Re-opening for now...

Hi folks,

Most of you are probably already aware of this, but I happen to have another "part time job."  That is, I'm a reservist.  As part of that gig, I had orders to leave for Afghanistan this weekend.  But with current events being what they are, my orders got cancelled, which is a very good thing because my husband is due to rotate this summer... and while the intent was to stay in Hawaii, the lovely Navy found him a job in Virginia.  So we'll be moving to Hampton Roads this summer.

Meanwhile, we're prepping this house to be rented, trying to convince my tenants in Virginia Beach to leave, finding schools for the kids, and I'm looking for another job.  As you can imagine, it's a little crazy.  

I had actually put the shop in "vacation mode," which is Etsy speak for closing temporarily, in preparation for my mobilization, however, I decided to reopen to see how much inventory we could get rid of before moving.  Unfortunately, I just don't have time for custom orders or special trips to the post office so for now I'm suspending my hand made sterling rings and international orders.  Hopefully the transition will be easy enough that once we've set up shop in Virginia, I'll be able to resume both services.

Anyway, thanks for your support and for bearing with the constant roller coaster that is my life!  ;)

Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!

UFO #2: Twirly skirt

This is a cute little skirt I made as part of a dress made with an Amy Butler pattern.  The top of the dress was shirred and my then 18 month old didn't like it.  So I pulled the skirt off, intending to attach it to a t-shirt to make it into a dress... and then I thought maybe I should just make it a skirt...

Except that the waistband wasn't quite wide enough to make a good casing for the elastic, so I sewed in a piece of ribbon to make the casing... but I never finished.

And actually, I finished the casing but haven't been successful in getting my daughter into the skirt to model it. But I bet it would be super cute and perfect for her Dancing with the Stars night with Daddy!
Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!

Hawaii with Kids: Ho'omaluhia Botanical Garden

Even when it pours for days on end, it's absolutely beautiful on the Windward side. These waterfalls appear only when it's been raining hard. Gorgeous, aren't they? Well every so often you see an idiot parked on the side of H-3 (where the speed limit is 60mph and most people are traveling at 75 or higher) in the POURING RAIN, trying to get a picture of it.  I also hear stories of folks walking through backyards, which is totally illegal.  Why risk life and limb when  you can get a MUCH better vantage point without breaking any traffic laws or trespassing?

Ordinarily, I am not a huge fan of botanical gardens... so I've actually ignored the signs pointing to Ho'omaluhia quite often.  The entrance is on Luluku Rd, which is very close to the Likelike and Kamehameha Hwy intersection.  If taking the H-3 from the Pearl Harbor side, take the Likelike exit, turn right on Anoi, and another right on Luluku.  If coming from Kailua or Kaneohe, take Kam Hwy toward the Likelike.  Turn Mauka (toward the mountain) at Ko'olau Farmers.  Luluku runs through some residential areas.  There are many brown signs to reassure you that you're going the right way.  Don't worry- if I can find it, anyone can.

Here is the view from the parking lot at the Visitor Center.  Can you believe this?  THE PARKING LOT!!!

There are art exhibits and some other things available at the Visitor Center.  Today, there happened to be a Bonsai class as well as a hula halau.  Behind the Visitor Center is a path to a man made lake.   (A dam was built by the Army Corps of Engineers to provide flood protection for Kailua and Kaneohe.)  There are tons of trails, but we saw lots of other families going toward the lake, so we followed.

Barely 5 minutes down the trail, we found a nice area where some families were feeding ducks.  Next time, we will definitely bring some stale bread!

This would also be a great area to picnic, and a family was having professional portraits taken. 

Lots of space to spread out and find your own spot, but bring your own snacks and drinks for sure!

If you keep walking around the lake, you'll come to an area where fishing is allowed on weekends.  (Catch and release from 10-2, no casting.)  We didn't make it quite that far this time (it's on the far side in this picture), but I think that sounds like a lot of fun too.

This time, we just sat and watched the ducks and fish.  

When it got too hot, we drove around the rest of the park.

There are several parking lots and each alcove of the park has a different "theme" in terms of which region the plants are from.  So you can see everything from introduced Polynesian plants to African plants. 

We saw about a dozen joggers/runners/walkers, two families camping, honeymooning tourists, and two artists painting (one was actually painting a portrait of the other artist painting the mountains).  There were folks sitting around playing music under a tree and several folks on "photo shoots." 

So, we will definitely be back, but next time with our picnic lunch, bread for the ducks, and fishing poles!!!

Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!

Stationed in Hawaii with Kids: Name that Aircraft!

Near the main gate at Kaneohe Bay, there are static displays of old Navy and Marine Corps aircraft, along with a personnel carrier (I think), bulldozer, and some sort of howitzer/artillery. There is also a scaled down replica of the Iwo Jima Memorial. Since there is no dedicated parking lot, it's easy to drive on by thinking you aren't supposed to stop there... but we park either by the Pass and ID office, the Lodge/CBQ, or the Marine Mart and walk, depending on which side of the street we want to take a look at.

This one used to fly out of Barbers Point Naval Air Station, back in the day.

Today, we parked on the "Navy" side (right hand as you enter the base). I call it this because the Navy aircraft are on this side... the other side of the street has more things displayed, which is more than appropriate since Kaneohe Bay is a Marine Corps Air Station.   There's plenty of grass between the  displays and the road (so you're not constantly paranoid that a little one might run into traffic), and placards that explain what you're looking at.

Thought I should include the token Marine Air fighter.  :)

Both of my kids love airplanes.  They don't really care that these aircraft have been retired forever.  You can walk around them, check them out, walk under them, point to the various parts of the plane and discuss what they do, where the weapons are mounted, etc.

This one has been out of service longer than I've been in the service... even counting my days as a midshipman!

I don't see people laying out there, so I'm not sure you'd be allowed to spread out the picnic cloth and park yourself there for the afternoon, but it's an interesting way to kill an hour, tires the little ones out, keeps the older ones engaged, and it's free.  Can't beat that!

Tell me this is not the most pimped out helicopter you have ever seen.  Stunning work.

Five brownie points for each of the platforms you can name.  I only knew 2 without checking.  Another, I guessed correctly because it was similar enough to its replacement (which is about to be retired), and one, I had no clue since its replacement has also been retired for a number of years.


Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!

Florida in Pictures: Magic Kingdom

Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!

Stationed in Hawaii with Kids: Tips for Traveling with Kids by Air

As much as I love living in Hawaii, it is nice to get off the island and take the kids to do something different.   This year, we were fortunate enough to make two trips to the Mainland.  The first was San Diego in March (which you can read about here, here, and here).  The second was to visit some family in Florida.  Total travel time (door to door) in either direction ended up being roughly 20 hours.  

This was our 2 year old's first cross-country trip but my 12 year old has been back and forth 6 times (4 round trips prior to his 5th birthday!)  So, how do you make it there in one piece?  Here are my favorite tips for surviving long plane rides with small children.

1.  Travel as light as you can possibly stand to.  Trust me, it's just better this way.  Carry on snacks, diapers, wipes, a change of clothes for everyone, and some activities... if your luggage gets lost, there are stores where you're going.  If you want to carry on your car seat, fine, but you might want to make sure it fits through the xray machine at the passenger security screening station (or find out what happens if it doesn't fit).

2.  Feed the kids a full meal prior to getting on the plane (even if it's chicken mcnuggets) and pack snacks that are lower in sugar.  Sitting still is hard enough without the sugar rush and being quiet is hard enough without the sugar crash.  Yes, they even make sugar free chocolates.

2.  Bring a leak proof drink container.  You can fill it with something once you make it through security if you want to or wait until you get on the plane.  Try to avoid sugary drinks or cut them with water.  They do make disposable plastic cups with lids and straws.  The idea is to minimize spills so you don't have to change clothes.

3.  Let them run around at the airport while waiting for the plane.  Walk back and forth.  Run in circles.  Make new friends.  Anything.  Kids' brains are wired to need physical activity.  You can't be out of your seat and playing at the back of the plane like you may remember doing as a kid.  (You know, the whole post 9/11 security thing.) 

4.  Have a plan for keeping them occupied inflight.  Whether it's loading free tv shows on your iPod or a new coloring book, don't assume they'll fall asleep or watch the inflight movie.  Sometimes little ones can't see the screen, sometimes the features really aren't kid friendly.  Bring a favorite story.  I always make a trip to the dollar store and spend about $10 on cheapy new toys (card games, mini coloring books, small plastic figurines, stickers, temporary tatoos etc)  and wrap them all in several layers of off season tissue paper.  Then I break them out as needed.  The wrapping keeps them occupied for a few minutes.  If something gets left on the plane, no big deal.

Some of our favorite time killers on long plane rides:

• Mini Magna Doodle
• Color Wonder art kits (some are pretty small)
• Mad Libs
• Finger puppets
• miniature card games

Hopefully that helps get you started on figuring out your own game plan.    Traveling with kids isn't as hard as it seems.  Make it a positive experience for the kids and yourself with just a little bit of planning.

Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!

Stationed in Hawaii with Kids: Hideaway Club at Barbers Point

Even though the Naval Air Station at Barber's Point is closed, there is still a small USCG Air Station... and there, we find the Hideaway Club.

This place has a really nice, beachy feel to it... sand volleyball court, horse shoe pit, basketball court, and pavilion for parties.  The parking lot is a little tight for larger events, but hey, it's not that big of a place anyway.  Great place to get together with other families on a Saturday afternoon.   There is plenty of space for the kids to run around and it's pretty easy to keep an eye on them.  The bathrooms are typically reasonably clean, too.

Just remember to bring your own food (which is totally allowed).  This place is not a restaurant.  The bar is fully stocked but the food offerings are  pretty limited and I am not a huge fan of frozen food cooked by bartenders between drink orders.

Now, this is a bit out of the way for me, so I don't really make it out here too often.  However, it is also the closest decent bar for folks who live out this way.  (So in case you were wondering whether or not to live in Ewa Beach, Kapolei, or Makakilo, consider whether or not you really feel like being that cut off from any sort of night life.)  It is also a military/MWR facility, so no worries about folks coming around to pick a fight with drunken soldiers/sailors.  (Which, I am sorry to say, would still be a possibility in parts of Ewa Beach and Kapolei.)  Getting back to the Hideaway Club, at night, this (being a bar) is not really place to bring the little ones. Most weekends there is a local band playing loud music and people are mostly here to hang out and drink. It's a mellow crowd most of the time, but still, you can typically count on one piss drunk idiot in every crowd of drinkers.

One thing that frequently is overlooked at Barber's Point is that there are still beach cottages and pavilions that you (if you happen to be eligible for MWR benefits) can rent... more or less right across the street from the Hideaway Club.  These seem to be less crowded than the ones at Bellows. 

How would you like to wake up to this?

Not too shabby.

Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!

Stationed in Hawaii with Kids: Island Hopping- Kauai

A couple of weeks ago, we packed up the fam-bam, hopped on a plane, and visited some family on Kauai.

One of our favorite places to go on Kauai is a little beach called Salt Pond.  It's got a natural breakwater with some great tidal pools to explore.  So it's relatively safe for the little ones but still interesting to the older ones.

On this particular day, we got there at low tide.  When the tide is high, the waves do break over this area, so smaller kids shouldn't be walking around on it.   But, today was a low tide, low wind, low key day.  Here are some kids trying to catch fish using a net.

There are lots of different, colorful types of seaweed growing on the breakwater, which attracts all sorts of critters.  On this particular day, we saw baby fish, sea cucumbers, a couple types of urchins, opihi (limpets), a variety of small crabs, among other things.

Can you see the little baby fishies?  They're just above the edge of the rock.

There are at least two dozen little babies in this shot...

And the world's tiniest baby crab.  This guy was about the size of a dime, legs and all.

And here's a shot of the other side of the beach, where the stand up padders, etc are.  The airfield is in the distance behind the beach.

There is also a deeper side which is commonly used by surfers, kite surfers, stand up paddle board folks, etc.   It should be noted that this is not like Waikiki Beach in that you will not be able to show up and find someone to pay to teach you how to do any of these things.  There aren't lifeguards here to bail you out if you do something stupid or reckless.   Sometimes you can buy lunch or shaved ice out of a truck, but don't count on it! 

But that being said, there are a number of picnic areas, a nice sandy beach with some shade and grass to set up camp on, and all in all a nice family vibe to it.  If you happen to already be in the area (there is a small airfield nearby where most of the helicopter tours run), this would be a great place to round out a relaxing day with the family.


Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!

Stationed in Hawaii with Kids: Bellows Beach

Hope everyone is having a great holiday weekend! We are off visiting relatives on Kauai, but here's one of our favorite family spots in the meantime. When stationed in Hawaii, the Commissary perk is really fantastic, but access to Bellows AFB is equally as fantastic.  I mean, really- I could tell you about it but this picture says it all and then some...

A lot of folks with smaller kids prefer the sheltered (and man-made) beach at Hickam or the coves (also man-made) at Ko'olina. But my son loves to boogie board and this beach is GREAT for that.

It's also great for cookouts, parties, there's a small campground down the road a bit, and a huge area for the kids to play in (which includes playground equipment).  There are generally 2-3 birthday parties with bouncy houses and the like every weekend.

So anyway, a lot of families are scared off of orders to Hawaii based on the schools and other concerns for the kids.  Hey, no place is perfect, you know, but this place is still pretty nice.  And there are opportunities to create some unique family experiences here.  I'm just saying.

And if you aren't military, there is public access to this beach on weekends.  So no more excuses!

Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!

Stationed in Hawaii with Kids: Dole Plantation

In case you've been wondering what we've been up to since hubby came home from his extended stay in the Sandbox, we've been off doing family things.  He's been here for a number of years and hasn't been to the Dole Plantation... which I was kind of surprised about until I realized the last time I'd been here, my son was just a few years older than my daughter is now.  (And in case you lost track, they're almost ten years apart.)  So off we went.

The Dole Plantation is an actual working plantation so it's out in the boonies.  I guess if you're stationed at Schofield it's not that far.  (But we aren't, so it is.)  It's actually pretty easy to find, it's just that in Hawaii, any trip that takes more than 30 minutes seems like it's a REALLY long trip.  We lucked out and found parking in the first row.  That was cool.  Then we ran into the World's Largest Maze (according to the 2008 Guinness Book of World Records).  When you buy a ticket, it prints your start time on the stub.  There are several stencils hidden in the maze.  There is generally a prize for the person who has the fastest completion time for the day, as long as you don't take a map at the start.  My son finished in 32 minutes, but because we took a map, his score didn't count for the day's contest.  The maze was a lot smaller and not as grown in the last time I was here.  So this was a nice upgrade for myself and the older kid.  Daddy got stuck pushing the toddler in the stroller.

Anyway, it was a little hot in the maze, so we got some drinks and waited to meet up with some friends for lunch.  Lunch was really good, but pricey.  By the way, there is no way to buy just a cheeseburger.  Just thought I'd warn you.  My almost 3 year old wanted a cheeseburger and I ended up ordering an entire combo.  Anyway, whatever.  She barely touched it so I got to eat it.  It was a decent burger, considering the price.

The other main attraction at the Dole Plantation is the Pineapple Express train ride.  It leaves every 30 minutes or so, so we bought tickets and fed the koi while waiting for our train to arrive.  Bring quarters.  The koi food is dispensed in these gumball machines and the koi are crazy.  They were swimming all over each other trying to get the food.  Koi are pretty ravenous eaters to begin with, but never in my life have I ever seen such aggressive koi!!!  Anyway, we ran out of quarters so it was back to the train platform.

The train ride is a nice long ride through what used to be a lot of pineapple fields.  Dole doesn't grow many of their pineapples out here anymore, but they are growing dozens of different species of pineapples, tropical flowers, and fruit trees as a sort of tropical botanical garden on steroids.  The kids were happy to see all the different equipment and plantation hands at work.  So anyway, it was a nice ride through the property.  Pretty standard, but worth the money to see all the different plants.  The coolest one (in my opinion) was the bright pink pineapple.  Super cool.  Wish I got a picture of it, but I was too busy pointing it out to the kids.

We ended our outing with some Dole Whip.  I love this stuff.  There is no way I was going to share mine with the almost 3 year old.  It was hot.  This stuff melts fast.  I took the airline oxygen mask approach and scarfed mine down while she made a huge mess.  Daddy got a good chunk of her Dole Whip, much to her chagrin.  Hey, what else was he supposed to do?

But anyway, by then it was definitely past nap time and time to head back home.  So we did.  :)


Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!

Counting Down the Days

I swore I'd never use this phrase, but... back when I was a Midshipman, one of the things we had to memorize was called "The Days."  When asked for "The Days," you were supposed to automatically recite the number of days left until certain events.

For example:
There are 14 days until Thanksgiving Leave
There are 22 days until Navy beats Army
There are 47 days until Christmas Leave
There are 152 days until Spring Break

And so on.

This was supposedly a coping mechanism to get through the year, so we wouldn't crack under the stress of deployments and other things once we hit The Fleet.  But these days, deployments aren't set in stone.  Even if you have orders, you know they're subject to changed based on a lot of different variables.  Ever wonder why there are so many "deployed dad suprises kids" videos?  Because the first time you tell your kid, "Mommy or Daddy will be home in 184 days" and it turns into "185," it's not so bad... but then it becomes "188,"  and then "186," and then "192."  And not only are you going nuts, but your kid is falling apart. 

When I was the deployed parent, I used to count paydays.  The number was smaller, which I found less depressing and easier to count.  This worked well for me, but the kids really don't see that.   So now that I'm the one home with the kids, here's what we count:

That's right, we count down bags of dog food.   In our house, one 35 pound bag of dog food lasts roughly 2 weeks, depending on how much we run the dogs.  Feeding the dogs is my 12 year old's job.  So each day, he scoops out two bowls closer to having his step-father back.  My 2 year old can see the food going down in the container, so it works pretty well for her, too.   And rather than focusing on a fixed number of days, this helps them visualize the "guesstimate" aspect that always comes with the end of deployment.

We are down to two bags of dog food left in this deployment. 

Thank goodness!


Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!

Happy Easter!

In case you were wondering what a Hawaiian Easter Egg hunt looks like, here's the Princess on the hunt this morning:

Have a nice week, everyone!

Adventures in San Diego, Part IV

For our last venture in the San Diego area, we drove up to Escondido to the Wild Animal Park.

By this point, we were all pretty tired so we walked to the Africa Safari tram.  That's more or less all we did on this day...

The Safari Park is a little less "developed" than the San Diego Zoo.  We were hoping to see the lions, but the lion exhibit (as well as about half the park) was undergoing renovations.

We did see giraffes, rhinoceroses, and a variety of gazelles, antelopes, and a baby zebra that was only 3 days old.  The kids really liked the gibbons and other monkey exhibits.  After the tram ride and a short snack, my dad was ready to go to his uncle's house for a family dinner with some cousins we've never met.  We did take our time on the walk out, though.

On the way out, we stopped to feed the lorikeets.  You pay $3 for a tiny little ketchup cup sized container of chilled nectar... which struck me as a bit high, but heck, I'd already paid $6 for a cup of soda so I decided to pay the $6 so each kid could go into the aviary and see what the big deal was.  I'm glad I did. 
Both kids said this was the highlight of their day, and watching them have that experience was well worth the money spent.

It didn't surprise me that a bunch of birds went straight to my son, but I was surprised that a few were willing to brave my toddler's excitement to get some grubbage.

We also hit the petting zoo area.  Always good for the kids to get hands on.   My son pretends to be too old for this sort of thing, but really, he loves animals.  Then again, I'm also glad to have the "excuse" of watching the kids to go into all these petting zoos.  :)

I can't wait to take them to Taronga Zoo in Sydney, where you can pet pygmy kangaroos.

This about sums up how we felt about our trip by the end of our day...

San Diego is beautiful and fun, but there's no place like home.



Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!

Adventures in San Diego, Part III

We also hit Sea World.  Lest you think I was deprived as a child, my parents did bring me here when I was 7.  I remember it being super hot and Shamu being super big.  With the death of the whale trainer about a year ago, I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised.

First of all, we saw even more polar bears.  As soon as my daughter saw the picture of polar bears on the map, she insisted that we had to go see them... so we went... twice.

These bears were a lot cleaner than the ones at the San Diego Zoo!  :)  The kids got even closer to the polar bears here than they did at the zoo, too.  This was a great exhibit.  I think the kids would've spent all day here if I let them.

We did move on to see some Beluga whales, including a baby Beluga...  I didn't know babies are gray.

And we saw some penguins too... so cute!  The great thing about this exhibit was that there were different types of penguins together so you could compare the size difference as well as the different feather patterns, etc.

We also caught up with some college classmates of mine and saw the sea lion show (highly recommended) and Shamu (of course!)

Another really nice day, but I think this is another one of those places you'd be better off coming to a few hours at a time instead of trying to cram it all in at once.


Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!

Adventures in San Diego, Part II

What trip to San Diego would be complete without a trip to the world famous San Diego Zoo? This was a hit for all ages, even Grandma and Grandpa, who appreciated the moving sidewalks and Sky Tram.

Everyone had a great time looking at all the cool animals!  SO much better than reading about them or seeing them on Animal Planet!

We had a great time strolling around, trying to guess what the animals were or where they were from.  Even my unimpressed 'tween couldn't hide his interest.  Maybe we should get to our own local zoo a little more often... 

We saw the world's dirtiest polar bear...  and a cute little panda bear!

All in all, a nice way to spend an afternoon.  If we lived in San Diego, I think we would have to have a membership...

Definitely something to go back to!


Please visit our Etsy store for all kinds of upcycled accessories and jewelry, created in Hawaii!