summer highlights

kalei starts school one week from tomorrow, so i guess this summer vacation is winding to a close. here are some pictures of our fabulous summer highlights: visits to and from family, playing outside, zoo, beach, library activities, art activities, flying kites, soccer... i think we've all thoroughly enjoyed our summer break and are now pleasantly sick of each other. kalei is so ready to be in first grade and she and koa are each starting to do things to purposely annoy the other, so james & i are ready for her to be in first grade, too. the only highlight we didn't capture on film was koa's potty training - just trust us when we say that it happened and it's done and we're all the better for it. we hope you all have had a wonderful summer break and accomplished everything you desired so now you can shut yourselves inside with the a/c until the end of september. oh, the triple digit days of august!

fun in the florida sun

well, sorry for the long silence, but we're on vacation! woohoo!

we've been to the zoo, where kalei got to feed a giraffe.

(they have crazy long tongues, by the way.)

kalei, koa, & i got to ride a camel.

they're kinda lurch-y - not smooth like a horse.

kalei got to ride a llama and koa got to ride a pony.

they both loved the wild animal carousel, of course.

(kawelo and james rode on a fancy bench - it didn't go up & down, but kawelo loved it anyway.)

here's a picture to prove that kawelo & james were there.

of course, our days have been filled with beach and pool and sun and summer!

thanks, grandma & grandpa, for such a great visit!!!!!

evolution

kalei is an amazing girl and she loves art. she has never, not once, said that she "can't" draw anything. if she wants to draw something, she'll at least try to draw it. so, when koa kept asking me to draw things for him and, when i suggested he try to do it himself, he would reply that he "can't," i was a teeny bit concerned. however, he has slowly progressed from dots and lines to this:

the picture above is koa jumping (kalei wrote his name for him). this next picture is a bunch of people dancing. you can still see the dots he likes to poke onto the paper, and i love his use of space!
this bottom one is a door hanger that kalei made for kawelo. it's kawelo (in his diaper) thinking about koa (in the heart).
can't you just feel the love? she sets such a great example for her little brothers!

spoiled

no, the food is not spoiled, but james was! i made him these cinnamon rolls on sunday and i'm pretty sure he loved them. he had been hinting for a few days prior ("i was looking at the recipe for cinnamon rolls and it doesn't look that hard..."), and these babies were all gone by sunday evening. love you, james - thanks for being on potty patrol with koa during church!

abc tag

A- Attached or single: attached
B- Best Friend(s): james & susie
C-Cake or Pie: cake! i LOVE birthdays just for the cake!
D- Day of Choice: saturday (especially when kalei's in school!)
E- Essential Item: wipes
F- Favorite Color: blue - the shade varies day to day
G- Gummy Bears or Worms: worms!
H- Hometown: warsaw, indiana
I- Indulgence(s): cookie dough, marshmallows, quality rocky road ice cream
J- January or July: neither - i don't like weather extremes
K-Kids: three - one girl, two boys
L-Life is incomplete without: family!
M- Marriage Date: 7/8/99
N- Number of Siblings: one brother
O-Oranges or Apples: juicy, seedless oranges or crisp apples
P-Phobias or Fears: missing teaching moments or, worse, teaching by my own bad example - not adequately preparing my kids to be confident, faithful people
Q-Quote(s): "Realize that true happiness lies within you. Waste no time and effort searching for peace and contentment and joy in the world outside. Remember that there is no happiness in having or in getting, but only in giving. Reach out. Share. Smile. Hug. Happiness is a perfume you cannot pour on others without getting a few drops on yourself." Og Mandino
R- Reason To Smile: it's a beautiful day, my children are entertaining each other, my husband will be home early, and we leave for florida in 9 days!
S-Something new: i survived a japanese game show! (that show is hilarious!!)
T-Tag: anyone who feels like being tagged :)
U-Unknown Fact About Me: i have to skim the ending of books so that i can tear myself away long enough to care for my family, my house, etc. - also, if the book does not have a happy ending, i usually won't read it.
V- Vegetarian or Oppressor of Animal: moderate oppressor
W- Worst Habit: like kam - yelling at my kids to talk lovingly to each other
X- X-Rays or Ultrasounds: ultrasounds
Y- Your Favorite Food: cherries, anything chocolate (but NOT chocolate-covered cherries), milk, pasta
Z-Zodiac: gemini

happy father's day!

happy father's day, james! we love you like crazy and are so very thankful that you are the head of our family. i can totally understand why you are the kids' favorite - you're my favorite, too!

love, love, love you!!

why doesn't the Lord consult me on His plan for me? or, in other words, i think i'm being compelled to be humble.....again

as some of you may know, in january a nasty storm came through and took quite a few of our roof shingles away. our roofer informed us that we could file a claim with our insurance and not be penalized for it since the damage was weather-related. state farm came out and looked at the roof and decided to cover the damage to the back part of the roof. it was pouring the day the adjuster came out and he didn't see the damage that had been patched on one side of the roof as well as the back. so, we just had the back replaced since that's all insurance would cover and i spent many minutes being frustrated with the whole thing since they didn't cover the damaged side and the newly replaced roof looked quite a bit different, color-wise, from the old roof. i mentioned this to my agent while talking with him about something else and he told me that i could have the adjuster come back and reevaluate the damage. so, after jumping through many hoops and chasing down roofers and adjusters and tracking faxes, we found out yesterday that state farm is going to replace the rest of the roof!!!! WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!!!! they are replacing the damaged side and then going ahead with the rest since the color difference is so noticeable. the claims agent said they don't normally pay for replacement based on color-matching, but for some reason his supervisor approved our claim for it. so...............i know this is a long beginning to make a point, but i also know that if state farm had seen the side damage in the beginning, we would've only had half a roof replaced and would be in a pickle a few years down the road when the unreplaced shingles needed fixing. once again, the Lord has taken care of us in a way that provided for ALL our needs. and, once again, i am standing at the receiving end of this wonderful blessing and looking back at the process and wishing that i had just been faithful throughout, instead of stamping my foot and growling at the unknown. how many times will i need to be compelled to be humble before just doing it on my own? is that a question i really want answered? i just wish i would mature already! by the way, that's my next project: developing more patience.