The Boys Birthdays!!!

Maika's Birthday: Aug 14, 2006

Wow, I can't believe this boy is 6 and ready to head off into 1st grade. Cliff took the day off and we had eggs, sausage, toast and shakes in the morning for breakfast, requested from Maika. Mid-morning, he opened his gift from Grandma Bandmann and was so excited about his new slippers.

According to him "I have the coolest slippers." Kalena didn't like him saying that so much and told on him (that is a girl for you).

Then we surprised Maika by taking a little drive into American Fork Canyon and having a Little Ceasar's pizza picnic. We found a perfect spot to let the kids play a bit in the river and get wet. It was VERY COLD water, but it felt so grand on my oh so swollen feet.

After the picnic, we headed home and the kids enjoyed watching "Cars 2." Out of all the movies Maika picked, it was that one. For dinner, Maika requested cheese sandwiches. Oh, how it was so easy for me to make. I have decided I am going to bask in the easiness of the meals now because I know they will request much more extravagant dinners later in life. 

Then we had cake and ice cream. And this cake, I must say turned out pretty darn good for a dad making it. Maika wanted a Thor cake and that is what he got...well at least the hammer. Maika LOVED his cake and once again, A HUGE THANKS to Dad for making it easier this time around.

Tula'i's birthday was a little bit more work for me. He didn't want dad to decorate his Hulk Cake and so I stayed up Sunday night to complete that task. I think it turned out pretty good for a late nighter.

He absolutely loved his gifts that Grandma Bandmann gave him. In fact, Lavea'i has told me that he wants a new pair of slippers now. 

        

I went early to get Tula'i's gift from the store because he said he wanted a light saber just like Maika's. Well, the night before his birthday, he changed his mind to wanting Hulk hands. So, Cliff had to run to the store and exchange the gift last minute. 

For breakfast, we woke the kids early and went to IHop. They didn't eat much at all like they usually do. When we came home, we let them watch a movie while we rested a little bit and let Leilani take a nap. Then Tula'i wanted to go to Trafalga and play some miniature golf and ride on the bumper boats. The bumper boats were last but needed because I was sweating just walking around in Trafalga. Boy, did we all get wet. I actually lost my balance trying to get Lavea'i out of the boat and then myself and fell in the water. That is what happens when you are 7 months pregnant, I guess. It felt really good though. The kids were laughing. We came home and had dinner later and then had his cake and opened let him open his gift. 

Firsts of 1st and 2nd

Just like every year, the first day of school. These two were so excited that they were going to be able to eat lunch and play at recess together. We will see how long it lasts between the two of them. After taking the picture, they held hands on the way to the door so Kalena could drop Maika off at his classroom first. 

When I picked them up from school, they were talking my ear off and I was so happy to listen to them both and how everything went. Maika had to tell me that he ate a meat and cheese sandwich, pears and "normal" milk. Kalena had some bread with cheese in it dipped in sauce. 

I also learned that Maika's teacher is "silly" because she tried to put on a big pair of orange shoes and walk around, but they kept falling off. All Kalena said was that she liked her teacher and is nice.

Tula'i is excited to start school and wants to go see his teacher every day for a prize and talk to her. His teacher was a little taken back on his pre-assessment that he didn't know his alphabet. He knows more than Maika did and Maika is just fine. It kind of bugs me that kids are expected to know this stuff and go to preschool. I disagree!!!!! I think kids should be able to be kids for as long as they can because they have 13+ years ahead of them to learn and be in class. So, kindergarten teachers....buck up and know it is what you are supposed to teach the kids in that grade. All I have to say is at least he knows how to write his name.

BCG's!!!

Okay, so the deal with these most amazing glasses (Battle Combat Glasses) is I used to have to wear them every day in basic training. There were some people that could get away with not wearing them at all because their vision wasn't horrific like mine. But, I had no choice unless I wanted to trip and fall over everything landing flat on my face.

A couple of months ago, I happened to come across them in my bathroom closet. What I was saving them for?...who the heck knows. But, I decided to pop the lenses out of them and let them be a toy for the kids. So here you have it, a couple of months after and this is what we get around the house...

No words necessary for this little boy!

Kalena keeps saying she wants to wear glasses and please, please I hope she never has to wear any for real.

But then there is their dad that is always doing goofy things to make the kids laugh. Sometimes I don't think he even needs to try.

It's a Mouthful

Gotta love this girl and her mouth that, when it has food in it, looks like this MOST of the time.! She always shoves it full with anything that is in front of her.

Olathe Sweet Corn Festival

A couple of weekends ago, our family headed back to my old stomping grounds, Montrose, Colorado. It is a very beautiful place to visit with many outdoor things to do. We almost weren't going to head down, but when my sister, Nezhone, called and told me the Olathe Sweet Corn Festival was happening that weekend, IT WAS A MUST! It lasts for a couple of days and tickets at the gate are $13/adult and $5/children ages 5 & up. I had never been to one growing up because I didn't really care to go, but over the years have always yearned to go back and get me some of the best tasting corn ever! (At least I think so). And, of course, the memories I have of my dad and I sitting out on our porch swing husking the corn while eating a few raw before dinner. 

Anyway, at the festival, it is "all you can eat" corn, spending money on tons of vendors that are there, a concert and a bout a 5-10 minute fireworks show. The performance we went to was Survivor and of course, they saved their best song for last, "The Eye of the Tiger." We weren't fans of heading out to the festival early on during the heat of the day. In fact, we got their about and hour before the concert started and enjoyed the nice weather just as the sun was beginning to go down. The corn was good, the concert a little loud (does this mean I am getting old?), and the fireworks short and sweet! It definitely was a fun and enjoyable weekend with both my sisters and my mom. My poor Mom who didn't want to be at the concert the whole time, sat there and sucked it up. What a lady!

My sister, Shara, surprised us by coming too. She had texted me telling me that she wasn't sure she wanted to come because she had too many things she needed to get done. My mom spoiled the surprise by slipping when she asking about the sleeping arrangements. My kids LOVE LOVE LOVE their Aunty Shara.

My sister, Nezhone, and her husband, Josh. Poor little Aidrick hated sitting through the loudness of the concert. She actually left her seat for a while to take him away from the loudness.

Cliff and I were trying to get a picture without Leilani in it. But GOOD LUCK!!!

Kalena and her cousin, Jakai got along so well. Usually he plays with Lavea'i, but this trip happened to be Kalena.

The trip home...not even 10 minutes into the drive and this is what they all look like. Leilani knocked out soon after this picture.

The corn festival was only part of the day.  The beginning of the day was spent swimming at Ridgeway Reservoir. The water was really cold, but if felt so good once you dove in and got all wet. Shara, Josh and I had a swimming race and Shara beat us. My little boy inside of me was not too happy about that because boy did I have to catch my breath with the little swim that it was. Kalena made this little pool area to play in and right as we were getting ready to leave Leilani decided to get in it and play for a bit. 

Anyway, it was a fun, fast trip. You would think that I would like to visit old high school friends that are still living there, but the main people I like to see are all the adults that had a part in my life growing up and 99% of them I get to see at church. Poor Cliff and the kids had to wait after church for about an hour for everyone to quit talking to us so we could head home. One of the definite places we stop by is DQ to see our past boss. She owns it and works quite a bit, so it was good to see her. She treated all of us to an ice cream treat from there. My favorite...the Peanut Buster Parfait or Buster Bar!

The Leonardo

There is a pretty new Leonardo Museum up in Salt Lake City. Cliff got an annual pass from work that allows for 4 people to get in free. Kids under 5 are free so it was perfect timing for us to go because Tula'i turns five this month. One of the first things the kids did was watching a bubble display. We learned a bit about bubbles and why they pop. Just a bit of trivia: bubbles are made of 3 layers; 2 soap layers and one water layer. When the soap layers get really thin that is when the bubble will pop.

The bubbles kept them interested for a while and then they moved on to the table of building sticks and connectors. After this we moved upstairs and learned quite a bit about the how certain things work...one of the coolest displays is was a bunch of copper wires that looked like nerves in our bodies. It demonstrated how the synaptic gaps work between the nerves. And when it reached it's destination there was a light that would come on. Pretty awesome stuff.

The funnest thing for the kids was playing by the green screen and putting the green clothes on, watching their bodies disappear on the screen. They even had green beanies for their heads. Leilani was just having fun pulling out the green clothes of the box. The kids played around with this for a good 1/2 hour.