The Ring

(Okay, so this is something that happened last summer but I was reminded of it and thought I'd blog about it for the sake of journaling.)

Rewind to September 2007. Emily had just been baptized and Matt and I were taking her with us on a trip to Hawaii. It was actually a trip that Matt--my stud of a husband--earned through work and the timing was perfect.

As soon as we got settled into our hotel we went to my favorite restaurant--The Cheesecake Factory. I know. It's crazy to go somewhere remote just to eat something I could find here but come on...it's The Cheesecake Factory...and it was walking distance from the hotel. Yeah, that's why we ate there.

We got to Oahu pretty late but our hunger overpowered our need for sleep. Poor Emily was falling asleep at the table while we waited for our check. But of course she was a great sport and tried her hardest to stay awake.

We did so many fun things while we were there. Matt and Emily went on a catamaran.

We went snorkeling (which I'm sorry to say to those that love snorkeling in Hawaii but it couldn't even hold a candle to the snorkeling Miles and I did a few months earlier in Bali. It was like we jumped onto the movie set of Finding Nemo. I know they don't have a set but work with me). We went to the Aloha Stadium (thanks Mary!) where I found my favorite skirt. Emily picked out a $4 plumeria ring with a single "diamond" in the middle.

We went on hikes,

visited Pearl Harbor,

the North Shore,

the Dole Plantation,

the Hawaii Temple in Laie,

and of course we spent a couple of days at the Polynesian Cultural Center which could be a whole post in and of itself.

We bought an Israel Kamakawiwo'ole CD there which we listened to on our drive along the coast back to our hotel. I always think of that when I hear it. This was one of those trips that was too short and I'm still longing for more. It was so fun to spend that time with Emily.

Now fast forward to August 2008. The prized plumeria ring which really was a little too big had been lost and found again and again. Each time we were so grateful to have found the one memorabilia that was the most important to Emily. She wore it always.

On our drive back from Utah we stopped at a hotel. Before checking out, the kids wanted to go swimming. I sat at a little table near the pool. After a few minutes I realized Emily was still wearing her ring in the water. Phew! Good thing I noticed before it slipped off into the water never to be found again.

We made it home safely. The following day was filled with laundry and unpacking. Early the next morning I woke up suddenly realizing I had left Emily's ring on the table near the pool at the hotel in Pendleton. No!!! Lost again and this time it was my fault! I knew I should have stuck it in my pocket. I immediately called the hotel and said a prayer of thanks when they told me they had found it. I'm sure they wondered what the big deal was when they looked at the slightly bent and tarnished ring. I asked them if they could mail it to us to which they responded that they would need to charge my credit card for the postage. Whatever. I pictured them wrapping it in a tissue and sticking it in an envelope. How much could that cost? A few days later I got a package roughly the size of a shoebox. Hello..it's a $4 ring! The postage... $11.75. And Emily hasn't worn the ring since.

At least we have the memories....