Alley Oops: Aloha and Happy Anniversary to Us!

Matt and I wanted to go on an extended getaway to celebrate our tenth anniversary, but Paige was less than three months old at the time. So, almost a year ago, we started planning a trip for the following year. We went to Kauai for our honeymoon, so we decided that a trip back to Hawaii would be nice. We opted to check out Maui this time around.

A nine-hour flight isn't so bad when you've got a couple of cocktails, "House of Cards," and no kids to entertain.

We stayed in Wailea. This was the view from our room. Not bad.

We saw some amazing sunsets, too.

We spent our first day hanging out by the pool and checking things out. Matt always like to make friends with the concierge and I must say, it usually pays off and we get some good tips on things to do and not to do. On our second morning there, we got up before sunrise and made the trek up to Haleakala to watch the sunrise.

We used an app called GyPSy that Will and Jamie had recommended to us. It was able to ping our location and was like having our own personal tour guide in the car with us.

Apparently, mornings there are often cloudy and the sunrise isn't always great. This was obviously not the case for us.

It was breathtaking!

Haleakala is a volcano (no longer active). When you get to the peak, on one side is a huge crater, with ocean beyond that.

There were a few hiking trails, but we didn't venture too far.

Getting the hang of selfies.

We stopped at a couple other lookouts on our way back. Even after taking our time, we were back to the hotel by around 9 that morning and were able to enjoy their amazing breakfast buffet.

Matt golfed twice. The first place he liked.

The second, Kapalua, was one of his favorite places he's ever golfed.

This was the view from our beach cabana one of the days.

I ran every morning we were there, with the exception of the days we did excursions. We also took advantage of the free canoeing and snorkeling provided by our resort. We got super-close to some huge sea turtles. Running, reading, along with quiet, leisurely meals were definitely the highlights for me. Oh, and the sun. Here we are at Migrant Restaurant (owned by Top Chef's Sheldon, so I geeked out a bit).

All but one of our dinners were either at our resort or in Wailea. It was also nice not to have to do much driving.

We had our last lunch at Mama's Fish House. It's famous, and I can see why.

Midway through the week, we embarked on the "Road to Hana." It was a full-day excursion in which you make a long, scenic drive around a mountain. One of the final destinations was the town of Hana, but as GyPSy told us, "It's about the journey, not the destination."

We were a little nervous when we set out because it was rainy, but as we got up the mountain, the skies cleared up.

For Brooke's leaf collection?

These are painted eucalyptus trees that were in an Arboretum we walked through. I think they're my new favorite tree. The pictures don't do them justice.

Matt really wanted to swim in a waterfall, so he got in the first one that we came to, despite somewhat treacherous conditions getting down to it. (That's me on the bridge above, waving to him.)

This is a shot from my perspective. See him at about four o' clock? Crazy.

A couple more shots from his perspective. These were called the "Three Bears" because there was a big one, medium one, and little one.

I can't remember the names of all the places we stopped, but suffice it to say there were a LOT of photo ops.

Matt bought some banana bread from a guy at the side of the road. What could possibly go wrong?

This was a little town that was destroyed by a tsunami in the 50's, but they still have a church and some poi fields there.

We stopped at another park that had some cool caves that Matt swam in and I waded in.

It also had a black beach. Beautiful.

One of our last stops was this beautiful waterfall. It was much easier to get to. Once again, Matt swan and I waded.

It was an incredible vacation. We came back reconnected and refreshed (minus the jetlag) and are so thankful to our parents for watching the kids and making it possible!