Kauai: Days 4-8

DAY 4:

We booked a boat trip to the Napali Coast before we left but weren't sure if conditions would allow us to go so we didn't say anything to Nolan (Miles is still too young to go so our friends watched him). But the morning of we got the go ahead and we headed to port. 

Conditions were pretty rough,  I can't imagine what it looks like when it's actually too rough to go out. We booked the adventure trip which meant traveling on a zodiac boat (the same kind navy seals use) and we were jumping over waves, went into caves, under waterfalls, it was amazing but very bumpy.

The Napali coast is only accessible by boat or helicopter so it's nearly pristine. This is where they shot many of the scenes for Jurassic Park and the 70s version of King Kong...I was told.

I wish there was something to show the actual scale of these cliffs. They ranged from 2,000-5,000 feet, the pictures really don't do them justice.

We went through this cave just as the sun was rising over the cliffs, it was really beautiful.

Halfway up the coast we stopped to snorkel on the reef. Nolan even got in for a second but the large schools of huge fish and being in deep water was a little too much for him. We were so proud that he tried it though, I was 29 the first time I snorkeled.

Just as we were getting out this turtle swam over to check out our boat. Our tour guide told us a small reef shark came over too. I'm glad I didn't see that though.

On the way back to port we found ourselves in the middle of what the call a Mega Pod of dolphins. I guess a bunch of small pods will get together to hunt and the result is nearly 100 dolphins swimming around and going crazy. It was one of the most amazing things to watch the spinner dolphins jump out of the water to twist and dive.

I don't know how this is possible but Nolan found a way to fall asleep on our choppy trip back. The captain was very impressed.

We also saw a humpback whale and her baby. This was amazing since there was supposedly only 3 whales left at the tale end of the season so seeing one of them was a near miracle. I got a picture of her tale as she dove down, but we also go to see her breach and swim along for a while too.

After our trip Pat and the other dad went to play golf and the ladies hung out with the kiddos. We were so lucky that the kids played together nicely the whole time.

Miles and Annabel sharing a book.

Nolan and his groupie, Jack, watching TV.

DAY 5:

Can you tell that I discovered my phone's panoramic photo capabilities? It's my favorite!

Day 5 started with feeding the Koi at the Resort next door. The kids loved this so much and the koi were beautiful!

Miles trying to hand feed the Koi. A few tried to take him up on his offer. He also tried to get into the water with them as one point.

Nolan preferred to throw out a bunch of food at once so they would pile up in the water.

Later that day the moms got a chance to get out without the kids. We went out to a fancy dinner and I tried seafood...and it wasn't terrible!! If you know me well you might have just gasped, it's ok, I surprise myself sometimes.

The view from the restaurant wasn't terrible either. Another Monk seal out for a nap.

And the picturesque sunset.

My lovely travel companions.

DAY 6:

Day 6 started with more Koi feeding, another trip to the pool, this time with Miles and our buddy Jack. 

Funny story about Jack, he and Miles have quite a few similarities there was one family that assumed he was Miles' little brother, remarking on their resemblance. Another time I thought Miles was sitting in the sand playing at the beach but when I looked closer it was actually Jack and Miles was MIA. He had walked over to the beached seals (which are supposedly very aggressive) and was walking straight for them. Luckily the seal volunteer caught him before he could get too close but it was definitely our biggest parenting fail of the trip. Oh except for the 3 times Miles hit his head, or when Nolan almost knocked his front teeth out on a slide, or when he cut his finger open on the shark tooth necklace we bought him. It was kind of a wild trip. 

After naps we had taco truck dinner and it was off to Lydgate Playground.

I have never seen a playground like this before. It was a 5 story high maze of stairs, tunnels, slides and there was this cool mosaic art all over too.

The boys loved running away from us and trying to hide. It was a little scary in that we couldn't see them all the time but they stuck together and we usually found them fairly quickly.

There was at least one melt down per day. That's a lot less than when we are at home though so I'll take it!

Cooling off on the beach next to the playground was just what we needed.

Miles is always game on a good selfie. It cracked me up that he would go in the water with all his clothes on but if I put his swimsuit on he wouldn't go near it. 

One last selfie before we head home.

That night was our last night at the Poipu house so I grabbed Nolan and we went to find the monster frogs that were all over the place once the sun sets. He even got me to pet one!

DAY 7:

Moving day! We moved to the North side of the island to finish up our vacation. The boys were grumpy and didn't seem to want to do much of anything so we played drive by tourist. 

We did manage to find a fun new beach called Anini Beach. It was very peaceful, the water was super warm and the sand was the softest we found on the island. 

We stopped by Hanalei Bay, very picturesque.

Enjoyed the scenery along the highway.

And saw the lighthouse too.

We went to dinner with the whole group that night, shame on us for not getting a picture! But afterward the boys SHARED ICE CREAM! My children turn into cavemen the second dessert comes out so this is huge!

DAY 8:

Our last day was super rainy all day so our options were limited. We took the kids to a playground where we played in the rain and got muddy. Then after naps and a lot of packing we went to the beach one last time. 

It was really dumping at this point and we almost canceled the outing all together. But my friend Amanda suggested going to the last beach on the road Ke'e and miraculously the sun came out. 

It did rain off and on but that allowed us to see lots of rainbows and even find the end of the rainbow at one point. Nolan dug and dug but didn't find any gold! We shared the beach with another Monk seal, which we named Sammy (do you see her in the picture below?). It was the perfect way to end our vacation and say goodbye to Kauai. 

On the way home, the boys sat together which I was worried about but they did great. Miles even fell asleep and I watched a movie! Incredible and very different than our first trip. I don't think I'll be flying with Miles for a few more years but Nolan proved to be a great flyer. There is hope!