!i! We Are Two Years Old !i!

Our 2 year anniversary fell on a Sunday this year. After church, we decided to go look at the changing leaves up the canyon. We seem to miss it every year! We drove up Big Cottonwood Canyon and the leaves were starting to change brilliantly!
We stopped at the trail head to Donut Falls and walked around up there. It was so beautiful and peaceful ! We came pretty close to a Mule Deer who would look straight at us, then eat some food, then watch us, then eat some food. This continued for a good five minutes before some other hikers scared it off.
I was even brave and got close enough to take a picture of these flowers that were SWARMING with bees!
We ate a little picnic and then walked around Silver Lake. The mosquitoes didn't bother us this time of year which was refreshing.
Due to the events of the day before, we decided we were going to celebrate our anniversary the following weekend with a sort of staycation. Our anniversary really put the accident into perspective for me. I am so grateful for my husband and so very blessed that he wasn't hurt. I realized what is important is the ones you love...not a means of transportation. I knew that whatever we needed to do from here, we could go on together.

!i! Not Another Crash !i!

On the eve of our 2 yr anniversary, while at work, I got a text from A.J. saying "My car is totaled again." First of all...what?! We had just been through this 9 months ago!! We had just bought A.J.'s car 6 months ago! Now here we are in the same situation again!

I called A.J. and he rejected it 2 times before he finally picked it up. Just a heads up, wives don't like it when their husband texts them that they were in a car accident and then don't answer the phone when they call...because they're GONNA call. Granted, he was filing an accident report with the police, but at least tell me that you are okay!!

I left work immediately and found A.J. at the scene of the accident. He had a few cuts and had been showered with glass. However, his car was in worse shape. The entire side looked like a crumpled piece of metal.
The accident wasn't A.J.'s fault so right now, the other insurance is paying for our rental car. Turns out the car wasn't quite totaled although the damage is close to what we paid for it. It is currently being mended at a body shop.

2011 has not been a very kind year to A.J. in the accident department. Even though we have to go through the hassle of shuffling rental cars and waiting for the car to be fixed, I am grateful that A.J. was okay and that I still have a husband today! ...We just have lousy luck!

After the car fiasco, we had Lokey family pictures. We were both emotionally drained. And A.J. had a little cut on his lip for the pictures. But, whenever we see those pictures from now on, we will be reminded of what an intense day we had.
So for now, he drives around a little red Hyundai. If you see him, please don't hit him. We've had just about enough.

!i! Who Says You Have to Be In Hawaii for a Beautiful Sunset? !i!

Who says you have to be Hawaii to enjoy a beautiful sunset? I snapped this photo at a gas station in South Jordan! There is beauty and serenity out there...you just have to watch for it.

!i! Goodbye Howie !i!

Our last day in Hawaii was bittersweet. We wanted to see as much as we could, but we didn't want to board the plane salty and sandy. We woke up very early to watch the sunrise. I think our alarms went off at 4:30 a.m. We drove over to the Makapuu lighthouse and sleepily waited for the sun to rise. It was definitely worth waking up early because we got to see THIS:After watching the sunrise, and getting a much needed Diet Coke, we packed up our luggage, checked out of our hotel, and headed to Manoa Falls. Manoa Falls is a hike through the rain forest that ends at a 100 ft waterfall.
The hike itself only took about 45 minutes and because it was still early, there weren't very many hikers on the trail. It was very slippery and muddy at parts and A.J. and I were hiking in our flip flops. We were wishing we had better shoes because our feet and legs were speckled with mud by the time we got back to the car.
We were pretty lucky on the way up to the waterfall, but by the time we were halfway back, the mosquitoes awoke and began FEASTING! We were grateful we started the hike when we did.
After our hike, we drove around the island one last time and stopped at our favorite places. Then it was time to get to the airport. Our trip home was a nightmare and it was just beginning. However, only in the Hawaiian airport would you see this:

We randomly had a layover in Kona, Hawaii so we flew Hawaiian airlines over to the big island of Hawaii. This was actually an awesome experience because we got to fly over the entire island chain of Hawaii. A.J. and I looked out the window trying to guess which islands were which and longing to spend time on each of them!
We arrived at the Kona airport. This airport is unlike any airport I have ever seen. It's entirely outdoors. We end up waiting under a little pavilion to board our flight.
A.J. and I weren't very hungry in the airport in Oahu so we thought since we had some time to kill, we would eat in Kona. Unfortunately, we didn't realize that since this airport is so small, after you get off a flight, you have to go through the entire check in process and go through security all over again so we didn't have any time to eat. Also, United Airlines doesn't give you a crumb of food on its flights unless you want to buy a PB&J sandwich for 8 bucks! We were in for a rough flight. On the plus side, this was our view as we waited to board our flight.
Finally it was time to board. I've never gotten on a plane where I actually walked onto the tarmac and climb stairs that lead up to the airplane door. It felt very authentic!
And with that, we were off on our long flight home...to Denver...then back to SLC. My mom called our itinerary the "Fruit Fly Special" hopping from one piece of fruit to the next.

A.J. and I had such a fun time in Hawaii. Although, if we go back, we may try to explore other islands. I think we've pretty much got this one covered!

!i! Day 5 in Hawaii !i!

Unfortunately, our vacation was coming to an end. This was our last full day in Hawaii and we wanted to make the most of it. We woke up early to get our daily dose of sugar: the malasadas. We enjoyed every single sugary bite!

After our healthy breakfast, we decided to get some last minute snorkeling in. Snorkeling ended up being our favorite part of our vacation! We went back to Shark's Cove and this time, we discovered the actual Shark's Cove. Turns out we have only been snorkeling in the tide pools. Shark's Cove has huge fish, bright coral, but way too many people...and there was no protection from sharks. Keeping my anxiety at bay, we explored together and ended up having a lot of fun.After snorkeling Shark's Cove, we headed over the the town of Kahuku. If you ever go to Hawaii, you have to eat at the Kahuku Grill. They have the best food on the island! The inside is a giant mural of Kahuku and Laie. It is way awesome!
After lunch, we went as far north as we could go. We stopped at a rather rocky beach where the road ended. This was an awesome beach because we were practically the only people here! On the way, we passed people wind surfing and even kite surfing! We sat on a log and watched them.Then we just had to visit the turtles one last time. Finally, there was one out basking in the sun. During our entire trip, none of the sea turtles had been out on the sand. They were mostly in the water and on the rocks eating the sea weed.

Meet Brutus. He was the first documented sea turtle on this beach a few years ago. He looks so content!
By the time we arrived, this guy had been sleeping on the beach for five hours! Every now and then, he'd open his eyes and look around, then slowly close them and drift back off to sleep. I wouldn't mind taking a nap on the beach...but I'm afraid if I did, my skin would look like that!
Finally, it was time to head back to Sunset Beach to watch the sun set for the last time. It was bittersweet. But while we waited, I decided I wanted to bury A.J. He was a good sport...even helping me dig the hole. While digging, we uncovered this strange looking guy who scurried sideways into the waves.
As unnerving as it was to uncover a crazy looking crab, A.J. still agreed to climb in the hole and let me bury him with sand. On one occasion he yelled that there was a crab crawling on him. Sure enough, there it was on his shoulder trying to bury itself further...a crab the size of a dime.
And finally, my creation was complete:
There was a 3 yr old boy who walked past us and could not stop laughing. As he passed, he turned around and walked backwards giggling the entire time. Like I said...A.J. was a good sport.

After turning my husband into a whale, I decided I wanted to build a sandcastle and with A.J.'s help, it was protected from the waves.
I finished my castle just as the sun was setting. We watched the bright colors of the sky and the waves crashing onto the shore and soaked up every moment of it. This was the last sunset we would experience in Hawaii and we knew that real life was waiting for us when we got home. But for now, we could snuggle close together listening to the sounds of the ocean and feeling the damp ocean breeze across our faces and memorize every last moment in paradise.
Fittingly, on our last day in Hawaii, my flip flops that I have owned since I was twelve...that I wore every day in Hawaii for three consecutive trips...snapped.
We came back to the hotel and went to bed. We had a long day ahead of us.