First week in Hilo!

Well my time in Hawaii is going good so far! The first week of work went well. The majority of the rehab staff are all travelers as well. The first day was orientation type stuff and then by day 2 we were treating patients, starting with 2-3 people and now our caseload is about 6-7 at this point, which is full caseload. I am learning a lot being in a new setting but I am enjoying it so far! On the weekend, Erin and I went to Richardsons beach and laid out and enjoyed watching the people in the water. We were told that this is the beach that has huge turtles that you can see on the edge and swim with if you get in the water. We did not get in the water, but we did go to the edge and take some pictures of the huge turtles!

 

 

 

 

 After being at the beach, we decided to go eat at Ken's House of Pancakes, which everyone has told us about. One of the island favorites is called a Loco Moco. That is the one in the picture with the egg on top. It is rice, a hamburger patty, grilled onions, gravy and an egg on top. You can get a Sumo Loco Moco at Ken's and if you do, then they hit a gong and everyone in the restaurant says "Sumo!" Me and Erin chimed in and yelled Sumo a few times, it was fun! Erin ordered the Loco Moco and I ordered the fried noodles with spam. Spam is huge here in Hawaii and I am glad, because I like spam! I wasn't quite sure how it would taste, but it was actually pretty good!

 



 

 

 

Sunday we decided that we were going to go get our nails done and then go to the movies. Here is a picture of my nails! I absolutely love them! We went and saw 22 Jump Street and got some popcorn, candy and nachos. The movie was funny and we had a great day!

 

Day In Downtown Hilo

Today we decided to go explore downtown Hilo. We walked up and down the street full of shops and then went to the farmers market and then there were also arts and crafts booths set up across the street. We definitely found some cute things that we will probably go back and buy during the time we are here. I have been looking for an anklet and we found a booth that had footlets and anklets and we both got one. I absolutely love it! Then we went to a burger place that we were told has great burgers and had a couple of the island's beers. It was a great day full of shopping and exploring. We got some pictures of the water which was absolutely beautiful. We are going to try to find the beach tomorrow to lay out and relax before starting work on Monday.

Hilo Hawaii

June 4th Erin and I packed up and headed to Hawaii to start our next 13 week assignment. My mom was so cute and brought leis with us to the airport to drop me off and took me and Erin's picture before we left!

Our first flight was to Seattle and then we had a 2 hour layover which was just enough time for us to eat before boarding. Then the flight from Seattle to Hawaii was about 5 hours. We flew into Kona which is just on the opposite side of the island of Hilo. We got Erin's rental car and then drove to our Hotel. It was late when we got in, so we just went to bed. Here is a picture of the little paper they had on the airplane to Hawaii and the hotel, Kona Seaside Hotel.

This morning we got up and packed our bags and got on the road to head to Hilo, which was about an hour and a half. We first stopped at the airport to pick up my rental car. Here is a picture! I like the car so far! We are going to trade in Erin's Ford Focus tomorrow for a better one, due to the transmission not working properly.



We then got the house and it is absolutely everything we could have hoped for. The pictures just can't do it justice. It is right by a stream and that is the room I picked, by the stream, so that I can listen to the water all night. The windows are all open with screens on them and they stay open all the time. That is how the cool air gets in. I don't even see a thermostat for heat or air in the home. How all the windows are positioned are done so to have a crosswind through the house to keep it cool. It is definitely different then what I am used to but it is also pretty neat to experience! Right now as I sit at my desk in my room, it is raining and the sound and breeze from the rain is very soothing. Here are a couple of pictures.
Needless to say we are both extremely happy with the house and the area so far! I will blog when stuff comes up!

  

  

  

Costa Rica May 2014

 For Alisa's wedding we went to Costa Rica! My mom and dad were able to come to which I was super excited about! It was such a beautiful resort and a beautiful wedding! We first got there and just explored the beach and the resort before it got dark, which happened around 6:00. Here are a few photos of right when we got there on the beach and a picture of the outside of the room. Alisa also gave everyone welcome bags which were so thoughtful and very cute!

 

 

 

 

 

As we explored the resort the next morning, my mom, dad and I ran into some amazing wildlife running around. This was one of the bigger iguanas we saw and then there were coati's which looked like monkeys and raccoons mixed together to me. They were so cute and would just walk right by you or in front of you which I thought was amazing! We walked up on a pack of them playing in the grass!

 

 

 

One night after a concert, some of us decided to go dancing at this small club with a DJ. Needless to say we were the only ones on the dance floor for most of the night. Here is a pic of my mom and I and then love the pic of everyone pretending to dance!

 

 

 

 

Monday May 12th was the wedding day! We all met in the lobby where trucks came and got us and took us down to the beach! It was great! The set up for the wedding was beautiful, the weather ended up being beautiful and it went smoothly! Here are just a few of the pictures I got from the wedding!



 

 

 

 

 

 

The next day was our excursion day! It was a full day excursion and we left at 7:00 in the morning. Needless to say we were all tired but once we started the excursion we all woke right up! First we did zip lining. We were all pretty hesitant at the first one, but then we were all professional zip liners by the end of the 7 zip lines! :) Then the next part was horseback riding. I hadn't been horseback riding since Hawaii which was when I was a junior in high school so I was nervous yet excited at the same time! We didn't just go on flat land either, we went up mountains, down steep mountains and in the streams and actually got to gallop and once my horse ran and it was amazing!

 

 

We came back to the main house and ate lunch after horseback riding. After that we changed into our bathing suits and went for a mud bath and aloe bath with a rinse off in the hot springs. It was great! I can't wait to see all the pictures the wedding photographer got of us covered in mud! We then played in the main pool with the slide for awhile before heading back into town to go shopping at the local supermarket and then back to the resort. Before stopping at the resort, the driver took us to another beach we hadn't seen so we could see this beautiful sunset!

 

 

 The trip to Costa Rica was a blast and I am glad I got to be a part of Alisa's big day! We have been friends since birth and I wouldn't have missed it for anything!

 

Dad's Birthday Party!

 

So I haven't blogged in awhile so I am going to back track and catch up!

April 21st is my Dad's Birthday! I got home from California on his birthday and so did my brother! I was so excited that Blake came home when I got back. Then my sister and her family came to my parents house that weekend to celebrate my Dad's birthday. My mom did a fishing theme this time and my brother and I got to help with all the decorations this time which was a blast! I think it turned out great and to be able to see all my family again was exactly what I needed! Here are some pictures of the decorations.