Trip to Kauai

Aloha!  Just got back from a vacation to Kauai.  I figured I wouldn’t mention that I was going before I went- no sense in advertising that my house is empty, y’know?  LOL

I did visit Kapaia Stitchery, the local quilt store, plus I purchased 2 new books on Hawaiian Quilting.  I was inspired to design my own Hawaiian Quilt design:

We stayed in the same Kuhio Shores condo we did on our last visit.  I initially found this rental at Vacation Rental By Owner (vrbo.com) owned by Mike Galvin and we love staying in #415.  The room is on the 4th floor, overlooking the waves, sunrise, sunset,  surfers, and Hawaiian green sea turtles (honu).  Click below to see how close to the waves we were in this video by Mike. (Note: If you dislike Hawaiian music, be sure to mute your computer):

Speaking of honu, one of my trip highlights was snorkeling off the shores seen in the above video and running into a very large green sea turtle.  I am talking about a full adult turtle about 5 feet tall!  It swam right next to me, so I stayed still so I wouldn’t scare it off.   I also saw many slipper lobsters, sea cucumbers, octopus, moray eel, and so many colorful reef fish to name!

Joe was near this same area the day before and had to cut his snorkel time because a 6 foot Mako shark had been spotted by a spear fisherman.  Swimming with turtles- great!  Swimming with a Mako shark- that might ruin your day!

Of course, I visited Glass Beach at low tide, satisfying my need to hunt for sea glass.  Joe was patient while I climbed on the rocks, hunting in all the nooks and crannies.  I did find an unusual glass pipe section that looks very old and interesting.  I find I am a beach comber at heart.

Check out what the sand looks like close up:

Love vacations…. but it is great to be home again!  Hugs, Carla

Beachcombing and WIP

I promised Karen to share some of my beachcombing finds.  I find it to be very relaxing to walk along the beach and search out anything of interest.  Here are some groups I found during my recent trip to Kauai:

Beach Glass…. I organized them into light and dark beach glass:

and a close up:

and light beach glass:

close up:

I also found some lovely beach pottery that had been transformed by the ocean:

and a close up image:

Then, on a black sand beach on the south side of the island, I discovered these lovely kukui nuts just waiting to be picked up:

I love to also collect shells:

and yet another close up:

some sand from Glass Beach for my collection:

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WIP:  Been working on some jewelry for my metal arts class, quilting Lori’s quilt for her daughter Cara, and also working on yet another freeform crochet scarf for myself.  I bought most of the yarn in a little yarn shop in Hanalei, so I’m making it to remind me of the island:

Kauaii Planning

You all must think I’m 20 with all your great suggestions!! Hmmm…. is the body up for surfing?? Ziplining? Dang, it is a good thing I’ve been exercising each day, I’ll need to to prepare for my vacation!

We are going to do the touristy helo ride, too. Of course, snorkeling and visit to Glass Beach are a daily must!! Keep those suggestions coming! Will try most anything once!

Dad Update: He gave us another post surgical scare last night. He remains in the ICU as I write this. Right now he is stable and if he improves, he might even get to go home tomorrow.

Aloha! Carla

Planning a Trip to Kauai

I’ve been busy the last few days organizing a vacation trip to Kauai for Joe and I. We can’t wait and I’m already investigating what to do, places to go and eat, where to find sea glass, and of course, the best places to snorkel:

If anyone has any suggestions with regards to things to do, places to eat or see, please leave me a comment. We will be staying on an oceanfront condo on the south side of the Island. Here is our view:

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My Dad

My dad had another surgery yesterday, and currently is in ICU. This time, the surgery to fix his blocked carotid artery went well. A few month ago, he had his first side done (both were 99% blocked) and almost died post surgery. They did an emergency operation to save his life then. Anyhow, I was a basket case worrying about how this one would go. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers as he recovers.

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I am working on the inchie project that I am organizing. I have started making special inchie holders to send back to all the participants. More later on this one……. By the way, if you are reading this and wonder what an “inchie” is, click on my tutorial icon on the right hand sidebar and you will find a free tutorial to explain things.

Enjoy your day! Carla

Hello from Missouri

Our flights went well, I am pleased to have won my “Packing Light” challenge!!  This is proof positive that a woman can do anything if she puts her mind to it. 🙂

Unfortunately, my dad is still having medical issues related to his last surgery.  He had to go back to the hospital (3rd or 4th time since his discharge) the day Joe and I flew in, and yesterday needed to have some CT scans and other tests.

To help my father out, my older brother came over, and the 3 of us started tackling the yardwork.  My dad has a HUGE beautiful yard, I’ll take some pictures and show you later on.  His big beautiful house is set on 10 acres, fully landscaped, and so I spent a few hours just picking up limbs and branches from their last storm, then while the two guys mowed, I stayed busy weed whacking.  Today, it will take me a few more hours, but I think I will finish.  

 I may have mentioned that my engineer husband can fix anything.  I call him the King of Home Appliance and Auto Repair, the man is a genius.  He is busy helping my dad by fixing all the odd jobs around the house.  My dad has this very cool indoor swimming pool (again, watch for pictures later) with a Tiki Bar, so hopefully Joe will fix the sensor so we can swim each day.

Admittedly, it is good that we can help my dad out, especially since he is under the weather still.  Having an ailing parent when you live far away can be challenging.

My only complaint about Missouri are the ticks and chiggers.  Even though I covered myself with enough DEET to deter anything that crawls, I still managed to attract some chiggers.

I brought some beading work with me, so I hope to spend some time creating some lovely bead art during my visit.

Back to weed trimming….   Hugs, Carla