well, well, well

Yea, not much has happened to me since I last wrote unless you consider the fact that...

We had baby Fatu at the end of August. Happens to be the same day my little brother was born, some years prior. He, Fatu, was the biggest baby I had at a wopping 8 lbs 13 oz. Ok, so maybe doesn't seem that big to some but to me he was already grown! haha The first day he was lifting his head, he's like a little man inside a baby's body. He is now over 16 lbs and only 3 months old. I tell ya, I see little newborns and I don't remember him being that small...oh, wait, he wasn't! My brother, the same who shares his birthday with Fatu, and his wife recently had a baby. She weighed in at 6 lbs something oz. Tiny, Tiny, especially by Fatu's standards! But, all is well...he is healthy and just as handsome as can be!

My Dad passed away recently...on Nov 17. It was difficult as imagined but I seem to be taking it a little better than I expected. He was diagnosed with Liver Cancer in June and had no symptoms. My mom was still in Texas and he was still in Atlanta so I went with him to his oncologist appointments to see what can be done. He decided to do radiation at Tulane University in New Orleans, LA, where my oldest brother happens to work as the Head of the Cancer Center. He did the radiation the week before I had Fatu and everything seemed to be going ok. He was then released from his calling at church as a counselor in the Branch Presidency of a Vietnamese Branch at the end of Sept. In October, we found out that the cancer had grown into his lungs. It moved fast and he fought hard. He waited long enough for most of us kids to get to him to say our last goodbyes. He will be missed but I know that we will be together again and that is what gives me strength.

BOY OH BOY! It's a...

Ok, so we found out what we are having a while ago but things are so crazy that I haven't posted anything about it. We are going to have a BOY! Can you tell I'm excited!? We would have been happy with either a boy or a girl but this way William will have a brother! And with the new house, the girls will have their room and the boys in a room of their own! William is so happy to finally have a room where he doesn't have to share with the girls!!!

We are loving our new house! We moved in at the beginning of June and still in the phase of getting the house in order. Most of what we have is unpacked with the exception of some things that I just don't know what to do with right now. We are slowly meeting our neighbors...the ones we have met so far though are great...and there are kids to play with, which is fantastic! We shall see how the rest of the summer goes! We only have about 3 weeks since school starts on August 4! Early? Yea, it sure seems like that to me too!

long time no see!

Well, it has been a long time since I put anything on here. Not sure if anyone even wants to read it since it is so unpredictable as to when there will be a post...and what it might say.
There has been a couple of pretty big things that happened to us these last few months.

1. We found out in December that we are expecting another little one into our crazy little family! We are so happy and the kids are really excited to have a little brother or sister! We have yet to find out what we are going to have but will be happy with either a boy or a girl!

2. We just bought our first house! Yea, crazy I know, but we found a great house for a great price and are extremely happy to finally have a place that is ours! It's only been a few days since we closed on the house and have a little bit of work to do before we can move in...change out the carpet, paint, appliances, and put in some new pipes that someone decided to steal (good thing it was only the exposed pipes down in the basement)!! Plus we don't want to transfer Krisalyn with only a month and a half of school left. S0, even though it is ours...the reality probably won't set in until the end of May when we actually move in!

Yea, pretty exciting things happening! Hopefully I will start posting more regularly to update on everyone and everything for those who are interested.

First day of Kindergarten

Krisalyn started Kindergarten today! We were both extremely excited. I thought that maybe I would tear up a little but to my surprise there was not even the urge to do so! I was so excited for her that you would think it was my first day of school! I couldn't sleep last night and I seemed to wake up every hour to check the clock just to make sure I didn't miss the alarm and make her late! I had the alarm on for 6 am...Ioelu called around 5:30 and said he was on his way home (he got off early to go with us!) I went to ask Krisalyn if she was awake. When she realized what day it was, she jumped out of bed and ran to the shower! I hope this excitement for school lasts! Here are some pictures of Krisalyn's first day!

Ready to go to school!

Her Teacher, Mrs. Shaikh!!!

with mommy

with daddy

kiddos

Krisalyn lost her first tooth!
Since the picture, she has lost 3 more!

Oh, how they love each other!

Shaka!

Cheeky kids!

I have such cute kids! I know, I am biased!

Exciting weekend

I have been so terrible keeping up with this blog! It seems like every time I try to start a post, I get interrupted and then I just forget what it is I was going to put up! All well, I guess I'll just tell you what's been up lately. I can't find any pictures from the beginning of this year and now our camera is gone so can't put up any recent pictures!
So last weekend was our 7 year anniversary! We had been trying to plan to do something great since Ioelu works for Delta and had even gotten that week off! To make it easier on my parents we had reduced our week trip down to the weekend...hoping we can take a weekend trip to Hawaii and make it back for Fathers Day! Yea, that didn't happen...my mom wasn't able to make it down that weekend and so we decided to take the kids with us to Hawaii. They were so happy to see their cousins and the beach! It was good to see great friends and family! Our time in Hawaii was wonderful! It was getting back that wasn't much fun! We got to Hawaii on Wednesday night...being delayed in Atlanta for 4 hours because of a mechanical problem...who would have a problem with that though, because I would rather fly in a plane that is safe rather than one that has a problem no matter how small they say it is. We had fun Thursday and Friday visiting with family and friends...Saturday spent the morning at Swap meet and tried to get on the 4 oclock plane back to Georgia. Didn't make it...ok, that's part of the game you play flying standby. We made it on a flight to Portland...spent Sunday in the Portland airport...flew to New York that got in at 6:30 Monday morning and happened to get on a flight to Atlanta at 11:00 am...that's where things got even more crazy! Everyone was boarded on the plane and ready to go when we hear someone yelling, "NO don't do that...don't close it!" only to find out that one of the flight attendants locked the arm of the door before closing it and deflated the emergency slide! Yea, great fun! We were all de-boarded and told that the flight was delayed until 1 pm. OK, that's fine. Then we hear on the intercom that all those on that flight need to report to the gate...only to find out that the flight is now going out of La Guardia instead of JFK and those who are flying stand by have to find another fight home. To make matters worse..the agents at the gate were not willing to help us! Oh yea, I was not happy...two days in three different airports with three kids who didn't understand why we couldn't get home. So we finally made it on a flight and got seated when Ioelu asked if I had the camera! During the time at JFK airport I lost the camera and have no clue where it could have been. That was the icing on the cake! We had so many great memories on that camera with so many great friends! The last picture we had on there was one taken while we were boarding the flight from Portland to JFK...the pilots let the kids sit in the cock pit and take a picture with one of them. I thought it was awesome and was excited to post in on here but alas...it is gone and most likely we will not be getting it back but who knows, maybe it's just lost in the lost and found!!! It was a fun filled weekend in which we spent most of our anniversary and all of Fathers Day in airports! Oh, the joy! I cannot really complain about standby because it is a lot better than paying a full price ticket! It is now an experience we can look back on and say...all well, better luck next time...and at least we made it home in one piece!!!

gotcha some updates...

...FROM DECEMBER. These are some pictures I found so far. I have no clue where the pictures are from the beginning of the year! So you are stuck back in December with me at the moment.

Me and Ioelu at Stone Mountain

The kiddos on top of Stone Mountain.
When I told Krisalyn we were going to Stone Mountain she asked what it was. My response...a big rock! She wasn't too excited but once she got there it was alot more fun than just a big rock!

Krisalyn and Kyra getting ready for their movie debut! We recorded them for our Ward Christmas video. They wanted each family to make a video of them singing a Christmas song. Can you guess what song they are singing?

Mele Kalikimaka...is the thing to say!

Christmas Morning! YAY!

Well, that's all I have for you at the moment. Enjoy the short update from 5 months ago!

Sorry for the delay...

Sorry for all you who check this thing. I have been lazy in my updating but I'm going to try to update with pictures so bare with me! It is coming soon, promise!

Family Photos

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!?)

Best Friends

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!

As promised...

...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!

what's been going on...

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.

Halloween 2009

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!

I'm proud to be an American...

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!!!

Mixed Emotions

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.

Thinking back when...

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.