When The Cats Away

The mice will play.  My little mice have been playing with shaving cream.  I bought one bottle of cheap shaving cream, and the kids have had fun with it for 3 days. Ikaia is also sporting a mustache made from watercolors by the kids.  They all had them....wish I had a pic of THAT!

 Napela surprised me with being COVERED in shaving cream.  Even his back!

This was an unintentional  mess by Ikaia.  He found my foundation.  YAY!

Ikaia was supposed to be playing with the shaving cream, but instead he stripped and climbed into the sink and was playing with the watercolors. 

 I blurred out his "stuff".  So funny though.

 My crazy boy!

 All 3!  Love these boys!

 My auntie and cousins came over for a quick visit.

 Can't believe how much they have grown since the last time I saw them.  They are all going to be taller than me the next time I see them! 

 Daddy came for a quick visit!  It was so nice to see him.  He  is sooo missed!

 We did a faux birthday for Daddy.  He LOVES Smallville, so we made him a superman cake.  Plus after all he has been through being away, he is our Hawaiian Superman!

He was one happy camper.  We love you babe!  Can't wait till we are all together!

Ani's Baptism

Ani was baptised September 8th.   It was such a beautiful, peaceful day full of love, happiness and gratitude.  We had almost all of the family there from both sides, and dear friends there too.  I am so proud of Ani and his righteous desire and his unshaking faith.  We had actually had a family fast about the week previous.  Our prayers were answered that same day.  When I told the kids the next morning, Ani was so grateful and said, " Mom, he listened, our prayers were answered!"  He spent the rest of the morning reading his scriptures and praying to Heavenly Father to thank him.  I love how he gave all the praise to Heavenly Father and didn't take any for himself.  I love his faith and the peace it brings in our home.  And I am so grateful that the Lord answered my children's prayers and sacrifice through His tender mercies.

 Ani spent the next couple day trying with all his might to be obediant and thoughtful so as to stay clean.  It was a sweet reminder of baptism that stayed with us for several days.

We were so happy to have Daddy with us for a week.  We enjoyed every minute with him!

 Absolutely delicious cupcakes by Nana.  mmmmMMMMMmmmm

 I was so happy for Ani, I couldn't contain myself.  I HAD to squeeze this little boy!  Ignore his scared face, he loved it! hahahahahaha

Firecracker

My firecracker turned 4 this week.  I can't believe how time flies.  This little girl just gets funner and funner.  She is full of energy and laughter.  She is an incredible tease.  She LOVES to help out and clean....I know, weird.  there are times I cannot get her to stop cleaning, and the whole time she is just singing to herself, happy as a lark.  Everything she does is 110%, including her high pitched squeal that she does...just for fun...yay..... 

She LOVES to help in the kitchen.  There is no way I can cook without her in there.  She loves to play with baby dolls, and always says she wants to be a mom when she grows up.  About a week ago I put make up on her and told her that now she was a princess.  Her reply was "no, now I am a mom."  And few minutes later she said, "Well, a princess mom." 

She loves to play on the piano....oh, I so need to teach her.  I just want her more confident in her letters and numbers.  She plays so well though that at times I think it is Napela.  I swear she picks out pieces of his music and is playing them.

Anyway, this little girl is priceless.  There is always laughter with her.  She doens't take life seriously, even when we try to get her to, she just giggles.   We love our little elf, and our family wouldn't be the same with out this child.  Happy Birthday Ileana! 

This was the day we put make up on her.  She insisted she put on a dress and take pictures.

She couldn't contain herself anymore, the laughter just had to come out. 

She wanted a purse cake and wallet for her birthday. 

Silly me, put the lip gloss and nail polish on the cake instead of throwing it back in the freezer.  Next time, I won't skip that step.

She was so excited for her birthday.  Everytime we were at the store she would start throwing things in the cart saying she wanted it for her birthday.  We kept having to empty it and explain to her that her presents were a surprise.  When we started singing her birthday song, she literally didn't even wait for us to finish singing.  She just blew it out.  She cracks me up.

Man of the House

 This little man turned 8!  Holy cow 8!  I am so super excited and so is he.  He will be baptized, he starts working on his Faith in God, and he starts SCOUTS!!  YES!!   Super stoked!  He has already started his Faith in God, and has been working so hard on it.  It has been so fun watching him have such a desire to finish it.  Scouts was on break for the month of July, so he is very excited to start next week.

One of his Faith in God requirements was to play with a baby or younger sibling through games and songs.  When I went to check on them, Ani had Ikaia at the chess table and was trying to teach him how to play....yes, my 17 month old....Ani would tell him, "This piece moves in an L 1, 2 3." while holding his hand and moving it where it belonged.   After he let go, Ikaia would just bang the heck out of the piece repeatedly.  Then Ani would take his hand and guide him again.  He did this several times, never getting upset.  I finally told him that maybe he should find something Ikaia might enjoy before he ruins our table.  So he went and got him all ready for church, sang songs with him, and was just really caring of all his needs.

Ani's mind is always going.  It has been interesting hearing what he has to say now that Daddy isn't here.  He understands so much, and we have had quite a few discussions trying to help him deal with Daddy being gone.  

He loves non-fiction books, especially any natural occurences:  lightening, volcanoes, astronomy.....  This past year I showed him the adult reference section at the library.  Needless to say, it is now the kid's favorite  spot.  His mind never ceases to amaze me, and it has been so fun watching him learn.

He loves to swim, bike, run, and really anything outside.  He has just gotten interested in the Wii, especailly during these blazing hot months.  He really enjoys chess, him and the other kids could play all day....seriously...all day.  He likes to help me in the kitchen, and I can often find him stirring what ever I am cooking.  He will definetely be unafraid of the kitchen, just like Daddy.

He is a really good boy, and still has a tender heart.  I love him so much, even though he is too big to be a little cuddler now.  I am always super excited if he wants to sit next to me on the couch....he thinks I am crazy....but I love him and love to harrass him.  I will get my hugs from him some how, even if it means chasing him around the house.  Happy Birthday Ani!!!  We love you tons!

 Ani at 3 1/2.

Ani's 4th birthday.

 And here he is 4 years later.

 Seriously, he is so excited about that Faith in God.

 He doesn't like taking pictures, he didn't want to look at the camera.

 He had a pirate cake for his birthday party with his friends and cousins.

And a cookie cake on his birthday....yum yum.

Fourth of July

This year we went to New Caney to go see the fireworks with a long time friend of mine.  It was so fun to catch up, and see the fireworks without going into a big city.  Plus the kids were able to play on the playground for hours before it started.  We tried to get some sort of family pick minus Pono, but there was always someone not looking.  So here are 2 pics...so at least everybody looks good in at least one pic.  :)  Sure missed having Daddy here.  Next year will be even better being with you Daddy!

 Popcicle treat.

 Everybody loved the see-saw.  This is Kathryn, the little mama, taking Ikaia on it. 

 It also had a great big kids playground and a jumper too.  Needless to say we all kept pretty busy, and even though I did  Elf's hair before we left the house, it deteriorated quickly once we got there.

 Baby playground.

 Waiting for fireworks.

 Poor Ikaia, he scared the snot out of him.  He kept trying to run away in the beginning, but caught on soon after.  This picture you can kinda see his eye color.  So far it is staying light, but it now changes colors.  Some days it is greenish, and others blueish.  We will see what they end up being....

 The boys were in complete aw!  It was so fun since all the kids were almost all old enough to appreciate it. 

Jean and her family.  Pono hasn't seen these kiddos for a good 7 years.  They have grown sooo much!