Getting back into the swing of things

It is definitely nice to be home and to get back into the swing of things. To be back on schedule at work and at home. Hopefully, I will also get back to blogging regularly as well. My eating and exercise habits have been all out of whack. Traveling makes it difficult to eat right and to exercise regularly. While in Maui, I ran most mornings along the board walk. How can you not be outside with this view:



I was motivated to run by the beautiful atmosphere and weather. In Oahu, we kept pretty active with hikes to Waimea Falls (sadly, the falls were dry hence no falls or water in the background) and plenty of walks.



Eating healthy wasn't too hard with all the fresh fish, but it was a little hard to stay away from the yummy tropical drinks. Pina coladas and mai tais are hard to say no. As are many other tropical drinks, hehehe. I think I might have had a few with dinner and at the pool.



To top things off, traveling to a conference just a week after getting back from vacation did not help. Airport meals don't offer the healthiest of choices and eating out and on the go can be difficult as well. I did my best to make healthy choices but with limited choices it was not easy. Plus sitting around in conference meetings and proceedings did not lend itself to being active.

So now it is time to get myself back into my regular healthy routine. I went to the gym to take a couple of classes on Saturday and last night. Those classes are ones that I am a regular in but having been gone for several weeks, those classes really kicked my butt. I am hurting a bit, but I am sure I will get back on track. I just got to keep myself in check and hopefully I will get my stamina back.

Hi ho, hi ho, It's back to work I go

boo hoo, back to work I go. No beautiful Hawaii beaches to wake up to. Real life is just not as fun. Plus, it is really hot here in Southern California!! I miss the perfect temperatures of Hawaii. I was so spoiled.

I am a little overwhelmed with being back. There is so much to do and I don't really know where to start. I attempted to look at my Google Reader and there were thousands of blogs entries to catch up on!! That's not going to happen. I have tons of photos to upload and so many emails to sift through. Bill have to be paid, laundry needs to be done. Oh yeah, I have a ton of work too. Yikes. Reality on the mainland has sunk in. Oh how I miss paradise!

I'm baaaacckk

Back from Hawaii. It is good to be home. I so missed my Chase Monster. Not looking forward to going back to work after two weeks off. I looked at my work emails and it is a little insane! Hawaii pictures from Maui and Oahu to come soon.

Captain Sher

We went on a catamaran ride the other day to Molokini which is a small island formed from a volcano crater near Maui. The Captain was kind enough to let me steer the catamaran for a little while :)





Had a blast snorkeling and seeing some colorful sea life. A honu (sea turtle) swam right underneath me. It was just amazing. It was almost surreal to swim amongst the fish.



Even when you weren't in the water, you were able to see the sealife. The water was so clear.



The ride was was a ton of fun. It was so nice on the way to Molokini, we were able to raise the sails and sail most of the way there. The way back to Maui was a little rough, kind of like a roller coaster ride and was totally fun. I was totally soaked from the ride. It was blast for several of the family. Unfortunately, it wasn't that great for all. Some in our group weren't feeling so great when the ride was rough. But mother nature decided to give us some large swells and windy weather so there really wasn't much we could do about that. All in all this was a really fun excursion.

Flying through the air

Today we went ziplining. What an awesome experience. It was so totally fun. I was a little anxious, but after the first one it was an absolute blast and I couldn't wait to go on the next zipline.

We are geared up and ready to go!



Here I go (Mr. Bear took this picture while he was zipping right next to me):



There goes Mr. Bear and his cousin:



Look at my in-laws go:



The family with the guides:



We survived and had an awesome time!!

Maui Sunset

Aloha! I leave you with a picture of our first Maui Sunset:



Need I say more :)

One week until paradise

One more week until Mr. Bear and I leave for beautiful Hawaii! Mr. Bear and I will be in Hawaii for TWO WHOLE WEEKS!!! I am so excited, I can't wait.

The first week, we will be on the island of Maui with Mr. Bear's step-family. We are celebrating Mr. Bear's step-dad's parent's 60th anniversary (does that make sense?). Basically, the entire family is traveling to Maui to celebrate. We have a few activities planned while there: luau, zipline, and relaxing on the beach. Mr. Bear will also golf one day. I am so looking forward to a vacation and where better than Hawaii!

We figured that since we were already in Hawaii, that we would spend a second week and fly over to Oahu to visit a friend there. He had offered for us to come and stay at his home at our wedding, so we figured we would take him up on the offer. It didn't cost much more for an inter-island flight and since we will be staying with him, we don't have to worry about a hotel. So not a whole lot of extra money being spent. Plus, we can buy groceries and cook instead of eating out all the time. It is not often that we have the opportunity to go to Hawaii for TWO WEEKS.