How a Hawaii Christmas vacation became a Hawaii move

While relaxing on the beach today, we enjoyed watching the Christmas vacationers revel in the warm sunshine and splash in the ocean.  It reminded us of  how our 2006 Christmas in Hawaii led to moving to Hawaii.  

Before that fateful Christmas, we had been coming to Hawaii more and more frequently to escape the unrelenting stress in our life. We always felt better the day after we arrived in Hawaii, our aches and pains would subside, and our energy would slowly return.  The sun felt like it had magical healing powers and the local food satisfied our deep hunger.  Before we knew it, we found ourselves sitting sadly at the airport waiting to board the plane back to our rat race life.  At the end of every vacation, we were determined to find fruits, fish and beef from Hawaii and to exercise every day.  But the freezing, rainy, grey days kept us huddled inside and we could never find a steady supply of the foods we could easily get in Hawaii. 

In 2006, we rented a condo in Hilo for the month of December and we discovered how wonderful and affordable living in Hilo could be.   That Christmas we decided that going back to the mainland after our Hawaii vacation was just too painful.  Having to return to the cold, the aches, the pains, and lose all the energy we had gained had become unthinkable.  The only way we were able to convince ourselves to get back on a plane to the mainland that year was our decision to move to Hawaii as soon as possible.  It took 10 months to make it happen, but we moved by Thanksgiving 2007.  

We are constantly surprised by the island’s incredible coastline, parks, beaches, towns, and historic sites.  There are so many varieties of trees, flowers, climates, and so many beautiful places to explore the island seems like a continent to us. We have never felt island fever and cannot imagine living anywhere else.

 We believe we made the best decision of our lives on that Christmas vacation in Hawaii. 

Every year since moving to Hawaii, we feel better, stronger, and happier.  We have lost weight, gotten fit, sleep better, and have more energy.  Every year we enjoy living on the island more and find more things to love about it.  Every day we feel blessed to be living on Hawaii Island.