Kauaii!!

Jacquie and I started our trip at the airport with some mimosas, a perfect way to begin!  Our flight had been delayed and we had some time to sit and enjoy these, then head to buy some waters and hit the bathroom before going to our gate.  I think we had another 20 minutes when we were in the bathroom and heard our names being paiged!  We were the last to arrive for our flight and they were waiting on us!  I guess when you are headed to Hawaii, you're already on Hawaii time which means they come and go as they please. :)

After a wonderful flight with a meal and a glass of wine offered, we rented a car and checked in to our oasis!  Look at this view! 

Now I just need a glass of wine!

We grabbed a delicious meal and a lava flow drink before going to the grocery store to stock our little kitchen for the week.

After picking up Shauna at the airport a bit later, we all settled in for a good sleep and were up nice and early due to the time change.  We decided donuts and coffee on our patio sounded like the perfect beginning to the day.

We enjoyed a stroll on the beach...

then did some site seeing and toured the Kauai coffee place.

Then we headed to the blow spout...

 

and I found this adorable kitty for sale on the shelf!  Ok, not for sale but so cute!

On our way to lunch, we drove through this famous road covered in trees.  It was so interesting how the trees came together to make a tunnel, pretty cool.

Then it was time to experience a Puka Dog, delicious!  The best hot dog I've ever had.  Later, we found the factory where they make the mustard they put in these and we all ordered and shipped some home. 

That night we headed to my childhood friend Sara's house, had a tour of her place, and then she took us to an amazing sushi restaurant.  I hadn't seen her since she moved back to the island 6 years ago!  It was so nice to catch up!

The next day we took a drive up to the time shares other hotel location in Princeville so Jacquie could sit through a meeting and get a $100 gift card while Shauna and I enjoyed the pool. Here's the view from the drive down to Hanalei, beautiful.

After lunch in Hanalei and the purchase of a sweatshirt since it was pretty cold up there, we drove back down and on the way, stopped to see this light house.  It was closed on Sunday but that's ok, pretty view.

Then we hit the Jacuzzi before going to our hotel bar to meet Sara and some of her friends to watch a jazz band.

Look at this sunrise over the water!  Not something we see back at home!

After a yummy breakfast, and a visit to Sara's office where she hooked us up with some Hawaii Life swag, we took a tubing tour.  The van took us up to see the wettest part of the world in the canyon of Kauai. 

The swag!

Since our tour was on tubes in the old sugar cane canals, we couldn't take any pictures.  But here's a shot of our head gear!  This tour was awesome!  The water was a bit cold and we all agreed we could have been wearing more waterproof clothing, but such a blast!  That night Sara came to our place and we all had pizza, salad and laughed while watching the Bachelor.  Another great day!

Tuesday we hit up two beautiful waterfalls.  Here's the first, too bad I don't know the name of it.

And the next one.  There's something magical about waterfalls.

This was the other side of the road, where the water came out and there were kayakers down there.  This island is so lush and green.

That day Karen, Jacquie's friend, joined us and we headed to a luau.  So beautiful!  They had little booths for us to shop at, which we all found something to buy, and then we took a few photos before going to the rum tasting.

We loved all the different flavors of rum, strong but delicious!

A little too strong!

And then we enjoyed a typical Hawaiian luau meal.  So much food we couldn't even go back for seconds, and all the drinks we could get down!

The next day we took a drive up the canyon to see lots of beautiful scenery and a few water falls.

We headed to Brennecke's for lunch and weren't too impressed. 

But great drinks.

We bought some fresh ahi poke and gelato and just sat and enjoyed the view at our room.

The next morning we took a walk...

and enjoyed these beautiful trees that lined the drive up to our hotel.

Here's the state flower!

And finally, we spent a day just laying at the pool and enjoying the surrounding flora.

So many beautiful views, just wish I could take it home with me.

On the day we laid out at the pool, Karen and I took a few rides down this slide.  Best slide ever! 

We had to take a selfie with the slide. :)