The Coswan's Blog....NOW News from the South: Breakin' up the Winter....Hawaii Style!!!

We just returned from our annual "break up the winter" holiday - we spent an amazing ten days in Maui, Hawaii. Last year we did the island of Kauai, and loved it's very natural, low key feel. This year, we decided to check out Maui - a much more "Americanized Island" with all the familiar comforts of the US Mainland. Our location was an amazing two bedroom condo right on the ocean, fifth floor, with an incredible view. The buildings were in a large horse shoe shape, and though the fishbowl syndrome was present, the view and amenities quickly made you forget about it!

There were more than a few concerns about the girls (Kate, Lauren, AND Andrea) on an 8 hour flight (direct from Edmonton), but they all did very well!! We left early on Sunday am, so the young girls were up for a few hours of the flight, playing the iPods, watching movies, etc, but then both got in about a three hour nap. We arrived just after noon Hawaii time, and I left the girls to beat the rush for the rental car. I got the standard "up sell", but did manage to negotiate a bit for a four door Jeep with a removable roof, which was off for the entire ten days! After picking up the girls and the luggage, it was a stop at Costco (for LOTS of wine, steaks, etc), then Wal-Mart for the basics (diapers, beach toys, etc), then the 45 minute drive to our condo.

The condo is the newest building on the island, and definitely was built with some great stuff - granite counters, Bosch appliances, and a full glass wall to the patio that totally opened up to really enjoy the view/air. We were also lucky enough to have Andrea's Mom Jenn and Jim join us, along with Jim's daughter Suzanne, Dimitri, and baby Markella, who were in another two bedroom unit two doors down. Our standard mornings were spent at the beach (we toured MANY beaches, but the kids loved Baby Beach where there were literally no waves), then we'd return around 1pm for a quick lunch then put Lauren down for a nap. This allowed Andrea to sneak to town for some shopping, or to just relax indoors, out of the heat (the temp never varied below +27 and never above +32). Our building also had a great bistro in the basement, a restaurant/bar right on the beach/by the pool, and a kids club that Kate made a couple visits to and absolutely loved.

While we didn't get in all activities that Maui has to offer (due to nap schedules, heat, etc), we did accomplish a lot. There were many snorkel trips where we saw tons of fish, coral, octopuses, and giant turtles. The humpback whales were also present, and never failed to put on some amazing shows for us. And with all that went on during the day, the kids were DONE come bedtime, and did very well sharing a bed for the entire ten days. With them down for the night, we were able to take our monitor and head next door for late dinners and wine on the patio. We were also fortunate enough to meet the Helesic clan on the island, so we got in a few beach days with them, and a couple nice dinners. ALWAYS great to have Ben and Mad Dog to chase the kids around, and Jeff is always available to help with wine/rum consumption. AND, if that wasn't enough, the Rozak family was also there (Al, Rob, the kids, as well and Pete and Jenny), so we got in some beach time with them, and took over their condo the evening we left. None of us had chatted about going to Hawaii, never mind Maui, and never mind the exact same times.....it all just worked out.

That was about it....I think the pictures will tell the best story. Special thanks to Granny for her many hours on the beach with the kids........Kate said her favourite part of the trip was being on the beach with Granny, so thanks! And we won't mention what happened when Granny asked me to spray her back with suntan lotion, and accidentally sprayed a "Z" into her back, so while the rest of her back burned quite nicely, the "Z" was perfectly white. Honest....it was an accident, but GOD, did we laugh!!!