Jolly Holiday

Even Cody and Kendo have allowed the Spirit of Christmas to shine forth from deep within their adorable furry bodies...

Try not to laugh....

     They'll take it personally...

          and they did it

               all

                    for

                        you...

It's a Jolly Holiday at our hale...stop on in.

The Christmas spirit is oozing forth in this place.

Hats are optional. 

Singing carols is not.



Carols in Paradise

Well, I think it just may be an official Christmas event.  Don your favorite winter hat, bring along a warmed up voice (or just wait until the mulled wine has warmed it for you), and lots of cheer and what do you have?  Our clan's 2nd Annual "Carols and Cocoa".

Last year, our 2nd Christmas in Paradise, I must admit that I not only had island fever, but I had officially reached the homesick stage.  So, what better way to get me to snap out of the "oh whoa is me" and gather a group of friends for an old style caroling party.  Yes, even in 85 degree weather, the same "Jingle Bells" and "I'm dreaming of a White Christmas" that y'all love to sing melts our hearts here.  We had a blast eating, laughing, and passing on the spirit of the season with our neighbors while sipping mulled wine and eating sugar cookies decked out with icing.  I think our tiny house was loaded to the max as we enjoyed sipping cocoa and devouring cookies with not only those who had caroled, but those who we caroled to.  My heart was filled with Christmas.  I didn't forget my homesickness, but I realized that I was surrounded by family...my military family.

This year, I am blessed that my parents decided that a Christmas Hawaiian style was just what they needed.  So, homesickness hasn't struck because I've got them right here. Each time they visit, I try to make sure that they get to spend time with those who have to put up with me.  I've had many of my closest friends depart the island within  months of each other, but I realize there are families who are carving a special place within our hearts.  I had debated a repeat of Carols & Cocoa, but thanks to the huge smile that came across my HS and LD's faces as we discussed having a Christmas party and the look of pleading with my HH's face (he missed it last year), Carols & Cocoa was reborn.

We had a fantastic evening.  Some faces that were part of our last year's event were missing (and trust me, we missed each one of them and wished they could be back in our hale this year), but in their place were new faces that have become part of our military family.  I wouldn't trade any of them for the world.  Thank you to each one who came out and lifted up their voices (as one neighbor said, it was as if angels were singing...yep...look for our CD due to come out next year around Christmas!).  Thank you for sharing in our new clan's family tradition!  We'll see y'all next year and add some new faces to the choir and reach further into the hood as we enjoy Mele Kalikimaka 2011!

Cherished Tradition

How I love when a class project truly makes the students reflect and then enjoy the process of writing.  It seems like every time I turn around, HS is flapping another project or paper requirement in front of my face.  This one, on family tradition, made his truly think about and cherish one of our most vital family traditions: The Advent Calendar that was passed to me from my mom and papa.

After developing his interview questions, speaking with my mom and myself, he wrote his paper and presented it to the class. 

HS, Grandma, PopPop, and LD before participating
in Cherished Tradition

     Each Christmas, I look forward to my mom bringing out "The Story of Christmas" with the advent calendar that we read from each night before dinner.  On of us lights the candle on the wreath, another open the advent calendar picture, and another reads the story out loud to everyone.  Once we are finished with the reading, our family says a prayer together before enjoying our dinner.  This book, calendar, and wreath were passed down to my mom years ago. 

     The way we read and sit around the table is the same as my mom enjoyed when she was a little girl.  My grandma, when my aunt was 7 and my mom was 3, found the book and calendar in Montana.  She wanted to have something that my mom and aunt would enjoy learning about the story of Christmas.  When I was two, my mom and dad were getting ready to move back to Japan.  Before we moved, my grandma gave my mom the wreath, book, and calendar.  She hoped my mom and dad would enjoy sharing with me the story of Jesus' birth.

     Each year, we enjoy time together around the glow of the Advent wreath.  It is a very special time for our family, not only because it celebrates God's greatest gift to us, but because we are using the same book my mom once learned to read from and loved to do as much as I do now.

I will forever be grateful that I am able to enjoy a cherished tradition with HS and LD. One day, years (and years...) from now, it will be my hope that they will sit with the glow from the advent candles lighting up their faces and see not only the story of Christmas unfold, but the faces of their family members who once sat together around the dinner table with joy, love, and the spirit of God in their hearts.

Cookies, Cupcakes, & Leis, Oh, MY!

LD loves to help me in the kitchen (thank goodness because when she's old enough, maybe I can convince her to tackle the dinner preparations every now and then) and is always somewhere around the kitchen...usually standing on her chair at the counter surrounded by all of her "supplies" for her latest dish.  So, when it came to planning her 3rd birthday, we thought no further than what we know she loves...baking.

We had a blast decorating cookies with some close friends.  All the kids were great sports about wearing their aprons (LD had one created by a friend from our Japan days and I adore it!).   They loved slathering their cookies with icing (thanks to Granma for making delish peppermint flavored frosting!) and loads of sprinkles, mini-chocolate chips, and other delectable delights.  Poor LD did have some temporary lapses into the wonderful world of being three...it is during moments like these that I can hear a booming theatrical voice say "it has begun."  Thankfully, her party included friends who have watched her "grow" into her diva skin of toddlerhood and could offer the reassurance I needed to know they'd come back to visit even after the party.

I was so happy to have mum and Papa here to help celebrate.  Mum helped decorate her cupcakes and we made them her favorite color, pink, in honor of her current love affair with "swa-bey-ye-cake" aka Strawberry Shortcake.  Admittedly, her favorite part of her birthday this year has been singing along with us and emphasizes the me in an operetta fashion that could easily land her a part in an Opera at the NY MET.  She is a little diva who loves to sing and I just can't get enough of hearing her singing voice.

An impromptu lei making class led by no other than DF H had all the ladies with a brand new beautiful yarn lei.  My mom loved it so much that by the end of making one, she was ready for diving into making 20+ for the ladies in her bible study.  We gained a lot from our lei making session.   One of the most important ones being just good ole fashioned gal time spent around a kitchen table after the aftermath of a birthday party. 

Note:  I'm pleased to report that mom did indeed succeed in making all of her leis and they were gorgeous!  She should indeed be proud of herself.  The ladies at the yarn shop recognized her instantly by the time she was finished and shared with her more ideas of future creations.  On the day I decided to totally change my lanai, she taught one of my neighborhood friend's how to do the yarn leis so, yes, DF, you have officially left a legacy of lei making behind. 

In Trying Moments, Don't Quit Trying

Exams have never been one of my strongest areas.  Especially when it came to school testing and those that required a great deal of memorization using coordination.  I'm not that coordinated so thankfully, HS did not inherit my sports phobia and uncanny skill ability.  This weekend, he tested for 3rd kyu in karate along with HH. 

 He went into the exam with a pensive and reserved demeanor, a huge dose of self-confidence and his own personal silent cheering squad (me, PopPop & Granma).  He left his shoes outside the dojo and bowed with respect as he stepped over the threshold.  He looked over at us, waved briefly, and then went into his exam induced trance.  For the next hour and half, he was in his element and we were all merely shadows during his kata and sparring.    I am proud of HS and HH.  I am even more thrilled when I can make it through the exam without fainting from holding my breath as they go through the initial phases of the exam.  Even with one small hiccup in his kata, HS kept his focus and did not stop and gloat because he knew that the "outstanding in kata" had now slipped through his fingers.  Instead, he rocked the rest of the kata and then gave it his all during the sparring portion. 

My favorite moments from this exam:

1.  Seeing the pride in my parents' faces as they watched their grandson go through a rather rigorous exam.

2.  Watching HS' determination during sparring.  I would not want to have to face the "mean" face he puts on when he's really going for the strike.

3.  Enjoying the look on HS's face as he free sparred with a black belt sensei who is Yoda only in giant form.  Priceless.

4.  Loving that HH squeezes in karate because he knows to take advantage of family time.  Even if that means your son is punching, kicking, or blocking your movements.





Sing with Your Heart

Eat your heart out Bing Crosby.

Watch out Justin Bieber.

There's a potential new star in town.

HS's Christmas program is always a little chaotic, extremely crowded, and akin to a stage performance with all the special effects, spotlights, and background music.  The K-3 classes dance and sing their hearts out to the rockin' beats that get all of us swaying, tapping our toes, and beaming with pride.  After two years of being crammed like a sardine into a church pew with a billion of my closest friends and not having a panic attack because I wasn't going to be able to take the "perfect" photo due to the parent's standing up in front of me in order to get their "perfect" photo, I wised up.  I headed to the afternoon rehearsal, enjoyed my seat in the pew where I could stretch my arm out without jamming someone in the face, and snapped away photos.  Then, when faced with the evening performance, I already knew where to be and gladly stood in the back...relaxed and totally enthralled with the show. 

I can't help but adore watching HS sing.  Let's face it, for me, it's a walk down memory lane and enjoying being up on stage singing my heart out for all who would listen (and even those who may not have wanted to but had to anyway).  God gave us a voice and I'm going to encourage HS to sing as long as I can.  As moms, we all have fears about what our children will face as they age.  One of the many of mine:  having HS pushed aside from singing too early because "boys don't sing."  or "singing is a waste of boy time".  Whatever.  The voice stays longer than a foot will keep kickin' and an arm will keep tossin'.

Note:  If I sound a little defensive in this post, I apologize.  However, he's been getting a "little" bit of a push to not want to sing by adults.  I'm on the bandwagon to halt that course!  I want nothing more than to see boys flourish, including my own dear HS, at whatever they may choose to enjoy in school activities.

Diva & The Suit

As we jump full throttle into the holiday spirit and into LD's third Christmas,  I pull out photos of Santa's past and place them around the piano.  There are photos of a very little HS proudly smiling and others with the entire clan surrounding a little LD with a tear trail down her chubby cheeks. I wonder how the Diva will handle the man in the big red suit this year.  HS has proven consistently his adventurous spirit and adoration for people.  LD has proven her feelings toward new experiences and new people as being filled with itty bitty teeny tiny little baby steps with the occasional high pitched scream and then all those itty steps turn into one big leap

backwards

and then she peers around my legs at the being and she slowly inches forward.

Santa.

I know I've wondered this before, but why on earth do we repeat the beloved ritual of placing a child on a big strange man's lap?  Never mind the fact that he is dressed from head to toe in bright red and you can't see his mouth because of a gigantic puffy beard (which they will only usually see once a year as they are turned towards the awaiting arms of "Santa") and little round spectacles that glisten and cast shadows on his eyes.  OK.  So I am describing something fairly frightening, but hey, if you were 2 you'd be thinking this only you wouldn't know how to describe it except to wail, claw, or kick your way away from "Santa."  I say this with a grin.  Each year, I can't wait to take the kids to see Santa.  I then go through stages that I can only equivocate to a panic/embarrassment attack as I try desperately to have HS tell Santa what he wants for Christmas as LD claws at my arms and yanks Santa's "beard" causing him to quickly shake the grimace from his face as he politely nods and responds to the eager face of HS.

So.  Here we go again.  I only hope that the bald spot LD left on Santa's chin has filled in for this round.

Only this year it's different.  It's as thought a major transformation has occurred.  Hope springs eternal that this will be the year.  The year of a happy Santa visit. 

I witnessed the first miraculous change shortly before Thanksgiving.  LD caught sight of Santa and the elves before we did.  She began to point, pull and scream out as we walk into the NEX:  "Mommmmmmmaaaa!  Loooook! It's Santa!  He's here, he's here!!!"  HS replies, "I haven't even had my turkey yet for Thanksgiving.  He's suppose to be at the North Pole.  He's early this year."  OK.  So I have one excited and one excited but not until his belly is swimming with turkey and pumpkin pie.

Miracle #2....I am desperately trying to get ready for my parent's visit to paradise.  The fridge is empty.  Where does my daughter pull my arm almost out of socket to get into?  The NEX.  She protests as I place her into the grocery cart.  What does she want so badly at the NEX?    Oh, yeah...that would be to see Santa.  "But momma...he's here! He needs to see me."  Problem.  I do not have HS with us.  I can't take her without taking him so I quickly calculate my response using PopPop as leverage..."darlin' why don't we wait to see him...with PopPop."  She peers up at me with huge wondering eyes that seem to search my face to see if I really will uphold my end of the bargain..."Ok.  I see Santa with PopPop." 

Miracle #3...LD spends the next week and a half after her first Santa sighting either asking to wave at him and say hello or announcing that she's going to see Santa with her PopPop to anyone who speaks to her for more than two seconds.

Miracle #4...LD proclaims her devotion to Santa.  "I just love him, momma!  I just love, Santa!"

Miracle #5....Her visit to see Santa was

marvelous,

tear free,

memorable,

and yes...

our diva is in love...

with the man in the big red suit.

It is a miracle.

Both of my children not only wanted to see Santa,

but they saw him together... 

Happily.

Ok...so maybe LD took over just a teeny tiny bit as they

chatted...

 Regardless

it is

a

miracle.

Santa's beard is still fully intact.

Countdown

Months ago, we began the "Eagle" countdown.

Then we switched to weeks.  Excitement built up.

Finally, we could count down the days using our hands and we were nearly bursting with anticipation of the Eagles' arrival.

Then...   

We waited at the airport, searching the exit doors as if we were receiving a check for a billion dollars.  As people began to come forth, HS and LD busily exclaimed, "Nope.  That's not Granma."  and "Uh-uh.  That's not my PopPop." Leis were whirled around and examined and then the entire process was repeated as they edged closer to the doors leading up to the concourse and continued to peer up the escalators until their heads were almost touching the floor as they attempted to see which would catch the first glimpse of Granma and PopPop's toes.

The long awaited moment was finally upon us.   Our arms could finally reach out and touch the hands of two very important people in our lives.  Arms could wrap around tightly in a bear hug.  Watching HS and LD race forward to get their hugs and kisses from their grandparents proves one thing to this military gal:  a great pond and a large amount of land may separate us, but our hearts and those of our children bonded long ago with theirs.

We've been here for almost two and a half years (seriously, where has that time gone) and they have always made the voyage to see us during the spring.  Not this year. Since we did not head back to the mainland during the summer, they couldn't bear to wait any longer to see their grand kids.  Emotionally, they are coming at just the right time for us, too. 

A month long visit with my parents is the perfect gift for us in paradise.  Now we are truly wrapped with the spirit of Aloha.  We look forward to sharing the wonders & magic of the season with them, Hawai'ian style.

I'm 3

Dear World,

It is true.  Today I woke up and I was no longer two!  I have practiced blowing out my candles and look forward to eating some yummy cake.  We'll start off the morning with a ship passing by with the rails manned with sailors under a huge beautiful flag that mommy and daddy say stands for our great country.  Then, the sound of freedom will fill the sky as the jets go zooming by.  Oh how I love when they go over my head!  Finally, I'll sing with all my three-year-old might, the song that I've been singing everyday for at least the past week.  It's a big happy birthday you see...I'm now three!

Love,

The Diva

Dear Big Wide World,

It is true.  Today I woke up and my LD is no longer two!  It seems like yesterday that I was holding her so gently as she lay swaddled within my embrace.   I remember looking down and thanking God that he finally provided the prayer that each of us whispered so often.  Now I look out and she's running about making sure she shouts out, "watch me, I'm just like a busy bee and I'm a BIG three!"  

 Be kind to her world.  She's got such a big heart that matches the smile and the twinkle in her eyes.  She's sensitive and strong; daring and shy; beautiful and witty.  She'll wrap you around her finger and then hold you close as she chatters about her day: the babies she put to sleep, the play dough she shaped, and the moments with her buddy, Cody all while she twirls around with her tutu.  Oh, yes, it is true.  Today, I woke up and couldn't wait to see LD enjoy being three!

Love,

A Very

Protective Mommy

The Bowtie Affair

My favorite men's clothing accessory?  Bowties.  Yep.  Your read that right.  Bowties.  I vividly recall watching men stroll around our college campus, and those of a neighboring campus, wearing their khaki slacks, button down, and bowtie to mixers.  I always thought they looked so handsome.  So genteel, so classy.  Call me old fashioned, but I adore men who are still willing to wear ties.   Extra points for those who are willing to don a bowtie.  Triple for those who can tie one on their own.

Lucky for me, I was reintroduced to my memories of the bowtie around August, when friends threw a tea party for their daughter and requested the boys to wear button downs with khaki slacks.  She then had the boys wear bowties that she tied for them.  Another friend, whose son is close friends to HS and practices piano with the same teacher as HS also was reawakened with inspiration.  In lieu of ties, we pledged to have the boys wear bowties to their Christmas recital.

We kept our word.  HS and his friend proudly showcased their genteel side.  I am even proud to say that I tied HS's (it took me a couple of times, but finally, it tied).  He played his pieces well, and even with a small hiccup in memory, he played through and made me so grateful that we have found a wonderful piano teacher for him (and it doesn't hurt that she lives right next door!)   He made us proud just to watch him.  His dad even wore a bowtie in support.  Yes, I tied his, too and looking at him wearing his bowtie only made me more thankful that he chose me, the crazy gal from the hinterlands of Wyoming to marry. 

Man, I'm one lucky gal...I am surrounded by two handsome gentlemen who are willing to put up with my love affair with the bowtie.

November Clan Docket

Farewelling friends on the sandbar is always bittersweet.  I know that our paths will cross again, but man, when I've grown accustomed to going out with the family, it is sad to head out for the 1st time without them.  Just for the record: the house is still called the G. Ohana's house!

Not to be outdone by her big brother, LD spent most of November on a candy high.

   HS is always busy with Pack 388.  We are blessed not only with a phenomenal pack, but Den 6 rocks!  This month, HS learned all about fixing and maintaining his bike.  He is hopeful that Santa will be bringing him a new one to enjoy.

The G. Ohana.  My do I already miss seeing them around the hood.  Navy life really stinks every time you lose friends to the PCS monster.  Good news...it is a small Navy and I know that one day, our paths will cross again.

Care for some tasty cookies?  LD is getting to be quite good at serving up some special delights!  Her favorite costumers right now are the ones that she cuddles up to all not long.  They work up quite the appetite!

Who would have known that blowing through plastic straws to make a regatta boat float down a gutter could be so much fun?  Although HS's boat didn't take the trophy, nor did he place within the den, he had a blast blowing hot air with a reason!

OK.  So, we are in "paradise."  Pumpkins made fall feel a little more in our grasp.  The kids and Cody enjoyed the pumpkins.  So did the family hale geckos. 

Happy Thanksgiving!  We loved spending time with DF's who are also about to be eaten by the PCS monster.  You'll want to be far away from my hale during January.  The New Year will also bring the revelation that dear friends are further away than just over the mountains and through a tunnel.

I was thrilled to be a part of DF's farewell luncheon that her squadron put together.  It was a wonderful afternoon spending time with an amazing woman who has touched the lives of many.

As November drew to a close and we hearken in the most wonderful time of the year, Kendo couldn't wait to showcase the Christmas spirit that is alive and well in our ohana.    Don't worry...Cody is also feeling the spirit of the season...

So Busy...

Where in the world did November go? I know, I know...for those of you gearing up for the Artic blast, you probably would love to fast forward to Spring! Here in paradise, well, it is December 1st and the tradewinds are blowing a balmy 85 degrees and my white lights are looking mighty festive on blooming Hibiscus bushes.

Have no fear, this winter lover stuck on an island has made the most of fall and is gearing up for a spectacular Christmas season. First, I have been remiss on my writing. I can't believe my last post was at the beginning of November. Shame, shame, shame on me. Well, let's catch up in what I consider my version of "warp" speed as I highlight the thankful month of November....in photos, of course!

Heading out to the Kaneohe Bay Sandbar

HS Earning Bear

Thanksgiving

80s Bunco with the Neighborhood 

Enjoying Cody