Our crazy adventure continues-

After we got back to the airport we were informed that the plane was NOT FIXED. No big deal... first stop, rental car. I rented a cute little Mazda 6 and we were good to go. Matt Dalton (16) noticed that his Mom had rented a minivan so he quickly called shot gun in my car. lol. We then followed the Daltons over to the hotel on base to see if they had any openings. They were fully booked, but sent us just up the road to Pearl Harbor Navy Base. It was so amazing to see all the huge ships right next to our room. I was in complete awe of the size. I would have taken a few pictures, but all pictures are banned. They enforce this rule with several soldiers up on deck with guns. I decided to just enjoy looking. :)

We checked into our rooms and were pleasantly surprised by a flock of adorable birds waiting on our patio. They were so cute. We also stopped to take a photo by the Hawaii sign just to show we were there. 

The kids were so excited to be in a new hotel room. I was so excited by the price. $55 compared to the $150 the night before. You may notice that there was only one bed in the picture. Not to worry- I placed all the blankets on the floor and made a big bed for all the boys and slept on the bed by myself. Well, half the night anyway. When I woke up the next morning they were all over me. It was such a fun adventure. They didn't worry at all that we were stuck and the plane was broke. We just took advantage of the mini vacation to Hawaii.

After getting our luggage up to the rooms we put on swimsuits and headed to find something fun to do. It wasn't long before we happened upon a beautiful beach to play at. We let the kids play in the water, but I have to say we have been spoiled. This water was a little chilly for my taste. I prefer the bath water of the East China Sea to do my playing in. The kids didn't seem to mind at all though and had a great time playing in the water and sand. Poor rental cars were covered in sand. :( Oops.

We then, hit up Walmart for prepay cellphones and a few other necessities. None of my family knew I was on my way. It was not so much that I wanted to surprise them, but that I didn't know if I could even get out with space A. I didn't want to tell everyone we were coming and then have to call them back and say we weren't going to make it. I bought the cell phone though just in case we had any problems. :) Anyway back to the story. I forgot how much I like Walmart. Everything was so cheap compared to Japan.

The next morning, we woke up and everyone had a craving for pancakes. We had been living on fast food and we really wanted something homemade. So we drove a little while down the road until we found ourselves an IHOP. The kids were in heaven as were the adults. It is so much like dessert. Oh, and speaking of dessert.... Ted's Bakery. YUM! When Rhett and I lived in Hawaii I gained a good 15 lbs alone off Ted's Bakery pies. They are absolutely orgasmic. I couldn't come to Hawaii and not get one. The kids got these cute smily face pancakes. 

After breakfast we knew we were running out of time and needed to head back to the airport soon, BUT before we went we knew we needed to show and tell the kids all about Pearl Harbor. We went on a little tour of the USS Missouri and then went over to Pearl Harbor to see the monument and learn a little bit more about the military. It was a great leaning experience for the kids. We all had a great time together. It was such a beautiful day and what a wonderful place to get "stuck."

Rhett laughed so hard when he saw the picture above. He made sure to tell me that Matt and I looked like a couple and I had better not be trading him in for a younger model. I reassured him by telling him that even though I loved all the help that Matt was during the trip he was still only 16 and Rhett has NOTHING to worry about. I have to say that I loved getting stuck with people I know though. It was so much more fun than if I had gotten stuck by myself. Oh, and Ryker DEMANDED his own picture by this sign. After that we returned our cars and headed back into the dreaded airport for another long day of waiting. We got back right around 2:00 p.m. and they were still working on the plane. We waited until 8:45 when they announced that the plane was fixed and would be taking off right around 10:00. Yay! Mini vacation over and ready to start the next leg of the trip.

To be continued...