fewer people. I honestly felt like throwing up by the time we got there just thinking about having to go back.  But, the waterfall was amazing and the swim in it was freezing cold and invigorating.   Part of the problem with the hike was 1- we didn't bring enough water or food and  2- it was the day of the wedding (the whole reason we were in Kauai) and so we had to rush.  It took us about 6 hours and we made it on time to the wedding- shaking legs and all.

I look like death.....

So, the whole reason we went to Kauai was for Jared's sister Amanda's wedding.  It was on the beach and was lovely.  One of the reasons our trip was so fun it that we got to hang out with these people:

 The Warren siblings are so spread out that we don't get to spend time together very often and never without all our kids!  We had a great time!

 

Wailua Falls was beautiful- we were enjoying the view from the top (where most people see it) when Jared's sister Angie and her boyfriend David showed us a "path" to the bottom of the falls.  We flung caution to the wind and scaled down the trail despite a warning sign that promised "danger" if we hiked down.  Using ropes to help us we made it down and we weren' t sorry- it was amazing.  We enjoyed exploring and crawling around the base of this immense waterfall.  We were able to climb behind it- the closer you got to the base of the falls the wetter you got. 

 We lucked out and saw Waimea canyon right at dusk with perfectly clear views- usually it is clouded over.  We had a great time here being silly and taking pictures- lots of laughing and love I tell you.

Snorkeling- one of my FAVORITES!  We went to tunnels beach on the North side of the island and spent the day enjoying sea turtles and all kinds of fish.   We also snorkeled at Poipu beach and then again on our cruise of the Napali coast.  Loved seeing the fish, saw a big eel and turtles.  Didn't love the wicked sunburn I got even after two coats of sunscreen.

Queens Bath- loved!  I even jumped off a cliff (it wasn't that high) and enjoyed the beauty and power of the ocean. 

 We were warned about the chicken in Kauai and they really were all over the place- so funny! 

 One of my favorite things we did was the Napali boat cruise- I loved almost ever second of it!  Loved the rough water, the snorkeling, the food, and especially the beauty of the Napali coast- amazing.  Really the pictures don't show how stunning this coast is- something I will never forget.
 

Thanks to the Warren clan who got us to Kauai and especially my parents for watching our kids making it possible for us to go!