The day after the Henry's left we started the packing game! Our life fits in 12 crates by the way! The Royal Hawaiian Movers had our lives packed and moved out of our house in two days. We stayed in the house for a couple days, cleaned until our hands were raw then we moved into the Embassy Suites in Waikiki. You know things get real when your organized husband makes an official binder all about our move!
The view from our balcony
Since we shipped Scott's car about a week earlier, we just had the van and Scott was still working so he would drop us off somewhere in the morning and we would have fun exploring the city. We went to the Hawaii State Art Museum
and the Waikiki Aquarium
We also went to the pool and beach a lot, but seriously Waikiki is so overrated! There are so many people, super expensive shops and restaurants, Waikiki is not the Hawaii we know and love. We hope that when people come to Oahu to visit they explore away from the tourist traps.
We also went to church one last time. The Hawaii Kai Ward has been so wonderful to us! We have made many life long friends, and we will always call them our ohana. I'm sad I didn't get pictures with everyone. So many people were on vacation but they sent their love through letters and phone calls.
At the end of sacrament meeting we were asked to come up to the pulpit while the ward sang us a Hawaiian farewell song. The song is called Aloha 'Oe, and it may have been in the Hawaiian language but the aloha spirit was felt and I was bawling like a baby. I even cried when we sang this to people who were leaving and I didn't even know them. I had a strategy to not make eye contact while were up there with anyone! It kind of worked, but I still cried. After they sang to us the Bishop led us into the gym and people who wanted to say goodbye walked by and gave us hugs, kisses, and leis as well as words of love, farewell and encouragement.
We had one last drive up North Shore and ended the day at Sunset Beach . . . and ate Ted's Bakery Pie for dinner!
and one last get together with our dear friends the Reardons. They came here the same time as us and they were our close family! We spent holidays together, including birthdays, they watched our kids while we vacationed, their kids call me auntie, I love that! Scott and I consider Brian and Julie to be our brother and sister and their kids to be our nieces and nephews. We felt like the move to Hawaii was so easy because we had instant family. I learned so much from Julie, she was my hiking buddy, reading partner, my beach bummer, recipe helper, organizational guru, and so much more!
We hope to meet up with them again in our Army career!
Goodbye to our Hawaii Home!
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