EATING FOR FREE!!!

BY: HEATHER

As you all probably know by now, I am OBSESSED with finances, budgeting, saving money, penny pinching, scrooging, whatever you want to call it! In fact, according to the high school career tests, I should pursue a degree in finance. I, however, am not a fan of math so I will stick to finance as a hobby. Since most of you also love free food, I thought I would do a post on how you can eat out for cheap or free! I don’t eat out very often, but I have found some tricks to make it free or super cheap. Share your ideas too because I love me some free food!

TOP 6 TRICKS FOR EATING OUT CHEAP OR FOR FREE!

11.       LOOK AT YOUR RECEIPT – Almost every fast food place (and some nicer places) will give you free food for filling out a quick survey. Subway – free cookie, Costa Vida – free chips and Queso, Chick-Fil-A – free regular chicken sandwich. These can add up to a lot of free food and don’t take a lot of time. Most are done online or over the phone and you just fill out a Likert-scale survey about your experience. (BONUS:  If you can get your co-workers to buy the food and then give you their receipt, it is absolutely free! Thanks Kimber and Grace J)

22.      REWARD CARDS – Much like the receipt, a lot of places have reward cards. Now, I realize you have to initially pay for items (like buy 10 get 1 free) but if it is somewhere you frequent anyway, you might as well get rewarded, right? I have had many free Jamba Juices in my day thanks to my buy 6 get the 7 free card. Subway, costa vida, café rio, jamba juice, (notice I eat on campus a lot??), sensuous sandwich, etc. all have reward cards. Bonus tip: sometimes you can get even more bonus points by doing certain things. For example, Subway recently gave me 30 bonus points (that is the equivalent of a six in sub!) just to register my reward card online.

33. SPEAKING OF CAMPUS – For those of you who still work here, you are lucky! There is always free food options around campus. Waffle Monday, Flippin Friday, free pizza, club rush, Wolverine Wednesday etc. Almost every option is a “no strings attached” come and eat options which is the BEST!

4. THE INTERNET IS YOUR FRIEND – If you are going out to eat anywhere, google the restaurants coupons! You can almost always find a coupon online for most “Big Chain” restaurants.  Pizza Factory almost always has free bread twists coupons, you can usually find a free chips and salsa at Chili’s, etc.

55.   HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!! – Sign up for any and every birthday club you can! Some are better than others, but almost always there is a free element. Free meal at Tucanos (with the purchase of another meal), free ice cream at Baskin Robins (actually free!), Free burger at Red Robin, etc. You can even spread these out throughout the year by entering different birth dates (is that dishonest? Maybe…don’t quote me on that. I may be having some inner conflict with it) 

6.       SURVEY WEBSITES – Thank you Evelyn for cluing me in on these! So, you have to do a little work for the free food (which isn’t that hard; giving your opinion about stuff? Easy enough for me!) but it is totally worth it. I do both mysurvey.com and opinion outpost. After you have earned enough points, you can trade them in for gift cards to your favorite restaurants! (Opinion outpost actually gives you the option for paypal or amazon gift cards, but you can buy food there as well! MySurvey also gives you options for DVDs, other prizes, etc. but I almost always do the food gift cards! In fact, that is what I have given out as birthday gifts, babysitter presents, etc. and have not had to spend a dime! Even better) If you are interested, sign up through me or Evelyn so we can get the bonus points! J EXTRA BONUS: Some of the surveys require you to test products, which they send to you for FREE! I have done toilet paper, baby wipes, diapers, paper towels, and shampoo surveys. Got all of these things for free AND earned points for trying them out. WIN/WIN/WIN (As Michael Scott would say!)

Anyway, that is my 2 cents worth. I love free food and I love saving money so any tips you have on either subject, I’d love to hear from you!

All Good Things Must Come to an End

Even maternity leave... Bummer. At least it is just part time for now because this little stinker will change too fast! PS I made his blessing outfit... One of the few planned projects that I actually finished while on leave!




And I want to be the one that this one drives crazy all day even if it is exhausting!

True Love

This is what true love is made of...

Potty Training....for real!

WARNING: This is going to be a sappy Mom post...and it's going to get real. Viewers beware!

***Just realized I never mentioned in here that this is Heather posting :)***

So, I'm sure you have heard of books or heard friends and family tell you how they have potty trained their children in 1 week...3 days...24 hours! I do not doubt that this could be true, however, this is not the case in my situation. I knew going into this it would probably take a little bit more time since we are dealing with a speech delay, however, no one told me how incredibly hard this would be!

I'm not exaggerating when I say this is one of the hardest things I have done in my life (in fact those words came out of my mouth to my husband "This is the hardest thing I have ever done!" I get the look of "really? REALLY?" Um...yes...REALLY!) I never thought I would cry, pray for, celebrate, clean up SO much urine/feces in all my life...but I did all of those things. The first 2 days were terrible and I really wanted to quit, but we stuck it out. We are now going on week 4 and there is still a learning curve, but I think he is getting it. He now likes to tease me and say "go potty" because he gets such a good reaction out of me - "You need to go potty?! Ok, let's go!" and then he says "NO!" but one time he told me "go potty" and didn't  respond "NO!" so I took him and he went! Oh, the miracles! (See, my life revolves around that porcelain throne!)

What I have learned:

1. I could sing you a bunch of songs about going potty because little Owie bears new favorite video is Potty time (from the makers of signing time).
2. He is almost completely potty trained with me because when I am with him, I won't let him out of my sight until he has gone potty. Then, I give him an hour break and start following him around the house again.
3. Going out in public the first time in underwear was terrifying, but we made it through!
4. I never thought I was the kind of person that could deal with/clean up someone else's bodily fluids, but apparently when you love someone, it isn't so bad. 

The biggest thing I have learned:

EVERY CHILD IS DIFFERENT.  Ok.. her comes the sappy mommy part. the biggest lesson I have learned from having a child with developmental delays is this: Developmental delays does not mean limits.. it just means a different time table. I don't know if my sweet little boy will get this potty training thing in 2 days or 2 years, but I know he will eventually get it. He has taught me so much patience, and believe me, I am anything but patient! This has been a great life lesson for me because I always want everything to work out in my own way and in my own time table, but that is not always the case.

Being a Mom is hard. Being a Mom of a special needs child is hard. Being a Mom of any child is hard. Being a working Mom is hard. Being a stay at home Mom is hard. Not being a Mom when you want to be is hard.

I just want you all to know that I think you are all awesome! I have had the privledge of working with some of the strongest, smartest, most empowering women I have ever met and I am so grateful for that. Thank you for sharing in this journey with me and listening to all my stories about my life!

And so we go on...Stay tuned because one day I will post that potty training is complete and I won't have to think about the potty again... Until the next kid is ready! haha. Potty training = good birth control :)

This is Freakishly Accurate of Us...

In honor of Waffle Monday and Flipping Friday...

Miss you all!

-Kada

My Grand (Abrupt) Exit from Graduation

Well I guess this is really happening! For those who don't know, my last day in Graduation was Friday! The charter school I was interviewing with back in March had a teacher back out a week before their classes started. 

Wednesday 4:00pm: the longest final interview of my life

Thursday 6:00pm: the principal called to offer me the position 

Thursday 10:45pm: I sent my letter of resignation to Margaret and Stacy

Friday: I gave Alex a crash course on reissued diplomas and tried to enjoy my last bittersweet moments on campus!

So Saturday morning I tried to throw my classroom together and get my first weeks lesson plans prepared! Is this for real? I still can't decide.

I am teaching two periods of 9th grade composition, two periods of 9th grade literature, one period of 8th grade composition, and one period of student success (which is basically a study period ). 

I am still working on beautifying my room! The last teacher didn't leave much to work with, but I have ordered a few things so far. I can promise the first week will be crazy overwhelming, but hopefully I can hit the ground running and keep up!

I already miss the people in Graduation so please update the blog and keep having the girl's night dinners!!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Rodeback

English Teacher Extroidinaire  

THE Top 10

 My assignment for the day...Check! (special shout out to THE Gatekeeper and the new owner of "THAT chair")

THE Top 10 Things About Marriage That No One Told Me

1. With marriage comes the  obligation to not hit your husband in the head while you are sleeping at night (Nick’s been considering a helmet as his next purchase).

2. The ammount of chick flicks you watch decrease drastically- Should this have been common sense to me? Most likely! Still was a hard hit and the withdrawals aren’t getting easier. On the other hand it is so much fun stocking up your movie collection. Take the hunt for Bourne Legacy for example. This magnificent movie came out while Nick was on his mish so obvs he needed to see it. Good movie, full of action. You’d think it’d be at your local Wally World right? Wrong! Two Wally World trips…..nada. The one. The only. The Best Buy!.....failure. On our last attempt, energy lagging, we find it! Where you ask? TARGET! Chalk one up for the red team!

3.  Making your husband happy means you can’t just feed yourself chocolate and nut bars anymore. I actually have to think of somewhat healthy meal ideas and well…. It ain’t easy!

4.  That your husband could possibly become your dad’s fave. That’s right. We went to Bear Lake last weekend and what does Nick get when we arrive home? Well a happy thank you text from my dad telling him what a great time he had with him! So what do I do? Well I wait for the same text a course! Does it come? No. No it doesn’t. Does my dad still love me? Yesh. Does he just love to text my hubby now? Yes yes and yes. It’s actually pretty cute :) 

5. How much fun it is being able to dress your husband however you want! It’s like having your own life size Ken doll! And how happy he is that you bought him something when really it was my lil treat because I got to go shopping!

6. Target shopping trips could possibly be a lone deal. Who woulda thought not all men like to shop at Target? That’s okay I Target on.

7.  That your husband could have an opinion on the Bath and Body Works scent you choose to have in your apartment. And all this time I thought men paid no attention.

8.  How much fun it is trying to get your hubby to like the same food you like…..like popcorn for instance! I have been going to drastic measures to make this happen. Like….eating popcorn every night….and everytime it’s raining….. or whenever we go to a movie…..and any other time I feel it is necessary.

9. Okay this next one’s a little hard to hear so if any of you are havin a rough day you may want to skip this thought and continue on to numero ten. I continue……That your hubby may not like Disneyland (GASP)! But don’t worry ladies! I have not given up hope! One day he will like that place. If it’s the last thing I do!

10. How much you fall more and more in love with your hubby erday! Seriously I thought I loved him before. With each day I gain more and more apreciation for the wonderful man I married and for the joy he brings to my life.

Anyways! Life is good! Love ya gals!

-         -  the Gski

Dylan's Story

Dylan Gehrig Swenson's Story

I am a little slow at posting this, but I am still getting used to life with two kids (and I had no idea how to post on a blog so I had to ask Kada!). A few days before Dylan was born Colby and I still didn't have a name. We finally decided to each list our top 5 names and compare our lists. We both had Dylan because we had previously mentioned it so we went with that. His middle name is from the baseball player Lou Gehrig (also where the disease came from but I don't really like to think about that). 

On July 22nd I went to the doctor for my appointment and  I was at a 4 almost 5. I was asked why I hadn't been induced. I said I would rather it happen on its own but if nothing had happened early the following week we would she file something. I went home and had more consistent contractions all night but they were really mild. At about midnight I had a bad contraction when I got up to go to the bathroom, and somewhat fell back to sleep for another half hour. At 12:30 I had another contraction and decided to wake Colby up to give him a warning. If I was really going to keep having contractions I wanted to take Jack to Colby's parents. I didn't want to be dropping him off at 3 in the morning or something. After being awake for about 10 minutes I found the contractions were about 3 minutes apart, so Colby said we were just going to the hospital then instead of waiting. He tried calling his family to give them a heads up that we were bringing Jack by and nobody would answer. He finally got ahold of his sister and when he told her we were dropping Jack off and heading to the hospital she asked why. Colby was so annoyed with her.

We checked into the hospital about 1:40 AM, and they said I was only at a 5. I was thinking at that point I would get an epidural because it seemed it would take a while. Within 10 minutes I was almost at an 8, so they called the doctor in and started to get everything set up. They asked one last time if I wanted an epidural but said it probably wouldn't kick in before the baby came. The doctor also said she wouldn't break my water until she was dressed and ready to catch him because it would happen that fast. She got ready, I was at a 10, pushed for 5 minutes and he was here at 2:35 AM. Very painful and terrifying, but I am glad it was fast and I didn't wait for the epidural. She said Dylan got here before they could process my paperwork! We had about a half hour alone then my parents showed up and then no more visitors until that afternoon (still didn't get much sleep though). We left the hospital on Pioneer Day and were greeted by parade crowds lining the streets when we got to Spanish Fork. 

A few things I have learned/re-learned having two children:

*I only had to get pooped on twice in one day to re-learn how to change diapers fast. 

*Maybe be a little more discrete about getting milk for a baby when you have a 2 year old. 

*The delivery without and epidural was an amazing experience, but I didn't realize how bad it hurts afterwards when they press on your stomach and do all they have to do. 

*I have an amazing husband who I wouldn't trade for anything. 

*Jack and I would not have survived without a nearly finished basement because I hardly dare take two kids to the back yard. We are both a little stir crazy.

*I will never dare live far from a hospital while I am having children. 

*I am hopelessly addicted to Dr Pepper. 

A Few More Tidbits About Hawaii

1. You hardly hear "Aloha". Once I left the mainland (aka the contiguous part of the USA) , I thought I was saying goodbye to hello, and hello to aloha! But actually, I hardly hear people say "aloha" out here in Hawaii... In fact, the only people I've noticed consistently using "aloha" are tourist operations such as resorts and surf board rental companies. They do this as part of their customer service, because it is sort of what people want to hear they come to Hawaii. 

Turns out that "hello" isn't necessarily a direct translation of "aloha". The literal meaning of aloha is “the presence of breath” or “the breath of life.” According to my friend, to great someone with "aloha" means that you acknowledge that God has breathed life into you. The word "aloha" shouldn't be tossed around as casually as "hello" is. Next time someone greats you with "Aloha", be flattered!

2. Houses don't have air conditioning. No kidding. I haven't been in a single house or apartment that has air conditioning! This is Hawaii- constant summer temperatures year round, and they don't believe in air conditioning... You better get a fan or you're going to melt. Fans are like heroes out here. I often walk all the way down to the grocery store just so I can experience the air conditioning. Walking into a grocery store has never been so lovely!

3. Makeup-less. I always wore makeup during my first couple weeks in Hawaii. But I quickly learned how annoying that is since I'm constantly getting in the ocean and it gets in my eyes, or it's melting off from the humidity and sweat. I quickly noticed that the locals don't wear makeup. So, I decided to do as the locals do, and just go makeup free. To add to that, I have also adopted the Hawaii hair look... Which means it is up in a messy bun on my head most the time, or just air dried and free to do what it wants. 

This has been quite refreshing because it takes the pressure off to look good all the time, but also, i feel like it creates a different meaning of beauty. There is less pressure out here to fit a certain look. I actually feel beautiful with no makeup and a messy bun. In the past when I went out to socialize with guys, I would have felt slightly uncomfortable knowing that I didn't have mascara or anything. Out here, I feel confident without it.

4. Tropical Storms. Whhhhooooaaaaa. In terms of nature, this was the most intense thing I have ever been through in my life. I had a few days warning from some casual conversation with other people, "Oh, did you hear there's a storm coming in this weekend?" I imagined that it would be similar to the July thunderstorms we have in Utah. Well this was veeeeery different. It started around 9 PM, and I was fascinated by the lightening, when it flashed, for a moment you could see all the waves in the ocean. It was beautiful and fascinating. But then I went to bed and woke up at 1 AM to experience actually BEING IN the storm! Literally, the thunder and lighting was right above my house. When lightening flashed, it lit up my bedroom like it was mid day. It was so bright! And when it thundered, the whole house shook. I live on a peninsula, which means I had a front row seat to all this. I'm not sure if it was as intense further inland. The next day, the beautiful blue ocean was a murky brown from all the sand and dirt that was turned up from the storm. It was kind of cool, I'm glad I got to experience it. 

5. There are no natural predators in Hawaii. No snakes, bears, tigers, lions, etc. So, the animals here are happy animals! :) These are cows from Kualoa ranch (where Lost was filmed). The burgers in their restaurant wonderful! I call them happy cow burgers. haha :)

6. Deep Fried Pork Ear. I found this little gem the other day. I guess this is a thing that people eat...? haha

7. Acai Bowls. They are divine! And I hear they are even better in Brazil! Haha.  They are acai fruit mixed as a smoothie and layered on top with granola, warm honey, and other fruit like bananas, strawberries, blueberries,and toasted coconut. 

Hope you enjoyed this! Miss you all! ALOHA! :)


-Kada

Ida-Freaking-Mazing-Ho!!

 Oh my Ida-goodness, I've missed you guys.  I want to update you on all the good things that have happened in life since coming to my Ida-Home.

1.  I wear pants with no zippers EVERY SINGLE DAY.  Pretty much, it means that I don't wear pants.  I'm not ashamed, and I feel like it will be like this in heaven.

2.  I get to wake up in the SEVENS!!!! GAAAAH!!!!! I stay up past eleven without drooling too badly on myself either.  It's a whole new life.  I'm such a rebel rouser.

3.  It is beautiful up here.  But so windy.  That's why you have to wear pants with no zippers, because they will fall right down.  We have been here a month but know we are loving the 'small town' thing they got going.  So many mullets, though.  And also a lot of...crack.

4.  Our new house is.... interesting.  It's smaller but it's cute.  Here's my living/kitchen room..... And lucky for you guys, I decided to take my pants-less self out of the background.

5.  We have a neighbor who has a GOAT.  A GOAT@!!  And he sits on his lawn chair and yells!!!

6.  I'm not going to lie... the transition to full-time-stay-at-home-in-a-new-weird-place is rough.  Hard, scary, rough, but equally awesome.  It's hard to know how to space the time now.  Hard to know when to put on my pants.  And I talk to myself a lot.  Good thing myself thinks I am hilarious.

7.  Did I mention I love all the space?  This is the view from my front window.  See how farmy it is??  FARMY!!! With goats!!!!

8.  These things right here... right above this... they are my reason.  They're helping me with interior decorating all the time.  They even colored my toilets.  I need to make them some new friends, though, because I'm SO tired of always having to be 'Batman's Weird Mom'.

9.  They have a Midget Market.  That's the real name of the place.  I'm not sure if they sell real midgets yet or not.

10.  Last but not least... what you've all been waiting for.... here is my purple shag carpet.  It is real.  

The only bad thing about this is how I miss everyone more than Lindsay Lohan misses her virginity.  People up here are so nice, welcoming and friendly... but it's going to take some time to find people who will embrace me in all my White Mountain Dew drinking, Fruity eating, Donny Osmond loving glory.  Bless your beautiful heads, and please come visit me.


Heart.

=The Pantsless Wonder

THE Quadruple Wedding

I say "THE" because there is only one wedding like this in the history of mankind. I am sure everyone has seen the Today Show footage or heard the ZHT spotlight on their way to work, but I am bringing you the inside scoop right here on the blog.

Grace is the sweetest bride I know which is no surprise because she is also the sweetest person I know.

Speaking of sweet, my husband said the Italian sodas, creme brulee, and chocolate mousse were to die for! (I had to throw in a quick food review for all the office foodies!)

I would also give the venue, decor, and overall atmosphere 5 stars!

I had a smokin' hot date and a gorgeous view.

Also, the service was awesome. 

It was a beautiful wedding with four adorable couples!

Things That Surprised Me About Hawaii

Things That Surprised Me About Hawaii

1. Chickens. Wild chickens run free here. Like, lots of them. Walking to the grocery store? Oh. That's just a chicken in you path. Finding your car in the parking lot? Oh, there's a pack of roosters just roaming around like they have no place to go. Unfortunately, they really don't. Stray cats are also a thing, but there are not as nearly as many cats as there are chickens.

(Random rooster that was roaming the Dole Plantation walking area.)

2. No Updated Music. I can't recall one store or restaurant that played any music that was released after 2000. I've only noticed music from the 60's, 70's, and 80's playing in restaurants and grocery stores. Or Hawaiianish music, which is totally awesome because it just adds to the Hawaiian effect, but that's a different category. I have a friend out here that plays guitar, and when we get together to sing he never knows the songs or artists that I am talking about. He's never heard 'Counting Stars' by One Republic. He doesn't know who Ellie Goulding is. He's really into music so at first I just thought he was a music snob, but then I realized that there is no 97.1 ZHT out here and the stores are always playing Beatles music and such... So ya. Just interesting.

3. Outdatedness In General. The moment I stepped off the plane into the Honolulu airport, I felt like I was in a timeless-retro dimension. The airport looked like it was built in the 1960's. The decor, the colors, the furniture, even the cement screams retro. That's generally what most of the buildings and infrastructure are like out here. Definitely not like Orem, where they knock down the old Pizza Hut building just to build an entire new building for Chick-Fil-A (see State Street across from the library and police station). Speaking of fast food, I passed this gem the other day: an old-school Taco Bell building.

My theory is that since the Hawaii was made a state in 1959, a general surge in tourism and building took place at that time, and not much has been updated since. That combined with the slower pace of life in general is why there is sort of a retro-timeless feel out here. Honestly, I like it. It gives you "permission" to let go of some of the stuff that would be a big deal on the mainland. 


4. Blue Stop Signs. Ya, that's what I said. Would it ever cross your mind that a stop sign would be anything but red? I have no explanation for this. 

5. No freeway system. Well, that's not entirely true. In Honolulu, there's a freeway system. But nowhere else on the island of Oahu. There is literally only one road that gets you everywhere, and it runs along the perimeter of the island. That is it. No 6 lane freeway system that conveniently takes you to any major city like we have in Utah. It's just a 2 way road that lines the perimeter of the island and goes through each town, so if you want to go anywhere, you've got to take that road. It's kind of nice because you're almost always in view of the ocean. The simplicity of the road system contributes to the laid back attitude of the island. 


6. Pineapple is old. It takes on average 2 YEARS to grow a pineapple!!! The fruit you are eating, is literally 2 years old. Next time you eat a pineapple, ask yourself, what was I doing 2 years ago? And then be grateful for how much work actually goes into producing food. 

(Side note- pineapple is not a native fruit to Hawaii. It was brought here by outsiders, but turns out, it is a really good environment for growing the fruit.)



Well that is all for today! Thanks for reading. :)

Sincerely,

Coolianaire

The CURSE of THAT chair!

(Eery Halloween music playing in the background)

Little did they know when they were hired on at the graduation office that there was a curse...the curse of THAT chair!!! (Thunderclap!)

All who sit in THAT chair will eventually leave...one way or another!
When I first started, Evelyn sat in that chair. Evelyn was pretty awesome and between her and Chelsey, I learned everything that I know about graduation! But one day, Evelyn mysteriously disappeared! (Or maybe she had a baby... I get hazy on the details)
The next victim of the chair was Jessica. She also mysteriously vanished...all that was left was a trail of Saltine Cracker crumbs! My love of free food also significantly dwindled after that day. (Crashing retirement parties just isn't the same without you!)
Finally, came Tia...One day it seemed like everyone was laughing at my jokes...and then...the laughter vanished! (Or maybe it was just that Tia was the only person who found me funny...dang it! 1986 4-ever.)
In the end, they have all succumbed to the Vortex that is THAT chair.
I just have one final warning to it's next victim...

BEWARE THE CHAIR!!!!

PS Did you all know Grace won the grand prize at the Advisor Conference which was AWESOME! AND Chelsey won Support Advisor of the Year...DOUBLE AWESOME! Love our office...Even if you all leave me :)

Week One in Hawaii

Aloha from Hawaii! My first week in Hawaii has been super exciting and adventurous! I am so glad to be here! As I write this I am sitting on my ocean-view balcony and singing Jack Johnson. :)

The Journey Begins

Waiting at the airport!

Layover in Seattle.

We didn't get into Honolulu till 11 pm, so we had a hotel booked. My friend met us there. I hadn't seen her in 7 years!

So, we had planned to catch a bus to our apartment, but turns out they won't allow luggage on the bus. We had to get a taxi to take us to apartment. It was a one hour ride, and it cost us $130! Good thing there was three of us to split it. 

Our bus driver was super nice. He let asked us if we wanted to take a quick stop to see China Man's Hat. This was our first official Hawaii beach experience. 

When i entered my apartment, i was greeted by this gorgeous view. 

It never gets old. 

I didn't realize this before I came out here, but i live on a peninsula, so that is pretty cool. I never thought I would live on a peninsula, let alone right on the beach! According to a rental website, the place I live is worth about 1.1 million dollars, so I like to joke to my friends about going home to our "million dollar home on the beach". :) It's location adds value, but it the epitome of student housing... it sort of has that student housing grime that you deal with as a freshman/sophmore/junior. But my friends and i all feel really blessed that we found this place. It is not only in a beautiful location, but literally a 5 minute walk from a bus stop, grocery store, a few restaurants, and some other shops. On top of that, there are 10 girls that live here, and every one of them have been extremely friendly and kind to us. It's been wonderful. 

My Room

There is rocky beach on one side of the peninsula and a beautiful white sandy beach on the other that I have gone to almost everyday. We have gone various beaches 1-3 times per day since I have been here. The water here really is as clear and turquoise blue-green as depicted in pictures... And warm! I have LOVED being in the ocean. There is something different about the beaches here... I love being at the beach out here. When I lived Florida, I really didn't care much for it, but it's different here. It's part of the magic of Hawaii, I guess!

Wiamea Bay

 Lanikai

Aloha Spirit

The rumors are true: the Aloha spirit is a real thing! I cannot believe how friendly people are out here! I feel like if I have even a one sentence conversation with someone, they become my friend. It doesn't matter who they are, the hotel concierge, the taxi driver, the grocery store teller, etc. It's contagious. There is a spirit of friendliness and sharing, and it is contagious. 

Since i have been out here, I have been hungry ALL THE TIME! I am always figuring out how to get my next meal. I think it is a combination of being more active and away from a desk and the fact that I was living at home for a while before I came here and my momma fed me well! Don't have that anymore, dang it!

Budgeting

I'm writing this part for Heather's sake, since she wanted to know how I am going to live in Hawaii for cheap. I wouldn't say it has been cheap, but so far I've managed to keep things reasonable. These are my expenses so far as of week one:

One-way Plane Ticket: $354 (Purchased the first week of March)

Hotel: $38 (We used my friend's discount at a Best Western and then split the cost 3 ways. Air port shuttle pick up was free)

Groceries: $11.5 (Bread, peanut butter, carrots, bananas)

Eating Out: $35.46 

Apartment: $440 from June 9th- July 11th. $13.50 for each day stayed before and after. Utilities included.

So far my adventuring has just been getting here, eating, and hitting the beach. We will start hitting up all the tourists spots next week. As for now, I am just enjoying the tropical environment, relaxing, sleeping, and exploring!