Upon arrival on the Big Island, Norm surprised us with fresh flower leis. Big points earned for that one.
Then it was a quick flight over to Kona, where we received a very warm family welcome.
Debbie and Brian's house is so open and warm, with use of wood indigenous to Hawaii and an amazing kitchen:
Not to mention the huge lanai where the ocean is in full view and every meal is eaten with the sunset as a backdrop.
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Our first 4 days were spent unwinding in the heavenly weather (a high of 75-80 degrees F every day!).
Lauren spent as much time as she could in the company of cousins Daniel and Ryan, who taught her local hand gestures.
And pampered her by doing her nails.
My parents were there also (hooray!), and Pop-Pop Mark played cards daily with Lauren and the boys. "War" was a particular favorite of our munchkin (she will now proudly tell anyone who will listen that she beat Pop-Pop 2 times).
Our first full day was spent at a local beach, where the water was warm and crystal clear. Our water baby could barely contain her enthusiasm.
Neither could Ryan with Nana.
Lauren and Daddy took to the surf for a little session to practice her paddling and pop-up skills.
Then she was off for some bodyboarding with the boys.
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A couple of days later, Brian took Norm, my dad and Ryan fishing on his charter boat. Norm caught a 30-pound Mahi Mahi, but wouldn't ya know, they didn't get a photo of it. Fish tacos made from it the next night were quite delish, though.
While the guys were fishing, Debbie took us to a private beach that only allows 20 cars. Wow.
A shallow cove full of minnows entertained Lauren and Daniel for hours.
Not to mention a new friend who took Lauren for a spin in her raft.
To say that Lauren was overjoyed with all the beach time on this trip is an understatement.
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Our final 4 days were spent at an incredible home Norm secured for the entire family on the island, about 40 minutes away. We had access to a private beach club, in addition to the beach and pool at the Fairmont Hotel, all located within easy walking distance.
We all agreed that the home was pretty darn luxurious, yet still supremely comfortable.
With its own private plunge pool, spa and lawn looking toward the water, really, we could have chosen to never leave the property the entire time, and it would have been a-ok (especially with our stockpile of Bloody Mary fixin's).
We got plenty of use out of our pool and spa, spending most late afternoons and evenings after dinner just chillin' and enjoying our time together.
Well, most of the time it was fun. Cranky pants did show up on at least one occasion.
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Of course, we did venture out beyond the house. First to the Pauoa Beach Club, only for use by the residents of the community we were staying in, with the most astonishing infinity edge pool I've ever seen.
[that's the Fairmont in the distance]
Lauren preferred the kid's grotto with a sand bottom and a view to the open sea.
The Beach Club also had a spa with steam room, sauna, and a wonderful gym with state of the art equipment. Oh, to have a vacation home here (a girl can dream right?)!!
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Kona got its first big swell of the year while we were there. For several days we saw 6-9 foot waves and ridiculously strong currents.
[This is the beach cove at the Fairmont, where nobody was allowed in the water on this particular day - note the size of the wave in the distance]
Unfortunately, Norm experienced some of the difficulty with the current while out with the boys as the surf began to get big, and sliced his heel on some rock (many beaches and surf spots are replete with lava rock and coral). His wound was expertly cleaned and bandaged by Dr. Brian, and within a couple of days, once the surf became more manageable, he was back out there, tearing it up.
Even I enjoyed the salt water with our girl.
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We spent the better part of two days at The Fairmont pool area, alternating between the somewhat chilly pool and burning hot mineral spa.
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A celebratory dinner out got us out of the kitchen and hit the spot.
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Our last night in the Pauoa Beach Club house brought the most unbelievable sunset I think any of us had ever witnessed. I literally ran as fast as I could in flip-flops through fields of lava rock to try to get as high up as possible to capture the fiery show. These photos are completely unedited.
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On our final morning, we treated ourselves to brunch at The Fairmont, incredibly thankful to be together in such a glorious place.
Mahalo to Brian, Debbie, Daniel and Ryan for hosting us and to my parents, without whom this vacation wouldn't have felt complete. Now if next year we could just figure out some way to get an entire compound of homes by the beach so the rest of our families can join us, that would be a trip.
2 comments:
What a great place to stay!
Hope you had as awesome of a time as it looks like you did in the pics!
OMG, what an amazing looking place! Gorgeous!~
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