Let’s go to Maui!
Originally uploaded by Tonja Owens

Here we are in the airport…ready to take off on the trip of a lifetime!. Board the plane and….wait….wait….wait. This is not starting well at all. As it was, we only had 35 minutes to change plane in Atlanta, and we are already 30 minutes late leaving here. Something tells me this is not going to be as smooth as I hoped. Oh well, at least it will be an adventure.
I was right. We missed the connecting flight to Las Vegas, but they were able to get us out on the next one that leaves in 30 minutes….oops, they are boarding now…food and bathroom will have to wait. On board…off we go. Originally we had an hour and a half to change planes in Las Vegas…now 30 minutes. Arrive and walk, and walk, and walk, and ride, and ride , and walk and make it to the gate as the very last folks are boarding the plane….food and bathroom will have to wait….AGAIN. But, who cares? We’re on our flight to MAUI. Thank goodness they had a meal you could buy on the plane, so we didn’t starve to death. And as much as I hate to, I did make use of those tin can restrooms on the planes. Sometimes there is just nothing else you can do. We’re landing! We’re here! I have told my friends that the first thing they smell will be the plumeria blossomed air……and once we get outside…they do. Oh, it is delicious. On to Hertz to pick up car. A red mustang convertible, no less. Only 1 problem….we have 6 pieces of luggage…and it was made to hold 2. We stack and move and stack again…with the 3 of us ending up in the front seat. “Sorry, Mam, we can’t allow you to leave the lot like that. You all have to be in a seat belt”. All righty, then. Pull over and restack, and finally there is room for us all to be safe. Go through again and all is well. Ka’anapali Beach, here we come. Shirley and Tina are so excited when they see the ocean , and even more so when we get to the resort area. Check in, and unload….a little unpacking…and a happy dance! “WE’RE HERE!!!!”

Just a note here….I took 8 pairs of shoes…4 of them flip-flops….Shirley took 16 pairs!!!!!!! Not sure how many Tina took, but when we left, we had 43 pairs of shoes !!!!

Made a reservation for dinner. Showered and changed. The neat thing about the Ka’anapali resort area if there is a walkway next to the beach that connects all the hotels and a shopping village with restaurants. So that’s where we ate. A wonderful place called The Hula Grill. Open air , Hawaiian music, perfect view to the beach. Shirley and I had macadamia nut crusted mahimahi and Tina had ribs. Delicious! Then a short walk through the shopping area, and home to bed. Day 1…started early…exasperating along the way…but ending in Paradise.

Flip-Flops in Paradise
Originally uploaded by Tonja Owens

HI Friends, I’m back! Wonderful trip…and lots of pics to share. But today, I’ve gotta sleep…haven’t done too much in the last 8 days and yesterday we flew for over 24 hours. Have missed you all and can’t wait to catch up…..ALOHA

WATER FROM PARADISE
Originally uploaded by Tonja Owens

Only 17 hours till I leave for Maui. Much to do today. Hair at 9:oo, pedicure at 10:00, Alex has Dr. appt at 1:00..then last minute packing….little sleep, probably….then flight out at 6:oo….I’ll check in with you all when I return. You’ll recognize me from my pics …I’ll be the one in the hula skirt and the coconut bra! 🙂

Now friends, you keep this internet going while I’m gone….we don’t want it to close down because of inactivity 🙂

Love to you all, my friends…..ALOHA

TONJA AND POP
Originally uploaded by Tonja Owens

Today, I went with Pop to the doctor . He did not need me to go, but I wanted to hear what they were saying about his heart. There has been some talk about a pacemaker and I just wanted to hear for myself. All is well. There still may have to be one but for now, they are going to work on medications, and such.

He told me a funny story that I wanted to pass along to you. When he was making one of his trips… on his motorcycle…to Alaska this time, his front tooth came out. It was a poceleine veneer and it just fell out and left the bar thing sticking out. He said the only thing he could do was use super glue to hold it in. The first time he did it, he held the tooth in place while the glue dried and when he removed his finger…the tooth came with the finger! So, he had to cut a chunk of finger off to get the tooth, then scrape finger off the tooth, then glue it in again! Can you imagine? There were no dentists where they were riding, so he did this daily for several weeks. So, you can see where some of my craziness comes from? I get it honestly!

“Thanks, Pop, for giving me a life full of adventure and new experiences. Thanks for setting the example, that with God’s help…NOTHING is impossible. Thanks for showing me the joy of trying new things…and whether they are a big success or not…the fun comes in the trying! Thanks for pointing the way to enjoying ALL of God’s beautiful world by being right smack in the middle of it.”

Pop has been reading my blog and he told me today that he was so pleased that I credited the Lord with all that He has done for me.

“Well, Pop, that’s another lesson I first learned from you. You are the one who never fails to thank the Lord FIRST for all things. Children learn by example. Thanks for being one that I and my boys can be proud of. I love you . Happy Father’s Day!

(Sorry, Pop, I know this is an early wish, but I will be doing the hula in Maui on Father’s Day, or maybe flying in a copter seeing the island, …or…who knows what. And I know you don’t want me to miss a thing!:)

Friends…I did it! I walked into the dentist’s office…under my own power, no less! I didn’t even cry or make those moaning sounds, either! And she (the dentist) was just as kind and gentle as I remembered her. Well, the tooth has a big ‘ole cavity in it, under the filling. She could not believe it had not been hurting me. THANK YOU, JESUS! She went on to say that maybe the nerve had died, so that was the reason it wasn’t hurting. I don’t know if that is good or bad…but it IS good it doesn’t hurt. She said that she would have to….you know, the “D” word. That thing that makes such a horrid noise. She will clean it all out and maybe just have to put a crown on it….or maybe that other SCARY thing…it’s 2 words and starts with root… UGHHHHH! I can’t even think about that now. How will I ever walk in there if I know they may do that? She smoothed out the rough place on the tooth and said it would be better not to open it up until I got back. O.K., that’s cool. I can deal with that…..put it off..looooong time. No, I did go ahead and make an appt for the 28th. Yeah, something to look forward to.

O.K. Deep breath..let go of all that tension…just let it go…replace it with palm trees and blue water and tall, cool drinks and 3 Southern Belles toolin’ around Maui…in a mustang convertible. Oh, that’s much better…That’s what I’ll think about. Scary things can wait till I get back.

Seriously, friends, I felt your prayers. Isn’t God good? He reaches down and puts His arms around us and holds us close…and He doesn’t laugh or call us silly, either. He just loves us. I thank you for listening to me rant for the past 2 days, too. Your kind words helped so much. Just be prepared…I’ll probably start up again when it close to D-Day again. Blessings to you!