From Karin:
Here are some things I'm still getting used to:
1. Life in Hawaii without my parents. They left last night after spending our first two weeks here with us. The house is quieter, there was no coffee waiting for me this morning and I know we won't eat as well for the next 7 weeks. It was so wonderful having them here, but after spoiling all of us for 2 weeks, it's time for them to get back to the Nantucket crew. The only plus side....their departure necessitated a stop for ice cream on the way home. Nothing drives away a 3 year old's tears like a peach gelato. More on this delicacy later...
2. Living with critters. There are teeny, tiny black ants everywhere (and the countertops are black...ignorance is bliss?) and the cockroaches are the size of my thumb and can fly! Thankfully, I've only seen 3 so far (divebombed by 1) and they don't want to be seen anymore than I want to see them. We also have geckos everywhere. At night, they cover the underside of the lanai roof, enjoying the heat that remains from the day. It's easy to quickly count 20 or so. By no means are they exclusively an outside critter. One almost jumped into the salad bowl the other night and another one surprised me from inside the pages of a magazine as I removed it from the book shelf. If I discover that they also like to hide under toilet seats, I might have to come home.
3. Microscopic bikinis. Apparently it's socially acceptable, perhaps even encouraged, to display your butt crack on the beaches here. Every single woman I have seen so far, despite body shape, age or amount of jiggly parts, has been in a tiny bikini. I kid you not...both days we were at the beach, my mom and I were the ONLY women wearing one-piece bathing suits. In fact, on day 2, there were men wearing smaller suits than me. In some ways, it's wonderful as the women here seem to have a "take me as I am" kind of attitude about their bodies, but it still takes some getting used to.
4. Boobs. The same rules from #3 also seem to apply to going topless on the beaches. Again, something I don't see a lot of on Nantucket, so I'm adjusting. I will say that if I could get on board with this one it would mke nursing Carter at the beach a whole lot easier. I'll keep you posted.
5. The frequent smell of maijuana. So far, we have only experienced this at the beach, but it is rampant. Fortunately, my dad reassures me that it's purely for medicinal purposes. There must be a lot of sick surfers and hippies on Maui. That's so sad. At least Carter naps well at the beach. (See photo from previous post).
6. Gas is $4.89 per gallon...and we're driving a minivan. Ouch.
Here are some things I could EASILY get used to:
1. The outdoor shower. There is nothing better after a day at the beach than showering outside where the only thing providing privacy is a grove of banana palms.
2. My walk-in closet. It has a full length mirror and it's just large enough for me to use it as a dressing room. Coupled with the king sized bed, this makes for one kick-ass bedroom.
3. Family naps. Today it worked out perfectly. We exhausted Davis by taking him to the annual Keiki (kid) Fest in Kahului and by the time we got home, Carter was dozing in his car seat. With both boys sleeping, I read until I fell asleep and Peter did the same. Yes, Peter is reading actual books. By choice. For fun. (Of course, his 3 most recent choices are about the science of waves, Einstein and basketball, but at least he's reading.) He seems oblivious to the world of fiction. Endearing or annoying? You decide.
4. Ono Gelato. A local place in the town of Paia, this is where we stopped last night to drown our sorrows, post airport drop off. Ono means "delicious" in Hawaiian and they got the name right. They make small batches and rotate the flavors, so each visit is different. They also have cool names like Sandy Beach, Seamist and SPAM. This one made me nervous, knowing how popular the canned meat is here on HI. Can you get THAT creative with gelato? Fortunately, they're just being clever....Strawberry Passion fruit Apple Mango. I went with After Eight (dark chocolate with bits of chocolate mint candy) and Peter paired chocolate with coconut. I can't wait to go back and find myself spending more time than I should thinking about my next choice. So many flavors, so little....actually, who am I kidding? We've got the time to try them all. Add that to my list of goals.
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