A Bootiful Saturday

Wow, I completely forgot about this. I guess I uploaded these photos last October, and then never published them.

I think that's why I like blogging. It's a bit like scrapbooking, but more wordy. Since I inherited a good bit of my dad's "portugee" (i.e. gift of gab), blogging is more fun for me.
 

I took these photos during the Halloween trick-or-treating at downtown businesses. My Ella looks like an astronaut, but she declared that she was an "Amongus", whatever that is.

And here is my other daughter, who wants to be called by the nickname "Bee", instead of "Boo". Since both are cute, I'll try to humor her.

(No, that's not her costume. She always dresses like that. She's sixteen.)

The Train of Terror

Our little town has an old-fashioned train that runs for special holidays, and during the Halloween season they convert it into the Train of Terror. 

The kids look forward to this every year.

Gabe sat next to me and kept comforting me and telling me "not to be scared, because he would beat up the bad guys" for me.

Although there is a fee to ride, the people who run the train are all volunteers as the money goes to train upkeep.

The people who terrorize the train are also volunteers, and generations of families camp out with elaborate set-ups just to join in the fun.

It's perfect for little kids, because it's thrilling but not too frightening.

Even Ella wasn't fazed.

Belated Valentine's Date

Due to busy schedules and a visiting sister (hi Lynn!), Handyman and I hadn't had a chance to do anything for Valentine's Day other than exchange a few small trinkets.

So, thanks to a very dear friend who watched the kids for us, we were finally able to get away (squeee!) for a few hours.  First, we ate a fabulous lunch at one of my favorite hole-in-the-wall eateries called Pancho and Lefty's. 

It's a grill/bar right on the quaint town square and they serve fabulous and interesting food.  (Andy got a "tur-duck-en" burrito and I got fish tacos with slaw and cilantro.)

 

After our delicious meal we did some bargain shopping at a store that sells dented cans and slightly expired goods.  (I luuurrve this store.)  I got white whole wheat flour for $1.50 a bag, Starbucks coffee for $2.50, and so much more.  Nothing puts me in a better mood than a good bargain!

 

From there, we headed to Minhas Brewery.  Due to baby Ella's feeding schedule we didn't have time to do the tour, but for $10 we got to do a tasting and take home a 6 pack.

 

Now, "tastings" here aren't like a wine tasting, where you get a thimble full.  See that glass I'm holding?  They will fill it up and as many times as you want. (In my case I was practically pleading with them to fill "just a quarter full, not all full" as I'm not much of a beer drinker.) 

 

Thankfully not only do they brew beer (which Handyman asserts isn't that good, not that I can taste the difference), but they also brew fabulous soda using pure cane sugar instead of high fructose crap corn syrup.  I loved trying the different kinds; blueberry cream, orange cream, rootbeer, cherry, and more!

 



It was neat viewing all the beer memorabilia in their museum too.  My goodness, advertising slogans have changed!  Having recently watched Ken Burns documentary on Prohibition, I found that I especially enjoyed seeing how the brewery managed to keep producing even during that turbulent time (that's when they switched to brewing sodas).

 

 A fabulous way to spend an afternoon!

Mele Kalikimaka!

I'm so excited!

This Christmas, my family (Ohana) and I will be celebrating in Hawaii!  To be specific, we'll be on the island of Oahu, where I was born.

Here's what I hope to do:

Eat ono malasadas

 

Get lots of sun at da beach

 

And spend lots and lots of time with family!

 

More pictures to come!!!!!

Pumpkin Carving

Before Halloween we went to a friend's house for the annual pumpkin carving party.

I'd like to say the party is just for the kids, but the adults manage to have a pretty good time, too.

(Seeing this photo reminded me that I'm missing one of those shoes she's wearing.  Drat.)

 Jenn is my tutor in the art of Ethnic Midwest Cuisine, and just when I think I'm getting the hang of Midwesternism (such as "salads" that have nothing green in them except pistachio pudding), she plops something new in front of me.

  (I think this was a pickle concoction wrapped in cream cheese and ham.)

Apparently, cutting a pumpkin requires great concentration, which is aided by sticking out one's tongue . . . .

Gabe is dangerous enough without handing him any pointy objects, so he just hopped around from table to table and "helped" everyone else.

Some of the adults took their pumpkin carving very seriously . . . 

For dinner we all chipped in for pizza from Memos, or MeeMoh's, or Mimo's, or something like that.  Whatever it's called, it was fabulous pizza. 

(Whoops!  I just remembered that I never did pay Jenn for our portion of the pizza.  Must remember to do that . . .)

Hilton Head

The first place we stayed at on Hilton Head was a resort RV park.

It was rough.

Very rough.

Since it was Memorial Day weekend, the beach was pretty crowded, but we didn't let that stop us from heading to the beach every day!

We had a delicious lunch served up by Mum, our deli assistant extraordinaire.  I love that her deli counter is a boogie board!

My sister Angie and her husband Mike along with my niece Michelle and nephew Caleb were able to come as well.

Miss Boo quickly staked out a nearby sand pool as her "territory". 

The kids found all sorts of interesting creatures like hermit crabs, sand dollars, and even a few cannonball jellyfish!

Hey look, an oreo!  Mmm, gotta love that creamy filling!

 
Given Gabe's proclivities for wandering off, I made sure to dress him in something bright yellow to make him easier to keep track of.  Even so, we did have a few heart-stopping moments with "WHERE'S GABE?!"  followed by "oh, right over there poking that jellyfish.  Good, he's okay."

Handyman enjoyed kayaking, but dude, it was my vacation for goodness sakes!  I didn't want to do anything that resembled work.

 

Ahhhh, now this was my idea of vacation!

Off to the Beach

At the end of May the kids and I were lucky enough to have been able to fly down to see my family in the Sunny South.

Despite the airport delays due to thunderstorms in our area, the flight went fairly well, and the kids were very, very good, for which I was supremely thankful.

I dressed them all in matching Aloha outfits so that if (Heaven forbid) one should wander off (not naming any names) it would be easier to spot them.

(This had the minor detraction that if one of them misbehaved I couldn't pretend they weren't with me.)

Soon after we got to our designated "camping site" on Hilton Head Island, the kids found a really neat place to torture try to catch fiddler crabs.

Peter especially loved it.  My big boy loves the freedom of exploring and finding interesting things.  Sometimes his imagination is annoying (because he's rarely in the present, which is inconvenient when I'm trying to tell him to put his shirt in his drawer and I later find it in the refrigerator, but anyway . . .), but at times like these, I'm so thankful for his adventurous and curious spirit.

My brother Nathan was also able to come, and I was so pleased and impressed with how cool he was to his nephews and niece.  I think there's something very special about a college kid being willing to spend time with little children and not being "too cool" to notice them.

Of course, at the first opportunity I had to try out the French Bakery.  I'm not sure how "French" it actually is, but let me say the cream cheese and passion fruit croissants were c'est magnifique.

When we got to the beach Peter was so excited that extemporaneous items of clothing went flying.  (Notice his shoe mid-air at the bottom of the photo . . .)

That's a picture of my dad heading toward the waves with Peter.

Something about the smell of the sea and the sound of the waves seems to lift a load off my shoulders that I didn't know was there before.  All of a sudden I'm once again 11 years old and I can climb huge banyan trees and spend all day playing (which is a total mental fabrication of epic proportions, but one cannot escape the memories of one's childhood.)

Despite Gabe's tendency to be wary around water, he didn't mind the beach at all and took to it like he was fully channeling his tiny bit of Hawaiian blood.

Miss Boo of course showed off her swimsuit modeling skills.  Someone make sure to dope me give me extra courage when she's a teenager.

I love seeing the ecstatic glee on my baby's face.  I can't help but smile like a fool myself.

Hmmm, perhaps I see now where Boo's modeling tendencies come from . . .  (sorry Dad, couldn't resist :)

Mum took some time to catch up on some reading and enjoy the bit of quiet while the rest of the hooligans family were swimming.

What a perfect way to start summer!