We made it--PHEW!, says Zela

Today was a landmark…we left the orchard! We actually got into the car, went and had our first hot shower since we’ve been here, and then drove into Hilo. We had a day full of big adventure. We ate lunch at the outside counter of Island Naturals, the local natural food store. Then we went next door to Borders, and got Momma’s first coffee in many days. For our next stop, we strolled across the parking lot to Wal-Mart, the only big store on the island, where we picked up a few “essentials”, including sunglasses and Valentine card materials. On our way out, we stopped at the market tents, and found Sondraina, who I met last time I was here. The girls did a little shopping, and also got to pet Bella, the new puppy. When we were done, we took our craft materials down the street to the beach, and made our Valentines while we sat on the lava rocks overlooking the waves in Hilo Bay. This was definitely a highlight! As soon as we got back to the cabin, we were invited to join our hosts at Awana, which is a youth group at their church. In fact, we’re here right now, and the girls are playing with three other 3-4 year olds…and I’m online, yahoo! This will be an incredibly late night for the girls; maybe they won’t be up at 5:30 tomorrow morning (hey, one can hope, right?)