Aloha!

Aloha from the beautiful state of Hawaii! So much has happened since our last blog. We did get to see Frank Lloyd Wright's home, and although JB and I were both suffering from a cold, we didn't let that deter us from hiking in the Grand Canyon. It was my first time, and it was incredible. I could easily have spent a week there, but our time didn't allow. From there, we headed to Temecula, California, to visit some friends and had a great time! What a beautiful area with absolutely perfect weather! From there, we headed up the coast to visit friends in Montecito, also a beautiful area. Our friends' house is located right on the beach, so I was able to go on morning jogs along the beach. We also went to the 91st birthday party of our friend's mother. That was a really neat time. Making it to 91 is something worth celebrating! After Montecito, we drove up to Fresno to visit family. We don't get to see them that often, so it was really nice to be able to visit. We were even able to take a day trip to Yosemite. Neither JB nor I had ever been to Yosemite, so it was such a treat for us both. We did so much hiking and were exhausted by the end of the day, but we got to see some really beautiful vistas--gushing waterfalls, giant rock walls, valleys filled with pine trees. We even saw some snow still!
Our next stop, of course, was Hawaii. My former roommate, Kate, is going to be traveling with us for the next couple weeks, so we met up with her at the airport. Lucky for us, her aunt and uncle live outside Honolulu, so we're staying with them for the week. We've had some great beach time so far, and JB and I did two dives yesterday working toward our scuba certification. We have two more dives today, and then we're certified. Yea!! The water is a beautiful turquoise, and we've seen lots of colorful fish, sea turtles, eels, and more. Today after our dives, Kate, JB, and I are heading up to the north shore to watch the sunset and see the huge waves. We're having a blast!