Evanson Family

Finn: Year One

2012-01-28T19:34:00.000-08:00

My Finn is one! I love this boy with all of my heart! His wispy hair and dimple chin get me every time I look at his sweet little face. We feel so blessed to have a mild-tempered child in our home to help even things out (you know what I mean). Some things about our Finn:

He loves to eat rocks and crayons

He likes to stick his finger in his Daddy's ear

He loves, loves, loves his sister, despite her brutality

He likes books, especially the kind that taste good

He likes you to belive he doesn't like the water, but in reality he just like to make a slow, calculated entrance (just like his mom)

He prefers pb&j's to cupcakes

His hair truly is like a dandelion, so wispy and free-flowing

Ice water makes him giggle

Happy Year One Mr. Finn!

Odes to Halloween.

2011-10-20T23:47:00.000-07:00

So my blog is turning into a video showcase of Kenzie singing.

And now...................for your Halloween enjoyment................I give you Kenzie, the singing witch:

Sibling torture

2011-08-24T15:26:00.000-07:00

There is something so natural about wanting to torture your sibling.

Saturdays in the South Pacific

2011-08-07T19:13:00.001-07:00

Our recent Saturdays:

Hukilau Beach
Snorkeling at Hanauma Bay

Walking down to Hanauma Bay

Alligator Pond

Random pics

2011-06-25T13:43:00.000-07:00

I know it's a little late, but I love this Easter picture we took at the mall. We purposefully did not have his picture taken with the creepy Easter Bunny character-man.

Workin the tux for Uncle Brett's wedding.Looking for flies.

2011-03-20T17:39:00.000-07:00

ssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

Vids of the kids

2011-03-04T08:31:00.000-08:00

K practicing her first primary talk on the Plan of Salvation, or as she initially called it (with her hands raised emphatically in the air), "The Plan of Celebration!"

F's first conscious smiles (with me doing a terrible job of stabilizing his head).

2011-02-13T20:06:00.000-08:00

2011-02-08T18:55:00.000-08:00

Welcome Griffin!

2011-02-08T18:25:00.000-08:00

Everything we own is PINK.

Playing coy.

2011-01-29T17:44:00.000-08:00

GRIFFIN BLAIR EVANSON. 8LB-8OZ. 22IN. BORN 1/27/11 AT 2:00PM,

KENZ AND LITTLE BRO CATCHING SOME Z'S.

DADDY WITH THE LITTLE GUY AFTER HIS BATH.

PRETTY SWEET VIEW FROM THE WINDOW. DON'T KNOW IF SHAUNA WAS THINKING ABOUT THE VIEW TOO MUCH. BUT SHE IS DOING REALLY GOOD.

KENZ IS DOING REALLY WELL WITH HIM. SHE KNOWS TO BE VERY GENTLE.

Third Birthday!

2010-10-05T10:24:00.000-07:00

Happy third birthday!

At the PCC Haunted Lagoon Canoe Ride. Kenz knew something was not quite right with these people.

Happy Labor Day...and random pics.

2010-09-06T14:49:00.000-07:00

Kenzie's favorite beach swing. Looking for crabs.

Kenzie likes to go outside, lay on the weight set, and predict the weather. It usually goes something like this: "Hmmm...I think it will rain today...maybe, sure."

Pretty accurate forecast for these whereabouts.
At the Te Manahua Maori Cultural Competition 2010 (haka competition). The makeup and costumes were intensely intimidating (the ladies wear green lipstick and thick black eyeliner to accentuate the whites of their eyes when opened wide, and the males paint their faces and blow spit all over the place), but I guess that's the whole point of the dance...to scare your opponents. Sitting in the third row, Kenzie and I were definitely scared. Teams from England to New Zealand teams came out to compete, but the Laie/Hawaii team took overall honors.

Summer in the 808

2010-07-25T17:05:00.001-07:00

So we are going on our 10th month of Summer here in Hawaii and have managed to keep ourselves somewhat entertained. Here are some of our recent Summer happenings...

Watching fireworks at the Turtle Bay Beach Resort.

Creating "Where's Waldo" Waimea Bay edition.
Stealing the neighbor's sprinkler when she isn't home.

Learning to surf.

Twirling the poi balls New Zealand style.Watching a Tahitian dance competition. Kenzie calls them the shake-a-bootie dancers and if you've ever seen traditional Tahitian dance compared to all other Pacific Island dances, you'd know why.

Wandering aimlessly around the Polynesian Cultural Center (PCC) with our season passes getting tattoos. I was worried they wouldn't have one big enough to fit around my bicep, but they managed.

Drawing sidewalk chalk stories about princesses and centipedes.

Dressing like "Little House on the Prairie" and making friends with local critters.

Wandering aimlessly around the PCC making (and shortly thereafter destroying) crafts.

Prego

2010-06-26T19:12:00.001-07:00

Due Jan 30. Anyone want to hire a new grad who is pregnant? Any takers? Regardless, we are excited (and tired and sick and tired, etc.) for this addition and hope she/he looks like Kenzie (if a girl) but with around 20% of Kenzie's intensity.

2010-06-05T20:08:00.000-07:00

This weekend we had some family in town from Idaho and were looking for some fun activities to do while they were here. About 2 blocks from our house is Laie point. The point has about 30 foot cliffs that are perfect for cliff jumping! It was a blast!Shauna jumping the point. No hesitation at all. Funny thing is there were a bunch of locals that were trying to psych themselves into jumping. Shauna walked right past them and jumped! After that the local guys kind of felt like they had to. All except one, he sat on the top and held the rocks down (weak sauce).

Me jumping the point. Notice how clear the water is. That helped because you had to aim for the sand patches to avoid the coral (I'm trying to make it sound dangerous, but there was a big patch of sand and the water was about 15 feet deep where we were jumping).

We also went to see the USS Arizona memorial at Pearl Harbor. Here is Kenz on the boat ride out to see the memorial. In the background is the USS Missouri where the truce was signed with Japan ending WWII in the Pacific.

Kenz getting a little geography lesson from a family friend. Jacob was showing her where we are but all she wanted was to to see Arizona.

Kenz at the steps up to the memorial wall at National Cemetary of the Pacific (Punchbowl). We visited the day after Memorial Day. It was pretty humbling to see the names of so many who died in the service of their country.

Snorkeling at Shark's Cove

2010-05-23T17:47:00.000-07:00

This weekend, our adventures took us to Shark's Cove, a popular snorkeling/scuba diving area on the North Shore. Here we are entering the Cove. Me sporting the snorkel gear, feeling like my eyeballs were being suctioned out of my head. Me snorkeling. I could try to tell you how amazing it was to literally swim next to fish of all shapes, sizes, and colors, but it would seem utterly unfair to the fish to do so. Hopefully next time we will have purchased an underwater camera.

Kenz found a safe haven from all the scuba guys who look kind of scary to a two-year-old with all of their crazy gear on.

Throwing rocks (my favorite bootie shot!). Also, I can't handle this swimsuit...pink and fluffy, just like she likes it...thanks Aunt Sara!

Overall a fun and free adventure. Can't wait to do it again!

2010-05-16T16:22:00.000-07:00

We went down to the point to fly Kenzi's kite. We also looked for the spot where people cliff jump into the ocean. This is the only spot without rocks below, so it must be it. I want to try it with Brett and Brad when they come out in a couple weeks. Need to confirm this is the right spot first. Thought about throwing Kenzi in to see if she came up all right but Mom probably wouldn't approve.

Here we are flying the kite. There's always a good breeze blowing here. Kenzi loved it. She wanted me to tie her to the kite so she could "fly like Peter Pan".

Happy Mother's Day!

2010-05-10T10:54:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day! Boe and Kenz made this lei for me from the plumeria tree in our front yard. This is version #2 because Kenz (surprise, surprise) destroyed the first version. What makes this impressive is that Boe had to thread each flower individually onto a thin string without breaking the delicate flowers.

May Day Celebration

2010-05-05T21:57:00.000-07:00

Waiting for the big May Day production by La'ie Elementary, held at the Polynesian Cultural Center.

I don't know why kids do this. I asked Kenz to smile "pretty" while we were waiting for the show to begin, but all I got was this cheesy grin.The show began with an introduction of the May Day Court, complete with conch shell blowers, spearmen, a princess and kahili bearer (feathered banners) representing each of the seven Hawaiian islands, chanters, a kapu carrier, royal kahili bearers, crown bearers, the King and Queen, Royal ladies in waiting, and Ho'okupu (a gift for the royalty in the hopes of receiving acknowledgement).

Each grade chose a country to represent with dance as entertainment for the May Day Court (see the Court sitting behind the performers). This grade represented New Zealand. Perfect for Cinco de Mayo, the pre-K represented Mexico. After a very energetic Mexican Hat Dance, they continued to the limbo, seen below.

Next came England and an ode to the Beatles. Some of the kids got a little crazy with the head-banging.

Arabia.

Greece

Phillipenes

America

All in all, the production may have been the coolest thing I've ever seen come from an elementary school. Most importantly, the students loved every minute of it.

Swings and beautiful waters

2010-05-02T15:21:00.000-07:00

Kenz would spend every waking moment on a swing, singing "You Can Fly" from Peter Pan if she could.

Swinging at Malaekahana Beach.A pic taken during our Sunday stroll. Of course on Sundays the waters tend to look like this.

Disney Princess Collection

2010-05-02T15:07:00.000-07:00

Sorry for yet another music video, but it rains A LOT here. So instead of singing in the rain, we sing very comfortably (and very dryly) out of the rain inside our house.
Kenz presents the Disney Princess Collection:

The mystery fruit and the mystery drawing

2010-05-02T14:42:00.000-07:00

These mysterious fruits just started showing up on a plant outside our house. They looked like they could be delicious, but I wasn't willing to bet my famous last words on it. Turns out they are a type of passion fruit ("lilikoi"), consistency like a loogie, but phenomenal tropical taste (somewhere between a pineapple, pomegranate, mango, with a hint of coconut).

Picasso would have been proud. The head kind of creeps me out. Kenz has named this abstract piece, "Lady with a Beautiful Dress".

Easter serenades

2010-04-04T15:25:00.000-07:00

For your Easter listening pleasure, Kenzie presents two bunny songs:

Gunstock Ranch Egg Hunt

2010-04-04T14:48:00.000-07:00

At the annual Easter egg hunt hosted by Gunstock Ranch.

Of course the Easter Bunny arrived by horseback.Riding the horse...skeptical at first...
Warming up to the idea... Loving it!

Strategy: Slow and steady wins the race.

The gap widening...(she kept stopping at the wildflowers and saying, "Oo0h!...flowers Daddy!")Rethinking her strategy.EGGS!!! (Gunstock uses real eggs for their Easter Egg hunts).

Egg coloring on Easter Eve. Intense concentration required.

The Dole Plantation

2010-03-31T18:36:00.000-07:00

The Dole Plantation.

Next time you enjoy a pineapple, appreciate these facts:

I always thought pineapples grew on trees, like coconuts. As a kid I remember wondering why I could never see the pineapples on the "pineapple trees" outside the Mesa temple...I just figured they were too high to be seen. Needless to say I was surprised to find this:

My new favorite tree is the Rainbow eucalyptus. The bark sheds annually to reveal the underlying green bark, which then matures to blue, purple, orange, and lastly maroon tones.
Boe's cousin and fam on the Pineapple Express.

I enjoy looking at fish in tanks, but these carp were fat, dirty, and hyperactive. That's probably why the girls were mesmerized.

Defense

2010-03-30T14:09:00.000-07:00

This is the reason my child is not yet potty trained. I defended my thesis today (sounds like I was on trial...that's kind of what it felt like). After a 20-minute powerpoint, my comittee deliberated for a few minutes and returned to let me know I had passed. I guess that means not-guilty...I am so happy...the end is near...

This weekend

2010-03-15T22:12:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things about clinicals is suturing. Some unexplainable feelings of joy (and empathy, of course) surface when a patient walks in with a laceration. I never considered myself a crafty person, but this sort of sewing excites me. A good husband would let me practice on him, but alas, he was nowhere to be found when I broke out my surturing tools this weekend. Kenzie's blanket substituted nicely and didn't complain once (note for future patients: the edges of this "laceration" were cut unevenly, which is why, they don't match up...not because I fell off track during suturing).

High surf warning this weekend. Someday when I learn how to surf that may mean something to me. As of right now, you could not pay me enough to get in waters that look like this: white=tempestuous=dangerous (beautiful though).

Beach-bummin' it at Temple Beach. Sometimes we forget we are not Polynesian and fail to lather frequently with sunscreen. First stop after the beach this weekend...to the store for some soothing aloe to numb the pain.

Cute Kenzie

2010-03-14T19:04:00.000-07:00

My daughter. I've been fostering some hostile feelings towards her and her two-year-oldness lately so I am posting some pictures of her cuteness hoping it to be therapeutic. Picking some wildflowers.

Our plumeria tree. On the other side of the fence is our mailbox, so naturally we return from getting the mail everyday with flowers in our hair.

This is an ensamble she came up with. At least all of the pieces are somewhat color-coordinated.

I survived Hawaii tsunami 2010.

2010-02-27T21:43:00.000-08:00

0600-Sleeping through the sirens.This is what those who fail to hearken look like.0700-Awake...no, that's not the tsunami. It's her hair.

Just after the sirens sounded at 6am, I walked down to the Point to see how the water looked. Things looked calm. All of the weekend fishermen (all of the cars parked on the Point) were gone about 30 minutes later. There was also a plane flying around announcing what was happening and advising citizens get to higher ground.

09:15-Though no official evacuation statement had been made, our bishop and stake president sent out a mass email early this morning for all members to evacuate to Temple Hill. As I was walking back from the Point, our elderly Patriarch neighbor was out knocking on doors to warn our other neighbors...he's awesome. We also received a phone call from our home teacher to warn us to get to Temple Hill. The Church is TRUE. Here are some of the cars parked outside the temple from the mass exodus to higher ground.09:30 (11:35 tsunami estimated time of arrival). People just waiting around to see what happened next. It was kind of like Fourth of July...hiking to the highest spot in town, people singing, lounging on the lawn, listening to music, chewing on freeze-dried goods from their 72-hour kits (I guess that part's not too much like the Fourth). Like fireworks shows, we waited in anticipation...knowing generally when things were to begin, but not exactly when or how grand.A view of the ocean from Temple Hill.

The rest is boring, fortunately. We returned home, and made some tsumani BLT's. I can only imagine what tomorrow's Church lessons will be about.

LA'IE FALLS

2010-02-14T16:23:00.000-08:00

We woke up Saturday and decided the beach needed a break, so we headed 5 minutes (literally) inland for some hiking. The preface to the hike (see sign below) was a little daunting as were the pictures posted along the trail of a hiker gone missing (see what Boe is looking at). We had already packed our homemade burritos and celery sticks and Kenz was sure we were going to see some princesses in the forest, so we pressed forward. This area was 30 min into the hike. The dead, white needles that hung on the trees and lay on the ground blurred the surroundings, creating the illusion that your eyes were out of focus. In addition to the surreal lighting, I felt like I was on a fake movie set.
This is looking back somewhere between the Scrambling Hills and Pine Forest portion of the hike. If you zoom in, just right of the mid line is Laie Point.

Approaching the Pine Forest.

The Cook Pines. Indigenous to New Caledonia and the Isle of Pines in the South Pacific.

The mountain on either side of the path is so steep the trees have a hard time resisting gravity. That's why this picture looks crooked.

I was afraid K's little brain was getting all jumbled as we treaded over the increasingly treacherous terrain, so we ditched the wagon-cart and Boe carried her the rest of the way. Kenz and I digging into the food rations.

Finally...the Falls. After two hours of hiking, I was expecting something a little more spectacular, more along the lines of Niagara.

The anticlimactic hike back home.

The Bird Man

2010-02-07T16:23:00.000-08:00

Went to the International Marketplace in Waikiki this weekend. If you make eye contact with any of the vendors they begin pitching sales in all sorts of languages, so be wary. Located within the ever so overwhelming marketplace is The Bird Man, who places one or more of his tropical birds on suspecting or unsuspecting persons for a small price. Kenzie was half terrified (keeping her eyes clenched shut), half so excited she could hardly stand it (smiling and giggling uncontrollably) with the bird on her shoulder. Of course as soon as the bird was off of her shoulder she wanted it back on.

Do you remember how good Mac N Cheese is? K would eat it for every meal if she could. Pickles are a close second.

No turtles at Lanikea Beach

2010-01-24T16:11:00.000-08:00

In the attempt to purchase a gallon of milk under $6, we made a 40 minute drive to Costco this Saturday. On the way, we decided to stop at a nearby beach famous for its Hawaiian sea turtles that frequent the beach daily. Despite going at one of the peak sighting times (late morning) the only things we sighted were signs about the turtles...no turtles...just signs. It was a little overcast, so I think they decided to stay indoors. Boe and I spent the remainder of our trip discussing the premise of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and what made it so popular despite being based on such a weird idea.

This is what we had hoped to see. The Malama na Honu volunteers set up camp everyday to make sure the turtles remain protected. When one creeps up, they place a red string around to remind visitors to keep their distance.

This is all we saw:

2010-01-16T23:10:00.000-08:00

Our house (Evanson Hale)-the cat belongs to the neighbor but the princess bike is definitely ours. I love the blue trim. The landlord(lady?) owns two units just behind ours that have roof tiles that are the same blue color but with a glossy finish. They remind me of Legos. I wish I could knock them down as easily as Legos because then we'd have a direct view of the beach.
The view from our side yard with some nice local art. Yes, that is a cactus peeking over the wall...just like home.

Your daughter is a princess if...

2010-01-10T12:12:00.000-08:00

How to tell if your daughter is a princess:

She calls an umbrella a "Belle-Rella"

She calls Taco Bell, "Tinker Bell"

She makes you put on her headbands Rambo-style, like a crown

She will do almost anything for Disney princess spaghettios

When something is too high to reach, she states "I need a fairy" (to fly up and get it for her)

She starts singing, "Someday my prince will come" every time she sees a lady wearing a pretty dress

Every Sunday you have to make a castle out of Hymnbooks for her princess figurenes to play in

She wants to wear a dress everyday...even resorting to dirty ones in the dirty clothes pile if necessary

Her dresses are named according to their predominant color and corresponding Disney princess: yellow and orange ones are Belle dresses, Blue ones are Cinderella dresses, green Ariel dresses, red Snow White dresses, and pink Aurora dresses

...all of which have led me to the conclusion that my daughter is in fact a princess.

Turtle Bay and the PCC

2010-01-03T18:00:00.000-08:00

We were honored to spend the weekend with some very generous family/friends at Turtle Bay Beach Resort on Oahu's North Shore. Along with the occasional crab, we also spotted Sean Penn eating dinner and The Hoff (yes, David Hasselhoff himself) at the resort gym. Kenz and Dixon provided Sean Penn's private dinner entertainment as they chased each other around what was supposed to be his secluded table. He was probably thinking the children's silly parents must be making some sad attempt at getting a celebrity's attention. In reality, we were just really hungry and wanted to eat, I guess at the expense of his private evening. Thanks, Sean, for being such a good sport and babysitter. I saw the Hoff at the spa/fitness center, walking at a steady pace on the treadmill, and unsuccessfully trying to balance his morning newspaper on the treadmill stand. At one point, he even tried to pay tribute to his Baywatch days by kicking the pace up to a jog, which only lasted 5 seconds. Jogging is too much of a hassle for the aging Hoff. Ironically, the gym television began playing a commercial advertising a new " Beating Alcohol Addiction." He looked pretty sober to me though (other than trying to balance an open newspaper on the tiny little treadmill stand).

At the pool with Dad

I'm guessing this beach is Turtle Beach as it borders the resort. Kenz and Dixon took every opportunity to hunt for various sea "monstors". Lucky for the crabs K and D's hunting tools were flimsy dried leaves.

What better way to spend vacation than lounging on the hotel bed watching tv with the cousins?At Waimea Bay where we did some boogie boarding. I need to practice a little more before I do that again...the waves here are pretty intense.The weekend was capped off by a trip to the Polynesian Cultural Center. The park is organized by the Polynesian islands Figi, Hawaii, Tahiti, New Aealand, Tonga, and Samoa. Each "village island" has authentic dwellings, structures, performances and activities central to their culture. In Figi, we learned to play a bamboo stick, while in Tahiti we were tattooed. I wanted to leave Kenz's TWO tattoos for nursery the next day, but decided against it.

The daily Canoe Festival. Each island (Figi, Hawaii, Tahiti, New Zealand, Tonga, and Samoa) represents their style of dance and dress while being paddled around a small lake. This is Hawaii's canoe. I think this was Tonga or Samoa's canoe At the Fiji island village after a performance. Kenz though she was getting eaten. The big guy on the right had come straight from Fiji only two weeks earlier. He is attending the Y to pursue a degree in business management. Kenz will be doing no business with him in the future.
Our luau buffet consisted of purple sweet potato salad, purple rolls, pineapple, kalua pork (they smoke a new one underground every day), teriyaki chicken, island fish, saimin (basically pico de gallo with pices of raw, lemon-marinated salmon), clear noodles with pieces of chicken, spinach, cucumbers and carrots in something sweet, coconut pudding squares, a bundt cake with coconut glaze, chocolate cake, and all sorts of tropical nectars.

Ha Breath of Life Night Show. The performances were great and the story line had some subtle references to Mormon doctrine. Kenz kept smiling and saying, "Mommy, they shakin' their bootie!" Pretty accurate if you've ever seen authentic island dancing.

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-25T15:58:00.000-08:00

Our ward party this year was well worth the drive to Laie from Honolulu. Good food (still no Mexican) and great entertainment provided by the ward members. The Relief Society sang a Maori rendition of the Twelve Days of Christmas. I was part of the "8 plants of puha" group. Here is the sheet of words we used with some helpful translation (Kenz provided the nice and colorful background...nothing is safe from her artistry here):

Christmas PJ's accessorized appropriately with a Cinderella headband and Snow White socks. Christmas dress which she has worn every day since receiving it one week ago.Boe won a gift basket at his work Christmas party that included various delicacies including this turtle. We were surprised to find... ...these hiding inside. I didn't feel right eating them, it being Christmas and all.

More Christmas

2009-12-21T20:06:00.000-08:00

Kenzie's Christmas tree. We're displaying it in the lobby of our residence. The hotel is having a contest for residents/tenants to guess how many lights are on the tree. My plan was to count the number of plugs that could be seen then multiple that by the number of lights in a standard strand, but we ended up making an uneducated guess of 850. We'll find out on the 23rd...

Invasion of the Shaka Santa. He's everywhere! This is right outside our condo rental.

Honolulu thus far

2009-12-19T10:54:00.000-08:00

Holiday Honolulu Christmas Decor. I love how Santa is riding a wave pulled by a team (pack?) of dolphins. The Shaka Santa and Mrs. Claus. Each of the figures, 21 feet tall, 15 feet wide and weighs 4,000 pounds, is lugged our annually to make appearance at the Honolulu City Lights. Kenz makes the shaka sign (“hang-loose” sign to us mainlanders) now whenever she sees or hears of Santa. It’s pretty cute.

A holiday village set up for the Honolulu City Lights.

Rides at the nighttime festivities.

Christmas trees Downtown.

Poinsettias all over Downtown.

Fire-dancer from the Honolulu City Lights parade on the night of the official city lighting

Christmas crafts at the library, all of which have since been destroyed.

At the Triple Crown surfing event in Sunset Beach.

This picture was taken before the largest waves in decades hit about a week later, making the beach access now a cliff. This dog kept coming up to us with a coconut (see between his legs) which we would throw into the ocean and he would retrieve (knocking K over a couple of times in the process).

A rainbow from our apartment view.

At any moment it is not unusual to find stray chickens wandering on the beach. If I were a bird of any sort, I'd live here too. No migrating necessary.

Our winter snowman. Some tourists from Ohio even took a pic with it. Next time I'll charge.

A beautiful sunset.

Crazy banya trees at Ala Moana Beach Park.

Greeted by some friendly faces outside the Polynesian Cultural Center. The beautiful temple.

Pineapple fields on the way to the North Shore.

Eating some Matsumoto's shaved ice in Haliewa. Not as good as Bahama Bucks in Mesa, but I won't complain. Our favorite flavor is lilikoi (passion fruit). The real die-hards eat their Matsumoto's smothered in sweetened condensed milk. The waves at Waimea Bay seem to break right at the shoreline. In 1978, Eddie Aikau, the first lifeguard at Waimea Bay and well-known surfer, was part of an canoe expedition that was following the ancient route between Hawaii and Tahiti. The canoe ended up capsizing so Eddie decided to go get help by paddling on his surfboard towards the nearest island. The crew was later rescued by the Coast Guard, but after the largest air-sea search in Hawaii History, Eddie Aikau was never located. So in his memory, the Quiksilver Big Wave Invitational in Memory of Eddie Aikau at Waimea Bay was created. As a requirement, the event only occurs when the waves reach a face height of over 30 feet, which has only happened eight times since 1985 (one of those times was a couple of weeks ago when swells reached record heights in decades!). His memory also lives on in the saying "Eddie would go".

Kenz and Dad at the beach.

At the BYU vs U of Hawaii basketball game. BYU did us proud.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

2009-10-31T21:25:00.000-07:00

If children could get drunk off candy, this is what they'd look like. Notice the smeared face paint and glossy neck from haphazardly consuming anything wrapped in a bright package.Two princesses... I guess with Aunt Rachel that makes three. I was busy handing all of her candy we had just acquired out to late trick-or-treaters. Meanwhile, she was making a deal with Dracula. Good thing Dracula wasn't up for a fight because Snow White was going through withdrawal (she hadn't had candy for about three minutes). Finally she left and Dracula had all of the candy to himself...-ah!-ah!-ah!

2009-10-12T22:22:00.000-07:00

This is the sunset at sunset beach. Pretty beautiful place.

This is the temple in Laie. They are doing some renovations so there are scaffolds up.

This is Kaneohe beach. My company had a party last week on the island you can see. It was pretty cool.

This is Pali Lookout. It is up next to the top of the mountains. This is looking down on the windward side of the island. Honolulu is on the other side.

Here is another picture from Pali Lookout. The wind really blows up there.

Kahuku CACTF job

2009-10-07T12:47:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of part of the jobsite where we will be building the Combined Arms Collective Training Facility. As you can see, it is pretty thick. Lots of dense trees and undergrowth. It's on the north shore of the island. You can see the ocean in one of the pictures below.

Batch plant for mixing concrete on site. We are so far away from concrete mixing yards that we had to set up a batch plant on site. We have two concrete trucks on site. This plant adds the right quantities of aggregate, cement and water.

Here is a look at our storage/lay-down yard up there. We cleared this area and put down a good layer of rock. One thing about this area is it rains a ton. We need a good clear area that is rocked for storage of materials and equipment.

Here you get a pretty good look of the surrounding area. This is actually a helicopter landing site that the military maintains. This is an active training area, so if anyone is injured they are taken to this clearing where they can be air-lifted to a hospital. As you can see, it is the only clear area around.

Our last hours together

2009-09-03T21:01:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures one of my childhood bff's took so Boe wouldn't forget how darn cute his family is. Check out her talent at shutterblissphotography.blogspot.com.

We are moving

2009-08-13T18:53:00.000-07:00

This will be our new home for five years. I guess it's okay.

So adios to my beautiful cacti:

And Aloha to Honolulu.

The reason for this unexpected but exciting change? Boe is starting a project somewhere in/around Honolulu at the end of August that requires a move on our part. Unfortunately, I attend a silly graduate school that requires me to stay in Arizona. Thus Kenzie and I invite you to a pity party we will be hosting for the next four months until December when our family reunites in Honolulu. We are actually excited to spend some time with Kenz's aunt, uncle and cousins while Boe is away...Kenz will have a dog to bother/torture and all the cheetohs, chocolate milk and princess movies her little heart desires.

2009-08-03T16:15:00.000-07:00

Did you know they have castles in Coronado? We were lucky enough to spend some at this one. Some of the festivities included long-boarding (I showed up Boe in this sport), kayaking, speed-boating on the Casino Royale boat, dolphin-watching, inflatable ball olympics, and enjoying some local Mexican shrimp burritos. A funny story: One of the boats docked next to the castle had a nest of some endangered bird on the top of its mast. The government won't allow the owner to move the boat until the bird leaves. Two years and many bird droppings later, the bird has decided the life of luxury on Coronado Island is quite appealing and is subsequently taking advantage of the no-eviction perk of being endangered.
Can you see the seals that were striking a pose for the camera?
In one twist of fate during our Casino Royale boat ride, a life-jacket (unattached to anyone in the boat) flew overboard. We quickly turned to retrieve the jacket when no more than five feet from the vest was a pod of dolphins. Boe's brother wanted to create a magical moment and swim with the dolphins, so he quickly jumped in, nearly missed landing on one! In my heart I like to think that the dolphins were coming to save the person (if there had been one) in the life-jacket...why else would they have surfaced at this exact moment around this exact object?

Two powerhouses four-wheeled it up Powerhouse Mountain.

Picking wildflowers in the Idaho mountains.

Something more spectacular than sparklers was happening in the sky.

Kenz getting friendly with a dog at the fair.

Buried treasure at AZ beach

2009-06-18T07:57:00.000-07:00

This past weekend weekend we spent some time at the beautiful beaches in AZ. Yes, that is water. I think I even saw a couple of dolphins. Maybe not. At one point during our trip to the AZ oasis, Boe disappeared underwater. On the shoreline at the time, I yelled out to a friend who was in deeper waters with Boe to inquire if he had gone looking for "buried treasure". She replied a very honest, "yes". Little did I know how honest this was. A couple of minutes later Boe appeared out of the water, borrowed some children's goggles from a family camped next to us, and disappeared back into the water. Did he really expect to find a pirate ship with undiscovered booty, or even better, an old football? Apparently, luck was on his side...he struck gold. His own gold, that is. You see, smarter beachgoers would be sure to remove their wedding rings before treading unknown and dark waters, but not Boe. Donning pint-sized goggles he swam back to the x-marked spot where the ring was lost and proceeded to make a number of nose-to-lake-bottom dives. I'm still not sure how he managed to locate the ring. Perhaps the spirit of Jack Sparrow guided his hand to that oh-so-valuable treasure, and perhaps Jack also lent him the courage to share his discovery with me.

Wicked...hairbows...

2009-06-15T12:12:00.000-07:00

In preparation for our attendance at Wicked the musical, we have been listening with wreckless faith to the Wicked soundtrack since Kenzie was born. Yesterday she surprised us with some sing-along during "Popular", prefacing her solo with "he coms, he coms, he coms" (trans. "here it comes!!!!!!!!") She's no Mariah Carey, but we were proud.

Aunt Sara made some hairbows the other day, Kenz was kind enough not to rip this one out.

My attempt at a hairbow.

Not the best hiding spot.

Cousin Dixon

2009-05-31T10:39:00.000-07:00

Kenz's cousin Dixon was in town from Houston, so we decided to show him a good time here in AZ. First stop in the tour of AZ was Mccormik-Stillman Park in Scottsdale. Here we rode horses (in a circle and attached to poles), burnt our skin on playground equipment, and took a train ride.

Some random hats we forced on the children.

On the flesh-burning playground equipment.

Newton's 3rd law (For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction) in action.

Kenzie is a cautious child especially when it comes to carousel rides. She holds tight lest the horse becomes detached and rides away... I don't think I'll be showing her Mary Poppins any time soon.

Yet another swimsuit.

The splash pad

2009-05-19T07:23:00.000-07:00

Playing the piano. Note the gash on her upper, outer left eyebrow...Nursery got a little physical on Sunday.

Petal pouncing.

The San Tan splash pad. This is about as daring as she got with the fountains. I think she was caught offguard with all of the children screaming spastically.

Every couple of minutes she'd take a breather on the sidelines until some little girls would grab her hands to do "ring around the fountain". Kenz soon discovered that a wet diaper is not the best thing to "all fall down" on.

2009-05-11T17:23:00.000-07:00

The Easter dress was a huge hit at church.

I went a little crazy and bought three swimsuits for Kenz, not intending to keep all, of course. Though my sisters insist little girls need approximately three swimsuits per season, this is the one that came in first place. Kenz was a good sport as I tried, retried, and then re-retried the suits on again.

A runner up in the swimsuit purchase.

Kenz now thinks she knows how to feed herself. The food ends up in a combination of the following: her lap, her hair, the cracks of her thighs, her elbows, her highchair, the floor and other surrounding areas around but not in the target.

The newest Disney princess

2009-04-26T10:06:00.000-07:00

Never though I'd say it, but I have a princess for a daughter. Kenz will line up all of the "prinches" to face her, and then smile at them adoringly. As usual, Ariel is her favorite.

What the Disneyland?!?

2009-04-20T15:27:00.000-07:00

I think I am in the Twilight Zone. I'm not quite sure what day it is. Last I remember, I left on Friday afternoon with group of high school ASL students to Disneyland. Every road trip has some great stories and this one was no exception. We left on Friday with bus driver Bobby Hitt--an old tyme country singer(check your local casino listings for playing times)--who referred to himself as the 'hitman'. Not exactly the name of a person you want behind the wheel of your transportation. Throughout the trip up, Bobby self-dosed himself some Robitussin for a persistant cough. I think a bus counts as operating heavy machinery (see Robitussin side effect cautions). Bobby is a free soul, which can be mistaken as lazy. He denied us the opportunity to use the commode on the way up...not sure why but probably had something to do with the fact that he is the bus's janitor. Despite Ricky Bobby (our new nickname for the hitman), we made it to Dland safely and proceded for two and a half days on a very faithful 6am-1200am schedule. The kids were great except for a couple trixsy ones, who were, well, trixsy.

The Aladdin show. This was one of our favorite attractions. Rachel and I were confused at the characters in electronic cruisers-like the ones at Walmart-it was a little distracting.

Apparently I am a peasant who is not allowed in the presence of princesses. All I wanted was a couple pictures to show to Kenz with anything Disney princessish. I didn't need to wait an hour with the rest of the four-year-olds and their moms for them to tell me I too can be a princess if I listen to my parents and do my schoolwork. The "gatekeeper" (I got a little annoyed at how in character some of the workers get) absolutely refused to let me take pictures over the Enchanted Forest's hedge, but here is one I snapped as Aurora and Cinderella were leaving for a shift change-only three princesses are out at a time. I think Cinderella thought she was a real princess because she didn't even make eye contact with me, a commoner. I left the Enchanted Forest wanting to have a smackdown with Dland's prettiest.

Rachel and I in line for the new Toy Story ride. Fun, but not worth the wait.

Jedi training. Apparently they only pick little kids for Jedi Training even though I know I was born with the Force. By the end, I had all of the moves down anyways, so I hope they don't miss my skills when the Sith (sp?) attack again.

This pic is for Kenz. She loves "BeeYoons".

The classic Disney pic.

The trip home consisted of Ricky Bobby's songs with the bus travelling at a pace of 25 mph. Something was wrong with the thrust something or other and we had to stop, no go, no stop again, no go again, no stop for maintenance to diagnose and fix the problem. Made for a 10-hour trip home, but a safe return was made.

So now I'm having some sleep deprivation-Disneyland exhaustion backlash and feel as though the Tower of Terror may just have transported me to the Twilight Zone.
Let's hope it's nothing permanent.

And we're back!!!

2009-04-16T09:38:00.000-07:00

Kenzie got these much needed sunglasses for Easter. The Easter bunny known as Aunt Sara also found some Disney Princess cookies which added to Kenz's Easter sugar high.

Kenzie is not the easiest to wake in the morning. We especially love her morning-do. It resembles a big ball of fluff in the back and shaggadelic on top and in front. For one who is not skilled in hairstyling, mousse has become my favorite friend. If it ends up like a rat's nest at the end of the day, at least it smells good.

Kenzie is in love with my toothbrush. I wish I could have it back someday.

Memories and garbage

2009-03-24T16:28:00.001-07:00

So remember that one time when I used to take pictures and post them on my blog? Well, things have changed due to an overly obedient child. Around December-ish, Boe and I decided to teach Kenzie how to throw her oh-so-stinky diapers in the trash. Well, she happened to master the art and we were pleased with the new trick we taught our pet. A couple of weeks later I was faithfully taking pictures with the camera to be uploaded to our blog when I became distracted by something important on tv (an expensive mistake as you soon will see). I remember hearing a thunk in the kitchen, laughing to Boe that I thought Kenzie had just thrown the camera away, and then, absentmindedly continuing with the tv distraction, assuming if I didn't retrieve it, surely Boe would. Problem is, he claims to have never heard me. You know what they say about assuming? Long story short, the ever faithful trash truck came and carried our digital card of memories away from our lives forever. Now our problem is agreeing on a camera to purchase or if to purchase a camera at all (Kenz will learn her lesson when she is old enough to realize that a portion of her life was not recorded because of her...well I guess that is my fault). Anyways, as I write way too much for school, I am not keen on the idea of spending more time on the computer than is absolutely GPA-necessary, especially if pictures are not available to take up most of the blog space.
In conclusion (again, I write a lot of papers for school and format has become ingrained), sorry to all family and friends who have been disappointed by my lack of posting. I feel an end to the disappearance is near. Keep posted.

2008-12-28T16:23:00.000-08:00

We snowmobiled around the cabin area to take some beautiful pictures of the surrounding landscape.

CHRISTMAS EVE AT A FAMILY MEMBER'S HANGAR

Ivory tusks that took six years

apiece to carve. The picture doesn't

do them justice.

Cool cars from Boe's uncle's collection. I practiced a couple of times hopping in "Dukes of Hazard" style until Boe called me a dork.

The "destroying angel" ... if you were there, you'd know why... Playing "House on Fire" which I came in dead last.

A very mini Cooper.

Once again, the "Destroying Angel". Notice the calm Baby Jesus
The setting for our Christmas Eve. Yes, that is a cow rocketing to the moon
.

Thorpe cousins.
Kenzand Aunt Rox in front of

a nativitiy from a cathedral in Germany?

This is an action shot of Kenz throwing

her first present of the season (The doll

is in midair).

First taste of snow...
...and the verdict is ...delicious!

2008-12-24T10:01:00.000-08:00

Kenzie's first snowmobile ride. We bundled up Kenz good and went for a ride together.

Here we are on the snowmobile. Kenz was a little scared of the noise at first, but she did like going fast. It was a pretty cold day, so her little cheeks and nose were turning red. She would say ouch and rub her nose. That's when we knew it was time to go in and warm up by the fire.

We got Shauna the biggest, warmest snow suit we could find. She actually did pretty good with the cold weather. Kenzie helped to keep mom warm.

Playing in the snow in front of the cabin. There was about a foot and a half of new snow. She would sink in up to her waist on her own. She liked trying to catch the snowflakes as they were falling.

IDAHO

2008-12-22T16:22:00.000-08:00

She kept dragging her left arm out of the sled and would then get angry when the snow wouldn't shake out of her glove.I could never tell if she was slipping or just trying to free herself of my hand.

Family four-wheel ride

2008-12-07T09:19:00.000-08:00

TEMPLE LIGHTS

This is one of the few times we let her out of her stroller. The Wise Men in the distance were obviously not as interesting as the rocks under the bushes.

(We are on a decilne in this picture, which is why I look so short)

She finds the oddest positions to sleep in.

2008-12-03T12:40:00.000-08:00

Kenz likes to be in the middle of anything I am trying to get done. She will sit and play on the dishwasher lid until the grabbing of sharp knives elicits her removal. More than anything, Kenz likes rocks. We try placing her on grass but she quickly migrates to any available rockpile (which aren't hard to find here). She says "ock" which we believe is rock, but the same exclamation is made for dog, truck, duck, milk, park, and bottle.
Supposed to be helping her Dad put up the Christmas lights, but, again, playing with the rocks.

A top-heavy tree: We had to make some adjustments to our tree decorating this year. The ornaments are exactly out of Kenzie's reach, though she's figured out how to get to them by way of a nearby couch. She knows she isn't supposed to touch the ornaments and always keeps her back to me when she happens to pluck one off.

2008-11-24T09:19:00.000-08:00

Christmas pics. Those poor holiday photographers looked a little frazzled due to the high customer volume, but managed some great smiles from Kenzie.

2008-11-16T09:01:00.000-08:00

For Veteran's Day we spent some time with the cousins at the Riparian Preserve. Kenz was in heaven as long as sand and dirt were involved. Here she is at the playground with a stray stuffed animal she happened to capture.At the Riparian Preserve pond (AZ has gotten pretty good at faking natural water habitats). Kenzie is troublingly fearless. Poor Quinnelly had to pull her kicking and screaming more than once from the edge of the pond. As hard and fast as she kicks when we are pulling her away, I'm sure she'd find a way to stay afloat if she were to have her way.

2008-10-26T09:48:00.000-07:00

This costume came together like it was meant to be. I don't consider myself crafty, but in a stroke of creativity, this is what resulted. The neck is a little unstable, but overall the pink flamingo was a success.

A headless pink flamingo. The feathers get a little overwhelming for both Kenz and the person holding her.

2008-10-26T09:27:00.000-07:00

How to carve a pumpkin:

1. Taste first2. Remember some cheating is allowed.
3. Manage the mess wisely.

4. Display with pride (because yours is pretty much the coolest pumpkin on the block)

2008-10-16T18:53:00.000-07:00

My sisters got Mackenzie this very pink, very princessy bike for her first birthday. It's as loud as an ice cream truck and does not have a volume button. Disney is not helping their cause with this product. Sometimes I passively aggressively hide the bike in the bathroom---out of sight out of mind. We have recently begun taking Kenz to the parks around the neighborhood. Her favorite part is sitting at the top anticipating the ride down. Once the sliding begins, she hold her breath until the very end when she lets out a half-moritified half-thrilled gasp.

2008-10-14T13:51:00.000-07:00

It's sad when you drop one of your toys through the stair rails. Her face says it all. The poor child has been neglected as of late, but my thesis is almost done. It's faces like this that make me long for graduation.

2008-09-20T17:09:00.000-07:00

Her "What are you looking at" face
Discovering that being tall has its perks
Food face
They should make this an Olympic sport.

I tried and tried to rotate this video but had no luck. Here she is playing the piano. She smacks my hands down when I try to play with her, so she is on her own in this video.

2008-07-30T11:24:00.000-07:00

Our trip to Idaho:

Fourth parade-short and sweet

Fourth softball tournament-fractured my arm

Night of the Fourth-Evanson fireworks show...pretty amazing with some wayward fireworks that cinged some family members' shirts

Evanson cabin-beautiful scenery

Sun valley-missed a chance to meet W. Buffet and B. Gates, but enjoyed the weather, scenery, and Mexican food

Stanley, ID-family renuion, beautiful Sawtooth Mountains, tried tabouleh (Greek salad which I tried to recreate and completely failed)

Rockin the 80's

2008-06-27T11:46:00.000-07:00

This was an old vest of my niece's. We had to complete the outfit with some makeshift 80's accessories. If only her hair were long enough to be crimped...

Kenzie making noise

2008-06-17T19:04:00.000-07:00

Kenzie loves any opportunity to make noise

2008-06-11T17:43:00.000-07:00

Side pony.

First ponytail

2008-05-31T11:29:00.000-07:00

She sits up great, but refuses to crawl when rolling to her destination is much less exerting.

With Great Grandpa at the cemetary on Memorial Day.

2008-05-19T20:56:00.000-07:00

The view from our swamp tour.

Plenty of crawfish. A local noticed us struggling to get the meat out and kindly gave us some pointers.
Kenzie on the plane home. She has become quite the seasoned traveller and especially loves that no carseats are involved with the airplane thing.

2008-05-19T20:25:00.000-07:00

Inside Antoin's--a restaurant famous for its Oysters Rockefeller. Our banquest room was decorated with old King and Queen of Mardi Gras artifacts.

With Aunt Helen on the Steamboat Natchez.
Downtown New Orleans from the Steamboat Natchez.

NEW ORLEANS

2008-05-19T19:50:00.000-07:00

Canal Street and the Mississippi were visible from our hotel window. We experienced some pretty stormy weather during our stay. Kenzie claimed her bed early on.
Dr. Tuft, DDS and family.
Uncle Heber, cousin Dixon, Kenzie and Dad in the French Quarter.

Teeth

2008-05-19T19:39:00.001-07:00

Hopefully the rest of her teeth aren't as sharp.

Canadian family

2008-05-11T14:01:00.002-07:00

Boe's Canadian cousinsGreat Gma Evanson, down from Canada.
Sun-bathing. UV protected, of course.

2008-04-22T12:02:00.000-07:00

Family pictures

2008-04-13T19:59:00.000-07:00

Here is the building. We are finishing up the exterior and are just getting started on the interior. We are about 3 months away from being done. It is going to be a pretty cool building when we are finished. When you come down to visit we will go see it.

This is the parking garage. It is pretty much done. We have to put the permenent rails on the stairs and paint them and then we'll be done.

First ball game

2008-04-13T13:51:00.000-07:00

The surgeons at work shared these season tickets with me. Kenzie was mesmerized until the bottom of the fifth when she reached sensory overload and crashed. Even the fireworks during home run celebrations didn't wake her. The kid has her dad's sense of sleep.She made many friends with the fans around us, and managed to get a death grip on a man's finger sitting next to Boe (a nice man whom I considered trustworthy). I wondered how long he'd last and was surprised to clock him at around 4 minutes before he released her grip. Some things are just too cute to let go of.

2008-04-03T19:57:00.000-07:00

Just thought this was a cute picture.

I was busy writing a paper when I turned to find her asleep like this.
A new toy borrowed from a friend. She initially started with one leg, but soon discovered that two are more effective.

2008-03-22T10:32:00.000-07:00

This was one of cousin Quinn's old Halloween costumes. She kept trying to eat the ears but was unsuccessful, looking sadly like a dog chasing its tail. We didn't edit out the red-eye for a more life-like effect.

Sparkly bunny ears

2008-03-13T08:32:00.000-07:00

It rolls!

Walker pics

2008-03-09T13:58:00.000-07:00

She looks pretty cute in pink.

And Cookie Monster thinks he eats a lot?

Breaking in her Summer hat

2008-03-02T14:47:00.001-08:00

2008-02-17T20:56:00.001-08:00

First hike, fell asleep

2008-02-17T20:55:00.001-08:00

2008-02-07T12:49:00.000-08:00

Frost in AZ. Boe managed to collect enough to make a "frostball", which he was so excited to throw at Mackenzie and I.

2008-02-07T12:46:00.000-08:00

mmm....food

2008-02-04T13:11:00.000-08:00

She found her toes

Going on a walk and eating rice cereal

2008-02-02T11:17:00.001-08:00

2008-01-22T09:58:00.000-08:00

Boe spelled Hollywood wrong in the last posting. Sorry for any confusion.

Disneyland Christmas

2008-01-05T07:24:00.000-08:00

Here she is in Holleywood land.

This is just after a free-fall section of Pirates of the Carribbean. She was pretty surprised!

Baby Mac with her pirate mommy.

It was a pretty cold day, so we had to keep her bundled up. She loved the rides.

Main Street USA

Outside the Tower of Terror. We didn't take her on this one. We figured a 10 story drop would be a little too much for a 3 month old. Maybe next year!

Merry Christmas! She loved to sit in front of the tree and stare at the lights. She would sit there for hours just trying to figure them out.

Here is a cute picture of her eating her dinner. She likes to rub her face while she is eating; it's just started in the last few weeks.

2007-12-17T08:19:00.000-08:00

Not convinced about the swing yet.

Smiling.

You've heard of Jabba the Hut. We call this Slobba' the Hut.

Thanksgiving in Georgia

2007-12-05T08:27:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures from our Thanksgiving in Georgia. Not much of the scenery...mostly her...

SERIOUS BOTTLE SKILLS

YOU KNOW WHAT THEY SAY...

A BOTTLE TODAY, A BASKETBALL TOMORROW...

STICKING OUR TOES IN THE ATLANTIC (IF THIS WERE A CLOSE-UP, YOU COULD TELL HOW UNPLEASANTLY SURPRISED SHE WAS)

FINALLY...A SMILE!

NOT SURE WHAT WAS GOING ON HERE. MAYBE SOME GAS?

2007-11-06T18:49:00.000-08:00

2007-11-02T10:59:00.000-07:00

Here are some new pictures of the job. Steel is going up right now. We will also start erecting the parking garage next week, so I'll have to post some pictures then as well.

2007-10-21T11:05:00.000-07:00

The blessing dress.

2007-10-13T13:34:00.000-07:00

2007-10-02T11:38:00.000-07:00

2007-09-30T16:56:00.000-07:00