Being a tourist (img hvy)

Last weekend was Pro Bowl weekend.  We would have loved to go to Ohana day on Saturday but we didn't register in time.  That turned out to be a blessing in disguise because it was CRAZY busy.  We opted to visit the USS Missouri instead, which was celebrating its 68th birthday! We had been wanting to go for quite awhile and this was the perfect opportunity.

We started the day at Wright Bros. Cafe, eating our breakfast overlooking the channel.  Wright Bros. has become our favorite breakfast spot.  It's right on the water and the food is yummy and made to order every time.

After breakfast, we headed over to the Mighty Mo, detouring and going to the Utah Memorial first.  There is very little on the USS Utah and it's role during the attack on Pearl Harbor.  The USS Utah was a battleship that was attacked and sunk on December 7, 1941. It was hit at 8:01 AM and at 8:12 the mooring lines snapped causing the Utah to roll over on her beams. The ship remains in the harbor and was deemed "out of commission, not in service" on 5 September 1944.

The Mighty Mo is HUGE.  We didn't even make a dent in the tour and we might have continued if the kids weren't grouchy and hungry! There were activities for the kids: Battleship, mini sail boat races and the sink/float experiment.  It was very interesting to see what life was like on a battleship.  Even more interesting is the the Mighty Mo was the last battleship to be commissioned and decommissioned. I think that we will attempt the tour again when it's just the two of us.  I know the kids enjoyed it, but, I think that we would get more from doing the full guided tour.

Student of the Quarter!

Annika was chosen to be a student of the quarter by her teacher, Mrs. Kawano.  She made such a wonderful improvement from first quarter! Her grades improved AND she was chosen to be a HOST (helping our students together) to welcome new students.  She was chosen because she is so friendly and happy.

The SOQ assembly was on 25 January.  Travis and I both attended the assembly.  I'm sharing the pictures below.  Enjoy!

Thursday's truths.

Today's post will be similar to the "Tuesday's 10" that I've been reading on other blogs.  I don't want to put a constraint on what I share/don't share.  I think that my "truths" will give a glimpse of what my days consist of, what I'm thinking that day, some insight into my personality that doesn't come out often.  Enjoy the "truths."

1. I don't normally like coffee.  The smell of it makes me gag.  Literally.  It's horrible.  The smell of coffee beans roasting is even worse.  I'm not sure how I survived at Caribou Coffee Company for as long as I did.  (I loved that job, btw). That being said, we recently invested in a Keurig.  It's the best thing, EVAR. I love that I can quickly brew tea, make a cup of hot chocolate and even brew hot tea over ICE.  It has cut down the time I spend brewing tea.  My drink of choice has been half Caribou blend, half dark hot chocolate.  It still smells disgusting, but it tastes so good!

2. I've been slacking in the laundry department for a couple of weeks.  I don't know if it's because I've been sick that long or I'm just being lazy.  I do what needs to be done and leave the rest for the next laundry day.  It annoys me, but, I'm in a funk and can't snap out of it.

3. I pray for Lola to take long naps.  It maximizes my lazy time.  This is horrible.  Why do I torture myself this way? I should be spending as much time as possible playing with her.  I am hoping that this "depressive" funk passes soon.  I know that my family is hoping the same thing.  It's bound to get better, right?

4. I love spending time with my lovebugs; all of us together.  It's the highlight of my week.  It's the biggest bit of sunshine in my life.

So, today's "Thursday's truths" confronts my depression.  That's a self-diagnosis.  I haven't been formally diagnosed, but I think that this funk stems from grief.  And, until I can manage that grief, the depression will keep growing.  I pray that my family has the patience to walk through this with me.

A day in the life...

I've often wondered what the trick to stopping time is.  I haven't figured it out, yet.  That doesn't keep me from trying. My goal for the next 7-8 months that we have left? Make the most of it! Document everything.  Even the mundane, everyday stuff.

We've had to prepare the rooms for the kids.  Mikey arrived on island on January 17th and it prompted us to do a bit of Spring Cleaning.  Here are some pictures from the attempt to purge.

Catching some Sesame Street before starting the clean.

Lola discovers that the dog crate is a fun place to play.

Annika is ready for school.

Dinner with Mikey.

Mikey and Dad.