THE DUNHAM'S est 1993

Waimea Jump Rock

The Waimea Jump Rock....

Mike and Paige waiting to climb the jump rock

Mike looked at the rock and asked Paige if she wanted to go jump off of it...her response...an ENTHUSIASTIC....YES!!!!!! This is a popular thing to do on Waimea. People jump all day long. One time we looked up and a bride and groom were jumping off!! At first we thought they were getting married up there and then taking the plunge...but when they kept jumping again and again we learned it was actually a photo shoot.

Alex and Steff maneuvering up the rock..

All are up....

There goes Alex...always a brave one...

He jumped multiple times!!

There goes Steff!!

Trying to get jumping pictures is a lot like getting surfing pictures! You have to wait a long time to capture the action! Paige was pretty nervous and did a lot of decision making up on that rock. I bent down to scratch my leg and she jumped!!! Just my luck! Luckily Kara was right beside me and snapped this picture...which was so great (thank you)!!

Because this is all I got...the entry!

Bruce saw the kids jumping and decided that he needed to jump too..because his nieces and nephew were jumping..then he said, 'Im not really crazy about heights!!' LOL...well he went anyway...

One of the scary things about jumping is the huge waves in this area. You time it to hit a wave..but they are big!

Proud smiles..but she wasnt interested in doing it again!

Turtle Bay North Shore

Turtle Bay Resort

This is the 2nd year we have stayed here and we looked forward to our return! We love the location on the North shore.

The pool is so fun for the kids and there is surfing right off the point, so fun for all! However, this year the islands were experiencing some major winds due to a system to the north of the islands and upon arriving at turtle bay we felt like we were in a tropical storm! Just soo windy! So most days we left the resort for sunnier beaches. It was amazing that we could drive just 5 minutes and be out of the crazy wind!

Every chance this boy got..he was running! I think he has been inside for 6 months he is ready to RUN! He is getting so fast and he cracks us up when he takes off! I couldn't get him to hold still for a picture...so all the pictures of him are pretty much on the run!

Even tho it was windy during our stay...we enjoyed being back at turtle bay! The buffet was amazing just like last year! The kids loved going where ever they wanted and visiting other 'cabins' (rooms). It is a great resort..just wish it wasnt so windy. As we were packing up, the wind had subsided a bit so the kids hit the pool until we left. They can swim and swim and swim!

The Bonzai PIPELINE!!

Most people know that the North Shore of Oahu is famous for many surf competitions held in the winter months due to the large waves! Most of the competitions are held in the pipeline found at Ehukai Beach Park.

Dont be fooled...this is not what the pipeline looked like while we were there. This picture is actually from 2004. But this is what the pipeline CAN look like during the winter surfing season! Crazy!

While we were there...they were awaiting large enough waves to hold the Women's Pro competition...but they were not big enough the day we were there..so it was postponed. So we could have been watching a surf competition like the one shown above....but we were not.

This above picture is taken the day we were there. Definately large rollers coming in..just not good enough for the pros...so the amateurs decided to try them out.

Most of us just played and watched the waves (and ate Oreos) we did enjoy watching the boys trying to surf the pipeline...but rather than watching great rides....we watched some great wipeouts!! It was a good attempt tho! Some of us played in the white foam of the large waves...but we had to hold on tight to the kids...even the foam held some power!

Paige decided to bury her face in the sand...I guess she needed some exfoliation. Crazy girl!

Claire enjoying watching the waves.

We had a few fun hot hot hours in the sun before some dark clouds rolled in and we decided to pack up and head to the south side of the island for our remaining days! Kahala..here we come!

The Kahala (South East Side of Oahu)

Our next and final stop was the Kahala hotel on the sunny south east side of the island. Within a quick driving distance of Waikiki but away from the hustle and bustle..it was a perfect location!

After spending hours at the beach, we drove to the Kahala with our cars jammed with people, luggage, beach stuff and SAND! When Peter and Amy drove up first...the bell men asked them what they were doing there!! LOL! Just checking in they said! It was quite the entrance by the Dunham family! They did greet us with Lei's and fresh face towels to freshen up..what a greeting! The kids wanted to go straight to the pool...we had been a little pool deprived. We LOVED the pool there..it was nice and warm! There was a kiddie pool and hot pool as well...so it was perfect for all ages! Our first trip to the pool we found Emeril laying around playing a game of yahtzee! He was there doing some cooking demonstrations and filming a live show. We learned that George Clooney and Elton John had just checked out...so sad to have missed George! So thus began the star watching! The hall of fame in this hotel is loaded with stars who have spent the night including every US President since it opened in the 60's!

There was a reef a distance off shore that blocked the big waves...so once again we found ourselves on a very child friendly beach!

They even had a large dolphin area with 5 cute dolphins that you could swim with! Tho we didnt jump at the price to swim with the dolphins, we sure enjoyed just watching them every day. James would watch them for hours. There were also fish, turtles and stingrays to watch too.

The kids all dressed up for dinner..with their new Lei's!

Fun in the Pool...Finally!

James loved the pool and would always ask to go swimming!

Hallie and Paige were little fish!

The kids would run from the pool to the beach...back and forth all day long!

So fun!

Every day they would bring around smoothie samples around the pool! Our favorite was Strawberry Coconut! Oh it was good! I brought home coconut syrup to try and make it! Delicious!!

More pool fun...if you look closely you will see Sayad (Navreen) from Lost. He would play with his son in the pool for hours. Apparently the stars come here because no one bothers them...so we never bothered..but secretly tried to get pictures.