24 a month ago

Well, Samantha has been on this earth for 24 years and one month.  I didn't want another month to start without our wishing her a happy happy birthday!  She's got big changes coming as she will be finishing up at BYU Idaho soon.  I'm sure she has a bright future ahead of her!

5th annual "drown my sorrow in movies"

This has been an especially busy January and I haven't had much pause to drown my sorrows in movies, like I usually do, as a way of mourning the Christmas season being over.  But, Reggie and I did go see the most recent "Jumanji, and we watched just about the weirdest movie ever on Amazon called "Camp Zero",  and last night we purchased a movie on Amazon Prime that we just loved called "Harriet".  I highly recommend that one most of all.

okay, last week of January!

I'm excited that we've almost made it through January.  There is a song that says "it's a marshmallow world in the winter" comparing the look of snow to fluffy marshmallows and whipped cream.  Well, the waves on a recent walk reminded me of that too.

and the activity - January

For each of the ancestors in our "meet the family" theme I want to do an activity surrounding their heritage.  My mother-in-law adopted the Hawaiian culture upon her marriage, and we learned so much from her, like the best recipe for teriyaki sauce.  She also, unrelated I guess, made really good horduerves and so tonight, in honor of that, we made her stuffed mushrooms.

But, after her death, in looking into her life history, we are realizing how much her filipino heritage was a part of her life.  So, since our son-in-law Lester is filipino, I asked Julia to guest blog about filipino food - because I know they cook a lot of that together.


So thank you Julia:


When talking about filipino food, it seems to me their are often two responses. The first is ‘Oh I love filipino food! Adobo, lumpia…’ and then often the sentence will peter off into awkward silence, waiting for the other person to pick it up bc that’s all they really know of the cuisine. Or, the other, which is ‘oh wow filipino food-don’t they eat that Balut thing, the rotten egg like one…’ bc they heard about it on fear factor or from a friend of a friend, like something from a science fiction future type of deal. 

But filipino food is so much more than that! Nicole Ponseca aptly calls it ‘the original fusion food’ in that throughout the countries varied history, it has had deep ties to Asian influences, as well as Hispanic ones from various years of occupation. Yet bc of its coastal proximity and industrious ‘waste not’ ‘share everything’ ‘make the most of what your given’ philosophy, it has formed something totally unique and its own. Like any country, the food varies from region to region, but there are hallmarks that are shared in much of filipino cuisine. Where hispanic culture utilizes and masters acid, filipino food often harnesses and incorporates sour as a ‘gateway to filipino food, and it sets the cuisine apart.’ And much like Asian cultures use of umami, or all American food uses salt, filipino food gets that from its reliance on ‘the funk of fermentation’. The result is something that keeps you always coming back, salivating without even realizing it, even with the aggressive tastes that are so very craveable, especially the more you eat it. 

To me, filipino food is family food. It is brought to share, and meant to be put in carry out Tupperware to bring home as well. It brings people to the table, and the couches, and the floor bc it isn’t overly fancy, but it brings out the community in everyone meaning there’s never enough room so you take whatever space you can find. It is made of simple ingredients, where nothing was wasted, but turned into something deeply personal and out of love. And whether you want to learn the secret to Lola’s Bistek or Tita’s Kare Kare, or Lolo’s filipino breakfast, you have to physically watch them make it, and try not to get distracted by the stories they tell that are all over the place and don’t all together makes sense timeline or plot wise, bc if you don’t you’ll miss it, and you can’t write it down, bc they don’t measure. Its not ‘the filipino way’ as my MIL once told me. 

The fact is, filipino food is indulgent. Its fatty, its sour, its deep, often incredibly delicious, sometimes its a little scary, very industrious, variable, highly personal, made from a people who cook love in a way that’s easy to taste. 

To me, this is filipino food. But the nice things is, its not just one thing. 

*quoted portions are from Nicole Ponseca & Miguel Trinidad’s book “I Am A Filipino And This Is How We Cook’. 




And I just wanted to add this picture and the fact that a whole, roasted pig, called "lechon" is an important part of large celebrations.  Lester's Mom and Dad provided this for their wedding dinner.

not the cover

Well, thanks again to my morning playlist for getting me going today.  This song is on it, and whenever it plays my kids say "that's not the original singer - it must be a cover".  I can't really tell the difference, but I love the song either way.  So here it is, not the cover but the original (I think).  Happy Wednesday everyone!

treasures

In Hillary's last Thanksgiving post she talked about how she loves old things, and that is why she enjoys the DI thrift stores that are located throughout Utah and Idaho.  She always finds old/classic treasures.  Well, her thinking is contagious, now that we are in the process of going through my mother-in-laws things (because she passed away) and my mom's things (because she is wanting to down size/simplify).

One thing that is coming to us from both women is their fine china.  It's hard because fine china seems to be a tradition of the past.  It is so beautiful and delicate that you have to treat it well and have a place to store it.  It takes up a lot of room and is only used a few times a year.  And I assume that women are not entertaining as much in this day and age because most are out in the work force and hobbies include more out of the house things, like exercise and travel.  But, since we do live in a house and have a basement for storage, Reggie and I decided we'd like to give both women's fine china a home (though are willing to part with it if other family members decide they want it).  And this has me especially looking forward to Mother's Day.  I've decided we are going to go all out - use my Mother-In-Law's china and have my Mother be the guest of honor.

matching

Well, we didn't do very formal pictures of the matching outfits this year, which is unfortunate because this year included our 8 grandkids and 4 grand-nieces and nephew.  So these pics will have to do, and they make me smile regardless.  There were 3 groups with matching yet slightly different outfits from the other groups:

the boys

the school-agers

preschoolers, toddler and babies (our 2 month old has a matching dress but was not able to be in the picture)

They also got matching pajamas from Reggie's sister but trying to get that picture was wishful thinking!  They loved them just the same and are wearing them in random pictures, like these ones:

wintery walks

To go to the beach wearing gloves, tennis shoes, thick coats, etc. might seam ridiculous, but our beaches are always cold, especially in winter.  Yes, we have winter here - the low 50's with a wind-a-blowing makes a real winter for me.  But the views are beautiful and the sand is still fun.  So we - mostly my kids, ventured to the beach several times while here, and we all went on a wintery walk above the beach, among the trees.  It was great.

48 for dinner ("the Doorbell Rang")

                                              "We ain't closing down anytime soon.    
                                               If you wanna come howl at the moon
                                              we can always make a little more room.
                                                    (from the song "We're all here")

                                                                                           
There is a children's book called "The Doorbell Rang" that my niece Suzanne mentioned one time.  She kindly said it reminded her of me because when the Mom made cookies people kept coming over, spur of the moment, and they were welcomed in to share in the baking. Well, I was flattered at Suzanne's comparison.  Then, when Mariah and I went to a book sale last fall she asked if there was anything I saw that I wanted for Christmas.  I happily said "yes!" because I had seen a copy of the Doorbell book.  It is now sitting in a place of honor (on our piano).

I thought of this book again after a momentous New Years Day, 2020.  We had a couple of nieces visiting from other states and all of our kids were here.  Of course that meant we should have a get-together.  And of course we wanted my family from San Jose and family from the city to join in. And of course we wanted to meet our teenager nieces boyfriends/not boyfriends.  And, as luck would have it, my sister and brother in law flew in that day to spend time with some of their kids.  And last of all, our lifelong friend Sabrina and her husband, who moved to the area a few months ago and who know pretty much all attendees, came as well.

According to our job list chart Ross and Mariah were in charge of dinner.  They made two crock-pots full of chili, and corn bread and rice (to satisfy all tastes).  I made cookies - this time the "lazy cookies" version (cooked in a sheet pans) because there were so many people.

It was an epic together; Hillary counted 48 people - I think we set the record for the house this time.  But I loved it!  Again, thank goodness for a backyard and basement-playroom.

So thanks to Suzanne for her sentiments and to Mariah and Ross for the book.  It brings on wonderful memories every time I look at it.

Meet the Family - Albertine veronica Planka Hanaike

Albertine Veronica Planka Hanaike was born in San Francisco, Ca in 1936.  Her parents, Apolonio and Veronica Planka, were from the Phillipines and were making a life for themselves and family by owning and running a bar in San Francisco.

You would think that stating how many siblings she had would be easy - like that she had one brother named Albert. But her family relations reached far beyond biological ties, and there are a lot of people who claim her as their sister.  When I started coming around the family I certainly met and heard of many of Reggie’s aunties and uncles. The reason for this family make-up is very endearing - Albertine’s parents took in foster children, and other teens that were homeless and in dangerous situations.  They grew up together and stayed in contact and continued to take care of each other as adults.

When Albertine was 17 she graduated high school and started at Notre Dame college in the fall.  

She soon met and fell in love with a boy from Hawaii named Gilbert Hanaike. There are many questions that I wished I had asked my mother-in-law - like how did they meet, why was he living on the main land, etc.  All I know is they had a big, beautiful, classic Catholic wedding. Luckily we have many pictures of it. She was so beautiful.  

In fact, when Reggie and I were engaged she showed me her wedding dress and I loved it - so much so that I asked her if I could wear it for my own wedding.  Now that I think back on that I wonder if she was happy, flattered, or thought that I was one strange girl. But she let me wear it and it fit perfectly and I loved it. Of all the pictures that are being gone through right now, one caught my eye of which I treasure - a picture of my mother-in-law hugging me, as I was wearing her wedding dress, right after the ceremony.

After the wedding Albertine and Gilbert moved to Hawaii and started their family. They went on to have 5 boys and one girl. Unfortunately the marriage did not last, and when Albertine was expecting their last baby she moved herself and children back to San Francisco. She lived with her parents for a while until she could get back on her feet. She supported her children by taking clerical jobs, including one where she was able to work from home. By the time her 4th child (my Reggie!) was entering high school she moved her family to Daly City. This became an important part of her family's history because her youngest three married their high school sweethearts. I am happy to say that each marriage is going strong, over 30 yrs and counting.

In 1988, in my opinion, one of the most important parts of Albertine’s life began:  she became a Grandma. I think this new role let her be the person she truly was inside.  All of her grandchildren found her to be fun, loving, supportive, sweet, kind, hilarious, and on and on and on.  She got to love them and spoil them, as I’m sure she wanted to her own children, but did not have to worry about how to feed and clothe and discipline them.  They were her pride and joy and she was theirs.

Albertine retired after working many years at an insurance agency in the city. She continued to share a house with two of her sons and again, be that supportive Grandma.  As I was now a working Mom, Luke’s fondest memories of Grandma Hanaike was spending the day at her house when he was sick (or suspended!) and couldn’t go to school.  After several years Albertine moved in with her son Matt and his wife and children, and then lastly with her daughter and her husband and children. She was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer 3 weeks before she passed away.  Those 3 weeks were spent with lots of family around her and visiting her. She kept her spirits up and joked around with everyone, until Christmas Eve. That is when the pain really hit her. Most of her posterity was in the house with her, taking turns sitting with and trying to comfort her.  By that night her daughter thankfully got the go ahead to give her enough pain killer to help her to relax and sleep. On Christmas night she drifted away/passed away, with Reggie and his sister by her side, and her son Matt and daughter in law Maya rushing to be with her as well. It was a sweet and tender moment.

So that is it - what I know of my Mother-in-law.  Her memorial was held at our church building and was full of people sharing memories of her.  I would say the one thing that everyone said of her was that she accepted everyone without judgment; she made all of us feel good about who we are..