Christmas in Hawaii

It was nice to go back to the place we met. For Christmas this year, we went to Hawaii to visit Grandmother and Grandpa Clements. It was a little hard for them to drop work and other activities, but we were able to do lots of fun stuff. Dad took us to the Dole plantation where I got two black Tahitian pearls. I am going to have them made into earrings. We also stopped in Haleiwa to have some Matsumoto's shaved ice.
The days Mom and Dad had to work we played tourists and toured the islands in the Polynesian Cultural Center: Hawaii, Aoteora, Samoa, Tahiti, Tonga, Fiji, and Marqueses. We spent two whole days there. The second night we ate at the PCC's new luau, Hale Aloha. When you enter, they take your picture with "native models". It was only after we took the picture that I realized the man standing next to Jason was my little brother's best friend Gary!
We also spent some time at Hukilau Beach. Walker didn't like the sand at first, but was soon eating handfulls. He really disliked the ocean. The water was a little cold for his taste, and I would be afraid of a wave taller than my head too!
Mom and Dad hosted a party for all the service missionaries at their house, so our Saturday was filled with cleaning and cooking in preparations for them. One of the Sister Missionaries, Sister Chase, actually met us in the Salt Lake Airport. She sat down next to us wondering about where we were going and why. (OK, the REAL reason she sat next to us was to play with Walker). She was pleasantly surprised that she already knew our family.
Christmas Eve was a slow day. We went to church and relaxed the rest of the day. I was able to see a lot of friends from High School and some college professors.
For Christmas day I told Jason I would take him skydiving, but instead of using all that money on one person, he wanted to go parasailing together. Hawaii Parasail is the company based out of the Fisherman's warf in Waikiki. It was so much fun! Sitting in the harness 600 ft. above the ocean is the most relaxing thing in the world. We even got to dip our feet in. Grandma Woodbury went parasailing for her birthday when she turned 80 years young. Maybe Jason and I can go back when we're 90 years old and join Guiness' Book of World Records for the oldest couple to parasail.
The day after Christmas we went out on the town. Diamondhead is a dormant volcano that used to be used as a WW2 lookout. It has been made into a state park with a hiking trail leading to the top of the crater where the military still has bunkers. Jason and I hiked up while Grandmother and Grandpa stayed in the shade in the crater with Walker. All the signs say it is an hour and a half hike, but we made it back in about 45 minutes. From the top you can see the next island, Molokai. There is also a light house south of the crater. We spent the rest of the afternoon shopping at Ala Moana Mall, and had an early dinner at Bubba Gump's Shrimp House.
Our last day in Hawaii was last minute tourist stops and shopping at the swap meet. Not too exciting.
We returned home on our anniversary. It's going to be hard to top next year!