Blogging Support

A big hug to my friend Hoku. She reminded me today of my blogging hibernation. I am thankful for people in my life who lead me in the right direction and are true examples of doers and not just talkers. Every time I feel like I am slipping away, some angel always appear to put me back on track. So, thank you Hoku and angels everywhere for your love and support in so many ways!

Homeschooling

I never thought in a million years that I would be a homeschooling mama. Iʻve researched homeschooling for many years but the time was always wrong to give it a try. When I did finally decide to do it, because there is no good time,...I gave it my all.  The day I broke the news to my children that I was going to homeschool them, they swore they werenʻt going to ever talk to me again. I wish I documented the look on their faces...but, being the good sports they always are...they were willing to put their future in their motherʻs hands.
We are going into our fifth year of homeschooling. Since this is somewhat a public post and not my personal journal, I guess Iʻm supposed to write about how "rewarding" and "phenomenal" itʻs been. Truth be told, it has been that and more! I've grown so close to my children as I've come to know their needs and their concerns about life on individual levels. We've had our hair pulling days (yes, our own and each other's, you'd figure we'd be bald by now) but from 8-2, Monday through Fridays, there's no other place I'd rather be. The most rewarding feeling for me is that they feel the same...well, most of the time anyway and I'll gladly settle for that.
I'm so grateful to have made the decision to homeschool. Regardless of what anyone has to say, it's been one of the biggest blessings we've experienced as a family. I encourage those with a desire to give it a try, of your desire is true, I know you'll love it.

Sew Therapeutic

Two years ago, one of my besties introduced me to the world of sewing. Being that I didnʻt learn to cook till I was married, of course, I couldnʻt sew either. Iʻve done simple stitching here and there but never a serious sewing project with a beginning, middle and end. I started off sewing blankets and cute little hooded towels. Shortly after, I sewed blankets with more details and layers. Itʻs been a fun and very therapeutic learning process. Because of the lack of time and childcare, I am unable to attend sewing lessons. So what do I do? I go on Google and I find online lessons to teach myself a thing or two. I must say that I am pretty comfortable now with my sewing, and maybe a little bold even since Iʻve given some as gifts. I always add a little side note of precaution to the recipient to never wash the items for the seams might just untangle and theyʻll end up with a piece of fabric which then I am no longer responsible for. Thanks to sew many inspirational acquaintances of mine, Iʻve learned to sew more than just blankets and hooded towels now. Iʻve started sewing blouses and skirts too. Hereʻs a recent project my daughter and I worked on together.

Originally, this was supposed to be her blouse but after completion, she decided to give it to me. Sew nice of her:)

As you can see, I was very content with the results. I even wore it to church that following Sunday to show it off. Sew very vain!

This is me cutting the pattern for my daughterʻs skirt. We didnʻt have a pattern so it was rather challenging.

I love my rotary cutter and cutting mat. It is the foundation to all of my projects...they are sew helpful!

Her sew fed up look..thereʻs no picture to the finished skirt yet...mainly cuz itʻs sew unfinished.

This is a baby blanket we sewed for our little friend Blazeʻs first birthday. I hope he will sew love it.

My sewing partner and I started this project at 10 pm...that wasnʻt sew smart because we ended up pulling an all nighter.

The completed blanket looked sew fluffly and warm. We were sew very excited to give it to him.

I really enjoy sewing and am looking forward to many projects my daughter and I can do together. Itʻs therapeutic not because it relaxes us but because it challenges us to an amazing end result that fills both of us with a sense of accomplishment and self satisfaction.

Halloween

Halloween is so fun. Costumes, candies, parties, trunk or treats, trick or treating...so much to do in so little time. If you are LDS , your ward probably has a trunk or treating event. We love going to them because thereʻs always good people, food, fun and the best part of it all, safe candies that I donʻt have to put under a lamp to inspect for hours. Remember, five kids xʻs five bag of candies equals to, "I give up already, they should be fine" after the third bag...which means that kid #4 & 5 are eating the "just have faith" candies. Well, this Halloween was no different. Our ward scheduled it one week before Halloween. The boys wanted to do a theme of "Ghostbusters" and the girl wanted to be Supergirl, which leaves the baby in a super cute hand me down Spiderman costume. We had a blast as usual. Good people, good food, good fun, safe candies.
Supergirl, one of the guys from Ghostbusters and a super cute hand me down Spiderman.
This boy loves donuts so we figured heʻd love this donut eating contest but, "NO DAD!" was the actual words screamed before he fled from the contest scene. Look closely and you can actually see his face scrunching up ready to cry. Go figure!


Spiderman also decided not to go trunk or treating that evening. He posed like he went but he refused to go.


Another Halloween...another year....I remember Halloween being just as fun when we were younger. I hope these memories will be embedded in their hearts always. I hope theyʻll be fun parents too as they go to all these different festivities with their keikis.

My Birthday Girl

This morning started off with Dad surprising her with balloons, a beautiful single red crimson rose and donuts. Canʻt find that picture right now in my photos but Iʻll post it when I do. She was absolutely thrilled and was looking forward to the rest of her day. We even picked up a treat from Wendyʻs. The menu for the day wasnʻt going to be a healthy one...today was definitely a day off from the norm:)

The birthday girl wanted a guitar for her birthday. Unfortunately, when the FED EX guy delivered it to the door, she was right there to see it. I couldnʻt even lie that it wasnʻt a guitar. Can you see why?

It doesnʻt matter how old you are, opening presents is always so exciting.


All smiles...she strummed those strings all day long!

Halfway through the day, she found out that her Dad wasnʻt going to be home to celebrate her birthday with her because of his work. She was devastated...so...we took the celebration to his work site and had a party there...well, kind of a party. It didnʻt matter, what mattered is that she was with her Daddy and that was all it took to make her happy.

Loving her pumpkin roll birthday cake!

It was a special day for our baby girl. Sheʻs come a long way and continues to thrive to do her best. We love her more than words can ever express. She got what she wanted but to her, the most important thing was that her Daddy was there to spend her birthday with her. As her Daddy always said, "Happy Birthday Sweetheart!"

Good For You Kind Grindz

About three months ago, my hubs got really sick. Coincidentally, I just finished watching a Netflix DVD called, "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead". This video showcased a man who dropped close to 200 lbs plus just by juicing. Although we were concerned about losing some unwanted pounds, we were more concerned about our health. Both sides of the family have lost loved ones due to illnesses that probably could've been prevented. We decided that he needed to juice. He and all of us definitely could use more vitamins and minerals, fruits and veggies, you know...good for you kind grindz.
We started juicing that very week. I went to the farmer's market and bought fruit and veggies of all sorts. He went on a strict regimen recommended by the DVD. We drank our veggies and fruits alongside him that week. It was phenomenal. We felt energetic and healthy, not to mention that in less than 15 days, our waist sizes shrank to some degree.

We enjoyed juicing so much that we decided as a family to continue our healthy eating. Our goal was to live the Word of Wisdom and eat meat sparingly. Thanks to a good friend who has a wealth of knowledge in cooking with vegetables and grains, I was inspired to prepare healthier meals. Since I was already exploring veggies and fruits, beans and grain were next on the list. Some days we ate like vegetarian kings and queens and some days we drank lots of water just to swallow down whatever was on our plates. It's been three months now and as a family, we've adapted very well. Thanks to healthy friends and the internet, I've been able to create a pretty impressive cooking repertoire. Our diet is 80% plant based. We've been able to cut out meat. We're still working on the sweets, the exercise and sleep part, which by the way is all inclusive in the Word of Wisdom. It's still a journey ahead of us but it's a journey worth traveling.

All vegetable omelet.



Zucchini patties.


Stir fry...zucchini, mushrooms, carrots, and onions. By the way, pan fried in water, not oil.




Ok, I gave in one day and wanted something naughty....so we rolled all vegetarian eggrolls and fried it in vegetable oil. Not very healthy, but like cell phone plans, we believe that nights and weekends are free! You gotta have some balance in life, right?

Get the whole ohana involved...I always tell my kids, "Hey, I'm not the only one eating."


This is baby's version of egg rolls. It's rolled up alright....
Here's my girl measuring grated zucchini for our zucchini bread. We substituted applesauce for oil and cut the sugar by half.

Beating eggs...haven't found a substitute for this ingredient yet. Please share if you know. Trying to wean ourselves from consuming too much eggs.

Who let these two in? My dishwashers....

Finished product....fresh zucchini bread. Over the weeks, this recipe has actually gotten yummier each time we bake it. Maybe it's the seasoned loaf pan, maybe it's the seasoned chefs and bakers. Either way, we're having fun and learning loads about the good for you kind grindz.

Backyard Imu Project

Thanks to a very hard working husband, my children have learned the importance of work and perseverance. Through example, he has literally taught them to dig in and dig deep whenever a duty calls. My husband has worked hard all his life and continues to do so. Iʻve never known anyone else who could withstand as much pain, hunger, fatigue, and filth as he. I, on the other hand, was raised like a princess. I never had a chore in my life till I got married, yet I complained as a child about my unfair life. Absurd huh? Iʻm just glad they arenʻt being raised that way, though they probably beg to differ. Perhaps had I learned to work hard in my childhood, married life with never ending "chores" and responsibilities wouldʻve been easier to transition to.

Though my husbandʻs line of career requires him to dig in and dig deep, I actually think he secretly loves to get dirty. Naturally, on a day when he DIDN'T have to work and DIDNʻT have to get dirty, he rounded up all the kids to dig a hole in the back yard to make an imu. Hereʻs the actual groundbreaking ceremony.

FUN!

More digging! Wish I got an angle of their smiling faces...

Weʻre getting deeper! Go ohana, go!


Keawe chopped? Checked:)




Looks like some kind of ceremonial site.


Itʻs smoking...getting hot!

Cheering on the side...


Packing the kalua pig...

We've done numerous imus since its grand opening. Some for ourselves to enjoy, some to help others with fundraisers, luaus, etc... It's laborious and requires a day or two of preparation. There was the usual complaining and the countless bathroom runs. They didnʻt absolutely love digging the hole in the hot sun, hauling and chopping the wood, or waking up before the crack of dawn to check on the fire...BUT...I know they received more than the work theyʻve put in. What they got from this imu project is the worth of a dayʻs work, an appreciation for culture and a skill to last a lifetime. That is absolutely priceless, especially when you are around those you love.

Remembering Goong Goong

My dad, known to me as "Ah Ba" and "Goong Goong" to my children, passed away in 2007 after fighting two long years of cancer. During these two years of battle, I was honored to have witnessed his display of love, patience and most of all, courage. Although he was the sick patient, he was always concerned about my mom's emotional and physical stability. I love my dad. I'm so grateful for his diligence in keeping our family together. He was a dedicated provider and loving father. Since his passing, we regularly visit his grave. My mom would call a get together and we would each bring a pot luck dish. The traditional Chinese grave ceremony starts with a spread of favorite dishes and tea. Roast pork, char siu, noodles, dim sum, you name it, it's there. You can also count on smelling the sweet aroma of incense as it burns in the air. As we arrange the flowers we speak of good memories of our dad. My mom usually likes to be left alone by the grave for a while so that she can personally speak to him. We then each take a turn to bow to my dad. It is a humbling cultural experience that reminds us to show respect to those who have gone before us.





I'm so thankful for my mom who is still alive to carry on traditions like these. I hope to memorialize her teachings so that one day, I may be a source of knowledge for my prosperity.


My husband and I have always felt it was essential to display gratitude to our elders and kupunas. One way we could do this together as a family was to regularly visit my dad's and my husbandʻs grandparents' graves. Iʻm grateful for opportunities like these when we can reflect on the accomplishments of our ancestors and the sacrifices they made for us. We usually sing, cry, and just "talk stories" to them. The kids will usually take turns saying, "Remember when Goong Goong use to give us $5 each when he visited him"....or "Remember how Grandma Rubby would sneak us cookies and candies from her bedside when no one was looking?". My husband and I would share with the kids stories about our memories growing up with these great people. We always leave teary eyed feeling even more love and appreciation for them.


Here is baby putting together Goong Goongʻs flower arrangement.


He did it all by himself with little guidance.

After I am gone from this earth, I hope my children will miss me enough to have the desire to visit my grave. As they sit their and reflect on our lives together, I hope they will know that the brush of the wind is a simple remembrance of my embrace. I hope the sound of my name will fill them up with warm memories and good thoughts. I hope they will testify that families are forever and that I will only be away for a season. I can just imagine smiling down on my kids and their kids as they respectively lay on my grave my favorite spread of Chinese dishes. I hope the little ones will fight over putting flowers in the vase for their, "Popo". Although Iʻm not planning on leaving anytime soon, the thought makes me feel complete. To be loved when you are alive is one thing, but to be loved even more after you're gone is just plain sweet. I feel I have much to do, no goodbyes for me yet. So for now, we will just focus on remembering Goong Goong.

Emergency Gift Bags

As always, I can never seem to find a gift bag in the house when I need one. I have some recycled ones laying around but they're always for the wrong occasions. Whenever I need a birthday gift bag, I find instead ones that say "Congratulations on your baby!" or "Merry Christmas". If this is your case also, here's an inexpensive and practical way to make what I call Emergency Gift Bags. Start by finding an old cereal, pasta, or cake box. Here is a Kix cereal box. Cut the top off to your desired size.




And a pair of scissors. I was so happy I found mine. It was lost for over a year.

Grab a roll of wrapping paper of your choice.

Wrap your box.

Punch holes in the center to put ribbons, string, or rope for a handle.

Thread your ribbon, string or rope through the holes.

Here's your Emergency Gift Bag for any occasion. It's inexpensive, practical, recyclable, and it looks great! I wished I had yellow tissue paper but red was all I could find at the time.