Before I left Hawaii I decided that I needed to get a Lei!!! I bought this one for myself at the airport after my helicopter ride!
Thursday, January 31, 2008
My lei
Before I left Hawaii I decided that I needed to get a Lei!!! I bought this one for myself at the airport after my helicopter ride!
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
the black sand beach
There's a turtle in the water!!
There's another one!!
Pretty shells in a coconut shell
I didn't go out very far when I tried snorkleing because this sign had me a little worried
This is the lagoon that was on the other side of the beach from the ocean. Isn't it beautiful!!
I just had to take a picture of the black sand on my feet because it kept sticking to them!!
I went on a little walk to take a picture of the people I went to the beach with. The lagoon is behind them
a little bit of information on the turtles at the beach
look at that goggle line on my forehead!!!
evidently there are pretty harsh consequences for removing sand from the beachesHelicopter Ride
We were getting ready t o ride on the helicopter in order to go see the lava
Me looking like I am flying the helicopter
This is the smoke we saw in the distance after we got up into the air
the view looking into the crater of the volcano that was erupting
a colapsed lava tube
The Lava flowing out of a lava tube
The slow moving lava engulfing a tree in flames
one of the Four Falls in Hilo
Me with everyone else that went on the helicopter ride
an ovehead shot of HiloAkaka Falls, Hawaii
Due to a request from my mom's best friend Janny I am including pictures from my trip to Hawaii
There were a lot of beautiful plants and waterfalls to see on our hike through Akaka Falls
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
The Price of Children
Something absolutely positive for a change. I have repeatedly seen the breakdown of the cost of raising a child, but this is the first time I have seen the rewards listed this way. It's nice. The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 to be $160,140.00 for a middle income family. Talk about sticker shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition. But $160,140.00 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into:
* $8,896.66 a year, or
* $741.38 a month, or
* $171.08 a week.
* That's a mere $24.24 a day!
* Just over a dollar an hour.
Still, you might think the best financial advice is "if you want to be 'rich', don't have children. Actually, it is just the opposite. What do you get for your $160,140?
* Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
* Glimpses of God every day.
* Giggles every night.
* More love than your heart can hold.
* Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
* Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
* A hand to hold, usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
* A partner for blowing bubbles, flying kites
* Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks
performed that day
For $160,140, you never have to grow up. You get to:
* finger-paint,
* carve pumpkins,
* play hide-and-seek,
* catch lightning bugs, and
* never stop believing in Santa Claus.
You have an excuse to:
* keep reading "The Adventures of Piglet and Pooh" ,
* watch Saturday morning cartoons,
*to to Disney movies, and
* wish upon a star.
You also get to:
* frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets, and collect:
* spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas,
* hand prints set in clay or Mother's Day, and
* cards with backward letters for Father's Day.
For $160,140, there is no bigger bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for:
* retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
* taking the training wheels off a bike,
* removing a splinter,
* filling a wading pool,
* coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and
* coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream
regardless. You get a front row seat to history to witness history:
* her first step,
* his first word,
* her first bra,
* his first date, and
* their first time behind the wheel.
You get to be immortal.
You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs called grandchildr en and great grandchildren in your obituary. You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match. In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have the power to:
* heal a boo-boo,
* scare away the monsters under the bed,
* patch a broken heart,
* police a slum ber party,
* ground them forever, and
* love them without limits...so that one day they, like you, will love without counting the cost.
That is quite a deal for the price! Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren!
Something absolutely positive for a change. I have repeatedly seen the breakdown of the cost of raising a child, but this is the first time I have seen the rewards listed this way. It's nice. The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 to be $160,140.00 for a middle income family. Talk about sticker shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition. But $160,140.00 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into:
* $8,896.66 a year, or
* $741.38 a month, or
* $171.08 a week.
* That's a mere $24.24 a day!
* Just over a dollar an hour.
Still, you might think the best financial advice is "if you want to be 'rich', don't have children. Actually, it is just the opposite. What do you get for your $160,140?
* Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
* Glimpses of God every day.
* Giggles every night.
* More love than your heart can hold.
* Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
* Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
* A hand to hold, usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
* A partner for blowing bubbles, flying kites
* Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks
performed that day
For $160,140, you never have to grow up. You get to:
* finger-paint,
* carve pumpkins,
* play hide-and-seek,
* catch lightning bugs, and
* never stop believing in Santa Claus.
You have an excuse to:
* keep reading "The Adventures of Piglet and Pooh" ,
* watch Saturday morning cartoons,
*to to Disney movies, and
* wish upon a star.
You also get to:
* frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets, and collect:
* spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas,
* hand prints set in clay or Mother's Day, and
* cards with backward letters for Father's Day.
For $160,140, there is no bigger bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for:
* retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
* taking the training wheels off a bike,
* removing a splinter,
* filling a wading pool,
* coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and
* coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream
regardless. You get a front row seat to history to witness history:
* her first step,
* his first word,
* her first bra,
* his first date, and
* their first time behind the wheel.
You get to be immortal.
You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs called grandchildr en and great grandchildren in your obituary. You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match. In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have the power to:
* heal a boo-boo,
* scare away the monsters under the bed,
* patch a broken heart,
* police a slum ber party,
* ground them forever, and
* love them without limits...so that one day they, like you, will love without counting the cost.
That is quite a deal for the price! Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren!
Sunday, January 13, 2008
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