Friday, December 31, 2010
Thursday, December 16, 2010
waitin' & bloggin'
brandon is rehearsing for a fireside on sunday...
nahe is fast asleep in her crib at home with granny & grampa walford listening to the baby monitor...
ahonui is running aimlessly around the aloha center...so what better time for me to do a lil' bloggin' than right now?? my phone's battery is about to die so I'm under tight time constraints to get this post out before it goes out on me. just thought I'd update y'all on our little princess who has stolen our hearts...
baby nahe is about 3 and a half months now. she is truly just as her name describes her - a "sweet, gentle, heavenly star". she now only wakes up once at night, usually at around 5 or 6 in the morning. as long as she's fed, clean, and rested, she's pretty much the perfect little bubba. she's very easy to love, and is always eager to squeal with delight when being given a little attention.
we can't get enough of this fat girl. she's got us all wrapped around her chubby little finger...
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
the first cut is the deepest
ahonui has been going to preschool since the beginning of august. even though he is only 3 years old, bright beginnings preschool in hauula accepted him and i felt that it was time he fill his days with more activities than just "curious george" on tv or hours of gaming & you-tubing on my iphone.
a few months prior to the first day of school, we tried to prepare the little guy as much as we could. we would talk to him about what he can expect, who he will see, what he may be learning, etc. we bought special snacks for him to enjoy in his lunchbox, bought a toy story backpack for him, and even arranged for him to be in the same class as his cousin, tehani, so he would have a familiar face in an unfamiliar place.
after our many attempts of "preschool preparation", the first day of class finally rolled around. we tried our best to get him excited about this new experience. unfortunately, our enthusiastic efforts went unnoticed and unappreciated. i'm not sure if it's because he is after all, a boy...or if he simply didn't yet understand the fact that "school" = "mommy & daddy won't be with you to hold your hand all day long".
we all woke up at 6:30 that morning so that brandon & i would have time to get him ready, eat breakfast, make his lunch, get ourselves ready, and take him to the school a little early so we could check out his new digs for the year, introduce him to his teachers, and settle in with possible new friends.
finally, it was mommy and daddy's turn to leave. i don't believe ahonui quite grasped the fact that we weren't going to be in the same vicinity as him for the next 6 hours, because he was very content playing on the little table & bench sets without us for a few minutes. when i noticed that he was "fine", it actually hurt me. i mean, it literally hurt. i felt the sadness coming up into my throat that my little boy was not so little anymore. i felt his dismissal for his parents from the sudden independence he was exhibiting to myself and brandon. but i knew i had to pull myself together. for his sake, at the very least. i fought back those tears of rejection, and the hurt i felt in my throat moved quickly down to my heart. so i gave him a big bear hug, a long mushy kiss, and rushed the heck out of the classroom.
i waited for brandon outside while he said goodbye and sure enough, about 4 seconds after brandon comes out...a shriek, a scream, and some thumping. we glance into the classroom window, and there's one of the teachers - holding our little boy who is not so little anymore - looking like the darn crocodile hunter wrestling with him...all the while attempting to send us a reassuring wave and yelling out the window saying "he's fine! he'll be okay!" riiiiight.
so off we went. back to our minivan and our regular schedules. leaving our writhing crocodile in the hands of those poor teachers. and that's when i broke down. all the way back home, i bawled my eyes out thinking of my 40 pound baby and how he must be thinking that his mean 'ol mom has just abandoned him. when we got home, brandon held me as i cried and calmed down so that i could go to work. it took me a little while to get a hold of myself and to realize that he's in good hands and that it would get easier for both of us very soon.
and it did get easier. he now runs away into the depths of his classrom from his mean 'ol mom after dropping him off every day. i think he's fine now, and so am i. which means the first one really is a doozy.
a few months prior to the first day of school, we tried to prepare the little guy as much as we could. we would talk to him about what he can expect, who he will see, what he may be learning, etc. we bought special snacks for him to enjoy in his lunchbox, bought a toy story backpack for him, and even arranged for him to be in the same class as his cousin, tehani, so he would have a familiar face in an unfamiliar place.
after our many attempts of "preschool preparation", the first day of class finally rolled around. we tried our best to get him excited about this new experience. unfortunately, our enthusiastic efforts went unnoticed and unappreciated. i'm not sure if it's because he is after all, a boy...or if he simply didn't yet understand the fact that "school" = "mommy & daddy won't be with you to hold your hand all day long".
we all woke up at 6:30 that morning so that brandon & i would have time to get him ready, eat breakfast, make his lunch, get ourselves ready, and take him to the school a little early so we could check out his new digs for the year, introduce him to his teachers, and settle in with possible new friends.
and that's exactly what we did...
...a stroll around his classroom: check.
...discovery of the 2 million cool toys: check.
...introduction to the teachers: check.
...and an invasion of new faces and personalities: check and check.
finally, it was mommy and daddy's turn to leave. i don't believe ahonui quite grasped the fact that we weren't going to be in the same vicinity as him for the next 6 hours, because he was very content playing on the little table & bench sets without us for a few minutes. when i noticed that he was "fine", it actually hurt me. i mean, it literally hurt. i felt the sadness coming up into my throat that my little boy was not so little anymore. i felt his dismissal for his parents from the sudden independence he was exhibiting to myself and brandon. but i knew i had to pull myself together. for his sake, at the very least. i fought back those tears of rejection, and the hurt i felt in my throat moved quickly down to my heart. so i gave him a big bear hug, a long mushy kiss, and rushed the heck out of the classroom.
i waited for brandon outside while he said goodbye and sure enough, about 4 seconds after brandon comes out...a shriek, a scream, and some thumping. we glance into the classroom window, and there's one of the teachers - holding our little boy who is not so little anymore - looking like the darn crocodile hunter wrestling with him...all the while attempting to send us a reassuring wave and yelling out the window saying "he's fine! he'll be okay!" riiiiight.
so off we went. back to our minivan and our regular schedules. leaving our writhing crocodile in the hands of those poor teachers. and that's when i broke down. all the way back home, i bawled my eyes out thinking of my 40 pound baby and how he must be thinking that his mean 'ol mom has just abandoned him. when we got home, brandon held me as i cried and calmed down so that i could go to work. it took me a little while to get a hold of myself and to realize that he's in good hands and that it would get easier for both of us very soon.
and it did get easier. he now runs away into the depths of his classrom from his mean 'ol mom after dropping him off every day. i think he's fine now, and so am i. which means the first one really is a doozy.
Friday, October 8, 2010
our little nahe girl
although our newest bundle of joy was born almost six weeks ago, i am sticking to the "i just had a baby" excuse. how long do you think that "get-out-of-jail-free card" will last? well, since i'm going back to work in less than a week, i'm figuring my time is just about up. saaaaad.
at the same time, however - EXCITED! because she's finally here!!! nahe wheturangi kahaialii was born on monday, august 30th. for the handful of you that may be interested in reading the birth story - this one's for you...
my due date was actually august 30th, and i had originally planned to work until i gave birth. but just over a week before my due date, my doctor allowed me to stop working. that extra time was wonderful because i wanted to tie up loose ends and make sure that everything was ready for the baby and that we had everything she might need before her arrival. plus, i found myself sooo tired every day and all the extra weight i was carrying really was taking it's toll on my body.
anyway, the day before my due date i woke up at around 7am because i was feeling some minor contractions. i thought they may have been braxton hicks because i had frequently been having those since i was 15 weeks along. i began timing the contractions and they were very random so i didn't think much of it. my mom checked on me later that day and i told her that the contractions were coming, but they were so sporadic i didn't want to head to the hospital yet. then at about 7pm they were really coming...this time closer together and a lot more intense. i still felt like i had time before we needed to head to the hospital but my mom insisted that we leave right away. being the crazy procrastinator that i am, i didn't pack my hospital bag yet. (so much for the week off of work! hehe) so while i took a shower, my mom got my bag packed, and brandon took ahonui to my in-laws. while i was in the shower, the contractions were almost right on top of the other and that's kind of when reality struck. i started trippin' like - wow, this is really happening...this baby is coming!
before we left, we stopped at my brother, jared's house - who lives nextdoor, by the way - so i could get a blessing. after that, i really felt that Heavenly Father was watching over me and baby and i knew things would go smoothly from then on.
we got to kaiser hospital in moanalua at about 11:30pm and we went straight up to labor & delivery. they checked me in and LUCKY ME - my midwife was on duty that night! apparently with kaiser, it doesn't matter which doctor or midwife you've been dealing with during your entire pregnancy, you are stuck with whichever one is on-call or already at the hospital. craziness, huh?! so i was VERY VERY relieved to know that my AWESOME midwife, linda chong-tim, was able to help me after all those appointments i had with her. so glad that i didn't drive all the way to kailua for our checkup appointments for nothing! the nurse checked me and i was only at 5 cm. and since i'm a wimp when it comes to pain, i requested the epidural right away. hey, why deal with the pain if you don't have to, right?? *sigh* (when i was in labor with ahonui i didn't want the epidural and got stuck at 8cm for 3 hours - and then once i gave in and got it, both brandon and i knocked out from exhaustion. so the next time around i told him, forget it - i'm gonna get it right when we get there! and of course, he was all for it. lol!)
after the anesthesiologist came in and gave me the epidural, again - both brandon and i knocked out! =) peace at last...but at about 2:25am my nurse came in to check on me and asked how i was doing. of course, i couldn't feel much so i was all, i'm good. so she said she'll come back later and that baby would tell them if she was coming. 5 minutes later, the nurse AND my midwife came rushing in to wake brandon & me up saying, "she's telling us something!" according to their charts in the nursing station baby's heartrate was dropping and showed that my contractions were so close together, so she checked me again and said "fully dilated, plus one" - our little nahe was ready to come out! =) they rushed to get things ready, and my midwife told me to let my body and the contractions naturally push baby out and after one tiny push, she graced us with her presence! she was born at 2:35am, 7 lbs. 13.5 oz., 19 3/4 in. long.
i think the labor & delivery experience is such an amazing and surreal event. i'm so grateful that Heavenly Father has put his trust in me and brandon to care for these two spirits. so far our little nahe is a wonderful baby. she is so beautiful (even though my opinion may be biased, i'm entitled to think so), and we are so happy that she chose us to be her parents.
at the same time, however - EXCITED! because she's finally here!!! nahe wheturangi kahaialii was born on monday, august 30th. for the handful of you that may be interested in reading the birth story - this one's for you...
my due date was actually august 30th, and i had originally planned to work until i gave birth. but just over a week before my due date, my doctor allowed me to stop working. that extra time was wonderful because i wanted to tie up loose ends and make sure that everything was ready for the baby and that we had everything she might need before her arrival. plus, i found myself sooo tired every day and all the extra weight i was carrying really was taking it's toll on my body.
anyway, the day before my due date i woke up at around 7am because i was feeling some minor contractions. i thought they may have been braxton hicks because i had frequently been having those since i was 15 weeks along. i began timing the contractions and they were very random so i didn't think much of it. my mom checked on me later that day and i told her that the contractions were coming, but they were so sporadic i didn't want to head to the hospital yet. then at about 7pm they were really coming...this time closer together and a lot more intense. i still felt like i had time before we needed to head to the hospital but my mom insisted that we leave right away. being the crazy procrastinator that i am, i didn't pack my hospital bag yet. (so much for the week off of work! hehe) so while i took a shower, my mom got my bag packed, and brandon took ahonui to my in-laws. while i was in the shower, the contractions were almost right on top of the other and that's kind of when reality struck. i started trippin' like - wow, this is really happening...this baby is coming!
before we left, we stopped at my brother, jared's house - who lives nextdoor, by the way - so i could get a blessing. after that, i really felt that Heavenly Father was watching over me and baby and i knew things would go smoothly from then on.
we got to kaiser hospital in moanalua at about 11:30pm and we went straight up to labor & delivery. they checked me in and LUCKY ME - my midwife was on duty that night! apparently with kaiser, it doesn't matter which doctor or midwife you've been dealing with during your entire pregnancy, you are stuck with whichever one is on-call or already at the hospital. craziness, huh?! so i was VERY VERY relieved to know that my AWESOME midwife, linda chong-tim, was able to help me after all those appointments i had with her. so glad that i didn't drive all the way to kailua for our checkup appointments for nothing! the nurse checked me and i was only at 5 cm. and since i'm a wimp when it comes to pain, i requested the epidural right away. hey, why deal with the pain if you don't have to, right?? *sigh* (when i was in labor with ahonui i didn't want the epidural and got stuck at 8cm for 3 hours - and then once i gave in and got it, both brandon and i knocked out from exhaustion. so the next time around i told him, forget it - i'm gonna get it right when we get there! and of course, he was all for it. lol!)
after the anesthesiologist came in and gave me the epidural, again - both brandon and i knocked out! =) peace at last...but at about 2:25am my nurse came in to check on me and asked how i was doing. of course, i couldn't feel much so i was all, i'm good. so she said she'll come back later and that baby would tell them if she was coming. 5 minutes later, the nurse AND my midwife came rushing in to wake brandon & me up saying, "she's telling us something!" according to their charts in the nursing station baby's heartrate was dropping and showed that my contractions were so close together, so she checked me again and said "fully dilated, plus one" - our little nahe was ready to come out! =) they rushed to get things ready, and my midwife told me to let my body and the contractions naturally push baby out and after one tiny push, she graced us with her presence! she was born at 2:35am, 7 lbs. 13.5 oz., 19 3/4 in. long.i think the labor & delivery experience is such an amazing and surreal event. i'm so grateful that Heavenly Father has put his trust in me and brandon to care for these two spirits. so far our little nahe is a wonderful baby. she is so beautiful (even though my opinion may be biased, i'm entitled to think so), and we are so happy that she chose us to be her parents.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
39 weeks and counting...
we are almost there! and these are some of the reactions to my growing belly over the past few months:
hopefully, we'll be holding our brand new little girl in our arms by next week!
- my mother is under the impression that i'm having twins despite the confirmation of a single baby showing up on the ultrasound.
- my midwife says that baby is healthy and strong.
- brandon loves to lay on my tummy and feel her kicks.
- ahonui is intent on informing his baby sister who he is by speaking directly to my belly button.
- almost everyone i run into tells me how "low" i am or that i've definitely "dropped", even though this is how i'm convinced that i've looked almost the entire pregnancy.
hopefully, we'll be holding our brand new little girl in our arms by next week!
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
on parenthood
when i initially found out that i was pregnant with ahonui, eventually gave birth, and began raising this young child as my son, i have to say that i honestly didn't think about the responsibilities actually came along with parenthood. yes, i understood that i would need to provide for this human being. not only for his physical needs, but his emotional and spiritual needs as well. at least for a while into his young life, anyway. yes, i knew that i would be teaching him the alphabet, numbers, colors, shapes, etc. and i suppose in the back of my mind i believed that i would be responsible for showing him the ways of the world, and hopefully how to grow up to be a respected & honorable man.
the thing is...i don't think i was quite prepared for the latter of these parenting responsibilities so early on in my son's life. so i find myself wondering if most young mothers/fathers/parents/guardians have feelings of inadequacy or unpreparedness in regards to being a parent? i know that i love my child more than words could ever express, but is that love really enough? i know that i would do everything that i can to ensure my child(ren) the best life that i am able to give them, but again - i still feel that they deserve more than that.
lately, concerns over my son's everyday safety, social skills, nutritional needs, physical abilities, and behavior as a three year old toddler has somewhat consumed my thoughts. perhaps the knowledge that another young spirit will be relying on brandon & i for these needs and much more to be met in a few short months. or perhaps the thoughts of my own shortcomings of not be able to meet those needs is slowly creeping into my head.
i suppose the whole "taking things one day at a time" theory can be followed now and moreso once our little girl comes along to keep things sane and peaceful in our humble abode. but of course, any other thoughts of how to keep a smile like this going for a bit longer than a bubble session is always welcome.
the thing is...i don't think i was quite prepared for the latter of these parenting responsibilities so early on in my son's life. so i find myself wondering if most young mothers/fathers/parents/guardians have feelings of inadequacy or unpreparedness in regards to being a parent? i know that i love my child more than words could ever express, but is that love really enough? i know that i would do everything that i can to ensure my child(ren) the best life that i am able to give them, but again - i still feel that they deserve more than that.
lately, concerns over my son's everyday safety, social skills, nutritional needs, physical abilities, and behavior as a three year old toddler has somewhat consumed my thoughts. perhaps the knowledge that another young spirit will be relying on brandon & i for these needs and much more to be met in a few short months. or perhaps the thoughts of my own shortcomings of not be able to meet those needs is slowly creeping into my head.
i suppose the whole "taking things one day at a time" theory can be followed now and moreso once our little girl comes along to keep things sane and peaceful in our humble abode. but of course, any other thoughts of how to keep a smile like this going for a bit longer than a bubble session is always welcome.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
the utah vacay
yes, this was back in december...but this baby is keeping me awake and blogging is probably one of the very few things i can do at this time of night (or early morning) that doesn't require loud noises to wake everyone up.
a BIG, HUMONGOUS thank you to the nawahine ohana for their hospitality and never-ending love they have for us...i always feel at home when i get to stay with them. as soon as we arrived from the airport, they had a huge pot of beef stew waiting for us on the stove. seriously felt like we were coming home, to a colder climate, that is. haha! their house in lehi was absolutely beautiful! it almost convinced me to move to the mainland - but the 4 layers of clothing we all had to pile on just to go to walmart across the street withdrew that notion for me pretty quickly. let's just say, i'm a t-shirt & lavalava type of chick. ANYWAY, we had a ton of fun staying with the nawahines. we are so blessed to have family that are so wonderful!
darren & kaloi nawahine's children...breesa (we celebrated her birthday before the cake was ready - lol!), iosepa, and keahi. ahonui just loved his cousins! every day the little guy would wake up and run out of our bedroom to look for his cousins to play. we love these kids!
christmas evening with brandon's cousins and aunty manu. brandon grew up with them until they moved to the mainland, so it was a nice reunion for him and great for ahonui & i to meet them for the first time. nothing better than family during christmas time...can i get an amen?
the main reason we flew thousands of miles to the freezing cold...a forever friend, tali (formerly alisa) & inoke hafoka got married in the oquirrh mountain temple on december 30, 2009. we also were able to celebrate their marriage the night before at a dance held in their honor in salt lake city. mahalo to tali & inoke for giving us an excuse to have a getaway!!
the oquirrh mountain temple in sandy (i think). it was higher in the mountain tops and one of the recently built temples so there weren't any homes or buildings around it. so incredibly beautiful and secluded. the spirit was definitely strong that day.
best friends who are like sisters to me...miki, me, sarah, titi, and mary. while we waited for tali & inoke to come out of the temple, we beautifully froze our okoles off! i'm quite sure the temp that day was a mild 21 degrees. but what does cold weather matter when you've got amazing friends to keep you warm? it was sooo nice to finally catch up with them. i only wish i could have spent more time with them during our trip. everything seemed to go by way too fast!
boarding the plane on our way home. sad :'-( our flight was too early in the morning for ahonui to do much. he refused to walk, brandon & i refused to carry him. so we compromised and he got to ride the carry-on! lucky kid. unfortunately though, ahonui caught a bad cold & fever a few days before the wedding. he ended up getting a high fever and was out of commission for a few days during our trip. i felt so bad for our little trouper because we still took him out of the house even though he wasn't feeling well. throwing up, high fever, and just miserable. we ended up taking him to the docs right before we headed to the wedding reception so he was a little better by the time we headed home. we're just very, very grateful that he was a GEM throughout the entire flight there and back. thank goodness for ipods and in-flight movies!
some of the highlights of our trip:
needless to say, our trip to utah was much needed and long overdue. we had an amazing, wonderful time visiting with family, playing in the snow, catching up with old friends, soaking up the christmas spirit in a real winter wonderland, and simply spending quality time together as a family.
a BIG, HUMONGOUS thank you to the nawahine ohana for their hospitality and never-ending love they have for us...i always feel at home when i get to stay with them. as soon as we arrived from the airport, they had a huge pot of beef stew waiting for us on the stove. seriously felt like we were coming home, to a colder climate, that is. haha! their house in lehi was absolutely beautiful! it almost convinced me to move to the mainland - but the 4 layers of clothing we all had to pile on just to go to walmart across the street withdrew that notion for me pretty quickly. let's just say, i'm a t-shirt & lavalava type of chick. ANYWAY, we had a ton of fun staying with the nawahines. we are so blessed to have family that are so wonderful!
darren & kaloi nawahine's children...breesa (we celebrated her birthday before the cake was ready - lol!), iosepa, and keahi. ahonui just loved his cousins! every day the little guy would wake up and run out of our bedroom to look for his cousins to play. we love these kids!
christmas evening with brandon's cousins and aunty manu. brandon grew up with them until they moved to the mainland, so it was a nice reunion for him and great for ahonui & i to meet them for the first time. nothing better than family during christmas time...can i get an amen?
the main reason we flew thousands of miles to the freezing cold...a forever friend, tali (formerly alisa) & inoke hafoka got married in the oquirrh mountain temple on december 30, 2009. we also were able to celebrate their marriage the night before at a dance held in their honor in salt lake city. mahalo to tali & inoke for giving us an excuse to have a getaway!!
the oquirrh mountain temple in sandy (i think). it was higher in the mountain tops and one of the recently built temples so there weren't any homes or buildings around it. so incredibly beautiful and secluded. the spirit was definitely strong that day.
best friends who are like sisters to me...miki, me, sarah, titi, and mary. while we waited for tali & inoke to come out of the temple, we beautifully froze our okoles off! i'm quite sure the temp that day was a mild 21 degrees. but what does cold weather matter when you've got amazing friends to keep you warm? it was sooo nice to finally catch up with them. i only wish i could have spent more time with them during our trip. everything seemed to go by way too fast!
boarding the plane on our way home. sad :'-( our flight was too early in the morning for ahonui to do much. he refused to walk, brandon & i refused to carry him. so we compromised and he got to ride the carry-on! lucky kid. unfortunately though, ahonui caught a bad cold & fever a few days before the wedding. he ended up getting a high fever and was out of commission for a few days during our trip. i felt so bad for our little trouper because we still took him out of the house even though he wasn't feeling well. throwing up, high fever, and just miserable. we ended up taking him to the docs right before we headed to the wedding reception so he was a little better by the time we headed home. we're just very, very grateful that he was a GEM throughout the entire flight there and back. thank goodness for ipods and in-flight movies!
some of the highlights of our trip:
- christmas with the nawahines & jimenez families
- tali & inoke's wedding
- sledding at tibble fork canyon
- temple square lights
- visiting with family & friends
- family portraits in the snow
- shopping...quiksilver outlet, shade clothing, provo towne center
- eating out...red robin, cafe rio, tucanos - YUH-MEEEE!!!
Saturday, January 30, 2010
finally...an update!
there's honestly a good reason why i haven't posted anything in a while, but i'm not sure if anyone is even bothering to check our blog anymore!! hahaha! i have SOOO much to update everyone with, yet i've been so incredibly lazy to do anything more than lay around and EAT!
so here's my reasons/excuses for not blogging lately:
yes! we're expecting, and we're SOOOO excited!!! i'm only about 10 weeks along right now, so i've still got a long way to go before our newest addition greets us.
i'll be posting a lil' more on our vacation later, but in the meantime...here's a preview of a little addiction that ahonui has picked up since our trip to utah. even though the humidity just kills here in the islands, he somehow still feels the need to slather on lip balm 24/7.
gotta love this kid.
so here's my reasons/excuses for not blogging lately:
- we were in utah until the end of december and i needed these past few weeks to settle back down to island life, get our routine back in order, and most of all, wish i was still on vacation!
- unpacking takes about 3 weeks to finish...right?
- like i said above, i've been lazy (hey, that's a solid reason!!)
- baby number two is on the way - and i'm SOOO nauseous!
yes! we're expecting, and we're SOOOO excited!!! i'm only about 10 weeks along right now, so i've still got a long way to go before our newest addition greets us.
i'll be posting a lil' more on our vacation later, but in the meantime...here's a preview of a little addiction that ahonui has picked up since our trip to utah. even though the humidity just kills here in the islands, he somehow still feels the need to slather on lip balm 24/7.
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