Visitors! - Part 1

We've had tons of fun with visitors in February and March!  In February Nate's parents came out for a few weeks to visit and meet Manu.  We had a great time showing them around the island.

We hung out with Pa....

.... and Grammie,

waded at the beach,

hiked to Makapuu lighthouse and saw the whales spouting in the distance,

visited the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor,

and wandered through the amazing Ho'omaluhia botanical garden.

And Manu got his picture taken in the family's 35year-old traveling pajamas.  Every child and now grandchild in the family has had their picture taken in these jammies!

Grandma Peatross

My dear Grandma Jenene Peatross passed peacefully through the veil early Monday morning.  I will ever be grateful for the example and blessing she has been to me.  I know that death is not the end of life and one day I will see her again.  I am so glad to know that Jesus Christ has provided the way for families to be together forever.  

At first I thought it strange and perhaps even unfeeling that I haven't shed tears over the death of my sweet grandma.  But, while my heart aches because she is gone from me, my thoughts turn again and again to the incomparable joy that must have attended her reunion with Grandpa, her eternal companion.

Aloha oe, Grandma, until we meet again.

Christmas and a Day at the Beach

It's been awhile.  We've all been sick on and off since New Years and I'm definitely glad to be heading out of January and starting a new month.  Goodbye colds, headaches and stuffy noses!  Goodbye food poisoning!  Hello healthy family!  I think my 2012 is going to start in February.

Because I know you were all crushed not to see pictures of Manu at 5 months I'll share this gem of a photo with you:

Manu's Christmas outfit from his Aunt Candy and Uncle Josh!    Is anyone else singing Newsies?

Here's a few more from December:

Manu helping with the laundry.

Manu, Nate and I at the Laie temple.

Last week Nate finished his work for his Masters!  He did a great job on his presentation and is graduating in May!  Hooray!   So to celebrate that and Manu's 6mo birthday (he can wear sunscreen now!) we packed up and headed to the beach!  It had been far too long. 

And now it's time for the really cute stuff.  Prepare yourself.  No really, you might want to sit down.  Ready?  OK.  

Manu at Kailua beach!

Feeling the waves and enjoying a little sand between his toes!

Manu and his Daddy!

It is so different going to the beach with a baby!  We had a great time though.  The highlight for me was standing ankle-deep in the cool water with the warm sun on my face and Sam snuggled up in a towel in my arms drifting to sleep on my shoulder as we listened to the waves.  It just doesn't get any more soothing than that.  Ahhhh.

Bliss

Manu slept for 10 hours straight last night.  Oh, sweet joy!

I never thought I'd be so happy about sleep.  Waking up at 7am and realize that I hadn't been out of my bed since I got into it at 10pm was such a delightful feeling.

What a wonderful early Christmas present!

Optical Illusion

This will blow your mind.  At least it did mine.  Look at the picture of the spinning dancer below.  Which direction is she spinning?



Some people see her spinning clockwise and some counter-clockwise.  Here's the description from Wikipedia:

The Spinning Dancer is a kinetic, bistable optical illusion resembling a pirouetting female dancer. Some observers initially see the figure as spinning clockwise and some counterclockwise. Additionally, some may see the figure suddenly spin in the opposite direction. The illusion derives from an inherent ambiguity from the lack of visual cues for depth.  


 I can only get her to change directions if I stare at the bottom foot.  Even then it takes a while.  Crazy.

4 Months!

Little Manu turned 4 months old on Sunday!  This is what he did to celebrate:

Modeled his new jacket from AJ.

Slept.  (we're working on starting to sleep through the night again, and I think we're really close)

Partied it up with the Samoan ward and our friend Liu.

And for the big finale:

(please excuse my baby-talk voice in this video)

he learned to roll over!  

(unfortunately he rolls over while he's trying to go to sleep and wakes himself up, but I still think it's super cute to watch)

Happy Birthdays

Okay, let's pretend for a moment that today is October 23rd.
Happy Birthday, Nate!  I love you and am so glad that you are a part of my life.

You are an awesome Dad.  I love to watch our Manu when he's with you.  Like father, like son.

I've never seen a prouder, more loving daddy.  Manu and I are so blessed to have you.

You have a great sense of humor.

And you always keep me on my toes.  Thanks for sharing life's greatest adventures with me!  I love you!

And now, let's pretent that it's October 27th.  Manu is three months old now!  We've seen a lot of changes this month:

Manu helping with the laundry.

Manu is now enjoying tummy time!  Hooray!

Manu has also discovered his hands and loves to suck on them and whatever he can grab hold of.

And, he's still our happy little guy!  We love making him laugh with raspberries and silly noises.

We love you, Manu!