Hawaii with Grandma

Sydney and I have just returned home from the most wonderful, memorable Hawaiian vacation with Grandma.   Every year when Paul and I are in Maui I think to myself that my Mom would love it there so much and so I can't tell you how excited I was when this year my dream of taking my Mom to Hawaii with us came true!

The time away was, quite literally, perfect.  The flights were great, weather was amazing, we had a wonderful mix of relaxation and beach time and going out on adventures and enjoyed some amazing meals. 

We made some incredible memories together along the way and came home happy and tanned and so sad that it ended all to soon!

Here are a few of our favourite things:

Beach Time

Ah the beaches of Maui....they are quite literally the happy place that I go to in my mind when I need something positive to focus on.  We spent most of our mornings lounging on the beach, bobbing around in the ocean and digging in the sand with Sydney.

Maui Ocean Centre

Sydney absolutely loves the aquarium in Maui so we made a special point of going there early on in our trip so that she could see all of the fish that she loves so much. 

We enjoyed a lovely lunch at the Seascapes Restaurant sitting on their patio overlooking the Ma'alea Harbour.  I can still feel that sweet Hawaiian breeze blowing over us as we dined!

Luau

Our favourite event by far was the very special Luau at the Grand Wailea Resort.  We joined two hundred other people at this amazing outdoor occasion where we drank special drinks, dined on amazing food, watched the sun set and enjoyed an amazing show at the end.

I love this picture of my Mom all happy and relaxed and enjoying life at the Luau!

There was a lady doing Hawaiian stamps for the kids so Sydney got herself a little turtle stamp on her leg that lasted quite a few days while we were away, it was very cute!

It was so interesting to watch them pull up the roasted pig that had been cooking for hours and hours.  Sydney declared "I don't like that!"...true enough, we're not huge pork fans around here!

The food was amazing, we ate until we were stuffed!

Sydney even got up on stage with the kids to learn how to do the Hula.

And then watched an incredible show that ended with a fire master who could work fire like I've never seen anyone do in my life before!

What a great memory, we won't soon forget that evening!

Ali'i Lavender Farm

The owner of the condo that we stayed at lives on the island so he came by to meet us the day that we arrived.  He was a wealth of information about things to do on the island and suggested that we take a day trip up to Kula in upcountry Maui.

This very quaint small town is home to botanical gardens, a country farm and the most amazing lavender farm.

We loved strolling through the gardens there.  Sydney even did a little treasure hunt where she had to collect stamps from different points of interest around the garden and got herself a little prize at the end, home baked lavender cookies and some stickers and an activity book.

We packed ourselves a picnic lunch and ate outside in the garden enjoying the amazing views from 4000 feet above sea level.

It was such a beautiful time!

The condo owner also brought by a beautiful bouquet of freshly cut flowers from his garden to welcome us to our suite, it was gorgeous!

Lahaina

 We drove down to the old whaling village of Lahaina for an evening and had dinner at the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company.

We took a walk down to the famous Banyan tree there and took in the sights and sounds of the Friday night street party that was happening.

Enjoyed doing a bit of shopping too while we were there, love that Sydney always gravitates to the jewellery!

Wailea

We spent a fun afternoon shopping at the Shops at Wailea and then wandering through the grounds at the Grand Wailea Resort, my absolute favourite resort in Maui!

Mom and I decided that the next time we go to Maui we should stay here!

They have a lovely chapel on the grounds and someone was getting married at the exact moment that we happened to be there.

Sydney loved feeding the Coy that were swimming in the water around the chapel.

Flowers

All three of us so loved the beautiful fresh flowers everywhere in Maui!  Everyday while we were out we would collect fallen flowers and bring them home to brighten our lanai.

Special Grandma Time

Sydney and I so enjoyed having some concentrated time with my Mom.  I stayed up way too late at night chatting with her every night and loved every minute of it!

Syd loved playing the pool with Grandma, flying her kite and playing ball in the park and doing her new Hello Kitty puzzle that Grandma brought along for her.

I am still basking in the glow of the amazing time that we had away together.  It is one of my favourite spots in the world and I was thrilled to be able to share some very special time there together with my Mom and Syd on our girls trip!

Aloha!