Today: Possible Surf Competition and Farmers' Markets

Been a terrible blogger lately, but I promise I'll get back in the groove here soon.

In the meantime, there's a good chance the Quiksilver in Memory of Eddie Aikau big wave competition is going to happen today (Thursday).*  Check the official page for the Quiksilver Surf Competition to see if it's a 'go' or not, and read about when we went to see "The Eddie" last year.  This competition doesn't happen every year and it's definitely worth seeing.

And if you decide not to head to the North Shore, Thursday is a great day for Farmers' Markets on the Windward side.  In the morning you can take your pick of markets at Waimanalo, Kailua and Kaneohe depending on how early you want to get up (they are held in that order at 8, 9 and 10:30...something like that).  If your day is already booked there's also the Thursday evening market in Kailua.

See you back here soon for my list of Weekend Events.

*Update:  No surf competition today after all, but there are a lot of surfers in Waimea Bay and some big waves coming through so still lots to see on the North Shore today.

Scenic Sunday: Cloudy on the H-3

Scenic Sunday...because I never get over the beauty of these islands.

Driving the H-3 on a cloudy day.

Hawaii is beautiful even when it's cloudy and rainy.   And look how green the rain makes everything.

Lots of great pictures from around the world at DeliciousBaby's Photo Friday Link-up.  Head over and take a look!

Aloha Friday: Weekend Events, January 15-17, 2011

It's Aloha Friday and the sun is shining.  Oh, and the weekend ahead of us is a 3-day weekend for many.  Makes me happy!

There are lots of fun events to choose from on island this weekend: family Sunday at the Honolulu Academy of Arts, a parade in Waikiki on MLK Day, a New Year celebration with traditional mochi pounding and a couple of events at the zoo.  All the details are on the Weekend Events page so check it out.  Lots of fun for children and adults alike.

Happy weekend to you!

Starbucks on a Rainy Day

We've sure had a lot of rainy weather so far this winter.  I like a nice rainy day now and then, especially if it falls on a day that I don't have to be out and about running a bunch of errands.  But when we have back to back rainy days the kids get a little stir-crazy and need to get out of the house.  Do your kids get that way?

On one such rainy day we decided to head to Starbucks as a family.  Actually it started as a trip to Jamba Juice for our son to spend a gift card he'd gotten from a classmate that was burning a hole in his pocket.  But Starbucks was next door and, long story short, we all decided a hot drink would be just the thing on a cold (for Hawaii) and rainy day.

Starbucks has become more of a date night stop for us and I don't think the kids had ever been to one except maybe as a bathroom stop.  We got each of them a children's size hot chocolate.  They loved that there was whipped cream on top and they enjoyed sipping from the same kind of cups we had.  It was a simple little outing but it got us out of the house on a rainy day and everyone had a good time.