Kauai day 4: bikes and boats!

this was my favorite day on the island! in the morning we took a bike ride on the east side- including a climb up towards the mountains and through the country side - quite a workout on the way up- but a pretty sweet coast down!



And in the afternoon we headed over to the southwest side of the island to catch a catamaran tour of the NaPali coast- the best way to see the gorgeous cliffs!

we saw tons of dolphins and even a few humpback whales jumping out of the waters

I was having a blast and spend most of the 5 hour tour on the very front perch of the boat


but after we stopped to watch the sunset...
pete developed a little problem with the motion of the ocean (as you can see on his face)
yep... he got a little sea sick!

kauai day 3: The North Shore

The north shore is the rainy, least developed and probably prettiest side of the island. We started off the day at a bird sanctuary (all the little white dots in the top photo- birds!) The coolest to see were the albatross taking off and land.


We spent most of the day hiking the Kalalau trail along the rugged NaPali coast- if you go the whole distance (22 miles round trip) it takes at least a few days and requires permits- so we only went about 5 hours of the trail- down to the first beach and back.

The trail was steep and gorgeous- and also dangerous, mostly cause it's soooo slippery! There are patches of the trail where you can't get a grip at all and on the other side is a huge cliff drop-off, scary! (sorry - no pics of that- i was working hard not to fall off the mountain)

We saw a guy on the trail who twisted his leg and they had to do a helicopter rescue to get him out-it landed right in front of us.

There are a bunch of stream crossing on the trail- so it's impossible to hike it with out getting muddy up to your waist- Pete also managed to get his shirt filthy- so we bought him a hawaii one at a tourist shop in town so we could stop in a cafe for a much needed snack after the hike.

Me at the beach at the end of our trail and then over looking a Taro field on the drive home.

And where we had our much deserved feast that night...

kauai day 2: helicopters, kayaks, and luaus

a few photos from the helicopter tour-i was thinking it would be a little more "exciting" but still quite beautiful and peaceful- and you have to try everything once! we flew over the napali coastline- gorgeous!


i did take one of my fancy cameras down to hawaii with me- but it pretty much stayed in my hotel room- instead i took my little pocket camera on all our adventures- does a decent job and much easier to carry!

a few pics from our kayak trip up the wailua river- went to a fern grotto and a swimming hole- good stuff!

quite the pests- with no natural predators these roosters are all over the island

yeah- im a dork

coconuts!

we ended the day at a luau! touristy fun...but like i said- you have to try everything once!

kauai day 1: the waimea canyon!

ummmmm- check back later for the words part of this post....im still sleep deprived and jet lagged and can't write a coherent thought- but had to post something to satisfy my siblings- (your welcome dave and morgan!)

last night in kauai

killing some time before dinner- thought i would throw a photo up from right before the helicopter tour. i attempted to post video but the internet down here is not my friend, actually my computer and my point and shoot camera are not friends either- can't get the photos uploaded right now besides a few from the first day- but probably a blessing in disguise or else i would be wasting precious vacation time playing with photoshop! we have been having a blast - exploring all corners of this gorgeous island!

one more full day here and then we fly out tomorrow on the red-eye!

Chicago is FREEZING

and i love it

no really, i think im actually beginning to like winter

this winter has been gorgeous with tons of snow and sunshine too- not one of those dull grey winters.

and having a dog is awesome, makes me get out in the weather- bundle up and enjoy it

and i don't have to feel guilty if i choose to barely leave the house

almost a year ago today- i broke my leg- so this winter im just greatful to be healthy and mobile

in nice weather its hard to work

but in winter i can sit plugged into my computer all day getting tons of work done while i watch the snowfall and O.D. on oranges and green tea

today's forcast, 25 degrees and a chance of snow..

bring it!

photo project

last weekend i was inspired by another photographer's blog (theblogisfound) to print out some favorite shots and hang them around my house on magnet boards. the idea is to switch up the photos every month or two- replenish them with new pics and start an album with the old prints. i love this idea because i have soo many great photos but never print um cause i can't decide which ones - it just felt too permanent to frame them- so this is awesome that i can change them so easily!

i bought my magnet boards at target (although ikea has some great ones too- i was just too lazy to drive all the way out there) got my magnets from the containter store and ordered the prints from my awesome pro lab, white house custom color. i also got a few magnet strips from the container store and hung them between the windows in my office- below is the result....a photo explosion!

all the pics on this post were captured with my other new purchase- a nikon coolpix s210, my old point and shoot finally died, and lugging around one of my huge and heavy pro- cameras is not always fun- so it is great to once again have a tiny camera to toss in my bag or take on hikes! i had to include a few shots of griffey after retrieving his ball that i accidentally threw in a huge mud pile- oooops! and a shot of griff's new favorite hang out spot- right at my feet under the desk in my office.