LOVE

"Love conquers EVERYTHING".

 

A famous saying that is quite vague yet very true. 

People have done some pretty incredible things in the name of LOVE. 

Some bad, but for the most part, love helps a person do impossible things. 

My relationship with my love was tested at the beginning of this month. 

I was hurt. 

Very. Hurt. 

But I am also in love. 

So many uncertain things were going through my mind. 

But one this was for certain,

And that was that I love him

With everything that I have. 

We all make mistakes. 

We all have our trials. 

The Atonement of Jesus Christ is there for times like these. 

His love has saved us from our own destruction. 

We are on the mend. 

And even more in love than ever before. 

Our love for each other conquered this trial.  

Love is our motive after all...

My Ninja is Five

NOTE: This is being published 9 months too late...ooppsss!



What the crazy! 

My baby is now FIVE! 

Totally just went to sleep with a ginormous pregnant tummy and now he is FIVE! 

He has grown like a weed this past year and will probably out grow me in 2 years. 

No kidding...

This year, Hyrum asked for a ninja party since he is all things ninja right now. 

I was actually pretty excited about this one and I had a lot of fun planning it. We are in a very tight budget so I really had to be quite creative to save some money. Which actually worked out quite nicely since I loved making everything. 

Hyrum had the time of his life having all his friends in one place. 

He is a sweet boy and will make some girls heart melt someday. He will randomly come and give me a hug n kiss multiple times of the day and say "I just love you so much mom!". He is quite the charmer and I am quite content to still have my cuddle buddy. Gotta make the most out of it while he's still willing to give me cuddles. 

Although, I made him promise that he will still give me hugs and kisses even when he's all grown up. Even in front of his friends. He knows he made the promise and I will make sure he remembers it. 

He is a smarty pants. I am so sad that he is starting school this year. I have all sorts of anxieties about letting him go but he is super excited to go and I know that he will be fine. My once attached little buddy who would just scream and bawl when I would leave the room is now ready for the world. He is gonna rock it for sure! But a part (a lot) of me is just terrified for him to see the world in a different perspective. 

For this year, my wish for Hyrum so to have courage. Every night before bed, we pray that they can have courage to help them sleep through the night in their own beds.  Well my wish is for him to have courage to stand up to anything. From monsters under his bed to other kids who challenge his agency and most especially to the cruel world and all the trials that come with it. I wish that he focuses on the good things that life has to offer. 

He is super smart and his questions are harder than ever! I get stumped at times with his curiosities which then gets turned into learning opportunities for both he and I as we look for answers to his questions.

His brain is a sponge. We have a few learning shows for him and he soaks up what he learns from them then randomly tells us facts about roadrunners and scary looking deep sea creatures. 

He loves being independent. Picks and changes his own clothes, rides a bike without training wheels, makes his own ham sandwich, makes his bed, does his hair, pours himself his own milk/water just to name a few. We are working on taking a shower by himself and tying his shoes at the moment. Maybe I should start teaching him how to cook now too...  

He is quite the big brother. We have our fair share of sibling rivalries but when they are getting along, it is just perfect! They have the BEST imaginary games together and I love listening to their conversations. We have Batman rescuing Princesses from burning buildings, flying cardboard cars, hot lava carpets,  happening in our house frequently. 

He has his own ideas and knows exactly how to get them. He plans out what he wants and how he is going to execute them and I love it. If he wants to build a rocket out of a cardboard box, he will do a blueprint first and gather all of the equipment that he needs. I love seeing his brain working. He loves to be challenged and is always looking for ways to learn. 

To my crazy Hy, You are the funnest, most energetic, wildest, coolest kid I know.
Life is more exciting having you around. You are perfect just the way you are.

Love you to infinity and beyond...

Little Miss is Three

NOTE: This is being published 9 months too late...ooppsss!

Wow! 3 years old already!

I love this cute little sassy, sweetheart and her sneaky way of 

wrapping everyone around her little fingers. 

For her actual birth-day, we made her requested breakfast, French toast topped with chocolate (milo) with bacon and banana.  She got to eat on our special 'Star of the Day' plate which is always fun. 

Then she opened presents before heading over to the mall so she can go shopping with her birthday money from grandma and grandpa. 

For her special day this year, we went to Hands On for a princess party where she got to paint a ceramic crown and have lunch with Princess Ana and Queen Elsa. She was definitely in cloud nine! Every minute or so she would give me a big hug and say, "I love you mommy!" Definitely loved my princess date with my bebe girl!

She has quite the personality! Always talking, always sassy and always one step ahead of us. 

I read an article a couple weeks ago called "Signs you are living with a Threenager" and oh my heck it hit the nail hard on the head!  Move over terrible twos because this threenager is in the house! 

With that in mind, I definitely expect great things from my Halia because man, her defiance is wearing Mav and I out!!!

She LOVES to sing. She is ALWAYS singing. She always has 'last song syndrome' but most of the time she makes up her own songs. My fave is while grocery shopping, "I am singing this song, I like to sing songs, it is fun, and I am singing!" Then she's turn to me and say "I made that song up!" 

She is quite the chatterbox. All day, everyday, she is narrating everything that she is doing or telling stories or just plainly blabbering about all her observations around her cute little world. 

 Speaking of independence, she is in the "I can do it" stage. Picking/changing clothes "I can do it", pouring a drink "I can do it", putting shoes on "I can do it", buckling her seatbelt "I can do it", brushing her teeth/hair "I can do it". Which is great! But we have had some pretty interesting clothes combination (and some pretty awesome ones too). There are times when I pull my hair out waiting for her slooowllly do things herself. It takes a lot of patience since she can't do it as fast as I want her to especially coz mommy is usually running late. 

Three years old is when we start doing our annual birthday interviews so here is little miss first birthday interview. 

To my crazy Heeya Chiya, we love every bit of you and all of your fun little quirks. Our days are definitely more exciting when we have your sassiness and charm sprinkled throughout it. You are a beautiful Child of God and we are so grateful that you have been sent to us. 

Love you to infinity and beyond!

Amateur Gardener

Late post: I've had this typed up for a while now but have just been forgetting to publish.

This is the story of my first time starting a garden.
When we bought our house last year, it was too late to start a garden but watching my mother-in-laws garden as well as the box planter at the head start school that we helped plant was so exciting that I knew I HAD to start my own garden.

So during the year, I made a list of the seeds that I wanted to buy and did some researching on how to start a garden. I've always been attracted to home gardens but I also know that they're a lot of work so I've been somewhat discouraged.

So now we have a yard, we designated a part of it to grow a garden...

And grow it did!

It was indeed a lot of work with the relentless weeds but I actually enjoyed it.

The best part is, of course, THE HARVEST! Yummy organic fruits and vegetables freshly picked and straight on to the kitchen.

You can't get any fresher than that...

I learned a lot of 'what to do and what not to do' things along the way which I will be applying for the garden next year.

But for an amateur gardener...

I'm pretty proud of my new found talent!!!

 Who knew these thumbs of mine would be green...

#22 Big winner

If you don't already know, there are millions of things being given away online everyday. Usually from (mommy) blogs who review a product then have another one to giveaway. 

Well who doesn't like free stuf? Usually there's a bit of running around online to do and of coarse some reading, but for the most part, it's not that difficult. 

So I have entered A LOT of these giveaways. From cloth diapers to strollers, movies, and all sorts of toys. But I have only ever won the small ones. Which I am not complaining about, but I really want a legit big win. So I created a new email to designate all the giveaway emails and away I went... 

Then one day, I get the magical email.

Sooo awesome! That takes care of Hyrum's birthday present! And my goal number 22...

#14 Leisure Reading

I got off on a pretty good start on my 30 things before 30 and I actually finished the Divergent series before September ended! Booyahh!!!

I definitely liked the first book better than the movie (which is usually the case), but the third book got a little slow and dare I say it, boring. Too much genetic engineering mumbo jumbo which is not what I expected the book to head towards.

 Regardless, it was still a good read and the action picked up again towards the end. 

So the point of this is for me to get into leisure reading so I can keep my brain from getting rusty (even just a little). 

So the follow through is to keep reading!

I already have a couple of other books in line but I'm open to suggestions. Don't go all crazy though. I want nice easy exciting reads like Harry Potter and Divergent. 

I'm not quite ready to tackle Lord of the Rings just yet...

30 things before 30

Alas it is my birthday month! And it is a particularly momentous year for me it is last year of my 20s. 

So to celebrate, I made a list (we all love list!) of things that I would like to do before my 30th birthday. 

Some of them are kinda lame but it's things that I've always wanted/needed to do but hasn't been in the priority list. 

In exchange, I hope to develop and share my talents, beautify my home, build memories, strengthen relationships, and have a great send off to my 20s with a fabulous memorable year.

So here are my 30 things before 30: 

1. Take a family name to the temple.
   Never done this so it will encourage me to do my family history.
   
2. Have a conversation in Spanish.
   I took 4 years of Spanish in college. Surely I can get it back...
   
3. Do 30 random acts of kindness.
   I think this will be fun to do as a family.
   
4. Paint on a big canvas.
   Ive always wanted to do a big canvas but never had the time. This will be a big project but I will be excited to cross it off.
   
5. Run Goose Creek Run-Off.
   Its a 10K run in Oakley that I say I will run in every year! But never have...
   
6. Go offline for a week.
   Much needed. But will be hard...
   
7. Read the Book of Mormon cover to cover.
   Always.
   
8. Learn an ukulele song.
   I was sleeping when God was giving out musical talent so maybe I can learn just one song.
   
9. Make a jean quilt.
   Ive been collecting jeans for a couple years for this purpose.
   
10. Finish the quiet book.
    I started to make a quiet book for Hyrum when I was 6 months pregnant with him...Maybe this will be the year to get it done...
    
11. Go sugar-free for a month.
    This is probably going to be the most challenging one since im a candyholic but at least I will try.
    
12. Go on a hike.
    Idaho is full of beautiful hikes, we just havent gone on one.
    
13. Volunteer to do service 30 times.
    This will be fun to do as a family too.
    
14. Read the Divergent series.
    I've never been a 'leisure' reader and I want to change that so I will start with the popular books first.
    
15. Dance again.
    This will just make my heart full.
    
16. Go on a girls trip.
    Fun road trip with girlfriends.
    
17. Organize my thousand photos on photobooks.
    Because I literally have thousands.
    
18. Write a letter to my kids to open when they're 30.
    This will just something fun.
    
19. Do 5 full pull-ups.
    So I can have guns that are locked and loaded. lol
    
20. Do a head stand for 10 seconds.
    For some reason I cant do head stands...
    
21. Raise $300 for charity.
    Through photography or selling crocheted stuff or lemonade stands...
    
22. Win a legit giveaway.
    Because I enter so many that Im bound to win a cool big one...hopefully.
    
23. Grow another baby.
    We should be about ready to add another crazy human into our crazy house.
    
24. Make a new friend.
    One can never have too many friends.
    
25. Find 30 geocaches.
    Coz they are awesome!
    
26. Donate 30 crochet hats to NICU.
    Coz they always need hats to keep their precious little heads warm.
    
27. Develop and apply a homeschooling schedule.
    So my kids dont fall behind while I tackle all of my goals. hehe
    
28. Go to a major sporting event.
    Why not...
    
29. Give blood.
    Ive only done it once, like 5 years ago, coz i always get denied.
    
30. PAAARRTTYYY!!!
    If all goes to plan, my parents should be here from NZ on my birthday so we shall celebrate like its 1985!!!
    

Shouldn't be too hard right? If all goes to plan, I'm hoping to have all these done and written about by the end of September next year. Wish me luck!!!

Employed

3 1/2 years ago, I quit my job at BYUH Campus News Center to be a full-time mom.

The first few months of being "just a mom" was a very trying time for me. I felt so lost and soooo worthless but couldn't do anything about it because it is what I/we needed to do at that time.

Until I came to a realization and wrote THIS blog post. And since then, Ive never looked back. I refuse to look back. I always say that if I'm going to do this whole mom thing, then I am going to do it right.

 

Becoming a full-time mom was one of the best decisions that I've made. Not only was I able to be with my children, I was also able to develop skills that I never thought I would've, like cooking, gardening and making pretty things out of yarn.

 

My motherhood journey had quite a rough start, and to be honest, I still have my "am I doing this right" days. But, blessings keeps on coming to us ever since we made the decision for me to be at home with the kids.

Now a new journey begins. Three weeks ago I accepted a job offer to work for KMVT Television as a Master Control Operator. It has always been a dream of mine to work for a TV station so this job was very attractive. So far, it has been fun learning the ropes of running Master Control and to be honest, it feels good to be using my brain again.
BUT...

I get very apprehensive that I leave my kids in someone else's care...

Granted it has really only been four hours max on some days. At least until Mav goes back to school.

I had a hard time transitioning to being a stay-at-home mom but I think transitioning to a working mom is a bit harder. Didn't think I would be the type of person that would feel this way but I really do LOVE being home with my kids. They teach me so much and help me appreciate the little things in life. Time flies fast and pretty soon I'm going to be sending Hyrum to college and teaching Halia how to drive! So I want to make the most of the years that they still want me around.

But since Mav will be back in school full time, I have to bring home the bacon so we can continue to pay our mortgage and buy food.

There are sacrifices in all situations.
But there are also blessings.

We just have to learn to determine which is which,
and make the most out of them.

Halia's Photo Book

Finally finished Halia's photo book...SHEESHHH!!! A little A LOT behind!!!

 

Click here to view this photo book larger

 

Fantastic Four

Mr. Hyrum Ichiro is now FOUR!

One more year and he will be in school.

I get all sorts of anxiety thinking bout this.

To start of he is now 42" tall and 42.2lbs. 

His doctor is predicting that he will be way over 6ft when he's all done growing. 

This little firecracker is wild and wonderful! 

He is forever in motion and still posses an incredible amount of energy. 

On a typical hour he can be a flying cannonball, a karate chopping ninja, a hip shaking dancer, a very loud singer, a manic bulldozer and a crayzee somersaulting superhero that just had 3 cans of Red Bull. He will jump off of anything that he can jump off of, he will climb anything that is climbable, he karate chops air, paper, water, sticks, bubbles, Legos, grass, bread, the dog, his sister...just to name a few. So my days can be quite exhausting trying to entertain his adventurous little soul!

He is enthusiastic about EVERYTHING! He welcomes the world with a vigorous GOOD MORNING and that same energy carries on throughout the day. 

I could definitely use some of his energy, especially in the morning. 

But he also has a soft side. 

He LOVES giving lots and lots and lots of big squishy (choking) hugs and kisses to all of the people that he loves. So if you are lucky enough to receive one of his death grip hugs then you are loved. The tighter they are the more he loves you...

He is my true Hawaii-born child and absolutely LOVES the water. In the Philippines he learned to swim underwater for short periods and I couldn't be any prouder. We have been putting off giving him swim lessons but this summer we really need to get on to it. Maybe we have a future Olympian in our hands...

He is a great company. He would definitely talk your ear off with his never-ending stories about all of his wonderful observations in this world. Or he will ask you thousands of questions that will make you feel cornered in a big empty room. He is genuinely interested in how things work and why things do what they do. Some make for some pretty interesting conversations. Although, it may take a while for him to finish a story since he has a lisp and a stutter when he gets too excited about what he is talking about. 

He is always so eager to learn. He can write his name quite well and is starting to get the idea of coloring pictures. His favorite thing to draw are trees for some reason. 

His tree artwork

He is finally in Sunbeams at church and I have loved getting all of his Sunbeams artwork and hearing all about what they learned that day. 

Happy 4th Birthday little bud! 

Stay as you are coz we love every crazy thing about you.

And here is his annual birthday interview