Oahu: Day 2
Day Two: Thursday 4/24/14
With the 3-hour time difference, I was well-prepared for an early wake-up call. We turned down the crib when we checked in and had Kumquat sleep on the second double bed that we had in the room. She did just fine but I slept with her just to make sure she didn’t wake up with a head injury.
We were up by 5 (not too bad) and Kumquat did a decent job not waking Jes.
Most mornings we would go down to the infinity pool for breakfast. This infinity pool is so pretty. 
It looks like Kumquat could roll right into the ocean if I didn’t have the brakes locked on that stroller.
Lawson Station is the general store at the hotel and it’s awesome. They have just about everything you need to survive: milk, fruit, toiletries, souveniers, oh and did I mention Spam musubi, made-to-order udon, manapuas, and BUBBIES MOCHI ICE CREAM?!?! 
On top of that, there’s a Peet’s coffee in the hotel and they also sell Dole Whip! Whut?! I seriously wouldn’t need to leave this hotel if zombies were attacking Hawaii and we were on lockdown.
While the beach was still empty and quiet, we took Kumquat back out for her daily “aloha” to Mr. Ocean. 
Yup, she was still not having it. She clung so tightly that I didn’t really have to hold her. We did make progress though. There weren’t any tears but she still wouldn’t stand on the sand.
This day was designated as our pool day and after the beach, we rented a cabana (basically two cushioned lounge chairs with a shade) for the day. It was going to be our homebase from 8am-6pm today and it was awesome.
The day before, I took her to the kiddie pool (it’s only 1.5 feet deep) and she was still not sure of standing in it. The water came up to her chest and eventually she was brave enough to stand and walk around. Unfortunately, she stumbled and went right into the water – face and all. I picked her up out of the water and she didn’t cough or cry. She was mostly spooked and confused.
From that day on, we kept her in the floatie and she was happy again. It was also nice to have Jes there to help supervise. It’s scary taking a toddler to the pool by yourself!
After a morning at the pool, we lucked out on having a sleepy toddler passing out in her stroller so we got a nice quiet lunch at Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin. I had a tasty katsu-don with an oozy egg on top. Yum. It was delicious and big enough to have some left over for Kumquat to eat later when she woke up.
After lunch, we headed back to the pool and met up with the rest of the gang. 
Dayantha and Krissy had gone to Foodland and brought me some poke and Maui Onion chips. It was perfect with my Mai Tai.
The location of our cabanan turned out to be the perfect location for relaxing, hanging out near the wading area, and enjoying a few drinks.
The Lams and Kwaks also joined us and it was like our own little corner of paradise.
This kid got used to this whole vacation thing really quick.
It was so fun hanging out with Holly and Andrew. Andrew is in an “I don’t like taking pictures” phase.
Before dinner, we hung out near the hammocks and Kumquat enjoyed swinging with Daddy.
We were also greeted by a rainbow that evening!
Eventually, Kumquat had fallen asleep so she missed out on another dinner. She would have loved this one too.
We went to Marukame Udon, which has a cafeteria-style service and a line out the door all day long. The noodles are handmade in the store and it’s so cheap!!
The broth is very tasty and was even better with the soft egg added to it. Andrew ate up all the egg yolk before Holly could even try some.
I also picked up a Spam musubi for Kumquat’s breakfast the next morning. Yes, this kid ate a lot of Spam (aka “bacon” to her) on this trip.
We flew on Hawaiian Airlines (our usual) on Wednesday (4/23) and stayed in the Sheraton Waikiki this time. The flight went pretty well with the exception of when we were boarding the plane with a toddler who was screaming and refusing to walk and a husband who was on a conference call and couldn’t help.
I loved that Kumquat had her own seat and I came well-equipped with food, toys, and the iPad loaded with new apps and videos for her.
1) Kumquat puked in the car on the way to the airport (gross) and 
2) I spilled half a glass of mimosa all over my lap and didn’t have a change of clothing (stupid).
The Lams joined us on the flight, which made it an even more interesting flight. I think they had it pretty rough considering they were flying with an 18-month-old who didn’t want to nap and a 3-month-old who had to be held the entire time.
Luckily, they did get a moment of respite when Keenan finally fell asleep. They were exhausted that afternoon when we arrived in Honolulu.
Instead of renting a car for the week, I made arrangements for Roberts Hawaii to pick us up. It was great, they greet you at luggage claim, take your bags, and whisk you away to your hotel lickety split. Kumquat especially enjoyed the bus ride and Jes took a nap.
When we arrived, Dayantha and Krissy were out front and we we went to have lunch at Ramen Nakamura. 
Here’s my kimchee miso ramen with a side of fried rice. The ice-cold beer from the ABC Store threw it over the top for our first meal on the island.
The rest of the day was spent at the pool. Jes took his usual monster-long after-flying-to-Hawaii nap while Kumquat and I met up with the Fernandos. It’s fun having other friends in the same hotel – especially when they’re able to be an additional set of eyes on a constantly-moving toddler in a pool. Fortunately, she liked the pool and having the 1/2-foot wading area was perfect for her. The pool at the Sheraton is definitely a +1 over Moana Surfrider.
Dinner was at Duke’s and we stayed longer for drinks. I got my first order of poke and it came with furikake rice. Nice touch, Duke’s.
Yoon came by after another social function and we were lucky to have a kid that sleeps well in a noisy restaurant.
We had to do our taxes in Cerritos this year so it was a good excuse to go home for the weekend. The drive down on Friday wasn’t too bad (8am-3pm) with two stops.
When we arrived, Alice was there and it was fun to see Kumquat playing with her.
She also enjoyed having tea in the backyard like a regular suburban kid. My mom also had dinner prepared (of course, it’s the Magical House!) so we enjoyed some Chicken Rice and soup.
On Saturday morning, Brother and Joy came over.
After breakfast, we packed up the kids and headed out to Huntington Beach. As soon as we got out of the car, Kumquat cried and was in panic mode for the first 20 minutes.
It was nice just being out there on the sand and enjoying the sunshine and view. It’s funny how neither of the kids were very happy in this picture.
For lunch, I planned a big family gathering to catch up and to also celebrate Kumquat’s 2nd birthday. My mom picked up an ice cream cake and we ordered all our favorite dishes. This picture that Brother took cracks me up.
It was also so nice to see the cousins again.
Later that afternoon, Holly and Andrew came over. Andrew as a little quieter than usual but it was nice to do some catching up.
Our tax appointment was at 6:30 so Jes and I left and it took the usual hour and a half to get it all done. There was a bit of a wait so we went to Starbucks to pick up coffee and went back to finish the paperwork when the office assistant called. Afterward, we had a nice Japanese dinner without the kid. It’s so rare that we get a date night. It’s funny (and a little sad) that tax night became date night.
On Sunday morning, we left relatively early and the drive back was easy (9am-4pm) with three stops. I hate these super short trips to LA but always glad that we did it. I miss my family.
Teresa and I signed up for a 5K and we entered the stroller division. The race was on Sunday so I made it a mini vacation for the family. On Saturday afternoon, we drove down to Santa Cruz, which is only about an 80 minutes from SF. I booked a motel located near the beach and the race start and it was good enough for the night. After we checked in and unpacked, we walked down to the beach. I knew it was close to the beach but we were still surprised at how close it really was.
It was fortuitous that Isla’s party favor was a beach set complete with bucket and three tools. So, we put on Kumquat’s swim diaper and rash guard and headed out. I was curious to see how she would respond to the waves this time and I was so proud of how calm she was this time around! She happily walked down toward the water with me and sat down to play in the sand. She loves sand but usually once she sees or hears the ocean waves, she becomes a hot mess of tears and crying. She was even willing to walk down to the water with me until she saw the water roll in toward her. She never made it to the water but she was able to just say “no” or call out to me without crying. 
It sounds silly but I was so proud.
After playing in the sand, we walked down to the famous boardwalk and it was super cheesy. So, we walked back to the nearest bar and sat down for a couple drinks and a snack.
Ah…it was a nice little getaway moment.
For dinner, we picked up Mexican food from the taco stand on the way back to the motel and we spent the rest of the evening in the room. We watched cable tv and just hung out. Unfortunately, Kumquat was not in the mood to sleep and once she fell asleep, it didn’t last long. She woke up coughing and coughing to the point of almost throwing up. Poor thing had a hard time falling back asleep and I ended up having to put her in the stroller. At 3am, she woke up again and luckily it didn’t last as long as the first time. Unfortunately, we didn’t get much sleep and I almost overslept this morning. I thought I set my alarm but it didn’t go off and the only reason I woke up was because Kumquat started to cry again at 7am.
Well, we both got ready and let Jes sleep in. It was chilly outside but the view was so nice on the walk up!
We met up with Teresa and her family at the lighthouse and then headed up to the start. The race started out really slow because they didn’t separate the walkers from the runners.
Pushing the stroller was harder than usual because I was busy weaving, braking, speeding up, and fighting for space to run for the first 2 miles. In fact, my arms are pretty sore from all the maneuvering. T-Rex got a pretty big workout today. Kumquat did a good job behaving throughout the race and afterward.
She even warmed up to Teresa’s dad pretty quickly. Henry slept through the whole thing and he looked so content in the stroller. What a cutie.
This was such a fun event and hanging out with T is always fun.
Rawr! Yay Team Tiger!
For lunch, we headed back to the ship.
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