A Day in Oahu

My parents were ever so generous and offered to keep Cooper and Seneca for the day while the rest of us flew to Oahu to do a little sight-seeing. We got to see some wonderful things and enjoy a child-free day and my children got some quality time with grandma and grandpa. After playing cars, swimming and kite-flying, they were exhausted by the time we got home- all of them!

Denten, Katelyn, Wade, Lindsay, Ben and I began our day at Pearl Harbor, which I'm so glad we took the time to see. While watching Ben Affleck and Josh Hartnett is compelling, hearing and seeing first hand the tragedy that occured in that bay 66 years ago was incredibly sobering.

We started at the Air Museum and had a quick reminder of the machines they were using during the time and then moved onto the USS Missouri, a huge battleship where the treaty that ended the war was signed.



While this ship wasn't ever engaged in battle during the war, it was amazing to tour through it and imagine the other ships that were hit and sank with hundreds of men trapped inside.





Next we visited the USS Arizona, the recipient of a Japanese bomb that caused the ship to virtually explode and sink, trapping the entire crew inside. The memorial is built over the ship, which has been left resting on the bottom of the bay.



Looking at the memorial wall of over 300 names and seeing the wreckage below was amazing to me. I tried to imagine what it would have been like to be there that day, with hundreds of planes flying overhead and people scrambling to defend themselves. Denten pointed out while we were there that this was the only battle fought during a world war that was fought in our own country. Fortunately, it's the only battle site we claim.



Next we moved onto a much lighter activity, checking out Waikiki Beach. The idea was to spend a couple hours there, but the place was a madhouse! There was a surfing competition going on, which was fun, but the beach and ocean were packed with people! We could barely find a spot where the six of us could lay our towels and eat lunch!





We went for a swim and enjoyed the rolling waves and then spent a few minutes drying off before moving on- a super place for people watching, not so much for relaxing!



The last destination of the day was Diamondhead State Park. Diamondhead is a volcanic crater that we drove into and then we were able to hike to the highest point outside along the coastline. The hike itself was only about 2 miles and rose a few hundred feet, but the view from the top was incredible. First, the out-of-shape prengnant lady had to get up about 4 flights of what I termed, "the stairs of death."



It was totally worth it when I saw the view of the ocean and Honoulu.









It was a full and wonderful day spent with my husband and siblings. The times we are all together are rare and I appreciate them very much. Thanks to mom and dad for giving your day to my children- it was a good one.