2 1/2 months....

I can't believe how time has FLOWN by so quickly! Leilani tugs at my heart strings every time she smiles...which is a lot. All I have to do is give her a kiss, talk to her or get her out of bed. I mean how can you not fall in love with this...



Seeing this face, it is no wonder that her brothers and sister can't stay away from her. They have to hold her ALL THE TIME! Of course, it is only for a few short seconds and then they holler "Mom, I'm done!" I usually tell them they have to wait a bit longer because by this time, I have already gotten up to go do something else.




She is such a chub! Lavea'i will squeeze her cheeks and say "chubby, chubby." It makes me laugh! I love it!



My patience definitely has increased with every child. But, I have been blessed to have such a GREAT baby girl. She sleeps through the night for at least 8 hours, mostly she sleeps for 10-11 hours and has been sleeping through the night for at least a month already. I love getting my sleep!

Leilani's Blessing

Leilani was blessed on July 14. She was blessed at home and the name she is known by is Leilani Manea Fano. Leilani means heavenly lei. Manea, we finally got the meaning, is beautiful.

To start off the day, I made pancakes for breakfast. Cliff worked from home so he could make ribs for everyone who participated in the blessing (basically family). It was a very hot day...so hot that sweat was coming down my back with the air conditioning on. We had her blessed at 7pm so I got her dressed about quarter to and she looked so beautiful in her dress. Mom had saved it from when we were little.



All of the men that stood in the circle. From left to right Spencer Reid, Darren, Sailiata (aka grandpa), Jr., Cliff, Charlie, Jethro, Bing and Keola.


When the blessing was done, we had to get a picture of Leilani with one of her namesakes. She was the one that set Cliff and I up on a blind date 8 years ago. She is a good friend of mine and a wife to Cliff's cousin, Charlie.

Cloudy, With a Chance of Meatballs

I was actually dusting after about 3 months of dust buildup and was in my bathroom with the dusting can. Lavea'i came into the bathroom and started talking and then confidently said, "Mom, that is spway on shoes." I just let him believe it and laughed.

Finally, July 4th Weekend

The weekend was fun filled of multiple things. We decided to head up to my sister's house in WA for a July 4th change. Saturday afternoon when we arrived, the first thing we did was take the kids swimming. The boys were a little scared at first to be out on their own. I fear for Lavea'i because he is the brave little soul that would get into the water on his own not knowing that he needs to know how to swim.



Sunday, we went to church, came home, ate YUMMY Navajo tacos, and celebrated Kekoa's birthday. Cajsa made a very delicious ice cream cake. He turned one. When we were going through the store to find a gift for him the night before, everything we would think of getting we would say "He'll just hit everyone with it," or "He will just throw it at everyone." He is a character. He will tell you off by raising his voice and acting like he knows how to talk.


Then of course, we played settlers. We were all tired and not really in the mood, so one game sufficed this time. Lavea'i decided to snack with his Uncle, John, while we played. Cliff and I are usually the champs whenever we play, but this time we LET John win.



Monday morning, we woke up and went to the church for breakfast. It was in a field next to the church and so the kids got to run around.

Nyah sitting to eat her food.


We left that for the HUGE parade where the most exciting thing was watching the horses take a dump and the kids scooping the crap up.


We went because Te'alani was in the summer band and they marched in it. She did so well!!! After she was done we headed out to beat the traffic.


We ate Sonic for lunch and headed over to my sister's friends house for a BBQ. The kids got to play in the water again...


eat lots of food...



play on the big playset...


while the parents chilled out and talked...

Kekoa was hugging Leilani here and I had to get a picture of it.
It was a good break for us, but the long drive back was tiring. I would do it again though!

Just a few more pictures that I took trying my hand at photography.