A series of stories

There are several things I need to cover in this post. No one is grading this, so I'm just going to list and blurb because I'll WRITE HOW I WANT now that I'm out of college!

AYSO with an Ocean View

Okay, so I woke up and went to Grandma's Coffee show in Keokea. Man, I have tried to enjoy their coffee twice now and it is the only place in Maui that I've had an 'average' or 'below average' cup o' joe. I'm not kiddin'! Twice this week I've stopped and gotten a latte and then an almond milk latte and both times it tasted super burnt. The barista in me thinks that they aren't properly cleaning their machine or their pour is taking too long causing the burnt taste but- BUMMER its the coffee shop closest to the school and park that the dudes like. Their online reviews are RAVING too so I was surprised. Even though I don't love their coffee- the view is breathtaking and their baked goods are melt-in-your-mouth-crazy-good.  I had a chocolate chip-coconut-macadamia nut cookie. Yummmmyyyy for sure.
I read some of my books and enjoyed the beautiful view and met a nice older dude. We talked about the Waldorf school for a bit- he is "Father Christmas" at the school in December and his daughters went to elementary school there. He was a neat ol' guy.
Mid-morning I had to shoot over to Kula fields for the AYSO game. HOLY SMOKES! HOLY SMOKES! The most beautiful place to play soccer I've ever seen- especially for tikes! Man, absolutely beautiful- looking over the entire island, the park stares directly at the West Maui Moutains and has a full, breathtaking view of the ocean on either side of the mountains. Wow. Incredible- can't wait to post those pictures. I couldn't believe my eyes.
When I wasn't staring at the view, I was really excited to see the eldest son crush it on the field- he made a couple goals- he counted seven but I'm not sure about that :) I'm always happy to see kids running around learning the game no matter who wins. There are definitely some mad skills on their team.

CHICKEN-POX FREE! VACCINATION APPRECIATION SPA DAY!
After the game- I went down to Kahalui and Paia to take care of some bid-nizz.
A few days ago, the boys were talking about their vaccinations and the pain they ensued when receiving their chicken pox vaccination. Because they live in a time where that itchy-terrible experience is no longer necessary, they truly didn't understand the blessing of the vaccine. After they detailed how badly it hurt, I had to explain how awful actually getting the chicken pox was. I told them about how my mom made my brother and I sit in an oatmeal bath to help soothe the itchy spots and that made them (hilariously) jealous! "WHAT! You got to sit in oatmeal? WHY?!? What was that like?!?!" I then had to explain that the oatmeal was contained in a sock and helped to moisturize my skin making it less itchy. I flipped their pouts by suggesting that even though they won't ever have chicken pox, they could still have an oatmeal bath.
At this moment, the idea for Vaccine Appreciation Spa Day was born.
The night before, I had researched some masks that would be suitable for little kids. I found a recipe for a dark chocolate mask that would double as a delicious in-spa treat. The recipe was made with all their favorite things- equal parts honey, yogurt and cocoa powder- and I knew they wouldn't mind licking it from their lips (unlike some super weird mask recipes)
So, I went to Mana for some dutch cocoa and a cucumber (had to make cucumber water and some slices for their eyes). I was on the phone with my mama for a while when I was walking around the store and got thirsty for some kombucha. The friendly man at the deli counter where they pour the fresh ferments had a raw-chocolate sample ready for me as I walked up. I'd never had such delicious chocolate and after he told me it was made in house- I was fully convinced that I also needed a little bag of raw chocolates. MMmMMMmmMMMM
After getting twice as many things as I needed at the store, I got back to the house and started prepping the spa. The boys picked out some books and I mixed up their masks. We found a sock and filled it with oatmeal. They were totally stoked. I drew up a bath and sprinkled a bunch of lavender oil in it and threw in the sock. They hopped in and I handed them their cucumber waters. They ate their little sample cups of the chocolate and munched the cucumber slices and I covered their faces in dark chocolate and they were in heaven. In a total fit of giggles, they were covered in chocolate eating chocolate while in the tub. They only kept the cucumber slices on their eyes for a second (their mama got a hiiiiiilllllllllaaaaaaaarious picture) and I told them the instructions said I needed to read two stories before they could rinse the masks (the official measure of 15 mintutes) After the books they rinsed, hopped out and slathered on some coconut lotion their mom just finished making they radiant skin. It was a super fun day.

TWO PIZZA PARTIES IN TWO DAYS- life is GREAT
After work I called up my friend Anna and we went down to a pizza potluck. Apparently, this crew loves pizza just as much as I do and they have a standing weekly pizza party every single saturday- saaaaaaaweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet. They made a pizza oven in their back yard made mostly from recycled and repurposed materials. And they have lots of farmin' friends so the ingredients were spot on.
Turns out, Anna didn't know anyone there this week because there were only about 10 people there. They were super cool and weren't bothered when I walked up and said that we were just crashin' their party. We had some DANK pizza- one of the last ones had lilikoi jelly, starfruit, blueberries, honey and chocolate on it. There was lavender on one and fresh basil was growing all over the place. I'm definitely going to go again next week. There was a couple playing beautiful music and I talked to a few of the people about festivals that we were both (All Good 2012, Summercamp 2013) I really liked everyone I met there. Its so good to make some new friends.

MORNING SPA FOR DA NANNYGIRL
This morning I woke up and covered my own face in chocolate and filled my tub with hot water and sprinkled lavender in it. This spa morning had fewer giggles and a lot more relaxation. I read for a bit but I made the water so hot that it was making me a little dizzy so after about a half hour I really had to drain it and get out haha. It was really nice either way and it made my skin feel great.

PAIA WITH A PAL
This afternon I went to Paia with Anna. We went to Paia Bay Coffee to start the morning. Cher, the girl I met the first day I was here was working and we chatted for a bit. She just moved to Haiku (a town I've heard nothing but the greatest things about) and is teaching yoga up there. She gave me some information and we exchanged numbers. She seems really super cool so I hope we hang out sometime. We hung out there for a bit and met a very interesting character who chatted us up for quite a long time. Then, we checked out a lot of shops and had lunch at Cafe Mambo (http://www.cafemambomaui.com/) I got locally made super-food-veggie-burger fajitas which were out of this world. House made salsa, house made guac, ghost pepper hot sauce. Heavenly. We saw a lot of cool clothes but I'm not much of a new-clothes shopper so I didn't get anything. There was one (really expensive) bathing suit top that I really want to get when I have some more money but other than that- I'll just stick to second hand. We went to the beach and enjoyed some rays and some salty water before heading back upcountry.

WALDORF PAHHTY
This evening, there was a beginning of the year family picnic at the school. The music teacher is in an (awesome) band and they were playing. The campus is pretty large, so when I showed up I didn't know where to go but to follow the music. I followed it to a part of the campus I hadn't seen yet- and found a beautiful little valley/ampitheater with gardens surrounding it and a bunch of hippy parents and kids dancing on the tiers and the grassy floor of the valley. WOOWOWOWOWOWOW SOOO COOL! The smell of nasturium was wonderfully intoxicating and flowers I didn't identify bloomed all over too. OH MAN! Every time I go to this place, it just feels 'right'.
I met with a man who runs the teacher trainings on the island and we talked for a bit. I found out that although I can do my foundational teacher trainings there- I'll have to go to the mainland to get my specializations in Early Childhood- which will be a few years down the line anyway. GAHH. It feels so good to meet all these incredible people.

SUNSET
On my way home, I had to stop on the side of the road to soak in the sunset. Goodness. I've seen some beautiful sunsets in my time but the sun dropping over the West Maui Mountains into the ocean- golden sky, illuminated clouds. I couldn't stop smiling. I met some older dudes who live in Haiku who were riding around on a motorcycle. One of them had just moved here from Alaska and the other has lived here for 30 years. They were neat and I asked them to take my picture (I'd already snapped a million with just the landscape) but the camera didn't take it. I'm sure I'll see another equally beautiful sunset someday so I'm not too worried.

So, I've reached the bottom of my list. I'm pretty exhausted and I have work from 6-10 tomorrow then I'm hiking Iao Valley with my friend Kara before I work again from 5-8 so I must rest up!

Aloha Pumehana!

Betty