Day 2 in Hawaii -- To Each His Own


Well, today the Hustons/O'Briens decided to split up a little so that everyone could get a chance to do what they love to do most. For my dad, that meant 18 holes of golf at the Mauna Lani Resort golf course. For Danny, that meant the Keiki Aloha Day Camp at the Fairmont Orchid Hotel. For mom and me, pedicures and shopping, of course. But first, I had to go on my long run. I decided to go about 6 miles today and was so excited to get out there and explore a little bit. I only have two regrets for this run -- 1) I couldn't bring my camera, and 2) I should have started earlier in the day when it was cooler. The first 4 miles were through these trails on the Mauna Lani Resort that wound through some of the most beautiful scenery I have ever laid eyes on. Trails through this forest-like area of large palm trees surrounding mini-lakes eventually led me to the ocean and back again. It was one of those very rare runs where you almost forget that you are running! I finally landed at the golf club and started to head out on some of the main roads. Lava fields to my left, beautiful lush greens to my right. By now it was almost 11 am. I really enjoyed the scenery here as well but the heat started to kick in. I kept thinking about my Ironman Triathlete heroes who run and bike these same 'hallowed' pavements for a whopping 140 miles every year in October. I only had to run that last 2 miles in this heat and I was really ready to get home! Still, it was one of my favorite runs ever!! I will be taking Danny back to the palm tree forest tomorrow for some pictures to post!



Mom and I enjoyed a wonderful lunch at Tommy Bahamas before we shopped.

Meanwhile, Danny was busy at camp with his camp counselor and new best friend, Ashley. They got to hunt for crabs, snorkel, make a craft with a coconut shell, and catch frogs. Heaven for Danny! His only regret about the camp was that his counselor was not allowed to buy him a coconut smoothie at the juice bar. Now that he is over the coconut smoothie issue, he is looking forward to going back on Thursday for more adventures.

Some shots of us before we went to dinner.


My handsome boy!!


Our waiter, Fred, at Brown's Beach House was phenomenal! Turns out he lived in Dallas less than a mile from where my parents live now! How random is that? He took a bunch of pictures for us including this one.

This was my last (and favorite) picture of the night! While eating outside, the sky turned this gorgeous array of color and I got up to see if I could capture it. Danny brought his camera along as well to get this shot and was extremely disappointed when his Kodak EasyShare wouldn't produce the same image.

Tomorrow we are off on a Hummer Safari Tour. Let's hope I make it back in one piece!