Happy Birthday...post #2

Here is Miss Kawehi...on her 8th B'day--TODAY!!

Her favorite gift..High School Musical School.....

Her favorite drink: Chocolate Milk for her special breakfast

Kawehi and her best friend JAG (her little brother)

Kawehi and her Daddy..her favorite person in the whole world!!

Daddy woke up early and made Little Princess her favorite breakfast...french toast, sausage, eggs and chocolate milk. Daddy goes to school on Thursday night so we decided to celebrate Kawehi's b'day in the morning.

Kawehi is so excited to get baptized! March 6 is the big day. G'ma Lewis is flying in to be here for her baptism, next Thursday and she cannot wait. She has been waiting for this special day for a long time. She has been preparing for this day for as long as I can remember. She is such a sweet little girl. These are some of her favorites: her family, riding her scooter, bogie boarding, the color pink, playing her DS game, pizza, Disney Channel, reading, jump rope club, playing with her brother JAG, listening to music with her big sis, dancing, Hula. She is so fun to hang out with. She giggles in her sleep and is usually happy. Kawehi adds so much sunshine to our family. She entered our family at the perfect time and she has been such a sweet blessing from day one. Happy Birthday, Sweet princess. We love you.

Happy Birthday.....Monkey Boy and Kawehi

Since my last post we have had 2 special birthdays for 2 special kids. Monkey Boy turned 12 on the 12th and Kawehi turns 8 today!! These are very special b'days for the kiddos. Monkey Boy receives the priesthood and Kawehi gets baptized. We have been busy with b'day celebrations and interviews with the Bishop, preparing for baptism, preparing to receive the priesthood, holding Family Home Evenings about these special occasions, memorizing Articles of Faith to graduate from Primary etc. etc. SO BUSY!! But busy with GOOD things. We have been 'anxiously engaged' in learning and practicing gospel principals. I am so proud of these 2 kiddos for the decisions they are making to progress in the Gospel and to strengthen their testimonies. They are wonderful kids and they both add so much to our family. Here are some pictures to show their special day:

**To celebrate Monkey Boy's Birthday we took the family to an Idaho Steelheads (hockey) game. The kids' school had a special 'Family Night' package and it happened to be on his b'day so we took advantage of it. We each got a hot dog, chips & a drink with our ticket. Not too bad. We had a lot of fun....but I must admit I enjoy football or basketball over hockey. Of course the boys loved it because of the fighting..heehee

Kawehi, Courtney (best friend of Pineapple Princess) and Pineapple Princess
Daddy, TCIG and JAG lovin' the game

The group...JAG was upset about something

Monkey Boy and his best friend D.N. (despite the look on Monkey Boy's face--he really did have a great time. We have the hardest time getting him to smile)

There is my happy Monkey Boy, sitting in a chair made of hockey sticks.

Monkey boy is such a fun guy. He has a 'low-key' personality. He doesnt' need much to be happy. He is super funny, super laid back and will do what he can to help out. He loves his family. He is excited to be a Deacon. He is a happy boy even though most of the time he doesn't smile. I cannot believe he is 12 already. Time flies. Sometimes I don't like it. But I have to accept it. We love you so much, Monkey Boy. Thank you for being in our family.

**Since I can't figure out how to upload more than 5 or 6 pictures at a time I will have to upload Kawehi's pictures separately.

We are BACK!!!!!....

Hello...We are back! I have missed blogging...I cannot believe it has been 2 months since my last post. How time flies. It has been a busy 2 months. Our family has been very busy..and crazy!!! The kids and I left Hawaii on Dec. 10 and flew to California to stay with my brother and his family. We had tons of funs with the Lewis Family. Then we drove to Las Vegas to my mom and sister. Had tons of fun with them all in Vegas. I was reminded that what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas..heehee. We spent Christmas in Vegas and loved every minute of it. Kalani flew to Vegas on 12/21. I missed him so much. I was so glad to have our family back together. We got into Star on 12/28. It snowed the night we got home. WE LOVED IT. We missed the snow so much. We are happy campers now. Here is a recap of our lives:

• left Hawaii
• landed in California
• drove to Las Vegas (Nevada)
• drove through Utah
• arrived in Idaho
• OK--that is 5 states and one ocean
• Christmas and all the preparation for the holiday
• made yummy treats
• ate too many yummy treats
• celebrated birthdays
• celebrated the New Year in Idaho
• BSU won the Fiesta Bowl--love it
• enrolled 5 kids and 1 husband into school
• changing addresses
• waiting for mail to catch up to us
• looking for a job
• still looking for a job
• loving the snow and the cold
• just trying to get back into things and loving life

This is my 15 year old girl CS. I cannot believe how fast she is growing up. She got her hair done in Vegas and it made her look so grown up.
Here are the girls at the Kona Airport waiting for our flight. The Kona Airport is kind of old fashioned--you wait outside (under a rooftop) and then literally walk out onto the tarmac and climb the stairs into the airplane. My kids thought that was pretty funny.

JAG and Monkey Boy--looking so much alike, waiting at the airport.

All the kids with the candy leis, Dr. Fogel gave them. Thanks, Doctor!

TCIG doing what he does best....at the airport.....

at Grandma's....

Well that is a real quick snapshot of our lives. I am excited to be back in Idaho. We cannot wait to get into a routine. We cannot thank everyone enough that has helped us this last year. So many thank you's, so much love to give. Thank You or what they say in Hawaii..Mahalo.

.....10 YEARS!!!

I am at work so I cannot add a picture to this post. However, I would be remorseful if I didn't put something up today. Kalani and I were married 10 years ago, today. It doesn't seem possible that it has been 10 years, already. These last 10 years have been full of everything from laughter, tragedy, stress, good times and hard times. But the thing that has been the fullest is love. I have never felt as loved and protected and safe as I have with my true heaven, Kalani (Kalani means Heaven). I have enjoyed every step of our journey--because we are traveling together. I love him with my entire heart and soul. It is a privelige for me to be his wife, friend and eternal companion. I thank you, Kalani for loving me and all of my 'quirkiness'. I adore you. I love you. I cannot wait to see what the next 10 years gives us. Happy Anniversary, love.

Cute girls in costumes....

Since we have lived here in Hawaii the girls have really been involved with their Polynesian dancing. There is just something about the dancing and chanting that makes me tear up and get a tight throat. When my girls dance I just become mesmerized. I am amazed at their ability to memorize and recite the chants. I am amazed at their beauty. I am amazed at their ability to move their arms, feet, hips and mouth at the same time--I don't know where that comes from because I can barely walk and talk at the same time. But since we are leaving in a few short weeks we wanted to get their pictures in the natural element of the island. We spent the day driving around looking for good picture taking spots. These pictures are just a sampling of our efforts. The ones below of Pineapple Princess show her in our favorite costume. This is the one she wears when she dances Tahitian. Kawehi and Pineapple have honored their dad with their dancing. Kalani's heart has been touched to have his beautiful daughters embrace his heritage. We are so blessed to be a part of this heritage. A heritage of beautiful traditions. A heritage where love, kindness and respect are weaved in lessons of everyday teachings and living. Aloha means hello, goodbye and love. What a wonderful word. A wonderful remembrance of how to be through out the day. Live Aloha.

A.L.O.H.A.=LOVE. LOVE=FAMILY. FAMILY=HAPPINESS.

"The Gift of an Ordinary Day"....

I recently saw the title of this post as the name of a new book that is out. I saw it in a real short review and it didn't give much detail about what the book is about. But I cannot get the title out of my head. It got me a thinkin'!!! How often do I thank my Heavenly Father for an "ordinary day"? NEVER. How many times do I think of my days that are ordinary as a gift? NEVER. How often am I frustrated about the everyday 'ordinary' stuff I have to do? ALWAYS!!! My eyes have been opened. I am going to make it a goal of mine to everyday be grateful for my ordinary life, my ordinary days.

Today is the perfect example. After school me and the kiddos worked on homework. TCIG made mac n'cheese for him and big sister, Pineapple Princess. Monkey boy warmed up Ravioli for him and the two little ones. (Yea, I am letting my secret out--we don't always have the most nutrious meals) We played a mean game of SKIPBO (love that game) and RUMMIKUB (love that game even more). Daddy is at school. So it was me and the 5 kiddos--just hangin' out. We were listening to music--I happen to be one of those 'cool' moms who actually like/love some of the same music my kids like so they are always sharing new songs with me. Then our favorite song came on.....In the Air Tonight by Phil Collins. We all love this totally awesome song. We know all the words by heart. If you haven't heard it or listened to it recently I dare you to go find it somewhere and listen to it. That song has the GREATEST drum solo. It doesn't even come up until almost the last part of the song but it is sooooo COOL. We all do 'air drum' and just let lose!! Even my JAG who is only 6 knows the song and does the air drum with us. As I sat there enjoying my ordinary day I couldn't help but think what an EXTRA-ordinary day it has been.

WHAT THE HEEBIE JEEBIES IS THAT?.....

Look at this UGLY thing.....This is a centepede!!! Isn't it gross???? Kalani found this thing...slithering out of the shower drain....We measured it and it was 6 inches long. This is the kind of things we see over here. We have seen cockroaches that measure almost that big as well!! Not everything is beautiful over here. Heehee.