(play along, that’s my best Jaws soundtrack reenactment)

I wouldn’t be caught dead in these monstrous waves at Jaws, as I would surely DIE! But it was exciting to watch the pros go at it, being towed in by one jet ski and rescued from the rocks by another. It was truly ah-mazing!

See all of my pics in my 365 Project

Yes I’ve been a tad down since returning back to Maui and it’s taken just a bit to get my island feet back steady on the rock.  In these times I start to question, “How long should we stay here?” I start to get antsy and think to myself, and aloud to my hubby…”What about moving to… (enter a number of places here, including back to San Diego, to France, or to the Mountains to give snow life a try…hey we could take bets as to how long this beach chick could last in the snow…it may be fun!).  

I sometimes feel that I’ve gotten stumped in my growth. Like, we met our goal, we made it to Hawaii, now what’s next?  But I forget that we wanted to LIVE in Hawaii, not just move to Hawaii.  

So here’s to living, exploring and LOVING Hawaii.

And to a young boy falling madly deeply in love with the water and the waves. Yes, I’d say he’s ALL theirs…

(listen to the music if you can…it makes it)

I love…

1. That a bikini can and often does replace a bra (hmm…maybe that’s why they are scoopy)
2. That fast food is grabbing some poke and chop sticks at the grocery store (Foodland is my fave poke)
3. Many times a bath for my kids consists of taking a dip in the ocean…shhhh (they do get real baths too, I’m not that bad!)
4. People let you in when you are driving. Almost to a fault, they will totally do the opposite of the “rules” and wait to let you in. It rocks…and sometimes it doesn’t, like when I am behind the car that’s being so nice as to stop at a green light to let a car go….just to be nice..  
5. To go along with number 4, I love that they don’t rush you at a check out line. They ask how you are and really want to know. They talk story with you and it doesn’t matter if they have a line of people behind you. This is cool, unless, you are in line behind the people talking story, then it can be frustrating.  BUT it makes you stop, chill and take solace in knowing that it isn’t your fault that you HAD to take longer to run that errand. It slows you down, which can be really really nice.
6. That my doctor suggested exercise to battle any postpartum after I had my daughter…her words “Just throw on clothes and go! No one in Hawaii cares what you are wearing” And that, folks is why I moved to Hawaii…people just simply don’t care what the hell you are wearing! Ah, I feel so free!
7. That my neighbors drop off huge bags of mangoes at our door steps {mahalo auntie!}
8. That I am actually used to the smell of plumeria in my nose…it’s just the smell of Hawaii! I used to ooh and ahh over it when I’d deplane on a trip to Hawaii but now, it’s just how it is. Love that!
9. We do have seasons…whale watching season and jet ski/parasailing season. Who said we don’t have seasons?!
10. That we live in slippas (otherwise known as flip flops). I have a rainbow of slippas and love that NONE have heels! Hallelujah!
11. Our traffic is because of people pulling over to take a picture of either a whale, the sunset or themselves perched on a cliff overlooking Lanai (be careful folks!)
12. Speaking of Lanai, I LOVE that I have views of both Lanai and Molokai from my living room. Love that!
13. I love that you can get spam on rice or a taro pie at McDonalds
14. That they have unmanned stands on the side of the road selling fruits or bundles of flowers and they trust that you will leave money in the box that’s either sitting on the table or hung on a fence…and I choose to believe that everyone does pay.
15. I love that time stands still during sunsets in Maui. Seriously…people stop talking, stop walking, stop driving (see number 11) and actually get up from their dinner tables at restaurants to go and watch the sunset. It’s like a nice big collective inhale and exhale taken by everyone and the exact same time. ahhhhh….

It’s as if they are in technicolor or a backdrop in an old movie. They are magical and one of my favorite things about Maui.  We so often look to the gorgeous sea instead of the mountains.  Our windows all open up to ocean views, the ocean view rooms in hotels cost more. Restaurants all over look the sea.  But the mountains of Hawaii are glorious. Don’t forget to take them in too when you visit.  They will take your breath away!

Here I am writing again at night, with my son sleeping next to me. It’s horrible, but true.  I put him to sleep then sneak in the computer and blog.  My husband has been known to send me an email from the family room, saying “Get your butt out here” so that we can have alone, adult time.

But here I am the night before I leave for Blogher.  I leave tomorrow, Wednesday on a red-eye to Los Angeles where I’ll change planes at 5 a.m. (to me it will feel like 2 a.m., kill me now) and head off to the windy city, Chicago!

I am so extremely excited.

I have a little secret…it’s not really a secret but it is the cherry on my gigantic Blogher sundae…

While in Chicago I am going to see my sister and her husband and my NEPHEW!  He, my nephew, most likely will have no idea who I am.  He’s two and I last saw him a whole year ago.  But I know in no-time, we’ll be buds.

See, they live in Michigan.  A long long long ways from Hawaii.  And they were planning a family trip to Chicago and when I told them I was going to Blogher, they decided to make their family trip coincide with mine!  I love how this worked out!

I know that I am going to be extremely busy so that’s why I am staying with them, so I can at least have late night chats with my older sis and wake up to cutie pie Wynn.

So off to Blogher and Chicago and to all the excitement, I go! All alone, with really no one, “in real life” that I know going to this conference, and I yet I can’t wait to meet friends.  Friends that I know from a face on twitter or a keystroke on their blog.

I can’t wait to connect with new people AND see the person I’ve know my entire life, my sister, again.  What an adventure I am on!

Let’s learn a bit more about Justyn….

Your Name: Justyn LeDrew
Your company’s name: Go Natural Baby
Your URL: http://www.gonaturalbaby.com
Twitter name: @gonaturalbaby
Have a facebook page? Go Natural Baby+ Zah Organics: organic cotton children’s wear and soap Info | Facebook

Describe your product(s) In our line of certified organic cotton childrens wear, zah organics™, one of my fave’s is our signature kimono set. I love helping new parents get the best organic bedding, cribs, and clothes for their baby. It is fun to hear their excitement!

You are a woman entrepreneur…how did you get started, what made you take the plunge and go into biz on your own? I was inspired by my son’s birth to start my own business so that I could stay home with him while he was growing up- he is the inspiration for pretty much everything I do. It was also important to me to have the best products that I could manufacture because I wanted to do the least amount of harm to the earth and its people. My garments are certified organic from seed through the last stage of manufacturing. I also use a certified fair labor factory because  how the people who make the garments are treated is a priority in my business.

What would be your number 1 piece of advice to other women looking to start a business of their own? Hmm, great question. I think it depends on the kind of business someone wants to start. My two best pieces of advice would be do your homework (research the kind of business you want to start and make sure you understand what it will take to make it happen) and do something that you love!

Do you have kids? I have one seven year old boy- who is the light of my life!

If so, how do you balance working for yourself and family?
This has been a struggle for me as I am and have been a single parent.  My son is my priority so I work around his schedule for the most part and this will lead to working 6+ days a week and very late hours. This year I am trying not work weekends.

Let’s have fun…

What’s your favorite quote? “Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” Mary Oliver
What is one place you dream of traveling to? Alaska to see the glaciers.
What is one thing you never leave home without? My sunglasses (ironic since I live in Portland).

Let’s get crazy…
What is one daring thing you’d add to your bucket list?  (ie sky diving,  scuba diving, getting a tattoo etc etc)  Maybe you’ve already done it! Share!

I have done a lot of things that I have wanted to in my life and I feel so grateful for that. I would also  like to scuba dive with sharks.

Let’s get smart…
What are you reading right now? Living Universe by Duane Elgin
What is your fave book of all time?
I don’t have one! Here are a few: Edward Albee Plays, Pride and Prejudice, Who Dies?:An Investigation of Conscious Living and Conscious Dying, The Essential Rumi.

Head on over to Justyn’s shop, Go Natural Baby to check out all of her gorgeous goods!!  They are not only pleasing to the eye and touch but they are good for the earth and our kid’s future! Mahalo Justyn!!

graphics created by Stefanie from Bloggy Buttonz and Mommy’s Quiet Time

I am so excited to join the ranks of the awesome shows at MomTv (one of my blogher sponsors!!)!!

Starting August 4th at 8:30 EST, take a little break and instantly travel to Hawaii to chat with me on my new Momtv show, “The Hula Shake”.  I’ll feature some cool companies, chat with fellow bloggers and of course talk about living in Maui!

I’m not completely sure of how it will work, but it should be fun and a cool new adventure!  So be sure to tune in!

What: The Hula Shake

When: Tuesdays at 8:30 p.m. EST (2:30 p.m. Hawaii Time)

Where: MomTv

BLOGGERS! ADD YOUR LINK!

Every Monday (most Monday’s anyway…) I post The Hula Shake Around the Blogosphere Linky Love….with my new show, I’m planning on pulling stuff from that list to share with viewers, so be sure to add your links!

And The Hula Shake IS NOT only for reviews and giveaways and sales, no, I want to read your personal posts…you never, know I just might chat about your post on The Hula Shake show on MomTV!

COMPANIES! BE A SPONSOR FOR THE SHOW!

If you are interested in me showcasing your product through a review and/or giveaway on The Hula Shake show, I’d love to work with you!  Just drop me an email and put “Hula Shake Show Sponsor” in the subject line!

You can bring snacks or buy a snack pack when you buy your ticket for about $8 (which isn’t too bad considering it saves you having to run to the store and comes with a water, trail mix, fruit gummies, cheese and crackers, and some other goodies).

Along the ride, the conductor, shares stories and facts about Lahaina & Maui.  It’s a fun time for all ages but a grand slam for the keiki!  They will love feeling like they have been riding with Thomas and Friends!

Here’s a video with some pics and a cool video at the end showing the train letting off some steam…the kids love this!

Pricing…(you can also find coupons many times, in the touristy magazines found around town, at grocery stores and activity rentals centers)

They also have a dinner train once a week, on Thursdays

Buy your tickets online and save! www.sugarcanetrain.com

We were wondering where the cruise ships had been. Low and behold we woke up to this cruising in between our island (Maui) and our neighbor (Lanai). This is taken from my lanai (porch) with my iphone…pretty cool…

But damn I need a Nikon! (and I’d so love to go to the Nikon Blogher party…wink, wink, shameless beg

Nikon do you hear me?!

Anyone wanna tweet this out for me? (multiple times? )

My son lives in boardshorts…they are a must-have here in Hawaii where you are either in a pool, at the beach or simply splashing outside in the sprinklers or dancing in an afternoon rain shower. Yes, he lives in boardshorts.  So I was super stoked when I found Haiden Surf. These sweet boardshorts for the little groms (that’s surfer talk for little boys/surfers) caught my eye – they are cool and REAL boardshorts, just like those that surfer Dad’s wear, but for little people.

We received these cool shorts for Cameron, my little grom, to check out. These are the Surfin’ USC Toddler Boardie” my brother will love that name…he’s a USC alumn.

Right away I liked the colors. They are cool, hip, not cutesy…afterall he is almost 5…”geesh mom!” …but they are still fun. They don’t have that mesh liner inside of them. Sometimes I like the liner in shorts and other times I don’t if it’s too tight. So no liner was cool. The fabric seems of good quality. And I think these suckers are gonna last for a while! I got the size 5T for Cameron – he’s about 36 pounds right now – and they are big – I had to pin them so that they were tight, so that should give you an idea on size. But this way he can wear these adorable boardies for longer! (yay!)

The first thing I looked for was to see if the drawstring was a real drawstring. You know, not just one that’s there to look like a drawstring – this is a major pet peeve of mine when it comes to boardshorts. I HATE shorts without a real drawstring. It’s such a tease, and then you realize the damn thing doesn’t really work and you find yourself at the beach with your son’s shorts falling down to his ankles {cover your eyes little girls!}.  Yeah, it’s a pet peeve of mine

Anyhow, I was excited to see that Haiden Surf’s boardshorts do have working, real drawstrings. Yay! Good job ladies! By the way…Haiden Surf was started by two moms from Southern California…two surfer moms…Here’s a bit more about them..

Haiden Surf was started in 2008 by, none other than two Southern California native surfer girls turned moms, who were tired of dressing their little men in boring beachwear. After some long brainstorming sessions, friends Katie and Alli — who have four boys between them (Haiden is Katie’s first born) — decided that if they can ride a long board, change a diaper and balance a checkbook at the same time, than they could totally take the boys’ surf wear industry by storm.

Haiden Surf is a cool store run by cool moms that make and sell cool stuff. Check out these undies…now, these are cool skivvies! And I love the slippas (flipflops). Oh and that lunch box…I just might need to get it!

Ok, seriously, I want it all!

Well guess what?! One Ohana Mama reader is going to win a pair of boardies for their little grom!

GIVEAWAY!

How to enter:

Surf on over to check out the ultra cool and sick (again, that’s a good thing) finds at Haiden Surf. Come back and leave a comment with which boardie you’d want to win.

Extra Entries

• Subscribe to The Ohana Mama
• Grab my button
• Tweet it!  Multiple tweets encouraged…leave a comment for each tweet.  You can simply copy this: Super Epic Haiden Surf Boardshort Giveaway Happening Now at The Ohana Mama Surf on Over! http://tinyurl.com/mdbp7j
• Blog about it – include a link to The Ohana Mama and to Haiden Surf

Deadline: Ends July 31st at 11:59 p.m.
US only