"Da" plays soccer

Chris works A LOT and hard.  He does not get to enjoy Hawaii the way Helaina and I do.  Actually, he doesn't get to do a ton outside of work.  Fortunately, he just recently was able to begin playing soccer again.  They had their first early game and Helaina and I were able to go and watch.

Well, at least we were able to go.  Containing a 15 month old, especially outside, is not a task that I have mastered - nor do I think I will ever.  Good thing she will only be this age for a bit :o)  We attended the game and pointed out all the airplanes and dogs that we saw.  All the red dirt mommy didn't want her to play with was found and she immediately began asking for the dinner she knew I had packed.   During one of the timeouts I had to ask Chris what the score was, as I was unable to even keep up with that.

What matters most is that she had a great time and so did Chris.  The team captain showed the Hawaiian Aloha and introduced us to the team.   I'm grateful that after much searching, Chris is able to do something that he loves to do and that will keep him in shape enough so he can keep up with Helaina when she decides it time to kick the black and white ball around.

My handsome man, especially in black!

Go airplane, doggy...I mean daddy!

Turtle(s), Helaina's first 2 syllable word

How fitting that just a few days ago, Helaina put together her first 2 syllable word "turtle."  Shortly followed by her 2nd, taught by Auntie Ro, "purple"  Anyhow, we went to a small beach that is not well known by lots of tourists or locals.  Besides being exclusive, this beach boasts a gorgeous views of the leeward side of the island and is a small cove where the water is not rough at all as it's protected by a reef.  (good for a 15 month old still getting her sea legs).  This beach is also right next door to Chris' project.  We were pleased that he was able to take a few minutes from his schedule to come visit us!

I LOVE this beach for many reasons.  It was the first beach that Chris and I went to when we moved to the island.  Albeit I was as big as a house but still enjoyed it.  You may have seen the pictures on FB.  It was also the first place I saw sea turtles in Hawaii and almost always has them when we go.  (except when my mother in law went with -- Sorry Mom, maybe next time).  This day was not particularly sunny so the water doesn't look as blue but it was nice to have some reprieve from the sun.

This was Helaina's third time seeing the turtles (yes she's spoiled and does not know it) but really the first that she has been aware of them.  We got REALLY close, in which she would insist but then dig her legs and arms into me and say 'no thank you'.  We repeated this process for quite some time until she got comfortable.  Then mommy got scared.  I just kept thinking that her toes dangling in the water looked a lot like something a turtle might think was a tasty snack.  They can be 'aggressive' and have bitten people before.  We continued to watch but you can see the concerned 'that turtle could bite my baby' look on my face in most of the pictures.  Auntie Ro did a fab job of capturing the real moments.  She then shared her apples and sunglasses with Helaiana afterword.  It was a great day.

"Lefty" who is missing a flipper

Turtle copping a feel

Apples with Auntie

Helaina Onassis

Easter Weekend, Aloha Style

Happy Easter to everyone.  We hope you were able to enjoy family, food and fun.  We also hope you had time to reflect on the greatest blessing of all and the reason for this holiday.  Helaina and I attended a very Hawaiian Good Friday service where most of the songs were sung in Hawaiian.  We celebrated Easter Sunday at the church we have been attending since we moved here.  After church there was a pot luck in which we ate 'Choke Food' (Hawaiian slang for a huge amount of food) that was 'So Ono' (really good) it 'Broke da Mouf' (really yummy).

On Saturday night Chris, Helaina, and I walked down to the beach, which is about 5 blocks, and had a picnic.  We grilled out with the Hibachi grill that was also gifted to us by the Gerichs when they left (yes, I'm still sniffling).  As a lesson to myself, don't ever go to the beach without a swimmie and a bathing suit with a one year old, even if it's late in the day.  Helaina tried several times to get daddy to take her in the water.  He tried to explain that we didn't have her suit and so she abandoned his hand and tried to go herself.  Fortunately, she wasn't too persistent but we will be prepared for next time.

On Sunday night, I was eager to not cook again so we picked up Thai food from this little hole in the wall place that makes pretty good food and went to Kako 'Ako Park.  It's a great park right on the ocean and it was busy but not too crowded.  We watched the sun set and reminded ourselves just how grateful we are to live in this beautiful place and how very blessed we are that HE is risen.  May God bless you and your family.

"dis" way daddy

return trip.  mission failed.

poser on the beach

Sunday Night

Some bunny went riding

In the area we live in, there is not much need for a car.  That works out good considering Chris and I share a car, which he drives (far - 50min) to Ko Olina so that we can live in an area that is good for us.  Helaina and I walk A LOT.  Our stroller has more miles than a lot of people's sneakers.  We love it.  Sometimes, for further trips, we take the bus.  I would say falls more under the classification of "we don't mind it."

This past week, we added another option for mode of transportation.   Helaina has her own luxury bike seat that is attached to the beach bike that Chris and she gave me last year.  She loves it and looks super cool in her bunny helmet that the Gerichs girls gave us as a parting gift (sniff.)  We test rode around Ala Moana park the first day and went to the beach.  Today we ventured a bit further to a play group at Kaka 'Ako Park which is about 2 miles for us.  Not too far but were getting used to riding together.    Things went well and we are looking to exploring more places together.  I personally am waiting for her to get used to the bike enough so I can ride and she can peddle.  I keep you posted on the progress.  For now, enjoy the pic's.

Look mom, no hands

does this make my head look fat?

Were going out there?

I'm not sure how I feel about that

Alright, lets go!

Sailing,........takes me away............

Many people think that because we live in Hawaii, we are out sailing, snorkeling and surfing everyday.  **Special Note*** I'm not complaining. I know we have a sweet lifestyle that we would not have living most anywhere else.   Helaina and I get to go to the beach whenever we want and hike volcanic craters quite often.  The weather is perfect almost always here.  However, it's not often that we get to do some of the beach excursions that you would normally partake if you were visiting Hawaii.  It's not that different then living in Orlando and trying to explain to the rest of the world that you don't go to Disney every weekend.  Most excursions are expensive and most of the weekend is often spent doing the exciting stuff like cleaning and grocery shopping.  Also, Helaina hasn't quite mastered some of the water sports yet ;o)

That being said, we took advantage of Living Social coupon and a very gracious babysitter this past weekend (Mahalo Jo Anne), and Chris and I went sailing on a catamaran.  It was beautiful.  That is an understatement but I am having trouble coming up with the words for the pristine aqua blue water in which you can see clearly to the bottom.  We were also blessed to see some whales pretty close up.  That was a special treat as it is towards the end of season.  With our 3rd anniversary coming up, we couldn't help be reminded of the sailing trip we took for our 1st anniversary in Sarasota.  Both trips were great.  This time we didn't even loose the camera.   Hopefully we will get to indulge in more 'Hawaiian' experiences to share.  Stay tuned for a Stand up Paddle (SUP) adventure that I'm trying get together.

Yup. That's a Coors and a Shaka

Champagne.  Only the boats finest.

Mama and a baby whale

Bit's First Pizza

We have adopted a fairly healthy lifestyle, especially with food.  Don't get me wrong...  Chris and I love desserts, dishes with heavy whipping creams, and an occasional hamburger not to mention my addiction to chocolate is quite notable.   However, when I started making Helaina's food, it prompted us to eat more on the healthy side than we have ever for our daily meals.  We have explored Lentils, enjoyed more all veggie dishes and become a big fan (thanks again to Megan) of Quinoa.  We are almost exclusively eating the same food as Helaina.

The operative word here is almost.   One of our newest fun, not so great for you foods is Costco Pizza.  It's good.  That sounds like a simple compliment but I am an Italian from Jersey and I'm calling this good pizza.  **side note, this could also be the affect of living on an island with not too many authentic NY Italians making pizza.  Anyway, We get the 5 cheese kind and scrape off 7/8th's of the cheese.  (it amazes me that they sell these with soo much cheese and I'm sure not everyone is scraping it off!)  Normally, I put vegetable topping's on mind so I feel 'good' about eating pizza.  This past time I was short on veggies so I went for broke and topped it with Bacon.  It was fantastic.

Not wanting Helaina to feel left out, I made her a miniature pizza with a pita crust, tomato sauce, zucchini, chicken, and topped with some cheese.  All organic, of course.  She LOVED it.  Although that's not surprising because the only food we have found her not to care for is olives (daddy's girl).  Below is a couple shots of our pizza's together and a moment that captured her devouring the pizza.  Someday she will nosh on a real pizza with us but for now, I don't think she minds.

You know your mouth is watering

In an Italian accent "She lika da Pizzaaa"

Inspired by my friend Megan

My friend Megan has an incredible and informative blog!  Her stellar writing skills and humor (as seen above) entertain and keep her family/friends posted of the whatnot's going on in their life.  Incidentally, she comes from a lineage of master bloggers.

Unfortunately for me, Megan, her husband and her beautiful little daughter (that you can't really see in the middle above) moved back to Idaho last week.  I should have started this project when she was around to guide me through and give me some pointers but here we are.  I don't have high expectations for this to compare to the 'master blogger' (as I am dubbing her).  However, I do hope it will help me document the life of our quickly changing Helaina and keep us connected with our fiends and family, most of which are quite far away right now.  Lastly, this will hopefully be quite cathartic in my 'mourning over the loss' of my dear friend who inspired me to make a blog among other things.

We have been keeping busy with the Children's museum (where the above shot was taken), a couple mommy groups, music classes and lots of time with 'auntie' Rochelle and 'auntie' Jo Anne.   My boss lady is waking up from her nap so stay tuned for some updates and pictures.