Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Nut Farm was calling







We made our 3rd annual trek to Bates Nut Farm in search of pumpkins, mazes, hay rides and general mayhem. Grandma and I hit the farm and let the kids off leash. Unlike last year we didn't have Izzy sporting a Chap Stick do or either kid running fevers. We rode horses, found 4 pumpkins that we later gutted and Izzy and Max ate most of the innards. Our little tradition is a lot of fun but each year gets hotter! This year the kids called them "Kunkins". As we were leaving we spied a Fire Truck and it was the perfect ending to our great Pumpkin Patch adventure! Oh and the spooky suckers rocked too! Thanks Grandma!

Halloween!





We actually got to Trick or Treat! Isabella was a green fairy and Max was a skunk. They took cutest costumes in each of their age groups at a kid karnival we went to with Grandma. We had a lot of fun! There was a bouncy house that the kids had a great time in. Lots of games they got to play and win prizes. Gaacky is in Mexico on a short term job and Rob was visiting his friend Scott for the weekend. We had a great time and both kids fell asleep on the way home.

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Home on the Range





After our delightful time in Colorado I was crazy and took the kids to Nebraska for a little over a week by myself. We stayed at the farmhouse. It turned out to be one of my favorite times with the kids ever. We went outside every night after dark and counted stars, hunted for bugs, stalked kitties. The kids played at Jack and Linda Fannings house a lot! We went over for breakfast one morning then kids played with kittens, rode a baby cow (a Celf phonetically spelled), played on a gravel pit, played with the cats, ran around like two nutballs. We spent a lot of time with Russ and Lori Pankonin and enjoyed every moment! I got to see my Great Aunt Hulda! We played at Troy and Evelyns House a lot! We rode 4 wheelers, took over their hot tub, tortured their dogs, rode their tractor. When we could do no more damage, we left. It was awesome!

Continental Divide




We took a vacation with my family to Grand Lake Colorado in Sept 2011. We recently moved back to California from Japan. We spent 5 awesome days with family in a gorgeous place at 9000 feet. We had so much fun! We had a picnic in a beautiful park with 2 lakes. The kids had smores for the first time! We hiked around the lakes with family. We took a hike up to Adams Falls and found the most amazing rock skipping spot ever! Max could have thrown rocks forever. We went all the way up to the top of the Continental Divide in the hopes of seeing snow, what we found was 35 degrees of wind, rain and fog. The kids wouldn't even get out of the car! We drove back down the hill into Rocky Mountain National Park and hiked back to a stream. We saw Elk, Moose and an old mining cabin. We had a wonderful time!

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Summer 2011

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Friday, June 17, 2011

Isabella's 4th Birthday Party

We celebrated Isabella's birthday (#4 Already!) early due to the possible move of us back to San Diego. We rented a pavillion at Torii Beach Army Base and a huge bouncer with an indoor slide, mountain and basketball hoop. We were right on the beach! We had a lot of friends come and celebrate with us. It was a great day. It could not have been any better.
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Max's 2nd Birthday at home

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Sunday, June 12, 2011

Birthdays all around

Max turned 2 on June 6, 2011. While it was a sad day for me, you know, no more baby for me, we had a lot of fun with some friends. We had a bowling party for him, then a quiet celebration with friends Jake, Heidi, Logan and Naomi on the actual day. Enjoy some pics of the party.
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Saturday, June 4, 2011

April and May in Hawaii

We got medevac'd again so we squeezed a little fun in our time there. Almost a month.
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Another park another day...in Japan

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Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Easter 2011


We had a wonderful Easter while displaced (2nd year in a row) in Hawaii from Okinawa. We got to spend the day with Aaron, Audrey, Charlie and Patty while hunting eggs, ravaging their awesome breakfast spread and destroying their house. We had a great time and will always be grateful for such wonderful friends.

Hey Sexy Boy


"I don't even remember her name"...

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Cape Zanpa Lighthouse

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Peace Prayer Park

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Tuesday, April 5, 2011

oy vey what a day

Rob was medevac'd out a week ago and we stayed on island this time. It's been a good week and we have had some added fun. But today, oh today, what a day. It's like the sky opened up and rained down chaos. Today: Washed the dog (ringworm, oh yeah), while the kids played in the mud at the bottom of our highrise, Max threw his binkys in a tree, we recovered the 4 binkys he threw over the balcony earlier, then as I went to throw out the doggy doo, I threw the poop and let go of the stroller. Kids went rolling down 2 stairs to be caught by a mover. I got poop on my shirt while dragging the doggy behind me and lunging after the kids. Got the kids situated to turn and see the ENTIRE Fire station watching me be a really bad mom. Threw Izzy's baby's stroller (in my mind the root of the evil) only to retrieve it a few min later with a guilty slink to the trash can. Once home again, I took off Max's clothes where he ran in the bathroom and pooped in the potty. We did the Happy Potty Dance then narrowly avoided him eating it. Max hangs from the curtains like Tarzan. Izzy pulled out the colors then demanded her scissors (yeah right) while the wet dog is trying to sleep on the couch and I decided that this was a great time to wash the cat. Home phone is ringing (it's Rob!), the cell phone is ringing (his boss) and the fire alarm is going off in our building. Max decided to help me by pulling up a stool. As soon as the cat sees Max approaching, she bites me and pulls everything off the counter,breaking the sponge holder. Max tries to eat the cat shampoo. Get cat down from cabinets and dry her off. Lost her again as she runs away. Aw well, I'd jump too. Max threw his poop diapers from the trashcan on the kitchen floor and jumped on them. Covered in poop, again, I took off his clothes again only to have him pull off his diaper, throw it at me, grab his winky and wave "Hi Mama!" then run away, desitined white butt disappearing down the hallway, toward his bedroom. He peed in closet then jumped out to scare me. Izzy decided to clean the sink using the whole bottle of hand soap. Max tried to crawl in the sink as she is cleaning it, now somehow, she's naked. Get Max dressed again,kicks me in the jaw as i put on his diaper. He is yelling "Lay down!". Yeah, I'd like to. I get a binky for him. No easy feat since he threw them at the cat and some landed on the psycho neighbors' balcony. He runs and hides behind his basketball hoop and yells "hi mama" as he attempts to eat the net. Put them both down after a book about how much I love them. As I leave his room He says "Love you Mama, meow" over and over.

Monday, March 7, 2011

Crafty Time


Is it a windsock or a hat? Izzy made an awesome hat, um windsock, today. It's March and the wind is blowing so it was a great time to drive the lesson of seasons and weather home. In Izzy's usual creativeness, it became a hat. Ah well, craft time is done.

Kitty Baths


Oh how Clark the cat HATES her baths. We have a little too much fun doing it to her.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Pink Shoes



Max really really like Izzy's dress up shoes

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Sleepy spot

Sunflower Fields

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Lighthouse


I got a day to myself so I went to the Camp Zanpa lighthouse on the China Sea. It was incredibly cold but very beautiful setting.

Sunflower Fields


We hit the sunflower fields today. Just me, the kids, lots of bees and a beautiful Okinawa day. Izzy took her camera and we had a great time. The kids most enjoyed hanging from the bars and practicing their gymnastics. We found a wild cat but after our ringworm ordeal, we stayed far away.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Here Fishy Fishy

We hit the Awase Fish Market on Saturday and we had so much fun! We got bags of fried fish and of course rice with ginger. The kids hammered it all down with gusto and the kitty loved the leftovers! We then wandered around and looked at the boats.