Hawaii - Day 9 Last Day

Well, the day had come when we had to say goodbye to Hawaii. So we tried to make it a memorable one. Most of Will's family had already gone home, so we were mostly off by ourselves having fun.

Above and Below: Will and I on the patio of the beach house with Hookilau Beach in the background

After we got all packed up, we spent the last few hours in Honolulu. We went out on a ride on a catamaran boat. That was SO much fun! The water was so beautiful, and the waves were big enough that we got splashed and got pretty wet.

After our catamaran boat ride, we got dried off and changed and went on an evening dinner cruise. Will wasn't feeling that great though, and so he actually slept through most of the dinner cruise. We never took any pictures because Mr. Grouchy was not being very picturesque. :) Haha.

Above: Will and I at Diamondhead Lighthouse before our dinner cruise

Above: Will is sad that the sign says "No Nude Sunbathing" Haha. Love that face.

After our sunset cruise, we headed to the Honolulu airport and departed on a red-eye flight back to Portland. We had such a wonderful time in Hawaii and want to come back someday after we are married. I don't think I've visited such a beautiful location in my life.

Hawaii - Day 8: Sunrise

Sunrise shining back on the beach house where we were staying

Will made several attempts to wake me up to go and watch the sunrise with him, but my tired sea-salted eyes could not open up. So I stayed on the floor and slept while he went out and enjoyed a beautiful sunrise by himself. Sorry Will :(

Above: Jenni before Will left to go watch the sunrise

Above: A pair of lonely feet

Above: After the sunrise and Jenni....still sleeping

Hawaii - Day 7: Church and Snorkeling

Being that is was Sunday, we got dressed in our Sunday best and headed to church. It was really fun - it was the first time we'd attended church where it was perfectly acceptable to wear flip-flops and a flower in your hair. :)

After church was over, Will and I walked over to the temple again (which was right next door) and had a friend take some pictures of us. We were, of course, very excited to be engaged even though we hadn't told anyone yet. You can just see it in our faces how in love we are. I love these pictures so much.

After our little "photo shoot", we went back to the beach house and got ready to go snorkling!

Below: Will, Jenni, Daniel, Dalynn, and Tessha - all ready for the water

Below: Jenni was a little obsessed with the sea turtles. She wanted one. And fortunately enough for her, the turtles allowed her to pet them (even though there was a sign that said "Do not pet the turtles -they bite").

Below: Will, self portrait. Hello sunburn! Jenni in background

Hawaii - Day 6: Waimea and Cliff Diving

We spent another fun day at another beach on the other side of the island. Will and his brother Daniel did some cliff diving. I was not brave enough, but it was fun to watch them.

Above: Will jumping in. What great form!

Above: Will and Jenni at the "Icey" Matsumoto shop where they served flavored ice

Above front to back: Daniel, Dalynn, Tessha, Will, and Jenni

Above: Two extremely white people on the beach. We can't help that we are fairskinned and freckled okay? Will hates this picture, by the way, he says his belly is NOT that big in real life. :)

Hawaii - Day 5: The Wedding

The day of Kristi and Haini's wedding finally arrived. It couldn't have been more perfect - as you can see from the beautiful pictures here. They were married in the Hawaii LDS Temple, which is also where they first met.

I didn't get to see Will very much this day because he was asked, at the last minute, to step in as one of the Groomsmen since a friend of Haini's was unable to attend. So Will was busy all day doing groomsmen duties which included driving cars around, picking up tuxedos, flowers, etc.

I on the other hand, ended up being the designated hair stylist for all of Will's sisters. This was a lot of fun because I love doing hair, and it was neat to get to know them better.

Above: The Temple Grounds - so pretty. :)

Above: The Girls from left to right: Hiani's stepmom and her daughters, Alisha, Elizabeth, Jenni, Dalynn, Grace, and Laura

Above: The bride exiting the temple and waiting for her new husband. I of course had my camera and eyes fixated on the handsome man in the background in the oversized tuxedo.

Above: The happy couple - Kristi and Heinrich Sugaturaga (say that 3 times fast)

Above: The family photo - which I was excited to be invited to take part in

Above and Below: Some favorite shots of Will and I at the Temple

Below: Since Will was stepping in as a last-minute groomsman, he also had to sit at the bridal dinner table. I was really sad because I didn't get to sit next to him, so I would go over as much as possible and talk to him. (Will is the 2nd from left)

Above: Me stealing a moment with Will as he was up at the Bridal Dinner Table. I think it is funny how ill-fitted his tuxedo is. It was originally fitted to be worn by a big Polynesian guy.

Above: This was an interesting tradition, which we white chics totally humiliated ourselves with in front of the Polynesians. Each family is asked to come up and dance in front of everyone to music, and then the onlookers will come and stick money on you (like a stripper, yes, except we didn't strip). And then all of the money collected goes to the bride and groom.

They do this instead of giving gifts. I wish this was an American tradition - because they made off with a LOT of money that night. I have to say though we were the sorriest bunch of dancers you ever saw - and you can see from the expressions of the Polynesians that they were quite bored with us.

Above: Finally Will got to leave the Bridal Table and come sit next to me. I was pretty excited. We are also a little bit sunburned, if you couldn't tell.

Hawaii - Evening 4: Wedding Dinner

Kristi and Haini had their "Rehearsal Dinner" this evening. It was hosted by Haini's family at their big beautiful home. It was a very interesting dinner because Haini is Tongan. Kristi's father and Haini's father went through a ritual where one was given a whale tooth (which is a big deal).

All of the food was also Polynesian. I can't say that Will and I enjoyed the food very much - it was a lot of tree roots and seafood. And..a lot of other foods that we couldn't recognize.

Above: Will's Mom talking to Haini's Father

Above: Just a few of Will's siblings: Seth, Tessha, and Elizabeth

Above: A mixture of cultures at the dinner

Above: A huge part of Polynesian culture is their overwhelming love to play music and dance. Those people seriously know how to party! This is Will and I dancing above and below.

Hawaii - Day 4: Waikiki Beach

We did the "tourist" thing this day and walked around Waikiki Beach, and downtown Honolulu with Daniel and Dalynn. It was a really busy beach, but they had some pretty nice flea markets where I picked up some inexpensive Hawaiin skirts and necklaces.

Above: Jenni, Will, Dalynn, and Daniel in front of a ship anchored in downtown Honolulu

Below: We just couldn't get over how beautiful the color of the water was - hence the next two pictures. Oh, and there were also some pretty cool tropical fish down there but they didn't show up in the photos.

Above: Will and I on Waikiki Beach

Above: Flirting with the locals

Above: Homemade Plumeria Lai's made by Kristi. I LOVED the smell of them!