Getting settled again

After a very long holiday in MD, we are back in HI and getting settled in. It was so nice to spend the fall in MD, watching the leaves change, feeling the crisp air, being home with family and friends for the holidays. But it's also nice to be back at our home with the sun and warm weather (especially since MD is now cold and snowy!).

Our first weekend back, we took an afternoon and went to Hale'iwa on the North Shore. We got some original shaved ice from Matsumoto's, which Evie was not a fan of. This dietitian mommy was secretly thrilled inside, but don't tell Jay! Then we took a walk on the beach where we had spent the afternoon for Evie's birthday in September.

Hale'iwa Beach Park, Sep vs Jan

What a difference from summer to winter! What was a calm beach was now rough surf and chilly wind. We took a walk and found a calmer area that we decided we would come back to another day. Little did we know, that the baby who loved the beach in September would have a fit and refuse to touch the sand in January! Oh well.

The next weekend we went to the Honolulu Zoo. It's not the nicest zoo I've ever been to, but Evie seemed to enjoy the animals. We had lunch as soon as we arrived, where they let birds and peacocks walk around. Obviously people are not obeying the "do not feed the birds" signs, because these things were aggressive! A peacock actually bit Jay when he was inadvertently holding out a french fry. Needless to say, I was a bit worried about Evie. We quickly ate and left that area.

Spam musubi

 The fox was Evie's favorite animal for this visit, probably because she was able to see it from where she stood. She was less impressed with the zebras and giraffes, and I think Jay and I were more excited about the swinging orangutans than she was.

It's very hot in Honolulu and Evie hadn't napped all morning, so our trip didn't last very long. But I definitely think she'll enjoy it even more the next time we go.

Since Evie had to nap and it was early afternoon, we decided to take a drive around part of the island we hadn't seen yet. Here are some pics.

These pictures don't even do justice to how beautiful this island is. We made it to the Eastern side of the island that has tall mountain ranges that the clouds just hang on. I can't even describe how amazing they look, and I would have taken pictures but they were too tall to get in the frame! We can't wait to explore that part of the island more.