The boys, lately...

Jackson and Max have done a great job keeping us entertained and on our toes through this trip.

Currently Jackson:

• Is making these ridiculous, sometimes hilarious, sometimes annoying "Five-year-old noises"
• Talks about himself in third person sometimes
• Likes to wear the same superhero shirts as Daddy
• Does not want to attend the praise and worship part of children's church.  He is less than enthralled that anyone would even think to invite him to dance and lift his hands.
• Is an Awana Spark.  The first time we went to Awana, he got a little anxious, but this week was much better.  The theme was "Water Fun Week," which they had for game time, after people were baptized before coming to Awana.  He came out of club just glowing and stating how much fun he had.  He also made me very proud, as he learned who some of the kids in his class are and seemed to have chatted with them.  
• Is more willing than ever to get into the pool and swim under the water, nose plugged and goggles on.  He has been asking for a pair of the goggles with the nose cover, which he will get for his upcoming birthday.

Max:  

• Can turn on the water works faster than I can say "Water works." 
• Makes Mike and me laugh even when he is being super disobedient.
• Almost always looks like he needs a haircut.
• Can make himself burp on command.
• Still loves to run around naked, requiring Mike or me to repeatedly tell him to get dressed.  This is something to work on (or work out of him), as we now have close neighbors and a doorwall at the back of the house.
• Is still Mr. Cuddly with his Mama.  We are wondering how much his world is gonna be rocked by this new little guy!
• Is a little wild, dancing man at the praise and worship portion of children's church--the exact opposite of Jackson.  Totally hilarious and wanting to make sure he is doing the signs for the songs just the way the teacher does them.

Both of them:  

• Had a blast at the beach!  The love the sand as well as the ocean. 
• Are excited about being here in Hawaii
• LOVE running around in the empty space of the house.  Mike and I almost feel a little bad filling up our house with furniture and turning off the joy that they have had in the open space.  

Moving in...

After our tour I was actually ready for a day in with the boys. Mike had to head into work on Thursday and also head to our unofficial house to give it a look through. He ended up being able to get another appointment for that day and sign the lease. WHOO HOO! So, we officially had a house on Thursday, but we could not move in until Friday because the place giving us loaner beds, couches, and a kitchen table was not scheduled to deliver until Friday. And who wants to sleep on the floor right?

We ended up taking a load of stuff over to the house Thursday night though, a trip which had a dual purpose. We took the stuff over, but the boys and I wanted to see our new house too!! All we had gotten to that point was a description from Mike and we were all excited to get to see where we would make our home for the next few years.

The house feels SO big!! We were eligible for a 4 bedroom because of the new baby. All the bedrooms are upstairs as well as our first linen closet ever, lol. Mike and I have a master bath and so the boys will have their own bathroom. That will be a change from sharing with them the past two years. A welcome change I think! Downstairs is another half bath, nice big kitchen, family room, dining area. There is another big space, which is tile rather than carpet, which we will be using for our school area and my scrapbooking. I have a huge laundry room and there are two big storage closets too. This Mama is SO ready to be organized and set up!

We also have a detached garage and a nice big patio leading into a small-ish backyard. The yard opens up to a nice wide area where the boys can run around as well as play on the little play structure that is right there. Down the street is a bigger playground and a splash pad. Apparently the splash pad goes out quite a bit, but we enjoyed playing there a few days ago so we will enjoy it again when we have the opportunity.

A Tour of Oahu

Last Wednesday, Mike signed us up for a bus tour of the island. We didn't go all the way around, but we did feel like we saw a lot in the span of 3.5 hours. Jackson and Max were able to come along. Good thing I had a backpack full of snacks. They did really well, although, they both became tired and each took a little snooze. The bus did not have very good air conditioning and it became pretty hot in there by the end of the tour.

View of the skyline from just outside of base, on the bus.

Yes folks, that is an ice arena. I guess I could have brought my skates to Hawaii after all, lol. We were a little surprised to find an ice arena here, but then, yesterday, I saw a little figure skater that lives on our street.

Honolulu

Better view of the city of Honolulu

The Eternal Flame memorial, burning since December 7, 1944. It was built to remember the attack on Pearl Harbor, completed and lit 3 years later.

A view of Waikiki Beach from the bus. One of these days, after our van arrives, we will head over there and see what all the fuss is about.

View of Diamondhead Crater from the beach down the road.

I cannot remember where we were here. We went up into the mountains to some kind of lookout place, where it was cool and very windy. Jackson and Max thought the wind was the best part and wanted to stay in the windiest spot they could find. Apparently, this picture does not quite capture how windy it can be up there sometimes.

Over the past few days we have explored what is close to us. On Saturday afternoon, we drove by the beach and put our toes in the sand before heading to church. Hickam has it's own private beach for military, which is awesome. It is clean and the water is WARM compared to the Atlantic Azores ocean!

Church was awesome. Haven't had worship like that since we left our old church in Oklahoma and the message was good too. Then, to top it off, the boys both came out of children's church saying they had a great time.

Sunday we took the boys to Awana Club at the Chapel. This is the program we were so involved in at Lajes and really have a heart for. The program here is HUGE compared to our first experience with it at Lajes. Mike and I both went with the boys to their classes so we could check them out. Max was a little clingy at first, but once they got started on crafting, he came out of his shell. Jackson had a good start too, but got a little overwhelmed with games. They bring all the Sparkies together for games, and there must be about 50 kids together for that part. I am not sure if he has ever been with that many kids at one time! He sat out for a bit, but the group ended the night with a lesson. He had memorized his verse (John 3:16) in order to earn his first study book and at the end of club night he showed that book to me, so proud.

Since we will be homeschooling, I really want the boys to have some opportunities to socialize and to make friends. We made it through our first opportunity for that and we will just keep going back!!

Monday we went on a trip to the beach and then for anniversary lunch at the restaurant right there, Sam Choy's Island Bar and Grille. This beach is so nice; soft sand, warm water, and good company. We had fun, even without all the beach extras, like chairs and sand toys!!

Belly shot at 23 weeks!! I have never before had to wear/purchase a maternity suit. Can't avoid that in Hawaii!!

Silly boys, growing up

Jackson and Max are growing up. Makes me really glad I am having another baby!! This living in close quarters is leading to more rambunctiousness than I thought possible for the two of them.

This is them, being completely silly playing around on the bed in our room. I would think the people below us think we have a herd of cattle, the way they jump down onto the floor. I have the tendency to be able to tune out the noise, but Mike... he is more sensitive to it and so, he just took the boys out to the pool for the second swimming round of the day. Quiet time for me: posting this with "2 Fast, 2 Furious" on the TV. I think I will always love Paul Walker, lol.

I keep forgetting to take my camera out to the pool and get pictures of the nice area we have for swimming, but I will before we leave. I also need to document the boys swimming progress. Today, Jackson started swimming under the water with his nose plugged with goggles on!! He is still hesitant to swim above the water, but I know this swimming under the water was a huge step. He will soon realize how easily he can float and keep himself up. Max is using both a pair of water wings and a circular floaty. I feel much more comfortable with them at the pool knowing he won't take the wings off and he doesn't sink with them on.

We ran some errands this morning and got everything set up for the move into our house next week!! Mike found out that we were already top of the list on Monday and we said yes to the house they offered us right away. It is in the newer area on base and has a garage and 4 bedrooms. We can get the keys on Friday, but our stuff won't be delivered until the following week. We set up loaner furniture for the time between. So many positives to being in our house--I don't even know where to start!!

Homeschool Days and Hotel Living

Arriving to Hawaii was like taking a load off in some ways. We very much enjoyed our time in Michigan with family, but there is something about moving around and sleeping in different beds so many nights that eventually wears on a person. So, while we are still living out of suitcases here, we have been able to unpack a little bit. The lodging here is quite spacious, especially compared to where we stayed in the Azores. The only thing missing is an oven, but I can deal with that. We'll just order pizza instead of buying a frozen one!

We had thought that we could be in lodging for as much as 30-90 days, so I packed some of the things we would need to get us started with school: workbooks, reading books, devotional books. I have discovered that I did not bring enough white paper and no scissors; easily remedied though, with a trip to the exchange (the base "Target"). I wish I had more of our crafty stuff available, but we are making due. The boys seem to be enjoying these simple mornings. They wake up and have a little TV time while I get myself mentally prepared for the day and wash my face. In my dream world, I would wake before them and have some quiet time. I think that might be possible once we get into a house, but... if I look back on other times I have tried to wake early, I remember it happens sometimes, but not always. As a mom, I have learned, you gotta roll with the punches.

Then, we dive right in. We are working with an old Awana Cubbies Character Builders book as a devotional/morning Bible lesson and Scripture verse. It is a simple book, but they like the activities and I like that the ideas for craftiness are right there. We do different things every day, but always have reading time, where I read to them from a chapter book. We recently started one of "The Magic School Bus" chapter books and both Jackson and Max LOVE it. I like it too, as it is providing some exposure to different science ideas. The current book is "The Search for the Missing Bones" and we are learning about a few of the bigger bones in our bodies, what attaches them, what they look like from the inside. And written for kids!! No effort on my part to try and make it simple for them.

A Change

Hi from Hawaii to all of our friends and family!

We have arrived here. A while back, I had thought of changing this blog into a spot where I can tell the story of our life here in Hawaii. Today, in talking to my sister, I have decided to actually get on the ball and do it!! Right now, I don't have any pictures of Hawaii, but I hope to take a few from where we are staying right now, in a hotel not far from the base.

We left the Azores August 11th, 2013 and headed to Michigan for 27 days with our family. We enjoyed our time with them. Jackson and Max and a BLAST with their cousins this time around and I know they will miss that kinship with each one of them. Grandparents spoiled them with time, attention, and superhero stuff!

We were blessed to be able to meet my sister, her husband and my niece for dinner in Baltimore during the layover we had there before our flight to Michigan.

Jackson and Max got to see their cousin Jacob, who is 7 months old. Jackson got some good practice in for being a big brother! Max did too, but I never got a good picture of him with Jacob. He is the goofy one where pictures are concerned.

Grandma and Grandpa Clemens took us to the Henry Ford Museum for an afternoon of learning about planes, trains, and automobiles. I can't remember the last time I was there! The boys and Cayla all had a great time flying paper airplanes with Grandpa, who considers himself a paper airplane expert.

We spent time with my parents too. During that week, my dad taught Jackson how to play "The Clown Song" on the piano. It was so fun watching them together and even more fun to realize how fast Jackson picked it up and how much he liked it. Piano lessons, here we come!

We also got pictures with all the cousins, except Lili (who was in the first picture). From left: Marijane, Max, Hunter, Jackson, and Pennilane.

We visited the Toledo Zoo with Grandma and Grandpa Clemens, Aunt Laura and Jacob, and Auntie Cara. Grandpa took the boys on a carousel ride. And, a parking lot shot with Auntie Cara:)

I got to see one of my best friends, initially for her baby shower. Then, she went ahead and had the baby, so another best friend, Cara and I headed down to Ohio to see them. What a blessing to be able to be there and meet precious Grace!!

The trip to Michigan kept us busy for sure! It was wonderful to see family and friends!