A pyromaniac's last stand

Happy New Year! Although, it's the eve still. Since fireworks will be banned starting from the new year...tomorrow...this was the boy's last hurrah to get their fireworks fix. You can pop fireworks from 9pm to 1am tonight and believe me, they will take full advantage of the 4 hours. They had sparklers, morning glories and little pop-pops and fountains. I'm sure they will be at it all. night. long. From my last check at 10:00pm, they were still going strong.



Meanwhile, we girls were inside with all the doors and windows tightly shut so as not to let in the stinky smoke! Chyler was a bit sleepy so we put out some sleeping bags and had a movie night. We watched her current favorite, Marmaduke. Sugar kept us company, or vice versa - he amused himself with a ribbon and the ties of the sleeping bags. Marmaduke was a mediocre movie at best but I really love that dog! He's so beautiful...one day, we'll have a dog. I can't wait for our fence to go up because I'm bound and determined to get a big dog. My dream dog? A Bullmastiff or a Great Dane. Great with kids and BIG. Perfecto!



Now...onto 2011! Have a great New Year's Eve and hopefully, a blessed and wonderful New Year!

Christmas Morning 2010

Merry Christmas everyone! Do you know difficult it was to get this picture taken? I am not too proud to admit that I held presents as ransom for this picture. (Moms have to do what they have to do!)

The kiddos got up at a decent 8:00am this morning. Running upstairs, they were thrilled that Santa came! And they got presents not lumps of coal! Austen was especially pleased that Santa took the time to read the books he left out. Brennen saw that Santa ate most of the 2 Gingerbread Men he left out - except for the arm and one marshmallow! Everyone gathered around Dallen, who read Santa's letter out loud.

Dallen, Austen & Brennen raced through opening their presents while Chyler ate her way through her stocking. I'm not sure she gets the whole "presents" thing but she happily enjoyed everything she did finally open. As requested, Santa brought Dallen his Mindflex game, Austen his walking Iron Man robot, Brennen his remote control spider & Chyler her trunk of dress-up outfits.



Our family is so blessed to have so many wonderful members in our extended family, our friends & our ward. We're constantly surrounded by love and support. Truly thankful for all the Lord has provided for us. This season, we had an advent calendar added to our Christmas decoration collection and we were able to place a little more focus on the real meaning of Christmas as we sat together and opened a door of the calendar each night. The kids were excited about filling our manger with those who were there that blessed night. But, they are kids after all and they were also super excited about all the presents under our tree.

We hope that you had a wonderful Christmas too! Now, on to 2011!

Merry Christmas!

It's a couple of days before Christmas and our house is crazy! The kids are hyped up on candy and anticipation while on their winter break, all while spending entire days with me! I'm about to lose my mind with dealing with them AND trying to get everything together for the big day. Not only are my kids driving me cuckoo, but the traffic! Oh my! Today, it took me an hour and 15 minutes to get from home to preschool, which is probably about 5 miles away at the most - usually takes me 10-15 minutes to get there.

I have to keep reminding myself about the true meaning of Christmas and the joy that this season brings. That's what gets me through each day...it should and it does for the most part...but there are those times...

I finally got our Christmas cards out this week - a New Year card ran through my mind as I was running short on time. Tonight is our family get-together at my house which is only half cleaned. I guess I won't think about the half-clean house and the unwrapped gifts and the non-cooked food...yet. It's the early morning hours of Christmas Eve 2010. I should be doing something other than blogging but I have no more energy to do anymore cleaning.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas! Enjoy each moment!

Family Christmas card 2010:



Now, it's really Christmas Eve - nearly Christmas morning. The party is over and everyone went home. We had Kal-bi, Chicken, Tempura, a variety of salads and Aunty Bea's famous layered Jell-O. That is everyone's favorite!

Now, I've finished wrapping the final gifts, put the stockings out and filled them. Tonight, we didn't do any games or singing but we did decorate Gingerbread Men - everyone got to do one and more. Brennen has already eaten one of his. They opted to leave a Brennen-decorated one and an Austen-decorated one out for Santa...along with the obligatory milk. Plus, Austen put out a couple of books and a note that these items were for Santa. I'm sure he will enjoy all the goodies left in his behalf. Now, can I settle down for my long winter's nap??? Please??

Attention. Baseball has begun. Again.

Well, here we go again. I feel like most of my entries are about baseball. But this time, it's different because my baby boy is playing for the very first time! Today was only a scrimmage but it was his first time playing in a real game. Dallen was helping as catcher and it was SO nice to see him mentoring his little brother. Dallen showed real patience and maturity today - he helped willingly and patiently...Lad and I were really proud of our oldest today.

So, back to Brennen. These pictures are of him batting. In tee-ball, they get 3 chances at a coach pitched ball, then they hit off the tee. Brennen tried to hit off the pitch but ended up hitting off the tee...and he hit it! Yay Bren! You did it! There's Austen at first watching his brother hit. Yes, they are on the same team! And yes, Lad is coaching again.



Here's a video of him at bat. He's so cute!

Goodbye Tails

Tails & Sugar, the way they were...

Tails, our newest little kitty, died today. I noticed on Sunday that he started to bump into things when he was walking around - almost like he couldn't see. At first, I thought he was tired because he had just awoke from a nap and I didn't think too much of it. Plus, he seemed to be sleeping most of the day which is kind of normal for him.

On Monday, I noticed that he would walk the walls of the house - like he was using the walls as a guide to walk around. When he would get to a corner, he would bump into it, sit and stay there for awhile. Then, he would start again. If he got stuck, he would lie down in whatever place and position he could and sleep there. By this time, I knew that this behavior wasn't normal. So, I called the veterinarian and took him in on Tuesday morning. They ran tests because she first thought it may encephalitis or something that was making his brain swell. All his tests came back normal. She said that he could have meningitis or at worst, a brain lesion or tumor. We opted to treat him with steroids and antibiotics to see if he improved in the next day or two, which would suggest meningitis. Unfortunately, those medicines did not make any difference and by Thursday - he hadn't eaten since Sunday, I was force feeding him water through a syringe and he hadn't gone to the bathroom since coming home from the vet's office. I talked to the Vet again and she said that it was probably a brain tumor or disease and that past performing major medical intervention ($$$), there wasn't anything more that they could do. I decided to have the vet euthanize him Thursday afternoon. He was suffering and as his "primary caregiver", I needed to do what was best for him.

The kids, especially Dallen, were sad. They have asked if we can get another cat. While I'd love another one too, I'm hesitant because it was really difficult to go through this with Tails. But, for the short time he was with us, we completely enjoyed having Tails in our family. He endured the kids and Sugar. He had a lion's shaped face and now everytime I see a lion, I'll think of him.

The Night Before Christmas Alphabetland-style

It's Christmastime so it's time for the annual Alphabetland preschool Christmas show. This year, we have 2 little performers! They always hold the Christmas show at the Leeward Community College auditorium so there's a lot of people - I would be terrified to get on stage! To have little 2-4 year olds get up there and do their thing...very impressive!

Brennen's class did a recitation of portions of The Night Before Christmas story and the finale number "We Wish You a Merry Christmas". Chyler's 2 year old class did a song about Christmas Bells. Both sang a bit of their song while fiddling with their props but they got up there and performed! Good job guys! Of course, we were sitting in the way back row again so I couldn't get the best shots of them. Before we left for the show, they mugged for the camera!

Ward Christmas Party

Tonight was our ward's Christmas party. It was super fun and once again, the highlight was the play. Kehau wrote the play again this year - another great one! Way to go, Kehau! It was called "The Christmas Presence" and it was about these 3 presents thinking that they were the best thing about Christmas and then coming to realize the real meaning of Christmas. Dallen was one of the presents. He did a great job memorizing his part and delivering it on stage with enthusiasm! We were all so proud of him! He has a knack for drama (I see it everyday!) even though he gets nervous and doesn't think he does so well. Dallen, you did GREAT! You should be so proud of yourself!



Afterwards, they had a Santa's workshop where they kids could choose a recycled toy and take a picture with Santa. Since they were letting the kids go into the workshop in small groups, it was a mad dash to try to get all my kids into the room at the same time to take a group photo with Santa. Mission accomplished!

Happy Thanksgiving!

This year, we opted not to cook at home. It was the extended family's 2nd year doing this but our immediate family's first time joining them as last year we were in Kona for Thanksgiving. We went out to eat at Tsukiji's, a Japanese buffet of all things. So unconventionally, I ate loads of sushi for Thanksgiving! Which makes me happy yet unsatisfied at the same time. By the way, apparently these Japanese cooks don't know how to make turkey gravy without including a taste of curry in it. Y-U-C-K! For this special occasion, they included turkey and ham on their buffet line. Like always, I smothered my white meat turkey in gravy - THE BEST PART!! But, when I ate it...it was so yucky! The gravy completely ruined the turkey when it is supposed to make turkey all the more yummy! I was so disappointed. I couldn't eat it. I can't even describe the taste - it was really dark brown - with some sweetness to it and that curry taste. It was almost like weak curry that they decided would work on a turkey. It didn't.

Luckily, I bought my 22 pound turkey which is sitting in the freezer. I will roast it soon and will drown my white meat in edible and satisfying GRAVY! Yum, can't wait! I love turkey!



After lunch, we went home for a bit then the kids and I dragged Daddy to see Tangled! We all loved it and Daddy stayed up for most of it, I think. While we all love the Disney movies - it was extra exciting for Dallen and I because we are are big Chuck fans and 'Chuck' is the voice of Flynn Rider! It was a great movie - the animation is great, really beautiful but of course, the chameleon and the horse steal the show. Now all I hear in the van is I See The Light and I've Got a Dream over and over...the kids will have it no other way!

So, that was our Thanksgiving. One more holiday down...

Random pictures of Chyler to follow - not sure why, but she's cute so there's no reason necessary. :)

Uncle Masaya passed away today

Uncle Masaya passed away today. I was blessed to be at the hospital so I could say a final goodbye. Last week Tuesday, he fell while getting out of the car - Aunty thinks that he felt faint or got dizzy - anyway, he fell straight backwards hitting his head on the cement. He got a brain bleed from the impact. The really bad part of it was that he has a heart problem for which he takes blood thinners, but his brain bleed wouldn't stop and he needed a blood clotting medicine - but that would have affected his heart. So, for a week he stayed in the ICU hoping that everything would normalize on its own. This morning, he had a massive stroke and his blood pressure was dropping. Aunty and Eric kept him on blood pressure meds until everyone in the family could come by to say their goodbyes. Right before he passed, he opened his eyes a final time...I hope that he could see all of us there and feel of our love for him. He passed away peacefully at 1:30pm surrounded by his family.

I will always remember him as someone who was the most fun person to be around. When I was a kid, he would always play with me no matter what. He would toss me in the air, give me horsey rides, would let me jump from my Grandpa's mango tree into his arms. He was strong and active - loved the beach and picnics with the family. I remember him taking me to the beach and I would watch him swim laps at Ala Moana Beach. He was also the first to take me snorkeling. I went to Japan and Okinawa with he and Aunty Dorothy when I was 12 years old. I went through Christmas and New Years and even missed some school! It was a fun time - he showed me his hometown in Okinawa. We travelled up north in Japan to Takayama and had a snowball fight there. My first and only experience with snow. He was a World Ward II veteran for the Japanese military but spent most of his career as a cook for Flamingo. I remember going to the old Flamingo, which is now Restaurant Row, all the time - he used to serve me french fries and teri beef. I also got to go in the back where he showed me the kitchen and let me stand in the huge freezer. But, I think his true passion was for gardening. He could grow anything and he would grow it BIG! He was always modest about his vegetables and fruits saying it wasn't that good or big enough but they were, believe me! I'll miss his hearty laugh, his smile and the way he would always make you feel that you were the person he wanted to see most in the world.

Take care Uncle...until we see each other again.

My daily schedule by Dallen

Dallen had Cub Scouts tonight and I'm guessing they had to #1 - write a note to someone (so he wrote to me) and #2 - write their daily schedule. This is the result...just in case you need deciphering...I'm including his wonderous spelling because it's part of his charm.

6:00 watch tv

brush teeth 7:01

eat breakfest 7:20

sneak stuff 7:30

to the car by 7:39

walk up to class 7:50

survive school (till 2:00)

go home 2:00

2:10 sit on couch until mom tells homework

grumble 2:11

Do homework 2:20

watch TV 5:00

cub scouts (weds) 6:00

bath 7:00

sleep (repeat) 9:00

His view of his schedule is pretty accurate although I think grumbling happens more than he says - 2:11 thru 2:19?? I'll have to remind him of that!

Laie Temple Open House

The Laie Temple has been closed for renovations for nearly 2 years and it will re-open on November 22, 2010. Prior to its rededication, the church gave everyone the opportunity to tour the newly renovated temple. What a wonderful blessing for our family to be able to share this special event together!

For the last month, we've been trying to prepare the kids through our Family Home Evenings for our temple visit. We've talked about how special and sacred the temple is, we've talked about the rooms we would see, we've talked about how we should act in the temple...so my hope was that they wouldn't be running up the stairs or yelling trying to hear their echo. Let me just say that they did very well while in the temple - I was very proud of them!

We decided to go to the open house yesterday afternoon. It was a "long, long, long" trip according to the kids. And sometimes Laie does feel like a long way away to us too. But, if I've realized anything while the temple was closed and not accessible, was that it truly is a blessing to have a temple just a short drive away.

We got to the temple just as the HUGE tide of visitors was dying down - since it was the Veteran's Day holiday, it was understandable that it would be busy - but we heard that it was crazy busy earlier in the day! Whew! (for missing that!)

Each of our kids had a different experience, I think, which is a good thing and since they are all of different ages...it is expected. The open house tour starts with a 12 minute video where they share the reasons why the temple is such an integral part of our faith and also the history of the church here in the islands. Then, you get to walk through the temple with a tour guide.



Prior to going through the temple, a host mentioned no picture taking in the temple, no cell phones, etc...they also mentioned that there were cookies in the refreshment tent after the tour - Austen perked up at the prospect of getting to eat cookies. Oh, by the way...the cookies were SO GOOD according to my 4 cookie experts.

One thing that I'll treasure is watching my children experience the temple for the first time. Here's a bit of my observations:

Dallen, 9, was very attentive through the video presentation as well as through the temple tour. He listened closely as the guide explained each room. In one of the instruction rooms on the 2nd floor, as they were explaining the murals on the walls representing our lives here on earth, he leaned over and whispered, "Is the Celestial room on the third floor?" I nodded. He said, "Oh, I get it." He explained to me later what "he got" exactly and I was in awe of my son who understood that we need to work our way back to heaven in order to be with our Heavenly Father again. He was solemn, reverent, and interested throughout our visit. He told me later that the Celestial room was the nicest. I agree with him.

Austen, 6, walked reverently through the temple. He normally speaks loudly and likes to run and jump in order to get most places. But as we walked through the temple, he was as reverent as a Mother could want their 6-year-old boy to be. He tried out a chair in every room, sitting on each for a moment before getting up again. He did ask once how long more would we be in the temple because he was looking forward to the cookies.

Brennen, 4, walked through the temple - never running, jumping, or speaking loudly. Whew! As we were preparing for our temple visit, we reminded him that the temple is the Lord's house and that he lives there. So, Brennen was fully anticipating that he would see Jesus Christ there. In each room, he whispered to me - "I don't see Jesus Christ yet." I tried to explain, as I had prior to coming, that you can feel Jesus Christ in your heart while you are in the temple. But, through each room, he kept informing me that he didn't see Jesus yet. After our tour, he wasn't at all disappointed that he didn't actually SEE Jesus Christ. But I did notice as we were leaving the Temple Visitor's Center, he climbed onto the base of the Christus - to which I said, "Brennen, get down!" - and he quickly put his hand on the statue's foot. Then, he jumped down and ran to me saying, "I touched Jesus Christ!", smiled really big, and then ran outside like the 4-year-old boy he is. It really was a testimony to me of the love that our Savior has for the little children and of their innate knowledge of his love for them. My normally shy little boy really wanted to see Jesus Christ. He wanted to have some sort of physical connection to Jesus Christ and he finally found a way to do it. Thinking back on it, I have a greater understanding of just how wonderful and kind our Savior must be, where little children would flock to even his image in similitude. Oh, and later on Brennen mentioned to me that he "felt Jesus in his tummy." I think he meant in his heart but since he's so small, they are relatively close in proximity. :)



Chyler, 2, loved the Bride's room. She absolutely loved the mirrors and those lights. She kept touching the crystal on the lights of the vanity. She and I had a special moment as she looked at herself in the mirror with me behind her smoothing out her hair. She looked at me and I looked at her in the mirror and I realized that the day of her own marriage would come sooner than I think or would like, for that matter. I often wish my kids would "grow up" because little ones can be so demanding. I often say that I don't really think I'll miss this age. But, I'll probably miss this age, right?! I think that when they are off on their own with their own families, I'll miss having my own little family and having them here with me all the time. I'll miss the time where they'll see their Mommy as the most important person in their lives. As we continued to walk through, Chyler wanted to hold my hand...which she never likes to do. So we walked hand in hand through most of the tour - she only let go to try to pet the oxen in the baptistry.

I hope that through this experience, they will get a slight understanding of how sacred and special the temple is and that it truly is the house of God. I'm grateful that they got to see the place where Mommy and Daddy come each month when we say "we're going to the temple!" They'll remember the rooms that they saw and know that we leave them because doing the Lord's work is so important. I hope they remember that our family is sealed for eternity and that we'll be a family for eternity...if, like Dallen observed, we work to get back to our Father in Heaven. They may drive me nuts on a daily basis but I can't see myself without my family. As he said in the video presentation, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland could not envision heaven without his wife, without his children. It would not be heaven without them. It wouldn't be for me either.

More evidence we live in the sticks

If the cock-a-doodle-dooing all day & night is not enough, the scene just outside our backyard fence just proves my point...we live in the sticks. Okay, maybe not the BIG STICKS...but maybe, the little sticks...just a bit.

It's a daily occurrence that we see families of chickens - there are roosters aplenty...but as I was in the backyard today, I heard something run out from the brush of our neighbor's trees and bushes. It was a wild pig...actually, a boar. And like a dumb person, I ran into the house to get my camera to snap a picture. As I got closer (did I mention I was making dumb moves today?), it saw me and took off the same way it came. Luckily, it was the opposite way from our backyard and ME!

Better late than never. Right?

So, if you scroll down a bit...you can see Brennen sleeping with his pumpkin that he chose on his class field trip to the pumpkin patch. That was 2 weeks before Halloween so I told him that we needed to "serve" (as he put it) the pumpkin closer to Halloween because it will get rotten. And of course, for the bad Mommy I am (at times), Halloween came and went and the pumpkin still did not have a face.

So, this morning we both happened to get up early so I had a nice opportunity for one on one time with Brennen and we carved/served his pumpkin. He drew the face and took out the seeds. I used his pattern to cut the jack-o-lantern's face. He was so proud! And...he's so sweet...he didn't really care if Halloween was done already. He was just happy to do it!

Good job Brennen!

What do I do with excess spider rings from Halloween?

You know the ones. They come in the huge pack and you have at least half that pack left even though you have four kids and you made sure to stick a ring in their Halloween goodie bags that they shared with their classmates...



What to do? What to do? Well, you can give them to my cat who ignores his "traditional" cat toys for these cheap spider rings. He loves them! (For the record, he loves fast-ties too.) Ahh, if only kids were this easy!

Can you believe it's Halloween???

I can't but, it seems to be upon us! On Thursday, Alphabetland had their annual Halloween parade and mini-program. The whole school paraded into the chapel where they have their program and sang a few songs for their parents, family & friends. Super cute!



Both Brennen and Chyler were so proud to show me their artwork that was up on the wall. Not that they don't show me everyday when I pick them up, but today was special!



Tonight, our ward had a Halloween party. Since Halloween falls on Sunday this year, tonight was the only night for Trick-or-treating for our kids! They had a wonderful time. Don't you love how they coordinated their costumes with each other? They are, at present time, obsessed with Mario Brothers so Dallen and Austen decided to be the brothers and got Brennen to be Yoshi and Chyler to be Princess Peach. Brennen had originally wanted to be the Mushroom, but I convinced him that being Yoshi would be cuter. I don't think anyone would know what he was if he just had a red and white polka-dotted hat on with a beige vest. Chyler could care less about Mario Brothers but our Princess was thrilled with her PINK Princess dress.

You know what my only thought was as I was prepping for Halloween??! Thanksgiving and Christmas will be here before I know what hit me. Urgh! Already feeling kind of Scroogey...

(sigh)

Some random pictures I like...

This is a picture I took on our Kauai vacation. Typical Lad pose but Chyler thought that her Daddy was a lot more "cushiony" than the hard floor!



Brennen's preschool class went on a field trip to the Aloun Farm's Pumpkin Patch on the 21st and he got to pick out his very own pumpkin. He was thrilled and as you can see...really attached...even taking it to bed with him. Funny thing that night, he fell asleep on Chyler's bed and she in his...



Cats are great pets. They are very low maintenance and take care of their own grooming...but every once in awhile...when I'm feeling especially brave (or dumb), I give them a bath. Cats don't like water and never stop trying to get out! While Sugar has no front claws, Tails has them all so I got pretty ripped up from giving Tails a bath. And they are pretty ticked at me for #1, getting them wet and #2, snapping a very unflattering photo afterwards. (smile!)



Dallen loves gardening. While at the store, he does ask for normal things like candy or toys but whenever he sees seeds...never fails to ask to buy something for him to plant. One day at Wal-Mart, we purchased Manoa Lettuce seeds and he planted them on his own, took care of it on his own, and finally, harvested on his own. We had a nice baby Manoa lettuce salad for Family Home Evening tonight! Yay Dallen!

Our Kauai Hop!

School was on a break last week so we took a short trip to Kauai. We had a timeshare exchange to burn and although we couldn't stay the whole week, we did have a great time for the 4-1/2 days we were there. We stayed at the Hanalei Bay Resort. It reminds me of the Makaha Resort we stayed at during our last family reunion. The rooms were very spacious, the decor left something to be desired but overall, it was comfy. Lots of Kauai chickens all around and a Nene goose made his home outside on our lanai for about 2 days. That was "amazing", "wow", and "neat-o" until it started honking early in the morning. Yes, please go away...chicken "bokbokboks" are bad enough. Honking is worse.

On our first day, we got in a bit early so we headed towards Hanalei town - actually, we went through the town on our way to Haena. We explored the caves near the Hanalei Beach Park. One of the caves (or maybe it's a cavern, actually...part of a lava tube?) had water in it but it wasn't as deep as the dry one. The deep, hopefully dry one, was pitch black so I was really worried about my unsuspecting kids falling into water they didn't see coming. "DON'T RUN!!!!" Note to self: It's not a good thing to yell in a cave.



Our resort had beach access but the path was a LONG way down! What a trek down...and UP was a killer! The water was kind of choppy the whole time we were in Kauai but since my kids are primarily shore babies...they had a lot of fun!




While I'm sure there's a lot of fun things to do on Kauai - paddleboarding, ziplining, kayaking, ATV riding - those would probably not accomodate the under 10 set for the most part. So, we took them on a train ride. We visited the Kilohana Plantation. Not much there but they do have a train ride...imagine the Dole Plantation train ride...only with pigs.



On the train, we saw crops...obviously. Lots of different things being grown here - but in small amounts. There were also a few horses and some goats along the way. The highlight of the ride had to be the stop to feed the "wild" pigs. I'm not sure how wild pigs can be called in a pen getting fed hourly by tourists...but, I wouldn't want to chance it either. So, we stopped and fed the pigs. I think they are wild boars...but the guide called them pigs so I won't argue. The kids LOVED it! They gave them itty-bitty pieces of bread so as to stretch their fun out. I kept saying, "it's a big pig, he wants a bigger piece", but to no avail. The guide said that they found the pigs while clearing an area on the plantation, trapped them, then kept them in a pen. They started with 7 and they now have nearly 100. There's also a luau on the plantation every night. Hmmmm...



Next day, we took about an hour to find the Hanalei Pier. The Santa Monica Pier it is not...and I was so terrified that the kids would fall over the edge since there were no railings! "Stay in the middle" they did not. It was a beautiful day!



Last full day, we decided to take the ferry up the Wailua River to see the Fern Grotto. Lad thought it was a waste of money but hey, you need to go at least once in your life! Now, they don't let you go up into the grotto like I remember they did before. They built a platform and you can only see it from a distance. They said that after both Hurricane Iwa and Iniki, the ferns were decimated and they had a lot of rock slides. So, for safety reasons and to let nature regenerate, the grotto is only able to be viewed from the platform. It is still a nice place though!



We left on Thursday afternoon after a morning swim. The kiddos demanded that I take a picture of them in front of this mural-thing at the airport. Goodbye, Kauai!

Brennen's First Trophy EVER!!

Brennen's first season of soccer came to an end today. The Silver Bullets played a good last game. It's great at this age that they don't even understand winning and losing and are completely content to run around on the field, kick the ball a few times, and enjoy being "big boys".

These Bullet Boys enjoyed a potluck and then got their very first trophies and even a medal! Brennen was SO proud of himself. He was literally BEAMING with pride. Now, I know what that means!

Good job Brennen! We're so proud of you!

Backstratching 101 by Brennen

Here's how you do it...

It's our annual Labor Day picnic!

We had our annual Pearlridge Ward picnic today. Another fun one! Not as hot this year as there was cloud coverage...no bad weather...just some nice clouds floating around.

The kiddos hit the beach with their friends before lunch. They had a blast - water babies. I have water babies. Or sand babies. Or maybe it's shore babies. Whatever! They love the beach!



This year, like last, they were just SALIVATING to go fishing! This year, the ward provided bamboo poles for all the kids to fish. So after lunch, they hit the really dirty canal to fish for even dirtier fish. But, they don't care right?!



Unfortunately, no fish were caught. I think the fish were too smart this year. They kept on stealing bait. I know my boys were a bit frustrated for the lack of results but they did have a good time. They want to go again...and soon! Any dirty canal will do!

Dallen's 1st pitching experience

Dallen had a baseball game today. It was the bottom of the 9th with his team, the Orioles, winning. There was 1 out when Orioles Coach Brian Sekiguchi made a walk to the pitcher's mound. He called Dallen in from centerfield and handed him the ball. Dallen was flabbergasted. I could see his look of disbelief all the way from my seat in the stands. But, he was a trooper and started taking his warm-up pitches.

Now, picture large, arching rainbows from the pitcher's mound to homeplate and you will be able to see a Dallen pitch. (insert BIG smile here)

I was super nervous for him because he had never pitched before. His first pitch, the batter must have been severely befuddled because he took a swing and completely missed the ball. Strike 1. Second pitch - another swing and a miss, strike 2. Oh boy! Next pitch, ball. Final pitch for this batter, swing...HIT...pop-up to the second baseman. OUT! 2 outs! Yay!

By now, I'm completely out of nails to bite.

Next batter. Pitch 1 - swing, miss, strike 1. Pitch 2 - huge swing, popped WAY up between second base and center...oh no, it's going to fall...great diving catch by the centerfielder!! Out 3, game over! Yay!

Whew!! I asked Dallen how he felt about pitching. He said he was really nervous. Apparently, he has never even practiced pitching! He couldn't believe his coach was putting him on the mound. But, he did it - he was a trooper in a very difficult situation and he did his best.

Very proud of you, son!

Austen's last game...finally, some relief!

Austen's tee-ball season is done for now. He got a trophy for his efforts - doesn't he look thrilled? He, and his teammates, were so over the trophy ceremony because there was a big waterslide for them to enjoy. Congratulations Austen! Another great season! Now, Mommy can relax just a bit. Brennen and Dallen end their seasons in a couple of weeks! Yay!



That is Coach Daddy and Coach Sonny - Austen's friend Casey Tabula's Daddy.

We have a new baby!

Luckily, it's of the feline variety!

So, I found myself at the beginning of a 4 day weekend with the kids on Friday, August 20th. What to do, what to do?? I decided to take them to the Humane Society to look at the animals. We saw rabbits, guinea pigs, turtles, dogs but all of their eyes lit up when they saw the Cat House. We spent most of our time there going from room to room. When we got to the kitten room, we saw him!

He was 3-month-old replica of Sugar! I spent a lot of time looking at him. Observing him. He was friendly and playful. He didn't seem scared of the other cats or the people coming in and out. And I don't know what happened but the next thing I knew, I was sitting with the adoption worker and filling out paperwork.

I really don't know how that happened!



Sugar is our mellow, friendly, curious cat - he is super sociable for a cat, I think. He immediately wanted to get to know the kitty. But compared to the kitten, Sugar is ginormous. So, when Sugar came around, he started to hiss. In my mind, I'm thinking that I have 30 days to change my mind if this relationship doesn't take a turn for the better! Eventually, with Sugar persisting, TAILS (named by the kids after Sonic the Hedgehog's friend and giving props to Tails' ring tail) started to come around. It was a relief to see that by the end of the day they were snuggling together, eating from the same bowl, and playing together.

Lad wasn't thrilled but allowed us to keep him. I tried to call him from the Humane Society so he could shoot down my thoughts of adoption, but I only got his voicemail...

He has more slanty eyes, which resemble a lion's eye shape. Although everything else is pure Sugar. He's white with the red flame tips. Our vet says that white and orange cats tend to be more mellow than cats of other colors. That is true so far. Tails allows the kids to carry him every which way, put him in box after box and never has hissed since that first encounter with Sugar. He came with shots, was fixed, is "pest" free and litter box trained. (I wish kids came that way too!) So far, so good...

I can't believe I've become a cat lady.

They will regret this one day...

...but by then, it will be too late! I already have these stashed safe and sound!

And just for the record, I did not make them do this. This was all them. :)

Tee-ball...still going!

Austen's Tee-Ball season is still going for a couple of more weeks. Despite spinning around in circles and making mounds of dirt piles, Austen is a good fielder and a great batter. Amazingly, he makes plays and swings the bat well. You would think that he'd either be dizzy from the spinning or preoccupied with the dirt that he wouldn't even see the ball coming. But he does and he enjoys it!

Brennen is playing SOCCER!

Brennen has been chomping at the bit to play sports. Any sport. Finally, after 4 long years of waiting he is able to play soccer.

He is a "Silver Bullet" in the U5 division. The way they set up the U5-ers is that they hold no weekday practices but practice drills a bit just before a game. They have 12 boys on the team and split them 6 and 6 - agressive and non-agressive. After about 1/2 hr - 1 hr practice/warm-ups, they play a game. Needless to say, in the hot summer sun - it takes a lot out of the boys. All of them looked like wilted flowers despite lots of hydration. It was HOT!!

Brennen played 2 quarters and that was enough for him. He was pooped! But, he said he liked soccer and that he wants to do it again!

Yay Bren! We're proud of you!

Chuck E Cheese...just because

Today we went to Chuck E. Cheese's for no good reason. Isn't that the best reason??



Brennen is really infatuated (brave???) with these larger than life characters. He was actually looking around for Chuck E. Cheese so that he could give him a high five.

There are no pictures of Dallen. I have no idea where he was...he surfaced a couple of times but only to grab more tokens and could not be bothered about posing for a photo for his mother. Go figure!

Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

August 2, 2010 will be a milestone marker for our family - well, maybe mostly for me. Being at home with my kids non-stop for nearly 10 years has made me, well...a bit bonkers at times. Today, I went from 4 kids to 0 kids all in about an hour. Why? They all started school today!

Yay! (for me, mostly!)

Today was the first day of school for both Dallen and Austen, who attend Alvah Scott Elementary. Today was also the first day of a new preschool year. A year which is seeing Chyler going to her first year of school! So, today was also the first day of school for Brennen and Chyler at Alphabetland Pearl City - Brennen is in the 4-year-old class and Chyler started in the 2-year-old class.

Here are the 2 preschoolers at their open house last Friday (picture at right) and there they are getting ready to hop in the car for their first day of school! (pictures on left)



While Brennen and Chyler were all smiles, Dallen & Austen were not as enthused. Despite the "short" summer break, they got up early and made their way to school this morning.



Lad dropped the older boys off and I was able to do the preschool run. Brennen loves school and has been in the 4-year-old class since June so I wasn't worried about him at all. Chyler, although we all felt she was SO ready for school, you never know how a little one will react to being left in a new environment with new people for the first time. I was anticipating some anxiety and/or crying or maybe even clinging. When we got there, Brennen proudly took his sister's hand and led her to her classroom.

We all walked in, put her water bottle on the shelf, put her bag in her cubby - I turned around and expected her to be hanging around near me. Instead, I saw her sitting on the floor with the class and didn't give me a second glance. I had to actually tap her on the shoulder, wave and say "goodbye". She waved and said "bye" back, then immediately turned her attention to her teacher.

While I'm grateful that she didn't pitch a fit or cling to my leg like my boys did upon their first days of preschool - a little bit would have made me feel like she actually needed me! Humpfgh! Well, I guess my girl is superbly independent and was SO ready to be rid of the boredom that was staying with me everyday. And at least I know that my boys truly are Momma's Boys.

No more diapers?

Brennen came home yesterday and told me his teacher told him that he needs to wear underwear to school. So, today we sent him to school in underwear with about 4 changes of clothes. Surprisingly, he came home with only 1 set of 'accident' clothes and had no further accidents at home. He does say he needs to go "shi-shi" every 10 minutes which sends him to the bathroom often. He did, on his own, go #2 in the toilet today too. Wow! Can I be cautiously optimistic that this will go well and he'll be a quick learner?? Pretty please???