Children's Discovery Center

Today was a Furlough Friday so the kids and I went on an adventure to the Children's Discovery Center in Downtown Honolulu.

There were all kinds of imagination areas that we all had a good time with. Daniel is the bus driver and Sophia and James are the passengers!

My very Hawaiian children!

This was really cool. You may not be able to see it but this is a huge bubble maker. James had the mad bubble making skills. Slow and steady all the way to the top. Daniel, couldn't wait that long and wanted to blow the bubble long before James was finished stretching it. Sophia was just standing back for fear of what may come from the bubble!

This blue screen ocean was pretty fun. Sophia is dressed up like and octopus, Daniel couldn't decide what he should be, first a star fish then a squid, James was a shark.

This isn't a great picture but you can kind of see that the kids could see themselves on the t.v. with the ocean swimming behind them. It was very fun!

James was trying to figure out which pulley to pull in order to get the "cargo" on and off the boat. There was a mock ship and it had cargo and pulleys and all sorts of fun things to figure out.

Here is Daniel at the helm making the boat go in the right direction with Sophia making the best face ever!

James, working a different pulley system with all of his muscles to lift the "cargo" onto the ship.

The little yellow guy is Daniel in full protective gear to lift the "cargo" onto the ship. Safety First!

Working hard!

Sophia is in full command of the fork lift!

Here is full view of the pulley system with James up on top, Daniel down below working some amazing team work to get the cargo onto the boat!

Sophia now driving the ship.

Daniel is now ringing the bell and steering the boat, and loving it!

Sophia back on the Fork Lift!

Crazy kids "at the beach"
Yes.. these days this is as close as my kids want to get to the beach. I think it is funny that my kids do not love the beach and we are in Hawaii!

There were lots of cute little houses that showed the cultures from lots of different countries. This house is the "Japanese House". Daniel likes any house that has chop sticks!

This was in the "China House".

Sophia loved all the cute little dishes and the "noodles" made of yarn and "pea's" made from fabric.

This was also in the "China House". Daniel and James working their magic on the Chinese Dragon.

Very Cool.

James checking out the dragon!

If there is building to be done you can count my kids in!

Daniel was setting up all the cones to protect the building site, then the building could continue.

Yep, found another hard hat! Doesn't get better than that!

James driving the Fire Truck!

Daniel couldn't resist fixin' the car.

Do you need anything fixed on your car? Daniel is your man!

Sophia driving the Fire Truck!

The fire man pole. The feet dangling above are a stuffed fireman, not really a dangling kid! James wanted to climb it, but leave it to his "Samoan" brother to be able to do it!

Daniel didn't even use his feet.. just knees and hands and he was up and ready to tell the dangling fire man to move out of his way.

This was the upstairs in the "Fire Department". Sophia was in little girl heaven. She had found a kitchen and was ready to spend the rest of the afternoon making dinner for anyone she could convince to eat her plastic food.

This little wood train was cute, but I think just to look at. Daniel assured me he could fit and command the train!

Yep, he fits alright!

Here Daniel is at home, dressed up in his new "builder" costume, with reflectors and all!

He was so cute in the gift shop telling me all the reasons he really needed this costume because he didn't have anything like it and he already had other costumes but this one was so much different. He is such a cute kid! I am sure he will have it on every day for the next month!

We had a great time at the Discovery Center, unfortunately or fortunately it is one of those places once you have been there, you don't really need to go back too often. Maybe in a six months or so we can give it another go!

Furlough Fridays

Furlough Friday or should we say Field Trip Friday

Makapu'u Lighthouse Trail

December 4th, 2009

On Friday we took the kids up the Makapu'u Lighthouse Trail.

It was a pretty steep climb but Cat pushed Sophia and Patrick in her double jogging stroller and I held onto Paul and Daniel, while James and Philip went on ahead. It was really beautiful. It is a paved trail with lots of divits in it! It didn't take long for Daniel and Paul to get their second wind and want to run on ahead with the older boys.

At the first switch back Philip and James wanted to go "see what they could see"!

Daniel and Paul just wanted to take a break!

Finally we made it to the top and the boys were having a great time looking through the binoculars to "see what they could see". This is supposed to be a great spot to see whales from December to January but we didn't see any.

The drop off was pretty abrupt so the boys were given a "do not cross" line by Cat and I. However, they weren't always very good about sticking to it.

The older boys were pretty fascinated by this tidepool area. They had been learning about tidepools at school so this was pretty interesting. With the binoculars you could see things pretty well.

Patrick and Sophia just stayed up at the top with me to have some snacks and walk around.

I think we all had a great time!

Lunch Time!

What a great Furlough Friday!