Today’s Hawaii Picture of the Day is my daughter Jordan leaping off the 5 meter platform at the Schofield Barracks swimming pool.

There are several military pools on the Oahu that we frequent; Hickam, Pearl Harbor and the Hale Koa among them. But, since my step-kids go to see their dad in Wahiawa on the weekends, Schofield’s pool is by far the most convenient for a Sunday afternoon. And with it being free for Active duty, and only a buck each for dependents, it’s an extremely cost effective way to let the kids have their fun.

Jasmine and I spend most of our time hanging out at the kiddie pool, while Jordan took on the diving boards, and Johnathan hung out in the shallows with one of his friends from school (who also happened to be there). Schofield also has a big slide at the pool, but unfortunately it wasn’t open today … no biggie we had fun anyway.

And, the real purpose of our trip (so mom could have a day all to herself) worked out very well too … she watched a movie and had a long nap … all around, it was a pretty happy mother’s day.

Aloha,
Todd

Today’s Hawaii Picture of the day is one of my favorite sights here in the Islands … a nice full rainbow.

This is one of the reasons I like to take my camera with me to work. I spend most of my time keeping up with the weather forecast, and briefing all the helicopter pilots. But, every now and then, I can’t resist the urge to stick my head out the door and grab a few pictures. I shot this picture with my Canon 20D and a 17mm Tokina lens. Normally, that’s plenty wide for they type of shots I take. But when it comes to rainbows, I sure do wish I had the Tokina 12-24mm.

Aloha til next time …

Todd

Whenever we don’t feel like cooking, we head on down to one of the many “drive-ins” here in Hawaii for a plate lunch. One of our favorites is the Loco Moco here in Ewa Beach.

Ironically, I don’t normally have the Loco Moco, which is rice with hamburger, gravy and an egg … but it is one of my wife’s favorites. I usually go for chicken katsu plate lunches.

While surfing the net for info to use this post, I actually found a website with coupons for the Loco Moco here in Ewa Beach … http://www.ecouponshawaii.com/detailed.aspx?nid=11&aid=249

If you’re in the area, and feeling a bit hungry, it’s worth checking out.

Aloha,
Todd

… well almost $4 a gallon anyway.

In case you can’t guess, my gas needle is nearly on empty, so I’m on my way to fill up today. Along with the pleasures of living in Hawaii, we do also endure the occasional bit of pain … gas prices definitely falling in that category.

Hawaii consistently has some of the highest gas prices in the country. Which is to be expected, if you think about it. We import our gas, just like pretty much everything else. It’s possible to save a little bit of money by getting gas on base (for those with an ID card), or at Costco … but, honestly it only saves a couple of cents a gallon.

Oh well, just another test of my theory about living here. For everything that I do, or that happens, I simply add the two words “in Hawaii” to the end, then reassess my feelings …

So, in this case, I suppose that paying almost $4 a gallon for gas In Hawaii is much better than paying that same price somewhere else.

Aloha til next time,
Todd

You know, I don’t think there’s anybody who appreciates living in Hawaii more than a 5 year old child at the beach. This is a picture of my step-daughter Jasmine concentrating on spelling her name correctly in the sand during our recent weekend visit to White Plains beach.

I say it’s the kids who appreciate the beach most, (and they do love it when we go), but now that I think about it, there’s probably not many ways that I’d rather spend a Sunday afternoon, than sitting in my chair at the beach with my camera … getting a tan and snapping pictures of my kids.

Life really is a Beach … if you let it be.

Aloha,
Todd

It’s been a little while since I’ve taken a Hawaii sunset picture. But since I was running a little late coming home today, and my camera was sitting in the seat next to me, I decided to walk around to the back yard and take a couple of quick pictures.

Admittedly, this wasn’t the most planned shot, but sometimes we have to work with what we have. A few nice palm trees, and a bright orange sky … works for me.

I hope you enjoy this Hawaii Picture of the Day.

Aloha til next time …
Todd

This is aerial shot of the Pride of Aloha Cruise ship pulling into Hilo Harbor. It was taken from the window of our C-26 as we were on our way over to the big Island of Hawaii for a day trip to Bradshaw Army Airfield.

Short cruises had been quite a popular activity here in the Islands. Unfortunately, it appears that this particular ship the Pride of Aloha is actually leaving Hawaii this week. Even with this departure, I know we still have ships docking in Honolulu Harbor on a pretty regular basis.

I haven’t done a lot of checking into it just yet, but I have promised my wife that I’ll take her on a Cruise Ship sometime before we leave Hawaii. Hopefully there’ll still be a few of these magnificent boats left in the Islands by that time.

Until then, I’ll just have to look at this Hawaii Picture of the Day and dream about kicking back on one of those deck chairs next to the pool.

Another one of the things that I’ve enjoyed about living here in Iroquois Point during my assignment here in Hawaii is that the elementary school is about a 5 minute walk from our house. The kids get up every morning, meet up with their friends and head off to Iroquois Point Elementary School.

My kids have attended this school for two years now, and we’ve been very happy with the teachers and staff. This is one of the better schools in our area … to the point that there are actually people who drive their kids onto Iroquois Point every day so their kids can attend IPES.

I’m not sure exactly when this school was built, but I’m assuming it’s been around for quite a few years. A few readers have requested pictures of the school. I couldn’t go on campus today (it’s the weekend, and I’d be tresspassing). But, here are a couple of quick snapshots (if I can get back again during school hours sometime to get permission I’ll try to post a few more from inside the school):

Ok, so today’s picture of the day doesn’t really have a lot to do with Hawaii …

But, I’ll be honest, I’ve had a couple of beers, and the cake and our friends is all I took pictures of today … it was my wife’s baby shower. Our new daughter will be here in August.

Anyhow, for those of you who like Winnie the Pooh, I hope you enjoy the picture. And tomorrow we’ll be back to normal, with another Hawaii Picture of the Day.

Aloha,
Todd

One of the most popular attractions on Oahu’s north shore, for tourists and Hawaii residents alike is Waimea Falls park. It’s got a great botanical garden, a couple of miles of trails, and of course the famous falls.

As you can see in the picture, you can even take a dip in the pool at the bottom of the falls to cool off after the 2 mile hike through the valley.

Visiting Waimea falls is certainly a great way to spend an afternoon. And if you bring your camera along, it’s quite possible you’ll come home with quite a few photo’s worthy of being the Hawaii Picture of the Day.

Aloha,
Todd