The Barnard Bunch: Our Free trip to HAWAII

Oh the time of year has come again when I thank my lucky stars that I have the job I do. Not too many other girls go on a fab free trip each year just for working their normal job. This year instead of a cruise, Stampin' Up! sent us on a LAND TRIP, to the awesome Waikoloa Village resort on the big island of Hawaii. Oh, the life!

Here is the view from our Deluxe King Ocean View room. We are above the golf course, and the deep blue Pacific is over my right shoulder. *sigh*

Funny story: When we arrived we were checking out our room and could hear a strange bird calling over and over again. Finally we went out on the deck to check it out. It was not a bird. The Japanese woman next door was trapped on her balcony (locked out of her room) and was crying out for help. We called and got someone from the hotel staff to go through her room and open her balcony door to let her in. She was so grateful that she brought us a box of chocolates and cookies the next day. She said a whole bunch of stuff when she gave me the box (all in Japanese) and I assume she meant "thank you." I wish I'd known how to say "we thought you were a bird" in Japanese.

Just a few shots of the unbelievable resort we are staying at!

Many of the beaches look like a mix of sandiness and old lava flow. It is such an interesting place. The big island is where you'll find black sand beaches and green sand beaches, from all the strange mixes of lava/sediment.

More at the Waikoloa

One of the best things about these trips is that I am there with some of my best buddies! This time there were 8 from my group and their spouses, plus some other very very good friends too. We got together for a swap, here are the cute "wow" cards we came away with.

We spent one entire day renting a car and sightseeing with Marc & Candice Anderson. One of the beautiful places we saw was Akaka Falls.

So amazing--the walls all around were just green with moss and growth. So different than the falls at Yellowstone I have visited.

One of the other things we did was visit this beautiful botanical garden. The vegetation in Hawaii is just crazy gorgeous, and here was a huge concentration of it.

Candice and Marc--who was one of the craziest drivers I have ever ridden with.

Parts of this garden felt like we were in the middle of the jungle--and so we were!

I just LOVED the orchid section of the garden. I love orchids and fear trying to keep them alive in my Utah home. And here they are just growing out of the ground! wow. So gorgeous. They had a whole area dedicated to Orchids.

As always, Stampin' Up! spoiled the heck out of us! This is one of the pillow gifts we got-it was filled with treats. We also received Hawaiian sarongs, bags, and of course stamps!

SU had a "hospitality room" where we could see projects and enter drawings, plus "spin the wheel" of prizes every day. So fun!

Look who won an exclusive red 8-gig iPod engraven with the Stampin' Up! logo!! I can never again say "I never win anything"! I did not already have an iPod, so it was perfect for me to win this! 20 out of 400 people got these. Actually 3 out of 8 in my group won one of these! Lucky group!

Here we are at the SU event night! There was awesome food and entertainment, and hanging out with friends.

Cute little hula dancers entertained us

Crazy tiki dudes slightly frightened us...we had a great time hanging out with everyone.

Hawaiian wildlife:

Cute squeaking dolphins...

And their friends!!

All colors of fish to swim alongside you...

And sea turtles wandering onshore to say 'hi'.

After the Big Island trip was over, most of us went to Oahu and spent a few extra days. It was wonderful! One of the days we went to Waimea and swam in the pool below the waterfall. The picture doesn't seem too exciting, but believe me it was!

Behind the waterfall there was a tiny inlet like a little cave. If you were brave (and I was!) you could fight the waterfall and surge through it and then sit behind it and see the waterfall from behind. SO AWESOME!

Me, Melanie and Sherri--Posing by the Waimea scenery! :) Deborah, Mindy and Candice were all on Oahu too--doing other things that day.

One day we drove all around Oahu and saw the sights. You can't see it super well but this is the "blowhole" where the ocean splashes up from below the rock and sprays out a hole on the rocky shelf. It's nifty.

We stopped to hang out at Lanikai beach--just as it kind of got windy. First we stopped at Ted's Bakery and got some yummies. John chose to enjoy his on the beach. Anytime is a good time for eclairs.