Back From Paradise

Hawaii is paradise. Hands down. LOVE IT. LOVE IT. LOVE IT. I'm temporarily back in Franklin after spending the past 14 months on the island of Oahu. I was lucky to land an awesome job in advertising in Honolulu, rented a big beautiful house on Kaneohe Bay with roommates and new friends & had some AMAZING adventures I wouldn't trade for anything.

Highlights of my Hawaiian Life...

#1) Went skydiving over the North Shore of Oahu 5 times! Even got to pull my own parachute once!

#2) Ran my first 1/2 Marathon.. around Diamond Head! 

#3) Bought the perfect island car!! A beautiful red convertible VW bug!!! HERBIE!

#4) SURFING- check!

#5) Paddleboarding- check!

#6) Became a regular Booze Cruiser. Who can turn down $30 for all you can drink and the best spot to watch a beautiful Hawaiian sunset

#7) Caught dozens if not hundreds of beautiful sunsets. Definitely my FAVORITE part of living in tropical paradise are these breathtaking sunsets. (photo taken with my iphone)

#8) Same goes for these amazing rainbows!

#9) Had many visitors! Which meant I was a constant tourist- which I loved! 

Carolyn got to come in January! 

Davis made a Hawaiian pit-stop en route from Australia. Such a world traveler!

My sister Chandler toyed with the idea of making Hawaii her temporary home too but decided to just make it an extended vacation. We had so much fun the month she was here!

Took surfing lessons when my Mom came out to visit!

Sam came out over Halloween! We also went skydiving post Color Run festivities. Made for great photos and an incredible day!

Got to spend the past TWO Christmases with these 2 lovely ladies & their amazing family in MAUI! Always a great time with the Kendra family.

#10) Found a church family!!! Proud to call Hope Chapel Kaneohe Bay my church home. This church is absolutely amazing and blessed me so much during my time in Hawaii. I also was able to meet an amazing group within my mini-church who welcomed me in with open arms. The picture below is from a water baptism at beautiful Kailua Beach. 

#11) Powered through a weekend full of Marine Corp Balls. AMERICA.

#12) Hiked the most AMAZING mountains, waterfalls, stairs & trails.  Later blog post to come on these hikes. 

#13) Shared a house with 4, sometimes 6, military guys. Our house parties were a hit.

#14) Introduced to some amazing new food! Poke, Acai bowls, Malasadas, Spam musubi, Manapua, and more... 

#15) Went to a Luau with my bestest friends =) 

#16) Swam with dolphins at Sea Life Park AND in their natural habitat

#17) Got to visit the most beautiful place on earth- the KANEOHE BAY SANDBAR. Props to my awesome roommate for having a boat in paradise.

#18) Snorkeled in crystal clear waters!

#19) Woke up to the sound of the ocean. Camping on the most beautiful beach. 

#20) Enjoyed a never-ending vacation. Sometimes even my lunch breaks were a small vacation in tropical paradise. Not many people could have enjoyed this during their hour long lunch break...

This list could go on and on... basically 14 months of true paradise. Most importantly, I made some AMAZING friends, coworkers, and ohana. Truly thankful for my time sp

more blog posts to come on my Island Hopping adventures and the beautiful hikes I experienced while on the islands!