Aloha!

Aloha means "Hello" or "Goodbye" or "Holy Smokes We're Gonna Be Parents in 3 months, We Have Time For 1 Last Peaceful Vacation."

We spent 8 days in Hawaii (aka Hawai'i if you really wanna get proper), mostly on Oahu with a day trip to Kaua'i.

We stayed at the military hotel, The Hale Koa, on Waikiki beach. Our hotel resembled a retirement community with all of the silver-haired retirees shuffling around. We felt like extras on the set of "Cocoon." Most of the conversations we overheard walking the hallways pertained to blood pressure meds, cholesterol levels and the early-bird discount down at the buffet. They were a very friendly bunch and loved sharing their military experiences with us. I hope we're that happy when we reach their age.

Outside the Hale Koa on Waikiki Beach. That's Diamond Head in the background.

Sandy Beach in Oahu......this was our favorite beach, we went on our 1st day and on our last day.

This was a blast, these waves were so powerful. Jo was angry w/ me that I wouldn't let her get tossed around by Mother Nature.

Waimea Canyon on the island of Kaua'i. Mark Twain called it "The Grand Canyon of the Pacific."

On Day #2 we hiked up  Diamond Head, then enjoyed some Shave Ice as we cooled down afterwards.

Oahu's finest dentist, Kevin Leong, served as our informal tour guide. It was good to see Kevin again, we met up w/ him several times including a Valentine's double date.

One day we showed up to his office unannounced. Jo was holding her jaw, pretending to be writhing in pain. I told the receptionist that "Dr. Leong did a root canal on my wife Monday and now her face is swollen, she can't swallow, is having difficulty breathing and she tastes bleach coming out of that tooth. We get married in Maui tomorrow and if he doesn't fix this I'm gonna wring his neck!" 

Stock photo of Hanauma Bay. We went snorkeling here----it was probably the highlight of our trip. We got to swim w/ all of those neon colored tropical fish.

You're not supposed to touch the coral reef in the bay. As we floated along the surface, Jo's belly bottomed out on the coral a few times---she didn't find it nearly as funny as I did.

USS Arizona @ Pearl Harbor

This was alot of fun too. We hiked up to Manoa Falls, a 100+ foot waterfall near Honolulu. About 5 mins before we reached the falls, the guy in front of us proposed to his girlfriend. They were spalshing around beneath the falls looking pretty excited.

One night we went on a dinner cruise. The food was terrible and the entertainment on the main level was poor so we hung out on the top deck and enjoyed the sunset and the skyline view of downtown Honolulu----so pretty.

Baby on Board!