Thursday, February 21, 2013

Potential Baby Snatchers

They may look sweet and innocent but they're out to steal Iosua! My parents were here for a month when Iosua was born and came out again in January and stayed another month with us. They have such a strong bond with Iousa that they wanted to take him back to Missouri with them. I debated the whole time while they were here because they kept asking and hinting but in the end I just couldn't stand to have him gone. I'm sure he wouldn't have missed me nearly as much as I would have missed him. I really do appreciate them coming out to help us and watch the kids. I watch my mom take such good care of him and it makes me think she had to of done the same for all of us 6 kids when we were wee little ones.

We have created a lot of memories with their visits over the past few years. Not only do our kids get spoiled when they're in town but even me and Josh. We came home to happy kids, a clean house and dinner most nights. If there was no dinner we would make a fast food run or find some place selling Samoan food. If it's the weekend we usually go out to eat with Olaea and Taima or my parents go out with their Utah friends or jump on the fun bus to Wendover. Late weekend nights you could usually find us playing canasta (the caliente version) w/cousin Malaela or Olaea and Taima. We have a house phone and when my mom is in town that's when it rings the most. I don't bother answering the phone half the time because most of the calls are for her. She has some nephews out here so they like to spend time with her and spoil her too. And of course there's my crazy dad who can't seem to ever bring enough pills or all of his needed medication to last him his visits here. We can't figure out if he does this on accident or on purpose. This usually results in overnight packages being sent from Missouri or multiple trips to the pharmacy. We have been so lucky to have my parents visit so often while they have flying benefits. I really do cherish these times and look forward to every visit. I'm glad that even though we live in another state they are still able to be a big part of my kids lives.


Fulfilling my Auntie duties....

I really enjoyed having Annie and Lance here to visit. My sister is raising some well-mannered kids. I hope Ezias picked up on some of their good habits. They were so polite. Anytime I would do something for them or take them somewhere they would thank me....numerous times. I really appreciated how thankful they were. Josh and I have busy schedules so I felt bad for them being stuck in our little apartment all day. So when I would get home from work I would find the energy to take them out. Even if it was only to the library or grocery store. Their last day here I came home from work and Lance had cleaned my room! Ezias says he helped too. The room looked great and I was very greatful. We love having visitors despite our small living space.
One night we went to Scheel's. It's a new sporting goods store I've been hearing about. Who knew a sporting goods store could provide so much entertainment? They had a ferris wheel that only cost $1 to ride, a playland for the kids, scenic photo set ups and a cafeteria that offered us cheap ice cream and baked goods.
Remember my newly found fear of heights? The top picture is Lance and I close to the ground where I found it easy to smile. In the picture below you'll find me with a nervous smile and my hands gripping the bar for dear life. Notice the sign "DANGER! DO NOT ROCK SEAT", well I took it very seriously. Poor Lance was a little scared at first and I was not very much comfort too him. I just told him to close his eyes and don't rock the seat. He probably enjoyed the ride more than I did. I must really love these kids!





Their last night with us we all went to dinner at HoHo Gourmet Restaurant. This was my first time and I'm a fan. I've been searching for a good chinese restaurant in Utah and I'm happy to say after 5+ years the search is over! This really is "Gourmet" Chinese food. Olaea and his family came along and they are regulars there so they showed us the ropes. They used there VIP access to a private dining room upstairs all to ourselves. The food was tastey and the company was great!


Tuesday, February 19, 2013

My Funny Valentines

These were my dates for Valentines this year!


I had a lot of fun with them too. Annie and Lance decided to come back to Utah after Vegas and spend a few days with us before heading back home to Missouri. Ezias loved having someone there 24-7 to play with him. Between school and work for Josh and work for me we didn't get to see each other all day. So I decided to take the kids ice sakting at the Olympic Oval. I had never been inside the place and it was pretty impressive.


It was a bit challenging our first trips around the rink. It took us about 20 minutes to make our first lap around with all of the falling. I actually quit after 2 laps around and decided the kids needed a walker. Good thing Annie was there to take the two little ones around the rest of the time. I think the walker helped them catch on faster because by the end of the night they were making laps in less then 10 minutes! Ezias and Lance's pants were mostly wet by the time we went home and their hair was soaked with sweat due to their helmets being on the whole time. They had fun and I had fun watching!
After ice skating we met up with Josh when he got off of work at Panda Express for our Valentines dinner! Panda is one of me and Ezias' fav places to eat. It was a good night.

Friday, February 15, 2013

More Vegas Fun

We took another trip to Vegas this past weekend. There was a lot more family there this time so it was a lot of fun. The excuse was to go to the Rugby Sevens tournament but I didn't actually go to the games. I went to socialize and try and win some money! I got the socializing part but the jackpot was not in my cards this trip. My parents made the trip, and Olaea and his family, and my sister Gese and her family came all the way from Missouri! Uncle James was also there w/his rugby team so it was fun to see him too. Josh and I hung out with him until 5am one night....can't remember the last time I've done that. We stayed at the same hotel with Gese and them so it was very convenient for the kids to go back and forth between the two rooms. It took a couple days for Iosua to warm up to Gese but by the end of the trip he allowed her to love on him. Although the trip was short we tried to cram in as much fun stuff as we could. Iosua was such a good sport and slept peacefully or sat contently in his stroller as we ran around town.



Ezias was hesitant when he first saw these guys cause they looked so real. He just kept staring at them for a while. After his dad showed him there was nothing to be afraid of he finally relaxed and jumped in a picture.



M&M World was fun. You can't go there without taking a picture of the wall of M&M's! The sweet aroma of chocolate was very strong on this floor.



I was excited to see these guys standing on the corner of the street. Espcially because Spiderman is one of Ez's favorite super heros right now. They were so nice and urged Ezias to take a picture with them. After we were done they asked for a tip! That's when I noticed wads of cash in their hands. Note to self: if we are ever desperate for money go stand on a corner on the strip in an elmo outfit and collect tips. Maybe Pocahontas? 
We were suckered again! Couldn't pass up transfomers.

We took the kids to the Adventuredome in Circus Circus....where I got to be a kid again too. I got to ride some of the big kid rides as well as accompany Ezias and Lance on the little kid rides. It was a lot of fun. I seem to be developing a fear of heights. Roller Coasters are no longer my idea of fun. This is a pic of me and Annie on one of the rides. We had a good time in Vegas. I'm really glad Josh was able to come with us. His schedule is always so busy with work, school and church. However the end of school is in his near future, so hopefully that will free him up to hang out with us more.

Kodak Moments


Ezias and his cousin Alema at church.


Ezias put this hoodie on playing around and then he fell asleep in it! Must have been nice and cozy.


Same outfit in both pics. Ezias on the left and Iosua on the right...they don't really look alike, huh?


It's never too early to put the kids to work!