Saturday, October 31, 2009

New photo post from Hawaii

Picture of JoAnne and I from our luau at Paradise Cove on Wednesday night.


Thursday morning, JoAnne and I learned how to make our own flower leis at our hotel. The afternoon was spent taking a trip to the Dole Pineapple Plantation, enjoying lots of goodies there.



After that we continued our journey to the North Shore to take in some of the local beaches. We stopped at three different beaches. The first one we stopped at near Hale'iwa, we were able to spot many sea turtles swimming only 10 or so feet from us. The next beach was Waimea bay and there we enjoyed some HUGE waves. The waves were getting so big, that the lifeguard station made a warning that only experienced swimmers should be out in the water. We stayed pretty close to shore, and tried to outrun the waves. We managed to leave Waimea with only a small amount of "road rash". The last beach we went to was sheltered by a lava rock breakwater. We were able to find some cool marine life and pick up a few sea shells and some beach glass along the way.


Highlights for Friday were:

E-Noa tour with Betty, our guide. We first hiked to a waterfall and then were rewarded with some boogie-boarding at Waimanalo Bay. Beautiful blue waters. Had a Hawaiian plate lunch at a place called "Ken's"after we finished at the beach. We were tired & starving after our adventure.



Friday evening we enjoyed a dinner at Shore Bird--a grill your own restaurant, and then were able to walk along the beach to make it back to the Hilton Hawaiian Village just in time for fireworks.

Happy Halloween Everyone!

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Hawaii Update, Days 1-3




We've been enjoying our vacation so far.
Just a quick recap of what we've done.

Arrived on Sunday afternoon in Honolulu.
Got settled into our hotel room, checked out the Hilton Hawaiian Village where we are staying. Did a mandatory walk along the ocean.

Monday morning everyone tried to sleep in, although it wasn't an easy task, considering there is a five hour difference from home. We had our breakfast on our "lanai" or one of our 2 balconies from our room. One of our balconies overlooks Waikiki, with the mountains in the background. Our other balcony overlooks our pool area, with the ocean in the background. Both beautiful.

Did some exploring in the Chinatown area of downtown Honolulu. There was a beautiful park where we were able to get some really nice pictures.




Walked along the beach on Monday evening and had dinner and watched the sunset from Duke's Canoe Club on the beach. We shared a bunch of appetizers and had to indulge in a Hula Pie. One piece was definitely enough for all four of us to share.


On Waikiki Beach with Diamond Head Crater in the background



Tuesday morning we were up at 5am, and at the entrance gate to Diamond Head Crater by 6am. Climbed to the summit and we were able to see the sun poke through the clouds at about 6:45am.


view from the top of Diamond Head Crater facing Waikiki


After hiking back down, we took a scenic ride along the east coast of Oahu, making a couple stops along the way. We saw the Halona Blow Hole and then headed back into Honolulu.
Tuesday afternoon was spent poolside going down several of the waterslides in our pool. Lots of fun. Just like being a kid again!

Thursday, March 12, 2009

on my mind lately...

Jake, one of my son's classmates, continues his fight against cancer. Please pray for this little boy and his family. If you'd like to learn more about Jake, you can follow his story at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/jake


Aidan and Jake--March 7, 2009

The following was taken from an article published in Wauwatosa Now:

As 7-year-old Jakob Aldrich plays with Legos at his dining room table, he talks about his love for Indiana Jones, Star Wars, video games and popcorn - every topic is up for conversation, except the one that has been at the forefront of his family's mind for the past month: his illness.
Ask him about anything related to cancer or hospitalization and he will likely perform that Jedi mind trick in which a child pretends he has not heard a word and instead embarks on another topic like who is more powerful, the evil Darth Vader or the wise Yoda.
Jakob's mother, Jennifer Aldrich, is not surprised by his adversity to discuss his health: "He's tired of listening to adults talk about him."
Battery of treatments
In November 2005, Jakob was diagnosed with stage 4 rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare form of childhood cancer that is best described as soft-tissue cancer.
Since then, he has endured a rollercoaster of chemotherapy and radiation treatments, followed by periods of remission. But in September, the cancer returned for a third time, and because his body stopped responding to the treatment regimen, he spent all of February at Children's Hospital of Wisconsin.
"I've never been so scared in my life as I was a few weeks ago," his mother said. "To see him in that much pain and the fear in his eyes was horrible."
He endured two abdominal surgeries to remove tumors from his digestive track, started a new round of chemotherapy and suffered numerous complications that required medications and transfusions to build up his system.
Good guys vs. bad guys
"It was only in the last year that he learned of the word cancer," Jennifer said. "We use the words good guys and bad guys to explain it. The good guys are down there but they could use a little help fighting off some of these bad guys."
Now that the hospital released him, Jakob has an ileostomy bag that empties waste directly from his small intestine, IV nutrition until his appetite perks up and more drugs to deal with side effects.
The rollercoaster is on its way back up as doctors have seen a decrease in the cancer in his lungs, Jennifer said.
The reality is that odds of a cure continue to diminish for Jakob, while his family's hope remains fierce that a treatment will become available.
Fundraiser to help with bills
Until now, the Aldrichs have turned down offers of financial assistance instead taking friends and family up on home-cooked meals and help with caring for their 18-month-old daughter, Avery. But this latest setback in Jakob's health has caused them to take time off work. Jakob will need home nursing assistance and, if the disease progresses, the family may have to look outside Wisconsin for treatment.
Family friends have organized a fundraising benefit as a way to help in the fight against a disease that has left everyone close to the family feeling pretty helpless, Amy Gill said.
The Gills have taken many family trips with the Aldrichs and as a mother, Gill said her heart breaks thinking about watching a child go through this kind of pain. She hopes to raise at least $30,000 to help the family out with their bills.
The event will feature children's activities like face painting and cookie decorating, performances by three local bands, a cash bar and silent auction and raffles.
Jakob's anxiously waiting for the benefit, an activity he sees as reward for getting well enough to leave the hospital.
"I can't wait," he said. "My friends will be there. I want everyone to be there. Tell everyone they're invited to my party."

It was a great party, indeed. I'm so glad that we were a part of it.

Friday, February 20, 2009

This is what I'm going to be working on this weekend...





I'm anticipating that the one I make, I'll actually like better than the one they sell at PB Kids for $179.00. So far mine has cost $12. I'll take pictures and hopefully post some directions later on for this one!

Wish me luck, okay?