Yes, I've been slacking on the blog posts. It was a busy, summer, too, so there's no hope in me catching up on everything. I can hit some highlights, though!
- R2 is doing well. She does have a major surgery scheduled in December; we are praying that it goes well and she recovers quickly. I'm very grateful that we live in the age of modern medicine.
- C took us all to Hawaii and played six concerts around Oahu. Hearing her solo intro to "How Great Thou Art" on the USS Missouri (where Japan surrendered, ending WW2) was a highlight for me.
We did the usual summer stuff. Made a trip to Chattanooga. Had snow cones. Rode bikes. Went hiking.
We saw a couple of shows at the Nashville Symphony. J and C even played their instruments at an "instrument petting zoo." The event was a Harry Potter-themed thing so C even got to bust into "Hedwig's Theme."
The trip to Hawaii was a blast. I was a little apprehensive about the long flight there and back, but R2 did great. She was pleasant for the daytime ride out there, and slept nearly all the way back.
We enjoyed C's various concert stops (Pearl Harbor, the Polynesian Cultural Center, and the Punahou School of Music). Her teacher recorded the last concert and posted it on YouTube as a playlist. At the Punahou School (where President Barack Obama attended fifth to twelfth grade) they did a joint concert. C's fellow students are in black and pink, and the Punahou students are in black and white.
C really enjoyed spending time with the other (mostly older) students as well as her friend and fellow violinist from our neighborhood in Nashville.
We also got to see several of the natural sights on Oahu. We hiked up the volcanic crater at Diamond Head State Park, which was no small feat with little kids. I carried R2 the entire way (a great workout for the quads on the way up, and the calves on the way down!) but I was proud of R for hiking all the way up, given she's only four. The promise of a fresh pineapple smoothie once we got back down probably helped things along.
We also snorkeled at Hanauma Bay. I was concerned about it being crowded, but we got there early and they start turning people away when it's "full" so it never felt over-crowded. I'm glad we went - it was a wonderful place to spend the morning. Had we brought food I would have been happy to stay there all day.
We also wanted to see some waterfalls, so we hiked up the nearby Manoa Falls. I could have easily spent hours just looking the lush flora and examining roots, trees, and leaves.
We appreciated the uniqueness of the landscape; there are beaches, yes, but they are often surrounded by towering hillsides, making it feel very different than most beaches I've ever been to.
We spent most of our stay on the north shore of Oahu. Many of the beaches are jagged volcanic rocks, but in some places there were little coves you could snorkel in. Shark Bay was one example, of a cove with placid, clear water that allowed us to observe fish, eels, and coral. We also floated around in Turtle Bay, which was cloudier but, true to it's name, allowed us to watch sea turtles munching vegetation underwater.
Hawaii was not really on our "short list" of destinations, but I'm glad we were able to go with C, see her play, and enjoy some of the natural landscape.
When we left Nashville, temperatures were in the 80s, and when we got back, we found that we missed the blip of autumn and it was quite cold. 😆 We should better plan the timing of our trips to tropical islands.
I look forward to the cool, crisp winter and whatever new things 2020 brings us!