Off the radar

The second half of the month of May was quite busy for us.  End of school and preparing for a trip to the mainland.  We left on 24 May for the mainland and I was there for two weeks.  I did a lot of traveling during that time and I am glad to be home.  It was wonderful to see my family!  And, as usual, time spent with family goes too quickly.  It was busy for us and I'll probably talk about the trip in a day or two.  For now, I wanted to come back on  the radar with the blog.

A hui hou!

Bring me some sunshine

It's been a weird week.  The weather has been sunny, rainy, sunny then rainy.  I'll admit that it's making me feel a little wonky.  Not sad, but not happy either.  It's almost like the fall blues but in the spring.  Okay, enough of that.  I'd really like some sunshine.  And to feel all sunny inside.  Is that even possible?

Princess Cranky Pants is in her last week of school.  It's hard to believe that another school year has gone by and I've got a soon-to-be third grader.  Where did that time go?  It's been a wonderful crazy busy year.  And I wouldn't change one minute of it!  From Student of the Quarter to improving her grades to more ME's in Math and Science and improving her reading to match up to her grade level, it's been a wild ride that I'm glad I've been here for.  She has worked so hard to get where she is and I'm very proud of her!

In gearing up for summer vacation, it means a trip to the mainland.  Visiting with my parents and bringing Princess to Minnesota.  I'm looking forward to traveling but I'm a bit apprehensive about traveling on a plane with Sweet'no'Lo.  I've never flown with a baby that small.  I flew with Princess when she was 16 months old so this will be an experience.  It's an overnight flight, so I'm hoping both girls will sleep. :D

Sweet'no'Lo will be six-month-old on the 30th.  WHAT?!  How did that happen.  Too quick, I say.  She is babbling more and more and she is very close to sitting up unassisted.  She loves oatmeal, bananas and sweet potatoes.  She is a very good eater and loves to attempt to feed herself.  It's so cute to watch.  She is getting to the age where she has some separation anxiety and she'll grab for Mama.  It melts my heart but at the same time it's frustrating because sometimes she only wants me for comfort.  And sometimes I just need a break (which pains me to say).  It's all part of parenthood.

Last weekend I went to my first Scentsy party.  I have to say that I LOVE it.  So many yummy smells!  And cute burners! I ended up winning a plug in and a scent bar, My Wish.  I'll admit it wasn't one that I would have picked out but it ended up smelling delicious!  I can't wait for my order to come in!  I'm also waiting on an order of fluff mail!  More Kissaluvs fitted diapers, biosoakers (which will come in handy for travels) and some diaper rash ointment that is cloth diaper safe.  Silly how I get excited over fluff!  Although, I have to say that it is making an impact on Princess.  They just had a unit on Reuse and Recycle and she was telling me that it takes 500 years (or something like that) for a disposable diaper to break down and she told the class that we cloth diaper in our family.  I'm so proud that she is making that connection.  I feel like I'm doing some small part in the world.

And that sums up what I've been doing for the last couple of weeks.  Crazy, busy, wonderful life!

A hui hou!

Extreme Couponing? No thanks.

As I sit here planning our weekly menu and grocery list, I'm reminded of the new show on TLC: Extreme Couponing.  Good in theory, but we do not have the space for all of those groceries.  Not to mention it's a lot of junk type food.  We don't eat like that.  And I'm not going to encourage my children to eat that way just to save some money.  I prefer to menu plan and stick within my means and within the parameters of the menu plan. 

That being said, I do like to save money on our groceries.  We live in a high cost area.  Extremely high cost.  And with the gas prices going up, I'm sure the cost of shipping will go up.  This affects the cost of goods.  It's a vicious cycle.  It's not possible for us to shop on the economy, so, we choose to support the commissary.  Despite the surchage, it saves us more than if we were to go to the local Safeway or Foodland, even with the rewards cards.

I miss fresh produce.  The produce that we have available here is not as fresh as I would like.  We do get yummy fresh pineapple though.  I'm going to miss that when we leave.  Everything else is sub-par.  Such is life.

We save on the cost of diapers though. I like that.  I'm loving cloth diapering.  Such cute fluff, good for the environment and wonderful on the pocketbook!

Yes, I live in paradise.  Living in paradise has a high cost, not just monetarily.  I love having the opportunity to experience life here and I'm enjoying it while I can.

A hui hou!

Gas and glass, Mama Makeover and Ice Cream Date! Oh my!

Just as quickly as the weekend hit, it was over.  Funny how time works like that.  Friday evening we attempted to chillax because we knew that the weekend would be crazy busy.  And crazy busy it was.

On Saturday morning, we woke up early.  Travis had a fundraising event at the NEX shopette.  They are raising money for the unit Holiday party, which will be held at the Hale Koa this year.  Hopefully this means that more of the members of the unit will be able to attend this year.  The event was pumping gas and cleaning the gas.  We had breakfast together before he went and the girls and I went home and watched Lemonade Mouth on the Disney Channel.  And snuggled.  It was nice. 

That afternoon we had lunch at the NEX complex before running some errands at the NEX.  Time got away from us and before we knew it, it was almost bedtime.  Crazy...

Sunday morning was chill.  We got out of bed late and decided to hit the mall.  We went to Book Off! and bought more books.  (as if I need anymore, right?)  I am a firm believer in "you can never have too many books."  It's true.  I scored Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Fantastic Mr. Fox and Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry for $3 total.  AWESOME!  I've got quite a nice collection of books for the kiddos.  I hope that they love reading them as much as I did! 

After eating lunch, we hit the other part of the mall.  It was there that I decided it was time for a Mama Makeover.  So, I scheduled a cut, color and style.  I went in with tri-colored hair and came out with chestnut.  I love the color and cut.  It's so manageable!

We finished the day with ice cream at Coldstone Creamery.  I had my usual of course.  As did Travis.  But, Annika always changes her flavor up a bit.  Her choice this week was Cake Batter Ice Cream with Chocolate Chips.  She is so zany!  I love that she always tries something different!  We went home with full bellies.  Upon arriving home, we were set to watch the show that we watch every Sunday it's on:  Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.  But, it was not on this week because of the breaking news.  Good breaking news.  And I'm going to leave it at that.

All in all, it was a terrific and crazy busy weekend.  I'm thankful to be able to spend time with my lovebugs!

A hui hou!

Working for the weekend...

It's hard when I start the week already looking forward to Friday.  And, by hard, I mean that it makes my week feel like it's sooooo long.,  On the weekend, Mr. Lovebug is home and helps out with the chores.  Yes, I realize that I chose to be a SAHM, but I did NOT choose to work without having some sort of break.  I feel horrible for needing a break, but, I'm not supermom and I don't have as much energy as I once did.  The house is clean, the laundry is (mostly) done and dishes are done.  Why do I feel so horrible?  I look around and see clutter and I want to scream.  I know it's just an accumulation of stuff from doing what we do:  live life.  It's certain to happen when you have a blending of households.  I should learn to not be so hard on myself about the clutter that is here.

I think that I'll do some spring cleaning this weekend.  I've got a few loads to bring over to the Airmen's Attic.  I love that the Airmen's Attic is there.  It's nice for the in-processing airmen who are awaiting shipment of household goods to be able to pick up a few necessities.  It's also nice for the out-processing airmen to get rid of the goods that aren't being shipped.  I'll admit that I like to browse the bookshelves while I'm there.  I know that I don't NEED any more books but I love to have the variety on my shelf.

On Sunday we'll have our ice cream date (like we do every Sunday) and pick up the last minute things we need for the week.  I'm sure that groceries will be on that list.  I'm so glad that we live within walking distance to the BX and Commissary.  It saves us a bit on gas.  Sadly, the price of gas is at $4.49 per gallon.  YIKES!  I remember in 2008 when Jodi and I were moving from MN to CO and how expensive the gas prices were then.  It was crazy but this is worse, I think!  I know it won't last forever.  That's my hope.  It went down after the last price jump, I'm sure that it will happen again.

I think that a trip to the Waikiki Aquarium is in order for this weekend too.  As a Christmas gift from her Aunt, Annika (and family) got an annual pass to the aquarium.  What an awesome gift!

It's time to take Annika to school... I swear the mornings go much too quicklly!

A hui hou!

My Earth Day, Birthday girl!

I woke up on Friday, April 22nd, feeling more excited than Annika about her birthday.  I don't know if there are words to describe it.  As I laid in bed, waiting for the sun to rise, I reflected on the last eight years.  Where we've been and where we are.  And, I looked into the future.  Where we are going. 

She has learned so much in eight years.  It's hard to fathom how much she will learn in the next eight, and the lifetime beyond that.  As I held her in the wee morning hours of April 22, 2003, I could not have imagined that life would take us here and that she would grown into the lovely young woman she has become.

My beautiful baby girl (the day that I became a mother)

 

 

 

 

 

 At 0448 on 4-22-03, my life was forever changed.  No longer was I just a woman, a wife, a daughter and sister.  I became a mother.  And, in that moment, I understood a love that made me want to be a better person.  To live my life not just for me, but for my child as well.

Celebrating her first birthday

 The road that she and I have traveled has been long and rocky.  But, it's shaped who we are today.  And I can only hope that I have had even a small impact on her life because she's had an enormous impact on mine.

To my sweet precious girl:  Thank you for choosing me to be your mother.  And for being uniquely you.  It is an honor to be your Mommy.  I love you with all of my heart.

Huntington Beach, SC (February 2005)

Annika, age 2 (June 2005)

Annika, age 3 (July 2006-on the day her cousin Kendall was born)

Annika, age 4 (August 2007)

Annika, age 5 (April 2008)

Annika, age 6 (August 2009)

Annika, age 7 (August 2010)

Annika, age 8 (April 2011)

Time flies when you're having fun.

It's amazing how life gets crazy busy so quickly.  I start my mornings with every intention of updating my blog, but, something else always comes up.  Weird how that works...  Princess Cranky Pants is going to be eight tomorrow.  Wow.  It seems like just yesterday she was a wee baby gherkin.  The years have gone by so quickly.  And, so much has happened.  Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that I would be where I am today.  Life has a way of derailing and taking you off the tracks for a bit!

The weather has been very warm and humid lately.  My sinuses are not happy.  I'd like for the tradewinds to come back.  At least that would knock down some of the heat.

A couple of weeks ago we went to the swap meet and did "touristy" things: bought souvenirs and had shave ice.  It's fun to do that every now and then.  But, the heat got to be a little bit intense.  After two hours, we were all melting.  Later that afternoon I took the girls to a  friend's house for a playdate.  Annika got to decorate rice krispie bars.  She thought it was awesome.

We also took a day trip to downtown and over to Manoa.  Manoa is a beautiful area.  Lush and green.  It's also where our favorite cloth diaper store on the island is, baby aWEARness.  We bought more fluff for Sweet'n'Lo.  I am happy to say that we are now 100% cloth diapering.  It was a bit of investment, but the cost savings in the long run makes it worth it!  Plus, it's great for the environment.

After shopping, we went to Red Lobster for a yummy lunch.  Then, we went walking around the marina and spotted some jellyfish!  All in all, it was great to spend some time together.

This week has been busy with the planning of Annika's birthday party.  She is very excited to be having an OUTDOOR pool party.  It's pretty rare to have one of those for an April birthday, unless you live somewhere warm.  I've got cupcakes to make and decorations to buy.  I suppose that I should get that done before time gets away from me.

A hui hou!