Ten Tips for Traveling in Paradise!

 (Big S and I at Ko Olina)

As most of you know, I spent last week in paradise, or Hawaii!  This was my THIRD time going to Hawaii, and I love it more each time, this time we were able to go with Utah Farm Bureau!  Hawaii is truly one of the most beautiful places on earth.  I am a bit of a nervous traveler, so it really puts me at ease that Hawaii is all American!  If you haven't been able to go, I hope you will all get to go there someday!  I have compiled some tips to help you out on your next trip to Hawaii!

 (Trail at Volcano National Park, Big Island)

 1.  Airfare, when it comes to buying plane tickets to Hawaii don't be in a rush.  We found out in July we would have the opportunity to go to Hawaii with Farm Bureau.  When we first looked at tickets they were between $700-$800 round trip from Salt Lake.  We felt like this price might go down so we decided to watch it for a while.  We bought our tickets August 31st for $350 round trip.  A couple weeks after that it went back up to $700-$800.

 (Hammerhead sharks at the Marriot Ilhalini Resort we stayed at in Ko Olina)

2.  Parking, being a country girl there have been relatively few times in my life that I have had to pay for parking my vehicle.  It came as a surprise to my husband and I that at our first hotel on Waikiki, it cost $25 dollars a night to park our rental car.  In our second hotel at Ko Olina, parking cost a whopping $35 per night. We also had to pay for parking at many places in between.  We thought we were saving money by getting a weekly rate on a rental car, when in reality it would have been cheaper to do daily rentals, and return the car each night if possible.  Moral of the story check with your accommodations on parking prices!

(2009 Rental House at Hau'ula)

3. Lodging, in 2009 we went to Hawaii with our whole family, and my parents and brothers.  We rented a house for a week, that fit all of us.  It was fabulous and so much more economical.  It cost a $1,000 for a week which is much more reasonable than a hotel.  It also saved a lot of money in food, as we cooked many of our meals at the house.  It also was great for doing laundry!

 

(View from our hotel room at Ilhalini Marriot, Ko Olina)

This trip we were very lucky, as mentioned previously we went with Farm Bureau, and they booked our rooms.  We stayed half the time at Waikiki, and the other half at Ko Olina. (My hubby and I island hopped one day to the Big Island).  Our resort at Ko Olina (Marriot Ilhalini), was amazing. By far, this was the nicest place I have ever stayed at, my hubby said I better enjoy it because it probably won't happen again! It was pretty expensive, and they got you on parking (see no. 2), but it was very luxurious!

 (I love this cute chair in my room at Ko Olina)

 

 (Parker Ranch, Big Island)

4. Food, all of our hotel rooms this trip had a fridge, which I think is pretty standard.  We stocked up on fruit, cheese and crackers, bread, and drinks.. and ate out once a day.  This saved us quite a bit of money!  Be prepared that food prices are much higher in Hawaii, a gallon of milk cost nearly $5.

 

 (Ono Steaks Wagon, and my Ono Plate)

5. ONO, is the best fish I have ever tasted.  My name is Carlee, and I am addicted to Ono.  It is a little hard to find, even in Hawaii, but totally worth it! On our first trip to Hawaii we went deep sea fishing we caught this fish, and ever since I have been addicted.  I am not a huge fish lover but this is wonderful, it does not have a fishy flavor AT ALL, it is more firm kind of like a steak.  If you see the above Ono Wagon located at Waimanalo, STOP immediately and buy their Ono plate, it will not dissapoint!  It is also called Wahoo at some restaurants.

(Pineapple at the Dole Plantation)

 6. Pineapple Whip, if you are traveling to Oahu, stop at the Dole plantation and buy a Pineapple Whip, they are SO DELICIOUS!  The train ride was nothing to write home about, but the pineapple whip was delicious.  Did you know it takes nearly two years for the first pineapple crop to grow?

 

(Black Sand Beach, Big Island)

(Turtle at Black Sand beach, Big Island)

 7.  Winter in Hawaii, Winter is the best time of the year in Hawaii to see the big waves.  On the North Shore we saw 20 foot waves, it was fun to see the locals surf.  In the summer months the waves are relatively flat.  It is also the best time to see Whales, from the beach we saw whales jump out of the water, it was pretty amazing.  No matter what time of year, you will always find some amazing Sea turtles!

(Volcano National park, Big Island)

 8. Volcano National Park,  We were so excited to see the Volcano National Park, and thought we would see lava flowing and sparks flying.... but nada.  You can only see the lave flow at certain times.  The park ranger said the best way to see lava is in a helicopter... REALLY.  But you did see steam coming out of the volcano, and it was fun walking through the Lava tube.  I am not going to lie, I was a little disappointed in not seeing lava.

 (Black Pearl, Shipyard near Ko Olina)

 9. Unexpected, always be on the lookout for the unexpected... like the black pearl we found in a shipyard near our hotel!  Further, if you happen to see a cowboy wearing boots on the beach with his swim shorts... I definitely do not know who that is!

 (Norbest Turkey, on Big Island)

10. Southern most Grocery Store in the US.  If you are on the big Island and stop at Punaluu, it is the southern most city in the USA.  At the grocery store their you might come across some Norbest turkey with some pretty impressive looking turkey farmers on the tag (wink)!  It was so cool to see our turkey and our tag in Hawaii!

  (Sunset at Waikiki)

Our favorite Places to Visit in Oahu!
Hukilau Beach~Laie
Hukilau Cafe~Laie, they have the BEST banana pancakes for breakfast!
Ono Steak Shack~ Waimanalo, Seriously the best food I had the ENTIRE time on the Island, great   
       Ono Steaks, and regular steak for that matter.  You can find them on facebook HERE!
Polynesian Cultural Center~Laie, a little pricey but very educational and fun.  Plan at least one whole
       day if you are going to see this!
Waimea Falls, a beautiful hike through botanical gardens that takes you to a fresh waterfall that you
       can swim in!
Waikiki Beach, it is the worlds most famous beach for a reason, it is perfect!
Cheesecake Factory~Waikiki, I know it is a chain, but for some reason it tastes better at Waikiki!
Aikane Deep Sea Fishing~We have used them twice, and it is a great company!  They let you keep the
        fish where many companies do not.
Dole Plantation, I am perfectly content to skip the train ride and eat a delicious Pineapple Whip!

(Hukilau Beach)

PS.. This is my one souvenir from Hawaii... Hopefully you will find some Hawaiian recipes on this blog in the future!

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Our Florida Vacation!

Nice warm weather was such a relief from this freezing weather we have been having at home.. But like most travel, it is so nice to be home, and sleep in my own bed, and eat my own food, and of course be with my kids!! My husband and I went to Florida for a Young Farmers and Ranchers National Convention, part of Farm Bureau. My husband is a third generation turkey farmer, and Agriculture is definitely one of our passions. I love to work side by side with my kids on the farm, and teach our kids the values that have been important to our families for generations... Anyway, it was an amazing conference, and we managed to have a lot of fun along the way!

The conference was at the Coronado Springs Resort in DISNEY WORLD! How cool is that!
I am a big Disney fan, since I was not chasing after kids on this trip, I was really able to enjoy the atmosphere, and the architecture. Disney is so good at the little details finishing things, that is something I hope to focus on this year in my own home. Here are some examples:

I love the subtle Mickey's everywhere notice it on this chandelier? It does not scream this is Disney, but their are subtle reminders everywhere!

I love how whimsical Disney is!

The hotel rooms were not in one big building, but scattered in Casita's around a lake, it was really a peaceful setting, we enjoyed it!

Our room was really nice and not too over the top Disney! Staying at the Disney World resort was so much fun, probably once in a lifetime for me. The only disadvantage, was they really have you over a barrel, and they know it! The nearest grocery store is over five miles away, so if you didn't have a car, you were stuck paying their expensive prices for food... That really was my only complaint.

One of the biggest highlights of the conference was hearing from American hero Captain Jim Lovell! The Captain of Apollo 13 talked about successful failures. It was truly humbling, and I was honored to be in his presence.

Another highlight was seeing my husband hold an alligator. We were taking a tour of Kempfer Ranch, and one of the farmer/owners jumped out of the bus and caught this bad boy, it was so much fun. He let everyone hold it (that wanted too)!

We also went to one of those Medevil show dinners, a little corny but SUPER fun!

Guess what we were able to go to Harry Potter World at Universal Studios... Are you jealous, you should be it was BRILLANT! Where else can you drink a Butter Beer, go on a broom ride in Hogwarts, and even listen to Moaning Myrtle while you are going to the bathroom.

Ollivander's Wand shop... For a big Harry Fan, it was SO much fun.

PS.. The gifts I left for my kids each day were a HUGE hit. They loved them! They wanted us to stay on vacation so they could have some more!

Missing you gifts!

I have a horrible very awful, almost in tears as I write this hard time leaving my kids. My husband and I have the great opportunity to attend a conference, across the country, and we will be leaving our kids longer then we ever have before. Our kids are pretty spoiled, and they will be able to split the time between their grandparents. I know they are in super great hands, and they will have a fun time, but it is still hard! So I thought I would try to make it easier on them, and me, be giving them a small gift each day that we are gone.

I bought most of my gifts at a discount store with one bigger gift, I had in my stash of gifts, I find on clearance etc. throughout the year.

I tried to wrap each day a little different, but I didn't get to fancy, I just used what I had. I know my kids will just be happy with something to open.

I made sure each day I wrote a small note saying how much I miss them and love them! And of course I remind them to call me!

There are some amazing crafts I found online that involve traveling etc. I wish I had the foresight, and time to come up with this cute sleepover bag, made by one of my favorite all time blogs A Lemon Squeezy Home! I will have to put this in my idea notebook for next time!

I also found these funky luggage tags from Family Fun... On my to do list! I could totally see us sporting a turkey luggage tag!

Well I guess I better get back to packing, I try to make my vacations technology free, so this might be the last post for about a week. I am hoping to find some SUN!

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