OUR JOURNEY TO ETERNITY & BEYOND. . . .

Updates. . . .

2011-12-17T03:15:00.007-07:00

Wow. . . .it's been a while. I'm sitting here with Jordan in one arm while typing with the other. And he's seriously just staring at my free hand moving around in an uneven manner so as to accommodate this post. Definitely multi-tasking at it's best. Anyways, so much has happened since my last post. Jordan is now two and a half months and is quite literally kicking me in the butt and gut. Maybe this was more so up until two weeks ago. That was when fall semester came to a close. And can I just say how relieved I am?? I gave birth to Jordan on October 5th. Right smack in the middle of the semester. I have no idea what I was thinking when I registered for this past semester being in the last stretch of my pregnancy. But I did. And I'm so happy that I made it through with some kind of sanity still left in me. I think?? I did, however, get my first 'B.' Ugh. . . .but considering my circumstances, I have to say that I was pretty grateful for it. I missed an exam and two quizes in this class due to my giving birth so pulling a 'B' in it was quite a humbling experience & one that I do not fail to recognize had the Lord's hand in it all the way. My accumulative GPA right now is at a 3.53. Definitely room for improvement. I hope to get it up this next semester. My girls got straight A's in their first term. All of them!! Woohoo!! They seriously make me so proud. They care so much about their schooling and their future. We're always talking about the different possibilities that lies in wake for them. It's so exciting to think about, let alone discuss it with them. They're eagerness to prepare themselves for what lies ahead is what keeps me pushing forward in my schooling. They are my main inspiration!! That & definitely the way my husband works. His hard work always leaves me speechless because he doesn't complain about it. He just goes out there everyday and does it. I love him so much.

The girls' 4.0 recognition

Well, the girls' straight A's came with a couple of perks this time around. Their ATOP dance group has been doing a 'School Is Cool' promotion where students receive a couple of months free tuition if they get a 4.0. I definitely used this to my advantage because my girls absolutely LOVE learning about their polynesian culture through the art of dance. And with four girls?? Tuition can be pretty pricey. So I used this as an extra motivational tool for them to keep their eyes on the prize and stay focused on their education. I told them that they would have to pay for their own tuition in ATOP by getting straight A's. Lote gave us a little bit of a scare because when I logged into their account online to check their progress with grades, she had all A's and one 'D.' I went and saw her teacher and found out that Lote hadn't been doing her writing assignments. Aaliyah had this same 4th grade teacher last year so I was accustomed to the kind of work both in school and out of school that these kids were expected to accomplish. We were still three weeks from report card time so he gave Lote two weeks to turn in 25 pages of writing. Lesson learned for my nine year old in that plague that continues to haunt the best of us: procrastination. She was able to complete all her writing logs in a week and a half and turned that 'D' into a rightful 'A.' :D As proud as I was of her for being accountable for this, I had to be tough on her and told her that she wouldn't have encountered this dilemma if she would've been doing what she was supposed to be doing. I told her that she absolutely deserved that 'D' for her carelessness in not doing her writing logs daily. She was miserable for that week and a half that she had to constantly come up with something new to write about. As much as I felt for her, I also explained to her that in the real world, like perhaps when she reaches college, she won't have teachers that'll be so forgiving as Mr. Guymon (her 4th grade teacher). She tiredly nodded her head and went to bed. She was so weary.

I, as well, had been super weary during finals time. Being a mom doesn't give me much time to study so when I'm in class, I soak everything up like a sponge. I make sure I never miss class because I know that don't have much time out of class to catch up especially since I always feel like I'm barely keeping up. This has been my advantage since going back to school. Attendance has become my #1 priority in keeping my grades up. I was able to pull a 95% on my finals and I was also overjoyed that I got A's in all my essays/papers I had to write up this semester. My financial aide suspension has been lifted so I'm all set for spring. Woohoo!! This last semester we had to pay $2500 towards my tuition. Trust that it has been a struggle these past couple of months. I don't know how my husband pulled it off having only worked three and a half months this year, but he did. That's how important my education is to him. It's all the support I need to go out there and give it my all. I love him so much.

This past week, the girls had their first dance recital. I've been so excited for it for the past week or so. They did such a great job all thanks to the best dance instructors in the valley. We were some proud parents. They danced their little hearts out. We love them so much for giving it their all. They were so nervous. My little Sila especially. Lol. But they all did a great job and we're so looking forward to their next quarter that starts next month with the island of TONGA!! Cheehoo!! :D It's a definite bonus that they also get to dance with so many of their cousins. It just makes it so much more funner for them and us cause we get to see our families that we don't get to see that often and that's always a good thing. :D

Aaliyah's intermediate group

My sister, baby Jordan & I front & center

The girls w/Taeao & grandma Polu

Tasha was picked to do the solo right before they performed!! We were so PROUD!!

Inseparable

Proud moment w/my Aaliyah

Our beautiful girls :D

Beautiful first cousins

We love our families for all their support

Proud dad & uncles

School's out 'til the end of the year and I've been doing nothing, but enjoying every min/sec that I don't have to think about assignments being due, papers to write up, exams to study for, etc. . . . .Instead, I get to indulge in my LOVE for reading and have already read four books total from cover to cover thanks to my sis inlaw, Taeao, whose mother in-law has a HUGE collection of books and has let me borrow a few. Taeao recommended all four books that I got to take home and I love every single one of them. I couldn't put any of them down. One of the books she recommended was one called Eragon. It's the first book of a series of four. I tried to get book two from the library, but they're all out and there's a super long waiting list for it. I asked Taeao if they had book two and she said she would check and get back to me, but my impatience has gotten the best of me and I ended up at Walmart yesterday with Hoko to get book two, The Eldest, of this series.

I also picked up The Girl With The Dragon Tatoo so I can read it before I watch the movie. The books are always better, I think. There's always so much more details in them. I haven't gotten too far into this book because life here at home has been busy. I feel like all I do is clean, clean, clean. And I'm not complaining. I'm actually grateful to have the time to do it cause this last semester left us with a disgustingly DIRTY and UNHEALTHY home. It didn't help that I was staying with my parents on and off so my mom could watch my boys. But we survived it and it's given me a whole new perspective on time. How much of it we have and don't have. The one thing you can never get back. Once it's past, it's in the past. So I pretty much have a whole new outlook and almost a quiet reverence for it. It's that much more precious to me. With that being said, it's a little after 5 a.m. and I have no idea why I'm still up. I should be sleeping since Jordan's asleep. But I figure, I'll have all the time in the world for sleep in twenty years or so when the kids are all out of the house and married with their own families. I'll try to remember this on days when I feel like a duck running around with its head cut off cause it's in those moments that I tell myself that this too, shall pass. :D With that said, I'm signing off.

11 Years Strong!!

2011-10-27T13:09:00.004-06:00

Today marks the eleventh year of being married to my best friend in the whole wide world. Nobody else has accompanied me or even taken me by hand to hell and back than this person has. Nobody else has been my #1 supporter in all my crazy endeavors that I'm always pursuing. Nobody else has the patience to put up with my countless mood swings & outrageous workout routines . Nobody else has the courage to tell me what I need to hear and not just what I want to hear. Nobody else has been supporting me financially for the past eleven years. Nobody else has been the father to my seven blessings. Nobody else has made it possible for me to have an eternal family by taking me to the most important place on this earth. Nobody else has pushed me past my limits and showed me that life is limitless. Nobody else is pulling for me more than anyone (my #1 cheerleader). Nobody else snores louder in my house. Nobody else is up with me at all hours of the night with an infant baby & then chooses to do it of his own free will six more times after that. Nobody else, but HIM. Happy Anniversary babe!! I love you so much.

Overwhelmed

2011-10-24T13:22:00.004-06:00

I love him so much!! It's always been ME & YOU!!

I've been feeling overwhelmed lately. And it's not a bad thing so much as it's just tiring. We've welcomed baby Jordan into our world and I'm so glad that Hoko's been home since the day I brought him out of the NICU. Hoko's been amazing, to say the least. He gets up for Jordan's feedings when I'm just exhausted. He rubs my back while I'm feeding Jordan just to let me know he's here with me. He's been making dinner for the kids that's literally 'to die for' cause this MAN can COOK!! :D We've been running errands together cause it's been a while since he's been home this long. And with E.R., you never know how long til they're sent out again. At this very moment he's at home with our boys while I'm here at school blogging and catching up on my school work. I have THEE best professors here at WSU. They've been so understanding to my situation and are working with me in giving me the extra time I've needed in order to get caught up. In only one class alone, I had six papers due. I was able to complete four of them today and will work on finishing up the other two tomorrow.

Life has been pretty busy since Hoko's been home. We've indulged in spending time with our families because they mean so much to us. Hoko's been making very good use of his time while being home as well. Last week he went and sat for his GED. Woo hoo!! It's been over ten years since this guy's been outta school. So believe me when I say that I am EXTREMELY proud of him. Education wasn't really something that he got support in growing up. So he's always pushed getting his GED on the back burner due to his fear of failing. Well, I'm so glad he's sucked it up and checked this off his list of 'things to do before he dies' list. Lol. We also had the opportunity to drive out to Vernal for an interview Hoko had with a company he's been trying to get in to for a couple of months now. It was a beautiful drive. I still get awe struck of how absolutely GORGEOUS it is to live here in Utah where we get to experience all four seasons. And since it's fall right now, the colors of the leaves are stunning!! :D The drive took about four hours to get there so it was pretty much an all day thing. He got the call back last Friday with a job offer to start on the 14th of Nov. As exciting as it's been to have received such a blessing, it's also been a little scary. Hoko's been with E.R. for the past 3-4 years and they've been really good to us. Hoko was saying that working for them really helped him to grow up a lot faster. Being away from us and not having anyone around gave him a lot to think about while he was away. And for that, I will always be grateful for the time he was there that we were able to grow through our experiences together. And come to think of it, it did the same for me. Cause it's always such a big adjustment having to hold down the fort at home on my own and then transitioning back to a two parent household when he's back. The mini vacay trips were also a bonus whenever I'd get the chance to go out and visit him. :D

I guess the feeling of being overwhelmed aren't the only ones that are surfacing. I'm also holding on to the hope that we're ready for these major changes in our lives that we're experiencing right now. I'm definitely EXCITED that Hoko will only be gone for two weeks at a time with this new job. Then he's able to come home for a WHOLE week. Woohoo!! What's not exciting about that?? :D I'm also looking forward to the stability that this new job holds for our family as well. He'll be working year round AND we get benefits!! Another bonus. It's been so long since we've been able to enjoy the security that company benefits hold for it's employees and their families. But I can definitely get used to that. :D We've been tremendously blessed and I'm so thankful to a loving father in heaven that is constantly mindful of our growing family. These upcoming changes are going to be for the best and I anxiously welcome them with open arms. Our kids are getting older and I will always count my blessings that we're able to support them not just financially, but spiritually as well. With that said, I'm signing off. I started this post earlier at school, but am finishing it off a little after 6 am the next day. :D

Baby #7 Is Here. . . . .

2011-10-08T15:29:00.003-06:00

I had my doctor's appointment on Tuesday with intensions of setting a date for induction. I felt calm and less anxious in that appointment. My doctor and I decided on Wed, the next day. I was instructed to report to labor and delivery by 9 am. I went home and started to clean up around the house. That lasted for a good half hour. Lol. I wasn't feelin' it so I headed out the door to Babies 'R Us to grab some stuff for our bundle of joy since I always like to wait last minute before grabbing anything. I had his car seat and stroller that I got off of KSL. My favorite place for everything!! :D And that was pretty much it. So I grabbed him some blankets, bottles, clothes, a Halloween costume (lol), and socks. I drove straight to Salt Lake to pick up my mom and my two boys. Mom was coming to spend the week at my house to take care of the kids while I was in the hospital. So grateful to her for being so GREAT!! My two sis inlaws, Fine & Sheena, were heading up here in the morning to be with me in the hospital.

I was there by 9 am. They got me started on my IV's. We sat around talking and laughing. The first two hours passed and they checked me and I still hadn't dilated much. Another 2-3 hours went by and still nothing. It was four o'clock and my nurse said she'd empty my bladder cause sometimes that helps to move things along. Sure enough, as gross as this sounds, my bladder was totally full and when they emptied it out I dilated to an eight by 4:30 and by 4:45 I could feel him coming. The nurse ran out into the hallway and yelled for them to call my doctor to come while I was doing everything in my power to NOT push, but I could feel him coming. Next thing I know, my doctor walks in and two pushes later. . . .baby #7 came a kicking and a screaming. He arrived at 4:54 pm. 7lbs 12oz and 21 inches long. I was shocked at how small he was. I know that's an average size baby, but after giving birth to Savou?? I was so SURPRISED!! I kept saying, "He's so tiny." Lol. But he is BEAUTIFUL!! :D And he is OURS. :D

When they placed him on my chest, I was overwhelmed with joy. And at the same time I was overcome with sorrow because Hoko wasn't there. I did everything in my power to prepare myself for this day, but when they placed our son in my arms, I fell apart and cried. The tears kept falling as I held my baby boy in my arms so grateful for his precious spirit, but so sad that Hoko wasn't there to greet him and share in that special moment. :(

I had some complications after delivery and it took a while to get me into my own room. I was transferred a little after six. All my in-laws had arrived by this time. They all took turns holding baby. By about 7 pm, the nurse came in to give him a bath. His temperature dropped a little afterwards so he was placed underneath a warmer. Then we started to notice that he was breathing fast. She called the charge nurse in to check him and the CN immediately took him to the nursery. From there he was taken to transition where they monitored him, poked him (tears), and kept him under close watch to see if he would get any better. He was having a hard time breathing on his own. They transferred him to the NICU and kept him there. I was terrified!! Every parent's nightmare. And while this was happening with him, I had the whole floor of nurses in my room with me because I was hemorrhaging and they couldn't get me to stop. They finally got my blood under control at about ten o'clock. Some of my in-laws went to be with baby and I started to freak out while I was hemorrhaging and started getting really light headed and nauseous as my eyes started to roll back. The nurses started getting me to keep talking by asking me questions. I stayed with them cause all I kept thinking about was how much I had to stay conscious so I'd know what was happening with my son. They got me under control and now all I was worried about was my poor son.

I wasn't able to go be with him because of the state I was in. I'm so grateful for our families that were with me throughout the night. They stayed with me while others went to stay with the baby. My last visitor left after midnight and my nurse rolled me in a wheelchair to go be with my son. He was in an incubator with IV's hooked up to him, monitors on his body and his oxygen circulating through his nose. As grateful as I am for all the medical technology that was keeping my son alive, I was crushed to see him so helpless and fighting for his life. I sat there and watched him til 2:30 am when they close the NICU to all visitors while they do reports and shift changes so I headed back to my room and laid there in the dark. I kept trying to get some sleep so that I could be rested enough to return to him, but sleep had evaded me. By 4 am I broke down and had a much needed cry. I said a silent prayer to my father in heaven thanking him for blessing me with this beautiful baby boy. I prayed that all would be well and that we would both heal from our afflictions and return home to our family. I never MISSED Hoko so much in my life as did that night. I finally dozed off and got a good hour and a half of sleep before getting up and heading straight back to the NICU.

It was a rough day, but I'm happy to report that things have gotten a lot better. I was given a blood transfusion Friday night before getting discharged and I feel so much better. My ward sent two priesthood holders to give my son and I a blessing. A member of the Relief Society presidency also came to check on me and render any needed services for our family. I love my ward so much. They are so mindful of every family member in the ward it leaves me breathless. Baby Tevita Jordan is recovering and getting better everyday and I look forward to the day that we'll be able to bring him home so he can meet his brothers and sisters. And also his dad. :D Hoko's not back yet, but he'll be home in a couple of days. :D It's been quite the roller coaster ride, but Im thankful for all that we've been blessed with. Especially our wonderful FAMILIES and FRIENDS. :D

39 Weeks

2011-10-04T09:13:00.002-06:00

I've been dilated to a two for going on three weeks now. It's crazy cause I usually dilate fast, but I guess not this time. I'm 39 weeks as of yesterday and if it weren't for my doctor's appointment scheduled in an hour, I would be pretty down. But I've been amazingly patient with this pregnancy and I know it has everything to do with Hoko not being here for this one. I've been back and forth about wanting him here so badly for the birth of our son while at the same time hoping that he's scheduled to start another project soon. We've both been quietly stressing about his current project coming to an end this week. The money we had put away for when he comes home to wait for another project to start up was spent yesterday to pay for all my outstanding warrants (see previous post) and has really been weighing heavily on us.

I woke up this morning at around 7 am and found that it was still dark out. Which means that winter is quickly approaching, as it always does. I love this time of year here in Utah. But with six, soon to be seven, kids in tow, that means jackets, snow boots, gloves, scarves and more socks are what's needed. And we haven't even gotten halloween costumes on top of all that. But I have a constant prayer in my heart that all will be well and that are needs will be met because my father in heaven has never let me down. The whole conference weekend, I kept having that scripture in my head about how the Lord takes care of the lilies in the field. How they grow without any effort, then why wouldn't he take care of us? His children that he loves and adores so much. I don't remember what scripture it is or if I got it from a talk, but it was a constant reminder to me of the principle of faith. How I need to increase my faith in the Lord and if I'm making sure that my family and I are doing everything in our power to live righteously and provide for ourselves and those around us, we will be blessed and taken care of. We will never go without. Our needs will always be met. There's definitely comfort in knowing that.

I'm so excited to be welcoming our baby #7 into the world. I can't wait to see how you look, your personality and sweet spirit that I get to enjoy nurturing. I love being your mother and you're not even here yet. Nothing can top that role in my life. I love you baby #7!! I don't know what your name is going to be yet. Grandma Selu has the honor of naming you so it's going to be a special one. I think daddy and I will throw in a middle name so that we can have somewhat of a part in your name. We're so happy that Heavenly Father is trusting us with your sweet little spirit. Our only hope is that we're able to fulfill our obligations in loving and raising you up to be a worthy priesthood holder in this not so easy world. My love for you will never waver as I know yours won't for me or your dad or your brothers and sisters that are waiting on this side of the veil to greet you. :D I love you :D

Ups, Downs & In-betweens. . . . .

2011-10-03T21:55:00.009-06:00

This past weekend was amazing. I enjoyed the conference talks so much. I am definitely looking forward to next month's Ensign so I can go through all the talks once more cause I know that there's no way I got everything that was shared. I spent the weekend with my parents savoring every moment with these two people that gave me life. I am so thankful to have them so close. They fill a void in me that no one else can with Hoko working out of state. We ate such great home cooked meals that were prepared by my mom. And I do not take those things for granted especially since I haven't been able to do any of that with this pregnancy.

I noticed something today, tho. As I was reading through my daily updates on facebook, I was amazed at how many of my friends and family were experiencing such a hard day today. So many were filled with stress about different things going on in their lives. And even for me. . . . .I found myself trying EXTRA hard to be optimistic because of some things that happened today that weren't planned, but there seemed to be no way around it. And I thought to myself, WOW!! Satan is putting in some serious work for so many of my friends & families to be going through so much distress in their lives after such a great & uplifting weekend. And even ME. Different things from my past keep slowly surfacing & catching up with me. Today?? It was all my outstanding warrants from tickets that I let accumulate & add up. I took care of all FOUR of them today. Can you believe it?? Four outstanding warrants. The only thing standing between me & jail was this blessing I've been carrying around inside me for the past nine months. Had it not been for him, I would be sitting in a jail cell hoping to post bail for being irresponsible on my part & letting myself get caught up in the dilemma that I found myself in. These tickets are years old. Some dating back to when we only had three kids. We're now going on number seven. Ridiculous, right?? I know. SMH. . . . .so what suddenly brought on this sense of urgency in getting these things taken care of?? The fact that as we were driving home Thursday night after taking the girls to their dance practice & spending dinner at my mom's, I almost had a heart attack when I saw the flashing lights through my rear view mirror & it wasn't to pass me up. It was for me to pull over to the side of the freeway. I was terrified because I already knew about my tickets that I never took care of. He ran my info & came back asking me if I wanted to step out of the car so the kids wouldn't hear. I quickly obliged. He showed me my warrants & echoed my fears that if it weren't for me being so pregnant, he would be hauling me to jail. He let me off on a warning, which I am so grateful for, with a promise that I would get it taken care of.

As I was driving home with the kids, I felt so disappointed in myself. Disappointed that I almost ended up in jail because of my negligence in keeping the laws of the land. What kind of example am I setting for my kids?? What would've happened if I went to jail that night?? Hoko's not even in the same state as us right now. Am I seriously that selfish that I can place that kind of responsibility on my parents?? Cause I know they would've come & gotten the kids as well as did everything they could to get me out of jail. Yet, I have enough money sitting in my bank account to pay off these things & make things right with the law?? This was sounding more & more pathetic as all these thoughts were circulating in my head. I couldn't believe that I let it come to this. I made the decision that night that I would take care of all my tickets on Monday so I could re-instate my drivers license & not put my children in jeopardy ever again. I'm happy to report that I made all those payments today & have no outstanding warrants in my name anymore & I plan to keep it that way. Although, I have to wait til next week to re-instate my license due to one of my tickets being so old that it went to the state's collection department & they only update weekly, I have to say how grateful I am to my Heavenly Father for putting me in a position that I could take care of this matter. I won't even lie, tho. Hoko & I struggled with this all weekend long & even all day today because we had other plans for that money, but by the end of the day. . . .we were counting our blessings that we were in a position to get this ordeal taken care of.

Our beautiful blessings. They seriously make us who we are today. :D

Hoko gets home this Saturday & I can't wait to see him. It's always so hard being apart, but I must say that I'm even more excited that he'll be here to meet the brand new member of our family since I'll be getting induced this week. :D And while it's bitter sweet having him home for an uncertain amount of time, I'll hold steadfast to my faith in the Lord that he is mindful of my growing family & our needs & that we will be blessed with our needs being met, as they always are. In these tough economic times, I count my blessings that Hoko has a job. While it takes him out of state & far away from us, it provides for our financial well being while I am in school in pursuit of a career that will also help out & bring him home. I love him so much & am in awe of the kinds of sacrifices he continues to make for our family.

My husband. I will never be able to make the kinds of sacrifices he makes for our family. I love him!!

And while this weekend had it's ups, downs & in-betweens. . . .I'm hoping that we passed the test & can fully move forward with no regrets. :D

Nothing Can Compare To A Mother's Love

2011-09-22T06:55:00.002-06:00

This is a true story of Mother’s Sacrifice during the Japan Earthquake.
After the Earthquake had subsided, when the rescuers reached the ruins of a young woman’s house, they saw her dead body through the cracks. But her pose was somehow strange that she knelt on her knees like a person was worshiping; her body was leaning forward, and her two hands were supporting by an object. The collapsed house had crashed her back and her head.

With so many difficulties, the leader of the rescuer team put his hand through a narrow gap on the wall to reach the woman’s body. He was hoping that this woman could be still alive. However, the cold and stiff body told him that she had passed away for sure.
He and the rest of the team left this house and were going to search the next collapsed building. For some reasons, the team leader was driven by a compelling force to go back to the ruin house of the dead woman. Again, he knelt down and used his had through the narrow cracks to search the little space under the dead body. Suddenly, he screamed with excitement,” A child! There is a child! “
The whole team worked together; carefully they removed the piles of ruined objects around the dead woman. There was a 3 months old little boy wrapped in a flowery blanket under his mother’s dead body. Obviously, the woman had made an ultimate sacrifice for saving her son. When her house was falling, she used her body to make a cover to protect her son. The little boy was still sleeping peacefully when the team leader picked him up.
The medical doctor came quickly to exam the little boy. After he opened the blanket, he saw a cell phone inside the blanket. There was a text message on the screen. It said,” If you can survive, you must remember that I love you.” This cell phone was passing around from one hand to another. Every body that read the message wept. ” If you can survive, you must remember that I love you.” Such is the mother’s love for her child!!

This story is amazing and touches my heart in so many ways. It truly is a depiction of how much we, as mothers, love our children. Nothing compares to our love for our kids. I know without a doubt that I would've been in the same position if it were me in this earthquake with my 3 month old baby. I know no mother that wouldn't sacrifice their all in the protection of their child. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but this one. . . . .left me speechless & filled with a thousand different emotions.

Been To Hell Lately??

2011-09-18T16:07:00.003-06:00

That's exactly where I felt like I've been residing for the past week. :( I started feeling the first signs of the flu bug on Monday & it hit me with a TON of bricks. It was terrible, to say the least. I kept hoping & praying that with every passing day I would start to feel better, but to no avail. I was already scheduled to see my doctor Wed morning & felt relief in the thought alone, but not in actually having to drag myself out of bed & get there. But I did. He checked me over, listened to baby's heart, measured me, did my vitals & listened to my lungs. After asking me about my symptoms, he concluded that I had the flu bug & because I was pregnant I would have it for five more days. He gave me a prescription for a z-pack, told me to take some tylenol, go home & rest. I did exactly that. I kept feeling so much better whenever I'd take my tylenol & hopelessly held on to the notion that maybe I'm getting better so I'd get up & do a load of laundry or go to my morning class @ school. But every time after doing so, I'd find myself barely making it to my bed as my head would hit the pillow & I would TRY to go to sleep even though my body was aching, burning, then shaking from the chills on & off the whole time. I was miserable. And on top of all that?? I keep getting what they call 'false alarms' (fake contractions) which I usually don't care about cause they're not that bad, but to have them all night was an absolute nightmare. :(

I barely felt good enough to pick the girls up from school Thu so we could head straight to their ATOP dance practice so we spent the night at my parents & the next morning I had to call & excuse the girls from school cause there was no way I was in any shape to make that drive back to Ogden. I had the WORST of the chills, burning fever, sweating, body aches on Friday afternoon & had to wait til 4 pm to take my tylenol, but as soon as I did, it started to even out my body temperature & even got my body aches under control. I had to run an errand with my dad & I knew that would've been the only time I would be able to do it so I hurried & got up & left with him. When we got back, I still felt a little better, but I was already anticipating the routine of misery to start up again. So I just waited. I got a call from my sis in-law, Fine. She called to check up on me cause she's so AWESOME & SWEET!! I talked to her for a while & felt fine the whole time. :D Then Hoko called & I ended my convo with Fine. But I wasn't able to stay on the phone long with Hoko before my eyelids started feeling heavy & I knew I needed to get to bed. So we said our "I love you's" & "Goodbye's" & I was off to bed. Thank goodness for GREAT parents whom I love & adore so much. I don't know how I would've survived this whole ordeal without them. They cooked, cleaned & looked after me & my children. My dad said he was going to take me to the ER if I didn't start to get better by Friday night, but since things seemed to be turning up in our favor, I received a priesthood blessing from my dad & my brother instead. And quickly dozed off. I was so grateful when Saturday morning came & I still felt better. Extremely tired, but definitely better. My parents got up early & left to my nephew, Gemini's, football game with my four girls. The two boys stayed with me cause they're still a little sick & I didn't want them to get worse. This change in the weather is so heavenly, but I didn't have any warm clothes for them & I'm not taking any chances on them with what I just went through.

Because I was feeling so much better, I took the boys out for a drive. It felt so good. :D I even met up with Fine & Sheena to go support Hoko's nephew, Ti Tonga's, bake sale. We bought cookies & cupcakes & were grateful for the sweet treats on the drive back to Fine's. I headed back to my parents, packed up our stuff in the van & headed to Sheena's to watch the Utah/BYU game. It was a full house cause Manase & Polu were there & Fine & her family came over as well. But it was so much fun. We laughed all night at Manase 'funny' jokes!! Lol. He's such a fob!! LMBO!! But they're the best!! They bought us chinese which just made my night since I hadn't really eaten anything since Thu night. Polu got my two older girls these really cute shirts from Park City that she brought for them. It was an all around great night with great people. We came home famished & everyone walked straight to their beds & knocked out. It's the simplicity in those kinds of family gatherings that always gets me. Only thing missing was Hoko. He was watching the game at the same time & could hear all the laughter in the background & I felt so bad for him. :( He said how he wished he was with us, but we both have an unspoken understanding of knowing that he's exactly where he's supposed to be even though it may not be where we want him to be. And with that. . . .I'm signing off. Gotta start on some homework. I'm back my trip to hell was very temporary. I don't wanna visit that place ever again. :D

Sacrifices. . . .

2011-09-14T21:42:00.010-06:00

We've been making a lot of sacrifices lately in order to continue on this journey that we're on in getting ourselves to where we need to be. One of them being that our two youngest boys spend three to four nights a week with my parents because I have school. We originally planned that I would enroll them in the daycare here at Weber, but when I went to do so, they were FULL. :( Some weeks are better than others & on the ones that aren't so good, we spend the week commuting back & forth from Salt Lake to Ogden just so we can be together with our boys as much as we can. It's bad enough that Hoko works out of state, but to have to be away from ME, too. That just kills me. We spent the weekend at my parents place & headed back home Sunday night. I brought the boys home with me & then took them back Monday & spent a couple of hours with them there before heading back to Ogden to pick up the girls from school. So they've been there since Monday & have been asking my mom when they'll be coming back home to me since yesterday. :( I talk to them everyday & can't wait to pick them up tomorrow. I love them so much & am so EXCITED for them to welcome a new member to their club of boys/brothers. :D

Our two handsome boys!! Soon to be THREE!! :D

This past week, I've been feeling under the weather. I knew immediately that I was coming down with the flu. I just kept hoping & praying that it wouldn't get as bad as it has been the past couple of times that I've gotten it. And I honestly thought that it was, but am so grateful that I've actually been starting to feel better today. I had my doctor's appt this morning to see how everything's coming along. I've now reached 36 weeks & am anxious for our son's arrival. :D I'm still dilated to a two, but my doctor said that he's moved down a lot so that's a good sign. I can't wait for him to make his debut. And even though I really wanted another girl, I know we're getting what we're supposed to be getting & I'm so thankful. Hoko's even more excited!! He's been saying it was another boy from the get go. And I guess it's a good thing. Evens out the playing field in our home. A little. Lol.

I have my first exam next week in one of my classes & am relieved that this bug isn't sticking around long. My professor's holding study sessions during the weekend & I plan to attend. It's been kinda crazy since the semester started cause it's so packed on campus. I'm not used to that cause it wasn't like that when I started in the spring & then summer was even more empty. But I know that as soon as I have baby, everything will work out. Not being limited physically makes a big difference. And oh how I'm looking forward to putting my Vibram's to use once I give birth. They're my new running/fitness shoes. My sister inlaw, Taeao, has had a pair for over a year now & I've always wanted one cause they are so lightweight. Well, I finally got my pair & have already started to break 'em in. :D

My new Vibram's that I'm in love with :D

But I am constantly amazed at how much strength I draw from my kids. I can only imagine if I wasn't a parent yet. I wouldn't have a BIGGER reason for pushing myself more. I don't think 'I' would be enough of a motivation to do more. But kids are so innocent. They bring out the best in us in just their pure innocence & love for the simple things in life. It never ceases to amaze me how much they can just enjoy playing made up games with each other & find the most joy in those things. :D

Our six blessings @ stake conference two Sundays ago :D

We've made the decision for baby #7 to be our last one. My health hasn't been doing so well with the more pregnancies it endures. And I honestly feel that we've been abundantly blessed. It's time now to focus on our future with all seven children that we've brought into this world & especially ZONE in on how we're gonna be supporting them. Lol. I love my life & can't imagine it any other way. Even with the trials & tribulations that we've gone through. . . . .they've seriously only made us stronger & able to progress further in our lives.

Savou Turns TWO!! :D

2011-09-09T08:59:00.005-06:00

Savou turned TWO last month on the 12th of August, but we waited for Hoko to come on his home visit this past Labor Day weekend to celebrate it. Hoko & I had already planned to get a boat rental for our family before we decided to hold Savou's lil bday party so it all worked out perfect. I've talked about how much we've enjoyed going to Pineview Reservoir this past summer so it comes to no surprise that that's where we ended up for this occassion. :D This lake is such a beautiful lake. There have been a couple of tragic deaths there over the past month or so that would probably give some a scare regarding it, but this lake is seriously so breathtakingly beautiful & safe. You just have to make sure you abide by all the safety rules that are set in order to keep us all out of harms way.

Anyways, we bbq'ed chicken, ribs, steaks, mango berry salad (courtesy of Zupas), 4 dozen chocolate covered strawberries (courtesy of Tina Reid of cHeat dAy), tiramisu bday cake, fruit bday tart, drinks galore, FAT BOI'S (courtesy of Jim & Dode), oysters, corn & more, but I can't remember. Lol. There was a TON of food & we had such a GREAT time with our families.

Besides the minor setback with the rope getting stuck in the propellor, everything went smoothly. Sorry to those that didn't get a ride on the boat. :( But we'll definitely be planning another boating trip with the family. And soon. :D

We rented one of those tubes that we had tied to the back of the boat & you'd think Hoko would be considerate of the kids & the fact that they're just KIDS. But NO. . . . .this guy totally FLOORED it & they went flying all over the place. Hahahahaha!! They had such a BLAST & we can't wait to do it again. It was so much fun & the weather was PERFECT for such an occasion. We all left feeling so much joy & love towards one another & really cherishing the fact that families are forever & they're what REALLY matter. I love all of our families for all their continuous support in our different endeavors that we're all pursuing. I don't take for granted the love we share with each other no matter what our weaknesses/differences may be. :D I had to create a slideshow for the BAZILLION pictures I took. Lol. :D Enjoy!! :D

I MISS YOU

2011-09-08T12:13:00.007-06:00

I dropped Hoko to the airport Tuesday morning & he's all I've been thinking about since. I had to forcefully push him outta my mind for a couple of hours that day so I could get my homework done. We had such a great holiday weekend that he was able to fly in for & I did NOT want it to end. While I was laying in his arms the night before he left, I couldn't hold my tears back & Hoko could feel them running down his arm & he pulled me in closer. With all the tragedies that have been going on lately, the thought that kept creeping into my mind were what if something happened to me when I'm in labor with the baby? What if I don't recover & for some reason complications surface & my life is cut short? I'm not afraid to die. But to die so young? I understand that we're all gonna go through this process in our lives sooner or later, but I kept thinking of Hoko & the kids. All these things were running through my mind & I found myself wondering if this 'being apart' thing was really worth it or if we needed to seriously re-assess our goals for our future. I prayed for guidance & comfort. I didn't want to be making decisions based on fear. It wasn't too long before Savou came trotting into our room with his only care in the world being that he needed help climbing up onto our bed & for Hoko to get his arm off of me & go sleep in his (Savou's) room. Lol. That put a smile on my face & I quickly fell asleep.

When we got up the next morning to head out the door & take Hoko to the airport, I felt reassured that for the time being, we were doing exactly what we are supposed to be doing. Nevertheless, it was the shortest drive of my life, mind you, we do live a good 30-40 min from the airport. But I dreaded every exit & city we passed by that brought us closer & closer to our destination. :( When he got out, we took a quick pix, he gave the boys a kiss cause the girls weren't able to come cause they had school, & then he was off. But while we embraced before he left, it hit me that he was returning to South Carolina by himself. He no longer had Norman with him & I felt even more sad. I told him so & he immediately agreed & was a little down, but we kissed & he was off. I was busy running around all day, but I really needed to spend some time with someone that knew how I felt so I can just share my sorrows with. I text my sis in-law, Sheena, to see if she was available to meet up for breakfast before I headed back to Ogden. Thank goodness she was. :D I felt comforted by being able to just talk about it, amongst other things that we go through as wives with husbands that work out of state for months at a time.

Savou giving his dad kisses in his sleep
Not too happy about his dad leaving. . .

Awww. . . .I miss him :(

By the time I headed back to Ogden, it was time for me to pick up Sila from school & take her to her audiology appointment. I quietly prayed that everything would work out & that Sila's hearing had improved. Last year around this time, she saw the audiologist & was diagnosed with being borderline moderate to severe hearing loss. Well, I'm happy to report that she's grown out of it & her hearing is back to normal. :D YAY!! :D She's well into her kindergarten year & loves it!! I called the office yesterday morning to excuse her from school because she has a really bad cough, along with her older sister, Lote, & the office secretary was saying, awww. . .my granddaughter's gonna be so sad cause she's in Sila's class & loves her. :D Sila is friends with EVERYONE!! She is such a social butterfly & it worried me a little before, but her teacher says it hasn't been a problem. She doesn't talk when she's not supposed to & is very polite. PHEW. . . . .

We're back to our regular routine of school, doctor's appointments, church, dance practices, potty training & so on. . . . .I miss Hoko more & more everyday, but I honestly believe that distance truly does make the heart grow fonder. I cherish EVERY min/sec when Hoko's home with us on his brief visits & am more patient & able to see his good traits over the annoying ones. Most of the time, at least. Lol. I love him for all that he is!! I don't take for granted anymore the silly little annoyances that used to be looked at underneath a microscope. Instead, I choose to revel in his love for me & ongoing strife to be better. Cause I'm far from perfect myself. I love him so much & hope & pray that my sons gain the hard work & humble nobility of this man. :D

Happy Birthday MOM!! :D

2011-09-04T22:37:00.001-06:00

We celebrated my mom's 58th birthday this past Friday. I made reservations two weeks ago for us to have dinner with my parents at the Roof restaurant which is located at the top floor of the Joseph Smith building. And WOW!! Not only is the view breath taking, but the food?? Let me just take you on a little journey, if you will. Imagine a place where it's buffet style, but you are absolutely FLOORED about what to get cause you wanna eat everything in sight, but there's not enough room on your plate for it, let alone enough room in your stomach to keep it all down. It has everything you could imagine & more. Cheeses, crackers, soups, fruits, meats, seafood, breads, rolls, cakes of all kinds, crepes, fruits salads and so much more. Well, if you can imagine that than you can imagine what the Roof is like. Everything was delicious!! And so PRETTY!! :D The dessert table was HEAVENLY. We were all so stuffed by the end of our dinner, it was so hard for us to move. Lol. So we just sat there for a while & talked about different things going on in our lives. It was really nice & I soaked up every moment of being able to spend with my parents.

My mom has been such a strength to me in who I've become & what I continue to strive for daily. She is such a giving person. Especially when it comes to her kids & grandkids. She LOVES having us over for no reason at all, but to just spend quality time together. And more than that, she loves to play with the grandkids & to see them happy. Just hearing them laugh makes her day. I call my mom up almost daily just to talk to her about anything & everything & nothing at all, but to just see what she's doing. I've learned so much from her & am so proud to be her daughter. My kids absolutely adore her & continue to tell me that when they turn 18, they're moving in with her. And I'm totally fine with that. Hahahaha!! We're always spending the weekend with my parents sleeping over in Salt Lake at their place when Hoko's gone. It makes things not so depressing at home when I'm so involved in my school work that the kids are constantly asking when Hoko will be back. Plus, I love being able to have someone I trust & know that I can share anything with wholeheartedly & it remains confidential. That's what my mom's been for me. Over the past month or two, I've been able to go to breakfast, just the two of us & even dinner on occasion. It's been so relaxing & rejuvenating. I assume every woman needs that ONE person in their lives that can fill the void of friendship outside of her marriage. Maybe not all the time, but on occasion is always nice. And it may not always work out that it's your own mom, but I'm happy to say that I have that & I'm so grateful. I do not take that for granted. :D Happy Birthday Mom!! May you live for many many more years & continue to be the person you are today. I love you so much. :D

Family. . . .Isn't It About TIME??

2011-08-28T18:08:00.026-06:00

That's what this past weekend reminded me of. The commercial w/the punch line: 'Family. . . .isn't it about T.I.M.E??

My three little amigos earlier in the week getting their well checks

This is all Savou did @ the doctor's office. . .messed w/the door the WHOLE time. Lol

Sila all ready to get her well check before starting kindergarten :D

Baby Hoko being silly!! :D

With the craziness of school being back in session, this weekend was so nice to be able to wind down & enjoy the company of our families. Friday came & I was able to spend most of it getting things done for the kids. The younger three spent Wed & Thu @ my parents place cause I had class. I missed them so much, especially with Savou's new potty training adventure that he's been on. I had a feeling that Savou might go backwards on his potty training since he seems to have it set in his mind that he does whatever he wants when he's with grandma. So I was pretty worried. When we had to head to Salt Lake on Thu for the girls' dance practice, we picked up the three younger ones & came home with them since I didn't have class on Fri. I found them a pediatrician at McKay Dee Hospital where my OBGYN is located. I was on my way out of one of my check ups when I saw the sign & office for the kids. So I google'd it when I got home & called them up to see if any of the pediatricians were taking any new patients. And I got lucky cause out of the four there, only one of them was accepting new patients & it was only cause she's a new pediatrician herself. And they just happened to have an opening for Sila Friday morning.

Sila has had trouble hearing for a couple of years now. She had a hearing test done back in '09 & they determined that she had mild/moderate hearing loss. She needed to get tubes in her ears, but unfortunately we weren't able to at the time cause her Medicaid ran out & we didn't have any insurance. But she's back on it now so they were able to squeeze her in for an appt that morning so that she can get a referral from her pediatrician to see an ENT (ear, nose, & throat) specialist. By the time I got off the phone with the doctor's office, we had less than an hour to her appt. I was deep cleaning our home all the while making doctor's appointments on the phone so I hurried up & finished up my cleaning, rushed the kids through their breakfasts, & hurried them into the shower so we wouldn't be late. But we were still fifteen min late. Luckily they still took us. We got our referral & Sila now has her hearing test appt set for next week. Which right afterwards she will be seeing the ENT specialist. By the time we got home, I was ready for a nap. And so to my bed I went. But only for a short while cause the girls came home & we were off to Costco to get some CHEAP dinner. :D With all this EXTRA weight I've put on, it's no wonder I can't hardly keep my eyes open for long let alone be up & walking around much. Amazing what an extra thirty pounds will do to ya. Ugh. . . . .

With that said, I can't help, but throw this in on this post on how absolutely ANXIOUS I am to be in the last stretch of this pregnancy so I can finally get back on my workout routine. Being that I'm a student here @ Weber, I'm going to be taking FULL advantage of the fact that we have a state of the art fitness facility. And I'm going back to VARIETY. Swimming laps, water aerobics, zumba, running, weights & all that good stuff. :D I can't wait. Just talking about it makes me so happy & able to get thru the day. Especially with all the stair climbing I do on campus, it's quite depressing how out of breath it always leaves me. I'm not used to that kinda gasping for air. Lol. But I'm definitely gonna treat myself to a NICE pair of running shoes so I can make sure that I get the best results out of my workout sessions. :D

Anyways, we finally made it to my parents place. We weren't there too long before it was time to head out to my little cousin, Siale's, football game. He plays for Cottonwood High. It was so nice to be out. The weather was perfect. It was overcast & there was even a breeze that kept us all cool & made watching the game really enjoyable. The kids had a blast being out. We ended up leaving the game a little early cause Savou was ready to go. His two year old nature can't comprehend the MILLIONS of reasons why it's too dangerous for him to be playing on the bleachers so he found the exit & started heading for the van. Can you imagine?? An eight month pregnant woman trying helplessly to chase her two year old son down?? So not a pretty picture. But when he finally decided to stop, I caught up with him, walked back to call the rest of the tribe, grab our stuff & we were out. I told my parents that that was the LAST high school football game for us for a while. Little league we can do since they're always at a park on flat land. Much more safer for the likes of Savou. When we got back to my parents place, I was EXHAUSTED!! I had the kids change into their pj's, turned off all the lights, & we were all in bed ready to end another night. I can't even remember if we said prayer. I woke up to missed calls from Hoko that I didn't even hear, yet my phone was lying right by my ear & was NOT on 'vibrate.' Wow!! I was pooped, to say the least.

I did, however, wake up to Hoko's morning wake up call for me. Lol. He had to drive out to Atlanta to pick up a boat for work. It's about a two hour drive from where he's at now. And by the time he called me, it was 8 am my time & he was already on his way back to South Carolina. He said he figured that I was tired since I didn't answer the night before so he wasn't sure if I was up yet. But he knew that I needed to go cake shopping with my mom for Savou's birthday next weekend. So I got up & my mom was already up & ready. We headed out the door & my mom said for us to go by McDonalds so she can buy hot cakes for the kids to eat. She's seriously the BEST!! I love being with my parents. After we dropped off the kids breakfast, we headed to a bakery downtown. I don't even know what it's called cause it has a french name & it seems so fancy. But my mom loves going there for their variety of desserts they have available. We decided to have breakfast there & we were able to just talk about things that are going on in our lives. It was very refreshing. After that my mom asked which cake I wanted to taste test & I told her so she paid for a slice for the both of us to share. Which btw, we weren't able to finish even half of it cause we were so stuffed. But we made a decision on his cake & she ordered it & it'll be ready for pick up Saturday morning. Once we got back to my parents place, I had to run to Walmart to pick up a bday gift for my handsome nephew, Lucky. He was having a pool party right down the street from my parents house which was so convenient. We had such a blast celebrating his party with our families. I don't think my kids ever got out of the pool. Even Savou has become a pro at knowing that he can float with his life jacket in the deep end so he wasn't scared at all. He was floating from one end of the pool to the other. Paddling his feet & arms like he was a seasoned swimmer. :D And I was such a PROUD mom. I kept following him around everywhere & even got in the pool so I can swim with him, but he was not having it. He sternly claimed his independence & while it's the cutest thing in the world, it's also the saddest. :( He's growing up too fast. But I guess no complaining cause we do have another little one on the way. And I'm getting really excited for the arrival of our little boy. :D I can't say that I've felt that way the whole time. It's been quite the opposite. But I'm grateful to have been able to get thru my not so happy days & onto some brighter ones. Thanks to the eye opening conversations I've had with my husband on more than one occasion. :D

After Lucky boi's bday party, we made our way back to Ogden to prepare for the sabbath. And I don't know how it slipped my mind that we had stake conference. But it did. In a way it's kinda good that I forgot cause I probably would've taken advantage of the fact that there was no church & stayed at my parents house another night so I could relish in the fact that I wouldn't have to cook. And also that my kids & I can actually enjoy a home cooked meal since that term is pretty much foreign in my household right now. Which is pretty sad cause my kids are feeling the full effects of it. They are so not used to eating out or eating whatever's in the kitchen, ie., bread, saimini, cookies, crackers, nothing. . . . . .I think we're all anxiously anticipating the day I have the baby for our family lives to get back to some kind of normalcy. But we're also SUPER excited & can't wait to see what baby #7 looks like. :D

Things weren't looking too promising this morning when I woke up to the clock on my cell phone reading 8:00 am. I grabbed the reminder flyer that I got from church last Sunday to see what time stake conference was starting & it said 9 am. I was like, UGH!! We're not gonna make it. But then I heard a voice in my head saying to get the kids ready & go. You will be hearing from an apostle of God & you need as much instruction as you can get. Especially when it's specific to your stake. Take your kids. I immediately got out of bed & started waking the kids up. We quickly got ready & headed to the Browning Center at WSU where our conference was being held. We were about twenty min late, but we made it nonetheless. After treading the four flights of stairs, we finally got to our seats up on the balcony where they were sending all the late comers. I packed the kids' snacks, notebooks, crayons, pencils & pens so that they would be occupied while I tuned in to the messages that were being shared. And all was well for the most part. Until Savou got antsy & wasn't trying to sit still. So Aaliyah & I took turns taking him out for the last fifteen min or so. Not too bad. Once conference came to an end, I snapped a couple of pictures of the kids & then we headed home. The kids ate their leftover nuggets & fries from the night before & I headed straight for my bed for a nap.

A couple of hours later, I got a call from Hoko. He said that him & Norman went to visit Maile in North Carolina after church since he wasn't going to be coming home for Labor Day weekend. They spent the day out there with him & then he called me once they were back. We talked about everything that I got out of conference & he told me about their sacrament meeting. He said how it's the only day out of the week that he truly feels at home because of the fact that the church is the same everywhere. He loves being able to have that piece of home with him & it's his favorite day of the week. Wow!! Definite progress for us & I'm grateful to him for making these kinds of decisions in his life. I have to say that we've definitely come a long way & I know we've got so much more to go, but I'm so excited to be sharing this journey with the man of my dreams. He fulfills every need of mine & goes above & beyond the call of duty in his role as a husband, father, provider, priesthood holder, friend, brother, son, member of society & so forth. It's taken years of growth, trust & constant work to be able to get to this point in our lives & I love him so much. I really feel as if I'm able to overlook all the petty things, the judgements that used to come so easily are so foreign now & the absolute love I had for him in the beginning & all the good that made me fall for him in the first place are right in front of my face once more. And the thing that's stuck in my head is the constant reminder & evidence of the love between siblings. It never fails time & again the love that I see between my husband & his siblings. Every family has their ups & downs & this family is not an exception, but the love they have for each other is very much Christ like. When I see them interacting with each other, they overlook all the flaws & are able to see ONLY the good. And I love it. They remind me of how I should be. They humble me & help me to see my husband thru their eyes. Thru the eyes of the Savior. And I love them all the more for it.

Well, it's been a busy, but very fulfilling weekend. I'm grateful for all our families & friends in our lives. They are a great support system & we feel extremely blessed to be so close to them all. :D Til next time. . . . .

1st Official Day of School. . . . .

2011-08-23T22:12:00.005-06:00

Today was my first official day of school (refer to previous post). I got up early this morning, showered, dressed & was out the door by a little after 7. I got to school early so I can work on some of my homework from my online classes before my class started at 9. Hoko called me around 7:30 & we spoke for about 15 min. I asked him how the weather was out there since he's on the east coast & there's so much going on with all the hurricane scare. And then the earthquake in Virginia?? :( But surprisingly he replied that it was a beautiful day there. A little windy, but all in all. . . .he had no complaints. I silently thanked the Lord for Hoko's safety.

After class, I headed straight for my doctor's appointment that's right across the street from campus. Had to get checked from my doctor about my due date since this baby's measuring so big. My due date was moved from Oct 24th to the Oct 10th. But they'll start monitoring me really closely once/if I reach Oct. The ultrasound results show that I'm either having a REALLY BIG baby or I'm probably due a lot earlier than was expected. I'm hoping for the latter.

When I got home, I was exhausted. Literally. I walked in, checked on the kids & made sure they had what they needed & headed straight for my bed & knocked out. One of the perks of having so many girls is how naturally considerate they are. They kept peeking in on me & I could hear them whispering to each other & the young ones to 'shhhh. . . .be quiet. Mommy's really tired.' And it wasn't so much that I was mentally exhausted, like I know I will be once this semester gets going, but more so that I was physically drained. I knew without a doubt that it had everything to do with all the stair-climbing & uphill walking I had done that morning on campus. And all I kept thinking was, 'Why in the world would you build a university on a mountain side?' Lol. But that's just because I'm so pregnant right now & carrying around this EXTRA BIG BABY with every step I take is a workout all in itself. :D But once I give birth, I will be absolutely grateful for the extra workout I get to enjoy cause I'm gonna have a ton of EXTRA calories to burn. And I'm so anticipating & even anxious to get back on my workout routine!! I'm so EXCITED to be able to wipe the dust off all my sweat 'fits & get back in shape as soon as I get the okay from my doctor. Talking about it makes me so giddy inside & I can't wait!! :D

1st of Day School. . . . .

2011-08-23T21:15:00.004-06:00

So yesterday was supposed to be my FIRST official day of classes for this fall semester, but a trip to the bookstore changed all that. I had already planned to head out of the house early enough so that I can go to the bookstore, pick up my textbook & then head to class. Well, when I got to the bookstore & found out that this particular class required a BUNDLE set that included a textbook, study guide & two other things all wrapped up in one. . . .I already had a feeling it was gonna cost me an arm & a leg. And it LITERALLY DID!! $310 to be exact!! Holy crap. . . .that's about how much it is to take the class!! Ugh. . . .So I decided to drop the class & pick up a different one & leave this highly EXPENSIVE class til next semester. Read on & I'll expound further on why it's gonna make a difference.

I thought I was all set for this semester, financial aid wise, but I got a surprise email last Friday stating that my financial aid was suspended. Apparently I didn't take enough classes this past summer semester in order to bring my GPA to where it needs to be. I was feeling so devastated on Friday. I spoke with the financial aid counselor & my only option was to pay for this semester or seek a private loan through my bank. Never mind that I was completely unaware of the fact that if I would've taken a couple of more classes, it would've been enough to pull my GPA out of the hole. Lesson learned that the past always catches up with you. Let me explain.

I attended SLCC seven years ago for two semesters in a row. I was pregnant with baby #4, working & tried to handle wayyyy too much & ended up failing miserably both semesters!! :( I wasn't too focused on school in the first place & really only went because I felt that's where my parents wanted me to be. Not because it's where I should've wanted to be. So because of those two miserable semesters & the lack of focus back then, I am paying for it now. I felt sick to my stomach just thinking about having to explain this nightmare to Hoko. He already works so hard to provide for our family in just our temporal needs alone that I didn't wanna burden him with my tuition as well. :( I decided before talking to him that if we didn't have the means for me to attend this semester, it was okay. I would wait til I gave birth & then I would find a temp job that would allow me to pay for a semester & then return to school. And even as I already finalized this decision in my head, I was so scared of the possibility that I may never return. Or that it may be YEARS before I'm in a position to do so. But how could I ask so much of him? I was absolutely torn.

I picked up the kids from my mom's & we headed to the park. I packed a book with me & read while the kids played on the playground. Hoko called me when he got off work & we talked about everything that went on during the day & other things as well. He asked me if everything was set with my schooling & I spilled my heart out to him. I was so emotional (keep in mind that I am in the last stretch of my pregnancy). He was quiet for a minute & I could tell he was contemplating what our next move would be. He was probably even praying about what our options were & when he finally spoke, his voice was calm & even. He reassured me that everything would be alright. That we needed to make the necessary sacrifices in order for me to stay in school. He echoed my fears about stopping now & not knowing when I could go back or even if I ever would. I felt such a peaceful burning with in me & knew that it was the spirit of the Lord confirming the truth of all Hoko was saying. I was so utterly grateful for such a loving Heavenly Father & for his leading Hoko & I into each others' lives. I can honestly say that I have no BIGGER supporter than that of my husband's & I'm truly honored & humbly blessed to be his wife.

I tell him everyday that he's my best friend. And I mean it more than ever before. No other person knows my most deepest & most secretive thoughts. And it's not so much that it's a secret more so than it is my insecurities that I would never share with anyone else. Although I know that everyone on this earth has their different issues that they deal with, I'm not at all open about mines. I've been hurt & crossed too many times to be an open book. And it's taught me how hard Satan works to move the work of opposition forward just as much as we work to be happy. I absolutely believe that happiness is a choice & I'll take this option over opposition any day. Even though I do have my days, weeks & even months when it seems that opposition & the adversary are getting the best of me. . . .I hope that I can always remember what I've been taught growing up in the gospel. That I may give my burdens to the Lord & trust in Him to lighten my load.

I love my husband so much & appreciate his simple nature in always being able to be there for me when I need him most. He's the only person that I listen to when I'm being stubborn & I'm learning over the years that it's not about me. It's about US. Funny how we seem to love learning things the hard way sometimes. The Lord always reminds me how human I am & I'm quickly humbled.

The first day of school ended up being tolerable & surprisingly, I'm feeling really refreshed at the start of this semester. :D With my husband by my side, I feel like things fall into place no matter what obstacles are thrown at us.

CountDown. . . .

2011-08-22T15:17:00.003-06:00

The countdown is on & I'm so anticipating the day when my baby gets to come home for a weekend!! :D 10 more days *YAY* I've missed him so much!! We're usually really good about trying not to let too much time go by without us seeing each other, but this time around has been utterly impossible to make it happen with me being in school as well as being so prego right now. I've been counting down the days FOREVER & have been tempted so many times to DIP into the savings acct & buy me a ticket out there to see him. So pats on the back for me & a round of applause please since I've been doing so TREMENDOUSLY well at resisting temptations!! Lol. NOT!! All I have to do is pay our monthly bills to bring me back to reality & remind me why we're making all these sacrifices in the first place.

But I'm grateful to my hardworking husband & kids for all that they've been doing in order to keep our family somewhat sane. This pregnancy has 'by far' been the MOST difficult one for me & I know it's because it's the first one that Hoko hasn't been with me thru it all. Makes me wonder how I ever thought I could get through this alone, but I guess it's happening so it actually is possible. But I wouldn't recommend it & I'm never doing it again.

The first day of fall semester started today & it was CRAZY hectic on campus. I was glad to be in & out of there this morning. I dropped one of my classes & replaced it with another that would require me to be on campus less days of the week. But I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll be accepted to the online one so that I may spend even LESS time on campus. I already have two online classes & two on campus. Ideally, I would have all my classes online & hopefully by the end of this week things pan out that way. If not, I'll have to make due with what I got & I won't complain about it. I think I've complained about EVERY possible thing imaginable to my husband since this pregnancy started. Which is so not me & I've been miserable because of it. So I'm trying to take the optimistic approach & flip things around. We'll see how that goes. . . . .it's been working out pretty well for the past week. But I'm not holding myself to anything cause pregnancy hormones are too unpredictably crazy to hold to any kinda promises. And I know enough not to mess with that. Lol.

Here's to the next 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 days left til my baby comes home. :D

Two Weeks Of??

2011-08-18T21:27:00.006-06:00

Two weeks is simply how much time I've been able to cherish & enjoy in between summer semester coming to an end & fall semester starting up. I have been doing what I enjoy MOST. Reading & spending time with families & friends. It's amazing how busy life has been with just my growing family & being in school full time. I've actually been able to enjoy spending time with my families & friends at a whole 'nother level. I guess I've grown accustomed to a different level of appreciation for those that I'm surrounded by. Their love & support have been nothing, but a strength to me. And I can't deny that I've needed that a lot lately.

School starts for both the kids & I next week & I'm actually looking forward to it. As exhausted as I've been feeling lately. . . . .it's a little bizarre to be looking forward to something that I'm certain is only going to increase my level of weariness so I'm not quite 100% on how long these feelings of 'optimism' will last. Lol. But I'll milk it for as long as I can. :D

Today I spent the day at the Holladay Rec Center Pool with the kids. It was GREAT!! They have an olympic size lap pool that I was able to get a great workout in. I did a couple of laps & was surprised that my little Lote was right by my side the WHOLE time. :D I've missed working out so much. I'm not even gonna lie. I workout a couple of times a week, but it's nothing like I'm used to & it's been so challenging for me. I am so envious of all the MANY MANY runners I see on a daily basis taking advantage of the cool summer mornings with a nice run. My feet can't wait to hit the pavement.

I've found a new LDS author who writes fictions that I've fallen in love with. So far, I've only been reading Anita Stansfields books, but came across Traci Abramson's Saint Squad series & couldn't get through them quickly enough to quench my curiosity & excitement. :D I went through that series of five books total & eagerly got started on her other series that consisted of only three books, but oddly enough, I found them a lot more enjoyable even though she had come out with that series before the Saint Squad one. I can't wait for her to come out with some more great reads. I went through a total of EIGHT books during the two week break & felt completely rejuvenated. :D

The kids & I spent a lot of time outdoors with me trying to endure the unbearable summer heat while the kids splashed around in the lake or a pool or in our backyard & we had a blast. :D I love them so much for their help that they've been able to provide me throughout this pregnancy. They've always been my strength, along with my husband.

Bday Breakfast For A Special Somebody. . . . .

2011-08-10T21:08:00.005-06:00

Last Tuesday was my beautiful niece's birthday. She turned 13 yrs old. She has been such an amazing person to have as a part of our lives since the day she entered it. She is very soft spoken unless you happen to be someone by the name of Gemini. Lol. Which is her little brother who she can't stand even though we all think the world of him. Hahahaha. . . . .I guess it's a sibling thing. Nevertheless, we love her for always being so humble in her ways. She never asks for anything. And I mean it. . . . .I can't remember a single time in her life that she's ever asked me for anything. She took forever to finally START to come out of her shell. She's very timid, keeps to herself, & doesn't like to trouble anyone. She's AMAZING!! Her simple ways have always been what's kept us all very overprotective over her.

As she's getting older, it's been kinda hard to know what means a lot to her when it comes to special days such as her birthday. But my mom & I thought she would love to just be taken out to breakfast with just us & no one else. She's really sentimental so that's exactly what we did for her. We took her to breakfast at Market Street Grill & chatted with her about anything & everything. After breakfast, she was all smiles & thanked us & it was as simple as that. I hope & pray that she will continue to be the smart & loving person that she has always been. We love you so much Mercedez Vainuku!! :D

A Night To Remember

2011-07-31T23:56:00.009-06:00

Last month I found myself perusing the LDS.org site checking for events that would be held in honor of the 24th of July celebrations. I came across a concert being held on the 22nd by the Tabernacle Choir & thought it would be a great opportunity to take advantage of that my two older girls & I could enjoy. And with the tickets being FREE, that just added an extra incentive to the already pleasure of being in the presence of such a world renowned choir. I thought to myself that I should request an extra one in case my dad wanted to attend since anyone that really knows him, knows that he's their BIGGEST fan!! :D

So the way things work is that you are able to request tickets & then it's a waiting game to see if you've actually been picked to receive them in the mail. And you don't know until you actually get them. So a couple of weeks went by & I totally forgot about them until yup. . . .you guessed it. They arrived in my mailbox safe & sound. I was so excited!! I called my dad to see if he wanted to join us & he excitedly accepted the invitation. Then he went on to ask how in the world I got the tix?? I explained to him that I just requested them online last month & that I absolutely got LUCKY!! :D

A couple of days before the concert, I was already dreading thinking about walking downtown in the dreadful heat. My feet & legs were swollen & I was just miserable. I asked my dad if he would be okay to just take my girls himself & maybe go with my mom if she was available. My dad said it was no problem. But my mom had too much homework to get done so she arranged for my niece, Tasha, to join them instead. When the girls got back that night, they were just filled with pure happiness & excitement. My daughter, Lote, said that the tickets I had gotten were really good seats & my dad echoed the very same thing. I felt such deep gratitude in my heart & knew that the Lord was mindful of me & my growing family & I uttered a silent prayer in my heart giving thanks for all that they were able to enjoy. The girls' experience made them feel special. There was a sparkle in their eyes when they returned that lingered on for the rest of the night. This was something they weren't accustomed to, but they enjoyed it very much. And the quality time & memories created with their grandpa was unforgettable & priceless. My dad also told me that the impression I had received to not go was definitely a good one cause he didn't think I would've made just the walk alone. Downtown was packed & they had to park quite far from the Conference Center. Again, I was silently grateful for the promptings of the spirit on my behalf & for being able to have heeded it's guidance.

Heading out to the concert w/their grandpa :D

All ready to go!! They were so EXCITED!! :D

Well, it wasn't all boring & nothingness for me & the younger kids. We planned a dinner out @ Chili's with the younger ones & grandma. My mom didn't want them to just be home while the older ones got to enjoy a night out on the town. :D It's these kinds of things that make me ever so grateful for such caring parents. They would sacrifice ALL for their grandkids. I know that I take advantage of them more so than should be acceptable, but I'm learning as I get older to cherish the moments I'm able to spend with them. And especially the moments my kids are able to spend with them. They absolutely LOVE my parents & at times feel lost without them.

Dinner w/grandma @ Chili's

Surprise kisses for mommy. . . .Told him to say CHEESE & instead he gave me kisses!! Priceless. . . :D

Savou's totally being modest. :D

Savou punched baby Hoko in the nose just as I was taking this pix!! Hoi. . .

My handsome 24/7 helper!! :D

Savou totally complaining cause the food is taking too long to get to us. Lol. We really didn't wait long at all, but to him, it was FOREVER!!

He's a happy camper now!! :D

This night was definitely a night to remember. Even though I wasn't in attendance with my girls at the concert, the look that remained on their faces when they got back was unforgettable. And the time I got to spend with my mom was definitely appreciated. Even with Savou climbing all over the place, making all the noises in the world that you'd hope he wouldn't for just this one night & then to top it off with his adamant plea to leave the restaurant when you're barely digging into your meal?? Lol. It was still a GREAT night with thee BEST company I could ever hope for. :D

'A Penny Saved Is A Penny Earned'

2011-07-28T01:50:00.003-06:00

I never quite grasped the importance of this concept growing up. Truthfully speaking, it was probably because when I look back on my life. . . . .I was pretty spoiled. My parents did everything they could to not only take care of our needs, but to also provide for our wants. One of the main things that I loved to spend money on during my teenage years was definitely clothes. I learned quickly how to bargain shop & what places to hit up that had GREAT prices. My dad used to always give us lunch money, but I skipped out on lunch & would save it all up during the week so I can hit up TJ Maxx & Ross on the weekends to get me some new clothes. $15-20 goes a long way if you know where to look & what to look for. It's really not about the quantity of fabric that you own, but moreso how you are able to switch things up & mix & match different pieces. In the end, it comes down to you not being afraid of being you. Trusting yourself wholeheartedly to be comfortable in your skin that it shows in your fashion taste. :D Not that I'm in any way a fashionista or anything. But I do love me some clothes!! Lol.

Anyways, Hoko is thee total opposite of me. He has always been tight with money. That is. . . .until we had our son. Then our second son came along. But really, it started with our first son. Who just so happens to be named after him. Lol. He loves to spend money on me & the kids. But mainly, the kids, since my collection of both clothes & shoes is pretty ridiculous. And even I can conform to that. He's balanced me out so much & changed my outlook in so many ways when it comes to money. The gospel & the experiences we've gone through has made all the difference as well. Especially the fact that we just keep having kids. Hahaha. . . . .

But we've both come to the conclusion that we want to be able to well equip our kids with the tools & knowledge of the advantages of saving money. How much independence they will gain in doing so. This single principle alone affects our lives in so many different aspects of it. It's not just about the financial side of things. It has everything to do with the very principle of delayed gratification. I've heard many of the leaders talk about this single principle. How everything these days is available to us with the click of a mouse or touch of a button. . . . .they warn that we may be missing so many opportunities because of the fact that we are always so unknowingly in a hurry. I want my kids to know that things mean more to them if they've actually put some thought in to what it is they want & what it took them to get it. I've been carefully choosing different opportunities to take advantage of in which I give them the free agency to get what it is that they want, but only if they are ready to spend their money to buy it. It's AMAZING to me how much they really think about whether it's worth it to them or not. I didn't think it would be so immediate. They hate to see the numbers on their digital piggy bank decrease instead of increase. They are constantly thinking twice about whether to buy this or whether to buy that. I love it so much!! They now understand when Hoko & I tell them that we are more than happy to provide for their needs, but if they WANT something. . . . .that's gonna have to come out of their own pockets.

So a couple of months ago, a lady in my ward dropped off an Avon catalog for me to browse through. One of the things that caught my attention was this cute digital piggy bank. It was of course battery operated, but it actually displayed the amount of money you had in it with every deposit made. I was seriously flabbergasted cause I'd never even considered such a thing. But I was immediately SOLD & planned to get my hands on a couple of these for the kids. Well, as time passed on I forgot about it until we went on our road trip to Cali & the girls did their number at the reunion & got quite a bit of money from it. I didn't want them to lose any of it, but they didn't have anywhere to put it. And I didn't want to hold it for them cause I wanted them to start taking responsibility for their own money. So as soon as we got back I searched Amazon.com for digital piggy banks & this was the most affordable one we found.

The girls absolutely adore their piggy banks & I'll need to take pictures of them so I can post Aaliyah's creativity that she came up with in order to distinguish/separate one from the other. And while it's not much to look at, it serves it's purpose quite well. But with Aaliyah's art put into work, it'll start to bloom in no time & not be such a sight for sore eyes. Lol. :D

Busy Busy Holiday Weekend. . . . .

2011-07-27T08:13:00.018-06:00

Mt Ogden Park that's filled w/this playground, hiking/biking/jogging trails, & a golf course :D

Cheesin' for his dad so Hoko can see how big he's gotten. :D

Enjoying her cookie dough shake from Jake's

So I've been indulging in my kids lately. This always happens when Hoko leaves out of town for work. I get so clingy to them that I'm not interested in doing anything that they can't be with me at. So that pretty much means that we've been at parks, movie theaters, grandma's house, auntie Lote's house & that's pretty much it. It's been really difficult, to say the least, for me to go to school since Hoko's been gone cause Savou's been that much more attached to my butt than normal. And I'm sure it has a lot to do with me being pregnant, again. He's also MAJORLY clingy to my girls. But if he sees me leaving somewhere, he gets so sad. He doesn't cry, he's just really sad & constantly staring out the front window awaiting my return. :( Awful, right?? Well, I'm just as CLINGY to them as they are to me. Lol. Or at least my youngest is. My other kids could care less if they're with me or not, except for maybe the fact that my older girls are pretty aware & mindful of my pregnancy & help out in every way they can. :D

Just getting to the Junction 13

Ready for 'Captain America' :D

Excited!! :D

Popcorn & drinks in hand :D

About half-way thru the movie, I ended up out in the hall w/the three younger ones cause they weren't interested in the movie anymore. Lol

He's the BIGGEST 'Cars' fan!! :D

And so are they!! :D

Well, last Saturday we went & grabbed us some shakes to give us some sort of temporary physical relief from this heat wave we've been experiencing lately. And while it hasn't been that hot, being pregnant in this kinda weather is the WORST!! After that we headed to the park for the kids to play while we waited for our movie to start. The kids were dying to watch Captain America, but we weren't in Salt Lake so that we could just go watch it at the drive inns. And since I wasn't about to pay for all of them, we came to an agreement that we would only go watch it at the Junction 13 if the girls paid for themselves from their piggy banks. Which they just got some pretty cool new ones that I'll for be blogging about real soon. :D

So we decided to take pics the WHOLE time while we waited for the movie to end. Lol.

Funny faces!! Lol!!

Baby Hoko took this pic. . .he did pretty good. :D

They can't wait to watch this movie. Esp since they know they're parents grew up watching these cartoons. :D

Sunday came & we were so excited & so happy for my nephew, Gemini. He just turned twelve years old the Friday prior, so we had the wonderful opportunity of witnessing this AMAZING young fella receive the Aaronic Priesthood. I am such a proud auntie of this young man. He is such a breath of fresh air in our family. He keeps us all laughing with his goofy & class clown nature. I have the FONDEST memories of him growing up cause I took care of him a lot & I love him for the decisions that he's made thus far in his life. He makes me so proud to be his aunt. As cheesie as that may sound, it's all true. :D My kids absolutely adore their cousin. It doesn't matter how much more older he is than them, he always treats them like their special & that they mean a lot to him. I love you GEMINI VAINUKU & am so happy that you've chosen to keep yourself worthy of upholding the priesthood ordinances that you just received. :D We bbq'd afterwards at my sister's place & enjoyed the company of families & friends.

Monday came & we headed to Liberty Park for the Days of '47 parade. Our favorite float was definitely this one: The Kung Fu Panda 2 float was so nice!! It's the only one I made sure we took a picture with. :D We also got to enjoy a lil concert put on by the infamous Liahona band. This band never disappoints year in & year out. I love watching their dancers & hearing their music. The rest of the day was filled with the kids playing with their cousins & just enjoying the overcast weather that filled up most of the day. Thank goodness or I wouldn't have made it through the day. My parents were ready to leave the park around 7 pm so we decided that was our que as well. :D We stopped by Mo Bettah Steaks to grab some food & then headed home. The weekend was definitely busy, but always so worthwhile when being able to spend it with family. :D

Definitely our FAVORITE float this year!! :D

Enjoying the mini concert given by the Liahona band :D

On a side note, I'm happy to say that summer semester is coming to a close sooner than later so I'll be too happy with the couple of weeks break before fall semester starts. Until then, that's all folks. . . . . .

CUTE, much?? :D

2011-07-18T22:48:00.000-06:00

Hoko called me this evening & told me that he posted a message for me on my FB wall. This was what I found with this message attached to it: 'wanna dedicate this to my number ONE my BEST FRIEND in the whole world love and miss you so much' CUTE, much?? :D

I've never heard this song before, but I love it!! It's exactly what we've both been feeling like being apart this time around. Whether on different days, the same days or at the same time. . . .I got teary eyed listening to it over & over again!! I think because I'm so pregnant right now & my emotions are all over the place. And because I love this man with all my heart & can't imagine my life without him. Thnx for this babe!! Especially on a day like today when everything seemed to not be so easy. With the toilet flooding our basement at the top of this list. :( Gross. . . .but we got it all cleaned up & the Roto Rooter man came to the rescue. So we're now back in business. I'm trying to do my homework, but it seems impossible with my two boys missing their dad & harassing me about when he'll be back along with Savou's question of 'where daddy mom?' for about a million times a day. And as we're coming to a close of another day and Savou is literally doing his version of IP Man on my face right now, lol, I know we're gonna be doing this all over again tomorrow except with a whole new set of challenges brought on by a whole new day. Praying for a miraculous relief. . . .even though I know I'm being dramatic right now. This moment will surely pass as they all do & I will be fine. :D

Weekend/Summer Fun!! :D

2011-07-17T00:08:00.019-06:00

Pineview Reservoir

The weekend's not over yet, but we've been having so much fun together. And by 'we' I'm referring to me & my kids. Oh & my nieces & nephews as well. :D The kids have been counting down the days til the release of the Harry Potter movie. And yet I had no clue. Lol. My sister called me earlier this week to see if I wanted to take Aaliyah to the premier of this movie this weekend cause she was taking Cedez. I told her it's okay cause I hadn't heard Aaliyah mention anything about it. Plus, I really wanted to spend time with ALL my kids & I'm not willing to pay for all of US to watch movies @ the megaplex. Too dang expensive!! That only happens when Hoko's home. Which seems to NEVER be during the summer time so we can HIT up the drive inns instead. Anyways, that very same day that my sister called me, I was sitting with the kids in the living room doing homework & the preview for the movie came on. . . . .after it was done, they all turned to me & said, "We're watching that this weekend right mom??" I was like, really?? You guys really wanna watch this movie?? And in unison they all replied, "YES!!" Hahaha!! So I decided to take it to the drive inns where we can take our own food, set up our own blankets & pillows, make as much noise as we want in our van, & most of all. . . . . .it won't cost us an arm & a leg. With of course the bonus being that we get to watch two movies instead of just one. :D

My CUTIE, Savou!! :D

We got to the drive inns a WHOLE hour & a half before the movie started

Baby Hoko cheesin'

Everyone waited ever so patiently. . . . :D My handsome nephews, Gemini & Sale

Posers. . . .

Me with ten of the kids. . . .the eleventh one is taking this pix!! Lol.

So I called my sister up yesterday cause I knew that her & her husband were attending a funeral for a death in the family (her husband's side), to see if they were taking their kids with them. She said most likely not so I volunteered my services in taking all five of her kids along with my six. WOW!! Hahahaha. . . . .as crazy as it sounds, the only thing I hadn't thought about was how we were all gonna fit. Hoi!! But we did & towards the end of Harry Potter, which was our first movie, all the younger kids were sound asleep. Thank goodness. We were able to enjoy our second movie, Green Lantern, in peace. No bathroom runs, breaking up fights, cleaning up spills, changing diapers, etc. . . . .we got to just LOUNGE around & literally enjoy the second movie. :D We had such a blast, even with eleven kids in tow. But I probably won't be doing that again. And only because I don't have enough room for them to ride comfortably in to & from where ever it is we go.

These three were excited that movie finally started!! Lol.

Snacks & drinks in the cooler ready to go!! :D

So intense!! Lol.

Still in one piece!! Hahaha. . . .

After we dropped my nieces & nephews off at home, we drove back here to Ogden to OUR home. We didn't get here til after three. And surprisingly, I still had enough energy to carry my three younger ones to their beds, bring in our cooler, chairs & blankets, & clean out the van. I've kinda been going thru this phase of being OCD about keeping our van clean. I'm the same way about our home, but our minivan's much more compact in size to be able to stay on top of so I pick the van. It has a lot to do with the fact that my kids just can't clean the way I like things to be cleaned so I've given up on the fact that it'll ever be that way between now & Oct. My due date. I can't wait for it to hurry up & get here. And yet we're still evidently in July. Lol.

The view while we're driving!! :D Isn't it beautiful?? :D

Well, on to the next. Today started off kinda late in the morning. I didn't wake up until 10 am. And it wasn't by choice. It was to Savou's every morning plea to please fill up his cup. :D So I happily get up for him cause he's such a CUTIE & so innocent in his plea for his cup to be filled up!! :D It's also one of the very few things that'll make his dad jump up & run as quickly as he can to fulfill his baby's request. Lol. After doing that, I knew that Savou was up for good. But he was still a little lazy so we laid in bed for another hour or so before actually really getting up for the day. I promised the girls that we'd go to the library today since we didn't make it there yesterday. They had books that needed to be returned & they also wanted to pick up some new ones. After we all ate breakfast, cleaned house & showered, we were off to the library. While there, there was a sign up pointing to a room with it's door opened that read family movie showing @ 3. I glanced quickly & kept walking so we can hurry & return their books & get started on finding new ones. Once we were all done, we headed out. But when I saw this sign again, I stopped & told the kids for us to walk in the theater & check it out. I was literally AMAZED!! The theater is awesome. And so big!! I tried to convince the kids for us to stay & watch 'Aladin' which is what was showing, but the older girls were adamant on heading to the lake. So we came to a compromise & decided that we'll plan to come to the next movie showing which is on the 30th. And they're showing 'Alice In Wonderland.' One of my all time faves!! :D

We headed straight to the lake from there. I'm not exactly sure what this lake is called, but it's only a couple of minutes from my house. And it's BEAUTIFUL!! Today was THEE perfect day to be there. The water wasn't too cold. The sun wasn't too HOTT. The breeze was perfect, both in temperature & in movement. I was so grateful. I packed sandwiches, chips, cookies, & drinks for the kids so we were set. :D We swam, we ate, we played, we laughed. . . . .& most importantly, we spent quality time creating unforgettable memories with each other. I love my kids so much for being such a constant reminder to me that it's always the simple things in life that creates such happiness all around us. And more importantly, all around ME. It's definitely been such a memorable weekend while at the same time, there was no special occasion being celebrated or even any of this being previously planned. Yet we had such an amazing time together. :D And what surprised me the most was having so much fun in the absence of my husband. Even though I know for sure that it would've been much more enjoyable with his presence cause I know he would've went all out & had the bbq going, a canopy up & all that good stuff. . . . .but it was fantastic nonetheless. :D Here's our weekend pics!! Enjoy. . . . .

Having a blast!! :D

So much FUN!! :D

I love them so much!! Each of them are a piece of ME. . .. :D

These two were the first out of the lake!! Lol.

An Expedition To The West Coast!!

2011-07-14T13:58:00.010-06:00

"Our most important & powerful assignments are in the family. They are important because the family has the opportunity at the start of a child's life to put feet firmly on the path home. Parents, brothers & sisters, grandparents, aunts & uncles are made more powerful guides & rescuers by the bonds of love that are the very nature of a family." Pres Henry B. Eyring

Me @ 25 weeks posing for my hubby so he can see how HUGE my stomach's gotten!!

We had the wonderful opportunity of JOURNEY'ing to the bay area for our family reunion. And I carefully chose the word 'JOURNEY' as it is defined in an online dictionary as 'traveling from one place to another, usually taking a rather long time.' Cause it was EXACTLY the ladder. Our road trip there wasn't too bad cause we started driving at a little after two in the morning so the kids were fast asleep. We didn't have to make any bathroom stops at all. We did, however, make our first stop at about 7 am to get some rest before finishing off the last leg of this voyage!! Lol.

We got into the bay at around 2:20 pm & I was so exhausted & fatigued. I really just needed to lay down & take a nap. But there was no time. We immediately got ready for my aunty Kay's funeral services. Her death was a shock to us all. She got into a car accident & passed away from the injuries she sustained. We all mourned the loss of such a beautiful & sweet woman. Yet at the same time were comforted with the knowledge that she's with my uncle again since he's been gone for a very long time. When we returned to our hotel, my sister made a doughnut run to our childhood favorite doughnut shop that our parents used take us to all the time. Rolling Pin doughnuts on San Bruno Ave. It was literally a stroll down memory lane. My parents never made those doughnut runs in the morning. It was always late at night after a dance or a movie.

My 2 HANDSOME boys!!

@ the hotel

Triple Threat!! :D

The next day we attended aunty Kay's burial & then went straight to the church for our family eating. Because the reunion had been planned for months earlier & families were already traveling to & fro to attend, but with the sudden loss of a family member, it changed the events of the reunion. Everything was simplified in order to show respect to our Uncle Billy for the loss of his mother. So we had an eating with the family Friday & then got together on Saturday for another eating & dance. It was so great to be amongst family that I haven't seen in years. And even to have met new ones. We had a blast & the food was ON POINT!!

Half Moon Bay Beach

These two posers!! Lol

Our road trip back took me back to the days of Christopher Columbus. When his traveling was described as an expedition & took months to reach their destination. Well, we've come a long way in transportation, but I swear. . . . .when you're traveling with very young kids & some of them are sick?? It made our journey back seem like an expedition as well. Lol. We had Liana throwing up at the first few stops. Then Savou started the runs & had a tummy ache the whole way. Poor kids. In a perfect world, we would be millionaires with a private jet to accomodate our family needs. But that's in a perfect world. In this world, we road trip it EVERYWHERE!! Hahahaha. . . . .I can't wait for next year's reunion!! It's gonna be here in the 801!! Woo hoo!! I'm looking forward to seeing & meeting more families.

My BEAUTIFUL Aaliyah!! :D

And even though it was a LONG ride back, it all worked out because we were all together. I enjoyed every minute of our family trip & cherish the moments that I got to spend with my family. Cause it's not too often that we get to road trip it out with both my parents & siblings. The quote at the top sums up exactly how I feel about my families both near & far. Whether I see them often or hardly ever. . . . .family will always be family & the love that we share with each other is absolutely PRICELESS. Funny how much your family can lift you up by just loving you. That's exactly how my families in the bay made me feel. Like time froze & everything was exactly as it was the last time I was there with them. Which was about fifteen years ago. Wow!! I miss them already, but seriously can't wait to see them again. :D

P.S.: I have a ton more pics to upload that actually include other family members @ the reunion. It's just that I left my camera on accident @ the hotel when we were @ both eatings so I have to wait & upload from my sister's comp cause she has them all. Coming soon. To be continued. . . . . :D

A Family Night Hike. . . . .

2011-06-14T20:36:00.013-06:00

Last night we took the wonderful opportunity of hiking up Strongman Trail to Waterfall Canyon. It started out very exciting cause we'd never been on this hike before & so the kids were anxious about it all day. Lately it seems that Hoko & I have really come to love the outdoorsy recreation that Ogden has to offer. We took a drive out to Cache Nat'l Forest Campgrounds that is literally like a 15-20 min drive from our home. There's a beautiful lake there with a beach/marina area for families to go swimming. They also offer fishing there. We're planning to head there this weekend with the kids.

Anyways, back to hiking. What started out exciting, started turning into feelings of frustration on would we ever get there?? We literally got lost three or four times before we found some fellow hikers that were heading to the same place & we were able to get our butts on the right track. Lol. Had we not gotten lost so many times, we'd have shaved off an hour or two of our overall time. The kids were such TROOPERS & didn't complain much at all. Savou hiked up the WHOLE way on his own & Hoko & I took turns carrying him on the way down. All the rest of our kids did such an AWESOME job & they all agreed that it was worth it once we finally reached the top. Which I must add that we will NEVER do this hike again with all our kids until they're older cause it's actually quite a difficult hike for your average adult. But such a GREAT workout & one of those that once the destination's reached, is breath taking!! :D I didn't know I took so many pictures so enjoy. . . . .I feel like these pics don't do the real thing any kinda justice. But I can't wait to head up this trail again soon.

There were so many times that I wanted to flat out give up & turn around, but I didn't want to let my kids down. Seeing how determined THEY were to reach the top was so invigorating, yet so humbling for me. So I kept my thoughts quiet & kept encouraging myself to keep pushing on. When we got back last night, Hoko said that he was thinking the same thing. And we both realized that this has been the story of our lives. Ever since we started our journey as a family, we've set goals, re-set them, changed them altogether & even gotten off track totally & been lost. We've looked back on our lives so far & can specifically pin point areas that were exactly the way our hike went. With our kids totally being the driving force behind our motivation to get back on track & focus. And then there were the times when Hoko & I needed each other in taking turns passing our kids back & forth between each other in order to carry them through their rough times. It was such an incredible experience & I will never forget it. Our oldest, Aaliyah, totally took charge & clearly proved the reason why she's the oldest of our six kids. She's responsible, caring, loving & very aware of her younger siblings. Hoko & I didn't have to ask her to step up to certain responsibilities that I would've thought we would have to. She is AMAZING & I love her so much. Lote si'i was her loving, constantly supportive & encouraging self. She was constantly looking out for everyone else during our hike & I was so grateful for her child like spirit. Polu Marie was pretty much miserable because we had gotten lost so many times. She gave up on us & wanted to turn back long before we reached the top. And even when we did reach the top, she wasn't as excited about it as the rest of us. Lol. But she kept her complaints very minimal & was patient with all of us in our effort to complete the task at hand. So for that, I am grateful to her. :D Sila didn't join us. She was at a sleep over at her auntie Lote's house. Baby Hoko was absolutely remarkable!! He reminded me of the times when Hoko would get sent out of state for work & he would be on the phone with him. . . . .Hoko would always tell him that he was the man of the house & to take care of us while he was gone. *tears* Well, he demonstrated that yesterday & continues to impress us with his four year old nature. He was constantly racing with his older sisters wanting to be in the front because he wanted to 'show us the way.' Lol. On the way down he fell on the rocks, but he's always been our one that holds his emotions inside if he can. Considering that he's only four, he's not always successful. But the fact that he tries so hard to take things on with out complaining or crying always leaves me feeling so heartfelt for him. Even when he gets beat up by his bully of a cousin, Spencer, (hahaha) he'll hide so as to not let any of us see that he's hurt. Stinky Spencer!! Lol. I ended up giving Baby a piggy back ride a little ways down the hill cause his knee hit the rocks pretty badly when he fell. My husband was so patient. I am literally in awe of the way Hoko & I seem to balance each other out. Especially at times when it's needed most. When I was ready to give up, he would encourage me along the way. When his legs were shaking uncontrollably from carrying Savou on our uphill climb, it was like my mind went into some kind of survivor mode & I had the strength to take over for a little while. I love my family so much & the experiences that we share never fails to teach me more & more of the unconditional love Heavenly Father has for each & every one of us. It's mind boggling to even try to consider it being a parent myself & thinking of the overwhelming love I have for my own children. I'm eternally grateful for the opportunity to continue to progress & grow through the different strokes that life throws our way. :D Til next time. . . . .

'Untie the Rope'

2011-06-09T10:49:00.002-06:00

I got an email from Tyler Perry a couple of days ago that I was pretty excited to read, as I always am. Well, I guess I shouldn't try & make it sound like it was 'only' to me, which is pretty hard when it begins with, "Hey there, Fiona. You good?" Lol. . . . .but I subscribe to his email listing & it goes out to a TON of people. But even if it didn't start out like that, you'd think you had it like that with him cause of the way he's able to speak about such personal matters in his email. When his mom passed away, I got an email & it was so touching. I could totally feel his hurt over her loss.

Anyways, the main principle of this email was about untying the rope. Something I think everyone NEEDS to hear every once in awhile. He talks about just finishing up a shoot for a movie, called Good Deeds, that'll be out next Feb. But how he was taking a break & going to the Grand Canyon for some hiking, climbing, & so on because he still had 20 lbs to lose for his next movie project called Alex Cross. Here's what he says:

At one point in the climbing, I was over a steep drop and was tied to a safety rope, while a buddy’s safety rope was tied to me. It was my responsibility to help him up, since I was bigger and weighed more. I told him, “I’ll hold on to you to help you up but if you start to pull me over with you, I’m going to untie this rope.” We had a good laugh about it, but I was serious…

I started thinking about that moment a few days ago. How many times are we tied to a person, people or things that are pulling us down and we won’t untie the rope? For whatever reason, be it family, friends, society, or just the feeling of being obligated, trapped or that if you don’t, no one else will. I have watched so many people go over a cliff with a person that they are trying to help up, it’s sad. YOU MUST UNTIE THE ROPE!!!

This is your life and you are wasting it being tied to someone who is destroying his or her opportunities and yours. If the person that you are trying to help does not know that they are worth being saved, how do you expect them to put any value on you saving them? You’re not worth it to them. They can’t get it! SO YOU NEED TO! Listen to me, untie the rope and don’t lose yourself trying to hold on to someone who can’t survive on your level. You hear me? Maybe they have gone as high as they can go. Just because you can survive on that level doesn’t mean that everyone else can. Stop trying to help them, UNTIE THE ROPE! I know you may feel this is cruel, but what is more cruel is dying a death that’s not your own. Letting your destiny go to hell because someone else pulled you there. Are you kidding me? That isn’t God!

Here is what I have learned over the almost 20 years that I have been in this business. Let me tell you, I have seen and worked with some of the most talented people you can imagine and I used to wonder why they never got any higher than they are. You know, the kind of people who always seem to be at the door, but never can go in. It used to blow my mind until I got a revelation from God.

For many years I was the same way, I would get close and things would fall apart. I couldn’t get any traction, not in my career, not in my personal life and not in the pursuit of happiness. I just couldn’t move forward. Through much prayer and self-discovery, I found out that I used to be, notice I said “USED TO BE,” a self-saboteur. I would find a way to subconsciously destroy every good thing that was in my life and I didn’t even know I was doing it. Most self-sabotaging people don’t know that they are doing it. I don’t think there is anyone sadder than a person who blames everyone else, but themselves for their situation. The very revelation that I was causing my own problems was one of the greatest blessings God could have allowed me to see. Once I realized the behavior, I was able to change it. That is why my life is in such a great place right now. I realized that my very thoughts were keeping me from being successful at everything. “So, as a man thinketh, so is he.”

Many times a lot of us sabotage subconsciously because of what mamma or daddy said, traumatic childhoods or any number of things that happened growing up that made us feel that we shouldn’t have or that we didn’t deserve it. I’m here to tell you all, that misinformation was wrong. You do deserve it! You are worthy of it! For me, knowing that Jesus died and rose again makes me know we are all worthy.

Why am I saying this? I’m just tired of people being upset with people who have realized their dreams. The only difference in someone who is living their dream and someone who can’t get it to come to pass is they don’t feel they deserve it. They don’t feel they are worthy of it. So many of us have dreams, dreams that the world is waiting for, talents that will help heal and change nations, but we keep destroying our own successes. I know for a fact that if I had not figured this out, you wouldn’t be reading this email right now. Nor would I be a happy soul.

The world is waiting for your gift. Give it to yourself and you will give it to them, but first you have to UNTIE THE ROPE.

-Tyler

How amazing it he?? I am so grateful for this man who is so on top of his gift that Heavenly Father's blessed him with It's inspiring & encouraging on days when things just don't seem to be looking up.

We all have people or things in our lives that are pulling us down from being able to 'REALIZE' our dreams to it's fullest. We need to untie those ropes. We need to let go of those things or we will be pulled farther & farther away from where we should & can be. At this present time in my life, I feel there are a few people that both my husband & I need to 'UNTIE THE ROPE' with in order for us to grow in the pursuit of our dreams/goals. It seems that the adversary is never ending in his ongoing efforts to relinquish us of our strive to be better. In our reassurance that WE are sons & daughters of God & that we have been endowed with the ability to achieve whatever it is we believe we can. That simple, but oh so powerful a principle can 'save a nation.' In the wise words of the one & only Beyonce. :D

Politics Anyone??

2011-06-07T18:55:00.003-06:00

But does it even matter?

So we had quite the heated discussion in my history class this morning. And personally, for me, it was wayyyy to dang early for any kinda heated anything. Lol. But I listened to the different views of my classmates and quickly became really involved in my thinking about this discussion. We were talking about the electoral college. I've never been into politics or anything, but becoming a mom has changed a lot things including this. :D So my professor went on to explain that the electoral college was created when conditions in the 1700's were a lot different from today. Education was only available to those that could afford it, which was definitely not many people at the time, traveling conditions were horrid, to say the least, and you had to be a white male, 21 years of age and older, own land and actually be a member of a church. If you didn't meet any of the above, you couldn't participate in voting. Well, on top of all this, congress still felt that the average American out there weren't intelligent enough to make a smart decision when it came to picking a president so they came up with the electoral college. Each state had a certain amount of representatives according to population and whatever the majority vote of the state is, that's the vote that counts in the electoral college. As of now, Utah has 6 electoral votes, whereas California has 55. Because of the fact that they have a TON of more people living there. And even if the vote is a simple majority, it still counts to whoever the majority of the vote goes to. If there isn't a majority vote for any ONE candidate, then it goes to the House of Representatives and they decide who will be the next president. Not taking into consideration the voice of the people as to what their decision will be. It's just a flat out, whoever they want it to be. And they did this on purpose thinking that this is how it would turn out every time. Not knowing that this would be the exception.

Is that crazy or what?? So the heated discussion was on how it's understandable for this electoral college to have made sense in the 1700's because our country was still evolving as a people & growing, but now that we have evolved & so much time has passed where information is available to us at the click of a mouse, or a switch of a button, or even on hand held devices. . . .why are we still living in the 1700's with this electoral college still around?? How is it that if we live in Utah, where it is by far a republican state, that if you're a supporter of the democratic party, your vote pretty much doesn't count because it's not the majority??

This doesn't even make sense to me. We live in a time where every ONE person is supposedly supposed to have a voice & be heard, but with this electoral college, only the majority is heard. Back when Al Gore was running against President George Bush, he had the MOST votes as a whole, but President Bush won with the most electoral votes. That's like a slap in the face from the government of this country that individual voices/votes DON'T count cause if you're not a part of the majority in your state, you're outta luck, but please try again in four years. Annoying much?? I think so!! And so did 99% of my classmates. Well, times have changed & if we are supposed to have a voice, then we better start educating ourselves in these matters because this is the future of our upcoming generations & they & WE deserve better than this. With the current state of our nation right now, we probably NEED to or we will sink & burn, if that's even possible (lol). Maybe I should try law school when I finish up at the U. Follow in the footsteps of some of my family members that are currently practicing law right now & even the ones that are entering law school. Hah!! We'll see.

Four Weeks. . . .

2011-06-02T09:31:00.005-06:00

Four weeks. . . .that's how long my mom's trip to Fiji was. Seemed like FOREVER at first, but as always, as the time got closer to her returning, it flew by & next thing we knew. . . . .we were all at the airport awaiting her arrival. :D There's a reason why CERTAIN people in your life are missed more than others. And my mom's list can go on FOREVER!! :D

I think it's safe to say that the grand-kids missed her the MOST. We all headed to my parents' place afterwards & ATE wayyyy too much. But it felt so good to be together with my parents & siblings as well as families from out of state.

My mom's main purpose for her trip was to go acquire land for our family that's been divided amongst us siblings, to farm crops on in hopes of turning a profit & starting a family business that can be passed down to our children & generations to come. One thing that I love about my parents is the fact that they're always looking to the future. How can they leave something behind that we, as their children, will be able to carry on with our own little families & make something out of it has always been their goal. I've learned so much from these two role models of mine & I will be eternally in their debt for the way they've raised me.

Our plan, if things go well, is to be able to spend our summers in Fiji, once I'm done with school, & work on the farm as well as do some kind of humanitarian aide for the people there. I'm hoping in the long run that I'll even be able to open up a pharmacy there. Who knows?? The possibilities are endless. The kids are excited about the family farm & I hope that excitement stays with them forever, but more importantly. . . . .I hope we'll be able to do some good there. My mom has a lot of family there that will be taking care of the crops while we're here in hopes of being able to provide a living for their own growing families. It's been in the works for the past couple of months now & we're heading to Fiji in December to legalize each of our parcels of land. It's a very EXCITING process in the works. Nevertheless, it'll take a lot of hard work & patience on our end in order to see this through to fruition. Hoko & I have talked about the many possibilities that this could turn in to & we both see the Lord's hand in all of it. It's crazy how we've been able to tie certain events in our lives to our future that we never would've imagined had anything to do with it. And that's when the Lord comes in. Where He sees things that we can't. Where He knows what's best even when we don't. And how He always comes through on his end & then some, when we fall short.

Our hopes in the end of all this is that our children learn to be more charitable. More giving. Closer to each other. Closer to the Lord. That would be more than enough for me & I would give anything for THAT kind of success. :D

Pictures coming soon. . . . like when I get home from school. Lol.

Against All Odds??

2011-05-31T20:37:00.016-06:00

Isn't this honestly how life feels sometimes??

Sometimes I wonder about the goals we're working towards right now?? Sometimes they seem outrageously BOLD. I have this voice in the back of my head quietly saying things like, "What are you doing?? Who do you think you are?? And why do YOU think you can do this?? What makes you so sure that you'll succeed when so many have attempted & have been unsuccessful??" Or even, "How dare you even TRY??"

Crazy these conversations that we let go on inside of our heads. It's funny how quickly I start to answer those little voices back with things such as, "Why wouldn't I be able to do this?? Who else is going to do it for me?? Or even for my kids?? Who are you to tell me otherwise??"

We have some HEFTY goals at hand, but this time around has brought with it such overwhelming feelings of peace that this is what we're destined to do. This is our path we are taking and we will not falter. I'm in school full time here at Weber in the Pre-Pharmacy program. I'm getting all my pre-reqs done in preparation for the PCAT, which is the admissions exam to get into the College of Pharmacy at the U. This will take me two years to accomplish. I've been camping on the University of Utah site researching everything I possibly can in order to best prepare myself for when application time comes around. I'm so EXCITED!! Once I get into the 'U,' I'll be in the PharmD program for four years and receive my Doctor of Pharmacy degree. I'll decide then if I want to further my education or stick to a continuing research regimen for the betterment of prescriptions out there. We'll see.

Hoko's role in all this is so VITAL to the success of my schooling that I don't take him for granted one bit. His supportive role that he plays in holding down the fort while he's home & never complaining about my hours away in classes, studying & doing homework has brought me to the conclusion that we've both grown so much in our marriage. We've matured to the point where we're able to take such things on without letting LIFE get in the way. Instead, we're more quick to navigate our way through whatever life throws our way in order to stay the course. If that makes any sense. I've never been more fully at peace with the way my life is right now. And don't for one second get me wrong. . . . .I'm not at all trying to paint a picture of a PERFECT family life cause I do have my days when everything goes wrong, but I honestly do revel in the little things that this man does for me in order to keep me focused & on track. :D

Against all odds may be what comes to mind when looking from the outside in & seeing this struggling family of eight, going on nine, with daddy working full time (out of state mostly), mommy in school full time, four kids in school starting in August, two kids home with one making his/her debut in Oct, chores, homework, families, church & I'm sure this list can go on. But the only thing going through my head is why not US?? If not us, then someone else for sure will be doing it or has done it. So why not US?? :D And with that said, my anxieties ease up a little for the time being & I'm okay.

She's BACK!! :D

2011-05-19T15:10:00.002-06:00

I have anxiously been awaiting my girl's return!! And she's finally BACK!! Woo hoo!! Who wouldn't be motivated after watching this!! I'm about to get my Beyonce workout on!! :D

Here's the full Beyonce workout routine!! It came out a while ago, but it goes so well with the above video. :D

Blessings?? In Disguise. . . .

2011-05-18T08:55:00.008-06:00

Hoko was in Montana last week. What we thought was going to be long term turned out to be a quick emergency response on a farm where some animals were dying from a chemical that the farmer was using. They cleared everything out and were done by Friday & he was home by Saturday. :D We have been GREATLY blessed in our family life to see the Lord's hand in it. While Hoko was gone, I had to start making daycare arrangements for the three younger kids for one day a week while I'm in classes. And while I know everything would've turned out just fine, I would much rather have them home with Hoko than anyone else. So I've looked at his being home as such a blessing in order for me to breathe a little easier with my schooling. :D

We also got word that his job has a couple of projects here in Salt Lake this year & we're holding on to the notion that MAYBE, just MAYBE, he'll be able to work here at home this year. But we're not naive to the fact that with ER, anything is possible. Especially with these awful weather conditions around the nation.

With that said, Monday came & I was in charge of dinner. I made a low calorie meal for dinner. Tilapia Salad with Strawberry Pineapple Salsa. The kids LOVED it!! And so did I. I planned this 210 calories per serving meal because of the fact that Hoko & I had already arranged s'mores around the camp fire with the kids that night. And in my continuing effort to promote a healthy lifestyle with my family, I thought this would be the smart way to go to allow us some extra room to indulge. :D

Strawberry-Pineapple Salsa

Seasoned & Broiled Tilapia

Tilapia Salad with Strawberry-Pineapple Salsa

As some of you may know, I'm currently prego & have been struggling with my weight this time around. My first trimester brought with it all the morning sickness and junk food that my body couldn't control. Or didn't wanna control, when it comes to the junk food part. It was TERRIBLE!! I'm not that big of a junk food fan to begin with. I mean, I eat chips & cookies & stuff, but I won't die without them. And it's not even really things I crave or care for. But this time was different. They were the only things that made me feel good. And as soon as I was done eating them, my nausea returned. I was grateful, at least, for the fact that when I was at school, I felt otherwise normal. No morning sickness, no cravings for junk. None of that. I actually ate healthier when I was at school. Weird, right?? Well, I gained a total of 15 lbs in two months time. I couldn't believe it!! I mean, I could cause I had no kinda self discipline on what I stuffed down my throat, but I was really upset about the fact that I couldn't control my cravings or even curb them altogether. I started counting down the days for my second trimester to start, while silently praying that I would finally get back to feeling more like myself & hoping that I would gain more self control over getting back to exercising & eating more healthy.

Well, I'm so happy to say that I'm 17 weeks now & have been feeling more like myself since last week. I started out slow by eating more fruits & veggies. As well as running on my elliptical for 45 min to an hour. This week I'll be incorporating my Biggest Loser workouts & I'm so EXCITED!! Another BIG motivation to all this is the fact that my two sis in laws, Sheena & Ame joined Sinai's biggest loser competition. They have made such a HUGE decision in stepping out of their comfort zone in order to get healthy & lose weight & I am so PROUD of the both of them!! Their examples have helped to get my focus back on track & I love them all the more for it. :D

Anyways, back to our backyard camp fire. . . . .we got this camp fire thingy from Walmart for like, forty bucks. My sister has one at her house & that's where we got the idea to get one. We sat around the fire with the kids making s'mores & we had a blast!! The kids had so much fun & kept saying how it was the BEST NIGHT EVERRR!! Sound familiar?? Lol. I love having Hoko home cause TRUST that we wouldn't be doing anything much if he weren't here. Especially since I'm in school this summer semester & have been swamped with school work. Last Sunday night, Hoko & I were laying out on our trampoline with our pillows & blankets just talking about our lives, our goals, our kids. . . .I became so overwhelmed with such feelings of gratitude for all that I've been blessed with. Most importantly, my husband & kids. They have been my #1 fans cheering me on in my ongoing efforts to get good grades & I don't want to let them down. Especially since Hoko takes care of our financial needs so willingly. His willingness to work hard & provide for our family has been consistent since the day we got married. And I say that very humbly because some of the jobs that he's had & held for years at a time, was very labor intensive. He would always complain about how he hated it there & I would tell him to leave, but he couldn't see a way out of supporting us comfortably anywhere else. So when the opportunity came along for him to join his brothers at ER, we were so thankful. And he has never faltered since. When it comes to the kids?? They're efforts in school are so transparent in all the awards they continue to be recognized for, but most important of all. . . . .their report cards. With the transferring to a new school this time around & them being so far behind, I know they're too young to realize how AMAZING they are in their laser eye focus on their academic progress. And I am so PROUD of them. I've set myself to the standards that have been set for them. Nothing less than straight A's. :D And I'm proud to say that so far so good. :D I'm praying that I can continue to be an example for them. The challenge in finding the blessings in disguise when everything seems to be so somber in life is always a breath of fresh air once the puzzle pieces start coming together. It's been a great summer thus far, or spring, or whatever the season is right now, LOL, even though the weather here is still pretty weird. Lol. Til next time. . . .

This is what happens when Savou's around doing s'mores & waving his stick around like a mad man!! Lol. The marshmallow flew & landed right SMACK on his brother's shoe!! Hahahaha!!

Our baby Savou roasting his marshmallow!! :D He's such a CHEESER!! Lol. :D

I savored every bit of that s'more!! :D And the two more I had afterwards. LOL!! :D

Last Night Together. . . . .At Least For A While :(

2011-05-10T00:50:00.006-06:00

Tonight is Hoko's last night with us before heading back to work for the rest of the year. And while we're EXTREMELY grateful that he has a wonderful job, it's always such a LOVE/HATE relationship cause he has to travel out of state. If we get lucky. . . .maybe he'll be close enough for us to drive out & see him. Last year wasn't one of those times. :( He was in Louisiana & it definitely took a toll on the kids. They couldn't understand why I was able to go visit him & why they weren't able to go. It broke my heart. I explained to them that it was very expensive to buy plane tickets for our whole family so I was just flying out with Savou cause he was free. They quietly nodded their heads in agreement, but I could still see the hurt in their eyes & it absolutely killed me.

Having Hoko home these past months, we've been able to talk with them more about his job & the extensive travel it requires. We informed them of our plans & how daddy won't be working like this forever. That these are part of the sacrifices we're making in order to improve our future as a family. We filled them in on the details, of course, and felt immensely blessed when their reaction was so filled with gratitude & amazement. :D I know every mother feels this way about their kids, but I honestly can't imagine myself getting through these intractable times without the pure love & innocence of my children. It's probably why I've been endowed with so many of these innocent spirits. . . . . .cause I need so much strength & comfort. Lol. Whatever the reason may be, I am eternally thankful.

It was such a busy day today. I had to head to school & write up two papers for my english class that was due at midnight. Procrastinate much?? I'm still working on ridding myself of this nasty habit. And then I spent hours at the Hub getting all my math caught up. This consisted of six chapters & a quiz, but I'm proud to say that I was able to accomplish it all & head home. It was almost seven by the time I was done so we caught an eight o'clock show with the kids at the Junction. Hoko & I watched 'THOR' with the two boys & the girls watched 'RIO' :D Both movies started & ended at the same time so it worked out perfect. The kids had a blast & I LOVED 'THOR' :D It was a GREAT movie. We came home & had pizza & by that time. . . . .the kids were pooped. They headed straight for bed & were fast asleep.

I would be in the same boat as them if Hoko weren't leaving tomorrow. So here I am. . . . .blogging away while he's packing. What?? I totally folded all his laundry & had it ready for him to pack it up. That should count for something. Hahaha. . . . .

I'm totally gonna go off on a tandem here, but when do I not?? Lol. I am sixteen weeks now & have finally gotten past the morning sickness stage. Yay!! :D This pregnancy's been really difficult for me because I'm not used to feeling sick. I'm usually up & about, eating whatever I want & doing everything I normally do. The biggest thing being exercising. I'm trying to get back to running this week so that I can have an easier time throughout the rest of the twenty four weeks I have left to go. Wish me luck. I'm hoping that with Hoko leaving out of town, my motivation to stay healthy will kick into overdrive. :D *fingers & toes crossed* With that said. . . .summer semester is in full swing & I love all my classes so far. Here's to another set of straight A's this time around. :D Definitely knocking on wood with my fingers & toes crossed AND a prayer in my heart for this one. :D Til next time. . . . .

Finding Comfort In The 'Ensign'

2011-05-01T21:25:00.003-06:00

The Ensign has been such a continuous blessing in my life. The messages shared in this wonderful publication never ceases to amaze me. Last month's issue didn't disappoint. :D There's a story in it called 'Rebecca Swain Williams: STEADFAST & IMMOVABLE. As much as I thoroughly loved the whole story, I really connected with one instance in particular. I'm going to quote it directly from the story cause I wouldn't do it justice trying to explain it in my own words. :D

"As the Church quickly became central to Frederick and Rebecca's lives, the impact on their family was immediate. Frederick was ordained an elder right after his baptism and confirmation. The very next day, he enthusiastically accepted an assignment to leave within a few weeks to serve a mission with Oliver Cowdery. They anticipated the mission would last three weeks; in reality it became a 10-month trip to Missouri. His long absence from home was the first of many such periods for Rebecca. Because of Frederick's missionary efforts and his calling into the First Presidency, he was frequently away. Rebecca, like many early Mormon women, spent long months tending their home and raising their children without the help of her husband.

Despite the work, Rebecca continued faithful and served willingly. The Prophet Joseph Smith and his family lodged in the Williams' home for a time when the Smiths first moved to Kirtland. Rebecca proved loyal to the Prophet and his family as she cared for them through trying times. Once a mob came and surrounded the home looking for Joseph. Rebecca disguised Joseph in her bonnet and cloak. Joseph was able to leave the house and pass through the crowd to safety."

These past couple of months have come with some really trying times for our family. The winter time always brings its ups & downs with having Hoko home. And while most of it is UP. . . . .I can truly attest to the parts that were down, as being as LOW as it can go. :( While I'm continually grateful for all that we've been blessed with, I have been dreading the thought of knowing that at any time now, Hoko will be leaving us to return back to work for an extended period of time. And it has caused me so much sorrow & heartache, but I have found such comfort in the story of Rebecca Swain Williams. I relate to her story all too well. The raising of the kids on my own, tending to the house, and pretty much everything else at home that needs looking after. And my heart goes out to those early pioneer women in those days. They really did do a lot of things on their own that had to do with the family. What AMAZING examples they are & I feel very humbled when thinking of my own affliction compared to theirs. With the technological advances over time, I now have privileges that they never enjoyed. Cell phones, to talk to my husband whenever I want; Minivan, to get me to & fro safely in a short period of time; Skype, so we can video chat online & see each other; Airplanes, in case I have the opportunity to go visit him; Internet, as another form of communication through various channels; and so on.

My heart was full as I read this story & I honestly felt the Lord was letting me know that He is mindful of me. Of the desires of my heart. I felt a reassuring peace that all is well. Though with this time around, I am in school full time while entering the second trimester of this pregnancy & juggling the six children that we already have, all is well. The saying that comes to mind is that of Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin when he said: "Come what may & love it." So as for now, I'm going to look at the BRIGHT side & enjoy the journey as much as I can. I'm a firm believer of not just enduring the journey. But enduring it well. :D

Moving Back??

2011-04-25T16:36:00.007-06:00

So I've been playing around with the idea of perhaps it being a smart decision to move back to Salt Lake. . . .now hear me out. Lol. I love living in Ogden primarily for the fact that I'm within 120 seconds of drive time to my school. Which makes a HUGE difference. Also, I like being a little bit away from families & friends because of the fact that it isolates me from that part of my life that can be somewhat distracting at times. Lol. Because all of our families live out there, we're constantly commuting every weekend back & forth & with these gas prices?? It's a bit ridiculous. But when I weigh out the pros & cons. . . . .it's much more economical for us to commute to Salt Lake on the weekends then it will be if I were to have to commute from there to here everyday. So I guess problem solved. Lol.

I had to get this off my chest cause it's been bouncing around in my head for the past month or so. And as much as I push it to the back of my mind, it keeps finding its way back to the forefront.

With that outta the way. . . . .this past weekend was another time inducing, extra busy, family filled weekend shared with the ones we love most. Friday started out crazy with my butt sitting in immigration for the second time this week, mind you, this building is all the way in Salt Lake (once again refer to the two previous paragraphs). I had to clear up some stuff with my residency status in order to be able to take the holds off my admissions at Weber in order to continue my education. A few other bumps in the road that I've been dealing with while trying to broaden my horizon & enlighten my brain. Lol. I am so relieved & so grateful that everything has finally panned out & I have registered for summer semester with no resistance. I'm currently enrolled in twelve credits, but am scheduled to see my advisor Friday morning to see if I can add one more. And as crazy hectic as twelve credits already is, I need one more three or four credit course since I was only able to take three classes last semester because of the fact that I registered late so I'm trying to get back on track with taking one extra class this summer semester. I'm clearly aware of the fact that it's gonna be really difficult to stay afloat, but I'm hoping that I will get through it alive.

After I got everything squared away with immigration, I headed back to Weber to clear everything up in admissions. It took all of two minutes & I was outta there heading to the girls' school to pick them up. We headed home & cleaned up a bit, grabbed their change & headed BACK to Salt Lake for the kids to spend the weekend with grandma before she heads to Fiji. A special request from grandma Selu since she'll be gone for four weeks. :( Savou & Liyah didn't wanna stay so they had the opportunity of heading to my sister's house with us to do s'mores & play with my other nieces & nephews. Which wasn't part of the plan, but my sister text me on our way back home so we stopped by. We finally got home around 3 am & ended our night with a quick stop at Betos for a TEXANO burrito that was to die for!! My fave!! :D I was scheduled for a breakfast date with my sister & Ati (which is my sister's sister in law) which I totally missed cause I was too busy sleeping. Lol. I jumped up at 9:20 & called my sister that I wasn't gonna get there in time for breakfast. Ugh. . .we finally got back to Salt Lake a little after 11 am & my sister & I started our day together. She took me to get a pedi, then we headed to the Gateway for lunch at Applebees & then upstairs to the megaplex for a movie. Hanna, to be specific. It was a great day & we had a lot to catch up on. :D We headed back to her place & ended up spending the night there watching movies & just chillin. FUN & better yet. . . .so RELAXING!! :D

Sunday came & we headed to my parents place for our easter lunch/dinner cause our eating lasted all day. We got to talk with my parents more about our family land that my parents just recently purchased in Fiji, which is the reason my mom's leaving there on Thursday. That got us all excited as well. We ended our weekend at the Mostyn's for an egg hunt & dinner that they put on for our families. Nothing comes close to the time spent amongst the ones you love & cherish. Makes you grateful for all the things you have been blessed with that can easily be taken for granted. This was our crazy weekend that's pretty much every weekend. Especially with summer approaching & the weather warming up. Birthday parties, weddings, reunions, etc., are just the beginning of these unforeseen weekends that are approaching. :D

Been Awhile??

2011-04-20T22:59:00.003-06:00

It's been awhile, right?? I know. I feel like I'm always saying this so I'm just going to accept the fact that this is the way it's gonna be. I can't get to my blog as often as I'd like, but who's keeping track anyway?? Lol.

I took the last of my finals today. Phewww. . . . .what a relief. I am so happy to say that this semester hasn't been a total disappointment. It started out pretty rough. I took all generals classes and won't get into any CORE classes til next spring. I went and saw all my professors yesterday n today to see how my grades will turn out. If everything goes well with my finals I did today, I am hopefully on track for straight A's!! Woo hoo!! I am so happy cause I was so SHOCKED when they all said that. I was crossing my fingers & toes that I would at least get a 'C' so that I wouldn't owe any financial aid money back to the school for failing. :D

I had an interesting conversation with my psych professor. We got to talking & I mentioned how I thought all my classes would be pretty easy since they were all intro classes. Boy was I wrong. I thought that maybe the difficulty of them all was the fact that they were all packed into seven week courses and not the full fourteen weeks they usually are. My professor went on to shed some light on me & explained how intro courses are a lot more difficult then CORE classes. She said that they introduce you to the subject as a WHOLE and not specifics of it. Like this psych 1010 course. We went over everything in a nutshell about psych. But if I was to take a child psychology class, it would primarily focus on that field of psychology. Makes sense, right?? I hope so cause it made total sense to me & I didn't feel like such a dummy.

I have been so blessed to have my husband home while I've been in school this past semester. I don't know how I would've been able to cope with all the stresses of school, motherhood, kids, home, and just LIFE. Even though I understand that he'll be leaving out of town soon, I'm cherishing every moment that he's here with me. I love him so much!! :D

Something that I've learned about finishing out the semester is how GREAT I feel. A feeling of accomplishment, even if it is just for the completion of ONE semester. One of the intro classes I took was in computers and I was able to learn Windows 7, MS Word, Excel, and Power Point 2010. It's given me more confidence in myself in having that picture in my mind of getting back into the workforce. Especially in this economy.

I'm grateful for my wonderful kids!! I have been so blessed with such helpful, loving kids. Aaliyah & Lote have taken on more responsibility around the house with cooking, dishes, Savou & just little things here n there that add up. Helping to dress their younger siblings or making them cereal. I feel humbled and eternally blessed for their love & support in my going back to school. There are a lot of nights where I can literally feel the walls closing in on me. Like I'm falling short of so many responsibilities & I cringe inside. When those nights come, my kids can do the MOST simplest of things to put a smile on my face & remind me of how grateful I need to be for everything that I have been blessed with. I don't think my kids will ever understand how much they carry me through the TOUGHEST of times & I thank my father in heaven for blessing me with these wonderful spirits. I absolutely feel that they have benefited me more than I can ever benefit them. They are just so precious. With that said, I'm grateful for the opportunity to be bringing in another spirit into this world. I am thirteen weeks along & already showing. Ugh. . . .not that I'm trying to hide it or anything. But most of what's showing is just fat from my lack of exercise. At least what I'm used to when it comes to exercising. It's been really hard this time around. Back in January, I knew I was cause I woke up one day & my body totally shut down. I had no self-discipline, no motivation to workout, nausea joined me every night, & I was so tired all the time!! What else could it be, right?? Well, I was in denial up until a couple of weeks ago. Like three or four. I've gained a good fifteen pounds already. Pathetic much??

It must be why I was so EXCITED when I logged onto my FB acct & saw that Beyonce's new single is available on ITUNES tomorrow & that her music video is scheduled to release in June. Oh please come sooner!! Nobody motivates me like BEYONCE can!! I love her!! She is so comfortable in her own skin that nobody can come close. :D I'm looking forward to getting myself back on the healthy bandwagon sooner than later. I workout two to three times a week, but it's so not enough. Trust. . . .the scale testifies of this. I hope with the one week break between now & summer semester, I can get myself back into the routine of working out & eating healthy. Til next time. . . . .adios!! :D

Another Bday Celebration. . . .

2011-03-28T09:38:00.006-06:00

Lote in her morning looks 'n all. Hahaha

This past weekend we had the wonderful opportunity of celebrating our lil Lote's 9th birthday. WOW!! I can't believe my two oldest are 9 & 10. Lol. When Hoko & I talked about me going back to school, I prayed all of last year to know what I should go in to. It had everything to do with our older children growing up so fast. Once I received my answer, I pondered about it because it would take me a total of SIX YEARS total to finish up. Which means that Aaliyah would be hitting her SWEET SIXTEEN with Lote si'i trailing right behind her. But we continued to pray about it & we also attended the temple weekly in our effort to be sure. And we're pretty positive that this is the path that we're supposed to be on. It's definitely an exciting journey & while we're still in the forefront of it, I am still in AWE of the unwavering love my father in heaven has for me & my growing family.

Lote in her bday church 'fit :D

Right before heading out the door to church

We tried to do a family pix with the self-timer on my camera, but it didn't work. Hence the fact that Hoko's not in this pix. Lol

We had a blast this past weekend in ringing in another birthday year for our Lote si'i. Her treat pick for her class on Friday was doughnuts. Lol. When she got home from school, we headed to the Junction to watch 'Diary of a Wimpy Kid Rodrick Rules. They LOVED it!! :D We picked up some KFC on the way home & ate & chilled & talked the night away. Saturday came & Hoko & I were busy running around all day. We had a bunch of things that we planned to do around the house, but was put off until after Taeao's wedding was done. And so we started to get those things in order. We did a little face lift to our living room which we're pretty happy about. Now we're tackling one room at a time. Organization is KEY. Especially with half a dozen kids in tow. . . . .it's more of a LIFELINE that if not used, will create nothing, but CHAOS in our household. Lol.

Sunday came & we did what we always do for our kids on their birthdays. Dinner with a homemade cake. :D We kept it simple for this dinner & stuck to ribs with fries. :D But we went all out on her cake. I mixed up her fudge marble cake & stuck it in the oven to bake. When it was done, Hoko stuck it in the fridge to cool down. Then we pulled it out & put the chocolate filling in the middle, frosted the outside & decorated it. :D Hoko did the designs & I put the strawberry milkshake whoppers around the edges. :D It turned out great, but tasted even BETTER!! :D I can't wait to make this cake again cause it will definitely turn out a lot better looking. Hahahahaha. . . . .here's some pics from our weekend. :D

Homemade bday cake made by her dad

This cake was DEE-LISH!!

February Was Filled With Birthdays!! :D

2011-03-08T23:08:00.010-07:00

Last month was FILLED with birthdays. From some being on the same day, while others were only days apart. And yet they were ALL just days from each other. Lol. It was a HECTIC family filled month, nonetheless.

My father inlaw's bday was up first. And all the boys headed to the monster truck show at the Energy Solutions center for a testosterone FILLED night!! Lol. They had a blast!! And since none of us, women, were there. . . .there are no pictures, of course. But they had a blast. Three generations of the Tu'akoi men!! :D It was definitely a SIGHT to see. :D

Next up was our baby Hoko!! His bday landed on a Sunday so we baked him a cake, made some food & invited our family over to help us celebrate!! He had such a GREAT time with all his cousins. He's now five years old & learning new things everyday, it's crazy. By the end of the night, we were pooped!! Lol.

Three days later was our Polu Marie's bday. She turned 7 yrs old and shares a bday with her auntie Fine. :D Her bday landed on a school day/night so I bought treats for her class & took it up there so they can celebrate with her. :D We also made a special dinner & cake for her as well. :D

And finally, since Fine's bday was on a weeknight, we waited to celebrate hers that Friday. We cooked up a special dinner & baked her a double layered chocolate cake with a peanut butter filling, topped with a chocolate ganache & sprinkled with heath toffee bits. Similar to the ones we made for our kids, but with a different filling. :D Fine's a BIG reese's fan, hence the reason why we went with a peanut butter filling. :D Busy busy week, but filled with what we treasure MOST: FAMILY TIME!! :D

Quick News Flash!! :D

2011-02-27T22:56:00.005-07:00

We're coming to a close of another month. It's been nothing short of a very very BUSY month. With ups, downs & in-betweens. . . . .I am definitely ECSTATIC to be approaching a new month, to say the least. :D We've celebrated two of our children's birthdays this past month that were only three days apart. That was a bit stressful. Lol. We also had the opportunity to participate in my father inlaw's bday as well as my sis inlaw, Fine. I don't think I've ever baked so many cakes in a month's time let alone one week. Can you believe it?? Eight cakes total!! Lol. But in all seriousness, we were able to enjoy what really matters. Time spent with loved ones. I have a TON of pictures to post. When that will be is a whole 'nother post. Hahahaha!! But I will definitely try to make it happen ASAP. :D

My 1st day of school here at Weber is approaching. This coming up Tuesday to be exact. The 2nd block of spring semester. I'm stoked!! I've ran into a couple of hiccups along the way, but I've learned from each experience & am happy to be moving forward. I can honestly say that it's humbled me tremendously.

Please don't give up on me while I try to juggle keeping this blog afloat. Lol. This post is short, but I will post again soon. Hopefully. :D

Getting Back In The Game. . . .

2011-02-17T22:25:00.003-07:00

What game is that?? The game known by most as the 'WORKFORCE' Or if you've read 'Rich Dad, Poor Dad' by Robert Kiyosaki, he calls it the rat race. Being stuck in a what he calls a 'RUT' Crazy thing is, he makes a lot of sense. Working for someone else can be very much like being in bondage. Like the Jews were for a very long time before Moses parted the Red Sea & the Lord delivered them to safety. Before that, they were in bondage to Pharaoh. Slaves who worked & worked & worked for very menial wages. They were told when they could take a break, when they could eat, when they could use the bathroom & so forth. Sound familiar?? Now don't get me wrong. I'm not knocking JOBS. We need them. It's how the world works. There are an array of occupations out there that I wouldn't be able to do & I'll be the first to admit it. The number one thing a job has been said to provide is SECURITY. That was easily perceived by the majority of society until the recession HIT. And boy did it HIT. We are still in it. And it's been a couple of year as of yet. Some say we'll be here for a while. Others predict an expeditious recovery. With studies & figures aside, it all boils down to us. How we choose to react to circumstances we have no control over.

It's funny how the Lord works. In 'mysterious ways.' I find that to be especially fitting for the 'CURRENT EVENTS' of my life at this time. I continue to be astonished at the workings of the Lord in my life. How I can pray for specific things & how His answers are absolutely unforeseen, unanticipated, unpredictable. But when I'm able to take a step back & examine the course of my life. . . . .I become unquestionably grateful for the experiences I am put through so that I may learn & develop distinct characteristics in order to forge ahead & continue to make progress.

Continuous prayers have I poured out of my heart in my plea for specific things in my life. And I am now seeing the Lord's hand in them & I honestly can't help, but smile. One of them being me getting back into the workforce. It's been about three years since my last place of employment. While it's a little scary, it's not as scary as not being able to work. So I find a lot of comfort in that. :D Yesterday I had the opportunity to attend a career fair at Weber. I was quite impressed when I walked in. Male students were dressed in shirt & ties. Female students in business casual attire. Mind you, it's been a couple of years for me & I was at the school for something else. So I was dressed in skinny's, casual shirt & UGGS. Lol. I almost convinced myself to walk back out & go home, but I'm not that kinda person. So I took a deep breath & walked into the ballroom & grabbed a flyer with a listing of all the employers in attendance. And I sure am glad I did. I was able to meet with reps from the Dept of Workforce Services who informed me of funds the state has for mothers who are going back to school. I also learned of a company that has a tuition reimbursement program for my field of study. And finally, I met a couple of reps whose company offers summer internships where you are assigned a mentor & together you work on several different projects where you are trained in management & training skills that you can take with you in any occupation. This is at the top of my list for summer employments & I will be putting my app in this weekend. :D It blows me away, the world of information available to us who with just a little work, manifests itself.

That spark that we all have as innocent children who believe they can conquer the world has been re-ignited in me. I am cognizantly appreciative for the obstacles & trials that are put before me so that I may continue to overcome them & move forward. It's a magnificent thing to be constantly thinking of the future. With the Lord on my side & I on His, I can be confident in being on that straight & narrow path. :D

Before I left, I picked up a FREE magazine called 'Utah Careers Supplement For Women.' It is filled with a wealth of information. A lot of time saving tips as well as ways to balance family life & work life. There's an article in it that I read & was simple enough for my girls to understand so I didn't hesitate to share with them. :D It's exactly why I feel that WAGES aren't everything, but nonetheless they are IMPORTANT.

'The Fable Of Jane & Susan'

Jane grew up knowing she wanted to be a mother. She thought she would marry a rich man and stay home to take care of her children. She didn't think she'd need an education or a career. She got married right out of high school to the man of her dreams and had a charming baby girl.
Time for a reality check. Like most married women with children in Utah, Jane needed to work to make ends meet. She got a job at the local discount store as a cashier and after a while, earned the Utah average wage for that occupation - $8.50/hr. She had few benefits and no retirement plan. To make enough money, Jane had to work 40 hrs a week - mostly when her husband was off work so he could take care of the baby. They couldn't afford childcare. Even though she didn't see much of her husband, she grossed $340/wk - before taxes and other deductions.
Susan went to high school with Jane. Susan grew up knowing that she wanted to have a family. But, she also realized that she would probably be working outside the home - like most mothers in Utah. She chose a high-paying career, finished college and went to work as a computer hardware engineer. She got great pay, had good benefits, and could count on a retirement income - when that day finally came. THEN she got married and had a bouncing baby boy.
Susan's employer valued her work skills and was willing to let Susan cut back her hours. She ended up working only 20 hours a week at the Utah average wage for computer hardware engineers - $30/hr. So, while Jane was making $320 working a grueling 40 hrs/wk on her feet all day, Susan worked only 20 hrs/wk and at the same grossed $1200/wk - two and a half times more than Jane for half the work. Who would you like to be?

Bridging The Gaps

2011-02-02T18:10:00.003-07:00

'The mortal experience is filled with gaps:

between what we know and what we do
between the way of God and the ways of man
between preaching and practicing
between what the media represents and what really occurred
between what the media popularizes and what the Lord endorses
between what we know to be true and how willing we are to stand up for what we believe
between the world's standards of morality and God's law of chastity
between the world's definition of the family and God's divine plan for the family

And on it goes. For each of us, there are gaps with which to deal. For example, if you believe in the Word of Wisdom but don't really live it, there's a gap. If you believe your family is the most important entity on earth but often seem to get pulled elsewhere, there's a gap. There are gaps if you feel love for your spouse, but withhold love for some reason. If you want a strong marriage but don't make building it a priority; if you believe modesty is important but are tired of coaching teenagers who are tempted to wear clothes that are too tight, too short, too revealing, and with slits up to high heaven, and therefore you say nothing. There are gaps if you say money isn't everything but spend your time and energy as though it were; if you believe in a living prophet but manage to slip away most conference weekends to the beach or the lake; if you believe there is power in the word of God but don't spend much time immersed in the scriptures. . . . . .and so on.'

This is an excerpt out of a book I'm currently reading called, 'No One Can Take Your Place' by Sheri Dew. She is definitely one of my favorite LDS authors. She makes sense of things that usually go over my head. Or things that I've looked at, but from the total opposite side of the spectrum. Lol. I love this book so far.

It's really helped me to realize that there are a lot of things in my life that call for 'BRIDGING THE GAPS' :D One of those things that I've always believed strongly in is missionary work. But I struggled with how I, as a mother, who didn't take advantage of this wonderful privilege because of paths I chose to go down that prohibited me from doing so, could become an instrument in the hands of the Lord in bridging the gap between what I believe to be such a significant & cardinal TRUTH as to bringing those souls to the knowledge of God & being able to teach them of our purpose here on earth, yet fearing that I might somehow offend someone in doing so. President Hinkley has explained how the Gospel makes sense of everything. Let me repeat that: The Gospel Makes Sense Of Everything. And I absolutely testify to the veracity of such a statement. I am completely baffled as to the workings & exactness of the Lord in everything He does for truly everything has a specific purpose in moving His work forward in 'bringing to pass the immortality of man.'

As I've pondered on this & kept a constant prayer in my heart about it, it came so clearly to me one day (which I know without a doubt was the spirit of Lord). I was laying in bed with Hoko having our usual pillow talks that consist of our happenings of the day as well as our future plans & goals. Hoko started asking me how everything went for me. I had attended a Majors Fest at Weber that day. I told him it was GREAT!! I felt so much peace & excitement from everything I had learned that day, namely the nontrad center that they have for nontraditional students such as myself. There is so much support & help available for us with our unique situations. I had stopped into the student services center on my way out to sign up for an upcoming seminar & was able to meet the student body president. She invited me to join her in a new student orientation type thing where members of the student government were explaining all the different positions available to students & the benefits of applying to these positions. Upon acceptance of these different positions, the school issues a tuition waver for a certain amount, depending on which position you are appointed, which then frees up whatever financial aid money you've qualified for to be able to help with the financial obligations we carry in our families. That took the cake for me & I was ecstatic, yet definitely a little apprehensive in even the possibility of running for student government. I mean, I'm already married with six kids, with the three younger ones still at home with me right now. I didn't wanna think of the time involved with taking on these extracurricular activities. But then I thought that this is actually something that wouldn't take up any more EXTRA time than a job would out of my life. Since I was looking to jump back into the workforce anyway. But becoming a part of the student government at Weber would actually benefit my family & I wayyyy more than just going out & finding a job to help supplement our income. The money that it frees up with my financial aid would make up for it & it would look GREAT on my resume. But that's not all. . . . .my constant desire of wanting to get more involved with missionary work is now about to become fulfilled. Maybe not in its entirety, nevertheless I am so happy about it. Being able to run for one of the positions in the student government and if I'm appointed, opens the flood gates for me to get involved with the students at Weber as well as getting involved with the community through volunteer work. :D UOILA!! And though it hasn't happened yet, I am THRILLED to be working on my application at this time in hopes that everything will work out for the best. :D

There are a myriad of things in my life that I KNOW for sure need some STEEL-BUILT bridges to fill in the gaps, but I'm thankful that this is a part of our mortal existence. That these experiences are necessary for our eternal progression & I'm gonna take it one day at a time. :D My only hope is that we can all strive to be more Christlike by bridging the gaps in our lives for by so doing, the Lord has promised us in 3Nephi 11:39 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, that this is my doctrine and whoso buildeth upon this buildeth upon my rock, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against them."

Date Night @ Sundance. . . .

2011-01-27T12:30:00.006-07:00

Last Friday, Hoko & I decided we needed a night out. Since our move out here to Ogden, we've really been spending a lot of time as a family, or in other words, with the kids. :D Which is always great, but we always need to be able to rejuvenate & spend some time out with each other to keep the flames lit!! Hahaha. . . .

Well, we thought it a great opportunity to head up to the Sundance Film Festival in Park City & go star gazing!! :D Hoko decided to invite his parents & we picked them up & headed east. When we got there, it was PACKED!! I loved it!! We parked near Main Street & got out & just started walking the streets. Lol. We were trying to let our noses lead us to a restaurant of our liking. Or smelling, in this case. We found a Japanese steak house so we went in, but the wait was an hour and a half. Not good when you have four starving POLYNESIAN adults!! Hahaha. . . . .we continued to walk around & window shop. Then we got to the BING Bar, which had people lined up outside trying to peep in & catch a glimpse of any of the MANY celebs that were inside. I heard one lady say that she saw Reese Witherspoon. I knew that Ryan Seacrest was in there cause I follow his twitter & he had been tweeting from there all day. Unfortunately, we didn't see any celebs. :( And since it was a spare of the moment, no prior planning, type of a date, we didn't think to purchase any tickets for the showings that night. Well, not until we actually walked by one of the theaters it was showing in. And even then, we didn't know where to start cause we didn't wanna end up watching something that we had no interest in.

So we just kept walking around & just enjoyed our surroundings. We had a blast!! I do have to give it to my mother inlaw!! She hecka worked MAIN STREET with her stiletto boots as if she was sportin' some tennis shoes!! Hahahaha!! It was CLASSIC!! :D

We ended our night out with dinner @ Benihanas & it was DEE-LISH!! :D We had an AWESOME time with them & look forward to many more. :D

SUPER READER. . . .TO THE RESCUE!! :D

2011-01-12T20:53:00.002-07:00

Monday afternoon I got a call from Polu Marie's teacher saying that there was gonna be a 'Celebration Assembly' on Wed to recognize some of the students & their different achievements. She said that Polu was one of them being recognized for her 'SUPER READING' skills!! :D She also asked me if Hoko & I would be able to make it. I quickly replied YES!! :D Then she went on to explain that Polu didn't know about it & that it would be a great surprise for her. I thought it a GREAT idea. So we kept it a secret from her & showed up to her school to cheer her on once they called her up & she got her award. It was AWESOME!! We love our little SUPER READER & hope that she continues to excel in her education. :D

An Interesting Morning. . . . .

2011-01-12T08:37:00.003-07:00

This morning started out as every other morning has since we set our goals for the New Year & have been successful with this 'ONE' in accomplishing it. And that is. . . .to read five chapters in the BofM everyday. It's been such a blessing in my life. And more than that. . . .being able to do it with my two oldest children. Aaliyah & Lote.

We started the book of Jacob & a couple of verses really popped out to me. I quickly highlighted them & put today's date on it. The 'date' thing was a suggestion from our Bishop in sacrament two Sundays ago. So that in future, when we come across these verses, it will remind us that at that time in our lives, those verses meant something more to us than just reading it. It popped out to us in our lives on that specific day. I loved that suggestion & have since been putting it into practice.

When we came to the end of chapter two, I told the girls to look back at verses 28 & 31. They read: 28)For I, the Lord God, delight in the chastity of women. And whoredoms are an abomination before me; thus saith the Lord of Hosts. 31)For behold, I, the Lord, have seen the sorrow, and heard the mourning of the daughters of my people in the land of Jerusalem, yea, and in all the lands of my people, because of the wickedness and abominations of their husbands.

I explained to them that verse 28 is very important. That the chastity of women is the way we, as daughters of God, keep ourselves clean. Not just physically, but mainly spiritually. Clean & pure thoughts. Because if our thoughts are clean on the inside, then our outside appearance & everything we do in our actions are naturally clean. I explained to them how verse 31 talks about the Lord being so unhappy with the Nephite husbands that are not being faithful to their wives. The things they are doing are hurting their wives & the Lord is very much aware of it for there wives cry to him in prayer.

Because of the fact that I have four daughters, I am very concerned for their well-being. I know that it was the prompting of the spirit that led me to point out those two specific verses & make sure that they understood the meaning thereof. After we finished up, they put their scriptures away & started getting ready for school. While I was fixing Lote's hair, she started to tell me how Aaliyah said that Bryant is always staring at her boobs. A kid from school. Mind you, my little Aaliyah (as I'd like to think of her), is only 9 yrs old. But she is developing very early. And yes, does wear a bra. Goodness. . . .she's only in 4th grade. And as exciting as I am to be watching her grow before our eyes, it's a very scary thing for me to know what new challenges are brought forth with her growing up so fast. She's always been really mature for her age & now that it's making itself known thru her outward appearance, it's really starting to set in. My babies are growing up at a rapidly increasing speed & I better be able to keep up or even be a couple of steps ahead if I hope for them to succeed in this lone & dreary world. Well, Lote goes on to say that Aaliyah said she likes having big boobs around boys. :( And she's saying all this while Aaliyah is sitting right across from us denying the whole thing. Lote keeps talking as if Aaliyah isn't in the room. When she's done, I calmly explain to Aaliyah that that isn't good. That it isn't something to take lightly either. I refer back to that very scripture. Jacob 2:28. How that is part of the chastity of every young woman. And that through the actions/thoughts that she portrayed, the Lord wasn't happy at all with what she was thinking about or doing. And neither was I. Lote si'i went on to say that it's because guys might do something to hurt us. I agreed with her & continued to explain to Aaliyah that we are not to use our bodies to gain an advantage or for attentions sake. I reminded her of the covenants she made at baptism & also reminded her that she's at an age where she is accountable for her own choices she makes & that she'd do well to choose the right. Aaliyah looked down, shame plastered all over her face. Quietly said okay & got up to get the rest of her things ready for school. My hope is that with the teachings Aaliyah is taught here at home as well as in church, she will pull through this way of thinking & realize the truth in all things & where true & everlasting happiness lies. My humble prayer as her mother is that she won't fall for the temptations of the devil anymore.

This is just ONE of the many examples I have of just how much the BofM has blessed my life in being able to rear my children in the right direction. I'm not naive to the fact that my kids act differently when Hoko & I aren't around. But my hope is to instill in them integrity that they may be able to learn from their mistakes & not 'fall' into Satan's grasp. That they may be the kind of people that act as if they're parents were present all the time. Because in truth, our father in heaven is ever so present in all that we do.

This is what made for 'AN INTERESTING MORNING' in our home. I love my family & am grateful for the Lord's hand in my life. :D

Sila Turns FIVE. . . .

2011-01-09T20:33:00.005-07:00

We celebrated Sila's 5th birthday today. It was great!! :D She received an early birthday present from her grandma last night. Two beautiful new church dresses. :D They're GORGEOUS. :D We're so grateful to loving grandparents who make sure to let their grandkids know just how much they love them. And no. . . . .it has nothing to do with the material things they buy for them. But EVERYTHING to do with the way they make them feel. The time they spend with them. And willingly.

I will be forever thankful for parents who lead by example by raising us up in the gospel & teaching us that FAMILIES will always be PRIORITY over anything else. Being able to celebrate the birth of each our children is always such a special occasion. For they are an ENORMOUS part of the kind of people we choose to be & become.

Sila has always been my MOST strong willed child out of our half a dozen. And literally. . . .since birth. Since the day I brought her home from the hospital, she clearly let me know what kind of personality she had. When she was unhappy with anything, she screamed her lungs out!! And her voice was so piercing!! Like pierce your ear drums type of cry. It used to drive me nuts cause it used to scare me & I would check everything to see if something was wrong or hurting her. We quickly found out that she was just a 'DIVA' & when she was pissed, it wasn't pretty. Lol. But with that came a very caring young child. She has the BIGGEST heart & when she sees others hurt, she's quick to offer comfort. Especially with her baby brother, Savou. She loves him dearly. When he was still an infant, she used to smother him too much, but now that he's growing into a toddler, SHE'S his favorite. He follows her around the house all day long. :D It's the cutest thing.

We love our beautiful Sila. She's growing up too fast. As they all do. But I'm happy to have memories to reflect back on & hope to continue to make more.

From This Day On. . . . .

2011-01-02T00:10:00.005-07:00

"Fear not; only believe. This is a time to make resolutions that will be binding upon you. This is a season to set standards that will hold you to the right course and make you happy now and in the years to follow." -Gordon B. Hinkley

2011 has arrived & I'm plenty EXCITED for all it has in store for my family & I. This is the first year we're starting off without my parents & it's definitely different. Our New Years Eve was spent amongst our family & we were so happy to ring in the new year with the ones we love. We didn't get home until after 3 am. I stayed up & wrote my goals down in my journal for the new year. It's something that I've always done because I truly believe that setting goals is the first step to achieving them. It's the following through part that requires quite a bit more work.

This year I took a different approach to my goals. I wanted to be more REALISTIC in being able to achieve them so I thought really hard about these resolutions of mine. Life experiences over this past year really taught me what I should really be focusing on. The Lord, my family, myself & my schooling. And in that very order.

I am so grateful for so many different blessings that have recently occurred in our growing family. Nothing major in the eyes of the world, but in the eyes of parents who are striving to set examples to young children. . . . .it's MAJOR to us. Especially because they're OUR children.

So with 2011 being in full swing, those of you that know me, know that health & fitness is a really BIG part of my life. It is really important to me. I try my best to set examples for my kids by living it myself. So I was sitting at my sister inlaw's house & the kids were playing Just Dance 2 on the Wii. I was so impressed with how amazing the game is. The dance routines on there are AWESOME & seriously are what I'd wanna learn to do. Seeing how much fun the kids were having, yet not noticing how much of a workout they were getting at the same time got me thinking that maybe this was the resolution for my kids to start getting active. :D New Years Eve came & we headed to Best Buy to purchase our new WII w/the Just Dance 2 game. We absolutely LOVE IT!! :D It's such a GREAT workout!! Our eyes are no longer fixated on the clock in hopes that our hour is up. Lol. Next game on the list?? Biggest Loser w/Jillian!! I love her!! :D

I've made up some guidelines so the kids know they can't just get up & play it anytime they want. Beds must be made, rooms must be clean, homework must be complete & so forth. :D We've created such wonderful memories with it already. :D

Continuing on this note. . . . .I was able to catch Teresa's zumba class this morning & she never disappoints. It was so invigorating!! :D I needed that. :D After the class, I had a chance to talk with her & she informed me of a 'Lifestyle Change' that she's heading herself. It's called 'Five Stars'. . . .I'll post details on it soon cause I'm still waiting to get it. :D But we got to talking about nutrition & making the change a lifestyle one so that it's not just another diet type thing. Something that will last a lifetime. She said that, "What you eat, makes you thin & what you do, makes you fit." It makes total sense!!

I always figured that I'll just workout & eat whatever I want. I've never really been a BIG junk food eater or soda pop drinker in the first place. But I love getting together with families & friends & eating whatever & however much I want. It's my TOTAL weakness. Ugh. . .But 2011 has brought me to newer heights & bigger goals. And I ain't gonna lie. . . . .I want a flippin SIX-PACK!! Hahahahaha. . . . . .I love seeing celebrity moms on tv that have had kids & look FABULOUS!! I want to do away with the stereotype that it's okay to be fat because you've had kids. I totally think that because of the very reason WE have kids, WE have more reason to be as healthy & as fit as we can be. :D

If I sound a little passionate about this, it's because I am. Being someone that has been in those shoes of feeling so insecure because I can't fit into anything I like. Adjusting my closet for my new SIZE clothing. Huffing & puffing when all I'm doing is playing with my kids. Not caring to see families & friends because I'm ashamed of the person I let myself become. These are the kinds of things that I struggled constantly with when my weight had hit an all time high & I found myself over 200 lbs. I fell into a bit of a depression. I stayed this way for about 10 months. I finally got sick of feeling this way & when January of 2008 hit, I got myself a gym membership at my local rec. I started running 3 or more miles a day, zumba, water aerobics, step class & anything else that sounded interesting. I cut down on carbs & ate more greens. I felt GREAT!! I lost about 50 lbs during that year.

December came & I found out I was pregnant. I was a little scared, but more excited & thrilled. There's two and a half years between my two youngest. For a while, we thought that we weren't able to have any more kids. I'd been miscarrying a lot, but the one right before I got pregnant landed me in the ER up at the University Hospital. It gave us quite a scare. I had miscarried in April & my bleeding continued on thru July. July 24th came & we were celebrating Pioneer Day at Liberty Park with the rest of our family. When we got up to leave, blood came gushing out of me & I felt so light headed. My sister rushed me to the hospital immediately & I got so sick. The doctors told me that I was EXTREMELY low on iron & that my body was having a hard time resetting itself back to normal after the miscarriage. They said I was anemic. I was bedridden & couldn't do anything for myself. On top of that, Hoko was out of state working in Montana & I felt like my WHOLE world was crumbling down. For the first time in my life, I lost total control of my body. I felt like a 90 yr old woman cause I was so weak. I couldn't, for the life of me, hold anything down. The only thing I could do was sleep & use the bathroom. I was MISERABLE, to say the least. I finally recovered & a couple of months later became pregnant with Savou.

I continued my workouts through my pregnancy. I ate healthy & had no complications when giving birth to him. He was our biggest baby, but my labor was the shortest with him. :D I left the hospital 20 lbs lighter & started working out two weeks later. I was able to drop the weight off & I'm back to my weight that I was before I got pregnant with him, but I'm still not satisfied. I'm definitely grateful, but I know I can do better than this.

I talked to my family today & everybody's on board & ready to start Monday off healthier. From this day on, we've made the decision as a family, to live a healthy lifestyle. For good. :D

The Simplicity of Walking. . . . .

2010-12-20T19:12:00.005-07:00

I love taking walks with the kids & even by myself. It makes me feel so fortunate to be alive & healthy. It is something so rejuvenating to be outside with nature & to just breathe fresh air. Who would've ever thought that such a simple act could feel so good. :D

I take my 3 younger ones on walks daily along w/our dog, Titan. They love it & look forward to it as a means for them to leave the house & get their wiggles out. :D I also look forward to it because it gives me an opportunity to burn some extra calories. Lol. Another reason is because I want my kids to be exposed to living a healthy lifestyle. Being outgoing. I want them to experience the simple things in life & know that they don't have to go to Disneyland to be happy. Happiness is found in the most simplest of things. Something else I've found that comes from our daily walks is the conversations we have. The quality time & attention they get from me & I from them. It's priceless. :D The sense of humor & unique personality of children always leaves me in AWE. They uplift me with their innocence without even trying. I love them so much.

I've always known that if you do something that makes you feel good about yourself, about life, about others. . . . .then it's definitely something worth continuing to do. And this is something I will never give up doing. When we lived in Riverton/South Jordan area, Hoko & I would drive to the Daybreak Lake & just walk it. It's a little under 3.5 miles around it & it's beautiful. Now we're here in Ogden & the funny thing is. . . . .it's just as beautiful walking our neighborhood as it was when we walked the lake. :D

Hoko's been home for a little over a week now & we've been able to take our walks together with all half a dozen kids. :D We had a little snowball fight in the middle of it. We have a 'AGE IS NOTHING, BUT A NUMBER' rule in this. In other words?? No mercy!! Hahahahaha!! Way too much fun for some more than others. Lol.

It was great fun admiring the different homes/architecture of the neighborhood as well as the different decorations people had up. Even the Christmas trees shown through the windows of different homes. I love being able to see the personalities/styles that reflect through the decor of the individual homes. We walked 4 blocks down & 4 blocks back. It started to rain towards the end of our walk, so we were kinda soaked. But we enjoyed the small talks we have during these walks which I know for sure probably wouldn't take place otherwise. I'm grateful for the simple things in life. The complicated things take up too much time & sometimes. . . .too much money. Lol. And aren't even worth it cause it's so easy to get lost in it & before you know it, it's over & you're left asking yourself if it was worth it.

Well, on this particular walk last Saturday, we had the wonderful opportunity of meeting one of our neighbors who came out to meet us when she saw Titan. She also has an English Bulldog. A girl. Same age as Titan. Her name is Ema & she wants to breed her with our lil fella. :D We've been looking into getting a girl dog like Titan to breed them so we can sell the puppies. Just a little something to make an extra income. We quickly exchanged information & we'll be hearing from our neighbor down the street as soon as her Ema is in heat. :D We're excited. The highlight of our walk wasn't just about meeting Ema, but also her owner. Who goes by the name of Tina. She just moved here as well. But from California. She seems awesome & we look forward to getting to know her & her children over time. I feel nothing, but gratitude for so many continuous blessings. I love this time of year. :D

One of my therapeutic releases?? Walking!! I highly recommend it to EVERYONE. :D

1st Annual Tu'akoi Gingerbread House Making Activity :D

2010-12-18T12:59:00.007-07:00

Yesterday we got a phone call from Fine saying that Polu wanted all of us to get together & have the kids make gingerbread houses. What was supposed to be a competition between our individual families was now turned into an activity for only the kids. Polu cancelled that competition stating that this activity should be FUN for the kids. Not the adults, I guess. Hahahaha!! So we packed the kids in the van & headed to Winco for graham crackers, all sorts of candies & different colored marshmallows. The kids had a blast picking everything out. :D Hoko & I on the other hand?? Not so much chasing them all over the store. Lol.

We grabbed a bite to eat before heading down to Salt Lake for the night. It was GREAT!! All the kids got to make their own gingerbread homes. Sila was the LUCKY DUCK that partnered up w/her dad & ended up with the BIGGEST gingerbread house of the night. :D We put all the houses together after we were all done & this was the end result!! :D They turned out great & the kids were MOST excited about getting to eat it afterwards. I'm positive that next year we, as in all the adults, will be ready & equipped with what we need to go ALLLLL OUT on our gingerbread houses. Especially Sheena & Taeao!! Hahahahaha!! Their competitive spirit kept going further & further down the drain with Hoko working right over their shoulders. LMBO!! All in all, we had great family time spent together & another memorable night to go down in the books. :D

Grateful :D

2010-12-13T01:04:00.005-07:00

Sunday always seems like the day of the week that I get to wind down & be spiritually uplifted. And when that happens, it leaves me feeling 'GRATEFUL' for God's hand in my life. And the role it plays in every aspect of it.

Hoko's been home since Wednesday night. :D And I've been all SMILES since then. I've missed him so much & I can't believe how much this guy does for me. I've had all of our home decor from our old house just sitting around waiting to hang themselves up on the walls & he comes home & gets that all done. :D It's been great. It makes our home feel so much more homier!! If that's even a word. Lol. Especially with the holidays here. We've been getting so many things done around the house, thank goodness, & I really am such a happy camper right now.

Hoko was able to attend church with us at our new ward & it's so crazy how 'small' of a world it really is. Case in point. . . .we were running a little late to church today & we start with classes first. There was only 10 min left of relief society and I didn't wanna interrupt the spirit that's always present by walking in, looking around to find a seat, & then finally getting seated so we waited it out in the foyer. Hoko, Savou & I. Sacrament was coming to an end for another ward that we share the building with. As the members of this ward were leaving, they stopped to see if we were new members of their ward & we politely shook hands with a couple of them & nodded our heads 'no.' Then one brethren came up, did the same thing, but when we said 'no' he started talking in Tongan to us. We were quite surprised, not just because the color of his skin clearly revealed to us that he was caucasian, but also cause we didn't see any polynesians come out behind him. He explained to us that he served a mission in New Zealand & that one of his companions was Tongan. Ed Hansen. What a small world!! Let me explain. When my parents decided to move our family here to Utah, we stayed with Bishop Ed Hansen & his family. Bishop being the father of Ed Hansen who served a mission with this lovely fella. :D We continued talking & before you know it?? We had an invitation to spend FHE with his family tomorrow night. We humbly accepted & now I am just so EXCITED to be getting to know more people here.

There isn't any other way to explain it, but the fact that there is a God. That He's mindful of my family & I. That He loves me. That He knows me better than I know myself. That He knows the desires of my heart. That He knows my needs even before I do. That He understands every bit my need to be able to raise my children up righteously. That He sends people into my life to remind me just how much He loves me even though He knows I can't quite comprehend His fullness. That He continues to bless my life through even the most simplest of things that go easily unnoticed. That He can forgive me so willingly & help me to do better. That He came & gave his life for me, a sinner, as the ULTIMATE example for me to follow in His footsteps & as if that wasn't enough?? That He even lightens my load by carrying the weight of the world from off of my shoulders if I so, but ask in humble & sincere prayer. He is the very reason why I am so very grateful for everything in my life. The good, the bad & the ugly. The good because it helps me to become more like Him. The bad because it helps me learn life lessons I know I need in order to progress & proceed in my life. And the ugly because it teaches me that with patience & endurance, through the UGLINESS this world has to offer, those simple principles that were taught to me because I was 'born of goodly parents,' I am now able to know that in the most UGLIEST of situations comes blessings in disguise that we aren't able to receive unless we go through these UGLIEST of experiences. And for that I am grateful. :D

It seems that there is so much to be excited for in life. So I am very optimistic for the future & feel very fortunate to have been born knowing the 'truth of all things.' May we continue to have the holiday spirits within our hearts & carry the attitude of gratitude all year long. Christmas is about much more than just presents. Christ lived his life serving others. And yet on this, His birthday, we celebrate it by giving gifts to everyone else that we sometimes forget whose birthday we're celebrating. May we all continue to remember the reason for the season. Happy Holidays. :D

Turning A New Chapter In Life. . . . .

2010-12-05T21:04:00.005-07:00

Taken outside of our new place before dropping Hoko off @ the airport to head back to Michigan :(

Today was our first Sunday attending our new ward here in Ogden. And I am feeling tremendous blessings from a loving father in heaven who I know, knows me by name. :D

When we arrived at church, I walked the older kids to primary n while I knew they were nervous, they walked in with a such a reverence that would make any parent proud & I held my breath as I turned & walked the opposite direction towards the nursery to drop baby Hoko off there. My brave little man of the house, as his dad refers to him & reminds him of his title/responsibility here at home while he's away. He was a little quiet & shy as he met his new teacher & then was shown to the toys where his eyes lit up & he happily forgot that he was in a new ward. :D This only left Savou & I. We wandered the halls in hopes of finding the relief society room, but I was distracted at the ward bulletin board in the hallway. It was filled with upcoming events, including the ward Christmas celebration this Saturday, the ward temple night this Wed, employment classes being taught to the unemployed as well as the under-employed, marriage classes being offered on a weekly basis to young married couples, young adults, & then also married couples in general. I was amazed!! While I was reading up on all these things, the Bishop approached me & introduced himself. I did the same & we talked a little bit. Then he showed me to the RS room & I was shocked. There were so many sisters in there. I quickly took my seat & was immediately overcome with such a strong spirit whose presence was in the room. The lesson was on being more Christlike & forgiving. Being more mindful of others. It was great. Then the RS President got up to close & she bore testimony of visiting teaching. She said how there are 269 sisters in the ward & only 170 heard the message last month. She pled with the sisters to please share the message with their assigned sisters this month so that everyone could feel the love of Christ this holiday season. Her testimony was so touching. Was so sincere. She had such a Christlike spirit & it has motivated me to really focus on what this Christmas season is really about. Service to others. Compassion to others. Forgiveness of others. I am truly thankful for this gospel & the examples of those around me.

There was a sister sitting next to me that introduced herself to me afterwards. Come to find out, we live on the same street & her husband works overseas so she's home with her kids as well. She gave me her number & addy in case I need anything. And then another sister stopped & introduced herself as well. She also lives on the same street & wrote her number & addy down as well. With Hoko working out of town most of the time, I sat there & was overcome with such gratitude to such a loving father in heaven who understands wholeheartedly what I go through day in & day out as a mother of six, struggling to teach my kids 'righteous principles' in hopes that we will ALL return home & continue to be an eternal family.

I was passed the attendance folder to sign my name & was in awe of the different tabs in there. When first opening it up, there was a sign up sheet for this Tues night between 7-8:15 pm for free babysitting services at the church so that parents can go do Christmas shopping. And the page after that had an email address written down asking for favorite recipes that will be put in a book that one of the sisters is putting together for the RS sisters. How awesome is that?? :D I am so EXCITED to be a part of this ward & feel so blessed to be amongst such wonderful members.

While it's always so nerve wrecking, exciting, tiring, frustrating & much needed when turning a new chapter in life. . . . .there's always the reassurance of continuing in faith believing that no matter what, if you focus an unwavering life with Christ at the center, you will always succeed. I love my husband & am so grateful for his sacrifice in providing for our family so that I can be a stay at home mom to our kids as well as a full time college student. I love him for loving me despite my weaknesses & for his continuous support in all my endeavors. He says that he doesn't know what it is about Ogden, but that he LOVES living out here. WOW!! Lol. That's definitely something to be excited about. Life is looking a little more like Christmas around here & may we all remember the reason for the season. :D Happy Holidays. :D

Wasatch Elementary Presents. . . . .

2010-12-02T23:52:00.004-07:00

That's the name of the new elementary school the girls go to. It's not exactly new, by any means, but it's new to them since the move. Last night they had their Christmas Program to kick off the holiday season. And it was GREAT!! I was so impressed by the way it was all put together & most importantly. . . .the promptness of getting the kids on & off the stage. Mind you, these are all elementary aged children K-6th grade. It was AWESOMENESS in it's fullest power. If that makes any sense. Lol. The performances were so organized, simple, but very entertaining. Here are some pics from the night. It totally got me in the holiday spirit & I'm so ready 4 Christmas!! Excited!! :D

Thanksgiving's Over Already??

2010-12-02T14:32:00.012-07:00

December is in FULL SWING & I'm still recovering from Thanksgiving. Lol. Maybe cause Hoko came home for a 4 day visit & I'm wishing he was still here. :( But I'm so grateful that he's still working & providing for us. He's in Kalamazoo, MI. Exactly 1,521.78 driving miles away, which would take 22 hrs & 26 min of driving time to get there all the while driving through 5 states!! Wow!! This is the 1st time he's working in the eastern time zone. He's been there since Sept & last week was the 1st visit home he got. :( But we had such a BLAST!!

Ugh. . . .so far

As soon as we picked him up from the airport, we headed straight to the Gateway for some much needed family time. We watched MEGAMIND, which I must add was soooo flippin' HILLARIOUS!! We loved it!! :D After that, we bought the kids some food & met up with my parents at a bakery downtown & they went with grandma & grandpa for a sleep over. Hoko & I were long overdue for an anniversary date night. After all, it was only our 10 yr anniversary that just passed in October. Lol.

Hoko asked me where I wanted to go & I immediately said, "TEXAS ROADHOUSE!!" I'm a die hard steak & potatoes kinda girl & I've been dying to try this place out. It was my first time there & they did NOT disappoint. We got their famous cheese fries as well as their complementary dinner rolls with honey butter. Mmmm Mmmm GOOD!! It was DEE-LISH!! We weren't even able to finish our main course. So we boxed it up & headed home. Hoko hadn't seen our new place that we've made HOME at, but I was so happy that he LOVED it just as much as I do. :D

The next day was Thanksgiving & our first stop was my parents house. Everything was ON POINT that I couldn't stop eating. I was STUFFED. And yet we still had Hoko's family dinner to head to. :D It was a GREAT day/evening. The kids were so full that they hella knocked out on the drive home, which made it easier for Hoko & I to sneak out & check out Walmart for black Friday that started at midnight. But that didn't last long. When we got there, there were no carts available. It was too packed to even walk around. And we weren't prepared with any kind of list on what to get and what was on sale. So we quietly turned around & walked out of the store totally empty handed. Lol. Which was GREAT for our bank acct anyway. Hahaha. . . .We came straight back home & slept the night away. :D Which was even better. :D

The next day we headed to the 'LIGHTS UP' celebration at Temple Square. Met up with my sis, Fine & her family. And they came totally equipped for the night with a cooler of cocoa that we made good use of cause it was FREEEEZZZZZIIIIIIINNNNNNGGGGG!! We had a blast as we do every year & even had the chance to run into Sister Lautaha. :D I'm so proud of her. And just the day before, we had the wonderful opportunity of running into Elder Lautaha. :D I'm truly blessed & I love my families all so much!! :D

Saturday night came & it was Hoko's last night. We decided to head to the Junction, which is pretty much the hotspot here in downtown Ogden. That place is AWESOME!! There's so much to do. Bowling, swimming, skydiving, surfing, restaurants galore, movies & more. :D We went out to eat with the kids at Golden Corral & then headed to the Megaplex 13 to watch 'TANGLED.' Another CUTE movie to add to the collection of movies we've seen this year. :D The girls LOVED it!! :D It was a GREAT way to spend Hoko's last night in town. But I'm happy to report that he should be home in a couple of weeks for the rest of the winter months that he gets to spend at home with us. :D Yay!! :D I love him so much!! :D

I'm A Big Kid Now. . . . :D

2010-11-17T22:34:00.003-07:00

It's definitely been a while since I've posted on here. So much has happened in my life & it seems that I haven't been able to find time to sit down & gather my thoughts together. Crazy how this is absolutely 'normal' for a mother of six w/half in school & the other half at home. Well, maybe it's just my 'normal.' I don't know, but somewhere in between the cracks, my 'ME' time is nowhere to be found. Lol. Anyways, moving on to what's been going on with 'US'

We've cut the chord & made the move away from mom & dad. We're OFFICIALLY on our own & happily singing the ending to the Toys 'R Us song. . . ."I'm a big kid NOW." Lol. As funny as that may sound, that small phrase holds so many truths & has so many different meanings attached to it. I prayed for quite a while on where we should relocate to. It was such a BIG step for us. I wanted to make sure it was the RIGHT one as well. When I was first looking into going back to school, Weber State University was always so attractive because of the fact that tuition was so cheap as well as housing in Ogden. But when I mentioned it to Hoko, he was pretty firm that we would never live here. Well, that has changed & this is where we are making a home for our growing family for the next couple of years. :D And I'm happy to say that it's been the BEST decision thus far.

One of the benefits that it has brought to the future of our family is EDUCATION. Education is something that has never been taken lightly in my upbringing. I grew up the daughter of a medical doctor as well as a mother that attended nursing school in Fiji. She never finished because she started a family unexpectedly. My parents are converts to the church & didn't become members until after my sister, Lote was already in elementary. They migrated us here to the states in 1989. As soon as my mom was given the chance, she went & sat for her GED so that she could enroll in college. She graduated with a double major from Columbia College with a major in psychology & a minor in business. How's that for being out of school for over 20+ yrs. And she is currently working on her masters degree in public health. She's my role model of someone who understands the importance of education. If it were for the pure knowledge alone, it would be enough & worth it for people to go back to school.

My dad doesn't practice medicine here in the states because his license wasn't valid here. He teaches in the medical assisting program at Stevens Henegar College. He's definitely a 'ONE-OF-A-KIND' instructor & anyone lucky enough to be one of his students. . . .knows exactly what I mean. He has a passion for teaching that makes him stand out so much in his field. His compassion for people & wanting to see them succeed has been carried on to his grandchildren & I am so grateful. I definitely owe it to my parents who have instilled in both me & my siblings the very importance of getting/receiving an education. We're all three enrolled & back in school right now. :D It's very humbling & I'm so grateful to be able to further my education.

It's the very reason we made the move out here to Ogden. I will be transferring from Salt Lake Community at the end of the semester & attending Weber State in the spring. I'm so excited. Weber's started a Science Moms program to help moms to teach their kids that science isn't just for the SUPER-SMART. It can be so much fun, too. I will be attending that program until June. The girls LOVE their new school. And so do I. The diversity alone will introduce them to different ethnicities & open their eyes to a more global point of view. I didn't realize how much of a blessing it's been for the girls as well when it comes to their education. When they started school here, we quickly realized that they were very behind. This new school is way ahead of where they were at their old school. And even though we're working harder to get them up to par, I feel very fortunate that they are getting such a GREAT education. I had quite the motivational talk with them on their 1st day of school. Had to pick them up & reassure them that with a lot effort & hard work put in by both them & me, we WILL get them up to par with the rest of their classmates. :D And it's been a very time consuming goal, but one that we are more than willing to take head on. :D

This is so random, but if it wasn't. . . .then I wouldn't be ME. Lol. But I'm sitting here typing away & I start to sing in my head the Toys 'R Us song & how come the ending I remember is not this 'I'm a big kid now.' Hahaha. . . .oh gosh. This is totally from another commercial & I can't remember which one. Oh well. I'll stick with what I've already written. Hahaha. . . . .

When we were moving, those were my thoughts exactly. That we were officially grown-ups. Moving on our own & really being totally dependent on each other now. No more mom & dad for the kids to run to. No more 24/7 babysitters. No more late night talks with mom about anything & everything. No more ZUMBA. :( It's been quite the transition to our new life here, but it's been one that's worth every bit of toil put into it. Our home is much smaller than the previous one so it's maintainable for me. It's much more economical in every aspect of the word. The size of the home alone has so many bonuses to it. Easier to keep clean, smaller utility bills, I know where my kids are all the time, it's cozy & warm, & most of all. . . . .it's AFFORDABLE. :D We have a fenced yard for Titan with a covered patio that his doghouse is under so that it's good to go in any weather. We have been very blessed & I'm so grateful. I can officially say that 'I'm a big kid now.' And yet I'm closer to 30 yrs old than I am to 25. Lol. I guess that saying really is true, huh?? 'It's better late than never.' :D

Off Track. . . .

2010-09-29T09:26:00.002-06:00

Off track. . . .no not the kids. This time it's all ME!! I've been totally 'Off Track' because of the flu that came & took over my life. LITERALLY. For a WHOLE week & a half. While I've always been the type of person that's always been able to see the positive in life, there was no up-side in feeling like I was going to die. Dramatic, much?? But that's exactly how I felt. This illness knocked me off my feet while @ the same time knocking the wind out of me. I wasn't able to do anything for myself. Except of course, using the bathroom. Which I was barely able to do on my own. Ugh. . . I haven't been sick in years so I guess this was my year to be HIT w/everything that I've been missing out on. I was so GRATEFUL that Hoko was home. He got sick right away because of the change of weather from the hot & humid in Louisiana to the dry & cool air back here @ home. And yet he was still up & about taking care of me & the kids. :D I love him so much. He was seriously my lifeline that I didn't know what I'd do without him. Which is kinda weird cause I'm pretty independent. I love to be able to do things for myself & to help pull the weight of our family. :D But this was not the case & it was killing me.

I'm so ECSTATIC that I've been getting better. I got to a point where I forgot how it felt like to be healthy & normal. But I'm glad it's all over. I, literally, started feeling better on Saturday. The same day that my husband got the call to head back to work. He was home for two weeks & it sucks that I was sick most of the time. :( But I'm grateful that he's working & able to provide for our family. Being in school full time, while juggling family life is so not an easy thing. But I'm grateful for the opportunity to be furthering my education, while @ the same time wondering/hoping that I'm making the right decision in going back to school right now while my kids are still so young. Always makes me think that these are the years when they need/want me the most. Once they grow up, they'll start to claim their independence in doing all things just like I did when I was growing up. :D Oh LIFE. . . .why couldn't it be more simple?? Like Adam & Eve simple. . . .wishful thinking, I guess. Well, I'm gonna take advantage of today & take the kids out for a walk in the neighborhood. :D Life is looking up & there's definitely a lot to look forward to. :D I love it!! :D