First Weekend in Hawaii House and Pro Bowl

It is so sad to know that my time here is coming to an end -only four weekends left.  Makes me so sad to think about it but just feel so blessed I've had this opportunity.  I not only have met some incredible people that will be lifelong friends but I have also learned so much professionally and experienced some amazing things.  We moved into our new home last Tuesday and I never want to leave it.  I could live on the front porch alone and be just fine with it!  Me, Jenn, Tim, and Emily are all now roomies.  Each of us with our own bedroom and bathroom with enough room for each of us to be in separate areas of the house and not see each other.  The view is amazing and the pool in the back is so fun.  We stayed in Friday night with a few friends over playing Tabu.  Saturday I spent the majority of the day going through the library of old books in the living room and reading them on the porch with my coffee and breakfast.  Jenn and I cooked dinner for everybody Saturday night and I seriously can't remember the last time I laughed so hard.  Sunday we headed out to the Aloha Stadium for tailgating and football!  We endured a rain storm but ended up having a great day.  Weekends here are so amazing.  Home - I will be there soon :(.

 Pasta, wine, and friends - some of my favorite things

 My ladies of the island!

 Ross & Jess

 Aloha Stadium

 Jenn's crazy KC fans



Sony Open

Last weekend the crew took it easy Friday night so we would be in rare form for the Sony Open at the Waimea Golf Course.  It was a beautiful day and the course was gorgeous.  Heather, Jenn, Em, Tim , and I met at the Duke statue at 11:30 to take the trolley down to the course.  We met a few of our co-workers who were following Justin Rose.  Apparently over the holiday break one of my co-workers was actually able to play golf with him while they were both in South Africa to be in a mutual friend's wedding.  Pretty cool.  I was able to see John Daley putt in while only being a few feet away.  The girls and I sat in the grass talking for a few hours then met our boss in the Grey Goose tent to wrap up the afternoon.  We headed back on the trolley to chill at Jenn's pool for a while then head to the country bar down the road.  Only to end the night with an Ono Cheesesteak - I really need to stop eating those! :)

A Week With Sheryl

I landed back on the island December 29th with my buddy landing 4 hours after me.  She was here from the 29th to the 9th.  We had 11 nights of chilling out, eating some great meals, and catching up.  She truly relaxed this week and will hopefully go back to the cold Northeast revived and ready to take on the rest of the winter and her work week.

This picture was taken at PF Changs where we WAY over ordered.  Her visit started off with ringing in the New Year.  We decided to keep it pretty chill so we grilled up porkchops on the grill by the pool.  We shared the grill with a Russian family (by family I mean 25 people) who was very generous with including us in NYE shots of Tequila and Vodka.  Those Russians sure know how to celebrate.  Haha.  Below are a couple of pictures poolside from that night followed by a few pics we took when we went to the beach to bring in the New Year and wach the fireworks.

Friday night we met my work crew out for pizza and beer at JJ Nolans downtown.  YUM!

The second weekend she was here we took in a lot of sights.  I was able to finally get pictures of things I have seen lots of time now.  Along the drive we were able to see a few of the migrating whales.  Something I want to get more into the next few weeks.  Maybe a whale watching tour in my near future.

 The dreaded light house according to my brother :).  Diamond Head Light House - Located at the eastern end of Waikiki Beach, the Diamond Head Crater is a familiar landmark to the throngs of tourists who today pack the high-rise hotels in the area. For mariners of yesteryear, Diamond Head also served as a landmark for their approach to the harbor at Honolulu from the west coast of the United States.

 Scenic point headed up windward side of the island by Koko Head

 Koko Head Crater is the cinder cone that still remains from Oahu’s last volcanic eruption about 10,000 years ago. This crater is the tallest tuff ring in Hawaii and measures 1,207 feet high.

 Lighting incense for loved ones passed.

 Halona Blowhole - The blowhole is a natural occurrence formed by molten lava tubes from volcanic eruptions thousands of years ago. The lava tubes run to the ocean and, when the surf is right, the blowhole shoots water up to 30 feet in the air. The larger the waves, the larger the spray.

Known as "The Peering Place", this cove is situated to the right of the Halona Blowhole. The rocky cove has a small sandy beach that is great for swimming when the surf is calm. This beach is probably best known as the site of the famous love scene between Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr in the 1953 movie, From Here to Eternity.

Manana Island is located on the Windward side of O'ahu, north of Makapu'u Point. The shape of the island actually resembles a rabbit but it was named Rabbit Island because rabbits actually live there after a rancher released the animals there. Today the island serves as a seabird sanctuary.