What I Ate... Breakfast and Dessert

Hey there! I'm glad you're back for more pics of all the yummies I ate while I was in Hawaii last month! Today we're here for the best parts of the day - breakfast and dessert!

Breakfast/brunch is probably my favorite meal of the day. Here at Moena Cafe, the Crab Benedict became a fave. Fave as in I came here twice and ordered the same thing! :)

Koko Head Cafe was another fabulous brunch spot (and also one where we actually remembered to take lots of photos.) They are known for their WonTon of the day (although I can't remember what the flavor was!) It's like an art!

We also ordered a fruit bruschetta. Oh my YUM! Appetizers for breakfast was such an intriguing concept to me! I LOVE IT! 

I opted for the Hawaiian Pancakes... They were so delicious, they didn't even need syrup! And they were so light and fluffy, it was almost like eating cake for breakfast (although I have been known to do that from time to time...)

But now, for the best stuff... Desserts... First let me share what we had at my Grandmother's 80th Birthday party. Along with a Guava Chiffon birthday cake, we had a dessert bar which included Mini Key Lime Tarts (right), Blueberry Cheesecakes (middle), Coconut Panna Cotta (left), a yummy Chocolate Cake, an Almond Tort, and Malasadas. Although, I feel like I'm forgetting one more... Yeah, we like our desserts, can you tell?

During one of our shopping outings, we made a quick pit stop at Il Gelato Hawaii where I had some Green Tea Gelato.

Do you remember my dessert post last month, where I proclaimed Tiramisu as one of my favorite desserts? I wasn't lying. Here we are at The Plumeria Beach House, where I tested out their Kona Coffee Tiramisu. It was served with Chocolate Macadamia Pistachio Biscotti - yum. 

Not my dessert, but beautiful isn't it? This is the Hawaiian Sorbet - Coconut and Mango, I believe...

At House Without a Key we had the Coconut Cake (which I forgot to photograph!) and the Dulce de Leche Cheesecake with Macadamia Cumble. So beautiful... but not too beautiful to devour!

And finally, this one tops it all...  The Tiramisu Cup from the Honolulu Coffee Company. Oh my goodness. What deliciousness this was. The perfect coffee break during our shopping outing. :)

Hope you've enjoyed sharing my yummy treats! I totally wish you could be there to share it in person! :)

What I Ate

I had full intentions of doing a What I Wore in Hawaii post for you, but it just never panned out. For starters, we were in Hawaii... and with all the excitement, I honestly forgot to take the pics. Secondly, we were in Hawaii... which means a lot of lazy days, and sometimes I was just too lazy to take pics. Plus, did I mention we were in Hawaii... which means we were eating a lot of delicious food, and it probably was a good idea not to take pics of what I wore. Haha. But really, even though we were in Hawaii, you didn't miss out on much because I just wore jeans and tops, which is my usual Jeans Friday attire. So instead, I've decided to share lots of yummy pics of the things we ate while on this trip.

Just a few notes, before we begin... I LOVE Japanese food and seafood - I know not everyone is a fan, so ignore this post if the sight of seafood makes you queasy... Come back tomorrow because I'm also a huge fan of breakfast foods and of course any kind of dessert :) If you're in the same boat as me, it's a good idea to have eaten something before you start reading because these photos will seriously get your tummy rumbling! :)

First up is this delicious Ikura Don from Hokkaido Ramen Santouka. Apparently, the restaurant is a chain from Japan? The added salmon in the traditional ikura don made this dish delish :)

Goma Tei is a favorite, and although the vegetable ramen isn't what I ordered, it was seriously yummy!

We ate lunch one afternoon at The Plumeria Beach House at The Kahala. I had the Baked Caesar Salad, which was so yummy. 

And the Chirashi Sushi looked delicious too!

We had dinner one night at Izakaya Tairyo and ordered the Harvest from the Sea and Mountain. Fun name for a meal :) I could have done with a little more Harvest from the Sea in our dish though...

  

We also ate lunch at House Without a Key at the Halekulani. I forgot to take a photo, but I had Joy's Special Sandwich (Alaskan King Crab Meat Salad, Avocado, and Bacon on Wheat Bread). I paired it with a Guava Smoothie. I can't even tell you how yummy it was! 

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We did eat at home one night. Lamb chops with mint rice. Yum! I said I wasn't hungry and asked for only one lollipop. It was so yummy, I think I ate five...

My last dinner was at Assagio - I am a huge fan of pasta! I ordered the Seafood Combination with garlic wine sauce, with no garlic. Haha. I didn't want to smell of garlic on the plane! Let me tell you, this seafood was delish! Are you checking out those giant pieces of calamari? I still have dreams of them :)

Be sure to come back tomorrow to see more eat from Hawaii. I'll be sharing all the delicious desserts I enjoyed! :)

A Special Birthday Surprise

Last month, my grandmother turned 80 and my aunt planned a fabulous birthday bash for her. One of the exciting things we got to do was fly out to Hawaii to surprise her! And what a surprise it was! Both my mom and I flew in on her actual birthday and popped out right before dinner. :) With my job transfer and all the health issues I had been having, I really don't think she expected that I would be there. Luckily, the arrangements for the trip were made way before all the crazy stuff in my life happened, otherwise, I'm really not sure that I would have been able to make it either.

Anyway, I'll be sharing some of the fun that we had during our trip - lots of yummy food and gorgeous views! But for now, here are the details for the card I made for my Grandma's 80th birthday!

Paper: Elegant Eggplant card stock, Watercolor Wonder DSP, Whisper White card stock, Vellum
Stamps: Flower Shop, Memorable Moments
Ink: Elegant Eggplant
Embellishments: Large Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Smoky Slate Chevron Ribbon
Tools: Banner Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals, Pansy Punch

What's Going On?

I'm terribly sorry. I really wish that I could get back to blogging regularly. Things have just not been right around here. :(

When was the last time we chatted? Boy, I feel like it has been forever... 

At the beginning of October, there were talks of an upcoming surgery. We weren't exactly sure what the timeline would be and how quickly things would evolve. Quite honestly, things have moved along quicker than I expected. I'll be heading in to surgery on Monday, followed by six weeks of recovery time. 

The last six weeks have been interesting, to say the least... I've been inundated with doctors visits and have been missing a lot of work. I just haven't been feeling myself - very weak, sore, tired, dizzy, emotional, the list goes on... I've been back to the hospital for more blood transfusions and have received iron infusions as well. It hasn't been fun, but at least we think I'm on the road to recovery.

I'm not sure what the next six weeks will be like - if I'll be able to do any crafting or blogging, or if I'll even want to... Of course, just in case I'm up for some crafting I've ordered myself some new goodies. :) It's good to be prepared.

This week, I'm trying to cram in some last minute posts... Some of the fun stuff that I had hoped to share last month. But you know, life happened, and now we're here getting ready for surgery... So, I'll be posting as much as I can this week.

And then I guess it'll be pretty quiet around here. :( I'll try to pop in when I can, but I can't promise anything. 

But for now, fun posts to keep you smiling :) See you tomorrow!

Currently...

Hello October! I'm so sorry that I've disappeared again! :( I was on vacation and didn't have a chance to finish up my posts when I returned. I've been dealing with some more health issues, which has kept us busy. I'm trying to get back to regular posts, (keep your fingers crossed!) so, here we go... Ready for a new edition of "Currently..."? Here's what's going on with me...

WATCHING: I just finished watching all the training videos for work. Haha. I guess that's not what most people consider entertainment :)

LISTENING: to the new Pentatonix album.  

Are you surprised?
I've also been enjoying listening to Hubby plink around on the ukulele I brought from Hawaii for my little brother. Hope he doesn't get too attached...

EATING: Delicious cookies and treats that I brought back from Hawaii. 

I'm especially enjoying the giant jar of cookies that my mom got me from Honolulu Cookie Company!

DRINKING: some yummy teas that I got while in Hawaii - Pineapple Black Tea and Strawberry Guava Tea :) YUM!

WEARING: some new dresses and lots of new baubles that I got in Hawaii. 
Are you sensing a pattern here?

MAKING: a mess! It looks like Hawaii exploded everywhere in our house (hmmm... I wonder why...?) I guess I need to clean up a bit!

PLANNING: for a possible upcoming surgery. Things are still kind of iffy right now, so we're not sure what will be happening in the near future.

TRYING: to decide if we should move or stay where we are a little bit longer. 

WANTING: a little more time to think and plan...

FEELING: a little nervous about the recent health issues I've been experiencing. 
I'm not thrilled about the idea of undergoing surgery or all the things that we have to think about to plan for this. 

ENJOYING: time with hubby and our pup :) I missed them while I was away! Plus, it's always so nice to have a warm puppy snuggle when you aren't feeling well :)