happy happy birthday

As you can see May is a busy month for birthdays in our family. I have missed a few, so I just wanted to post a little something about them.

May 1st - Happy Birthday Alyssa!

Alyssa is my "best-cousin". We are just 5 months apart. It was so much fun growing up and I am so happy we have remained close. (now if we could just figure out a good day to get together. It's hard to arrange a time because we both are "one car" families and we have to coordinate with our hubands.)

We love you Alyssa!

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May 8th - Happy Birthday Peter!

(aka Pete)

This is Pete at his graduation last year. He is now playing football at Ball State.

We are so proud of you!

Taliana woke us up at 6am on his birthday so she could call and sing him "happy birthday". That is her "prince", and of course she is the "princess".

We love you Pete!

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May 12th - Happy Birthday Tana!

(aka Montana)This picture was taken last year at Tana's dance competition.

This was Tana's birthday last year. She has grown so much over the past year.

We love you Tana!

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May 15th - Happy Birthday Lavenia!

(aka La)

Here is La posing with her sister, Keiki.

This is La's first time driving a bumper boat. She did a great job soaking her sister. Thanks for coming and staying with us last summer. Can't wait for this summer. This time you need to bring Tana with you so we can have a REAL party.

We love you La!

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Mother's Day Adventures

Okay.... get ready for a LONG post.



Jason really out did himself this year for Mother's Day. He was gone all day Saturday out running "errands". Jason got home around 5pm, and that is when it all started...



Taliana hands me a paper that reads....



Happy Mother's Day!

Your day of adventure and excitement has just begun! You are on a tight schedule and no one must know your where abouts! You will be doing the following.......

#1... Pack your bag, you're going far far far away! Notice "you're" meaning, only YOU! So hurry there is not much time. You may pack swimming clothes if you like. However, I know you just got your hair done. Nevertheless, no questions asked. Go pack your bags. All prior obligations will be taken care of by me! Act as if you're going somewhere special and you may need to shave your legs or even paint your toe nails etc etc etc. Remember no questions asked. Pack wisely! Time of disappearance undisclosed.



So... I tried to pack what I thought would be okay, but there was not much information and Jason would not give me any clues, so I just shaved my legs and packed my swimming suit and a change of clothes.



#2... You will go to Moki's as scheduled, however you will leave at 7:45pm no later no earlier. We will provide transportation.



Jason's mom took all the girls to Moki's for dinner for Mother's Day. I was only able to spend a little time with them before Jason picked me up promptly at 7:45pm. In the car, Jason handed me an envelope with a singing card and multiple envelopes with numbers on them. I was instructed to follow the numbers and I could not open the next until the task was finished.



#3... Welcome to your day of rest and relaxation! You will drop your bags off in your room, rm 1201, you must use your card to access the 12th floor. And immediately head for the gateway mall. Drop your bags in the hallway of the room. NO PEAKING!!



Jason dropped me off at the Marriott city-center. The NICEST Marriott in the city. I knew I was going to be staying in a nice room when I found out I had to use the key to access the floor in the elevator. When I got on the 12th floor, the presidential suite was just of the elevators on the right. My room was just down the hall from there. It was a King Suite. It was at the corner of the hotel, so it over looked the salt lake valley and the east mountains. It was a beautiful room. Once in the hallway of the room, I opened the next envelope.



#4... Your movie starts at 8:30pm, with a 10 minute leeway, so hurry and don't be late. You may catch trax or walk. But don't be late. Open #5 after the movie.



So... off I went to catch trax to the gateway. There was a ticket stub in the envelope. The movie title read, What Happens. When I got to the movie theater, I saw that the movie was "What Happens in Vegas". I have been dying to see that movie so I was really excited. I was hoping Jason would be there waiting for me so we could watch it together. But... he wasn't. So instead I had to crawl over 6 couples so I could get to my seat (we have assigned seating at the movies now). It was a little embarrassing having to crawl over those people just so I could sit alone in between several other couples. The movie was SO hilarious! It is a MUST see. I will just leave it at that. I hate to hear other people's interpretation of movies, so I will let you decide how you liked it. After the movie was over, I headed outside and opened the next envelope.



#5... You must find your way back, be careful don't stay out too late. Catch trax or walk, you will be okay. Upon arrival to the room, there will be 6 items in the room to find. The flower is last to read! I repeat, flower is last. So don't cheat!



I was too excited to stay out and walk around the gateway, so I hurried back to the hotel to find my hidden treasures. In the room he had hidden a few gifts with notes attached to them. Here were the notes.... The best mother while shopping must stop and get a luxury manicure/pedicure. Appointment is at 1 o'clock sharp. (A gift certificate to H2O salon). Sorry Mom, we knew you wanted to sleep in, however these tickets are only good until 9am! Thanks for everything. (A coupon for free breakfast buffet - It was so yummy!) A good mother deserves to shop for herself, so have at it. Thanks for all you do! (gift cards for Old Navy and Gap). The "best" mom must have some cash while she shops! You're the best! (cash for shopping). A great wife cannot be walking around without a pair of shoes! We love you! (gift card to Famous Footwear). Happy Mothers cannot be complete without flowers! Only for such a great person! (flowers).



#7... Your schedule is tight tomorrow. But here are the important times to remember! 9:00am - must eat before then. 1:00pm - H2O salon. 4:00pm - pick up time or when you call!



On the last envelope I was instructed to open on Sunday morning.



#8... Have fun shopping, and we hope you relax and take this time for yourself! Enjoy and have a blast! Go be yourself, treat yourself, and don't worry about a thing! We love you!



It was SO nice to be able to relax in the hotel room by myself, but I did get a little lonely. So... at 7:30am I called Jason to have him come and bring the kids and go swimming with me. Plus, I am still nursing Malia so I HAD to feed her. I felt like I was going to explode with milk everywhere. I went downstairs and had breakfast by myself and read a book that I had brought along with me. It was nice to just relax and eat breakfast and read. I didn't have to worry about getting plates of food for the kids. I only had to worry about MYSELF! Jason came with the kids and we went swimming for a few hours then I had to get ready for my day of shopping and pedicure/manicure. I started out at H2O salon. I have never had a professional pedicure before, so it was awesome. I sat in a chair that gave me a back massage while I got my feet worked on. After that I headed down to Old Navy to get a few things. After a few hours, I was all shopped out and ready to get back to reality. I will admit it was really hard for me to only shop for MYSELF! I had to make myself only look in the women's section. I wouldn't allow myself to go look in the kids section or the mens, because I knew I would end up spending my money buying something for my kids. I always feel guilty when I buy myself stuff when I know that my kids could use clothes too. They are in need of summer clothes. Sorry kids...maybe next time.



It was an amazing time. I loved all the surprises. Thank you Jason for all your hard work. I appreciate you so much. Thank you for being such an awesome husband and amazing father.



Sorry ladies... this man is taken!



Okay... now I need help in planning Father's Day. Any suggestions???

Quote of the day

I found this quote while doing my usual morning routine of "surfing da net". Thought I would share it with you.
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"When my husband comes home, if the kids are still alive, I figure I've done my job." -Rosanne Barr

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Have any of you had days like this?? Sometimes I will leave the kids (Taliana and Ammon) with Jason and go to St. George for a few days just so he can re-appreciate all that I do. hahahah

I work tonight at Potterybarn Kids and I am just counting down the hours till I get to go to work. (Is the mean??) I love it because I get four hours of "girl time". Even though I am making beds and setting the floor with the new product, I still love having time with grown-ups. That makes me appreciate my time home with the kids.

happy happy birthday

Today is my sister (Jennifer)'s birthday. She is 2 and a half years older than me. We used to fight when we were younger. Which I'm sure is like most syblings. But now that we've grown up (and matured) we have become great friends. I can honestly say that she is my best friend. She is the one I can call at any time to talk or get advice. I know she will always be there for me. I love her so much. Happy Birthday Jennifer!

vampire

Ammon got these teeth from a birthday party on Saturday. He already has plans for his Halloween costume.

weekend rituals

If you've ever come to visit us for the weekend, you know that I LOVE to make breakfast. However, it is only a weekend thing though. Unless we are out of milk for cold cereal on school mornings, then I will make pancakes.

Sunday morning Taliana and Ammon wanted Pancakes for breakfast. They usually beg for crepes, so I jumped at the opportunity to make pancakes. It's just quicker. However, we didn't have anymore instant pancake mix, so I googled homemade pancakes. There were a few great recipes to choose from, but of course I found the best one submitted by Martha Stewart called Best Buttermilk Pancakes. Just a little tip I got from my friend Amy... if you don't have buttermilk on hand, you can just add 1 tablespoon of vinegar to every 1 cup milk needed. We love to find different toppings for our pancakes and crepes, but this is Jason's favorite.... strawberries and whipped cream. Very yummy!

happy happy birthday

Yesterday was Eveline's birthday (Jason's mother). We planned a SURPRISE birthday dinner for her at Jason's brother's house. But when you have over 30 people coming, trying to keep it a surprise is a REAL struggle. It was all good though.

I just wanted to tell Eveline how much I love and appreciate all that she does for our family. Both her and her husband has sacrificed so much for their children. (Just a little background information....) They moved over from the Islands of Tonga in the early 1970s. Her husband (Petelo) first came, then she came with the children (8 total - 5 were theirs and 3 were her syblings.) Her mother (Jason's grandmother) died of a heart attack when she was 49 years old, leaving behind young children, the youngest being jut 4 months old. Eveline is the eldest of 12 children, so she raised the youngest 4 syblings along with her 8 children. They didn't have much for their children, but they were raised with LOVE (and I guess that's all you really need.) Eveline didn't speak much English, but she learned most of it from watching Sesame Street with the kids and helping them with their homework.

Eveline would drop everything to help ANYONE. I have to say... I've dropped a few things on her at times (like deciding to make an Easter dress at 10pm the night before Easter.) She is an amazing seamstress. She can create anything. When she made Taliana's Easter dress a few years ago, that was the first time she has actually used a pattern. I wish I had those talents.






Eveline has 34 grandchildren and has a great relationship with each one. She makes each grandchild feel so loved.








Ofa Atu!


**The picture is of Eveline and Doug (Jason's mother and brother)**

happy happy birthday

I just wanted to say Happy Birthday (yesterday) to my sweet sister in-law (more like sister though) SARAH. I love you so much and I so much appreciate all that you do for our family. I am so proud of you and the mother you've become.

For those of you who don't know... Sarah and Sean adopted my other brother (Jeff)'s baby, Ashton. They had less than 12 hours notice that they would be taking temporary custody of this little baby. Sarah jumped into the role of mother overnight. It seemed all natural for her. (Which I'm sure came from the wonderful upbringing of her parents.) Motherhood is something I struggle with everyday. I admire you Sarah!
My favorite thing about Sarah is her LOVE for Coke. I don't know what she would do if there was ever a shortage. She may have to fill up those drums with coke as part of her food storage. Like the ones you would fill up with water. I will admit though.... I love it when her and Sean comes to visit because that gives me the excuse that I can have coke products in my fridge. (if you know my husband at all you would know how much he despises "that" stuff).






**thank you sarah for letting me use your picture from your blog.**