Back in the Saddle: Five Months in Five Photographs

It's been a fast few months and here we are in March already.  My main activity these past months has been doing PT for my broken arm.  Can you see the rope that I'm using to pull my arm up the middle of my back? I used ropes, pulleys, and rods to get that sucker moving up my back and it worked!  I can now hoist it up without any devices to help, yippee!  Having gotten some range of motion back we're woking with weights to build up some strength in my shoulder muscles with the aim of my getting both my arms up over my head.  The right arm gets an A+ for this but the left arm is a slow learner.  But it is slowly improving and I have high hopes of building enough strength to be able to wave that arm around whenever I want and without pain.     

December and January were cold, snowy and icy months and the sidewalks were often treacherous.  Walking in the snow packed trails in the park was much easier and often very pretty. A dog must be walked, no matter the weather or a broken arm!

I wasn't able to sew much until just recently but I did have two pieces in an exhibit at the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum, and that was very exciting.  

And I made two trips to Maui, which was amazing.  In November Ben and I traveled with our good friends Ray and Paula and spent ten days in Paia and Lahaina, which was great fun.  And then last month my sister and our friend Janice spent a week in Napili watching whales and relaxing in the beautiful Hawaiian scenery.  It was wicked making two trips in just a few months but it sure lifted my spirits! 

Right this minute it is snowing lightly here but yesterday it was warm and sunny and I spotted the first crocuses of the season.  Welcome Spring!

 

Happily I've found that I can sew now mostly without pain and did I tell you that I can drive now also?  These are two game changers and I'm feeling much more my old self.  

The big news here on the blog is that I figured out how people can be easily notified by email when I have put up a new blog posting.  Just look for the box in the upper right corner of the blog home page that says  "Get new posts by email" and submit your information.  It just worked for Ben so I hope it works for you, too.   

"I Like Thursdays" -- Maui Fun

On Thursdays I like to join my friend LeeAnna at Not Afraid of Color in focusing on the interesting, beautiful, and happy side of life, joining a small community of bloggers in celebrating the good things.  It's our small way of driving away the political darkness that is so prevalent today.  So here's some fun Maui images to share. 

Lahaina was the capitol of the Kingdom of Hawaii from 1820 to 1845 and much of its history is preserved in buildings and exhibitions.  I really loved that the people of Maui were so interested in their history.  Here is the lovely home of the Rev. Dwight Baldwin, one of the first missionaries to Maui.  Mrs. Baldwin (Charlotte) raised six children in this house and entertained a constant array of visitors without the help of running water, electricity, or slave labor.  

The sugar industry was big in Maui and I learned a lot about it from the Sugar Museum, which is near the airport.  There being no slavery on the islands, contract labor was enlisted from many countries, resulting in the true melting pot that makes up Hawaii today.   I liked this little interactive area of the exhibit and had a good laugh at one clever person's answer, shown in the second photo.   

Lahaina was a great town for walking.  One day I ran across some local dancers performing at the outlet mall, which was great fun.  I was impressed to see such young kids keeping their heritage alive. 

The bar and restaurant scene was lively in Lahaina.  We spent a while at Down the Hatch checking out the locals and the tourists.  People watching is always such an important part of vacation, don't you think?  

Well, and of course, checking out the sunsets.  That was a treat, since we don't see them here in Boulder.  From our house they are hidden by the mountains. 

Over in Paia, the decor at Mama's Fish House was a constant source of entertainment to me.  I must have walked through this restaurant lobby six times going to and from beach at Mama's Cove before I realized that the attendant's stands were marked by huge, real seashells! 

Here's another thing I missed for a while.  It's on the path to our room from the restaurant.  No, I'm not blind; it's just that Mama's was loaded with cool decor and interesting plants and flowers.  

There was also lots to see in the neighborhood and in town.  Check out this boat garage.  Surely the house was designed for this particular boat, since it just fits. 

And I loved this old phone booth in Paia.  Really captured the spirit of this "hippie" town.

Turtle watching was a big activity.  We saw one swimming while we were on a snorkel tour off of  Lani'i, across the water from Lahaina, and they regularly swam at Mama's Cove where at least one would come up on the beach each night.  As a matter of fact, I practically snorkeled right into a turtle at the cove which scared me to death and also filled me with awe.  Those guys are big and beautiful.

But turtle heaven seemed to be at the next beach up from Mama's, Ho'okipa Beach which is known for its wind surfing and surfing.  As you saw in the video I posted the other day the turtles come and go all day long there which was super cool to watch.  To keep the turtles from being too loved, there's a rock wall to separate them from all their admirers.  Those humps that look like rocks in the background are turtles.

But what I wanted to know was how did the turtles know to come up at that particular part of the beach?  

Maui was such fun and full of great things to see and do.  I sure hope I get back!  Aloha, beautiful Maui!

Oh, Maui!

Maui was amazing!  Not only was there plenty of great beaches and snorkeling, but there were several great hikes, wonderful food, beautiful breezes, and lots of history.  Just my kind of vacation and a memorable way to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary.  

We stayed four nights in the busy historic and touristy town of Lahaina on the West Shore, and four nights in at the Inn at Mama's Fish House, near laid-back town of Paia on the North Shore.  We had a lot of fun in Lahaina, but being at Mama's Fish House took my breath away.  Mama's restaurant is extremely popular and well-reviewed, but the Inn is lesser known.  Good thing for us since it meant we could get one of 12 rooms.    

There was a small cove in front of Mama's that offered convenient access to the ocean.  The restaurant faced the water and diners would have their photos taken by the palm trees that lined the small hill that ran down to the water.  

Our suite was quite luxurious and I made it my business to enjoy all the comfort it offered!  

But we didn't just hang around our wonderful room.  In addition to doing some snorkeling, eating, and checking out the beach vibe, we did some great hikes on that side of the island, including the Wailhee Ridge Trail, which went up, up up.  It was a tough 4.5 miles, but worth every huff and puff. 

Beware the false summit!  This photo was not taken at the top, but about halfway up.

 We also drove through the beautiful agricultural area of the "upcountry" to the Haleakala volcano.  We walked on trails near the top and a bit down into the crater.   Pretty cool to be up in the clouds!

So much for a travel report!  Tomorrow I'll show some photos of some of the fun things we saw on our wonderful trip. 

Maui Turtles

We are back from Maui and getting over our jet lag.  Photos in a day or two, but meanwhile I thought you might enjoy this little video of turtles on the Ho'okipa Beach.  I thought they all arrived at once, slept, and then left in a herd.  But no.......

Click here if the arrow above doesn't work. 

Aloha!