ONE: With a kitchen (and a sister-in-law who cooks for a living!), it’s easy to eat Paleo on Kauai.
THREE: The Costco near the airport is incredible. No crowds or lines -- even on weekends! -- and tons of great stuff you can’t get on the mainland. Plus: cheap(er) gas.
FOUR: Best sources of grassfed beef: The Chevron gas station convenience store at the Princeville Center (I kid you not) and the meat counter at Kojima Market in Kapa’a. But don’t go on Wednesdays or Sundays -- they’re closed.
FIVE: We weren’t able to consume four pounds of butter in one week, but as a family, we easily polished off four dozen eggs, twelve avocados, and countless coconuts and macadamia nuts.
SIX: The least attractive sights on Kauai are Hawaii's anti-meth posters.
SEVEN: Purple sweet potatoes are tasty (and pretty!), but take forever to cook in the oven. Microwave ‘em instead.
EIGHT: Kauai CrossFit is a fantastic place to get your WOD on. Want a challenging workout in a jaw-dropping setting alongside friendly, laid-back (but firebreathing) CrossFitters? Get in touch with Jerome.
NINE: When Big-O says he’s carsick and he’s gonna hurl, he’s not kidding.
TEN: I like the citrus-y, banana-y, pineapple-y taste of soursop, but the slimy texture is a turn-off.
ELEVEN: Wild roosters are everywhere: strip mall parking lots, the middle of the highway, behind restaurants, our front yard. And they don’t limit their crowing to daybreak.
TWELVE: Lil-O appears to be immune to bug bites. Everyone else in our family? Not so much.
THIRTEEN: I'm pretty sure Hawaii state law requires every radio station to play Jason Mraz's "I'm Yours" every hour, on the hour, in perpetuity.
FOURTEEN: Coconut M&Ms exist.
FIFTEEN: So do Macadamia Roca candies.
SIXTEEN: Favorite restaurant on the island: Bar Acuda in Hanalei.
SEVENTEEN: M can rip open coconuts open with her bare hands.
EIGHTEEN: Best hot tub snack: Beef jerky.
NINETEEN: This time, unlike our last couple of trips to Kauai, we didn’t snorkel, take a helicopter ride, hike to hidden beaches/waterfalls, or almost disappear off the side of a treacherous cliff.
TWENTY: But lounging around for a week with my insanely awesome family in an insanely awesome house with insanely awesome views and an insanely awesome pool was insanely awesome nonetheless.
Aloha!
