flashback friday: summah-summah-summah-tiiiiiiiime!!!

summer break is almost over.  well, it'll be over mostly for ahonui.  he goes back to school and begins first grade in about 2 weeks.  because it's not like I really had a summer.  brandon and I both worked, we didn't do anything out of the ordinary, we didn't go anywhere truly noteworthy.  but we're still in laie.  and we have tons of family and friends nearby.  and we're all still quite happy.  so that means i'm gonna still count my blessings.

 

here's our summer in a collage nutshell:

some memorable events now that I'm thinking back are worth reminiscing about...

• lunched with a bunch of my friends at kahuku grill...can't remember the last time we all got together for a lunch date to laugh over nothing and everything.
• spent a few hours at pcc with the kids to just walk around the center and check out the new IMAX "Hawaiian journey" short movie.
• braved an Ono Yo trip with NINE kiddies all by myself...and won a free ono froyo with their instagram photo contest!
• took ahonui to the dentist several times to fill cavities, pull teeth, put silver caps on...the works.
• enjoyed a trip to the Honolulu Zoo with the entire fam to celebrate my nieces bday.
• got to catch up with my Utah-visiting cousin & his family who are, by the way, some of my favorite people ever.
• watched my 13 & 14 year old nieces (who I still think of as innocent little 3 year olds, lol) dominate on the soccer field. 

it was a nice break from conflicting schedules, dropping off, picking up, homework, groggy mornings, and sweaty afternoons while it lasted.  back to that grind in a few weeks.  gonna beach it up a little more before the boy hits the classroom again!

grateful for forever friends

friend: [frend]
part of speech: noun.
definition: confidant, companion.
synonyms: ally, bosom buddy, chum, cohort, compatriot, comrade, crony, familiar, pal, partner, playmate, roommate, schoolmate, side kick, soul mate, spare, well-wisher.

i don't have a whole lot of girlfriends.  in fact, there are just a select few who I consider to be close, long-time friends.  and perhaps it may come across as stuck up or arrogant, or it might even come off like i'm a loser - whatev... but I think that it's really more along the lines of being compatible and comfortable and completely honest with those who can appreciate and understand without judgment, criticism, or a raised eyebrow.

back in 2005 when we were all housemates...oh, to be young and carefree...

so today's thankful thursday is for these special women in my life...my BFFs.  one of my favorite things about a BFF is that even though life may separate us, when we call, text, or see each other again - it's like we've never been apart at all.  life happens, and even though it gives us less time with each other, it's our experiences apart that only gives us more to share, more to laugh about, and always something to look forward to in our futures.

they got my back and I got theirs.

it is a rare occurrence to have my besties home in laie.  and it is even more rare to have them all home together at the same time!  this week is one of those few and far between times...and it makes me smile.  since all of our schedules are packed with either work or play, kids and babies, errands or naps, cooking and cleaning, and so on and so forth....we decided that the best way for us to spend some honest to goodness time with each other, without breaking the bank but at the same time putting in some true eternal service, was to have a girls night out - at the temple.  it was my first time doing a session with friends, and i'm so happy that we had the opportunity lastnight to do just that.

 

we didn't get much time to catch up because as soon as we got out of the temple, we all had to get back to our families.  it felt quite "grown-up" of us to go in, come out, and go right back to our first priorities, but everything that night fell into place which made it all felt so right and pure and easy.  and it makes me remember to be so very grateful...

 

 

camera-phone-selfie-mode-insanely-bright-backlight-picture-quality - need I say more?

 

i'm grateful to have amazing, smart, beautiful, sweet, loyal friends.  grateful that we can share precious memories together at special, holy places.  thankful that they make time for me and to know that they'll do anything for me.  grateful that we can start exactly where we left off, even a year later and not miss a beat.  and i'm thankful knowing that in the eternities we'll probably be BFFs still.

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.

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!!!

to sum up our vacay...relaxing, cold, and waaaay too much fun!