Hawaii 2013 - Round Two!

Our 3rd day in Hawaii was the day all of Matt's dealers arrived.  That night we always enjoy a special Welcome Dinner.  This year - since we were in Hawaii - it was a Luau.  So fun!!

Our family all dressed up for the Welcome Dinner

That night we enjoyed amazing food, a great band, Hula Dancers, and Polynesian Fire Eaters.  The kiddos both loved it, but Jaden especially thought it was cool!

Room service is always a fun treat!

Most days we spent out at the beach or pool.  A lot of football was played!

We took Eva and Jaden on their first kayak ride.  They loved it, except Eva liked to stay close to the shore!

A day trip to Pearl Harbor provided to be a super special day!!  I had the kiddos (especially Eva) do a little research about Pearl Harbor before we even left for Hawaii.  I wanted them to understand the significance of the monument we were visiting.  

The day of the visit we were able to listen to audio that explained various parts of the grounds before we took a ferry out to the monument (those are the headsets we are wearing in the picture).  Some of the recordings we listened to contained actual audio from that day.  In the picture below you can see the monument in the distance behind us.

As we were touring the grounds we learned about the amount of people that passed away that day.  I didn't know so many children had died.  In the picture below you can see that it looks as if a father and all 3 of his young children perished.

Before heading out to the sunken USS Arizona and the monument we sat through a movie that explained exactly what happened that day.  Everyone must do this before boarding the ferry to the monument.  The movie was incredible.  I was so glad Eva and Jaden were able to see it (although I covered Jaden's eyes a few times)!  When the movie ended the entire room was so silent.  You could have heard a pin drop.  Then the doors opened and you walked out to the ferry waiting to carry to the Memorial.  It was pretty awe-inspiring to witness a chilling movie like that, and then walk out to the EXACT spot it happened.

 Part of the sunken USS Arizona that sits above water.

I knew that oil still leaked from the Arizona, but I didn't know the smell of it would be so strong.  The smell of it was overwhelming at times.  Many who survived that day view the oil as the "tears of those that died'.

Inside the Memorial.

Maybe it's the former teacher in me....but I love these kiddos learning about our Nation's history.

Inside part of the Memorial is a wall that lists all of those that were lost that day....and as survivors of the day pass away their names are added too.

 On a much lighter note, the kiddos sure loved the Koi fish that were at the hotel!  The loved to see if they would nibble their fingers!

That's it for today my friends!!  Again, I'll post a few more tomorrow!