Christmas Pictures!.....

Here are a few of the pictures taken on Christmas. These ones are taken down at Popo and Papa's house. I have more coming of ones taken at our place. What fun we had!

Here is Sammy opening his 1st gift at their house....Lightning McQueen boxer briefs!
woot woot. He was so excited! :o)



Then we have McKayla opening one of hers (with the help of mommy)...a pooh bear phone! Whooo Hooo!~



Here is Brad opening a gift from "santa"..what a cool picture frame! (did I mention how much I LOVE to take pictures?? lol...I can NEVER have enough of these babies! lol)



Here I am with one of my favorite gifts! Water park passes!! :o) Thanks Popo and Papa....we can't wait to go!!!! (already planned a trip this Sat lol)



Here is Sammy with his 2nd favorite gift....a karaoke mic that lets you see yourself on TV. For Mr. Vain this gift is PERFECT!



Here he is trying it out!~~ It was the cutest thing!



"what a mess!"



A little relaxing before we officially get the day started. We have Sammy singing "who let the dogs out?"



McKayla's favorite gift! A cabbage patch newborn doll. It was perfect for her size! She loves that thing, and has finally stopped carrying around George. Here she is with the baby in the carrier it came in!~

Merry Christmas...and Happy Holidays!!

I will be back on later to post some pictures of our FUN Christmas!! Sammy REALLY got into it this year...to include an advent calender!~ So he was SUPER EXCITED!

In a nutshell....Sammy's FAVORITE gift was the Dora's talking kitchen (poo to those who say it is for girls...at 4 Sammy doesnt know or care..and neither do I)...but he sure does enjoy cooking me stuff...the next take home chef maybe? :o) hehehe Love that show!~

Mckayla's favorite gift was BY FAR a cabbage patch doll she recieved from Tee....my brothers wife. She has not stopped rocking and playing with that thing since we opened it. It came with a little carrier...so she just sits there and puts in in there and takes it out to hug it and put it back in...back and forth! :o) The cabbage patch even came with the name Michaela (her name but spelled differently) AND was "born" 4 days after her! LOL Thanks Tee! So thoughtful!

My favorite gift had to be the breadmaker! i LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE it! I have ALWAYS wanted one of these since I LOVE the smell of fresh bread baking AND i love to cook. woot woot! I have to go and get all the ingredients though! I can't wait~! (and neither can Brad judging from the 100 times he has asked me if I went to the store to get what I need) :o)

Brad's gift...hmmmm...he liked the running shoes Sammy got him. So he could run in the park with him. But I think his favorite one was a Stainless Steel Coffee mug that had his name engraved on it and had a Steeler's emblem on it! He had a grin from ear to ear! Thanks Mom (Darla) and I loved my forggie jammies! ...But.. he also liked the waterpark passes too! (me too!) So it was a hard call! You know it was good when you can't choose! :)

Anyway...I'll be back with the pictures as soon as I can get them downloaded!

Merry (belated) Christmas Everyone! GOD BLESS!!~~~~~

A little taste of home....


that was ALL TOO SHORT!! My dad (Cody) came into town from Virginia (for work) and we got to spend a little time with him!


The kids fell in love with him all over again....in fact..McKayla took to him SO QUICK I was shocked....soon she had him wrapped around her finger.......literally!!


She led him around the house taking him wherever she went. And if he happened to sit down she was right there, grunting and grabbing at his finger.


Poor Cody sure hated that!


LOL....yeah right! I think they were both in heaven!


Here are a few pictures from the visit.....



McKayla giving Grandpa a kiss...





Sammy got to open a gift early, and here he is showing Grandpa his COOL NEW CAR!







Another "early" gift....Sammy had a BLAST with this one! He sure loves his Hot Wheels and Race cars.





Here we have McKayla trying to fill my shoes! hehehe and Grandpa laughing at her efforts. She loves to walk aroud with our Sandals or shoes on one foot, and flop here and there....







Ya have a few more years honey.....your growing fast enough!





Our little acrobat.....she loves to try and run on the couch...its just a matter of time before I'm blogging about an ER trip.....this girl has us on our toes...just ask her Grandpa.





Sticking close to her new friend!




All tuckered out from playing with Grandpa...




My poser....see our pathetic little tree.....we had to finally take all the oranments off the bottom and move them up...so now the top 1/3 of the tree is decorated! hehehehe



Sammy with his morning bowl of dry cereal (it's like an appetizer to him lol)




O.K Now here we have McKayla putting MY mascara (my now...old mascara) in the toilet......



And then for her next trick.... ewwwwwwwwwww...;o)



And then she gets MAD at me when I tell her "no" (oh if she only knew!)





Alright dirty girl...it's bathtime!....



"Mom...I'm trying to take a bath here!"




Bedtime...get the baby....and we are out!



Cody...you come back real soon...ya hear!

Video's of the babies..


Here is one of McKayla waving "hi" and playing around!



Here is one of McKayla throwing a fit when she doesnt get her way....and Papa acting like a bear..






Kayla gets herself stuck....and unstuck..also dances a bit to "jingle bells" courtesy of Papa



Adn lastly we have the bugs in Sam's room...then little miss McKayla decided to take off on me....



TTFN~

Oh Christmas Tree...Oh Christmas Tree..

We got our tree this past Sun (3rd)...and finally put it up last night.

We were supposed to do it Mon night down at my dad's....ordered Pizza and everything...but by the time the pizza got there, and we ate...it was time for bath ...and by the time that was done...it was 8:15. PAST the kid's bedtime. So we called it a night and decided to do it the following night.

I made Stuffed Green Peppers for everyone...so we ate, and then decorated the tree..*christmas music playing LOUDLY in background*
Side Note: We asked dad to turn up his hearing aid, so we could turn DOWN the music...but I guess he couldn't hear us.

LOL

that was a joke by the way..ar ar

Here is the tree as we brought it in...(this is the big tree...that we are keeping down at my dad's since McKayla has her Papa's hearing...eheheh)... all bundled up :o)




Sammy gives the "thumbs up" that we are ready to decorate!



Brad thought he was being funny when he draped this all over Sammy...little did he know...



Here is Brad and Papa "stringing" the tree with pearls that Papa INSISTED on having. ;o)

Sammy putting an ornament on...



Then we have McKayla putting on her 1st ornament ever!



Here we all are...my son is so vain...he watched himself decorate the whole time! *sigh*...now I wonder where he got that from...



After she got bored with the decorating, McKayla decided to read a book... again I ask...where did she get the red from?

The final result (after a few broken bulbs and ornaments from the "helpers") hee hee



Night shot...with the light off..



Thats all for the Christmas pictures...here are a few we took the other day of Kayla in her outfit that I LOVE! (thanks Popo)



Love the hat! hheehehehhe


Thats all folks! TTFN~

A little help please..

So I thought as a service to anyone in the midst of their shopping this year I would put together a gift guide, something to help you figure out what not to buy this holiday season in the hopes that your gift won't end up in the back of someone else's closet only to be re-gifted to you for your birthday in two years. Happy shopping!

1. Try to avoid giving those huge gift baskets of cheese and salami to anyone on a diet, or twenty-pound bags of Starbucks coffee to someone trying to cut their caffeine intake. However, if you've already purchased these items, I'll be happy to take them off your hands. Or any chocolate of course.

2. By the same token, never give a hypochondirac a vile of mock "ebola virus". They will call and endlessly ask you if it REALLY is a virus in there.

3. Don't give gifts 'for the baby' to a pregnant woman. This will only breed resentment towards the unborn child because what the mother-to-be really wants are some nice bath products or a gift card to an all-night donut shop. There'll be plenty of time for resentment once the baby is born.

4. Additionally, absolutely never gifts 'for the baby' if you're not certain the woman is pregnant. If it turns out she has just put on a little weight you can just kiss that friendship goodbye.

5. Stay away from any-themed gifts unless you know that the recipient is a fanatic or subscribes to "whatever it may be" magazine. I have a friend who gave me Mickey Mouse things every year. For Christmas, Birthdays, New Years...hell, whatever, and whenever a gift is given. Earrings with Mickey Mouse, Mickey Mouse necklaces, Mickey Mouse stationery, even a fly swatter with a felt Mickey Mouse on it. The sheer awfulness boggled the mind. While we had a little statue we loved, I never considered myself a 'Mickey Mouse collector person,' one of those people who wears huge sweatshirts with sparkly, appliquéd mouses or mouse ears on the front and who always signs their name with a MM and a pair of mouse ears. So, please if I don't already have 3 or more of something (that YOU havent gotten) chances are I am NOT collecting it.

6. When giving an item of clothing to a female friend, never buy it in her actual size, always at least two sizes smaller than she wears even if you know it will be an inconvenience for her to return it. She will think you see her as thin, which is important to all good friendships.

7. It is never a good idea to give suggestive pictures of yourself to your husband for Christmas, as this may cause some uncomfortable moments during the big family gift exchange. Plus, it can be crushing when your niece asks, "Are those pictures of Grandpa Cody?"

8. Don't give movies unless you are certain of the recipients tastes. It's fine, for instance, to give a Super Deluxe Gold Re-mastered Pantomimed Edition of The Lord Of The Rings if you know that the person is a fan of the movie. But buying someone a DVD because you've "watched it at least fifty times" is not a good reason, and you may be shocked to discover that not everyone thinks Patch Adams is a cinematic masterpiece.

9. The same rule applies to books. They are not a good gift choice unless you know the person very well, or are trying to date them in which case remember to only buy books that greatly exaggerate your intelligence and knowledge base. Art Of The French Renaissance will get you considerably more action than Garfield: Survival of the Fattest.

10. Never give anything that can't be quickly recovered from the closet and put on display whenever you come over. It's unfair to expect your friend to haul out that life-size panda wall clock you gave her whenever you decide to drop by for a visit. At least that small vase made out of walnut shells can be brought out from behind the books at the last minute. Be considerate.

11. Try not to give expensive gifts to your neighbors. They will perceive you as being rich and will constantly be over to ask for things, like a cup of sugar or some gold bullion bars.

12. It is dishonest to give someone a gift you know they won't use because you are secretly hoping they'll turn around and say, "Oh, I'll never use this. Here - you take it." Like giving a friend who never cooks an expensive enameled sauté pan. Not that I've ever done that. I'm just saying.

13. Avoid stereotypical ethnic gifts. It annoys the hell out me when someone gives me a pair of chopsticks, or a toothpick-holder shaped like a rickshaw, or a 3-disc bundle of all the Karate Kid movies. If you feel you really can't help yourself from buying these types of gifts, try not to preface them with statements such as, "I wanted to give you something from your motherland" or "Your people sure know how to kung-fu."

14. Unless you are very close to the person you are giving to, never hand them a gift and say, "I know you're going to love this. I bought ten of them for myself." It is a 100% certainty that they will hate it, and then question your taste for all eternity.

Hope that helped!~

What do I want for Christmas?

Besides the usual world peace? ha

Makes me stop and think, because honestly, what do I want for Christmas?

We (mommies) have this habit of putting ourselves last when it comes to gifts.

Don't believe me?

Go ask your own mom what she wants for Christmas, and she'll probably say, "Oh, I can't think of anything I'd like for myself."

Or she'll give you a list of things for the house, for your father, and for the family pet before she'll think of anything just for her.


Me? When it comes to gifts I love to give rather than recieve.

However if you REALLY want to get a gift....here are a few "idea's"...not just for me...but ANY mom out there.... ;o)

Time off - Kids, work, and a house tend to eat up all of the time a mom has. If you want her to have a special treat, give her an afternoon where she is ordered to do nothing except read, relax in a bath, or whatever it is she likes to do to unwind. Take the kids elsewhere. On those rare times when I'm alone in the house (and I mean totally alone - no child up in bed), I almost don't know what to do with myself. I can turn the music up loud! I can eat without anyone else begging for my food! I can take a bath without a toddler knocking on the door saying, "Come in?" And I can just relax.

Pampering - I barely have time to shower 3 days a week, much less do my hair, exfoliate, or apply a moisturizing mask to my face. A gift certificate for a spa service would be a welcome gift for many moms. Not only does it give us the first gift of time off, but we also are doing something to look better and feel better about ourselves, which has a bonus for our guys, right? One of the best gifts I ever received from Brad was last year when I was pregnant with McKayla and he got me a $150 Spa certificate to "Heavenly Spa" where I got a pre-natal massage and some much needed "down" time. It was a very welcome, and well-planned, gift.

Assistance - I never like to ask for help, even when I know I need it. But I have a dream of someday having a maid service come to the house once a month to help with the deep cleaning. It's a frivolous expense for us, and one we can't afford, so we continue to split our chores and do them regularly (OK, maybe not as regularly as we should). However, even the gift of one maid service visit would be an awesome gift, especially now with 2 rugrats..who has the time to dust....then you have the "helpers"...enough said!

Food - Does the mom you know like chocolates? Get her some of the best chocolates out there, then. And if you have thieving little hands in the house, buy a box to lock the chocolates in, too, so mom can be the only one to enjoy them, after the kids are in bed.

Date nights - Truthfully, this gift is a benefit to both a mom and her husband/partner. But if mom's the one who gets to pick the restaurant, the movie, and isn't the one required to find the babysitter, it's a real treat. If this is a gift from another member of the family, it makes a great gift for the couple, if presented with the offer of babysitting, of course. I want to go out with my husband more, just the two of us, and spend time together as an adult couple, instead of just parents. When we don't get time together over a long period of time, I feel like I'm less wife and more mom than anything. And well, it was the wonderful time we had together as a couple that led to parenthood, so I'd like to keep as much of that couple-time as possible.

So there's my list for what to get a mom for Christmas. Did I miss anything?

Ho, Ho, Ho....Merry Christmas...

Took this this past weekend at the Honolulu City Parade of Lights. It was beautiful though we had really poopy seats. Thinking of making our "christmas card" out of it...I just HATE Sammy's shiner! *sigh*




Merry Christmas everyone~

Thanks My Love....

What a wonderful Anniversary planned for us!!

Brad came home around 2, and then let me take a MUCH needed nap

McKayla was up (i kid you not) every 30 minutes the night before...she is cutting a few teeth...so I had a ROUGH night and was soooo tired.

Anyway...he took McKayla out and I slept until about 3:45.....when I was awoke by my son's laughter.

What was he doing home?? I hadn't picked him up from school yet..??

Brad took it upon himself to go and get him so I could sleep an extra 1/2 hr. *sigh*

We played with the kids a bit, then it was time to start getting ready. *yay*





Off to Popo and Papa's they went!! (HUGE thanks to them!! You guys are great!)


And off we went to dinner.....

I was shocked!


I thought we were going to Outback, or somewhere like that...

but instead we went to DK Steakhouse ...


which was FABULOUS!


While were waiting for dinner to arrive he was grinning and finally shoved the bag across the table at me.."I can't wait any longer...open it"


Ya don't have to ask me twice!


Though I DID wonder why it was so light....he had said earlier that I shouldn't expect much, it was just something he had made. I was so excited to see what he had thought to make me.


I open the bag....


and there is a teddy bear inside?!?

"How could you have made that?"

"Just open it" he says impatiently

And I notice the bear is holding a box....

Maybe he made something and stuck it in there...I thought

I open the box and there is another box.

a jewelry box.

my heart skips a beat.

You see...Brad NEVER gets jewelry.

he claims he doesn't know what I like or what to get.

so I was still wondering what it could be.

I open it..

*gasp* and there are a pair of diamond earrings!!!!

They were beautiful!!

I look at Brad and he is sitting there with a grin that went from ear to ear.

"Do you like them" he asked (like he had to! lol)

"Are you serious? Are these for me?" I am looking at him kinda like he has grown a purple dot on his forehead.

"Of course honey...and if you don't like them we can take them back...I got them from Zales" he said proudly..knowing FULL WELL I LOVE them!!

I take out the gold earrings (in photo) he had got me for our 1st Christmas together, and put the studs in.

I quickly excuse myself to use the restroom.

I HAD to see them on me. My 1st pair EVER, I was beyond excited.

I get to the bathroom and look in the mirror...the shine in my eyes match the shine in my ears!! They were so gorgeous....and HUGE!

I quickly make my way back to the table so I can show them to him.

I can't stop smiling.

I read the wonderful card that goes along with it, and then our meal arrives!






I had Surf and Turf (8oz Prime Rib and Carribean lobster tail) and Brad went with a HUGE steak (24 ozs)...Isn't that CRAZY!


Needless to say.....mine was WONDERFUL, and his was so-so. He couldn't even finish HALF of it! LOL....

We get ready to go, and the staff comes up with this YUMMY little vanilla custard type thing with fresh blueberries, and they all wish us a "Happy Anniversary" dessert on the house! :O)

What a perfect end to a perfect evening!!~~

Thanks a million times over. For your thoughtfulness in taking such effort to plan our evening! Am I blessed or what?

Happy 5th babe!

To 5 HAPPY, EXCITING, WONDERFUL YEARS.....

and many, many, many more!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dear Husband,

I want to thank you.

For what you ask?

Where do I begin?

I want to thank you for being the best dad in the world...for loving your kids the way you do, and for loving ME without hesitiation or judgement. No one in the world can make me feel like you do and it's so hard to believe we have barely spent a week apart since 1998. I wouldn't change it for the world. You are my best friend, my confidante, my treasure and my hero.

Thank you for working SO hard to support our family. I am so proud of you and everything you accomplish. I love the pride you take in your work, and in your family!

I love the twinkle you get in your eyes just watching your kids play....it melts my heart.

I am TRULY blessed!

I thank God every day that he has placed you in my life....to learn with, to grow with, and to see our family blossom each day. How did we get SOOOO lucky?

I thank you for listening to me every night talk for an hour when you get home, so tired and exhausted but still willing to make me feel SO important, like you hadn't heard it already 1000 times before. You understand that all I have had for company all day is a 1 year old.

I thank you for helping around the house....every little thing you do means SO much to me. I never have to ask twice (o.k well maybe sometimes:) ) You cook ,clean, and give the BEST massages!

I thank you for letting me complain about how hard being a "stay at home mom" can be and NEVER saying "well, maybe you should go back to work then" or throwing it in my face!

I thank you for just being you. I know we have our up's and down's but baby those UP's go SO high!!! I barely remember the low's. I wouldn't change a thing about you, and if I had the chance I would marry you ALL OVER AGAIN!

I know I could go on, and on , and on...

I just hope that you have SOME small idea of how precious our marriage and the life that we built together is to me! And I truly look forward to growing old and gray with you!

Happy Anniversary Honeybunch!~~ I love you!!~

Your,

Loving Wife~

Funny little story

You know how Sammy has his "black/green/blue/purple" eye?

Well last night after his bubble bath, Brad was drying him off and accidently bonked his eye again

*ouch*....

Sammy was SOOOOOO upset...

screaming and crying...

Brad felt terrible....I thought he was going to cry too ( I thought I saw a tear but he quickly turned away)....*rolls her eyes*

ANYWAY....

Sammy is wrapped up, butt naked in a towel (having just come out of his bath), and I am hugging him, telling him "it will be o.k".....

he slides down off my lap, and walks over to our window....(the curtains are drawn back)...

I hear this little laugh, and he turns around..

picture this..

Sammy

in his birthday suit

tears STILL streaming down his face

turns to face me and says "Look mom...a star....that star makes me SO happy ....see?"

(we have a big building across town that puts a HUGE star on top of their building and it lights up at night....he has ALWAYS liked that star)

So there he is.....grinning like a monkey, black eye and all......naked as the day he was born...tears running down his cheeks...with this HUGE smile

"See mom....

that star made it all better. What a beautiful star huh mommy?"

*sigh*

If only everything were that easy to fix! :)

"The Shiner"

I guess I really don't have to say anything more.....

1st day after it happened.... (Friday)



2nd day...... (Saturday)



3rd day......(Sunday)



4th day........(Monday)



5th day......(Tuesday)...and his "enough with the pictures " look



what's a mom to do?

Here's a little peek at what you mom's of boys have to look forward to.

all I can do is laugh....

or I'll cry! ha .. ha

Happy Thanksgiving!



Well, our thanksgiving was a busy one! We decided to head over to Magic Island to let bug bike around and just enjoy the beautiful weather! It was around 81'.

Here is Daddy and Sammy watching the boats come in and out of the harbor...(diamond head is in the background)...



"Come on mom......let's get going already!"...



"I'm Off!"......


Here we are enjoying a walk......me and my daughter....





Until....



"Mom, aren't you going to help me up?".....



"Will someone get me a napkin.......what IS this?....Mooooooom"



Power walk anyone?....



Man that is some BRIGHT sun!~~



Too bad it's turkey day....crab anyone?? Just kidding.....my brother and I used to try and catch these for fun growing up! Seeing them brings back SO many memories!! There were a ton out this morning!



NOW WE ARE READY FOR THE TURKEY PART OF THE DAY~~~~


a quick basting before we pop it back in...







You can see what my *drips with sarcasm* DEAR DEAR husband did while we cooked...





O.K to be fair...he did help carve the turkey when it was FINALLY done!~




McKayla's 1st Thanksgiving feast.....she isn't too impressed at first but then GOES TO TOWN on the mashed potatoes and green bean casserole (she's sleeping with daddy tonight lol)...



Sammy can NOT wait to start eating....




Us again.....time to play!!....



Her new favorite thing to do is sit in this chair and have her brother spin her (while we are watching of course lol).....just watching her makes me sick...hehe




BEACH PICTURES OF MCKAYLA:




I hate being dirty...



Thats our thanksgiving in a nutshell....of course it couldnt end without a BANG....

Sammy tripped and gave himself a SHINER right after dinner.

*sigh*

Pictures are coming.

Happy Thanksgiving! :)