Aloha!

Oh, it's been over a week, hasn't it? Yikes. I mean, I missed you guys and all but I was in paradise and paradise and computers don't mix. Not in my world.

Seriously, I had full intentions of blogging from Maui. However, you can't post about Maui without pictures and I forgot my card-reader, dang it! A card-reader is the doohicky that's attached to your computer. You stick your thingamabob from the camera with the digital pictures on it into the doohicky. Somehow, the combination of those two devices enables me to magically share my pictures with you. Magic, I tell you!

I really wanted to share it with you as it happened. "It" being utter, total relaxation and beauty. I have never fallen so completely, heart-breakingly in love with a place. It took just over twenty-four hours for this to happen. I had the first beginnings of a crush when I saw the ocean surrounding Maui for the first time. You know all the pictures that you see - postcards or travel brochures - of Hawaii? In those pictures the waters look impossibly blue - shades of turquoise ranging from the lightest blue-green to the deepest, richest sapphire. Well, I am here to tell you that NONE OF IT IS PHOTOSHOPPED. The water really looks like that AND I GOT TO LOOK AT IT EVERY DAY!

This is the view from our villa deck. I woke up to this every single morning. The waves on the beach, which was a short walk away, were always in the background. Every day I would grab one of the kids, whichever was closest, and say, "We're in Hawaii! Can you believe it? We're in Hawaii!". They were like, "Yeah, Mom. Um - can you let go of my face now?"

This is the best picture I have of the water. Duane took it, thank goodness. That giant flushing sound you heard last Wednesday? That was the sound of my photography skills going down the drain. I had a terrible time figuring out the light. Most of my pictures are either blown out (overexposed) or shadowy and dark. I need major help.

This is us, after our arrival at the airport. A lovely Hawaiian girl greeted us with orchid leis as we were making our way to baggage claim.

The first thing that hit me about Maui was the air. It's very heavy, thick and windy - all the time. The humidity took some getting used to and by the end of the week I was down to two showers a day. Real progress!

We rented a car and made our way to - where else? - Costco. We stocked up on a few essentials (in order of importance - wine, beer, chips, milk and fruit), then hit Safeway for sub sandwiches because we had been charged with providing dinner for the sixteen of us that night. After Safeway we headed for the west side of the island. We stayed at a fabulous place called Kapalua. It took about an hour to drive there and I gawked at the ocean the whole way.

I'll share more about my love affair with Maui later . . . stay tuned for:

1. Sunburns

2. Snorkeling

3. Swinging on Banyan tree vines and wiping out

4. Mai Tai's

5. Sunset cruises

Can life get any better? I submit that it CANNOT.

Mai Tai Count: 1