2008 Year in Review

As we're getting ready to ring in the New Year tonight, I have been reflecting on this past year and what our family has done. So here is a recap of 2008.

January started off with Vai falling at a church function and busting his forehead open. It was serious enough to warrant an ambulance ride to a hospital in the bay area. A nice looking plastic surgeon gave him what seemed like 50 stitches (mostly under the skin for minimal scaring). We felt that we had finally arrived as parents of a dare-devil boy! Our first trip to the ER.

The spring was spent busily getting ready for the "big wedding" of Uncle B and Auntie M. It was a beautiful day and Tata, Vai and Girly were perfect in their duties of groomsmen, ring boy and flower girl. It was a day we won't soon forget.

Shortly before the wedding we lost our Aunt Lisa. It was very, very sudden and we are still mourning our loss. Luckily her oldest daughter has since moved closer to us and so now we don't have to wait for so long to see each other.

Also in the spring we started this blog thingy. Sometimes it is incredibly fun and sometimes can be annoying. But I think we are still dedicated to it for the most part.

Summertime brought about a big change as Tata is now a full fledged US Citizen. Something we actually didn't foresee happening; for at least a few more years. Although not much has changed in our daily lives, it was wonderful to be able to go and vote with him and I can't wait to see his new US passport.

We took lots of weekend trips over the summer, to Paso Robles, Monterey, and southern California. Asides from their swim classes, Vai and Girly also tried their hand at baseball and both seemed to enjoy the sport. But we mostly had a great time being out of school and just hanging with friends.

Vai and Girly started school in the fall. Vai is in the big K and Girly in preschool. They both love it and even Clown boy (Tata gave him that name but I am not sure if it is the right one) wants to stay and "play" when we drop them off.

We hit Oregon in Oct. and had a blast visiting friends and family. Tata even got to play in a rugby tournament and came home with some memorable bruieses. It was a great trip and we hope we can return soon.

The fall was also one of excitement as Tata and I have gotten back to our political routes. We were both on a couple of campaign trails and loved participating in them. We both love the political arena and it was nice to be back and feel involved in our community.

As mentioned, we started off the year in the ER and we almost ended the year the same way . Clown Boy dropped a bar stool on his foot one night and we thought he broke his toe, but nope; just badly bruised it. He didn't walk for almost 5 days. Imagine carrying around a 2 1/2 year old who weighs 32 lbs. Not easy. The toe nail is still black and I am sure it will fall off in a couple of weeks.

Our Thanksgiving and Christmas was spent with lots of family around, just the way we like it. Our children love their cousins and aunties and uncles. We love being from such a big, loud and fun family. The best part is that we keep growing and so there is always someone new to love! This year we welcomed in a new aunt, two new cousins and a new cousin-in-law but we just call him uncle. Our family is our greatest blessing.

We are excited for the new year and all the adventures that it will bring.

Hair Cuts

I would like to be able to claim that my 4 1/2 year old daughter has never had a hair cut, but I can't. She was born with a full head of hair and at 3 months old we had to style it with bows and head bands just to keep it out of her face. Both her Tata and I are in love with long flowing Polynesian hair. She has the perfect combination, soft, wavy and silky hair. There is some Fijian tradition that you don't cut little girls hair until a certain date. My sister-in-law didn't have her first hair cut until she was 10 years old. However, I told Tata at the rate Girly's hair grows she will be walking on it by the age of 10. So we settled on her 5th birthday as the time when she would receive her first hair cut. Well that was a few years ago. Girly has taken it upon herself to cut her own hair. To date she has had 5 hair cuts total! Yep 5! and 4 were in the last month alone. Her first self hair cut was in March of 2006. I cried so hard, because she cut it so short in the front section it looked like she was trying to scalp herself. Until that piece grew long enough to hide in a pony tail she wore what we called the "Donald Comb-over!" I think we made her feel so bad after that because anytime we mentioned cutting her hair she would cry! Great our guilt worked! Or so we thought. If we even talked about having a professional cut it she would swell up with tears, shouting, NO! NO! NO! Phew we were safe. The first hair cut!

Well, in the last month she decided that when ever anything gets stuck in her hair she just takes a pair of scissors to remove it herself. To date she has cut out chewing gum, and 3 pony tail holders. Instead of coming to one of us and asking if we will help get them out she just finds the nearest pair of scissors and simply removes the object with long strand of hair attached. Then she proceeds to bring us the handful of hair. Some times we find the hair on the floor. She just drops it there once the annoyance is removed. Lucky for us with her curls you can't tell and it looks like she has layered hair. However there is no rhyme or reason to her layers because she just cuts randomly. After this last episode I decided that was it. We were heading to a professional to try and fix the damage. But we had another instance of immense tears. Seriously I don't get why she is so scared to have someone else cut her hair when she is willing to do it herself all the time. I have caught her trying to attempt to remove another pony tail holder and told her to come to me and I was able to untangle it with out having to remove any hair. So now I am at a loss as to what to do. I've decided I won't mention getting a professional hair cut again until her birthday. Then we can play it up to what a grown up thing it will be and how much fun it is to go and have your hair styled. I have also removed all the scissors from her sight; they are now hidden in a special place in our office. Hopefully this will derail any thoughts of cutting her hair again. Maybe this is her secret addiction. Who knows.

This is what her hair looks like today. It is any one's guess as to what it will look like tomorrow!

Was it Black Friday?

I am one of those crazy people who have the tradition of getting up early and shopping the day after Thanksgiving. I do it every year. While living in Hawaii one year we did the midnight run to Wal-Mart to line up for the 5 am opening. (Wal-Mart had to do as Hawaii still does not have a Target!) This has become my holiday weekend tradition. Some years I even have all my Christmas shopping finished in one day. I make a plan, scour the adds and have in mind which items I will buy. I usually go with a buddy so that someone can stand in line while the other person shops and then switch. I am a shopper at heart so I really look forward to this tradition. This year something was different. I am still a little perplexed as to what happened. I had every intention of hitting the stores early on Friday. I have my Christmas list completed so I knew what I needed to purchase but as I looked through all of the adds for Black Friday, nothing on my list was on major sale. Most items were $5-$10 off but not the hot door buster deals that I usually get. I found plenty of things that were on sale that I personally would like to buy for myself but I feel weird buying something for myself so close to Christmas as I feel that my husband should! After several attempts to find that one hot item that would be my excuse to hit the stores early, I decided that there was nothing worth fighting all the crowds for! I stayed home, slept in, laid around the house until my kids said that we needed to do something. At 2 pm we finally got dressed, and went bowling with the kids. Then we came back home fixed the kids some pizza. At 8 pm my hubby and I went out to dinner for a date and just 45 minutes before closing I stepped into my first store, but not to buy anything, just to look. What happened to my fabulous tradition...is it because of the bad economy? Am I growing up and finding that I shouldn't spend money if it isn't want I really want? I am feeling lost this morning. Something is not right in the universe.

What's in a name

We have been trying to decide on a nick name for our youngest child. He is already 2 1/2 and his siblings nick names came rather quickly, since birth! But we just haven't settled on one for the baby yet. But usually that is what he ends up being called "baby." I don't like it because I am sure at age 15 he will hate it, and probably before that. Tata calls him the clown because he is the joker of the group. He makes the funny faces, has the strangest responses to things, and usually has something funny to say. Most of the time when people hear him talk and they hear his logic they are shocked that he is only 2 1/2 . When we ask him what his name should be it usually is something different like today he wants to be called by his first name and then the last name of Incredible. Should I be worried that we can't figure out a nick name for him? I feel like we are leaving him out of something since we don't have another name for him like his siblings. Or maybe I am just too concerned about nothing.

Yes, School House Still Rocks

I am sitting in my office listenting to the DVD my children are watching and I am washed over with a flood of memories. If you have never seen School House Rock, I suggest you race out to your store immediately and purchase it. It is one of the ages!

Conjunction junction what's your function?

I remember taking American Government in high school and singing the Just a Bill song in my head as I took the final.

Whew...it's over!

I don't think I am the only person who feels this way. I want to scream it from the roof tops... the election is FINALLY over. I have been so bombarded with phone calls, mailers and nastiness from neighbors, I am so glad it is over.

As I stayed up late last night watching returns I had many mixed emotions. I didn't vote for our new president elect, (the person who I would have like to see win wasn't even listed on my ballot) but I seriously recognized the history being made as we elected our first African-American president. I felt sincerity in his speech as he reached out to those of us who are still very skeptical of him and his plan for our country. Going into last night I thought I would be pretty depressed but surprisingly I wasn't. As I listened to him, my thoughts were all right man, here is your shot. You Democrats have no more excuses! I am willing to cross party lines I will be open. As much as I wasn't a strong McCain supporter either I was equally impressed with his speech. Wither or not you agree with his policies you must recognize that he has made a tremendous contribution to our country. There have been elections in the past where we have seen sore losers. Even as recent as 4 years ago. However, you can't say that about McCain he was gracious in his defeat and in offering his full support to our President-elect and also encouraging his supporters to do so.

It wasn't all disappointing. We were successful in CA, the one part of this election where I worked the hardest. As much as it was an up hill battle, Prop. 8 passed! As many people said last night now is a time to heal and come together. Bob Marley said it best..."Don't worry about a thing...Everything little thing gonna be alright."

Yes on Prop. 8

In our state of California we have a very heated election in regards to a proposition. In 2000 61% of California voters stated that they wanted marriage to be defined as between a man and a woman. This summer 4 judges ignored the will of the people and overturned that decision and allowed same sex marriage in our state. Now with election nearing voters will be asked to define marriage for the California state Constitution. Only 14 words will be added to the constitution if Prop 8 passes. It will state "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."

There are several reasons why I am in favor of this proposition; religious freedom, parental rights, a government that is actually governed by the people and not judges who ignore the people. I have heard and read a lot of hateful things about people like me who are in favor of traditional marriage. I do not hate gay or lesbians, nor do I attack their lifestyle. Let them live as they choose but please afford me the same respect. Under California law gay and lesbian domestic partners already have all the same rights and privileges as married couples. Prop 8 isn't taking any rights they already have away.

The supporters of "No on 8" claim that this is about hate. Some friends of friends asked us to share their experience as they participate in this political process. I will let you judge for yourself who is promoting hate and intolerance here.

In response to having lawn signs stolen on a regular basis in our area, we decided to display our position on Prop 8 with a large banner. This afternoon a couple of women pulled up in front of our home and started painting on the windows of their car. I guess they disagreed with us. As they were painting these messages, my husband came out and asked them if they would like to have a conversation. The "conversation"consisted of them calling us bigots, promoters of hate & prejudice, parents who didn't protect their children and un-Christian (this last comment causing my 11 year old son to cry because he IS a Christian and is so very proud of it!) My husband and children tried to engage in conversation to share our concerns and point of view and were met with increased intensity and anger. Their entire message was that we were closed-minded, motivated by hate and prejudice. In the end, we left them to their project...knowing that sharing and trying to understand one another's point of view was NOT something they were interested in. Here's what we were left with in front of our home.

By the way...we live across the street from a kindergarten playground...what a nice thing the kids will be able to see at recess and as they walk to and from home. Now for the good news...since this happened this afternoon we've had all kinds of people drive by taking pictures, talking with us and expressing support. In fact, a wonderful family from our school stopped by to tell us how sorry they were. They are voting No on 8 and long ago we decided that we would be that balancing force for each other in the universe. I was impressed by the way they went out of their way to make sure all was well with us and to let us know that they supported us even though we disagree on this issue. THIS is the American way... I wish this whole election process would be designed to promote these types of feelings among neighbors instead of the hate and intolerance that seems to be becoming such a prevalent part of our daily lives.

Even if you are against Prop 8 I respect the fact that you are entitled to your views and encourage EVERYONE to vote no matter where you stand on the issue. We all have that right. But as I show respect for you and your views I hope you would afford me the same. No more stealing signs and calling names, you don't have to run me off the road or flip me off while my children are in the car. We are all trying to live and do what we think is right according to your own hearts and minds. Hopefully once the election is over we can all come together again as neighbors and humans who all share this place called earth.

Portland

We spend the last 5 days in Portland, OR. Why you ask? Because they were celebrating Fiji Day. That's right the Fijians in OR and Washington got together and planned a big celebration for Fiji Day. Tata played in a rugby tournament. Had a realization that he is getting old. A broken nose, jammed finger and a bruised knee all made him realize that he can't play like he used to. I must give props to his team though they took first place and even beat out a team of high schoolers in the finals! The boys are getting old but can still kick some rugby butt!

For the kids and I one of the highlights of the trip was a visit to the Roloff Farms. The farm featured on the television show: Little People, Big World! We got to see the house, the pumpkin patch, visit the old town, and even meet Mr. Roloff himself.

Tata might say the highlight of the trip for him was visiting the Nike Employee store. We had to get clearance to even enter the store. Very affordable prices for Nike. Although I don't wear tennis shoes all that often I must say these new Nike's I am sporting are very cool.

More to come about the crazy Fijians and their makes!

Our new family member

Apparently hell has frozen over! We have a new family member in the form of a turtle. I swore I would never allow my kids to have pets because I don't do animals. they are great to look at from a distance. I don't want to care for one, the clean up! No, thank you. However, Kokopelli was given to us by our friends who recently moved away. How could I give away this turtle who belonged to Vai's best friend? I didn't think I could deal with having a pet but honestly he is growing on me. But let it be known that it stops here!

Goodbye Good Friends!

Last Saturday some of our dearest friends moved across country. We already miss them! We have been a little blue since they left. Vai wanted to go by their old house, and when I explained that they moved, he said they only went for a trip but they should be home now! Nope son, they have a new home. Change is hard for a 6 year old who just lost his best friend. But we know it wasn't a final goodbye, we can't wait to see them again at Christmas.

Chopped

I have a few friends that are very daring when it comes to the hair department. They drastically change color and cut every so often and it looks great. I wish I was that bold. I have always wanted to go blonde or red just for fun. However, after a bad home highlights job while I was in Hawaii, Tata claims that I've been blonde. Not really, but it was a lot lighter. Anyway yesterday I went to go and get my hair trimmed a bit and while I was waiting I decided to be brave and do something totally different. You can imagine the looks of shock on friends faces when I chopped off at least 7 inches! Especially that of my sweet hubby who has made it known that he loves my long hair. A few people didn't even recognize me, sometimes I don't recognize myself!
I love this new do but my hair stylist said jokingly on the way out see you next year when its back to being long again! She is right, I usually am brave for a few months and then next thing you know it is long and straight. Why do we do that...not only with things like hair but even with relationships? We are brave and get out of our comfort zone for a while only to head right back there. Maybe this is the beginning of an era of change for me. I will be brave and try new things starting with my hair. After all it is only hair, it will grow back.

Long over due

Well, it has been a while since I last contributed to our blog and my Queen has kindly reminded me that this blog thingy was a "family project" and not just her's. So, where do I start? All of a sudden I feel a little more mature with 2 kids going to school. It just seem like it was yesterday that I started my first day in 1st grade back in Fiji. Boy they say time goes by fast when you get older and I am begining to see what they mean. Summer is almost over with and Fall is almost here and for a sports junky like me, this is the best time ever, well asides from the days spent with the fam. My beloved Cougs are 3-0 in college football and my 49ers won a game today in the NFL. Lately, my kids have been interested in playing football with me in the yard. Vai and Girly now know what role a quaterback, center and reciever plays. It is awesome to see Girly get in her reciver stance as I play center and Vai as the QB. Vai has a few play calls memorized (like BLUE 22, BLUE 22.. hike). Now he just needs to make sure that the ball lands on Girly's hands and not face. Well, in his deffense, it might help if the reciever kept her eyes open. But hey, we have a few more practices to go and then we'll be performing at a higher level. Hopefully there will be videos to share with you.

On a more serious note, I could not help but note the hardships that this world is facing as of late. Here in the US, hurricanes, fire, floods, train crashers and the daily violence have highlighted the daily news reports. With all the comotion, I am reminded to be ever so greatful with all that I have been blessed with. Sometimes, I do take for granted the basic things such as shelter,food, safety etc. and even the fact that I live here in the US. If I may, I ask that we keep those affected by the mentioned circumstances in our thoughts and prayers that they will get through their hardships.

I am not so ridged!

Some people call me ridged. They say I can't let my hair down (so to speak) and relax, and just have fun. Nope, not at all. I am supposedly too worried about having a clean house and everything on my list being checked off. I have been trying to prove some people wrong. Even though there is a slight possibility they might be right, but calling me ridged? Couldn't we find a nicer word... organized..clean...workaholic? Take your pick. Anyway I have proof that I can be flexible and spontaneous. After dinner the other night, the kids were playing with some friends in the back yard. Their mother and I couldn't resist hosing them down for several minutes and then laughing at the mud fight that ensued. It was pure joy!

In case you missed last night...

She competely suprisied me last night! I can't wait for the VP debates!

Things I am annoyed with lately

I have been annoyed a lot lately and thought to myself I need a place to vent. Here goes...

1. The presidential election! The irony of BOTH VP selections....

McCain criticizes Obama for his lack of experience... um please let me introduce you to Sarah Palin. She was mayor of a small town, then is serving her firs term as governor for the state of Alaska. Not quite the resume of experience herself. Obama criticizes McCain for serving so long the the senate and being a career politician... Obama have you met your running mate Joe Biden? He has been in the senate almost 10 years longer than McCain. I do smile at this quote Biden Said Obama Is Not Ready To Serve As President. ABC's George Stephanopoulos: "You were asked is he ready. You said 'I think he can be ready, but right now I don't believe he is. The presidency is not something that lends itself to on-the-job training.'" Sen. Biden: "I think that I stand by the statement." (ABC's, "This Week," 8/19/07).

2. The Democratic National Convention. Seriously lets tell the people that we are the "party of the poor" and then have practically all of Hollywood there dumping all their hard earned cash to get the most liberal man elected. I especially was annoyed with Obama's acceptance speech. I honestly tried to listen with an open mind to his words. I even agreed with some of his ideas but to be frank the things we can agree upon are first not his ideas, and secondly are nothing new. Speaking about education in America and finally stating that parental responsibility plays a big part drew large cheers from the crowd. People this isn't a new idea. Parents you are the ones who decided to produce these children and guess what? It isn't the government's responsibility to provide everything for them. Every time I hear Obama speak it is as though Karl Marx is doing a graveyard jig of joy.

My love affair with politics is facing some rocky times, I am so dissatisfied with the two choices for president. Really America, this is the best we have to offer? Something is terribly wrong here.


3. People who are rude. It seems that I have run into a lot of rude people lately. I understand that we have free speech in our country but seriously does that mean we always have to be talking. Sometimes I think people just talk to hear themselves talk. The want like to puff themselves up. Look at how big and bad I am. I met rude people at my kids school, rude people at church (yep church), and I even the lady who was filling my kids prescription was pretty rude. Hey lady, the only reason I asked how long it was going to be was to decide if I wanted to wait there in the store with my 3 kids or come back later. Sorry next time I will just let my kids run around crazy, knocking things off the shelf and leave them for you to pick up!


4. Change (I hate using this buzz word, Thanks Obama). I don't do change well... and there is a lot of change coming my way, kids starting school, new responsibilities, and best friends moving. I know people say that change is good, and I can too recognize that change has been good for me. Even with all the changes coming to my life I know it will work itself out but it is still hard to adjust to change.

O.K. I think that is enough venting for now. I could be up on a soap box forever venting my frustrations but I need to off this annoyed kick and embrace a more positive emotion.

Following the Crowd

Since everyone is doing it we too will follow the crowd and post about starting school this week. Vai is off to the big Kindergarten and Girly is in preschool. Both kids didn’t even look back once they entered their classroom and the baby acted like he should be staying as well. But seriously my kids are the cutest in their class!

Out of Control

I have been struggling with something for the past week and I thought it might be interesting to get some feedback from the 8 of you out there who read this blog. Last month we called the satellite company and asked them to suspend our service. Yep that is right NO MORE TV! Why you ask? Simple, our 6 year old son and television don't mix. Well actually they do mix and quite well for that matter but when it comes to TV our son has a love/hate relationship. He LOVES the television and HATES anyone or anything that comes between him and the TV. I considered myself to be a pretty good mother when it came to monitoring the television. It was not on all day. Only certain times; when I was cooking a meal, or had a project for work that needed to get done was he allowed to watch. We also used it as a reward when he would do his chores. However after constantly fighting with him over the TV, I was done. My son is a TV addict. He wanted to watch it every moment of the day, he would hide the remotes from me and secretly go and watch if I was somewhere else in the house. He would even try and stick his head of of the bathroom while he was taking care of business so he could still see the TV. I can't tell you how many times I found him lying in the doorway of the bathroom looking at the TV with his bare bottom in the air! The worst was the tantrums he would throw when we made him turn it off. So we decided no more.

However this decision was made in haste. Not only did we prevent him from watching the TV we also cut ourselves off! I turned off the TV right before the Olympics (for me) and fall football (for Tata). I tried to watch the Olympics online for a couple of days. Isn't it frustrating to watch a sporting event when you already know what happened? Do you know how many races I missed of Phelps? I saw Gymnastics online but the video kept pausing. So frustrating. What do we do cave in and get the TV back on? Do we just have it on for the Olympics? Then what happens when fall football comes on? I am sure then we will need it on in the winter for something else. I know as adults we can live without the TV. In fact it has been very nice not to have it on. I've talked to my hubby a lot more and we have been creative in finding other things to do.

For anyone who knows me they know what a big fan I am of the Olympics. I have to watch every event I can. I love to hear the stories of triumph and the celebration of the Olympic spirit. I can recite the creed which is; "The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well." Do I follow this creed and deal with my struggle of missing the Olympics all for the sacrifice of the well being of my son?

*We couldn't take it anymore and got rabbit ears for our bedroom TV, we just get the local stations (which are showing the Olympics) but thankfully the kids don't know yet. To them the TV is still broken!

Dance, dance, dance, dance, dancing machine

Thursday was our 9th wedding anniversary. The theme for the gift this year was leather, so we strapped on our leather soled shoes and headed down to an all day dance workshop. Now my hubby has rhythm. Many of you have seen him perform countless times. That boy can move and he looks amazing! I may not have the performance skills he does but I have musical talent, can easily find the beat, and pick up most dance moves pretty quickly. However, we have a hard time coordinating ourselves on the dance floor whenever we dance together. So yesterday we took a "Summer Dance Party" dance workshop. We had 6 hours of Salsa, Fox Trot, and Swing. What a blast! What could be better a day spent with my hubby without my children and awesome dancing? (Now don't get me wrong, I love being with our children but seriously how often do we get to spend an extended period of time with our spouse without the children?) We decided we are going to become wedding crashers so we can practice our moves. People watch out, we have had professional training and are looking to dance anywhere! Seriously, I would recommend a couples dance class for anyone. It was amazing, a great anniversary gift!

Happy Birthday Vai! (on August 1st)

This post is late because we are still recovering from Vai's big birthday blow out bash. 65 people were on hand to help Vai celebrate his 6th birthday ! (We threw celebration for Tata's citizenship as a side note!) I couldn't believe how many people were there but when we started doing guest list we couldn't leave anyone out. This is when I acknowledged one of my son's gifts; he is a great friend. He will make friends with anyone and everyone. I hardly ever see him exclude anyone when playing with friends. Vai loves people, he is extremely social and likes to be with his friends. This also includes his siblings. He is a great older brother. Especially to his younger brother. I often see Vai trying to console him when he is upset. I remember one day when the baby had gotten hurt and Vai beat me to him was sitting there giving him a hug and telling him that it was going to be o.k. We have given Vai several nicknames, the "BIG TALKER" is one because he loves to tell stories. He would fill your head with stories all day and night if he could. We laugh at the fact that he is usually the first one up and as he walks into our room early in the morning, ribbing the sleep out of his eyes, the mouth is already going. He likes to reason and debate with people. For this reason Tata calls him the "Bush Lawyer"! I am sure it has something to do with the fact that I tease Tata about being from the bush, so he said that his son is now a bush lawyer. It is rare that Vai won't try to reason with you when you ask him to do something that he doesn't want to do. Often he will try to make deals so that he can do as little as possible then either we will do the rest or he will come up with something that he thinks is easier. He is mastering the art of negotiation. He has a great laugh and a great smile. Sometime a sneaky devilish smile but we love it. Vai is getting to be a very tall boy. He is only 6 and comes up to my armpit two more years and he will be taller than me! Then I am in trouble. I am excited to see him start school this year and all the new thing he will experience. He is a great leader and was so helpful in his preschool class last year. I know he will be the same way when he starts school in a couple of weeks. I am excited to see all the new changes and things he will experience. Thank you for being in our family Vai!

Still partying it up the morning after!

Thank you for being a friend

I am not ashamed to admit that I love the Golden Girls! It is and will always be one of my favorite TV shows. So with the recent passing of Estelle Getty, I've been thinking a lot about that show and how the humor got me through many challenges in life. I watch the re-runs daily now. Sophia was the incredible spitfire old lady I hope to be! I've haven't met to many people who have my passion for this show. Only Lyllah an old roommate from college, she was my "golden girls buddy." We would always make sure we were home in time to catch the daily episode and no matter what our mood, after watching the show we were smiling. I know it hasn't been on for decades but I still feel sad that one of my "golden girls" is gone!

Here are some of my favorite Sophiaims:

Sophia: Jealousy is a very ugly thing, Dorothy! – And so are you, in anything backless.

Sophia: When I turn my hearing-aid up to ten, I can hear a canary break wind in Lauderdale!

Another Family Wedding

This weekend we made a very quick trip down to southern California for my cousin Lani's wedding! I am so glad we went, just Girly and I (along with Grandpa and Uncle E). The boys stayed home with Tata. Here are some photos of the special day...

Girly and mommy waiting outside the Redlands Temple for the bride and groom!

Here's the new couple: Lani and Ryan. Isn't she beautiful?

Sweet kisses

Girly and the beautiful bride!

Lani with her older sister Carly and Carly's daughter Emma. Carly has been such a wonderful sister especially filling in the role of mother of the bride. Their mom recently passed away. Carly is an amazing example of strength to me. I just loved capturing this picture of the three of them. I know they have a special bond.

A Different Kind of Tag

I saw this on a few blogs. It's always fun to reminisce.


1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!


2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you. If you don't want to play on your blog, or if you don't have a blog, I'll leave my memory of you in my comments.

Plus I am dying to know who is reading this blog... it makes me bummed when I don't have any comments and then I go to friends blogs they have 37 comments! So boost my self esteem and leave a comment Please, please. See what you have reduced me to? I am now begging!

It finally came out

I have been bugging Vai for a couple of weeks to let me pull his loose tooth out. It was just hanging there. Everyone told me to leave it alone and it would fall out on its own. I knew it was true. But you know me, I obsess about things that are "unresolved" so to speak. Vai would freak out anytime someone would get close to that stinking tooth. I even was a little nervous because the permanent tooth seemed to be growing quickly and that little loose guy hung in there for forever it seemed. Well tonight after dinner Vai was playing around and all the sudden shouted..."My tooth fell out!," with this big bleeding smile on his face. Yes, I knew it would come out eventually so was this a lesson in patience for me? I mean after all that little tooth hung in there for the last two weeks!

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness

Well, it happened so fast that on the day of the swearing in ceremony I was still questioning myself if this was the right thing to do. But during this past weekend, I finally was comforted with the thought that no matter where we're from, and where we live in this world, "all men and women are created equal and have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness". At least that is how I feel. Does it always happen? Unfortunately, not for everyone in this world.

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness: As I look back to my native land of Fiji and the years I spent there, there was definitely life. But liberty and the pursuit of happiness were at times hard to come by. Like many other global societies, Fiji has a traditional hierarchical system that is respected and in some cases,in my estimation, feared by its natives and citizens. "REREVAKA NA KALOU KA DOKA NA TUI" is a slogan that normally accompanies the Fijian shield on the Fiji flag. It's interpreted to "FEAR GOD, BUT/AND RESPECT THE KING". Sadly, with political circumstances the kings are being respected more, rather than having a god fearing people. Liberty, pursuit of happiness, are they attainable in Fiji? Anything is possible anywhere.

I have lived and experienced a great life here in this land, and the beauty about America is that I now have the liberty to pursue anything and everything that will bring about happiness to me and those that I love. It is all up to me now. If I work, study, play, worship and serve hard enough, I'll get the liberty, happiness and life that I seek. And if I don't, then the hard reality that accompany that choice will have to be carried on my shoulders by me.

This land is indeed a promised land, as I know it to be true. There is no coincidence in the fact that everyone outside America looks at her citizens with envy and a longing desire to just taste the sweetness of liberty, the glee of pure happiness and the beauty of life. At the same time, I am convinced that the demise and down fall of this great land rests largely upon the shoulders of us its citizens with the choices we make, be they social, political, economical, religious or whatever. I am thankful to be alive and to have all the liberty I can imagine made available to me, and that if I make the correct turns, if you will, it will result in nothing but happiness.

Life is good and America is great. God Bless the US of A.

Happy Birthday America!

Check out your newest American citizen! Sworn in on July 2nd, the day Congress voted for independence from Great Britian. What a way to celebrate Independence Day! Congratulations Tata!

One of those moments

Yesterday I had one of those moments all mothers face, my child is growing up way to quickly and I wasn't ready for it. Earlier in the morning Vai and Tata were playing around and Vai had bitten onto Tata's shorts. Tata asked him to stop biting but his teeth were too strong. Finally Tata pushed Vai off his pants and Vai started to cry.

"You hurt my teeth." Vai said.
"Well, you should have let go when I asked you to!" Tata replied. "Besides, I didn't even push you hard, you are just being a baby."

Upon inspection of the mouth we found a tooth in the very front that was now a little wiggly. We concluded that it was because he was biting too hard on the shorts when Tata pushed get him off. It didn't occur to us that he was reaching the age when he will begin to loose his teeth.

So at church Vai was proudly showing off his new loose tooth, when one of the teachers asked him if he could take it out. Apparently he has successfully removed several teeth for the other primary children. I told him it wasn't one of those teeth ready to fall out and relayed what happened earlier. To which he responded by instructing me that Vai had a tooth growing in his mouth behind this loose tooth. What? My almost 6 year old is starting to loose his teeth? No... No... No!!! I am not ready for this; he is still the little baby that I used to take to work and rock under my desk. Now is he going into kindergarten with missing teeth? I do have to admit that I am a little anxious for this tooth to fall out. Mostly because I had great teeth growing up but ended up having braces for one little tooth that didn't come in right. The rest of my mouth was beautifully straight. I don't want him to fall in my footsteps. So we gave him apples to eat yesterday and asked him to show everyone we met his tooth only so he would keep wiggling it. I almost had him eat a Sugar Daddy. He informed me that the tooth fairy leaves toys under the pillow. Really? I only got a quarter, but then again I am old, I do have a child who is loosing their teeth.

Proud to be an American?

Many of you may or may not know that my husband is from another country. I appreciate this diverse aspect of our relationship. He has helped me to become less of an isolationist and opened my eyes to the world that was out there. I knew they were there but never really thought about it. He recently decided that he wanted to become an American citizen. Not because he felt any duty to this country, (The only difference between a permanent US resident and a citizen is the right to vote. Although he has strong feelings about voting, he still exercised that right in his native Fiji so it didn't bother him that he couldn't vote here.) but only reason why he decided to become a US citizen is so he could sponsor his family and bring them here. His own mother has been denied a simple tourist visa on several occasions and was told she would most likely never get one. (I will leave my own commentary on our immigration system for another post). So in order to provide a better life for his family he is in the process of becoming a citizen. Part of this process is to take a test on the basic system of our government. They gave us a guide to study from while preparing for the test. I was quite impressed with my husband when I first quizzed him, and he hadn't even looked over anything yet. Out of the 96 questions they gave him he only missed 4! Simply amazing especially for someone who wasn't raised with the same type of government as us.

So this left me wondering...How many questions could you get right? I have heard that most Americans wouldn't be able to pass this test if it was immediately given to them. They would need to study it. I have given this test to a few of my friends and my husband knocked their socks off with his score. Pretty sad. Here is the link to the Citizenship and Immigration website. Take the quiz and let me know how you did!

http://www.uscis.gov/files/nativedocuments/Flashcard_questions.pdf

Our Tata is the best

As I was sitting in church today listening to a teenager speak about all the things her dad does for her I couldn't help but look over at my husband and think how lucky I am that he is the father of my children. I realized that I couldn't have chosen a better partner in life and a better person to parent these sweet little ones with. I felt a rush of emotion as I realized how much I love him and especially how much he loves his children. He has told me on several occasions that he loves it when he comes home from work and I go and hide myself in the bedroom. He takes care of the kids, so I can have a "break". He will give them their baths and he will sit in the bathroom playing is Ukulele singing songs to them. I sometimes feel bad for breaking up the "concert" when the water is cold but he would sing to them all night. Even though he has a horrible commute to work he always wants to play with our kids and doesn't complain about being tired! Check them out learning how to dance like Fijian warriors.

There are countless things I could list that make him such an amazing dad. But to put it simply our little family wouldn't be the same with out him. He brings peace, balance and a lot of laughter to our home!

Random Ramblings

I've recently had the opportunity to take care of my mother as she had major surgery. I am not one for medical terms but basically they opened up her chest to remove a tumor (that was not cancerous) and her thymus. Now both my parents have "zipper" scars down the middle of their chests. My dad has one from his quadruple by-pass 2 years ago. It has meant a lot to me that my hubby has been so supportive of me spending so much time at the hospital and also staying at my parents home to help take care of mom. I have been thinking a lot about what some people describe as the role reversal when children begin to care for their parents. Although both my parents for the most part are generally helathy taking care of mom for past week has really meant a lot to me. In some ways I feel I am "repaying" her for all she has done for me. Then I realize that I will never be able to "repay" her.

Today is the first day of summer break for us. No school for 3 months (give or take a couple of weeks). I feel bad about saying this but I have to admit I am wishing it was August already. I would really love to home school my children but just don't feel it is the best thing for my children right now. With juggling work and three little ones plus a husband who has a very demanding career the thought of homeschooling overwhelms me. But I am determined to make this summer a fun one for all of us. I think the keyword for us this summer will be schedule, schedule, schedule. In order to minimize the chaos I need to set a daily schedule. Anyone have any ideas?

Greed

Recently we ended what some might say was a life lesson on greed! A couple of years ago we determined that we had outgrown our queen size bed. Especially since we seem to play musical beds in our house and can have anywhere from 1 to all 5 of us sleeping in our bed on a given night. So we started talking about graduating up from a queen to a CA King. Then we started pricing. Holy Cow! $2,000 for a bed! Needless to say we put it out of our mind. Our queen was only 2 years old and still in great shape.

A newly married couple started coming to our church, and I became acquainted with the wife. They were the typical starving students, especially since he was attending UOP, which is ridiculously expensive. They didn't even have a bed to sleep on, I think they were using blankets on the floor. Not to fun for newlyweds. Right at that time a friend of my father's was giving away his CA king size bed for free. I know what you are thinking because we thought the same thing. Give our little queen to the newlyweds and we take the king and everyone is happy! Plus we convinced ourselves that their little apartment couldn't fit the king bed and it would be best for them to have the queen. Without even laying on this king size bed, we made arrangements for us to take the king and give our queen to newlyweds all for free.

We were so excited to get this king bed, we bought a new comforter set and totally changed the look of our bedroom. I have to admit when they brought the king into our house I started to get worried, I had never seen a mattress fold like that before but just dismissed it because I wasn't used to the king. We set the bed up, put on the new skirt, sheets and comforter, it looked great! The first night we slept on our new CA King was awful, the bed sunk in the middle, and the box springs also sagged a little bit. It was a horrible old bed. We both regretted our decision and woke up the next morning wishing for our queen bed! I even thought about how I could word the conversation so we could get our old bed back but I knew it wasn't right, we were greedy in taking the king. We had a perfectly fine queen bed and should have had the king go to the needy couple all along. We would just have to live with our greediness.

To make matters worse, it was difficult for us to get our queen bed to newlyweds. They acted like they were doing us a favor by taking the bed off our hands. When really we were the ones doing the big favor by giving them our bed. They weren't at home when we had scheduled the drop off, and when we tried to call them they couldn't be bothered. I finally left them a message and said that I was just going to leave the bed in the car port of their complex and if it was still there the next day I would give it to someone else. After they got the bed the wife called me and complained that we hadn't given them any sheets, a bed skirt or blankets! Seriously? I was a little shocked to say the least. We never got any kind of thank you from them, they didn't say anything to us at church, give us a thank you note, nothing! They never acknowledged it!

So for the last two years we have slept on this horrible king size bed all because we were greedy in the first place. We wanted a king size bed for a cheap price and when we heard of a free one we jumped on it with out thinking at all. We should have kept our queen and let the rude newlyweds have the king. Our backs hurt all the time, we added about 10 pillows all over the place to try and make up for it but it is just a sad old bed. Finally we had had it! A brand new CA king was delivered on Saturday. Thank you George W. and your stimulus check, we did our part to help the economy. Our backs thank you as well. I think I can say we learned our lesson and won't be so greedy the next time!

Tree Monkeys

Although I didn't really want to put another post up so soon (who wouldn't want everyone to read how much their husband worships them?), I couldn't resist showing off our tree monkeys!

Thanks for all the compliments, honey. I feel the same about you! We make a great team and are incredible at creating beautiful babies! Here is our little ones climbing in the trees...

I Love My Superwoman

Boy how thankful I am for repentance:)Even though Mother's day is past, I am taking this time to share with you how grateful I am for all mothers, but especially for the mother of my children. Over the past few months I have trully been humbled by the many wonderful things mothers do. I look at my own life and can't help but see great examplers of faith, dedication, and determination in my mother, my mother in-law, and the mother of my children who is my superwoman. As much as I love all three of them, this is all about my superwoman.

No, she does not have extra terrestrial forces but boy when she puts her mind into something, she gets it or gets it done. This is just one of the many qualities I love about my superwoman. I am thankful that I have been blessed to have her as my best friend. Just several days ago I was watching the media attempt to put a pay scale on how much a stay home mother with kids would make if motherhood was an actual paid job. With all that my superwoman does for us, $100k a year won't even cut it.

I love her cause she is the best. I love her cause she loves me. I love her cause she is one hot superwoman. I love her cause she loves and nutures our children well. I love her cause she does not let me get away with crap (like taking 30 minutes to fold 3 pieces of laundry). I love her cause she makes me want to be better everyday.

Through all the experiences that we've faced in this crazy thing called life, my superwoman has been able to carry us along as she flies. I do not know for reals what would life be without my superwoman. To the good Lord above, I give thanks for blessing me with all her love.

The Waiting Game

Why is it when you have a doctor's appointment the staff never tells you they are running late? Yet if you are only 2 minutes late the throw a tantrum and act like you have thrown off their entire schedule. Seriously I don't get this.

This afternoon I had a doctor's appointment. I got there 15 minutes early thinking I would get in on time. I never expected I would get in early, I just wanted to get in at my appointed time. Now, I understand that doctor's offices are unpredictable. There are emergencies that come up, doctors are needed elsewhere. However, after working for years in the customer service industry I found that most people I worked with were apprectitave when I was up front about being behind or running late. I would love it if I went to an appoint and receptionists said "we are running about 30 minutes behind today but we will see you as quickly as possible." No problem, let me find some trashy magazine you have in your lobby and dive right into the latest Hollywood gossip. Or if you are telling me you are really behind I might even pick up the TIME or the New Yorker.

I am not asking them to rush any one's care so I can quickly get in the room at the appointed hour. Just tell me how long I am going to have to sit and wait. Today I had to wait 45 minutes, that was after my appointment time so in total I waited an hour! What do you think would have happened if I walked up to the desk and inquired how much longer the wait would have been? I probably would have been chewed up and spit out !

If you aren't going to give me the courtesy of knowing I am going to have to wait the least you can do is not give me the riot act when I arrive 5 minutes late because the kids fought over who got to open the car door.

Aunt Lisa

About a month ago my sweet Aunt Lisa passed away. She died of cancer very suddenly. This now makes the third person close to us who has died from cancer with in a year's time. This is a nasty disease and I have come to realize that it is no respecter of persons. It doesn't matter what your lifestyle, how healthy or fit you are.

I've been thinking about my aunt a lot lately. We weren't extremely close but I always loved chatting it up with her at any family gathering. It is sad to realize that I won't see her at family functions anymore. I am sad when I think of my Uncle Gary and how lonely he must be with out her. They had a sweet and kind relationship. I also think of her seven children and the different stages of life they are at. The oldest being around 30 and the youngest 16 how hard it will be for them with out their mother. The thing I have been thinking about the most is what I can learn from having her in my life. She is very opposite from me; you know the type, quiet, shy, soft spoken. All those characteristics I don't have. I don't think I can ever recall her raising her voice to her children. That is admirable in and of it self but when you learn that she had 7 children it is simply amazing. I only have 3 children and they are very young. Unfortunately they get yelled at a lot. I am trying to be more like my aunt in that way. She loved being a mother and you could tell that she enjoyed spending time with her children. She also loved my uncle. In fact I don't think I can even recall them having a disagreement.

She would always have a smile on her face. I remember one time when she had traveled from her home in southern California to our home in northern California by herself with her children in the car. She walked in with a kind smile on her face. I can only imagine how exhausted she was from driving and trying to entertain her kids. There were no DVD players back then. She never let on. She always looked so happy to see you. Motherhood never seemed to stress her out.

She was a peacemaker. We have some very out spoken people in my family, including myself. Aunt Lisa didn't have to be the center of attention; she just wanted to be with people. She wouldn't have to be involved in every conversation or decision. She brought a spirit of calmness into our family.

Aunt Lisa had her priorities in the right place. She didn't seek after money or riches; she didn't care about having a the biggest and best house. Her priority was her family. They always came first. She was more concerned with spending time with them then excelling in a career.

My life has been blessed because I had such a wonderful example of an amazing woman in my Aunt Lisa. I am going to miss her a lot. I still find peace in the fact that I do know I will see her again some day. Sweet will be that reunion! Until then I can honor her and show my love to her by trying to implement her wonderful characteristics in my own life.

And it was going so well

Ever have one of those days where you are really on your game? You have a long list of things to do, things just keep falling in place, and you are constantly checking items off and feeling like it is going to be a good day? Well that was me today. I was really feeling like a good wife and mother. I had everything under control and felt like it was going to be a good day. That was until I went to go and change the laundry!...

What this picture fails to show is the rest of the sugar that was spilt on the floor not to mention the water from the green beans. I took this picture thinking I would use it to show is future girlfriends.

Should they go, should they stay, or should I say goodbye

By the end of tomorrow's work day, 5 team members will be on the road looking for another job, and yes, I get to be that bad guy who will deliver some of the notifications. What a week this has been. I mean, what does one do upon learning of violations of policies particularly those that fall under the umbrella of zero tolerance. I often wonder what gets some people to do what they do and think that no one will catch them. It is so disheartening to know that she or he will be pounding the pavement again looking for another opportunity and even more so to think of them going home and explaining the reasons behind the circumstance. Knowing of the violations, it still grieves my heart having to come to a point where I am asking myself, "Should they go ? Should they stay? or Should I say goodbye?"

The healing power of the FORCE

Apparently force is stronger than I realized. Upon noticing that Vai was whining around Grandpa's house I asked him what was wrong.

Vai: " My stomach hurts." (whine, whine, whine)

Mommy: "Hurts, how? Like you are going to throw up?"

Vai: "Yes."

Mommy: "Well maybe we need to go home so you can lay down and rest."

Vai: "Well maybe if I watch Star Wars I will feel better!"

He informed me that he wants to be Darth Vader because he is cool. Darth Vader?, where is he getting this from? Oh he watched about 10 minutes of Star Wars Episode I and like Anakin, the little boy. Then because his uncle told him Anakin becomes Darth Vader now the evil one is cool. He seemed to be feeling better with out watching Star Wars

Happy Birthday Girly

Our Girly is 4 today! It seems like she has been in our family forever but she is only 4. I remember the first words to come out of my mouth when she was born..."She is Here!" I was so excited to have a daughter and I am still excited I get to be her mother. I am amazed at all the things she can do and she is only 4. I am so blessed to have such a beautiful daughter both inside and out. Her strong will and determination are true strengths, I might not always think that way, but I am learning to recognize them as strengths. This little lady of ours potty trained HERSELF right before her 2nd birthday. I was trying to adjust to life with 3 children and a one month old who didn't like to nurse and Girly decided she didn't want to wear diapers anymore. I tried to get her to wait but she didn't want to and so we gave her big girl underwear for her 2nd birthday and she never had an accident. It was the same way with wearing pull ups at night. About 3 months ago she decided she didn't want to wear a pull up to bed. "Mommy, I am big now I don't need a pull up!" Guess what ? She didn't need it and hasn't needed one ever since that night. I love her because she is my daughter, I love her because she is a kind friend. She never wants to leave anyone out. If someone is sad, Girly will be there to cheer them up. She is willing to share and very willing to help. You ask her to clean her room and she does pick everything up. She even tires to make her bed all by herself and she is only4. Even though she is 31 lbs, a tall skinny little thing, she gives the best hugs. She will wrap her arms as tight as she can around you and squeeze! I love getting her hugs. She has a beautiful smile and the best laugh. She is always singing! She constantly makes up songs and even when we tell her it is quite time during church she will still sing only she will whisper. We love our little American Idol. Thank you for being our daughter! Happy Birthday Girly!

Grateful for family, friends, and technology

Wow. I am actually doing this blogging thingy. Well, how wonderful it is to read up on the exciting things that has been going on with you and your loved ones. And how nice it is, by a mouse click, to be able to catch up all the days we've been apart as family and friends . I am thankful for this technology that has allowed my family and I to keep in touch with you and to share stories, pictures, updates,etc. But most importantly, this blogging thingy somehow has made me feel truly blessed and grateful for friends and family like you. Even though we may not see each other regularly, reading through various blogs makes it feel like we are a lot closer then we truly are. The next few days you will hear a little more of what we've been up to in "This crazy thing called life".

what we waited for

My younger brother was married this weekend to a girl I absolutely adore. Now I have two great sil's. It was a beautiful weekend.

We finally succumbed and started a blog!

So here we are after so many of you have asked, begged and even pleaded with me to start a blog. I finally succumbed, I didn't want to do it, I was very content to be a lurker. I read so many cleaver and witty blogs that I worried what would I say. Then I realized that I wanted to do this because I love keeping in touch with people but mostly I wanted to do it so my kids could have some kind of record of my thoughts on being a woman, a wife and especially on being their mother. So here goes...