kid friendly | 24useablehours

I want to say that we are big adventurers.
That we are out there looking for all that is new and different.
But the truth is in Maui that is just not us.
There are things we find ourselves doing year after year that we come here. They have become our staples.

We started going to the Maui Ocean Center a few years ago. It is an aquarium that highlights the diverse sea life in Maui. It can easily be done in a morning and is very kid friendly. And thanks to Disney’s Octonauts my daughter knows more about random sea creatures than I do so she made a great tour guide. She even managed to wow some Australian tourists by rattling off the name of the Hawaii state fish, Humuhumunukunukuapua`a.

We then went to Aloha Mixed Plate, like we do every other day in Maui.

This is a low key, all outdoor, and reasonably priced place to eat breakfast, lunch or dinner on the island. They have a good happy hour daily from 2-6 and offer a daily drink special for $5.

I think we have had closes to everything on the menu. The most popular thing is the Mixed Plate which is always good. Yesterday we got the Chow Fun. This is a mix of well cooked noodles, pork, bean sprouts and green onions in a light sauce.

I got the teriyaki beef. All the plate lunches come with a side of macaroni salad and white rice. They are filling and around $9-$12.

Next door is the Old Lahaina Luau, which is one of the best luau’s on Maui. If you head to Aloha Mixed Plate at night you can listen to the music while you dine.

The longer warmer days heralding the spring can only mean one thing in my house …..rainbow popsicles. I started making these with my daughter last year and for her they are just short of magic. This is a simple project which is very kid friendly and always a big hit.

You will need:

Vanilla Pudding

Milk

Food Coloring

Bowls

Popsicle Forms or small plastic cups and popsicle sticks

Mix the pudding according to the directions. For the sake of my sanity and my daughters need for instant results, we typically use the instant boxed pudding. Although a homemade vanilla pudding would work as well.
Once the pudding has set up to a loose conistency, select the colors you would like to use and divide the pudding equally into smaller bowls. Mix a few drops of food coloring, I used 4 drops per bowl.
Once the colors are completely mixed in you can then start to layer them into your chosen popsicle form. I used these monster popsicle forms but we have also used small disposable plastic cups and popsicle sticks, which worked just as well.
Then put them into the freezer to set. For best results leave them in overnight, even when after dinner your child insists that they are “really ready to eat”.
Run them under a hot tap for a few seconds to release them from their form.
Take time to enjoy the small moments in life that go by so fast.