Blowing P's....

This next post is really about thoughts or events that begin with the letter P. I decided to name it "Blowing P's" after the adorable sound my hubby makes when he's sleeping. It is a hard sound to descibe, but if your husband does it then you know what I'm talking about.

Phillipines and Proposal...

Kelly's cousin Dave recently came to visit us with his girlfriend Terrell. It was really great to meet Terrell finally, and spend time with them. The trip was also special because while they were here Terrell went from being the girlfriend to the FIANCEE. The proposal took place on Gun Beach while we were hanging out. The best part was Terrell had NO clue it was coming! Earlier that morning we had all gone out to breakfast and Liam found some fake tattoos in a candy/toy machine. He wanted to get one, so Terrell found some change for him to buy it. She then thought it would be funny to get one for herself. The one that came out of the machine was the BEST most TRASHY one!!! It was a glittery white tiger with red roses all around it!!! I don't think we could have dreamed up a tattoo that would've been more white trash. She put it on her arm before we took off to the beach! So in all their engagement pictures she has a white tiger tat on her arm!!!!! That story will make me laugh for the rest of my life! I love it!

After they got engaged we decided to take a trip off island with them. We had some complications come up so we weren't able to go to Bali or Palau. I then starting talking up Manila. Kel and I had gone before and it was great. Not really a trip where you stay a long time, but definitly a GREAT shopping trip. I got Terrell all excited about the fabulous shopping we would do when we got there. Our first morning in Manila we headed off to the flea market with the amazing finds and... IT WAS CLOSED!!!!!! I seriously think it is the only time they have ever closed! I couldn't even believe it. And it wasn't going to open until the day we left! While I was super bummed Terrell and Dave just laughed it off. It was actualy a blessing in disguise, because we had to find something else to do. So many people had warned us to never venture out of Manila because it was so dangerous. Well I don't know what those people were talking about... we ended up heading south of Manila into the country side checking out a gorgeous lake with three volcanos in it! It was really beautiful and it turned out to be a lot of fun.

Those are pictures of one of the volcanos we saw and the town near the lake. For a last minute trip it was a lot of fun. The only problem was my packing job - I packed enough for the kids but not enough for me. I always have to repeat my clothes and strip layers off as they get dirty. One day I will be a professional packer... anyway... here is more of he trip...
These next pics are from the inside of our JEEPNEE! Jeepnees are the public transportation vehicles in the Phillipines and they are pretty crazy to ride around in. But we found the art and stickers inside to be entertaining...

The last picture, I put it last for a reason. I just want to say how happy I am for Dave. Terrell is an AWESOME girl! I love the picture below because it totally is her. She is a gorgeous girl, but she is also really down to earth, not afraid to be silly or look stupid. I had so much fun with her and she bonded quickly wth our kids. I'm so happy for Dave that he found someone like her. She is going to make a PERFECT addition to the family!

Picture Perfect... YEAH RIGHT!!!!

Last weekend I took the kids to our branch's Easter Egg Hunt. The hunt was at a beach park Saturday morning. I'm not very good a taking pictures, so I thought I would dress this kids up cute and take some pics of them that day. Pictures of kids hunting for eggs are always so cute and sweet. Well mine started off cute and sweet...



The next thing I know is Arie has picked up a butterfinger egg, squished it all up in her hand and then wiped it all over her outfit!!!! I picked her up to get her away from the candy and then I had chocolate all over my white shirt!!!! Too bad a didn't have on extra layers that day! Needless to say, this is how my picture perfect angel left the Easter Egg Hunt...
Proactiv...
I have considered myself to be lucky in some ways. I was able to glide through my teenage years without getting acne. I was surprised it happened that way. My Dad told me horror stories of awful his skin was in high school. My brother and sister both had acne as teenagers. I was lucky. I already had scaly psoriasis all over my scalp, neck, and arms. I was glad to not have zits too. I enjoyed much of my young-adulthood with relatively clear skin as well - then I got pregnant with Arie! My pregnancy with Arie was fun in some many ways (that sentence is LOADED with sarcasm), and one of those ways was with horrible acne! I kept telling myself it was due to hormones and it would be over in nine months. Well right after I had her I had an even more severe breakout. My skin never really healed and I continue to have breakout after breakout after breakout. I have finally come to terms with the fact that I have the dreaded...dun..dun...dun ADULT ACNE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I've complained about it a lot and tried several different things. At Terrells recomendation I decided to order Proactiv. After I placed the order online, I waited impatiently everyday for it to get here. Two days ago it arrived!!!!!!! I went through the package and found an offer inside. If you sent in your "before" pictures you could be selected to get free Proactiv. I'm not a girl who passes up a free offer, so I immediatly had Kelly come in the bathroom and take some seriously unflattering pictures of my teenage boy face! I feel like I've already humiliated myself enough with the black-eye picture, so no, I won't be posting the pictures. But I hopefully in the next month or so, if proactiv does what it claims, I will post some "before" and "after" pictures. if any of you have ever tried Proactiv let me know if it worked for you.

Pigtails...
Arie is getting so big with each passing day. She is totally insane too. She is super sweet and also gets in TONS of trouble!!! I swear all I do is follow her around picking up messes behind her. Or I'm constantly swatting her hand for doing something dangerous. She definitly keeps us on our toes!
Lately she is really starting to look older. Every now and then I attempt to fix her hair. I'm not very good at things like this. All I can do to my own hair is blow dry it. I've never been able to french braid or do updo's. I have almost mastered the art of pigtails though. The other day I went to fix her hair and i couldn't believe how much it had grown! She just had a hair cut two months ago! I put her pigtails in and her little curls were long and wild. Liam kept saying she looked a ROCKSTAR!!!!

Thanks Tiffany - I was bored...

10 years ago......
I was in .... 10th grade at Cy Creek HS
My BFF was Jessica (still is) and my family had just gotten our sweet little puppy Thor (you wil be missed Thor RIP)

5 things on my "To Do" list:
1. DO THE DISHES!!!!!! It is so bad I'm embarressed!
2. Do the laundry - it seems like that is ALWAY on my to do list.
3. Pick up our transmission from the airport!
4. Help Liam pick up the toy room ( i cant wait unil Arie is helping too)
5. Eat something!

5 Snacks I enjoy:
1. super salty edamame
2. no bake cookies
3. ice cold Dr. Pepper ( nothing is better than this)
4. popcorn with tabasco sauce
5. Easter candy - I can't wait until it is gone so this is no longer a temptation for me.

What I would do if I was given a billion dollars?
1. Pay tithing
2. Pay off all our debt!
3. set aside money for my kids to go to school and live comfortably (they will till have to have jobs though)
4. go back to school and get multiple degrees in all of my areas of interest
5. Let Kel retire so we could spend our life traveling together and doing humanitarian work in third word countries.
6.(I had to add one more) set up state of the art clinic and home in Country of Jill's choosing so she start her dream of saving the children of the world!

5 places I have lived:
1. Houston, TX
2. Lubbock, TX
3. Phoenix, AZ
4. Hilton Resort Guam
5. Yona, Guam

5 jobs I have had:
I HAVE HAD SOOO MANY JOBS ITS NOT EVEN FUNNY!
1. TCBY
2. Telemarketer (that lasted about 3 hours)
3. Waitress
4. Apartment leaser
5. MAKEUP ARTIST (can you tell that ones my fav?)

5 things people don't know about me:
1. I broke my neck once
2. I have a crazy fear of sharks and being murdered
3. I LOVE LOVE LVOE watching Shark Week on the Discovery channel
4. I burn incennse in my house all the time ( and no Kel and I aren't smoking doobies, I just love the smell)
5. I have a small fear a flying - but that will never stop me from seeing this beauitful world!

Thinking...

I've had something on my mind for a while. The last time we were in Houston I had the fabulous opportunity to spend a little time with Saba. If you don't know Saba, he is my sister-in-law Allie's grandfather. For those of you who have never met him you are missing out. I absolutely adore him!!!! He is so loving. When I see him I'm usually with Sean and Allie and their boys. Saba always kisses his great-grand kids and he also kisses my kids. He loves his family so much and treats his friends just like his family. He is a true survivor. Not only did he live through World War II. He is a survivor of the Genocide. Being a young Jewish man in Europe he suffered horrible conditions. I don't know his entire story exactly, but I do know that his survival is a miracle and a blessing. He and his wife are true survivor's of a horrific time. Every time I'm around him and I hear him give "grandfather" advice to Allie or Sean, I secretly pretend its my own advice. In my mind I've signed the adoption papers and I've made him my own grandpa. Both of mine are gone, and I'm sure they like the fact that I've found a temporary replacement. If you can't tell... I LOVE THIS GUY!
The last time we were in Houston, Kel and I went to his house. While we were sitting at the table he pulled out a book that he and his wife Sapta (SP?) are featured in. The book contains biographies and pictures of the Holocaust survivors that live in Houston. I flipped through the pages staring at the faces of these people who had been though things I can only imagine. Things I hope I never have to know. Horrific things that are going on in other parts of the world right now to new generations and new groups of innocent people. He was showing me pictures of his friends in the book, and telling me little pieces of their story. Looking through the book, I started to go through the emotions of feeling sad for them, but blessed in my own life, because I have never known that kind of pain. Saba put his hand on mind and he looked my in the eye. His eyes are so full of love and kindness and experience. He told me as his eyes filled with tears, that life is a blessing, everyday is a blessing. He told me to always appreciate the blessings in my life, to love my family, and to tell them I love them, to appreciate my friends, to stop worrying about the small stuff, to stop worrying about if there was enough money or not, to live everyday for now and not for what I think will be in the future. He told me over and over that life and every day is a blessing, because neither one is a guarantee.
I wanted to memorize word for word everything he was telling me, because he truly speaks with experience. He knows the feeling of not being sure if you have tomorrow or not. Everything he said rang true for me, and my own way I already knew those things. He reminded me of them at a time when I really needed to be reminded.
My Dad suffered a major stroke when I was 17. Ever since that night my life has changed. I have lost count as to how many times I've seen the inside of an emergency room. I wasn't there because of a cut finger or dehydration (OK once because of the finger). I was there because my father was on his death bed. Countless times I found myself in my car flying down the freeway towards the hospital, wondering if when I got there my Dad would still be alive. Every time I would go home and walk in my Mom's house if my Dad didn't immediately appear, I would be scared to walk around the corner and find him on the floor. If it wasn't me going home, I would stress about my brother or sister finding the same situation.
I've watched my Dad go from being the smartest man I know, the most eloquent speaker, the most moving writer, the wittiest man alive; to becoming almost like a child again, someone who struggled for a year before he could say my name, and someone who had a library of books that he could no longer read. Watching his mind deteriorate has been painful to watch for everyone that ever knew him. I never thought I would see my Dad the way I've seen him for the past 7 years.
Right after his stroke I was angry and sad and every other possible emotion. Every morning that I woke up I would sit and think for awhile.. "Had I dreamt all of this?" And every morning I would wake and realize yes this is my life, yes this is my Mom's life now, this is Zach and Jill's life.
About the 5th time I had to rush to emergency room changed things for me. I think it changed my whole family. We became used to the not-knowing-what-was-next feeling. Instead of dreading in our mind an invented future problem, we became grateful for what we had right then. We no longer sweat the small stuff in life. We knew what it was like to have something go seriously wrong, so it made every other problem in life seem small and insignificant. Actually it made us KNOW that all those things in life that once plagued are minds were really nothing but a waste of time and a waste of emotion.
Through all of the bad came something so great! It was FREEDOM! Freedom from worry and from the unnecessary. I can actually say that I'm much happier person now. I look at my Mom and my brother and sister and I see the same realization. My family would be quick to tell you that as a child and a teenager, I was well, dramatic. I got my feelings hurt very easily. I thought EVERYTHING was a BIG DEAL. I stressed out easily, I worried about everything, and I invented things to worry about if there was nothing. But thankfully I'm free of those things.
Sometimes Kelly or one of my friends will get annoyed when I don't get upset or stressed about a particular problem. It isn't that I never worry anymore or stress. It is just that now I'm able to look at every problem and say "I know there are worse things in life." A lot of Moms when they are pregnant are emotional to say the least. They think of everything in life that could possible be wrong with their new growing baby, and they think of every possible danger too. My philosophy is "I'm not going to stress, until the Doctor tells me too."
I haven't survived a concentration camp, or feared for my life day after day. Saba has truly been through more than I will probably ever have to face. But what I've experienced in my life has thankfully taught me those lessons. I know that every day is a blessing. Allie said in her last post that she wants to be present at every event in her life. I want to be present for my life as well. I don't want to look back at my life and regret anything. Every moment should be seized. Most people at the end of their life will not wish that they had saved more money, or worked harder at their job. Most people will wish they had spent more time with their family. Most will wish they had taken that trip to Europe with their kids, even though it made things a little tight. Most will wish they hadn't wasted years of their life getting stressed about things that don't matter. Most will wish they hadn't gotten offended by something small, because those things don't make relationships grow. I'm so grateful for the long talks I was able to have with my Dad for my first 17 years. For the stories and cartoons he made for me. For the Daddy-Daughter dates we went on, and all the Shirley Temple's I slurped up. I'm so grateful for the time I had with him when he had his whole mind. But I wonder does he sit in his chair now and wish he had done more. Does he wish things were differently. Does he wish he hadn't gotten so upset over certain things?
I needed Saba to remind me to seize the day and to truly LIVE life. Sometimes I find myself mulling over the petty things in life. Sometimes I find myself stressing about things that will end up working out over time anyway. Or worse... stressing about things I can't control!!!! There is no BIGGER waste of time than that! I'm so grateful I had those few moments with Saba to bring me back to reality.
Now I need to go hug my husband and son because I lost my temper for no reason! Maybe I need Saba to call me everyday and remind me of how I should be living life!

Our boy is finally a man

I don't know how happy I am about this post, but it was really important to kelly that I post it, because he was so proud.
Let me tell you about Liam's first leap towards manhood...

Kel was sitting on the couch about to turn the computer on when Liam walks up.
In his sweetest possible voice he says, "Hey Daddy, pull my finger."
Of course Kelly does, and yes, Liam toots.
They both die laughing.

Yes, yes, our little guy has mastered the art of farting on command! We are so proud (well at least Kelly is).

Nice one Al...

I want to do this....

CHECK THIS OUT!!!!!!!! I have dreamt of flying my entire life. I've always thought that if you can't fly in Heaven then I don't want to be there. Well now people are making it possible to fly on earth! I really need to grow some you know what and try this.......

BALI BALI BALI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have hesitated with writing this blog. The reason is because I don't think my words and our pictures can do it justice. Before we went to Bali all of our friends and neighbors kept telling us how great it was and how it would be my favorite place. They built it up so much that I went into the trip thinking that it would be fun but it probably wouldn't live up to what everyone had said about it. I couldn't have been more wrong!

Bali is so magical and so amazing. I hate to even start describing it because I just don't have the vocabulary to really let everyone reading this know how wonderful it is!!! I seriously can't go on enough about it. The people are deeply religious and spiritual and very devoted. There whole day is devoted to their religion and I loved seeing a whole cultural really embrace that and live it. The Balinese people are also very friendly and trustworthy and hardworking. They work so hard and they are so humble and happy. The island itself is incredible. Rain forest everywhere!!! When there wasn't rain forest there were rice terraces everywhere!!!!! To see the rice terraces in person was incredible. I think they are the most beautiful form of landscape. Functional, but also done with careful thought, to compliment nature and blend in. The buildings and homes are also built in this way. They want there homes and buildings to be built with nature and water in mind. Everywhere you go and everything you see is so unique. the whole time we were there Kel and I just kept looking at each other and saying "I can't believe we are here!"

We were also lucky to have my Mom on the trip with us. It was a lot of fun to have here there. Liam loved having his Momo there and she was such a huge help with the kids. Kel and I got to go out alone one night!!!!!! We never get to do that on our travels so it was a great treat. My mom was there on a mission to shop for a client. That made it fun because we got to shop for things that we probably wouldn't have made the effort to look for if we were there without her. There is sooooooo much art in Bali it is amazing! I love the Balinese culture!

I want to warn you that there are going to be a million pictures!!! Sorry, but I couldn't leave any out! I'll try to go in order of what happened on our trip and I will try to not ramble. But I also will not leave any details out...

The flight from Guam to Bali is about 5 hours. We arrived in Bali about 10 pm Thursday night. Here is Momo and Liam and me waiting in the passport line


We stayed at a little hotel just outside of Ubud the first night. This is Arie enjoying the front porch of our cottage These are some statues that were in the dining area where we ate breakfast. I think they are a cool example of the different types of Balinese art. These are a typical start to the Balinese breakfast... fruit plate and ginger tea! SOOOOOO GOOD!
After breakfast and a run to Internet cafe we had the hotel driver take us to seem some art at a museum. The art was beautiful but the property around the museum was the best. Here are some pics...



Next we went to the Monkey Forest. It was really cool. You are in the middle of the rain forest, with beautiful fountains and a stream running through the middle of it. You can buy bananas at the beginning and the monkeys will come right up to you and take them out of your hand. If they think you are hiding food from them they will climb on top of you to get to it. My mom didn't like it because she thought the monkeys had lice and would hurt her!!! She's so crazy! It was a lot of fun. The other great thing was that the whole jungle smelled like incense because the ladies were walking around placing offerings everywhere.



Kel and Arie got really close with the monkeys. Arie was never afraid. I spent the whole time taking pictures and trying to get Liam to notice that monkeys have thumbs, and that they look just like us. My mom made fun of me and said that was a little too deep for a three year old.



Next we were lucky enough to meet a new driver. His name is Sukaya. Not only was he a great driver who spoke really great English, but our trip ended with him as our friend. The Balinese people are very friendly and always willing to help. When we would go to eat and the kids were getting restless they would just walk up and pick the kids up and walk them around so that we could enjoy our meal. After the monkey forest Sukaya took us to a nice place to eat with a beautiful view. Liam crashed out as soon as we got there.


The next day was my favorite day! THE ELEPHANT SAFARI!!!!!!!!!!!! Ever since I was a little girl I have wanted to have a pet elephant. This was a close as I'll ever get, and it was really good. A little background on the elephant safari... Elephants aren't native to Bali. And Australian man that lives in Bali heard about the elephants struggle for survival in Sumatra. Do to rapid deforestation and a farmers laying out poison, elephants are dying by the dozens in Sumatra. This Australian man decided he could help. So far has brought 27 elephants to Bali and he now runs the elephant safari. He was already a wealthy man so the money the park makes goes right back into the park for the elephants, and also for the hope that he can bring more to Bali later. We rode on the elephants, walked through the water on them, took our pictures with them, fed them, watched them do a talent show and enjoyed a really great meal at the end. Liam also got a really big kick out of it. He rode on an elephant named Boris, and Boris just happened to be in the talent show. Every time Boris would do something in the show Liam would clap his hands really loud and yell "Yeah Boris! That's my boy!" It was hilarious! The baby that is in a lot of pictures is named Debi. She is five and is the youngest in the group.














Here are some women carrying their loads on their heads and here is a pic of convenience store we past in the jungle.
The second hotel we stayed at Ubuad was really beautiful. It was two stories. The bottom floor was a HUGE room and bathroom where my mom stayed with the kids (thanks mom) And the top floor was a beautiful room and bathroom and a balcony. We also had our own pool. They cleaned the rooms twice a day and at night they would give a turn down service. They would putting the mosquito netting all around the bed and put flowers on your pillows. It was s uch a peaceful atmosphere. Here are some pics of us eating breakfast on the upper balcony, and some pics of our room. It was heavenly!
That day after breakfast our ddriver took us to see some of the temples. On Bali there was Buddhism and Hinduism for many years. Over time they have become predominently Hindu. But we saw a Hindu temple that was over a thousand years old, and a Buddhist temple that was over a thousand years old. Before you enter the temple you have to put on a sarong (men and women). You can give a small donation to the temple and borrow a sarong to wear. There are also signs in front that say if you are a pregnant or menstrating women that you shouldn't enter. They consider it to be UNCLEAN!!!! Anyway they were beautiful.



ON the way ou tof the temple we saw some crazy black bananas and we met up with this guy.... snake man...




The above picture is actually from the Buddhist temple. You will see in the next few pictures that the temple is now used by Hindus but origanlly it was a buddhist temple. I liked this one the best because there were lots of locals around. It was an exhausting walk though... 200 steps down, 200 back up!!!!






After the temples we went to the coffee.spice plantation. They grow coffee beans, cacoa trees, many different fruits, and many spices. You could walk through the crops and then sit down for some samples. While we wouldn't enjoy the coffee, we cold enjoy the fabulous aroma!!!! They also had many herbal teas we could try which were amazing!!! We tasetd tea and bought tons and tons of spices and cocoa (which I immediatly made no-bake cookies out of when I got home).
That after noon our driver drove us up into the mountains to this beautiful town where there is a volcano and dreamy lake at the base of it. We ate some great food while staring at a breathtaking view. For a while we thought we were back on Guam when the Japanese tourists started attcking our kids!!!! they love taking pictures of blonde kids. It is really funny.
After that super long day we did a little shopping with Momo. We went to a place where they make and dye batik fabric. It was a ton of fun for my Mom and I but Liam didn't last. And Arie does what Arie does best.. destroys!!! The last pictures I kept because I thought it turned out crazy!

Unfortunatly kel had to go back to guam that night for work. My mom and I stayed for four more days. Most of it was shopping and driving. We saw some beautiful art, ate some amazing food, and SHOPPED!!!!!! The next pics are from the Bali zoo. It was really fun. We took our driver in with us. He had never gone in before and he absolutely LOVED IT!! It was really fun to watch him see the animals. The zoo was neat because a lot of the animals were just roaming around! The conditions weren't as good as the zoos in the states so it was little sad to see that but other than that it was a lot of fun. My mom got pooped on by a bird, we saw beautiful white peacocks, and Arie had so much fun she would squeal with excitement at every new animal.
The last two days we stayed in Kuta. If you like to surf it is the place for you, so Jenni take Sterling there, but you will want to leave! I didn't like it. I thought it was dirty and gross. It didn't even seem like Bali to me. It was way too comercialized. I know there are beautiful beaches in Bali but that was not one of them! Arie got sick so I stayed in the room mostly. All in all it was an amazing trip. I can't wait to go back. I'm going to close with a quote from a book I'm reading. I'm reading Eat, Pray, Love. In the book the authr is talking about her love for travel. This quote describes exactly how I feel about traveling and seeing this beautiful world. I'll never stop no matter what hard things come my way...
"... traveling is the great true love of my life. I have always felt, since I was sixteen years old... that to travel is worth any cost of sacrifice. I am loyal and constant in my love for travel, as I have not always been loyal and constant in my other loves. I feel about travel the way a happy new mother feels about her impossible, colicky, restless newborn baby - I just don't care what it puts me through. Because I adore it. Because it's mine. Because it looks exactly like me. It can barf all over me if it wants to - i just don't care."