Unless you guys are sailors with a bit of experience, I would not recommend the CA to HI and return for a
newbie, or with a new-to-them boat. Do some coastal cruising first, before you strike off for
offshore.
FWIW, I've done the trip from Hi to CA twice, once on a 30 footer, the next on a 36. The first few days working one's way north out of
Kauai to get around the pacific high are hard on the
wind in the NW
trade winds. If you know about it before hand, and are prepared, it's not terrible or anything, but it killed our
autopilot on the first trip. So it's not just the sailing, it's wear and tear on the boat during the
passage. This is normal. However, IMO, it's best to have everything good when you start--no known flaws--and it takes coastal sailing time to find flaws and fix up stuff.
Ann