Life with the Latus

A common sight at our home...

2010-05-05T19:51:00.000-07:00

LaRee with her boyfriend Trey busy doing whatever one does in a sand box...

Stopping to pose for a picture and...

back to work!!

Tea Party

2010-05-05T19:27:00.000-07:00

Before the chaos...

Chaos

Sometimes I don't feel like a very fun mom. I would have never thought of this let alone followed through with the event. What a blast for these girls. They had miniature everything to eat. Paula dressed up as an English server and used the best British accent while telling the girls that they were silly American girls and at a true tea this and that would not be appropriate behavior. The girls giggles pretty much the whole time. Life has to be one big fat awesome dream at this age. When we arrived LaRee was whisked off to get her nails painted blue and her tea party makeup put on, she came to the table with a pink unicorn which I can only guess was because it matched her sleeping beauty dress perfectly.

Happy Birthday Elvis

2010-05-05T19:12:00.000-07:00

Chuy's Restaurant celebrates Elvis's Birthday in a big way and really have a hard time passing up a good party. They had an Elvis impersonator singing, which LaRee went wild for, "Elvis was singing to me , mommy!" They gave out free Twinkies for dessert, Elvis masks, buttons, tattoos and cups. If you dressed up like Elvis or Priscilla, your meal was free. LaRee is baby Priscilla. Thank you sandy for once again helping us make a sewing-free poodle skirt and headbands.

A white Christmas in Texas???

2010-04-01T19:44:00.000-07:00

Yes, those are bare foot footprints, remember - she is part island girl!

Who would have thunk it? Christmas eve it started snowing and Christmas morning we woke up and it was still on the ground -Crazy! but if I had to choose 2 days out of the whole year to have snow, those 2 would have been my choice too.

Crazy Tongan in his rolled up pants and slippahs

One excited girl

LaRee informed us that Santa was bringing her a camera, 2 days before Christmas when the Santa at the Gaylord asked her what she wanted, she told him a baby doll!??!
sad but true, her story never changed sooo ta dah - thank you Santa for my baby doll.

Christmas Tradition

2010-04-01T15:04:00.000-07:00

Feels like we as a family have gotten away from some of our traditions and living in Texas is a good reason to start a few new traditions. We try to make a gingerbread house each year and this was our final product for 09'

This was the year, LaRee finally got her picture taken with Santa Clause. What a treat! He was so good with her, he chatted with her about all of the similarities there outfits held.

The Gaylord Hotel in Grapevine has a Texas size celebration for Christmas.

Everything is HUGE sprinkled with a lot a Texas charm.

A longhorn cow

Go Cowboys!

A nine story oil derrick w/lights
A Shop till you drop longhorn

amount of ingredients used on the cabin sized gingerbread house

Gingerbread Cowboy Folk n their dog

I can't win for loosen, either LaRees not looken of Grandpas not looken

Thank you Byerly Family for sharing a lil' bit of Texas tradition with us.

Finallly....

2010-04-01T10:49:00.000-07:00

Potty training started in December. I wanted the following: 1)LaRee to be potty trained before she turned 3 (end of January) 2) since our spending was sky high due to Christmas being around the corner I really liked that thought of all that diaper money going towards our Christmas present budget and 3) oh how happy the thought made me of a diaper free Christmas and New Years!

So, the adventure started. I asked on Facebook for any and all advice, comments or suggestions and I got them, lots of them and by the end I had used every single one of them.

1) Let her pick out big girl panties 2) Sticker chart 3) Candy reward 4) Money reward 5) Be her biggest cheerleader 6) Let her know that every time she 1 or 2 in the potty she got something that she really wanted/couldn't live without and that was going across the street to get a Popsicle and play at Christi's house (thank you Christi's mom and Dr. Phil) 7) Take pictures of her on the toilet so she gets used to the idea of seeing herself on it and being a member of the "toilet using" society 8) Have a basket of goodies (books, crayons, games) in the bathroom to pass the time 9) when she does have an accident show her by the look on your face that you are let down and disgusted (this one was the easiest one for me to do) and my very own idea 10) making her drink and eat while on the toilet, it's that whole load and unload theory. We tried all of the above and some backfired, some worked wonders and others held great entertainment value. Some days we spent more time in the bathroom then any other room in the house. I moved a chair in for me, a stand for all snacks and drinks, toilet paper was moved off of the wall (to distracting) and after many days and many tries...

we got a double thumbs up for her first poo poo in the potty. Look at that face - total confidence and excitement in a job well done. I wish I had the video camera going but to verbally recap she gave me a puzzled look, then a pushing look (with eyebrows down) followed by and enthusiastic, "momma, I'm doing it, I'm doing it"!!!! (with eyebrows up). I truly felt like I had conquered my own personal Goliath. Really - such a proud momma am I!

Fort Worth Zoo

2010-02-06T19:33:00.000-08:00

November 09'

Our neighbor Christie has a membership to the Fort Worth Zoo and has been after us to go with her to the zoo. Man, we could not have picked a more perfect day to go, the weather was perfect (not to hot, not to cold) and I really can't think of any animal that was not out enjoying the same day. We saw everything there was to see. I love enjoying the world through the eyes of my girl.

I always love the monkeys and these were definitely up to my standards but to be honest my favorite had to be the bird area, for a dollar you can purchase seeds on a stick and the birds will come sit on your stick and eat. So cool.

Brace yourself for a crap load of animal pictures. I was serious when I said everything was out enjoying the perfect weather.

When I was little my family went to the Minnesota Zoo and while we were watching the monkeys, one of them pooped in his hand which totally cracked me up and then to make the experience even better... he ate it! LOL! Since then, monkeys have always had a special place in my heart.

Towards the end of the zoo they have these big ol' comfy rocking chairs that make everything in the world feel right again.

Baby Mele's Baby Blessing

2010-02-03T21:53:00.000-08:00

Baby Mele was blessed the first Sunday in December, flights were open so, we hopped on the plane and headed to SFO.

I think I like her serious face best.

Personally, I think "Cousin Time" is time very well spent and I am glad that LaRee is able to see and play with her SFO cousins every now and again.

While we were there we were able to go see the Christmas decorations and visit the visitors center at the Oakland temple, go to down town SFO and see the half a dozen remaining seals and get Sione's hair cut by his favorite barber, Lote, his brother-in-law. I will never compare!

Pani Popo, such a sweet note to leave on. Thank you Johnalene - Love you long time!!!

Our little GO-GO GIRL

2010-02-03T21:24:00.001-08:00

I am finding that the older LaRee gets, the funner the holidays become! During the first part of September we received, in the mail, a Wishcraft Halloween magazine. I made the mistake of letting little miss look at it and from that point on nothing else would do - she was going to be a go-go girl for Halloween and she talked about it NON-STOP!

Well, this is what she wanted to look like...

and on our Latu budget, this is what she looked like...

It actually was really fun putting it all together and my neighbor's mother helped me with umpteen ideas on how to pull it off. We were able to trick or treat with her favorite boy friends which made it even funner!! (and if that's not a word, it should be) My Aunt JaLayne bought her the cute Trick or Treat bag with her name on it and of course she loved it, so thoughtful.

Happenings in the Latu Family

2010-01-28T21:37:00.000-08:00

October was a busy month for many of the Latu children and their children...

October 14th little Miss Kristine Lavani Kaleipe'epoli Nau was born in Tonga to Sione's youngest sister Kahealani .

October 30th little Miss Mele Lineti Ku'uleimomi Moala was born in San Francisco to his middle sister Johnalene.

All babies and moms are doing well and those little girls are knock outs. Sooo cute!

Nanasi, daughter to Harvalene, Sione's oldest sister, graduated from High School the end of October. She had third highest grades in her class, little smarty!! Makes me wonder what she will end up doing with all of those"smarts".

on left with head held high

Cheese!!! Such a pretty smile.

Nanasi left and her proud momma Harvalene in the middle

Disneyland

2010-01-15T14:19:00.001-08:00

After our day at California Adventure we slide on over to Disneyland for the day. I can't even put into words how Disney at Halloween time makes me feel inside, they do such an amazing job.
(as I sing) Loooove it!

We made the mistake of letting LaRee pick out her own ears - what a girlie girl! Look at that smile on her face, makes me think I'd do it again.

Lots of rides makes for one tired girl.

A sign of caution : little shifty eyes
I found it very cute that Tinkerbell and Whats-his-face wondered if LaRee's voice had been lost and that they wished her luck in finding it.

The icing on the cake: The Haunted Mansion

I love the things that make our girl, our girl, like throwing her blanket on her head as she falls asleep. Silly yet priceless to the parents that think the sun rises and sets with this little girl.

California Adventure

2010-01-14T20:06:00.000-08:00

This is going to sound corny, but the Disney Parks hold a special place in our families hearts. We have made some real special memories there and this trip was no different. It just keeps getting better with time.

Some of our most memorable things this trip were:

The Pixar Play Parade - they have got it going on, too cool!
Bumper Cars - LaRee was having a, "I want to do it myself" moment, so the whole ride was with the wheel turned all the way to the right as we went around and round in circles.
Mommy loves the caterpillar train ride because of all the over sized food (so sad) and the smell of animal crackers that wafts through the air.
LaRee had been chatting about Snow White for forever and we saw her and she posed for a picture with us.
LaRee remembered a few things from the last time we went (a year ago). Amazing!

Ya gotta love and mom and dad that are willing to look like a couple of goofs for their kiddo.

Note how happy LaRee is and how over it I was.

My two loves...awwww!

If your dad has to hold you up from falling over, you have gotten your moneys worth on that ride.

Family Vacation

2010-01-14T18:46:00.000-08:00

Sione had vacation coming up Mid October and we chose to spend the first part in San Francisco since his dad was visiting from Tonga. We always try to see him while he is in the states. Days before we go LaRee starts, my cousins this and my cousins that. I am so grateful that they love each other so much, at least for the first day and a half, then someone tells on someone else and they decide that this is more fun then hugging and sharing.

Susana doing LaRee's hair and below is the better side of the final product.

I lucked out in the In-laws department, they are good, good people. Happy and humble and a joy to be around. I love every chance LaRee gets to spend with them and myself for that matter.
I have such happy memories of all my grandparents, I want that for LaRee as well.

Monday night we had family Home Evening with Rice Krispies as a treat (big hit) and since it was close to Halloween everyone got a pair of vampire teeth. mwahhhhhahaha!

My Fearless Girl

2010-01-14T18:17:00.001-08:00

My neighbors friend stopped by with his motorcycle and I thought my girl was going to loose it with excitement.

What a natural.

LAX - End of the Road

2010-01-14T16:36:00.000-08:00

True Friends through and through!!

While in Indio, Grandma Jackie was on a road trip of her own. Luckily we were able to fly back to Texas through LAX giving us a night spent at Julie's house (Becky's sister) where we saw Grandma Jackie and (drum roll, please) Julie's two boys, one of which is 6 months older then LaRee, that really does equal FUN. We were there less then 24 hours and we packed something into every waking minute.

We...

Went to the park to eat dinner and play, play, play!
Had "serve up your own" Frozen Yogurt at a she she shop with hot pink and neon green spoons. FABULOUS!
Played pirates, cowboys, fireman, tea party and watched "DinoTrain"
Ate the best homemade waffles in the world w/ fresh strawberries
Dug in the dirt n played house.

Good times!

Tea Set gift from Grandma Jackie - We played tea party most of the plane ride home. Thank you Grandma Jackie. We love it!

My hearts desire is that I can take this same picture, again, 14 years from now.
Wouldn't that be fun.

A Little Paradise in the Desert

2010-01-14T13:12:00.000-08:00

Mz. Becky Jean the dancing queen came to San Diego, picked us up and drove us to the desert to Grandma Jackie's house, which to LaRee is as fun as any old amusement park. I have lived on and off with Becky for 15 years with makes me miss her terribly so it was nice to be back together cooking, chatting and trying on clothes like we were school girls again.

Cool things found at Grandma Jackie's house

Bree, the fun loving pug
A motorized car
Sandbox
Pirate ship pool
A room full of toys
A zebra backpack, which is now at our house.

This may look like a bunch of hair, but really, it's LaRee loven on Bree

Feeding the dog. Wish LaRee was equally excited about other types of chores.

Sunday morning while I was taking a shower LaRee had let out Bree and herself to a play in the sand.
and again after church

We decided pedicures would be a fun "girlie" thing to do and that proved to be true. LaRee got her fingers and toes painted. We walked in, picked colors and before I knew it, they had whisked LaRee away. For awhile all we could see was a smidgen of her hair sticking up over the chair and all of the sudden you see her little hand pop out and rest in front of the fan. It was the funniest thing. We could finally see her when they started on her toes and the whole time she had her business face on but the minute they were done her vain side kicked in and it was a lot of hand and foot modeling.

San Diego or Bust!!!

2010-01-13T21:51:00.000-08:00

I am 100 percent sure that our move to Texas was inspired and that we are were we are suppose to be, but that does not take away that fact that I LOVE SAN DIEGO and I MISS IT SO VERY, VERY MUCH!!!

LaRee and I were able to take a mini Vacation (key word mini) to first, San Diego, then off to Indio and last but not least Los Angeles. We had such a good and memorable time. As always, I can best sum up our stay with pictures...

Thank you modern technology for helping us on the flight out. That man sleeping next to LaRee wanted to talk politics to me every waking moment. If you know me well, you are laughing right now.

We stayed the first couple nights with my dear friend Wendy. She was one of the first friends I made in San Diego. We became fast friends and have spent more then our share of days in the SUN!

LaRee had a blast watering Wendy's 500 plants.

This picture screams San Diego to me with the Sun on her face and the plants in front of her.

Breakfast out on the balcony. My love for the sun is even greater now. To wake up and sit in the sun and eat...heaven!

Lunch at Sipz Fusion Cafe - Yummlish! They serve Vegetarian Cuisine with a Vietnamese/Chinese/Thai style. They use soy meat and tofu with every veggie known to man kind. It is to die for! San Diego has some of the best food I have ever tasted.

Lots of play time with Owen. He is so good with her and her crush on him doesn't hurt either!

So pretty!

THE BEACH!!

Beware: lots of beach photos to follow

This is Wendy's oldest Tiffany

Proof of a fun filled day at the beach. LaRee was in her element. I true Southern Cali Girl.

other highlights:

lunch with LaRee's church Grandma Carol - love that woman!
feeding the bird
Dinner with the back row girls from my singles ward
snooping around Loma Portal Bluffs changes
a quick trip to Trader Joes
watching Owen play soccer
trips to Point Loma, Hillcrest, North Park, Pacific n Mission Beaches n Coronado Island

Soon it was time to leave Wendy and Owen, sooo sad!

I lived in San Diego for 10 years and I feel so blessed to have rubbed shoulder with so many amazing people.

You want me to pee where??

2010-01-13T20:52:00.000-08:00

As I am still trying to catch up - I had surgery the middle of August to remove my Thyroid. I had a lovely goiter/nodule on the right side and when they got in there they found more of the same on the left side, so my doctor decided at that point to take out the whole thing. (Thank you) She was awesome and funny and a joy to work with. Because of the size of my neck, that size being fat , I was considered high risk for breathing so that put me in ICU after the surgery. I was put into what I liked to fondly refer to as the "supply closet". I took a picture with my cell phone because frankly, I wanted proof! I was sure if I told the story without the picture it would not be believable. Also, I wanted to see what my neck looked like and with no mirror, I look a mobile picture of that as well...

Yes, that is a curtain (no door) and yes, that is a fold out toilet that is coming out from under the sink. Those are boxes of latex gloves on counter, walkers in the corner and to the left is a cart with all kinds of hospital gear on it. Not in the picture is a room full of carts, IV stands and first aid stuff galore. Oh yes, and right in front of my bed was a counter with 4 computers on it. I now wish I would have kept track of all of the in's and out's of nurses, maintenance, whosels and whatsels. I am guessing I was in the room where nurses sneaked off to take and make their personal calls and at some point in the night I finally asked 2 nurses to save their "cost of tires" conversation till morning. I was ever so grateful to go home and pee in a bathroom with a door and a lock.

I panicked at first thinking the incision looked huge and then settled down once I realized that the thin lines on the side were surgical glue, ha - my bad! Life is back to normal and thanks to the marvels of medicine, I take a little blue pill every morning and it seems to do everything that my thyroid used to do - Yippee!

A Girl and her Grandpa

2009-11-15T20:00:00.000-08:00

I have always felt that Grandparents are some of thee most special people on Gods green earth. I am pretty sure that LaRee feels the same. We have a few traditions when it comes to LaRee's "Bee-Paw" . I often wonder if she will still be calling him that in her teen years. Okay, back to traditions. One tradition is Friday Garage Sale-ing. My dad and I map out and prioritize the night before and then we wake at the crack of dawn and hit the road running, early bird gets the worm ya know!

We come back from Garage Sale-ing and it is fool proof, she always comes running to the door yelling one of two things, " What did you get me?" or " Is that for me Momma?" and then she usually follows up with wanting to know who paid for what. (weird but funny) On this particular day we found a sleeping beauty dress with tiara ($5) and an unopened box of magnetic letters AND numbers for the fridge ($1). I know! Deals of the century! These treasures that we find always put Grandpa in a good mood so he will usually stick around to fullfill some of LaRee's requests like filling a bucket with her new letters and then helping her make up lots of make believe words.

When we had 1:00 church we had the tradition of all gathering for pancakes in the morning. LaRee and Grandpa are in charge of cooking and I am in charge of clean up. This smile had developed from me shouting, " LOOK AT ME AND SMILE ALREADY"!!!

This picture makes me laugh out loud. Can you tell that it is early morning here? If we held a contest to see you had the crazier/scarier hair, I believe we would come up with a big fat tie.

These are the kind of sites that I come home to when I leave Grandpa to keep an eye on LaRee. Thank you Paula for the doctors kit with a pair of pretend scissors in it. We have gotten more mileage out of that pair of scissors. Lord help us all if she ever gets her little mitts on a real pair of scissors.

I have to give the girl credit, she is a professional. Look at that head tilt, checking out her work - perfectionist!

Buffalo, WY Trip

2009-11-13T10:28:00.001-08:00

This was my first of three summer trips to visit my girlfriends. I so miss being by my girls. Nothing replaces good friends. Becca is my life friend because I have known her all of my life and more importantly, we have been friends all of our lives.

Sione had vacation time and he suggested we go as a family to Buffalo and who am I to say no!
We had such a fun filled week packed with a little of everything. So much fun!!!

Things we did while in Buffalo, WY

Attended the local fair. We pet chickens, pigs, goats, sheep, etc, etc. I will spare you the pictures.

LaRee received her first pedicure/Manicure. I was so crazy excited to do this that I just about burst out of my skin with joy. Seemed like a rite of passage. This is what Becca and I did as kids and now we are doing it with our children.

Becca did LaRee's hair every day which was a joy for me and LaRee. Took me back to the days that her girls were little and she would do theirs. Aahhh, I love the picture below, LaRee's face is priceless to me and an alligator in her hair?!?

We swam in Buffalo's HUGE and FREE swimming pool. Talk about your wide open spaces! Becca's girls are so good with LaRee. They were constantly making her laugh and were always making sure she was having a good time. I am so grateful that they have taken an interest in her.

We had lots of different flavors of shaved ice while at the pool.
What a beautiful summer thing.

It scares me how much she can be and look like her father - CHEESE! They are like two peas in a pod, ya know one of those pods were you bust it open and there is a really big and round pea sitting next to one of those baby looken peas... hee hee

That big ol' pool was enough to wear anyone out. Gosh, how I love the looks of a sleeping child.

Crazy Woman Canyon

Crazy Woman Canyon Wildlife

More Crazy Women Canyon's wildlife!!!

Ahhh, how refreshing.

We toured the Occidental Hotel which is legend to be haulted which makes every turn that much more exciting.... Boo!

They have a restaurant next the hotel and if you like, you can reserve a table and eat in the old bank vault, which is haunted as well, just ask the lady that was locked in after a ghost blew the door shut.

At some point on our trip it hailed and the whole town looked like it was under snow. It was wild to watch.

Smores!!! I am saving myself the embarrassment of posting the picture were I have chocolate in both corners of my mouth. Becca's joyful face is more enjoyable to see - promise!

YUMMLISH!!

LaRee got a little T.V. watching in and boy does she look relaxed! Home away from home.

This is one of those pictures that I look at and think, " Holy crap, my baby is no longer a baby!"

Jordon - Becca and Jeffs oldest. He reminds me of a Western Calvin as in "Calvin and Hobbes". He does not like having his picture taken, so this is as good as it gets.

We went up in the mountains and had supper. For those of you that are not from the Midwest, that is the last meal of the day. We roasted hot dogs, Jeff warmed up his dutch oven bakes bean, Becca brought her yummy potato salad and of course we ended the meal with hot chocolate and more smores, please!

McKenzie, Becca's second oldest. She is in her senior year of high school. Crazy to think that the little girl I would visit while I was in college is soon to attend that same college.

I love seeing Becca's kids all grown up. She is such an amazing mom and it shows in how solid and fun her children are. I am so happy to have continued memories with them.

The Edstrom Bed and Breakfast was the bomb. We would totally stay there again. The only thing missing was a chocolate on our pillow at night. *hint hint*

Local Fire Department

2009-08-28T21:21:00.000-07:00

We had a block meeting and the local police and fire departments were invited to come and give a presentation to the adults while the children were invited to take a tour of the fire truck and ambulance. LaRee was ecstatic and tried to play shy, but she soon had to show her
true excitement...

Thank you to all of those that serve and keep us safe here in Euless.

A Star in the making...

2009-08-25T21:20:00.001-07:00

Trip to the Santos Home

2009-07-28T07:27:00.000-07:00

LaRee a.k.a. Lury ( isn't that just the cutest thing you have ever seen) and I took a quick and last minute trip to SLC to the Christening of Jaxson and Jakeb Santos and the farewell party for Jesse Santos, he is in the Army and heading to Iraq soon. Yvette Santos was my co-worker in San Diego and she has treated me like family since day one of coming into her life. I love her first boy Jarad, he is such a shining star and he loves LaRee which thrills me to death. Yvette and Jesse have adopted Jaxson and Jakeb and they are two of the sweetest boys I have ever come across. This trip was like going to see family.

On our Houston to Salt Lake, Salt Lake to Houston portions of the flight, I kid you not, we got the last two seats on both flights. What a relief and a blessing.

LaRee was DYING to see out the window and after many attempts this super nice stranger let LaRee sit on her lap while she slept. How nice is that?! I love thoughtful people! I wish I was more like them.

This is part of the family and guests working on the gift bags.

At one point all of the children sat down to watch a movie.

The night before the Christening Nana put the girls hair up in rollers and LaRee decided she needed a few too. Crazy kid - more curls on her head is the last thing she needed but Nana graciously obliged .

I didn't get many pictures of the Christening since I was put in charge of another persons camera but this is one of my favorites because it has most of my favorite people in it (minus Robert :) ) and of course Nana, who was home watching the little crazies.

My Friend Melissa, whom I also met in San Diego, was in Utah visiting her in-laws and Yvette had her come take pictures at the Christening. Afterward Melissa invited LaRee and me to have lunch with her and Brooklyn at one of the restaurants on top of the Joseph Smith Building. It was a lot of fun having "just girls time" and I always enjoy my time with Melissa. She is so talented and full of good ideas. I picked her brain a lot on our outing.

Brooklyn and LaRee on Temple Square

OMGosh - the food is always amazing, ALWAYS!!

What a patient dog. Thor let LaRee love on him all she wanted.

Jarad had a constant shadow

While I was in Salt Lake I didn't have a car so I really thought I would only see the Santos Family but after I posted on Facebook that I was there and I was totally blown away by many of my friends that wanted to see me and were willing to come to me - LOVE THAT!

Gwen, she and I attended travel school together in Orem, she drove up from Payson. LaRee got really sick right before the party started so due to all of that craziness, we did not get a picture taken (sad).

My friend and neighbor from college same over Sunday evening. We just re-found each other on Facebook. I think the last time I saw her was, oh - about 15 years ago. It was so good to see her again after all of these years and the best part (well, best parts) were that she brought her family so I could drill them and ask them a million questions about her and we were just able to pick up as if we hadn't even missed a beat. She brought her college scrapbook which was a riot to go through. Oh, to be young again...

Andrea and her family

LaRee got super sick after the Christening which was a huge bummer. I was very touched because everyone was so helpful and concerned. How sad is this picture?

Soon after Andrea and her family left Jen and Dan showed up (yea!) They are part of the Provo "Loop", a group of us from the Connecticut Mission that got together on a regular basis while living in Provo/Salt Lake. Back then, we felt we were special enough to call ourselves "The Loop"once again, oh, to be young again...

Summer fun

2009-07-21T09:50:00.000-07:00

Busy, busy, busy!! Some of our latest summer adventures...

One of LaRee's favorite summer activities is swimming with her friend Trey a.k.a Fray and his two brothers Parker and Zander. She asks more times then not if we can go swimming with them and when she is tired of asking she just goes and gets her swimming suit.

If it were up to LaRee we would live in the backyard and just come inside to get food, drink and cool off and then back out we would go. Here are a few shots of her and her Grandpa Berg tending to the garden. Grandpa has to pay close attention so he does not get a shower!

Our 4th of July was pretty low key. Our ward (church congregation) had a breakfast and pool party at the local pool. Our scouts did a flag raising, the Makua's sang a few patriotic songs which I really liked. Music seems to really touch my heart. LaRee enjoyed swinging until we headed over to the pool. We didn't swim long because little misses was obsessed with getting up on the lifeguard chair and she could not understand why she was not allowed. We topped off our swim with a McDonald's cone and George Foreman burgers because it was way too hot to grill.

On the second of July we celebrated 4 years of marriage. It's fun to reminisce with Sione about all the happenings in these last four years. Our first date was in San Francisco. Sione took me out to dinner and then we decided to get together again for breakfast and both places were next to the airport which is soooo Sione, he knows what he knows and he sticks with that. This is a pictures from our first date - it soo makes me laugh.... oh young love :) After dinner I said that I wished I had a piece of dental floss and Sione said he had some in the glovebox and at the very moment I knew it was TRUE LOVE!!!

Grandpa knows better...

2009-06-24T13:47:00.000-07:00

LaRee has learned to open the fridge or maybe it's that she is finally taking an interest in it. Her latest obsession, whip cream from a can, she is constantly wanting " queem in my hand" and I am constantly telling her no. Well, Grandpa was cooking us lunch today so I KNOW he heard me say No cream. I headed out to sweep off the front porch. As I can back inside LaRee turns the corner with cream on her face and a hand full of the stuff. Grandpa didn't even both to turn my way or lift his head, I simply heard him say, "that girl doesn't mind very well, I told her to hurry up and eat it before your momma comes back."

Happy Father's Day!

2009-06-21T21:17:00.001-07:00

Happy Father's Day to the love of my life and the center of Miss LaRee's.

As daddy was getting ready to go to work, LaRee ran and got her necklace from nursery a.k.a her airport badge. She made it apparent that she was getting ready for work too. Like father, like daughter.

Oh, the men in our lives - I feel so lucky and blessed to have Mr. Sione T. Latu Jr. and Mr. Verlyn Berg in my life. They both see my needs and do everything they can to meet them. They are both very hard workers and sacrifice a lot for the sake of our family.

I am also grateful for the example and love of my Father-in-law and my Uncle Harold (my mother's only brother). My father-in law and Uncle are the closest thing I know to being Christlike and following his example.

All amazing men in my book!!

LaRee and her Grandpa Berg - this was a common sight in our apartment.

You may not be able to tell by the look on LaRee's face, but Grandpa Latu's kisses are Magical.

Today was a very good day. Through out the day LaRee wished her Daddy a "Happy Father's Day, Daddy." When her Daddy returned the Father's Day wishes, LaRee graciously replied, "Thank you Daddy." LaRee also wished Mommy, Grandpa, and herself a Happy Father's Day. I love the days that we spend as a family. I spent most of the day in the kitchen, what's that saying? The way to a man's heart is through his stomach. Well, hopefully I accomplished that today.

Today in Sacrament meeting, the Primary children sang a couple of songs to the fathers. LaRee's little friend boy, Trey, ended with the biggest "Mmmmmuah!" which I thought was very appropriate. So here's a big "Mmmmmuah" to all the amazing men in my life!

Wisconsin Foods

2009-06-18T20:48:00.000-07:00

Sad but true, I am giving Wisconsin Foods it's own post. Yummlish!!! My fist night in Barron I met a few friends at Bona Casa for dinner. It's pretty much a diner out in the middle of nowhere and the Chicken Ravioli and Cavatellis are awesome (imagine me singing the word awesome.) I think the last time I ate there was around my high school graduation, my neighbors took me to celebrate. My dad would hate it because they serve their water in little, teeny, tiny plastic cups, but I think that's rubbish.

Lft. to Rt. Darcy, Rodger, Dan, Suzie, Misser, Shelly, Me

The morning I left I made a special trip to the Barron Bakery. I can't even stand how good their donuts are. My favorite, the long john ( I know, funny with the thought of my long history of Johns) but it is the perfect combo of donut with white cake frosting on top. mm,mm good!

My last supper was at the Norske Nook were I ordered Deep fried cheese curds and a plate of Norwegian pancakes with lingonberries and whip cream on top. Good stuff!

I joked that when I went through security they might stop me and accuse me of trying to take an ungodly amount of cheese out of the state. I think I might have jinxed myself because as soon as my cooler went through the x-ray machine they pulled me aside and asked me to, in the future, lay my cheese flat - too funny!!

The Class of 1989

2009-06-18T19:49:00.000-07:00

Survived my 20 Year Class Reunion and I have the pictures to prove it!!!

Up above, these were our 2 "happy juice" drinkers. Daria is doing the YMCA dance on her back.

It was so good seeing everyone. I have not kept in contact with many people and the people that I have kept in contact with, well... let's just say they have not been getting a Christmas card either. Keeping in contact is not one of my strong suits.

I felt like everyone looked really good for our age, must be the large consumption of cheese, who knew!! We laughed a lot and ate good food and laughed some more and finally at the very end of the night, a few folks chose to dance. Good food, folks and fun. I am happy I went. Go Bears!

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom

2009-06-17T20:38:00.001-07:00

So I recently was on an American Airlines flight and as I was thumbing through their free magazine I found the article "Fountain of Youth" which caught my eye. Maybe that was because I was heading to my 20th Year Class Reunion (wow!) or maybe because lately I have been feeling as if my body is mad at me and falling apart is how it's going to show me who's boss. Any who, the article really moved me and I thought I might pass on the best parts and record them for myself so when I forget these little gems, I will have somewhere to reference them.

Six senior citizens were asked the same 12 questions: 1) Vocation 2) Avocations 3) Last years itinerary 4) What's next 5) Proudest Moment 6)Toughest Physical/Health hurdle I've faced so far 7) What I've given up 8) What I'll never give up 9) Perfect day 10) Most exhilarating experience 11) Best piece of advice for getting the most out of life 12) Life Philosophy

All answers where great, but the ones that I was most moved by were 11 and 12...

Jean Kendall age 75 Advice - "Never pass up an opportunity to do something new. You regret the things you didn't do, not the things you did."

Ray Bellem age 72 Advice- "You'll increase your workload productivity by about two hours a day by fitting in an hour of exercise - guaranteed! Life Philosophy - "If you keep all moving parts moving and feed yourself the right fuel, the human body can do amazing things.

Herb Fenner age 76 Advice- "Don't search for some mysterious life secret. Just keep going, have an open mind, and focus on the glass half full." Life Philosophy- "Attitude has everything to do with everything - period."

Wuni Ryschkewitsch age 84 Advice- "The older you get, the more you'll need to find something to be truly passionate about, be it music, art, photography, a sport - any activity that turns you on. Find out what it is, and indulge in it to the fullest." Life Philosophy- "Don't get old if you can avoid it. And when your body won't exactly permit this , let your spirit be your guide.

Carl Manus age 78 Advice-"Be happy and kind to everyone. Forgive everyone regardless of what they've done. Do not carry around hate and ill will - it'll only drag you down. Life Philosophy- "Enjoy every moment, and remember that all life is borrowed from God. Thank him regularly, and help others along the way - even if it's only with a kind word.

Creston Shaw age 86 Advice- "Get outside, and keep developing a positive attitude. You're going to need a lot of enthusiasm when you hit my age. Life Philosophy - "There's always a higher hill to climb - that's something you should embrace.

Headbands Project Finished

2009-06-16T20:39:00.000-07:00

Crazy as it may sound I have a friend here and her name is Laree! She is moving away in a couple of weeks, so this is a perfect time to blog about her. She is one of those people that can do anything. In the short time I have lived here I have picked her brain about cooking, cleaning, finances, parenting, sewing and the list goes on. I am so sad that she is moving, she will be greatly missed!! She has been willing to go walking with me, which I am really going to miss, and she has had playgroup at her home on Fridays which my LaRee is going to miss. Laree has two children and my LaRee is constantly asking for them. My LaRee actually plays "Emma and Jonathan" with a variety of her toys. I often enter the room to hear her saying to her girl and boy magnets, "come on Emma and Jonathan, love you Emma and Jonathan."

Recently we got together to work on a few projects and here is a picture of the final product of one of them: Headbands! They turned out super cute and they actually minimize the craziness of LaRee's wild hair. Note: Emma has the best smile and expressions but by the time we took the picture, she was kind of over it all.Back to Big Laree (that's how great she is, she totally said I could call her that) thank you for teaching me the following 1) being a mom is good stuff 2) walk at any length or pace, just walk! 3) sweet and sour chicken need to be on my list of recipes to cook on a regular basis and 4) you don't have to be any good to sing, just sing!LaRee and Tina (picture taken at Laree's birthday party)
Many blessings in whatever comes your way Ms. Laree and family.

Got Milk?

2009-06-10T13:53:00.003-07:00

SOME TIMES I FEEL LIKE THE PAPARAZZI CATCHING A STAR ON THE RUN.

THIS IS ABOUT AS BIG AS HAIR GETS. LAREE GOT A HOLD OF MY ROUND BRUSH AND USED IT ON HERSELF BEFORE STARTING TO STYLE DADDIES HAIR. HE IS SUCH A GOOD SPORT!! IT IS WELL WORTH THE TIME TO CLICK ON THE HAIR PICTURE TO SEE IT AS A FULL SCREEN PHOTO. HEE HEE

High School Graduation

2009-05-27T21:20:00.000-07:00

20 Years ago today I was going through the whole commencement ceremony for my high school graduation. Crazy how time stops for no one. I am getting ready to go back for my 20 year reunion so I have been doing a lot of pondering and reminiscing... well, maybe not a whole lot of reminiscing due to the fact that my memories are limited. I hope that is not a sign of what's to come or that high school was so awful that I have suppressed my memories of it and that they are soon to be released in full force. Angie Lammers, my grade school buddy.
Shelly Berns, my middle school locker buddy
My Parents, Alma and Verlyn.
All of the students from my homeroom. Apparently this picture was taken before us girls realized we could make the boys be the ones that knelt. Now I would totally be the one saying,"No thanks, we'll stand, you can kneel."

Really the only 3 things that I remember from this day are 1) that Darcy J. and Ivan R. sang our class song "Forever Friends" by Micheal Smith which I have always felt was a touching and moving song. 2) We did have a prayer which I was grateful for and I could not understand how that could offend anyone 3) I felt like this was the day that was the start of some thing very big. Funny, huh?! Well, if big translates into full, then I guess I was right. I feel like I have lived a very fulfilling life. I have so many happy memories. I feel like every where my feet have taken me, that amazing people have been there to greet me. I am not sure why I don't have a picture of me with my Friend Missy Prine so I HAVE TO INCLUDE the following. Here is a laugh and a half for you, FREE! You're Welcome :) Missy Berg, Missy Prine and Nancy E. - GO BEARS!!!!!

Dinner Idea

2009-05-25T22:06:00.000-07:00

Soooo, I recently helped in the kitchen at a wedding reception and as I helped prepare the food I kept thinking, "this would make a really great dinner" so in order not to forget, here is the menu:

Veggie Trays with fancy ranch dressing (not the kind that one would buy in bulk at Costco)
Cherry Tomatos
Celery Sticks
Green string beans
Carrot Sticks
Red and Yellow Peppers
Mushrooms
Cauliflower
Broccoli

Guacamole and Seven Layer Dip w/ Tortilla Chips
Anti pasta Salad

I am much happier grazing then sitting down to a meal although, sitting down to a meal has its place too. I have to say that it saddens me to realize that I have turned into one of the "Ladies" that helps in the kitchen. Some times I really miss being a kid!

Girls Vacation

2009-05-18T20:01:00.000-07:00

LaRee and I took a girls' trip to Buffalo, Wy to visit the Edstrom Family and we had more fun than two girls could be allotted. Becca is my life friend, meaning she has been there since the beginning of me. We have so much fun together. She is a constant example to me and I am so grateful to have her in my life.

On our first night in Buffalo, it snowed -- yes, snowed! It was next to impossible to get a picture of LaRee. She was too excited to stand still or stop yelling, "It's snowing, It's snowing, It's snowing!!!" and some mumbo jumbo about a snowman which guilted Brooklynn into making her one.

Becca and I attended the Friday night and Saturday morning sessions of "Time Out for Women" in Billings, Mt. We stayed at a hotel that is attached to a water park and Londyn, Brooklynn and LaRee took advantage of that while we were gone.

Leo the Gecko is Jordan's pet, but what Jordan doesn't know won't hurt him. You will notice that as the pictures progress, LaRee becomes braver. She started off not wanting to touch Leo and soon she graduated to having him on her pants..shirt..holding him and finally a smooch for Leo!

Zoey is Becca's dog. From about the moment we arrived, LaRee claimed ownership of Zoey, her toys, and her cage, but in the end Zoey got the ultimate revenge by claiming LaRee's pacifier.

Becca took the kids out of school on Monday and we all went up to "Crazy Woman Canyon". We saw a herd of Antelope and a Moose. It was so beautiful and everyone really enjoyed themselves. Nature Rocks! :)
And the following are pictures of some of the craziness during our trip...

Movie night
Lunch at the SageBrush Cafe - Yummy!!
LaRee teaching Kenzie to play piano
LaRee playing piano while wearing Brooklynn's underwear over her pajamas.

Becca has 4 children Jordan, Kenzie, Londyn and Brooklynn. They were all so good with LaRee. There was always someone there to entertain her. She had someone to play with from sun up 'til sundown. It was a wonderful trip which makes it hard to come back to my life of dishes and laundry. I am so happy that we were able to go and play and have the memories to get me through the laundry and dishes!

Company

2009-05-11T15:29:00.000-07:00

We have had a lot of company lately and I have to admit it... I love it! I am so grateful that so many have taken the time and money to come and spend time with us.

First we had my Auntie JaLayne, cousin Eric and my cousin Jody's husband Scott. They drove in from Minnesota. The boys spent most of their time hunting for treasures of the nature type (rocks, fossils,etc.) and we put them to work fixing our garage door, front lock, a sprinkler head, putting up 4 ceiling fans (2 with remotes) and 2 light fixtures. I wonder if they will ever come back? My Aunt JaLayne and I spent most of our time sunning, playing cards and cooking, all things that I love to do, especially with a friend!!

Next, Grandpa Latu flew in from San Francisco. It was so wonderful to have him here playing and teasing miss LaRee. She loves her "Gepe Latu"!! He enjoys her so much, even when she is being a crazy 2 year old, he still has a smile on his face and it's a smile of love, I think?!

Last but not least My Auntie Marlene, her dog Foxy, my cousin Robin and her boyfriend Ken drove in from Wisconsin and Minnesota. We started their visit off with visits to a few garage sales, which is where we found our "new to us" patio furniture. We put it to good use while they were here with multiple meals outside, some sunning and a few games of **tch Rummy, my grandma's favorite and mine too! Ken was a saint and took all of my CD's and turned them into mp3s -yippee!Hopefully everyone had a good enough time that they will come back and visit us again!!!

LaRee's Two

2009-04-24T14:24:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, LaRee turned 2 at the end of January but lately I have not been feeling very eloquent in my writings so I have done what I do best - procrastinate. I know that she deserves better then that so her we go... LaRee is two and we could not be happier. We are so happy to have her in our little family. She has brought us such joy and a reason to use our camera on a daily basis. My two favorite things about LaRee are...
1) All of her crazy ways. Would you like an example? Okay, when her hands are dirty she holds them closed until they are washed . She has this pink dress she calls her ballerina dress and on most days she requests to wear it. She wears toys on her feet to give her height I guess ( I will try to remember to include a picture of this, it is worth seeing). She has a "thing" for shoes. If she sees shoes in the store she hurries to take off her shoes, flings them over her shoulder into the cart and yells "shoes" over and over and over until I let her try on a pair. She has her blanket which she rubs on her face, arms, belly and she occasionally will wear it on her head. She loves to use the garbage can and I hate to think of all the things she has thrown away and we are sitting here totally unaware that they are gone forever. She sings all the time - in the tub, in the car, in the yard, in bed. She knows only one song (twinkle, twinkle little star) so most of her songs are made up and occasionally we are lucky enough to see her play air guitar while she sings. Clever lady!
2) I love how quick she is to love us (her parents) and other friends and family. Her hugs and kisses are simply amazing and at times I am lucky enough to have her cuddle up to me as she falls asleep. These are the times that I think my heart might burst with happiness.

Her party was a cupcake and Ice Cream theme. We had a light dinner, an Ice Cream bar and and a ton of cupcakes to decorate.

These were the goodie bags that My friend Becky and I made, thanks Jess for the amazing pictures of them.

Such emotion - the girl loved every gift!!

How great is it to be 2!! Ice Cream and cake forever!!! My dear friend Becky and her mother, Grandma Jackie flew in from Indio, CA and we also had my dear friends Jess from Indiana and Paula from Mansfield here for the occasion. Everyone pitched in and helped which made my day so much more enjoyable. Fun was had by all. We feel so blessed to be surround by such fun and supportive friends and family!! THANK YOU!!!!

BLAKET ON HER HEAD AND RINGS ON HER FEET -CRAZY I TELL YA!

Easter

2009-04-15T16:08:00.000-07:00

This is the Jesus Flag that is part of a church located behind our housing development. This is the view that we get as we turn onto our street. The view of this huge Jesus flag at the end of our street kind of makes me chuckle on most days, but for Easter Sunday I was Happy to see it. Seems like Easter is more about the bunnies and chicks then our savior and all that we has done for us individually and as a whole. I am always grateful when Easter comes around. What an amazing time of year to be reminded that we will see him again and that miracle of the empty tomb.

Our Easter Sunday was a strange one. I always envision how things are going to go and it never goes that way!
This is the closest I got to a picture of LaRee in her Easter dress. At least the ribbon is still in her hair, that is huge for us. I will spare you the details, lets just say it was an accident and luckily a woman at our ward (church) had this onsie in her bag.
This is LaRee washing the color off of her colored Easter eggs. I am guessing that she is like her father, she likes things crisp and clean. White was apparently more aesthetically pleasing to her.
Here we are coloring eggs. My opinion is at 2 years of age the child may really want to color eggs but it should be left to the 3 year and older folks. They probably know better what gentle and softly means.
My Aunt JaLayne sent LaRee many special treats for Easter. Here she is with her Elmo basket. So much fun. We did baskets after church (thank goodness) and our good friend Todd came down for dinner. It was a nice day where everyone is happy because they are hopped up on sugar!

Photos by Jessica DeKock of "Forever October"

2009-03-20T11:07:00.000-07:00

Thank you Jessica for being such an amazing friend and an equally amazing photographer!! We love you and look forward to your next visit (or our next visit). XOXOXO

Cupcake Party and Lights out!

2009-03-16T21:59:00.000-07:00

On my birthday, the girls from mommy's group got together to have a cupcake party. Very nice and always a good time. They are all super nice and a joy to be around. The group shot was taken by Emma (age 4) so I left it untouched for memories sake and a good laugh. I personally think she did a bang up job.

My Auntie JaLayne, Cousin Eric and Cousin in-law Scott drove into town on Saturday night only to find us sitting in the dark hoping that the electricity would return soon so we could finish making the beef stew that we had been frantically cooking. Let me clarify. Our sitting in darkness was due to a power outage, not someone's failure to pay the bill! We finally decided to finish cooking supper on the grill. It was a very nummy and romantic candle light supper. The first picture is without a flash (for effect) and the second was taken with a flash. Wow, what a difference a flash makes. All in all we are happy that they made it safely and are happy to have them here.

I NEED...

2009-03-10T17:57:00.000-07:00

Thankfully it has slowed down, but for about the last two weeks every other word out of LaRee's mouth has been I need. Example: I need Ice Cream, I need baby doll, I need shoe, I need outside, I need slide, I need bath, I need Grandpa, etc. etc. It was getting to the point of driving us crazy. Surprise, some of you thought we were there already. Not so. Sione kept telling her, "Your two, you don't need anything!" Each time she would profess she "needed" something. Sione and I would look at each other and ask "where is she coming up with this stuff?"I mean it's not like we as a couple are prancing around the house stating, I need laundry, I need sleep, I need T.V. I need help, I need ride. Well, we were soon to find out as we stood in the middle of Wal-Mart and Sione turns to me and says , "What else do you need?" and I quickly reply" I need milk and bread and I also need bananas."

Highlights from a busy month

2009-02-27T21:26:00.000-08:00

It seems like we have had a lot going on in the last month or two. Here are some highlights:

1) My friend Wendy and her son, Owen, flew in for the weekend. We worked hard and played a little. We took them to the Fort Worth Stockyards in between "design on a dime" projects.

2) The Weather - Crazy! We had a really bad ice storm (the picture was taken at midnight in our front lawn) at the end of January and in the middle of February we had a tornado warning. It was my first tornado warning that included a siren. At the time I was on the phone with Sione trying to figure out where our battery operated radio was. I moved our 72 hour kits, pillows, blankets and water all into the bathroom while the siren went off. Just as the siren quit, we were ready to camp out in the bathroom. Oh well, practice makes perfect.

3) A B (as LaRee calls here) came to stay for the week of LaRee's birthday. We had a mini mission reunion planned, which turned into 4 of us girls (Sisters) going to dinner at Chili's. None the less, we laughed, ate, laughed some more and, sadly, ate some more!
4) Grandma Jackie (Becky's mom) and happily LaRee's pseudo Grandma joined us on that Wednesday as well as Jessica, a dear friend and sister from my mission. Paula, also a dear friend from my mission, lives just 30 minutes south of us. She joined us as her schedule, and the crazy weather, would permit. See #2 Ice Storms.

Here Grandma Jackie is reading "Go dog, go!" to LaRee at breakfast and here they are conversing over their lunches.
5) Wendy and Owen returned to finish up the mini home makeovers that we had started 2 weeks prior. We painted walls, shelves and other odds and ends found around the house. We altered curtains and rearranged my furniture (or lack off) and we came up with what we agreed was an amazing couple of rooms.

6) LaRee took a black jumbo sized permanent marker (who even needs a jumbo permanent marker?) to our freshly painted wall. By the time I was done giving a time out and being very angry with our little artist, Wendy had already painted over the mess but I did get a picture of the wet paint.

7)Elmo has started wearing shoes and taking baths. Both are very big deals at our house.

8)Sione busted out his tools and did some home improvements of his own, which ended up being an even bigger deal than Elmo's shoes and baths.

9)We went up to Little Elm to spend some time with Uncle Todd and Lexie, his roommate's dog. All three partys were pooped by the time we left to go home.

10) Last but not least, our little Rock Star turned 2 which I will blog about real soon!!

P.S. Becky Jean and anyone else that is still reading, my word for the year is going to be Better. It was "change," but Sione kept teasing me about stealing Obama's word for the year, so I switched to the word "Better". I am going to strive to be a better Wife and Mother, a better friend, a more patient and kinder daughter, neighbor and citizen. I want my relationship with my Father in Heaven to be better and I want to serve Him in better ways. I am going to be a better listener, a better cook, and a better person. I am going to strive for better health and a better quality of life through all kinds of learning. I will have a better follow through of things I start or have wanted to start. I want to be better at putting things away and everything having a space. I want each day to be better than the last! I often think about a lesson once given in church on the subject of striving for the best. There will always be good, then better, then best! I figure if I thrive for better this year, then my feet are heading in the right direction and I just might be ready to have my word for 2010 be "best!!"

I love saving a buck any time, but especially in an economic slump

2009-01-23T21:58:00.000-08:00

Four things that have saved me more then a buck and have brought a smile to my face over and over again.

Sione and I have found a movie theater that shows movies on Tuesdays for 50 cents, this means that we can go as a couple for a dollar. I'm not really a numbers person but this much I know - If our movie costs a dollar for the two of us then for sure we can afford one of their dollar hot dogs. Now that's when I wish I had a camera, to catch the look on Junior's face as I hand him the worlds smallest hot dog.

Verlyn and I hit a garage sale where the mother and her mother-in-law were both teachers and they had stacks and stacks of kids books. Well, I went book by book trying to narrow down the number of books that I figured I could pay for (I had 2 20's in my pocket) and realisticly how many we could carry back to the car. Eventually the woman came and sat down with me and started making suggestions, well - more like "you have to takes". By the time I finished I had 50 books in hand and she said she would give me the deal of a life time, everthing for $20!!! How happy was I. This is LaRee with some of the books. Please make a note that her dad was the one that dressed her that morning since the momma was out garage saleing. We as women came out of the womb knowing that you shouldn't put a pattern shirt with a patterned pants.

As most newlyweds, we had a little wedding gift money and decided to spend it on one of those fancy garbage cans that you open with your foot. Well, about a month ago a piece of plastic on the hinge broke leaving it unusable. I was so happy to hear that Sione had a plan to fix it, although my first thought was the fear that this involved ducktape, but he suprised me and used durable, semi-attractive, hardly noticable metal. Thank you Sione for being so creative and persistant!!

Eating at home is becoming more frequent for us and now that I am a stay-at-home mom, I am trying to be better with meal planning, etc. We have discovered that Rhodes sells 3 frozen loaves of bread for a dollar and some change which is much cheaper then any prebaked loaf you will find in the store, so we have been trying to keep on top of baking our own bread at home. Here is LaRee singing her praises for homemade bread.

My 2 Part blog of over the holidays

2009-01-07T21:35:00.001-08:00

This was the first year that we had a real tree. We always put up our, as Sione likes to call it "Charlie Brown" tree, but this year we invested in a real fake tree and finally after years of collecting ornaments I was able to display them.

Christmas was a lot of fun and most of that has to do with having LaRee in our life. Her excitement grew during the day as you will see in the pictures. It was the first day that she felt good in over a week. Bless her nose running heart!!
Here LaRee and Elmo are watching T.V. on one of the days that she didn't feel so good. Elmo gives LaRee much comfort in her times of need.

Not a real fancy fairy princess look but this is the best picture to show the whole shoe/wand package.

Our family friend Todd ( we know him from San Diego and he now lives in Dallas too) his sisters came in from Arizona for Christmas so we took the opportunity to all get together and play tourist with a trip out to The South Fork Ranch where parts of the television show "Dallas" was filmed. Our little island boy is even a fan. Sione watched the show for the year and a half that he lived in Hawaii with his Grandparents. It's hard to even slip in the word Dallas without Sione jumping in with the theme song from the show.

Let me tell you, LaRee seemed to enjoy this 2 hour adventure 100 times more then our 2 day trip to Disneyland. It was too funny to watch. She loved it. She really likes spending time with her Uncle Todd and its a ranch so she had wide open spaces to be and do as she pleased.

Merry Christmas Y'all

2008-12-30T21:17:00.000-08:00

I just love Christmas when families gather and people in general feel a little more sensitive to others. It is a time that we have so many reminders (if we look) of Christ's birth. What an amazing thing that was for the world, let alone each of us individually. It makes me feel humble and reminds me that we are all part of a much bigger picture. Our stake (made up of multiple church congregations) put on what they called "The Nativity" where members donate their nativities for this 3 day event and some very talented members, then turn the stake center (building) into this amazing display for the public and church members to attend. It was nice to be a part of this peaceful kick of to the Christmas season. Here are a few of my favorite nativities:

They had a celestial room which was done all in white. It felt so peaceful and heavenly.

I have always loved these silly little mice. There is a shop in San Diego at Seaport Village that sells them and I can not tell you the number of times I went in just to look at there collection of mice. If I had a million dollars.
These two were so unique. This first one was made out of peanut shells and the second out of nuts and bolts. Clyde Rhodes would have loved it.

Simple but very much how I think it might have been. This one was from Uruguay I think.

These last two were submitted by myself and my dad. The coconut nativity is from a trip to the Polynesian Cultural Center with Mr. Sione Latu so it has a special place in our home and stays out year round as a little Christmas reminder. The Native American nativity was hand painted by my Auntie Jalayne. She did such an amazing job. Such detail. LaRee like it because it has a bear. I have found her numerous times, on a chair trying to reach it and I always know she is trying to reach it because I can hear her going "GRRRRRR!" like all bears do.

My kid makes me laugh

2008-12-18T13:22:00.000-08:00

I can't help it. I have to blog about LaRee, again!! She is just so funny and crazy and WILD!

I came home from caroling and delivering christmas treats with the church Relief Society only to find LaRee and Grandpa in the kitchen cooking or should I say holiday baking. Grandpa gives LaRee way too many privileges in the kitchen. If you click on the picture it might come up bigger on your screen and you will be able to see the circle of peanut butter on her face as well as the powdered sugar on her cheek and pants. She was "run-around-the-house" happy. I am sure it was a mixture of happy to be with Grandpa and sugar!!!!
We finally bought a couple of bar stools for our kitchen bar. I was doing dishes and all of a sudden I see this little set of eyes peer over the bar. That little stinker can pull her self up and sit up to the bar.
Do you ever wonder what your kids are doing when you finally take that quick trip to the bathroom? Well, mine is busy diapering Elmo. I opened the door to find a diapered Elmo and by the time I had returned with the camera, LaRee had joined us. Elmo is hipper then most kids, he wears one side of his diper over his shoulder. Too Cool Elmo!!
This must be LaRee's version of a Tea Party. She has put a stuffed dog in one chair and given both of them sippey cups. Note she has stuffed a pillow behind her back for what I can only guess is a little added comfort.

I came into the kitchen Sunday morning to find LaRee squeeling over the Toys r Us ad from the Sunday paper. I asked Grandpa if he had given it to her and he said that she had "requested" he give it to her. There was so much exciting stuff that she couldn't take the time to sit down.
On this moring LaRee had a spoon and she hopped down from the table and helped herself to a fork from the silverware drawer and ate the rest of her cereal with both a spoon and fork. This girl is definitely special, I am just not sure what kind of special.LaRee had such a good time decorating our Christmas tree. This is a picture of her clapping and singing her own praises after hanging an ornament, which she did with every ornament she put on the tree.

As I was passing our Christmas tree I noticed what looked to me to be a new ornament. It was a set of nailclippers. I am guessing that because it had a silver loop at the top , when LaRee found them in Grandpa's room she figured they were to go on the tree as an ornament. Clever girl!

Company

2008-12-07T19:28:00.000-08:00

We finally had our first official house guests. The Santos and Hepp family flew in from Kearns, Utah. I worked with Yvette Santos when I first moved to San Diego. I love their family and we always have such a good time when we are together -- talking and eating and then talking and eating some more. Jesse Santos is a master of the barbecue and Nana (Yvette's Mom) makes the worlds best potato salad. Here are a few of my favorite pictures from their visit.

What a couple. Both Yvette and Jesse are from Guam. Jesse is in the Army and that is how they ended up in Utah. Next round they are looking at Texas. How great would that be?!!
This is Logan. He has the most enchanting laugh and a smile that is just as great as his laugh!
This is my Godson, Jarad. He turned 5 while here in Texas. He is turning into such a little man. He loves LaRee which thrills me. They just about wore each other out with their running around and such.

There was a great amount of tumbling done by Jarad and LaRee.

LaRee, Trevor and Sione. Trevor really took to Sione and every time he saw him you would hear, "Uncle!"
LaRee didn't know whether to cry or laugh when the ride started. She started to cry, but broke into a smile and got all excited once the ride got going. Look at that face!! It is so hard to catch that kind of excitement on camera, but we see it alot and love her for it!!

Giving Thanks

2008-12-03T22:14:00.000-08:00

I have so much to be thankful for...here is the short list from the top of my head
My religion and the questions that it clears up for me and the peace that it brings me daily , My family ( the whole lot of them, both sides), My friends that I choose to be family, A loving husband who is a great provider, gentle listener and who seems to stay cool, calm and collective at all times, Our home and all of its perks (laundry room, garage, guest room-hint hint, backyard), electricity, medicine, king size beds, e-mail, chocolate, for that matter taste, creating and having memories, laughter and last but not least little lady LaRee!!!

From Oprah to Disneyland

2008-11-21T11:26:00.000-08:00

Finally getting a chance to blog about two trips I have taken. My friend Myndee, a missionary companion from the Hartford Connecticut Mission who lives in Arizona, called and asked if I could meet her in Chicago on Sept. 11th to go to the Oprah show. Thank you grandpa, Sione and Sione's job for letting me go on this last minute trip. While in Chicago we attended the Broadway play "Wicked". Both were great and I'll tell you why. I am not a die hard Oprah fan, but my love for her has grown. Here are a few of her quotes that I picked up during my visit: 1) Live your own dream 2) Love what you've got 3) Discover your purpose 4) Transformation happens when you're willing -- it's your choice. That one is my favorite. It was the one I could relate to the most i.e. My weight and losing it, my relationship with my Family, God and anyone I come in contact with. Who and what I want to be today and 10 years from now. Shoot, I could go on and on, but back to Oprah. She is very wise and has done so much good for many people/causes. She was very down to earth and really funny. Before the show started she came out with her shoes in hand and her pants dragging on the floor and fussed about her shoes asking whose shoes they were because they couldn't be hers due to the size. She asked if anyone in the audience had a mirror because she had something stuck in her teeth. She sat down and started talking about feeling bloated that day and mumbled something under her breath about exercise. The shows subject was Breast Cancer. Christina Applegate was there of course. That evening we ate at a very fancy Italian restaurant in the theater district. I say fancy because I felt a bit out of place and to me it felt like a place that would be in a scene in a movie. Wicked was clever and funny. I loved Glinda, the good witch. She does a song about being popular and it feels the same to me as a song or two might feel to a 5th grader that has just seen High School Musical. I was supposed to leave Chicago the next morning but it was the day before Hurricane Ike hit and all flights into Houston and Dallas were cancelled. I ended up taking a detour to Salt Lake and spent a couple of days with my godson Jarad and the rest of his family. Sione was (eventually) a good sport about the whole thing and I have never been more happy to see him and LaRee.

We as a family took a quick trip to Disneyland. We wanted to use our passes one more time before they expired. LaRee was a riot to watch. We had such a good time. I would rather post a few of my favorite photos then bore you with all of the joyful details. It really is a magical place. Sione and I joke that it is almost a religious experience. I know we are our own kind of crazy!

On our second day there our friends, Becky and Julie, met us for lunch. Who needs an amusement park when you have a baby, 2 toddlers, a fountain and a side of spanish rice. I think this was our favorite part of the trip. and last but not least, Halloween!!! Our little Lady latu was a Ladybug, aahhh, cute! We missed going to see her church grandmas in San Diego. It just wasn't the same.

Grandmas are the best!!

2008-11-02T19:49:00.000-08:00

This post will probably be written more for me then anyone else, but still the same you are welcome to read. We have just returned from the funeral for my Grandma Berg, my last living grandparent. She was 96 years old. She will be greatly missed. My dad was able to get to Wisconsin before her passing and in time to enjoy her before she left us. Sione and I were in between flights when she passed. Her service was just how she would have liked it. Our dear family friends Ken and Jan Gerner spoke and conducted the services and they both did a great job. They both made me laugh, cry and then laugh again. I gave the eulogy which was kind of hard to do. My grandma did not have an easy life, which breaks my heart. You would never know it though. She might as well have been the poster child for chipper and cheerful. She didn't need much to make her happy. My dad dedicated her grave and the prayer he gave was beautiful.

It was so nice to see everyone. I really enjoy being around my family. I just feel bad that I don't see them more often, but then again, that is my own fault. They all still live in WI and MN and I just don't make it back there enough. While in Wisconsin we stayed a couple nights with my Aunt Marlene. My top 5 highlights from that part of the trip 1) going through old pictures and sharing stories 2) Rosie's tuna salad, it is totally a mid-west thing. Yummy!! 3) Watching LaRee interact with Foxie (my aunts dog) they started to have a love hate relationship 4) watching LaRee with my Aunt Marlene. They smashed beer and pop cans together which was too cute. Marlene got our little girl to work. Go figure! She also gave her a harmonica which we will keep in a very special and secret place and only bring it out on special occasions. 5) Marlene's breakfast bake, humm, 2 of my highlights were food related, typical!

We were also able to stay with my best friends parents Clyde and Eleanor Rhodes. Nicest people you will ever meet. Eleanor makes this killer strawberry jam and Clyde offered us ice cream before bed. What more could I ask for. Eleanor has the magic touch. She was able to get LaRee to wear a bib which she darn right refuses to do for us. They laughed and played and Eleanor even got down on the floor with her. At one point LaRee was laughing so hard that she got the hiccups. At my Grandma's viewing, every time I would look over LaRee was tugging at Eleanor's leg to get up on her lap.

I was able to visit with my neighbors Al and Jane Horvoth. There son now owns and lives on our old property which makes me so happy. LaRee had a hay day with their cats. She went nuts following then around and tugging on there tails. Jan blew bubbles for her and Al read to her. They were both so good with her. I feel so blessed to know them and to have lived so close to 2 real live saints!!

My dear friend from high school, Missy Prine still lives in Barron and we were able to get together for supper. She runs a business out of her home and she has been so successful at it. She is a self motivator and works so hard. She it really good at what she does. I am so proud of her.

It was a nice trip. The weather was definitely fall, soon to become winter. It was the perfect type of weather to take me right back to when she and Grandpa lived on the farm. If I could pick one thing as my favorite thing, next to being in the sun it would be sitting down to thanksgiving dinner, on the farm, with everyone in my family and exchanging stories. I lived with my Grandma my senior year of high school. What a crazy year. We had so much fun! One night my Grandma said to me, "maybe you could stay home tonight and we could watch a movie on your CPR", too funny. The phone would ring on the T.V. and she would get up to answer it. She could always laugh at herself after these crazy moments. How lucky was I. There aren't many kids that can say that their Grandma, for a special treat, popped their popcorn in bacon grease. Yummy!!! Don't knock it till ya try it. I feel so blessed to have had Iras Almeda Mizer Berg as my grandma. Through out time I have heard my share of people say that they had the greatest grandma, but I beg to differ, I believe that there is none greater then my sweet and sassy Gram Berg!!

Left to Right: Alma, JaLayne, Marlene, Grandma and me

Officially Home Owners

2008-10-02T15:01:00.000-07:00

It's official!! We are first time home owners. It is a very exciting and scary thing. After closing, we stopped at the new house on the way to our apartment. LaRee went up and down the stairs about a dozen times, hum, I wonder if that will ever get old for her?? She got excited when we went out to the backyard which tickled me to no end. I am most excited about our back yard and deck!!! hee hee. The pictures of the backyard and deck are the pictures posted by the previous owners. It is empty and sad for now. It is a 4 bedroom (2 master suites) with 3 and a half baths and 3 living areas. Yea space!!!

Texas State Fair

2008-10-01T19:43:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Sione's day off and $3 Dr. Pepper day at the Texas State fair, so we took a little field trip. What a fun filled day. There was an amazing petting zoo and LaRee squealed with joy through the whole thing. Her favorite animals were the goats (my mom would have loved that fact). They also had a hands on farm where LaRee pretended to plant and pick fruits and vegetables, milk a cow, pick eggs and feed chickens. She was very timid, but did most everything that they asked her to do. I think everyones favorite part was free cones at the food and fabrics building. yummlish!!

The Temple

2008-09-24T16:38:00.000-07:00

I love the temple. I rejoice in the fact that I am a member of a church that has temples and that I have had the blessed opportunity to be married to Sione in the Redlands Temple and to have our little family be a forever family. Today I had the opportunity to go the the Dallas Temple and attend the sealing of the Carlisle family. It was so neat to see everyone dressed in white and to see this family become a forever family too! Paula is a sister from my mission. Weird thing is I met her at the mission home on her first day and my last day in the mission field. We hooked up years later in Provo with a group of returned missionaries (The Loop) that all knew each other in one way or another. My friend Jamie refers to that as friends-in-law. Friends-in-law can be the best kind of friends to have. Here is a picture of Bill, Paula and their five little ones.

Back to temples, right before we left San Diego I was able to attend the sealing of my friends Jennifer and Ivan. Jennifer and I attended the Pacific Beach singles ward for more years than I would like to admit. We met at a slumber party (of all things) can I just say, grown up slumber parties are just as fun (if not funner) then adolescent ones. The following is a picture of Jennifer, Ivan and some of the "back row girls" from church. If you ask me, the back row is the best seat in the house!!!

Acting like tourists

2008-09-04T20:29:00.001-07:00

We took a trip to the stockyards with Verlyn (his first time, our second.) It was a nice day and Verlyn bought a Texas songs CD for us to enjoy on the ride home.

LaRee is getting pretty acrobatic in the pool, brave girl. If you look closely you can see that there is a ledge on both sides of the pool. LaRee likes to mess around on the ledge, walking back and forth and pretending to fall in.

We took a trip over to the Dallas Farmers Market in down town Dallas. The fruits and veggies were so beautiful. Everyone had their produce polished and shining, stacked in such an eye appealing way. We bought about 5 pounds of red grapes that lasted about a day. They were super sweet - Yumlish!!

Settling in...

2008-08-26T20:06:00.000-07:00

We are finally feeling settled in. All boxes are unpacked, well - most boxes! Our garage is half full with boxes and furniture. We are only unpacking the necessities and it really is amazing what we already own, but can live without. Our only duplicate purchase was a bathroom trash can and the only thing that I packed and cannot find are the bags for our laundry cart. Which isn't a big deal unless you are Mr. Latu. We are in the process of buying a house and I am trying to contain my excitement since so much can change during this process. If all goes as planned we will be moving in on the 5th of October. Hopefully, more to follow on that subject.
We attended our address appropriate ward/church this last Sunday. As we were crossing the parking lot a woman getting out of her car yells across the parking lot, "y'all visiting us today or moved into the ward?" Such a warm Texas welcome!! We really like the ward. A nice mix of young, old and in between. There are even a handful of Tongan families. Verlyn said they took the time in Highpriest group for everyone to introduce themselves. The ward even has a "LaRee" only her name has a little "r." They are starting a "mommy group" get together on Friday mornings, so I am looking forward to that. I have enjoyed spending my days with LaRee. We are bonding more now. She is starting to pretend which seems crazy to me. When she is fake falling she will say really fast, "oh no, oh no, oh noooo!" We try to go in the pool as much as possible. Love it!!

Waco Zoo, who would have known

2008-08-16T17:16:00.000-07:00

We were able to take advantage of Sione's day off and go to Waco for the day. I figured it was important to do so since it was part of his mission and our wedding sealer mentioned at least 3 times that it was important for him to revisit his mission. It was a nice day. We went to the Dr. Pepper museum, had some kick butt barbecue and ended the day with a trip to the Zoo. It was so nice. Lots of animals, few people and lots of a/c stops along the way. It was a perfect family affair.

We have arrived...

2008-08-15T16:18:00.000-07:00

Finally, we are here in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. We left San Diego on August 4th after a full day of work, but I am so glad that we did. It made the trip go that much better. My dear friend Becky (or as LaRee calls her - "A B" for auntie B)came along for the ride and I will be forever grateful. As Verlyn said to her the morning she returned to San Diego, "we never would have made it without you." I am guessing that we would have made it, but that it would have been a total nightmare. We spent the first night of our trip in Yuma, AZ. I know that it is spitting distance from San Diego, but I guarantee you that it was one of my better nights of sleep. We spent the next night in Van Horn, TX. That was a more difficult night. LaRee was teething and had a crazy high fever. Her whole body was hot to the touch - tummy, feet, hands. I felt so bad for her. She woke up about every half hour. The next day went so much better. Everyone always talks about how nice people from Texas are. It's true, every time I came out of a restroom talking to someone, Becky would shoot me a look. I promise - I never started it!!

It feels so good to be here. I loved my time in San Diego and I feel like I have left behind some bits and pieces of myself. I have made some amazing friends who have been great examples in my ward there. I have also made friends through my job and through the singles ward. I had met most of them soon after moving to San Diego 10 years ago. It does feel crazy to live somewhere that I do not have any history.

Happy to be here, but sad to have left so many good friends in San Diego.

Auntie B - come to Texas soon!! Any time, our door is open.

Pool Fun!!

2008-07-15T11:42:00.000-07:00

Now that we are leaving San Diego it seems more important then ever that we take advantage of everything it has to offer. We never use the apartment complex pool. It seems that every time we go down there, someone interrupts us with an apartment issue. Last week my friend Wendy watched LaRee for the day and insisted that we go in the pool when she brought her home. Thank goodness for insistent friends. LaRee had a blast. She loves the water more each time she gets in.

Here a are a few photos showing her excitement.

Swimming makes one look super cool!!

As you can see, it was a truly exhausting day!

Going to do the big D and I do mean Dallas!

2008-06-21T14:14:00.000-07:00

It's official, we're moving to Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas. Really, I could leave the "it's official" part out since I am back here in San Diego. I just returned from taking Sione and a 5 x 8 ft U-Haul trailer full of our belongings to Euless, Texas. It took us about two 10 hour days (give or take) to get there by way of El Paso. LaRee and I stayed with Sione for 4 very busy days and now we are back in San Diego until the end of July to the middle of August. I have opened myself up to some work obligations before I go. You may be asking yourself, "What is Verlyn going to do?" Well, in his exact words, "I don't think I can be that far away from LaRee" sooo, he's going with us. For now we are renting an apartment in Euless. Sione says that it takes him longer to get from the airport terminal to the employee parking than it does to drive back to the apartment. Quite a switch from his daily 2 hour drive up to John Wayne airport and then another 2 hour drive home. I am glad that he doesn't have to do that anymore and I am grateful that he was willing to make that sacrifice for the last 3 years so that we could be together. He is quite the trooper and never complains. Oh, if I could only be so wise.

LaRee was great on the first day of traveling. Grandpa Berg is a genius. He bought her a doodle pad for the trip and she loved it. Around 8:30 at night she started to fuss so we busted out the DVD player so that she could watch some oh so comforting Blues Clues. Note in the picture the mix of old tears and a new smile.

I was not sure how we were going to unload the pick-up truck and the trailer with an anxious and willing to help 1 year old, but once again Blues Clues came to the rescue.

I felt like I was taking/leaving my boy at college as we bought him the necessities (trash bags, bologna, paper towels, captain crunch, toilet paper, hamburger helper) it was so sad. It took me back to the day that my parents dropped me off at Ricks College with a couple apples, a box of Triscuits and a can of spray cheese. We had a quick family prayer in the living room of my apartment and they were off. Hopefully, Sione feels more settled in then I did.

We took very little furniture with us so we had to go out and buy Sione a recliner so that he could have somewhere to sit (besides the floor.) He is truly living the bachelors life. He has his laptop, T.V. and recliner, he's set! We miss him terribly and can't wait to be with him again!!

Before we went to Texas, we took a quick trip up to San Francisco to see Junior's family. A special treat, his dad was here in the States from Tonga. We had such a good time and it is always a joy to see LaRee with her cousins. Family is so important and the relationships we have with them is even more important. Clockwise: LaRee, Ezias, Baby Tualau, & Susana

LaRee loves her Grandpa and Grandma time

My Family and Friends that should be family!!

2008-05-30T15:58:00.000-07:00

We have been so busy lately. Lots of visitors and occasions. First I want to start with my dearest friend Miss Becky Jean. She is like family. Even though our friendship started on our missions (beginning for hers and end of mine) it often seems that we have known each other for forever and that there was never a time that she was not in my life. She is the smartest girl I know and she has just gotten her masters degree in Political Science with a specialization in International Relations from San Diego State. I am so proud of her. What an amazing thing to do. I remember being in my last semester at Ricks and trying really hard to look inside and find that one thing that I felt so passionate about that I would want to go to school for another 2 years...and it never came. I am passionate about lots of things, but classes on sunning yourself, not so commonly taught! Any who, I am glad that Becky has found her passion and that they offered enough classes on the matter for her to get another degree. Go Red!

My cousin Angela (mother's side) was in town memorial day weekend for a big ol' Christen Rock Fest at the Del Mar fair ground. She brings her 3 little ones every year and every year we get together and eat and talk about how crazy our families are and how simply sane we are and how much we love the good ol' days. I sure do love Angela. She has a refreshing point of view and she always makes me laugh. And it doesn't hurt that she likes my kid. I love it when your family is not just family but friends too.

Speaking of friend as family, part of my Guam family was in town and we all got together for lots of yummy food. I find that it is hard to sit down and relax and really enjoy myself with LaRee being at the age she is and having such a inquisitive spirit. It had been way to long since I had seen everyone. All in all I had a good time and here are some pictures to prove it.

Brusha,Brusha, Brushahhh

2008-05-06T11:15:00.005-07:00

Of course I think most everything that LaRee does is cute, but I will spare you everything and just share a little bit. First off, I thought it was so stinken cute that LaRee wanted to share her chips with Elmo. The girl is a giver! LaRee loves chips and just yesterday I was saying to Junior that it was pretty impressive, LaRee has only choked on chips twice, and one of the two times was at her first birthday when she had a chip for the first time. Her church Grandma gave it to her and who am I to question our senior generation. Especially when she is a retired nurse and mother of two. I kid you not, no sooner had I finished the sentence we both turned to look at LaRee and she was...choking on a chip which was soon followed by a nice big barf. Maybe mac and cheese is the way to go for every meal.

LaRee also loves to brush her teeth and for us doing very little to show her how, she is quite thorough. We face the mirror to brush so she tries to do the same or maybe she just likes looking at herself in the mirror.

Crazy Cat Girl

2008-04-25T14:58:00.000-07:00

I am sure that crazier things have happened, but this cat found its way to our door last Sunday night. Mind you, our front door is interior, top floor at the end of a very long hall. If you ask me, that a long way to travel to find the landlord of the building. It was past 11pm and my night owl daughter was playing with something musical and I kept wondering how she was getting it to meow. Becky was over and she headed towards the door and stated that a cat was at the door. Upon opening the door the cat came in and tried to make itself at home, but Miss LaRee was not about to let this cat rest. I think that she thought it was the next best thing to the puppets she sees on T.V. She was a little out of control. Getting down on her haunches and yelling "Hey! Hi!" and when I would grab her she would pitch a (what I can only imagine to be) terrible 2's fit. Oh what we have to look forward to . This is a picture of the cat in the only place it could find rest away from LaRee's reach. I am going to try to attach a video clip of her craziness which really isn't that crazy because by the time I thought to film, she had settled down quite a bit. No one came to claim the cat so we had "it" for 2 days until a tenant here offered to keep it, love it and save it from "Hey! Hi!" girl. Oh, I failed to mention that LaRee's father was less then excited to have the cat around. At least he liked the cat enough to give it a name. If I remember correctly he kept calling it "stupid cat".

Cabrillo National Monument

2008-04-14T18:56:00.000-07:00

Seems like there is never enough time, so the need to make time becomes so very important. We had a beautiful family outing with my Uncle Harold and Aunt Loretta. Harold is my mother's brother. They popped in for a quick visit the first week of April. It was so nice to have them here and LaRee truly could not get enough one-on-one time with them. They took her swimming while Junior and I were at work. I popped out to see how she was doing and she had this perpetual smile going. Loretta read more books to her in the few short days they were here then I have read to her in her first year of life! We could tell that LaRee misses them because she keeps asking us to play peek-a-boo with her (some thing that Loretta taught her).

I am getting feeling back in my lip and chin. Seems that a bit of cement/sealant was pushed out and into my nerve. It should, through time, dissolve and become part of me and all feeling should return.

Our dear friend Todd moved to Texas this last Thursday. It was a sad day and he will be missed in a very big way and I am not just using the word "big" because he left us for Texas.

Summer is here - it was 85 this weekend. To make matters worse ,LaRee had a fever so she was just plain miserable. She has a hand, foot and mouth virus. Sounds like it just has to run its course. The nurse said Popsicles would make her mouth feel better. Wow, as a first time mother I have a lot to learn about messes, how to avoid them and when they happen, how to handle them.

I am 2nd counselor in our Relief Society at church which means I am over education sooooo, we are going to read " The miracle of Forgiveness" by Spencer W. Kimball...stay tuned.

Garage Sales - a whole new world

2008-04-01T15:06:00.000-07:00

My friend Todd and I had a garage sale this last Saturday. What an experience! I'm tellen ya, it's a whole new world that I can now proudly say I have experienced. These are the things that I have learned:

1) Normally everything located Apt. #C3 is considered "ours" but when such items are being looked at as possible garage sale items, they quickly turn into "mine and yours" items.

2) If you think that your homemade crafts and family treasures are going to be your hot ticket items, think again. Want to know what my #1 items were, Womens belts! They went like hot cakes...to men. I know, totally strange. Nothing like having 3 men fighting over your belts and discussing that it would be real easy to make another hole in it to make it fit (smaller). Nice!

3) If you are having a hard time getting rid of your piece of junk, go a little higher in price and chances are you will sell it for more then your original offering price. I had this set of knifes that I had pulled out of the dumpster ( I'll save that story for another blog) and everyone was picking them up, I would ask for $2.00, they would offer $1.00 and I would refuse the offer. Finally I said "that's it, the next person that picks them up, I'm asking $5.00" and I did and he offered $3.00. Yippee - Treat your trash like a treasure and you'll make big bucks... or at least $3.00.

4) There are professional garage salers out there and some of them will try to bully you, don't let them!! Be strong. It's your stuff. Be the boss of your belongings. Yes, I was bullied and I am a better person today because of it. My new motto: it is better to give your items to an appreciative charity then a non-appreciative bully.

All joking aside , we had a good time and made a little pocket change to put away for a rainy day and If I'm not mistaken, I think I see a cloud up ahead.

Our bucket beauty

2008-03-18T10:33:00.000-07:00

Becky ( my fellow blogger) said that I just had to blog about LaRee's new choice of head wear. We have tried to get LaRee to wear headbands, stocking caps, hair clips, ball caps, etc. and she refuses them all, so it is quite comical that she chooses to wear this bucket on her head and from the look on her face, she finds herself to be quite pretty.

We just got back from a 5 day trip to the Dallas/Fort worth area. Both Junior and I have friends in the area and we just think that it is an enjoyable place to be. We attended the Tongan Ward while we were there. We both enjoyed it and everyone was very nice. All three meeting were in Tongan, so I am guessing that Junior enjoyed it a little more then I did. We both celebrated our birthdays there, if you can call it celebrating. Each year that passes makes having a birthday that much more uneventful. We had BBQ for Juniors birthday and 1/2 price sonic drinks for mine. When we got back our friends Becky and Todd brought us dinner and a cake. Very nice! Grandpa is a softy when it comes to LaRee so she was free to play in the cake. No wonder Grandpa is her favorite!! LaRee is wanting to practice her Independence more and more each day which is leading to more messes for her parents and more joys for LaRee.

2008-03-04T23:35:00.000-08:00

I have found a new cookie. Yumlish!! For $2.00 at Safeway (Vons) I was able to purchase a little bit of heaven. A graham cracker cookie with a chocolate and marshmallow cream middle. They are crazy good!

I had a cat-scan today. I did that for the dramatic affect. It was a dental one. A large part of my lower lip and chin are numb after a root canal I had done the middle of February. Let me tell ya something, it is a crazy feeling and at one point I had decided that I was going to let it bug me and be all upset about it but then I realized that there is always someone worse off. I can still chew (thank goodness) and I have a very loving husband that is willing to tell me that I have something on my face when I get a little sloppy while eating. Life is good!

Shelter Island Park

2008-03-03T19:12:00.000-08:00

This little girl of ours is doing something crazy and amazing (to us) just about every day. We finally took her to the park to swing on the swings, which she hated and slide down the slides, which she loved! She even made a friend. I made Sione snap a quick picture of them hugging.

Getting Started

2008-02-25T18:45:00.000-08:00

Wow, what a big day for me, becoming a blogger and all. I truly feel that I would be cheating you all out of something pretty special if I started this blog with the beginning of 2008. I just gotta go back to the beginning of 2007 when our lovely little LaRee came into our lives. She has been everything we hoped for and more. LaRee Meleane Kaleialoha Latu came to us on January 29th weighing 7lb 8oz and measuring 21 1/2 inches long. She had her momma's mouth for about a day and then she soon became the girl version of her father.

We just celebrated her 1st birthday - can ya believe it? Crazy! We had a monkey themed party with banana being the flavor if the night. LaRee had a good time and so did her parents. Her favorite gifts were a new red chair that was just her size and a musical stage with lights, microphone, and mirror - yes, our girl is a tiny bit vain. Surprise, surprise,surprise!! I was so excited to see her dive into her very own mini cake and all she wanted to do was pick at the frosting for a minute and then she was back to her mini stage singing away. Biggest surprise was that she knew exactly what to do with the microphone! Wild!