Ok, so the last time we took "professional" family pictures was when Kyra was about a month old...yea, I know! Well, there is a lady in our ward who is going to school for photography and I asked if she needed any models. A couple weeks later, she ran up to me and said that she had time, so we got with her last Wednesday for some pics. I had no idea where to go to get some good ones but luckly she knows her way around better than I do. She found this really cool University that looks like castle walls. This place was so great! I was so excited to be getting the pictures done and she did a great job with what she was working with! The kids were definitly a handful and did not cooporate but she got some good shots. So here they are.
Daddy and his girls like father...like son
The girls
Sisters!
Yea, I think this one is going to be our Christmas card!
Not quite sure, though!
Love this picture of the little man!
So, if anyone would like a Chrismas card just send your address...and I'll try to pick a good picture! (and when I say good, I mean one that I think I look alright in!!!! We are our own worse critic...right!?)
Last week we took a couple days to drive over to South Carolina. It was a long drive but a lot of fun! We went to go see a couple friends, Misi and Jenny, that we knew from BYU Hawaii. Krisalyn and their daughter are like best friends. They were born only a week apart and up until they moved from Hawaii, they played a lot together. Now we live about 5 hours away and decided it was about time for a road trip! If you didn't know any better, you wouldn't think that Krisalyn and Oceana had been apart for three years! They played every minute of the day together! It was nice to see such great friends together again! Kyra and William were not alone...well, Kyra mainly. They do have another daughter, Aaryah, who is between William and Kyra, so they weren't too lonely! I think William, though, was really getting tired of all the estrogen in the house! He wanted to do everything that Daddy and Uncle Misi were doing, especially eat with the big boys! At one point, Ioelu was singing and drumming so they can dance the Poly dances. They did the Tahitian hip shakin, the Maori tongue stickin' out, and Pearly Shells! They had so much fun! It was great to see old friends...hopefully we can do it again soon!
...pictures from our adventures a few weeks ago. William wasn't feeling too well from cutting more teeth, so he wasn't his typical, running around getting into everything, self! He kept the backpack on pretty much the whole time and kept his hand in his pocket! It was so funny! When we went to get the photo with Santa, William refused to get on his lap and we were only allowed to take one picture with our camera. All well!
Just want to start off by tell those few of you who read this...Happy Thanksgiving!
I am so blessed to have such a wonderful husband, who will do anything to ensure my happiness, who loves me so much even when I know that I get on his nerves. A man who tells me I'm beautiful no matter what time of the day it is...or what day for that matter! A man who supports me in whatever I want to do and wants me to follow my dreams. A man who is such a great father to our children and loves them so much. I am blessed with three beautiful children, who at times can be terrors but I love with all my heart...and great friends, who know me and like me anyways!! You guys are great!
I got back from Trinidad last week. Yea, it was an exciting trip. My best friend got married to a guy from there. It is an interesting story of how they met...long story short, she went to visit her parents who were serving a mission, met this man and was smitten! So, they were married in Trinidad and went on to the Dominican Republic to be sealed. I wasn't able to go to her sealing but was able to go to the civil wedding. I was looking at pictures of her that her sister posted from the temple on facebook and let me just she was radiant! She has always been beautiful but that day she was beaming! Brides always have that glow to them when they get married but there is definitely a different glow when you come out of the temple after being sealed to your eternal companion. Trinidad wedding. Sealing in Dominican Republic temple
My main purpose in going to Trinidad was, of course, the wedding but we did get to go to Fort George the next day, before we had to get back on the plane. Fort George is a pretty cool historical site. It looks over the city of Port of Spain and was initially built in the 1800's to for protection but was never used. On a clear day, you can look out and see Venezuela on the horizon, since it's only like nine miles out. When I got back...yep, that's right, I went all by myself. Aah, it was a nice break but I was happy to be home with my man...and the kids.
Later that week, Ioelu, the kids and I ventured out to see the Delta museum. It was pretty fun...and free, which makes it even better! We got to see some of the planes that Delta use to fly. It was pretty cool. We then went on to the mall where we found Santa (I didn't know he would be there so early) a cool little train that we could ride and the carosell that the kids love! It was a great day!
I'll be putting up pictures of our adventures soon.
It really sucks not having a camera...but luckily, my dad has his and let us borrow it for trick or treating. This year, trick or treating was ok. We miss going out with our friends to trick or treat. Up until last year, we did our Halloweens in Laie with such wonderful friends. There is nothing quite like the Trick or Treating on Moana and Ioesepa Street. Last year we spent Halloween with a great family, the Churchwells, and had a blast. It is so much fun to share the spooky holiday with friends. This year, although it was just our little family, it was still fun. Our ward did their trunk or treating on Friday and the girls were so excited! It was good, and the kids, got a lot of candy. Luckily, we didn't have to buy candy for Halloween night trick or theaters. We handed out the candy kids got from the trunk or treat! (just don't tell the kids! hahaha) It really didn't matter much because they received plenty of candy that I don't know what to do with! So, here are some pictures of the kids in their costumes.
The Rose Princess
The butterfly Princess...with out the wings
Roarrrrr...the little dragon! When people would ask him what he was, he would say "ROAR"...so cute!
My little posers!
Trick or treat!
Ioelu dressed up for work on Friday and is awaiting the results of the contest they had. He won the morning shift and now the supervisors have to figure out who it is going to be.
This has nothing to do with Halloween but I think it's pretty funny...in a good way. I visit teach a couple of great women. I was talking with one of them, with her husband, trying to figure out a good time to go and see her. As we were talking, I pointed out Ioelu. Her husband got so excited and said something like "Your married to that really cool guy that wears that skirt thing" Yep, that's me! He was telling me that ever since he saw Ioelu in one he wanted one. So, last week, Ioelu gave him one of his and they wore them to church on Sunday. I missed it, due to a couple kids being sick, but they came over to take a picture of the two in their lavalava's. Ioelu said it was pretty funny at church because now, instead of everyone looking at him, they are now looking at the other guy. Funny! I think he can handle it!
Yesterday Ioelu officially became an American Citizen! Can I get a CHEEEEEEEEE HOOOOOOOOOO!!! It was so great to finally have everything done! No more applications...no more money...no more waiting! We had problems in the past with immigration taking their sweet time through the process, sending the wrong information to us (which of course, freaked us out trying to figure out what to do) but in the end it all worked out! I am so proud of him. He is such a great man. A loving father and a wonderful husband.
Ioelu and I got to the immigration office for his 7:45am interview and test. The ceremony was not going to be until 2:00 pm, which was great because we were able to pick up the kids and my dad for the ceremony. Even though the kids didn't really understand what was going on, I thought it was great to have them there to share in his moment.
Unfortunately, we still don't have a camera, but I had my phone and took some pictures from the ceremony. Now, I just need to figure out how to put them onto the computer!! So, in the mean time, you all get to enjoy pictures of when Ioelu went to D.C. with a group from school.
Even with so much corruption and terrible things going on, we are so blessed to live in the United States. We have so many opportunities. I cannot even begin to express my love for Ioelu and all that he does to provide for us.
During the ceremony, they played a few videos and one of them was this song. I absolutely love this song. It is definitely one of my favorites, the words really touch my heart. It is just a beautiful song and I get choked up when I hear it. I am so proud to be an American! I know most if not all of you have heard it but I wanted to share it anyways.
The other things that are going on in our life...let's see.
1. We heard back from Samoa last week and was told that they found Ioelu's brother and family alive and safe. Now, the only problem is that one of the brothers who went looking for them is now in the hospital with a terrible swelling in one of his legs.
2. Ioelu is now working full time! He is relieved and I am, again, so proud of him, and blessed to have him in my life.
3. My dad is now home from the hospital. For those of you who don't know, he was in the hospital for a couple weeks because of a staph infection he had in his legs. It was terrible. He couldn't get up and walk for a good portion of the time he was in the hospital. When he was finally able to walk with out too much pain medication, he was transferred to a rehabilitation center/nursing home to finish recovering and work with a physical therapist. That was the worse thing that could happen. He was only there for about 3 maybe 4 days and got very depressed. It was just a terrible place to be. Needless to say, his doctor approved him to come home and finish his medication. It is a great relief to be here and have someone to care for him as he is recovering.
4. I am going to be going to Trinidad next month. Yea, I am pretty excited. It is not going to be along trip but a trip none the less! One of my very best friends is going to be getting married there and of course, I am in the wedding! hehehehe! She met him while visiting her parents who were serving a mission there, and now, they are ready to tie the knot! I really hope all works out for them and they are as happy as Ioelu and I are! I really want the best for her and hope that this guy is worthy of her! She is such a wonderful woman and deserves the very best in a husband! I have never met the man, but I am sure she chose a worthy man deserving of her love!!
5. The kids are growing tons and getting into everything! As much as I love them, those child safety locks and everything else do not work! We have a gate leading into the kitchen, which the kids climb over, making it pointless to even put it up anymore. The "child lock" that I have on the cupboard doors under the sink doesn't seem to work especially when little William likes to play with the door. They are constantly getting into the fridge and so far there has been at least 2 gallons of milk spilled on the floor. No not all at once, it was more like a half a gallon at a time! I try to clean it up as best as I can but let me tell ya, milk on carpet is not the best smell in the world! Me, being the perfect mom that I am, tells my kids that is it is ok...YEA RIGHT! Ok, so I'm not the perfect mom that I had hoped to be when I had kids, and I will definitely admit that I had lost it...more than once! But that is another reason that I am so blessed to have Ioelu. When I am at my wits end, he is there with the gentle reasoning, and vice versa! I do have really great kids. Even though there are those times that I am pulling my hair out because of what they did, I love them so much and cannot even imagine my life without them! Which reminds me of something that Krisalyn had asked me on Sunday. She was looking at a magazine, showed me a picture of a beautiful woman and this is the conversation that we had. her: "Mommy, why didn't daddy marry her?" me: "Well, because he married me." her: "Why didn't you marry the guy who asked you?" me: "Daddy did ask me." her: "No, the other guy." me: "Well, if I married him, than you wouldn't be here." her: "But, he should have married her because she is beautiful and has a beautiful necklace." me: "What about me?" her: "You have beautiful earrings." and before I can say anything else she says, "I love you Mommy." OH, the joys of parenting!!!
September 29, 2009 was a day of mixed emotions for me.
On the one end of the spectrum, as many of you know, was the tsunami that hit the islands of Samoa and American Samoa, along with others. What a tragedy for those living there! My heart goes out to the families who were affected by this disaster. Many people lost loved ones, their homes, and their belongings. As I looked at pictures posted on the internet, it makes me so sad seeing the people that I love so devastated. I look at the pictures of the mothers carrying their children who have died into the morgue and I can only imagine how much their heart aches having to bury their children so young! We found out that most of Ioelu's immediate family is ok, but he has an older brother who lived in a village that was hit hard. The village was leveled and we have no idea where his brother, his wife, or his five kids are. They lived very close to the beach and right now the only speculation we have is that they were washed out to sea. And if that is the case, may they rest in peace and wait until we meet again! I am so blessed to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints! The knowledge of what happens after we leave this life and that families are forever has really gotten us through this terrible tragedy.
ON the other end of the spectrum, Krisalyn turned 5 years old. I really can't believe I have a 5 year old. No, she is not in school yet which I know she is a little bummed about, but next year she will have her chance to finally go to school! That will be very crazy for me...I know! Anyway, we had her birthday party last Friday and she had such a good time. She had a butterfly theme party and I really tried to keep it low budget, so I made the cake a pinata. I got most of the things we needed from the dollar store, and found these cute butterfly nets on clearance at Tuesday Mornings, that I used for the goody bags. I took pictures of everything except the goody bags...unfortunately I didn't have enough for my kids to get one, so I can't really recreate it...all well, just believe me when I say that they were cute! Here are some pictures of the party.
Well, we don't have a camera. I have no clue where it could have gone to. I mean, the house isn't that big, and I always forget to take it with me when we go somewhere, so it has to be somewhere at the house, right?! It has been gone for a few months now...and although I don't take as many pictures of the kids as I should, I miss taking the few that I do! I haven't really updated on the kids for a while so I thought it might be about time. The time has just flown by since each one was born.
THEN
NOW
Krisalyn
Smart
beautiful
full of excitement
very caring
wants to know everything
loves to dance
loves to dress up
loves being the big sister...most of the time
Loves her Pierre Bear
THEN
NOW
Kyra
very funny
beautiful
smart
loves to dance
loves to tell jokes
loves to have fun
loves to laugh
loves her horses
loves her big sister and little brother
THEN
NOW
William
Momma's boy
Loves to tickle
handsome
loves his cars
loves bananas...or anything else ;-)
loves to tackle
loves to run
Loves his sisters
I don't remember if I posted it or not but I think it is absolutely beautiful of Krisalyn and Kyra.
I like this one because of Williams expression...priceless!
Can you tell what song they are singing?! :-)
Just a quick note...Ioelu started a blog, in case anyone was interested.
Seriously, there is so much on my mind! I don't care very much for politics but what has been going on lately has really been bothering me. I was visiting one of my very best friends a few weeks ago and we started talking about citizenship. She is about to marry a man from Trinidad...and she knows, obviously, about Ioelu and his immigration status. Well, as we were talking, her aunt jumped in and was talking about her son-in-law and how he had been in the US for something like 26 years. She mentioned that the immigration office had told him that when he took his citizenship test, it would be in Spanish. Well, he went to take it and lo and behold, it was in English so he failed it. She was so upset on the fact that it was immigrations fault that he didn't pass! It took all that I had to hold my tongue and not tell her that it was his own fault. 26 years living in the United States, you would think that the guy would learn enough English to pass the test!
The other issue I have is this whole racial thing going on about the cop that arrested the Harvard Professor. Come on people...he was doing his job! The guy didn't get arrested because he was black, or because he was breaking into his own house...he got arrested for disorderly conduct, which is a legitimate reason no matter what color you are! And for Obama to be so quick to judge this police officer without knowing all the facts! "Racism is still a big issue in America" REALLY? Maybe it's because people can't stop bringing it up! To people like Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton, it is a very huge issue! Why is that? I can't stand the way they just assume that everything that happens is based on race. People who do something wrong deserve to be punished...that's the way it goes...and in the words of Michael Jackson, "It don't matter if you black or white" or at least it shouldn't. This country will never be free from racism until we, the people who live here, stop letting it be in issue! We need to grow up and treat everyone with respect. We are all here for the same reason! We all make mistakes and need to stop putting the blame on other people...people, who despite what some think, are just like us, equal in our rights as human beings.
Well, I finally decided to do this and I'm not sure what I think. I had no idea what I was doing or how to get it onto the blog so I had it done like 7 times. I did it 3 times for William and each time the percentage would come out different. The first one was looking 4% more like me, then 3% more like Ioelu, then 100% equal. Maybe I should have used the same picture on all of them! All well, close enough!
So, last month was our 6 year anniversary! YEY! I wonder how many people thought it would last?! I did! haha We are still going strong! :-) Well, I wanted to reminisce a little bit of the past so I posted some pictures.
Ahhh! Our first date. Yep, the '02 Fall Ball. Back then, I seriously didn't think that anything would happen between us but as fate would have it...that was the first night of forever!
This is one of the few that we have while we were dating. (Any of you remember those bright puletasis we wore that year ('02) for Cultural Night!?) I am not one of those who take pictures all the time, although there are times that I regret that fact. This was taken on the weekend my parents came over to have the "can I marry your daughter" chat. You know what I'm talking about! That was a definite must in my book! Although he denies it...Ioelu was so nervous! All went well though!
Taken by one of my wonderful sisters, I think this is a beautiful picture and I just wanted to share!
For our anniversary this year we wanted to do something spectacular... Yea, I know, it was only our 6th anniversary but still. We left the kids for the weekend with my parents and headed over to Arizona! Yea, some of you may not think that that was anything spectacular but for us it was. We got to see some great friends from Hawaii that we haven't seen in a long time. Some of whom were moving to New Zealand the following week. Moa and Netta, you guys are great! Thanks for letting us spend some time with you and your kids! Monica! It was so great seeing you! Your kids are beautiful and I hope to come and visit you again soon!
Since this is in honor of our anniversary...I wanted to write a little dedication to the man I share my life with! Many times he asks me why I married him, as I'm sure many of us ask our spouse the same question...maybe for reassurance, justification, or just wanting to be reminded. And many times I just tell him because "I love you". It is very hard for me to say what I am feeling...I get way too emotional and because I'm unsure how the other person will respond...although the second reason isn't really the case with Ioelu. So, I want to tell him some of the reasons why I love him so much.
He can always make me laugh!
He dances super fly! ;-)
He is super duper hot!
He loves me no matter what I say or what I look like!
He is a very hard worker and wants so much to provide everything for me and his kids.
He is there for me when everyone else seems to turn away!
He is so patient with me and all my foolishness!
He helps me become a better person!
He is my best friend!
He honors the Priesthood that he holds!
These are just a few qualities that I love about the man I chose to live forever with, and some may be a little superficial, but you gotta be attracted to the man you wake up next to every morning, right!? Anyway, I am not an elloquent speaker...I don't really know how to put my feelings into words, so I tend to wrap up my feelings in a simple phrase..."Because I LOVE YOU!"
I love him with all my heart! I can't even begin to imagine what my life would be like with out him, and frankly I don't want to! I am so blessed to have a man who can go with me to the temple! A man who is a worthy Priesthood holder! A man who is such a wonderful Husband, Father and Friend! So, Here's to my man and to the rest of our life together!
The other day I was on the internet and Krisalyn saw a picture of President Obama and asked me who he was. So I told her that he was the President of the United States. Here's the conversation I had with her.
K: "Mommy, who is that man?" Me: "Well, that is President Obama, he is the President of the United States." K: "Oh, I thought President Monson was the President." Me: "President Monson is the President of the Church, President Obama is the President of the United States, where we live." K: "Oh."
So, today at church we were sitting in Sacrament meeting and she turned to me, pointing to an African guy who was going to sit down with his family and asked, "Is that the President?" Of course I told her, "Yes, you should go shake his hand!" Just kidding, although that would have been funny, I just told her no.
Warning: This is probably going to be pretty boring...it's pretty much a play by play of our last two days! Let's see...where to begin. The past couple days were two celebrations rolled up in one...well, sort of. Monday was my birthday...good ol' 30! What am I going to do...I am now in my 3rd decade of existence, and hope there are many more decades to come! The day started out to be just another ordinary day. I cleaned the house, got the kids ready to go to the mall to ride the carissel (ok, so that doesn't happen everyday...but you get the picture) and take Kyra to pick out a birthday gift. Tuesday was Kyras birthday and since Ioelu had Monday off, we decided to take her to Build-a-Bear and have her pick out her own bear (a pink one she named Princess Bear). She really enjoyed it. Afterwards, we met up with my parents at the Cheesecake Factory and had some yummy food! We finally got the kids to sleep and Ioelu and I headed out to see a movie. We went to see Duplicity...which, in my opinion, was a waste of $20. Because Kyra's birthday was on Tuesday, I wanted to do something special for her 3 birthday. We just had a little family party. We played Princess bingo, had some cake and ice cream, watched as she opened her gifts and laughed as she would hug each one and say how much she loved it. The only gift she didn't hug was an outfit she got from Grandma...she opened it, slid it across the table to Ioelu and asked for the next one! She is such a funny girl! Yea, I know toys are more important to her at this age but she is going to look so cute in those clothes!
Krisalyn says the funniest things. I really need to start writing them down! Here are a few things that she said...
One night we were sitting at dinner with my dad and Krisalyn was saying how she wanted to be a grown-up already, but that she didn't want to be "old, old, old, old, old like Grandpa!"
Last night at dinner I asked her if she knew whose birthday it was tomorrow. She guessed everyone except me, so finally Ioelu told her it was mine and said I was going to be old. "Yep," I said, "I'm going to be old, old, old." So I look at her and she starts crying! Of course, I ask her why she is crying and she just says, "I don't want you to be old old old!"
Today at breakfast she asks "Mommy, can you make a cake for your birthday today?" "I don't want to make my birthday cake" I said. "But, everybody else can eat it!" She replied.
A couple weeks ago we went over to Fresno to see Ioelu's sister, Lila, and her cute family! We were only there for the weekend, but we had a lot of fun! I loved hanging out with Lila and the kids and getting to know her a lot better. They have been waiting for us to finally make it over so they can bless their son, Talaitoa. He is a handsome little one! He's got the cutest dimples! We also got to meet their daughter, Arieta! She is beautiful! Krisalyn and Kyra had so much fun playing with her while we were there! We all miss them and hope to be able to see them again soon! Here are some pictures from our trip.
Baby Talaitoa
Ioelu and the kids at the park!
This was one of the few I could
get of him!
I love this picture of Kyra!
The girls...ALOHA
Krislayn loved climbing the tree.
The cutest kids ever! OK, so I'm biased! What parent isn't! ;-)
William had so much fun at the park, he
found his own way up to the slide!
Ioelu with his niece and nephew the night we got to Fresno. Poor guy, he was at the SLC Airport all day with the girls until he could catch a flight to Fresno. He had me and William go on the earlier flight. Oh, the joys of flying standby! Not complaining though! We made it there!
I'm a full time mom of three wonderfully crazy and wild kids...two very active girls and a boy that I know will be just as active when he gets older. I'm married to a happy Samoan who, I'm sure, is the one who gave his crazily active genes to our kids!!
Sisters!
Yea, I think this one is going to be our Christmas card!
Love this picture of the little man!
So, if anyone would like a Chrismas card just send your address...and I'll try to pick a good picture! (and when I say good, I mean one that I think I look alright in!!!! We are our own worse critic...right!?)
