One Fabulous Year in Hawaii

On November 7th we celebrated our one year anniversary on Oahu, Hawaii. Here are some pictures of all the fun we've had since we've been here.

Sunset photo taken the day we arrived in paradise

My first Mai Tai. It was a bit bigger than I had anticipated

Unfortunately shortly after we arrived Matt flew out to meet up with his ship, the USS Reuben James, in Saipan. The ship returned to port a week before Christmas and all the men and women aboard looked so very handsome in their working whites and orchid leis.

A few snap shots of our favorite hike to Keana Point. The first picture of Matt standing in the sand you can see both the Northshore and Waianae coasts of the island at the same time. It's a really beautiful hike that makes you feel like you are at the very end of the world.

We've gone to the Honolulu Zoo a few times. Matt's favorite animal is the elephant, I like the giraffes.

We went to Maui over my birthday weekend last March. The beach on the left is beautiful Napili Bay where we stayed. On the left is us at the summit of extinct volcano Haleakala at 10,023 feet above sea level.

Sheila, who I worked with at WECU, visited me in April. Unfortunately it rained quite a bit while she was here, but we were able to hit the beach on a couple of nice days.

We love hitting up the Northshore for a much needed break from school and work. We like eating at Haleiwa Joes, on the left. We ordered another unexpectedly large drink once again, it must be a Hawaiian thing. Of course no trip to the Northshore is complete without a stop at Matsumoto's for some delicious Hawaiian shave ice. Matt likes his with ice cream at the bottom. Matt's enjoying his shave ice with our good friend Luis.

Another beautiful location of Oahu is the Pali Lookout. Here you can see beautiful views of the windward side of the island, including the charming town of Kailua. The photo of the road was the old Pali highway, it is now a short trail you can take a leisurely stroll on.

Over the summer we went on a short hike to Manoa falls. It started out really nice, but about half way up the rain started pouring down like it only can in Hawaii. By the time we got to the top Matt, Emma, and I were completely soaking wet through and through and covered in mud. It was quite an adventure.

We visited the Laie Temple in Laie near the Northshore. It was under renovation so we weren't able to tour the inside of the temple, but the temple exterior and grounds were unbelievably gorgeous.

Hickam Air Force Base recently hosted 'Wings over the Pacific', an airshow featuring The Thunderbirds. Here we are posing with a MiG 17.

Matt and I attended our first Navy Birthday Ball. It was held at the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Waikiki. It was a lot of fun to get all dressed up for an evening.

Of course we can't forget one of our favorite members of our family, Emma. She's not as big a fan of the beach as Matt and I, but she especially loves the dog park in our neighborhood. As Matt says, "The world would be a better place if everyone had an Emma."

Finally I'll leave you with some pictures of a few of the beautiful beaches we have had the privilege to visit during our stay in Hawaii so far.

Waimea Bay Beach Park

Turtle Bay Resort

Kualoa Regional Park with a view of Chinaman's Hat Island.

Bellows Beach Air Force Recreational Area

Mokuleia

Finally, world famous Waikiki beach.

Living in Hawaii has been an unbelievable experience for us. It must be the closest you can get to living in a different country without leaving the U.S. We are looking forward to moving back to the mainland in the future, but we will definitely miss the islands when it comes time to leave.