February 2024

February was a FULL month! The kids started playing Pokemon at our local card shop, Crow's Nest every Tuesday, Alex, Rachel and their kids came for a visit, and the Wilde family moved off island. Here are pics from Pokemon Night.  

Hello to Chloe, Dalis, Cody, Rachel and Alex. They came for a visit and we had a great time exploring the island with them. None of them had been to Hawaii before. 

We went to Kalihiwai and paddled up the river, build sand castles, jumped from the rope swing, and swam in the ocean.

Cody got a car and loved it.

We got a bunch of new fruits for them and tried them. So fun.

Mousey found a good hiding spot. 

I gave Cody some homework one day and he did it. 

Poipu to see the turtles, and eat shave ice, yes please. 

We went to Lydgate and played on the playground and swam in the ocean.

Edging in the backyard is a major job.

Playing an intense game of capture the flag. 

Beach day at Kealia. I love the clouds here. 

While ordering more wood at HPM, we ran into a friend from church with a big truck and he offered to pick it up and bring it home for us. Woohoo. 

Working on the Healing Hut. It's looking so good!

Curiosity Kids art classes were focused on mosaics, they used paper and glue for one, and beans in clay for another. So fun to see what they came up with.

Three sides up on the healing hut. It's coming together! 

Paul needed corn starch for one of his science classes, but didn't know how much, so we sent him this picture from the store and it was enough. 

He got the walls up and now it's time to add additional supports for the door way area. 

Sometimes Ross sells Matix brand clothes. I texted this to Matix to see if he wanted it, but he didn't respond in time. So fun though. 

Paul has been running the trail up Sleeping Giant and down. It's fun to track him to a jungle.

More work on the healing hut, Solace even carved his name. 

Pokemon boys out for dinner after a fun night together. 

Scott and Stella invited us over for a fun family home evening night and dinner. Always fun.

Walking down to the falls with Cody, we are besties. So cute.

Lunch date with my friend Brandi. We have so much fun when we can coordinate our schedules. 

Finally time to change out the light in the kitchen! It looks so much better now!

Hunting in the yard for sensitive plants with Cody. He was mesmerized. 

The trampoline is fun, even in the rain. 

I love that our kitties love to be loved. They are so patient with the kids.

********PUMPKIN

Matix put in his two week notice at the bowling alley job. After we got home from the trip, they never put him back on the schedule. It seemed like a weird passive aggressive move, but oh well. He's a kid and doesn't NEED a job. Paul and I were both happier for this than Matix. He really liked all the money, and the friendships he built. 

To the beach with some friends, but we got rained out. 

Our banana trees throwing a flower, woohoo! It takes a few months to grow bananas, but then, YUM!

Sweet Mousey loves Lullaby so much.

Relief Society meetings usually have snacks. Stella made us musubi.

Another Pokemon night, this has become a usual for Tuesday nights for the boys. 

Mousey finds the best places to sleep, usually near Lullaby, and in some small box or bag.

This memory popped up in our feed and made us all happy to reminisce for when the Hunt and Dortch families were here with us. We miss them. 

We went out to eat with the missionaries and had a great time. They played a game with us, that can only be played once, on gratitude. We each got a post-it note and 1 minute to write as many things as we could that we're thankful for, and then we went around the table and shared what we wrote. If we had the same thing on our list, we'd both have to cross it off. Afterward we counted up what we each had that was unique to us, and got a score. Really, it was a great way to think about gratitude, and how many interesting things other people think about that they are thankful for. Our end of the day family prayer is always a gratitude prayer, and we had lots to say that night. 

Getting ready to swap out the old windows in our bedroom, and redo the siding. Many many little notes like these, and effort has gone into the house. We are so proud of all that we have done. 

Hawken found some readers at the beach and all the kids wanted to try them on. Silly things.

Lullaby likes to have curly hair, but it's been straight since she was a toddler. Sometimes she wears it in a bun and then gets a little wave afterward. So cute.

Matix signed up for another boogie board competition. Fun!

Sometimes we hear the pigs at night along the outside of the fence coming up from the jungle. This particular time, I tried to get a video of them. 

Sweet sleepy Mousey. 

After the walls went up, Paul added additional supports, some just temporary, then they started on the roof for the Healing Hut.

More work on the Healing Hut! This time, we were putting up the beams that will hold the roof. So much progress! Plus a video of everything we did for the healing hut in the month of February. 

One of the casualties of construction with no shirts. Poor Sully boy.

The view in my room... Lullaby and Paul chatting and cuddling with Mousey. Hawken and Sully battling Pokemon cards. 

Matix had some friends over for a movie night. They brought treats and it was so fun having a house full of extra boys. 

I saw this wild looking little caterpillar and got a video of it crawling.

One of my art students got me some of these little head scarfs as a gift. I thought it was really fun.

A friend of mine saw me just after a trip to the farmers market, and she brought me mangosteen, my favorite fruit. 

We went to The Hyatt in Poipu for a field trip. We were all greeted with leis, so nice. We toured the housekeeping, culinary arts, and greenhouses. I was so impressed. They talked to the kids about what it takes to work in each area, how the hotel gives back to the island, and lots of their community initiatives. 

After the field trip, a few of the families came with us to the beach to eat our cupcakes and play. Paul found this old glass float in the rocks, somehow perfectly preserved.

Lullaby stayed a bit longer and got Puka Dogs with Auntie Stella and Arabella.

We took Mousey to get fixed. There are so many cats here, and no natural predators here, so there are free clinics that pop up and all you have to do is bring in a cat and wait for them to finish. Lullaby wasn't sure about leaving her there, but it went just fine.

Afterward, Mousey was SUPER sleepy and cuddly. Lots of extra loves for her for a couple days.

The Relief Society had an activity and Stella made her famous green papaya soup. It is SO good. 

Solace and Reverie had a blast playing basketball together during Activity Days.

Lullaby and I get to do a mommy/daughter date every Tuesday when the boys go to Pokemon. We usually do a face mask and then watch a movie. It's so fun having a girl. 

I got some more art up in the laundry room, including my dad's painting.

Trip to the dentist, and lots to be done... Unfortunately they all inherited Paul's teeth and need lots of extra care.

I had a turn to go to the dentist. No cavities for me, but they did say my wisdom teeth would be easy to pull if I ever want that. I decided no, but thanks.

Solace pulled a super fancy card, sleeved it right away, and needed to send a picture to Alex. 

Banana flower is getting bigger and bigger! 

Matix was confirmed to the office of priest in the Aaronic Priesthood. So now he can bless the sacrament on Sundays. 

Lullaby has a whole gang of little kids who love her. Everywhere we go, they find her, even at church.

Mousey curled up in this little basket while the kids were playing with the toys that usually are in it.

Hawk and Matix went to a church dance and dressed up a little. Cute things.

Mousey's sleeping positions kill us. So funny. And one cute picture of our sweet pup. Swishy is so good.

Another picture of the banana flower.

Pokemon champs. I love that all the boys in the house are into it. 

Matix has been loving the youth group at the Crossroads Church, and has made some nice friends there. 

Late night Pokemon battles in my bed. 

Hula class for Lullaby and her friends at Curiosity Kids. 

Art class. 

Valentine cards and treats from Great Grandma Berg, Grandma Kim and Grandpa Louie.  Doughnuts and lots of other treats, yes please. 

We watched the Wilde kids a couple different days. Sully taught Westin how to play Pokemon, and then he and Lullaby jumped on the trampoline with him and his sisters. 

Paul wasn't feeling the best and I caught him sleeping in the middle of the day. A rare occurrence for this energizer bunny.

The kids wash and detail the car for their Turo business. They do a pretty good job and it's an easy way for them to make some money to spend on the things they like.

Poor sicky Paul. He needs a few days of naps and then he's all better.

Pokemon Night at Crow's Nest is always a blast. 

I feel like this part of history for politics is wild. Our grandkids will find pictures like this and ask if our sitting president actually released this picture and I will say yes. It is wild. 

More fun on the printer. Hawk is so good at this stuff. 

First day blessing the sacrament at church. This is a big step for the young men in the church and he was sure proud to be able to do it. Bishop Paleka is a coach in his real job and is really good at being tough and kind at the same time. The kids are a little nervous to disappoint him, but he is always their biggest cheerleader too.

Sunburn on Lullaby's back, poor thing. Good thing she can turn it to a tan in a day. Chloe got burned too, and she was tan a couple days later...

Day at the beach with the Goldsworthy family. Solace and Cody followed this guy and his metal detector around for a super long time. 

Dalis was sure she wouldn't like musubi, but she was wrong. 

Valentine's Day at Curiosity kids was so much fun. We made origami hearts in art class, and a treat exchange.

Ha ha haha, made us laugh.

We had to stop at this beautiful lookout and take a picture of Chloe and the little buffalo ranch below, on our way to Hanalei. 

We met up with some friends at Hanalei and played with them for a while before we went to the pier to jump, and the friends went home. 

Lullaby went to sewing camp and made this awesome library bag! 

Chloe and I went to Costco to get some food for everyone, and we stopped for sushi after. Yum. 

So much fun having Alex and his family here. 

Another Relief Society presidency meeting, another treat. This time it was moon cakes. Yum.

Alex bought a ton of cards for everyone to open. So fun.

We had so much fun with the Goldsworthy family, it was sad to see them go. 

We said goodbye to the Wilde's at the airport. Lullaby loved those kids so much. I was on bathroom duty. Lullaby gave them all one last hug good bye. 

Day two at the dentist to get all the cavities fixed. The kids had funny smiles and lopsided kissy faces for a few hours afterward. They had fun waiting for their turns. 

Our mango tree has a million little mangos growing! So exciting!

**********MANGO