A Peek into the Honeymoon: Kauai Food Edition

Last year when we went to Maui I had intended on writing a blog about all the places we went and the accessibility of each place. Well of course life got in my way and I completely forgot so I am writing one about our honeymoon! I found it very hard to research accessibility on the internet so hopefully this post will help ease the mind of some others planning a trip to Oahu or Kauai. This post is the first in a series because there is too much to put in one post! This is the FOOD post! Oh yeah, we ate really well on this vacation. And probably gained about 20 lbs each.

We will begin in beautiful Kauai! Since we had a huge traveling hiccup we arrived to Kauai a whole day late. Meaning we were checking in the next day at our hotel and we lost our room since they conveniently double booked the wheelchair accessible room with a roll in shower. But thank God I had my confirmation email that said roll in shower, so they put us in a room with a tub and shower bench but refunded us a night, free valet parking, and took our resort fees off. Saving us some serious cash and the room we used worked well enough.

Once we were settled in our room it was getting dark and we were starving so we walked to a shopping center the valet guys told us about. That was yet another adventure trying to find accessible paths in the complete darkness, haha. We found Poipu Shopping Village it was a very cute little place with all kinds of shops and restaurants. We settled on Poipu Tropical Burgers, oh man was it good! Especially after a whole day of airport food. I had the Bacon Guacamole Burger which was amazing. Delicious, I'm drooling just thinking about it. After stuffing our faces we went straight to bed so we could see all the sights of the island the next day.

We got up and ready bright and early for Waimea Canyon. Along the way we stopped for breakfast at Kalaheo Cafe & Coffee Company. I had cinnamon french toast and a latte, I can only imagine the calories but it was worth each sweet bite. I believe Jared ate some form of breakfast burrito that he licked the plate clean. I even tried it, even though it had one of my food enemies in it (eggs, yuk) Stuffed our faces again and hit the road.

Made our way up the canyon, it was breath taking. Totally lived up to the hype we read about. The canyon is known as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific. There was even an accessible bathroom at one of the look out points, which was nice since the latte had worked it's way through me. We made our way down the canyon and stopped at a road side fruit stand. Those really are the best part of Hawaii (all the islands), nothing compares to fresh pineapple. Went back to the hotel applied the sunscreen we forgot in the morning, big mistake.

Don't let the looks deceive you, it is great!

LUNCH TIME! Since our last suggestion from the valet guy was such a hit we headed to the Koloa Fish Market for lunch. Koloa is a cute little town near our hotel, we walked in and it was a raw fish market.... ew. We are NOT sushi people. We ran as fast as we could. In our sprint away from the raw fish we stubbled upon a Mexican food truck, we love Mexican food. Chalupas Food Truck (behind Old Koloa Town building). YUM YUM YUMMMMMM! I got the chicken burrito and Jared got the shrimp burrito. This was my favorite meal of the whole island! You must hit this place up if you are ever in Kauai.

We shopped around Koloa some more, picked up presents for family members. Made our way to the other side of the island found some more cute towns. Not sure where we ended up but our restaurant for dinner was terrible and I couldn't even tell you the name of it. Called it a night early because of the time difference late nights weren't an option. Plus we had to get up very early once again Grinds Cafe. It was okay, breakfast foods probably would have been a better choice than lunch but I wanted lunch.
to explore before we left for Oahu at 2pm. Our final meal was at

Our time in Kauai was very short and part of me wishes we had a couple more days to see more than just one side of the island but such is life. Now on Oahu is where we did some REALLY good eating! Look for my next post of Food of Oahu.

2011 Recap

2011, a year that I don't have many good things to say about. It has been a year of very uncomfortable change and heart breaking challenges. And from the sounds of it on Facebook I am not the only one who has struggled this year. I know most are ready to see an end to this year and the fresh start of a new year with endless possibilities. But to close out the year I decided to instead of dwelling on the negatives of the year I would write about the top 5 best things that happened this year...

Receiving a warm and fuzzy :)

5. Talking to the HOBY kids, it may seem like a small event to most. But these kids were my first large group listening to my story and the love that radiated from them was so empowering. I wish there was a way to bottle it up or carry them all in my pocket for whenever I need a quick pick me up. Not to mention all the Facebook love they give me, even today. I love you kids, thanks for being so awesome! I hope to make another appearance next year :)



4. The Dr. Drew Show, I mean honestly how could that not make the list right? This was a huge once in a life time experience that I am so thankful for. It opened doors in a huge way and helped me to pursue a passion of mine, talking to students about my accident. Not to mention I got to go to LA for free, that is pretty awesome itself.





3. After 5 long years I am out of litigation. I am done with all lawsuits and insurance battles that were pending. No more fear of a possible trail ahead and if you have never been in an on going lawsuit be thankful. It is awful, at any moment you may have to go meet with some jerk off lawyers who want to dissect the worst day of your life and somehow make it your fault so they don't have to pay you. Or pit you against someone you love very much. Oh it is just the worst and I can finally say I never have to deal with that side of my horrible accident ever again.

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2. Mr. Fackelman coming home. Although not completely out of the woods but just knowing that he was able to spend christmas with his family this year after years of watching his family miss him each holiday season brings me so much happiness. Also being able to have dinner with him and give him a big hug outside of a prison visiting room was pure bliss.








1. Finally the best thing to happen to me this year would be my boyfriend. (cheesy I know..) And although we started dating in 2010, this year our relationship really grew and became a relationship that I have dreamed of my entire life. For the first time my love life is perfect, never thought I would be able to say that. However, the absolute best part is him moving in. It was a difficult decision for me to make being that I am more traditional and never thought I would live in sin (as some would say haha). Ultimately I went with what my heart was saying and did what felt right. We have been living together for a few months now and life couldn't be better. I have never been so happy. It is amazing how God can provide in the most perfect way.

Goodbye 2011, I will not miss you and hope that 2012 is much kinder to me. I am in need of a good year,  it is about time I get a dang break along with my friends who also had a sucky year. After all the end of the world is coming ;) haha

FREE HUGS!

So very often I get asked what is the thing you miss most from when I was abled bodies (not as gracefully put, but that is the general idea). This question is always one of my favorites because for a second I feel like I have a chance to remind someone to be thankful for the ability they have. And well my answers always seem to be different, because honestly each day there seems to be something I miss more than another. My typical response is usually missing softball, walking up stairs, going to the bathroom. But after the last time I was asked this I took some time to really reflect on what I truly miss most and I think I have finally come up with the answer. That would be hugging, ugh I miss that connection so much. On a horrible day there is nothing like a long embrace from a loved one that melts away all the bad. Sure I can still give hugs and I do as much as possible. But once again it just isn't the same. To be able to fall into someone's arms when I feel like my whole world is crashing down is the prefect remedy to make that moment simple and easy. It is amazing to see how often people hug and all the different occasions. Meeting new people, reuniting with old friends, bad days, exciting days, saying hello, saying goodbye, and just about everything in between is an occasion that requires a hug. Each time these occasions happen I watch people hesitantly go in for a hug with me and of course a hug period is wonderful to me. However generally a hug for me is pretty awkward because people don't know if I am fragile or not sure how to stratal the wheelchair. Just take note in knowing that I love my hugs so don't be shy, just not too rough because I am a little fragile. I don't want to go on and on about this subject just a little food for thought. Another instance where I hope to open the eyes of some to how lucky they are to have what they have. I am one who is extremely happy for what I am blessed with but someday when I am back on my feet everyone better watch out. I will be a hugging machine :)

-also a little side note, it is said that a person needs that type of human contact a hug provides to feel loved and whole. So give someone you love a hug today.