Announcement: Baby Lichty

Kauai

Leg two of our Honeymoon, was six days in beautiful Kauai. We stayed at a Sheraton Resort right on Poipu Beach and spent most of our free time laying out by the ocean or pool. We explored the entire perimeter of the island traveling every mile of hwy 50/56 from West to East to North Shore at Ke'e Beach. There weree so many different terrains as you drove, it really did remind you of South Dakota, plains, desserts and lush vegetation *Minus the Ocean and AWESOME climate 24/7*  You also couldn't help but see wild chickens running around every which direction. They weren't your normal chickens, very tame and very beautiful.

We celebrated my birthday in different ways, I gave myself a spa day and layed out by the ocean and pool, and Kyle went deep sea fishing. I enjoyed my hour massage and he got to catch a mahi mahi fish. When Kyle got back to the resort we enjoyed a nice dinner at one of the best restaurants on the island, Rum Fire.

On Wednesday we scheduled an excursion with OutfittersKauai. The tour is set up for 20 people but since the day was slow, we got a private paddle board experience. Paddle boarding was way harder then I thought it would be! We cruised down the river to a hiking location and hiked one mile inland to a private water hole lagoon. There was a zip line and a 20 foot ledge to jump off of into fresh water run off from waterfalls. I normally wouldn't jump into a body of unknown water, but I faced my fear and it was actually pretty fun, but the water was chilly! We topped the night off at a great italian restaurant our guide recommended, La Spezia.

Thursday was by far my favorite day. Kyle and I golfed 18 holes at Kauai Lagoons Golf Course. The whole back 9 was right along the ocean. And yes, I lost several balls into the ocean. Some on purpose, some not. It was just a gorgeous day and a fun round together.  On our way back to our resort, we stopped and got Hawaii famous, Shave Ice. That was amazing. It was way better than a Sno Cone because it not only has flakey ice but icecream. The macadamia flavoring was beyond good. Then we got ready for the Luau at our hotel. It was right at sunset and all you can eat and drink with live entertainment. It was a really good time and we enjoyed the entertainment. There was a fire dancer and lots of hula dancers.

Friday we explored the north shore and drove all the way to Ke'e Beach. This was supposedly a secluded beach but it was very busy! Plus it was raining so we didn't stay for too long but it was nice to see the other half of the island and spend some time driving together. We watched for whales and saw some spouting and enjoyed our last Hawaiian sunset together.

Our final day in Hawaii, we rented a cabana and relaxed in the sun and ordered food and drinks. Our flight left later that evening and then we were back to the cold chilly weather. It was a great vacation and we can't wait to travel again!

Honolulu, Hawaii

We planned an amazing second honeymoon to Hawaii. We spent 2 days in Honolulu on the island of Oahu, so that we could experience Pearl Harbor and then we jetted off to Lihu'e  on the island of Kauai to relax and enjoy the beautiful weather.

Honolulu was very "touristy" there were just so many people! We scheduled a tour to Pearl Harbor and to visit the USS Missouri, a battleship parked in the Harbor and then we toured the city and saw the capital building. 

Pearl Harbor was so humbling and it was an honor to visit this site. We did the audio tour of the memorial, so we got to hear lots of history and stories behind December 7th, 1941. It not only affected our soldiers but also the community of Honolulu. But behind the tragedy, our American Spirit thrived more than ever. The Memorial for the USS Arizona that was one of the ships to have a less fortunate faith during the ambush, was a beautiful site to remember and be thankful for those who gave their life in service for our country.  

We then traveled across the bay to the USS Missouri. The USS Missouri, is a decomissioned battleship that was active during three wars, WWII, Korean and Desert Storm before finally taking rest in the Harbor for us mere muggles to see. Kyle and I were skeptical of the tour at first, but we honestly enjoyed ever second touring the boat. We went of the quick 30 minute guided tour where we learned that the Japanese signed their surrender of WWII on the deck. It was awesome to see the bunks and the cabins the sailors stayed in during their tours. 

Finally, we road the bus thru the city of Honolulu to see the Capital Building, Hawaii Real Estate, and the Punch Bowl, the famous Hawaiin cemetery. After a full day being tourists, we enjoyed dinner at the Cheesecake Factory and a beautiful sunset on Waikiki Beach. 

Pearl Harbor Memorial

USS Arizona remains

Outside the USS Missouri

Tight sleeping quarters

Playing with the ship's guns

Panoramic view of the Harbor off the ship

In front of the weapons

Capitol Building in Honolulu

A present for Mozzy

Sunset from our Hotel Room

Love Birds enjoying the sunshine 

Aloha!

5.4.15

Baby Quilt for Baby Schuetzle

I am obsessed with fabric. I love pretty patterns. When I saw this fat quarter bundle at the Quilt Locker in Pierre, I couldn't help but lock it down. I loved all of the pretty nursery fabrics and colors and thought they would be perfect for baby quilts. The idea, is to make each of my sister's a baby quilt using their choice color patter for their first baby (and hey, if I have enough fabric let alone time, I would make one for each baby!)

I have done a chevron pattern before and thought it would be perfect for a baby quilt. My brother and sister-in-law are expecting in June and I wanted to get this quilt going. The overall size is a square 42" x 42". Their color theme is "SDSU" Yellow and Blue and since they are waiting to see what the gender is till their precious baby arrives, it s a great gender neutral color scheme. The blocks were cut square 8"x8". I needed 18 white blocks, 12 blue blocks and 6 yellow blocks. There is a trick when making the chevron triangles that I hope to show you in a blog post soon, but you can watch the trick in youtube videos here. I used 3 fat quarters of the blue and yellow and was able to get 4 blocks out of each quarter since the fabric measures 18"x22" typically. I got the top pieced together quick enough, between my sewing machine breaking twice! But got it to the Quilt Locker for the quilting right in the nick of time. I added a yellow matching backing fabric, you'll need 1.25 yards and .333 yards of a binding fabric, cut into 2.5 inch strips. 

Super cute for Baby Schuetzle! He or She will love it and hopefully they know Auntie Lo loves them!