Ohana Music Together

My girls have always had a love for music. Whether it be on television, on the radio, or a CD in the car. Once they hear the music they can’t help but sing and dance along. That’s why we were very interested when we learned about a company called Music Together which has a local location right in Pearl City – Ohana Music Together.

Music Together is an internationally recognized early childhood music program for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, kindergarteners, and the adults who love them. First offered to the public in 1987, it pioneered the concept of a research-based, developmentally appropriate early childhood music curriculum that strongly emphasizes and facilitates adult involvement. – courtesy of Music Together

Ohana Music Together recently invited Kaila and I to participate in their music class with the school’s owner Becky Andrew. From the moment Becky contacted me I was very impressed with her warmness. When you walk into her class she is all smiles and very inviting which I really appreciated since Kaila and I were sitting in with a group that had already been together for 5 weeks. We were kind of like the new kids in school. And the fact that I had to wake Kaila up from her nap when we got there didn’t make things any easier on me.

The Music & Movement Class lasts for 45 minutes which I thought was the perfect amount of time since it takes Kaila a little while to warm up to people she doesn’t know. The classroom itself is a square carpeted room which allows for intimacy and security knowing that if your child got restless he/she can’t get very far. There’s also a “potty” room conveniently located.

During the class we were introduced to various types of music including one in Spanish. Each song was accompanied by body movements or props like scarves, balls, toy instruments, and stretchy bands. Kiana’s favorite activity was playing with the musical instruments. When Becky dumped out the box Kiana made a beeline for her favorite – the drums.

I was impressed by how many instruments there were to choose from with duplicates of most of them. I thought this was great since we all know how children this age can sometimes be very selective about which toy they’d like to play with. Having multiples of the same instrument ensures that there are no conflicts.

What I also noticed was that every single minute was used to it’s full advantage whether it was humming musical tones while cleaning up the toys or “blowing” the lights on and off during the wind-down time. In this class you pay for a full 45-minute class. Not a moment is wasted.

However, what I liked best about Ohana Music Together is their flexibility. They understand that not every child will engage with the songs in the same way and they are very open to letting kids play and learn at their own pace. The only thing that they ask is that the parent participate to show their children how much fun music and learning can be.

In the end, Kaila & I had a great time! Ohana Music Together gave us a new appreciation of music, tones, and melodies as well as an opportunity to get out of the house and participate in a playgroup like environment. It’s just what we needed to spend some quality time together!

Kaila & Becky Andrew

Ohana Music Together
941 Kamehameha Highway, Pearl City
2051 Young Street, Honolulu
$225 for (10) 45-minute classes
FREE trial class available

This post was written for Ohana Music Together who provided the complimentary class.

WW: Koi Pond

The Dole Plantation

This past weekend the girls and I decided to take a drive to Central Oahu to a little town called Wahiawa. If you travel north of this town you’ll come across the famous Dole Plantation which “originally operated as a fruit stand in 1950. Dole Plantation opened to the public as Hawaii’s “Pineapple Experience” in 1989 and today they welcome more than one million visitors a year.”

It started out as a beautiful sunny day and the girls were thrilled to be out of the house. When we got to the plantation we decided to first take a stroll through the Plantation Garden which is divided into 8 different areas – North Shore, Hibiscus, Lei, Native Species, Bromeliads, Irrigation, Ti Leaf, & Life on the Plantation. Here we saw some beautiful flowers and landscaping.

Dole Plantation is also home to the World’s Largest Maze according to the Guinness Book of World Records.

It usually takes 45 – 60 minutes to complete the entire thing and Kacie was determined to give it a try. However, going through the graveled maze with a stroller was not really my idea of fun so I gave Kacie 30 minutes to go through as much as she could. Luckily, they give you a little map (and I mean little) in case you get lost.

photo courtesy of Dole Plantation

Then we were off to ride the Pineapple Express. This 20-minute 2 mile ride takes you along actual pineapple fields as well as other fields like mango, papaya, sugar cane, and lychee. You’ll also see the actual equipment that was used during harvest season. There is a recorded narrative tour that explained the history of farming in Hawaii as well as some great tunes from Manoa DNA.

And what would a visit to Dole Plantation be without some Dole Whip with fresh pineapples?

You can also browse through the gift shop where you’ll find Hawaiian souvenirs, local food items, gift ideas, and more.

Kiana decided to get a bracelet with her name engraved on it.

Kacie wanted her name painted into a sign.

Kaila got a smiley-faced stuffed Pineapple.

It was a long day filled with rich Hawaiian history, good food (the teri-burgers were awesome!), beautiful scenery, and lots of fun for the girls. It’s a great place for the whole family!

WW: A Picnic Spot With A View

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