Joy in the Journey

Kona Day 3

Friday morning began with a delicious buffet breakfast on the shores of the island! We had to help Pappa carb load for his big race!

Yummy!!!

Isn't that just the sweetest little dimple filled face you've ever laid eyes on!

After breakfast, the Moore clan headed to off road and explore "Green Beach", the Ironman and Mrs. Ironman relaxed in the hotel and the Gorins and the Lloyds discovered a new, beautiful beach!

Aloha!! This little guy is an Hawaiian babe magnet...

Sooo beautiful...

After a short 15 minute drive, we came upon our hot spot for the day!

These precious ones are admiring their glorious play area for the day...

Such a beatiful beach...snorkeling, jumping waves, sand castles and relaxing on the sand.

Love this beach girly!

John and Jeremy actually decided to take Sadie and Jackson on an off-roading experience up a huge mountain nearby. So Bella, Linz and I relaxed on the quiet beach together and soaked up Vitamin D together. =)

Curls love salty, sandy beach weather...

Bella got a joy-ride in the awesome "Banana" back to the hotel!

Headed to dinner on the dock! These girls love their Auntie!

Boo loves her Aunt Linny...

And I love this sweet girl...

A big hug and a big smile while enjoying the pre-race meal together...

Mrs. Ironman with my Boo...

Off to take one last look at the waters before heading to bed!

We said good-night to Pappa...then headed off to find some ice cream!

We found it! YUMMY!

Kona Day 2

Thursday morning, I went for a jog with my mom and Jackson while Jeremy and Bella watched the sunrise over the beach horizon. When we returned, we watched my dad take a little swim in the "sacred waters."

Such an honor to swim here...so many triathletes only dream of being able to wet their toes in this water!

Our little family of four went for a little exploration drive later that morning...

We found such beautiful beaches...

Such pretty landscapes...

We went a little off roading/walking on some lava rock...

There is lava rock all over this side of the island along the coast. Jackson and Jeremy ventured out...

Then, of course Jeremy went a little farther...

It's definitely an interesting beauty on this side of the island...lava rock everywhere that drop off to gorgeous coastal beaches...

Jackson loved every minute of throwing lava rocks...

After our family adventure we returned and met everyone at "White Sand Beach"...

Look at the water! And this picture doesn't even begin to capture the true beauty...the shades of blue are amazing!

We snorkeled, swam, build sand castles and even got to chase a sea turtle in the water!

Dad had is Ironman dinner with mom, so us kids found a local Sushi restaurant! Needless to say the time change was a bit of a challenge for this sweet girl...she konked out before dinner even started.

Day 1 in Kona

Good morning Kona!

Due to the 6 hour time change, our kiddos were ready to start their first day in Hawaii at 3:30am...we figured if we could just make it to the 5's then we could venture out for a family run! So, about 4:40am we headed down the elevator and started on our way to an amazing family run along the coast.

We met up with the gang for muffins and coffee at a local shop...then took this pic in front of the famous official Ironman sign. All of the competitors names are written over the entire sign...my dad's name being smack dad in the center of the dot above the "m". Whoo-hoo!

After a nice breakfast, we spent our first day enjoying the accommodations at our hotel. Jackson quickly discovered his favorite activity which was sliding down the rocks into the pool with Pappa!

Bella and Sadie were off to splash and swim in the pool as well as our beautiful hotel beach area!

Sadie, Jackson and Bella...fun, fun!

After some afternoon naps, we headed out to a fun touristy beach dinner!

Bella takes it seriously her role as the "mother" of all the children...

Quick glimpse of the Ironman's prep pile...

And a second gorgeous sunset...

Sunset over our hotel...

Kona Here We Come!

Last Tuesday morning, the entire "Boyd" clan headed to Kona, Hawaii!! I'm going to do my best to blog about the highlights of our trip, although, it seems nearly impossible to truly capture every moment with a camera...and a camera doesn't near to justice for the beauty that we experienced. But, I will try my best!

My dad qualified last November at Ironman Florida to compete in the World Championship Ironman in Kona, Hawaii! HUGE accomplishment! For those of you who aren't familiar with triathlon...Ironman distance itself is a phenomenal achievement...just to complete it. The race is comprised of a 2.4 mile open water swim, 112 mile bike and finishes with a 26.2 marathon distance run. So, just to say that you completed an irnonman is a major, major big deal!! My dad began running in his early thirties and has loved the sport of long distance running the past couple decades. When Linz married John, he introduced us to the sport of triathlon. Linz, Jer, John and I had fun training for short distance sprints! In the fall of 2007, the four of us volunteered at the finish line of Ironman Florida, which was a super cool experience! We were in awe of the amazing athletes! We all knew in our guts that if my dad ever got a glimpse of what we saw, he would definitely be into that type of race! Well, needless to say, my dad competed in his first sprint distance triathlon soon after and volunteered the following year at the Ironman Florida race. He registered and completed his first Ironman in November 2009! HUGE...Awesome! We were all so proud and blown away that in one year he basically trained and did amazing! Well, from that race on my dad has been "addicted".....he loves it! So, he has continued to run but also mostly train and compete in triathlons. We all have watched the World Championship Ironman on TV...but honestly, everyone in their right mind knows that that sacred Hawaii race is only for extreme athletes...I mean it's awesome enough to complete an Ironman but to actually finish in the top 2 of your age group and qualify for Kona is like way off most peoples radar!...MOST people ;) Not so for my Champion Dad! He has set that as a goal now for 4 years and he qualified last November!! OF COURSE, my sisters and I made it a must that we would all save our pennies and make this a once in a life time trip to Hawaii as a family! SO...here is our journey!

Early Tuesday, we flew from Charlotte, North Carolina and met up with the family in Atlanta...

My kids did amazingly awesome! Snacks, games, snacks, projects, snacks, naps and more snacks was the key for us!

Then, this happy bunch was on our way to LA! So, if I haven't mentioned we had 3 sisters, 3 brother-in-laws, 1 Pappa, 1Mimi and 4 toddlers ages 3, 2, 1 &1. Party aka: Traveling Zoo!

Some nice long naps helped us on the long flight from LA to Kona, Hawaii

And we made it!! How fun! They just throw down the stairs and there we are! The entire airport is outdoors...Island living is the best...80 degrees year round!