Things Lost to the Ocean

Who wants to correctly pronounce these Hawaiian street names?! 

Monday was Nana, Grandfather, Aunt Lauren, and Uncle Phil's last day with us in Maui. After our death dance crazy fun swim in the huge waves Sunday afternoon we were all a little sore, but not enough to keep us from crying about it being their last day having fun. 

Because the cabana is closed we got a spot in the shade under a huge tree in the sand. That's where we've hung out most of the rest of this trip. 

Ava and Uncle Phil digging. 

Dad and Mia went to get lunch for us and we ate at the beach. 

As the day progressed it got cloudy and the waves which had been much smaller, grew to be close to the size of the day before. They were fun to play in, but not near as much. They lacked the heart pounding effect. 

Grandfather got tumbled and lost his sunglasses. A reward was thrown out and masks grabbed. A little while later Ava found them! 

Because the lights in the parking garage make us look creepy.

We all went out for a late dinner at Cheeseburger in Paradise. This time we had to sit downstairs, but we still enjoyed ourselves the best we could since we were all crying. 

Then we went to get dessert at Bubba Gump's. 

Tuesday morning Mom and Dad went out for breakfast and we all slept for a long time. Everyone else came over to tell us good-bye around 9:00 am. We really, really, really enjoyed sharing our time here with them. 

Dad and the other kids went to the beach around 10:00 and Mom and I stayed behind to finish some things up and greet the Hodges. We invited them to come spend the day with us at our beach. 

Digging with David and Pat. 

This was when it was only about halfway finished.

The Hodges' kids played great with ours and Mom and Mrs Hodges enjoyed visiting. 

Chloe and I came up early with the moms and the two year old who needed a nap. 

I wrote a poem while relaxing. I know, I know, to a lot of you writing poetry probably does not sound relaxing. I love the times where I just start and have no idea where the composition will go or what the answer is until I write the very last line. That is what happened this time. You can read it if you'd like! What is a Hero?

When Hope woke up, Gabe "read" to her.

The kids went to the pool with Dad for a long time and then came back to our room to shower and play. Then we all went to Aloha Mixed Plate for dinner. 

Three peas in a pod.

The group. 

We told Lee and Rick goodbye when we got back. We are all really going to miss them. Apparently everyone in Arizona (where they live) knows all about the Linn family. Certainly everyone in Texas knows about all our wonderful Maui Grandparents. 

Wednesday morning Mom and I went on our last coffee beach walk. 

So gonna miss this. *Wipes away tears* 

We only almost got hit by waves a couple of times and enjoyed our coffee and conversation. 

Back in the room everyone was getting ready for the beach and starting to pack. 

The beach was super windy, but the sun was shining and the waves weren't as big. 

Talking with David and Pat. 

Mia is hiding from the sun.

Playing cards. 

We went to have an early dinner at Cheeseburger in Paradise. (It's tradition for the last full day in Maui.) Last year we had our friends the Pistors with us to distract us and keep us from crying a lot. They were a huge help! But this year we had no one and so we were kind of mopey looking all evening. (Mom and Dad included.) 

It took me three tries, but I finally finished my entire burger. 

Then we got gelato next door. 

Some people stayed in Lahaina to finish some shopping. The rest us of went back to the room and started "Pride and Prejudice." Everyone else joined us later. 

Trip Tally:

Number of times Mom got kissed on the cheek by local people- 3

Number of times Dad drove without his license because he lost track of who had it- at least 2

Number of ice water glasses that got poured in my lap- 3

Number of nights that there were people snoring in the girls' room- 20-ish

Number of times we watched Pirates of the Caribbean- 3

Number of times we ate at Cheeseburger in Paradise- 4

Number of mornings Mom went to buy coffee- 25 (probably)

Number of beach weddings we saw- at least 5

Number of times I cried missing Kate- at least 2

Number of times we worked on the play- to be honest, only 3

Number of things lost to the ocean- 4

Number of things recovered from the ocean- 1


That moment when:

You realize you are part of a family whose kids like to look at the nutritional facts on the cereal boxes and find out which ones are the worst for you to eat and which ones are comparably the best. 

The waiter knows where you ate dinner before getting dessert in his restaurant and you didn't say anything to him. 

The Herd: Quoted 

"Now everyone will know this is my chair." -Mia 

"Your chair that Dad is going to sit in?" -Mom 

"Yes. I actually read it and then I skimmed it again." -Christian (Aka he skimmed it twice)

"We are going to have to start a blog section titled "lost to the ocean" and under it we already have Mom's shoes, Ava's goggles, Uncle Phil's hat, and now Grandfather's sunglasses, but then we'll have a section for "found in the ocean" and under that is Grandfather's sunglasses!" -Me 

"Chloe, were you even at the beach?" -Mia 

"Did you not see me?" -Chloe  

"No, I was having way too much fun." -Mia 

"Dad, I've been thinking and sometimes I wonder if you and mom are evil. Like when you ask for private time you are going away to talk about evil things and I even wonder if maybe you killed my real mom and dad and buried them in the kitchen floor. I just want to make sure I am safe." -Mia 

"We were at a stop light and there was a pickup truck of guys next to us. They kept looking at me and sent me the hang loose sign. So I smiled and sent it back, but they kept looking and I was starting to feel uncomfortable until I realized that they weren't looking at me but at the long, blonde hair and tan legs of the girl next to me, Lydia."  -Dad 

"I was totally oblivious and Christian catches guys looking at me all the time when we are driving together." -Me

"Just pretend that it's common." -Mom

"It is! That's the point! But I never notice it until someone points it out." -Me 

"This is a nice spot. We've never been sat in the dungeon part of the restaurant before." -Mom