Shame On You!!!

Shame on all of you that poo pooed the Big Island......All of you that said, "I can't wait to see what you think about the Big Island"......Those of you that said a week is way too long to stay on the Big Island....And finally, and the best one of all, those that said the Big Island looks like the inside of a bar-b-que pit!!!!  Let me tell you what our week on the Big Island looked like....To start, the Kona airport is the cutest outdoor airport you will ever see complete with live music and girls doing the hula.  If that doesn't set the mood, I don't know what will!  Next we took a zodiac (which is the inflatable boat that the navy seals ride in) to one of the best snorkel spots in the world.  And on our way to the snorkel spot, we all jumped out of the zodiac in the middle of the ocean.  Blue as far as the eyes can see!  Oh, and did I mention that while we were snorkeling in the bay, the bay where Captain Cook met his fate, the bay that had the most amazing coral reef and snorkeling that it felt like another world, yes, that bay, while we were snorkeling, there were 2 humpback whales playing chase in the bay.  They were breaching (jumping out of the water) and singing like crazy!  But, let's not stop there.  How about doing a half a mile zipline over a 300 ft. waterfall.....Hang on, I'm just getting warmed up.  What about getting into a helicopter and hovering over an ACTIVE volcano, actually seeing red, bubbly lava??  Yes, I realize that's a weeks worth right there but more is coming!  It's not everyday that you can walk down the beach and have to walk around 14 sea turtles and then meander to lunch in the most beautiful tropical setting you have ever seen, and then while you are eating right on the beach, you are watching whales come by!  And, finally, we had one of the coolest experiences ever!!  We went on a night manta ray dive and snorkel trip.  Can you imagine having to suck in your gut to keep a 1,500 lb. manta ray from running into you?  It was insane!!!  We went out in the afternoon on a boat outfitted for divers and snorkelers.  We did a late afternoon snorkel then everyone got back on the boat for a light dinner and briefing.  Once it was dark, the divers jumped in and went to the bottom and shinned big lights up towards the surface. The manta rays eat plankton, and the light illuminates the plankton.  So, what happens is the rays start from the bottom and flip and glide through the water all the way to the top which is where we were.  Remember the dinner and briefing?  We were told that we had to lay flat like superman so the manta rays won't run into you.  they actually told us it would be like a VW bug running into you.  O.K., so here I am, all my earthly posessions with me, Todd, Chancellor, Peyton, and Rainey.  It was insane and a blast!  And, Todd found something that suits him!  The manta rays loved Todd!  Never mind that he used Chancellor as a human shield a few times!  Truly, we were all inches away, and I mean like 3 inches away from the rays.  And, they come up to you with their mouths wide open and then flip to the top.  It was awesome!!!.....So, does that sound like a boring week?  An island that is boring, burnt, and bland?  We had incredible food and fun!  It was another wonderful week of the Zaugg adventures!  On to Maui....Maui Gold!  We're excited to see the famous Maui!  Aloha friends and family and love to you all!!!

Callie and Todd

Cheers to Oahu!

You know how things don't always go exactly as planned........Or, here's another one.......when life gives you lemons, make lemonade....Or, how about this, forget the lemonade and get a whole new drink!!  That's exactly what we did!  We got to Oahu and went to our "studio" condo in downtown Honolulu.  The "studio" had a murphy bed and pullout sofa that were difficult to have out at the same time.  It was kind of like a puzzle.  Not to mention, this place was from the 1940's.......funky!!!  And, there was a nightclub below us that played music until 4:00 in the morning.  We all looked at each other and said this was not going to work......here goes the different drink!  Todd found us an amazing VRBO house that was right on the beach.  Which was not just any beach, it happened to be the prettiest beach on Oahu.  The house was wonderful with a huge green yard that went right to the beach.  the children were out the door throwing the football, frisbee, bocce ball, and playing croquette.  And, to make it even more perfect, there was the nicest family next door with 3 boys that almost lined up with ours.  The kids had a blast.  We all did!  And, now we have life time friends in Huntington Beach, CA.  It was a great week, and I enjoyed playing house in paradise.  We grilled steaks for the super bowl, hung out on the beach,  cooked more dinner....it was awesome.  We did venture out to the North Shore part of the island to see the Bonzai pipeline which is where surf competitions are held and eat the famous garlic shrimp of the North Shore.  It was super cool!......Pearl Harbor was the highlight of the week.  It was overwhelming.  We toured a submarine, saw an amazing video about Pearl Harbor, and then went to the USS Arizona Memorial.  You want to talk about emotional.....watching people throw flowers in the water above the USS Arizona.  It was a memory that will be with me forever.  This is why we did this trip.  This feeling is why we did this trip.  And, the education for seeing Pearl Harbor is why we did this trip.  I have even more of an appreciation for our country and our veterans not to mention I understand the war a lot better now.......It was a wonderful relaxing week.  Todd got lots of work done, and we got school work done.  I got to SUP....stand up paddle board, and I love it.  We rented 2 for the week, so we all got to SUP.  Some of us were better than others......that's all I'm going to say about that!  I'm thinking we can SUP at Pickwick!  I wish I could show you Paradise which was out our backdoor.  Thank you honey for the amazing week.  In fact, the Obama's stay right down the beach where we were!....Hope all of you are well.  We are off to the Big Island.  We've got some fun things planned (night diving with manta rays)!  There will lots to report on I'm sure!  Love all of you!

Callie and Todd

"Fantasy Island"

We are not in Kansas anymore!  I have never seen anything like this place!  We are on the island of Kauai, and it is actually where they did film Fantasy Island.  Not to mention Jurassic Park, King Kong, Pirates of the Caribbean, Six Days and Seven Nights, and there are so many more.  It's the most surreal looking place.  I mean you are waiting for a dinosaur to come out at any moment!  But that's just the beginning.  This is "Island Mayberry".  Can you imagine the fastest speed limit being 40 mph?  There are tiny little villages everywhere.  It's the coolest place ever, and we have had a blast!  We have sailed right next to humpback whales (we even followed a mother and baby), we had spinner dolphins, bottle nose dolphins and sea turtles on that sail.  The whales were jumping put of the water which is called breaching.  It was an amazing sight!  We have walked right up to a Monk Seal which is the rarest mammal on earth.  We've snorkeled and seen the beautiful world that lives under the water, we snorkeled right beside sea turtles, and we took a surfing lesson (only one of us couldn't get the hang of it.  I'll let you guess which one that was!).  We celebrated Rainey's 11th birthday here, so we went on a helicopter ride that was absolutely amazing.  I want you to think waterfalls, gorgeous canyons and beaches.  The Na Pali coast should be seen by everyone.  But it's not just the scenery here.  It's the people and culture too!  Everyone is friendly and easy going, and you definitely feel this spiritual sense as soon as you get here.  It feels like another world.  So much so that we had to keep reminding Peyton that this is America.  Not only as a parent, but let's not lose sight of the fact that I am his teacher as well.  He couldn't quite get it!  Even the lady in the grocery store was having to tell him that this is America!  But I see it, and I understand because this is another place and another time !   The children are in love with surfing!  They surfed all day today, and Chancellor has an ugly war wound to prove it!  The fin on his board cut him across his chest, and I mean cut him across his chest.  It looks like a shark bite!  He loves his Hawaiian tattoo!  The first day we went snorkeling, we went to a beach called Tunnels Beach.  It was absolutely beautiful and great snorkeling.  Later that night, Todd and I found out that's the beach where Bethany Hamilton was when the shark attacked her (she's the soul surfer.  she lives on this island).  We decided not to tell the children, but somehow they found out.  I wish you could have seen there faces when they heard that!  It didn't stop them from getting back in!  At this moment, we are trying to decide how to stay here forever.  We've met 2 people that came for vacation and stayed forever.  We've even thought about what our jobs could be.  I could be a rooster eradicator.  That is a real job here on this island!  There are wild chickens everywhere!  And, the roosters crow all day long, including bright and early in the morning!  And, since no one wants to kill the roosters, they call the "rooster eradicator"!  Doesn't that sound like the perfect job for me!  There is a rooster crowing right outside my window right now!  For the most part, Kauai does not have air conditioning (we haven't seen any), so the windows are open all the time.  Perfect for rooster crowing!   We are off to Oahu next, and I am so excited.  I can't wait to see Pearl Harbor!  Oahu is the surfing island, so the children are very excited!  We thank God every day!  We are busy doing school work, Todd working and loving the world God gave us.  We do feel like Swiss Family Robinson right now.  Every day is an adventure.  We've explored the beaches, the food, and activities. Aloha and mahalo for checking in on us!

Callie and Todd