talking behind their backs

There they go again, being an amazing aunt and uncle and blessing to each family.  We were talking about that as they were running ahead with the nieces on our walk yesterday.  Sure do love that Auntie Mariah and Uncle Ross!

optimistic

Usually around this time of the year I get sad, because Christmas is over, our college kids leave again, and it's all about getting back to routines and practicality and real life.  But so far I'm thinking I might do okay.  Granted, we have 2 more days of fun, but looking back has made me optimistic.  This is what 2015 looked like for me:

January - A lot of walks by the beach
February - the Fort Point night tour
March - arrival of our newest granddaughter, Hannah
              anniversary trip to Monterey which included an amazing whale watching voyage
April - Luke and me spending a week in Utah with Mariah & Hillary's families
May - trip to Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon and other parts of Arizona
June - celebrating Luke's graduation from middle school
July - a week long visit from Mariah & Ross, Hillary & Andrew and kids
          me and Luke back to Arizona
Aug. & Sept. - local whale watching, up close and personal, as we could see them from the cliffs and
           (sadly) 3 washed up on local beaches
Oct. - weekend trip to Yosemite
           my trip to Utah, just for the fun of it
Nov. - trip to Utah for Hillary's surgery - which was hard, but blessings abounded
           Thanksgiving
           a weekend to myself full of scrapbooking and Christmas movies
Dec. - CHRISTMAS of course, and all of us together again

I know this was an extraordinary year because of all the traveling.  I know that Reggie spoiled me in so many ways.  I know that it was an especially hard year for Hillary which was the reason for some of my travels and her and Andrew coming home for doctor's appointments.  But as I said, blessings abounded even in that and she and Andrew are amazing people.

So I am expecting 2016 to be wonderful - not necessarily in the same ways as 2015.  But if 2016 is just full of staying at home, getting organized, working hard, enjoying the small things in life like walks and movies and playing games and cuddling grandchildren in person and through Skype, then it will be wonderful too.  And who knows, maybe more adventures lie ahead.

drizzly morning walk

See that yellow spot in the tree?

Family Pajama Fest

Compliments of Reggie's sister and family - thanks for the annual gift Kat & Steve - we love it!

THE BOYS 

THE GIRLS

GRANDAUGHTERS #1 & 2

GRANDAUGHTERS #3 & 4

Grandpa's Ukulele Class

Christmas Day

Well, our Christmas day was very quiet - just the 4 of us - Samantha, Luke, me and Reggie.  The rest of the kids were with our sons-in-law sides of the family.  So after opening a couple of presents:

We headed off to see Star Wars and then have Christmas dinner with my Mom.  It has been a tradition, dating back from when my mom was a child, that Christmas dinner be something that doesn't take a lot of work.  This has always been chili.  But this year, considering that Samantha and Luke are not chili fans, we still went with the spirit of the tradition and got Round Table Pizza.  I got a kick out of the cutest gift card box ever:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SAMANTHA!

Twenty years and counting - time sure flies by!  We have lots of family coming in today.  Hope Samantha can feel the love!

Christmas Eve Day

A couple of weeks ago Samantha starting watching It's A Wonderful Life with my mom, but didn't have time to finish it. Samantha has never seen it before, believe it or not.  Today we all sat around watching it, and when it got close to the part where Uncle Billy loses the money (which is the part we all find hard to watch) I told Samantha that she should make herself sit through the whole thing, at least once in her life.  She did, and so I did too.  I will never not cry at that movie.  It was a perfect, sit around and watch movies while it rained kind of Christmas Eve day and I loved it.

Did not disappoint

Usually when a movie gets so much hype you end up over-expecting and come away being disappointed.  Well, not with Star Wars.  It was really good, especially for old-timers like Reggie and I.  It was fun seeing the old heroes and we really like the new ones.

I shall never make peanut brittle again!

Please remind me of that next Christmas.  That is all.

dining room chairs & the dishwasher: a working relationship

Reggie and I had an early Christmas, you might say, when we ordered some new dining room chairs for Thanksgiving.  Ironically, though, the shipping was delayed and they got here a couple of days late.  Reggie set up 2 of them and I love them!  The other 2, however, have remained in the box - in order to make room for the Christmas tree we have taken the leaf out of the table and are trying to condense the furniture around here.  The 2 boxed up, unassembled chairs have been quite useful however, and it just makes me laugh!  Reggie has had a lot of business trips and, as usual, comes home to a honey-do list.  The dishwasher has been acting up - I guess the door is kind of loose because the dishwasher will all of a sudden shut off in the middle of the cycle, as if someone opened it.  If you push the door it goes back on.  So, in order to get the dishwasher to complete it's cycle, we lean the heavy box of unassembled chairs up against it's door.  It works great, and so until the Christmas tree is gone, fixing the dishwasher and assembling the dining room chairs is at the bottom of the fix-it list.  You do what you gotta do and again, it just makes me laugh everytime the dishwasher is on.

nice and loud

Today, especially in honor of it being Sunday and all, I am looking forward to blasting the stereo!  One of our families' favorite ways of celebrating Christmas is listening to "The Messiah", nice and loud.  We also love Whitney Houston's version of "Joy To The World" from "The Preacher's Wife" and I love the following version of "Go Tell it on the Mountain".  Hope you all have a wonderful, musical Sunday as well!  (And if you are in the Bay Area stay safe in this stormy weather!  It's nice to finally see some green in the grass out there.)

3 hours? - no problem!

As I was driving to work Thursday morning I noticed the person in the lane next to me urgently pointing at my van.  I gave him a wave and a nod and mouthed "okay, thank you!", though I was not sure what was wrong.  When I pulled over (in a safe, populated place) I saw that I had a flat tire - not sure why I couldn't tell while I was driving, but thankfully I was able to get it to a gas station and put air in it which lasted the rest of the day.  I am really grateful to this "Good Samaritan" for his small gesture that was a big help to me.

 I reflected on whether I would have done that for someone else.  I think sometimes I take the "live and let live" mentality too far, and I would have thought "well, they must know they have a flat, so if they want to drive on it, that's their business".  It's something to think about.

So after work Reggie reminded me that Costco would fix the tire for free (it had a nail in it) because that is where we bought the tire.  I took it over there and they said yeah, no problem but there was about a 3 hour wait.  So rather than have someone pick me up and take me back I decided to kill the time in Costco.  I had to do our grocery shopping anyway, but this time I got to take my time.  It was great.  Killing 3 hours in Costco - eating dinner, looking at EVERYTHING, etc. was not the worst way to spend an evening.

Nativity sets

Lester is quite the photographer.  While we were decorating the house for Christmas he took this picture.  It is a very simple set but very precious to me; it has been a part of my Christmases as long as I can remember.

There is one other set that holds one of our families' favorite Christmas memories.  When the kids were young the Weller family did a very unique "Secret Santa" surprise for us - every day for several days in a row one figure of a nativity set would arrive on our doorstep, at different times:  one day the angel, one day a wise man, etc.  I was babysitting our nieces at the time and they arrived at our house everyday before 7 am.  I believe it was the second to last day, the second to last piece was waiting on our doorstep with a huge, shiny, star-shaped balloon - the nieces were the ones who found it first so early in the morning.  That is some secret-santa dedication!  At church the Wellers handed us a package and told us to not open it until Christmas.  I thanked them and assumed it was some treats for the kids.  Declarations of "oh my gosh!" etc. were spoken when we opened it and found the last piece - the Baby Jesus.

snow

I know that typically this is "new years" kind of thinking, but I can't help dwelling on what a strange and wonderful year this has been.  Last Saturday Luke was up before dawn to go on a snowboarding trip with the Porters.  It was only this spring that Luke touched snow for the first time, and had underestimated it's coldness by wearing flip flops.

He was more prepared last weekend.

Today he is up early for an all-day merit badge "midway" for boy scouts.  With early morning seminary every week day, sleeping in is not much a part of Luke's schedule, but he is handling it well.  I'm glad that he is keeping busy and I'm thankful for all the people that are helping him to be so.  Here is a pic. from last night's decorating.  He is so much taller and older looking than a few months ago.  I love the look on his face: I imagine he is saying "you know it" or something like that.

Happy December!

Very grateful for the Christmas music that is accompanying our days.  Even the practical moments of December are fun.

#50 of the things and people I love

Well, this is it.  I may not blog for a very long time after this!  Or maybe it will be a habit that is hard to break.  We'll see.

But I want to finish off by saying that I love life.  I know that sounds corny.  But I think the best thing I could ever do is recognize and acknowledge my parent's sacrifices and efforts to give me life, and live in a way that is worthy of them.  I certainly do have some regrets from the past 50 years that I only hope to remember long enough to learn from.

When I was about 6 years old our family went to the theatre to see "Scrooge" which is a musical of the classic Dicken's "A Christmas Carol".  I remember falling asleep during parts of it, but being awake for the best musical numbers.  I especially liked when Scrooge was visited by the Ghost of Christmas Present, and they sang a song called "I Like Life". When I get down or in a general bad mood, this song comes to mind, and I remember.

So thanks, Mom and Dad, and Reggie, and my children, and all who have touched my 50 years of life.  I am very blessed.

#49 - Mariah and Ross

Mariah said that I need to do them last, because their last name is Last - very clever!  But I think I need to save #50 for a wrap up.  So, almost last, I am posting about Mariah and Ross Last.

I'd like to use most of their blog post on pictures, because I got some really good ones on my last visit to Utah.  Before going to help Hillary we had a great afternoon together at the pioneer village, and we finished off our trip together at Temple Square.

 I also got some quality time with them during the week as they helped out with Hillary's family whenever possible, and I slept at their place every night.  They are very hospitable and very fun to be around.  This is such a great and unique time of life for them - the have a sweet "honeymoon" apartment which they have decorated so nicely.  They are juggling school and work and building their relationship as a couple, before the children start to come.  They make me very happy!

Something interesting about them is that the are both the 3rd child of 5 children in their families.  At first glance they have both taken on the "caucasian" look of their family backgrounds, but then you notice that there are other ancestries going on in their genetic make up.  Mariah of course has Hawaiian blood (and phillipino and portugese, etc.) and Ross' maternal genes come from Brazil.  So it will be very interesting to see, some day, what their children will look like.

And speaking of childhood, let me end this post with a picture of Mariah's - I love the little girl she was, and the woman she has become.

#48 - Samantha

It's almost 4 am, so I am a few hours late with this post - darn!  Lately, every few weeks it seems, I crash and burn on the couch, thinking I am just going to take a quick break, and I wake up several hours later.  I had been thinking all day about how to put into words my love for Samantha and now I just need to do it.

In looking back, when the other girls graduated high school, without realizing it I think I had the "throw them in the swimming pool and they will learn how to swim" approach to their going away to college.  They did fine, and did "learn how to swim".  But with Samantha I am not willing to do that.  She so desperately wants to go, but I am determined for her to go prepared.  Another analogy might be that I keep opening the oven, checking to see if it's time to take the dish out, and deciding that it is almost but not quite ready.  So she is still here, which I feel good about.  Someday she will go, but not quite yet.  I think that in mothering her I try extra hard to pay attention to "mother's intuition" or in a more spiritual sense, to the spirit - in a partnership with Reggie, of course.  I hope and pray we can continue to do that - she is on loan to us, so to speak, from our Heavenly parents - as are all of our children, and I want to do right by her.

Samantha is happy; she has such enthusiasm for life.  Samantha is brave - we all take strength in watching how she faces challenges.  Samantha is verbal; her ability to keep the conversation going is priceless and I love it!  Samantha is thoughtful, always asking how my day is going.  Samantha is a good friend.  Samantha is a spiritual giant and is always picked first for teams for things like scripture trivia, etc.   Samantha has a good memory, which helps her in schooling, etc., but also helps her in life: she has the gift of remembering and dwelling on the best moments and memories.

Saying that I - or we - love Samantha is an understatement.  But again, love is such a small word for such big feelings and it will have to do.

#47 - friends and outlaws - (I am determined to add pictures later, when I'm not so tired)

Part 1 - Yesterday Andrew (Porter) came over - he and Luke had some work to do on a Young Men's project. While he was here I was cleaning out the fridge and asking the kids when they had this and that for dinner, as I was not here the past week, and wanted to throw out anything that had expired.  Andrew knew as much as anyone else and told me "we had _____ on Sunday, and so ______ on Monday" etc.  It made me smile.  I know that Luke spent a lot of time at his house as well, and could probably tell Jade as much about the goings on of his house as Andrew knows about our house.  Andrew has been a part of our lives since he and Luke were babies and Tom and Jade have been our good friends much longer than that.  I hope these, and other friendships last a lifetime.

 We are in a unique situation where friends are constantly coming and going, because of church.  A lot of people move to the area for school, jobs, etc., but end up moving somewhere else after a few years.  So many have left a positive imprint on our lives.  And when I look back on the changes in our family the last few years, I am in awe of how kind and supportive so many friends have been in attending weddings, helping with weddings, etc.  We are very lucky.  Tonight was one of those nights at church that I just love, where I know that friendships are being formed.  The building was filled with people of different ages, doing different activities.  It was loud and friendly and fun.

Part 2 - This blog is 7 years old now.  Obviously most of the posts have been about our family.  When looking back I see quite a few posts about my niece in-law Rocio and her kids and the time we spent together.   In 2013 I blogged about our experiences in attending her wedding, and how happy I was that she found such a good man who loved her and the kids.  I did feel a touch of sadness though, knowing that she had new in-laws, and I wasn't sure how they would feel about us attending.  We joked that she could introduce us as her "outlaws", which name makes me smile now.  I am happy to say that we have been able to keep in touch.  Rocio will always be our family and I love her as I do all of my nieces and nephews.

# 46 - the mountains

Not just any mountains, but THE mountains in Utah.  These are the mountains that my ancestors crossed in order to make a better life for themselves.  I kept looking at them last week, getting a sense of strength.

   It snowed all day last Monday, and the mountains looked like this (below) for several days afterwards.  After a week in the 19 to 40something degree weather, I realized that I could become acclamated after all.

It's not the same view as our ocean of course, but it is beautiful nonetheless.  So,  just in time for #46, I have realized that I love the mountains.  (Which has left a preschool song in my mind all week long.  One little girl kept singing a tune to herself over and over again, so I looked it up, made a poster of it, and it is now one of our regulars songs.  It is called "I Love The Mountains".)

#45 - Luke

Luke was just meant to be.  He brought little boy fun into the house, from climbing and getting into things more than his sisters ever did, to walking at 7 1/2 months, to running around all over the place, to being a fun uncle to climb on.  He keeps us laughing all the time.  I am happy to say that even though he has become a teenager he is still a very pleasant kid who is a joy to have around.  Life just wouldn't be the same without him.

#44 - airports

I love airports.  Now if I had to be in them for business trips, etc. I might not love them.  But so far in my life I have been in airports for happy reasons - because I am heading off to some place exciting or to see loved ones. And I also love the waiting around in airports. It gives me time to slow down, to read, write, reflect and imagine.  It is interesting to look around at the gates and see all the places people can go.

It is our last day with Hillary and family.  We are heading to the airport tomorrow knowing that her health and their routine is getting better and will soon be back to normal.  Reggie gave Audrey a toy one time, to help her remember that there is always another trip around the corner - a Little People airplane with the following song:

#43 - David & family

There we are - my family, before I was born.  I'm so happy my parents were willing to have one more!  My oldest brother, David, who is seated in the middle, was 16 when I was born.  My earliest memories of him is that he was leaving the house when I was three (to go on a mission in Argentina).  I didn't quite understand where he was going or that he would be gone for 2 years, but I remember missing him and being so excited when he came home.  Soon after there was a big party - a wedding that is, as he married his high school sweetheart, Donna. So as you can tell, we didn't actually live in the same house for much of my life.  But he and Donna's house in Idaho and Utah was my favorite place to visit and stay during
the summer.

Because of David and Donna I became an aunt at age 8.  I have loved hanging out with their kids, when we were little and as adults raising our kids.  It's interesting when generations collide.  I am so happy that we still get to see each other over the years.

I love my oldest brother, David, his wife Donna, and the family they have made.

#42 - Christmas wrapping paper

Sometimes Christmas presents are something tangible, that you can wrap and put under the tree.  Sometimes they're not, which causes a dillema for me - I love wrapped Christmas presents - I love to pick out the wrapping paper from the store, I love wrapping the presents and I love seeing them under the tree.  So when we give a coupon type of gift, I still try to figure out a way to get several presents out of it under the tree.  Like one year we gave Julia & Lester annual passes for the zoo.  So I wrapped zoo cupcake liners and zoo lunch sacks for under the tree.  I love everything Christmas, including the wrapping paper.

#41 My dad

I'm sure he had no idea what an influence he would continue to be after he passed from this life. When we are going through something hard we remember the things he endured and carry on.  When we remember how happy he stayed through it all, we carry on.  For example, I remember having a talk with him about how depressing it can be to be sick, especially for a long period of time.  He told me about enduring a bout of strep throat when he was a soldier in World War II, in the barracks, before penicillin was available.  Amazing. I've posted the below video before,of his 90something year old self,  but the fact that it freezes on his smile makes me want to put it here again.

Right now Hillary is going through a long episode of being sick - specifically having gallbladder surgery.  In fact, it's been a rough year for her health wise.  I've noticed the things she is clinging to as she endures - music, uplifting talks and books, including my Dad's.  She takes a lot of strength from his book.

# 40 - other children in my life

I remember in a movie someone commenting that in America it is weird because we have one word to describe how we feel about so many different things.  We use the word love when talking about our family, but also when talking about Reeses Peanut Butter cups (doesn't everybody!!!)  And so in my list of 50 people and things that I love, I realize that the word "love" is used on a large spectrum, from one end to the other.

In talking about the people I love, obviously my family is on one end of the scale.  But love is also an appropriate word to use when describing our feelings about other people - like "love thy neighbor" and having a "love of mankind", etc.  So I hope it makes sense when I say that I love the other children in my life - the ones I get to spend time with at school and at church.  They make me happy and they are in my thoughts and prayers, even when I am "off the clock".  Sometimes caring about them is challenging, but definitely rewarding. I am very honored to be able to spend part of my life with them.  

#39 the refiner's fire

Though I am not at the point in my life where I can say that I love my trials, or am even grateful for them, I can say that I am grateful for the opportunity they give me to become better.  I am also grateful for the empathy they give me.  If there is ever a time that my child is going through a hard situation, and I can relate because I went through something similar, and can re-assure them that everything will be fine - yeah, I can honestly say that I am happy to have gone through the trial first so that I can help them.

I've been watching a documentary on the Roosevelts, and it talked about the person that FDR was before his polio hit, and the person he became because of it.  They said that there was no way he could have led our country through such terrible times if he had not already gone through the refiner's fire himself.

So, I guess I love the results of the refiner's fire.

#38 of 50 people and things that I love, in random order: Tom and family

Though 4 years apart, my brother Tom and I were always great friends.  We rode our bikes together, played baseball at the school yard, explored the cliffs and took care of our dog Sinbad together.  In high school he was a senior when I was a freshman, and we had one year of college together.  He was a little protective of me, especially when a Reggie Hanaike came into my life, but once they got to know each other everything was fine.  Then a Madeline Munger came into his life and we all knew she would make our good times even better.  I am so grateful to have her as my sister-in-law.

Their kids are some of my favorite people in the world.  I have loved getting together for birthdays, holidays, Wii sleepovers, and for just the fun of it.  Now more than half of them are grown and out of the house.  I am t
Happy that we still keep in touch.

I love Tom & Madeline and the family they have made together.   And I know I have a thousand pictures documenting all of this, but until I have time to scan one of them, this picture of two cousins will have to do.