Wake up in the morning feeling like P-Diddy!

Hahaha yeah right! Though if I think about it, I probably feel better than P-Diddy - living in HI with the love of my life, how could I not?!?  :)  Really, I'm up early waiting for the maintenance man to come fix the broken outlet in the bathroom and that song is stuck in my head. The maintenance men were supposed to be here on Tuesday but were a no show. I have a funny feeling that they'd be here first thing this morning since they missed Tuesday's appointment, but so far I haven't seen them!

I'll warn you now, this is going to be one of those "boring" mundane posts since nothing is really going on and I haven't been out of the development all week!

Not really sure what I am going to get into today. After talking to Alicia yesterday, I got a rare burst of energy and went on a hard-core cleaning spree. Everything is put away, laundry is done, floors are washed/swept, kitchen and bathrooms are spotless. And Joe didn't get home until 7:15 last night, so I was able to finish everything before he got home! I even biked to the leasing office to pick up some spare keys and tell them about the absentee fix-it men. While on this little venture, I learned some valuable life lessons - mind you I haven't been on a bike in about twelve years.
(1) Always check the brakes on a vehicle prior to starting a venture. Let's just say I didn't even think about this when I set out on my little trip. But I learned rather quickly. It's not that the brakes didn't work, it's just that if I use the right one - it makes the most hideous sound and everyone three streets over can hear me. If I try and brake with the left brake, it is so efficient, I practically faceplant!
(2) I have really short legs. This is not a new revelation but I was still surprised when I could barely touch the ground
(3) Never wear flip flops when riding a bike. I should've known this from my motorcycle riding days, I even thought about it before I left but did I do it? The answer would be a big fat whopping "no".  And while I was safe this time, I will wear sneaks next time - so I don't stub my toes when I try to stop or get off the bike!

In other news:
Does anyone have any recommendations for a good book to read? I need something new to read as everything I am currently reading, I have already read before.  While I enjoy it, I'm looking for something to spice up my Kindle. Let me know if you have any suggestions. My most recent reads include "The Last Song" (and other Nicholas Sparks books), The Shack (William Young - excellent book always makes me think), Love Dare (this is an on-going read), Yellow Ribbon Devotional (also an on-going read - love it such a great reminder to pray for our troops) and of course TONS of blogs! My new favorites are anything having to do with cooking - I am trying so hard to be a better cook. I think I have seen definite improvement this week! Anyway, let me know if you have any suggestions.
Have a great Friday everyone!

Oh....still no maintenance man!

Double-feature!

Aren't you excited? You get a twofer today - two blogs for one day! I know, I know you have to
contain your excitement....
Just wanted to share some more photos....

First a view from our upstairs window. It kind of gives you an idea of what the other house are like. Kind of like townhouses - basically a bunch of house all connected in a row. It's not what we originally thought but all in all it's not too bad. The big palm tree is in our front yard! As you can tell, it was pretty windy!

Second, our couch. We were pretty excited about this purchase. We got the couch essentially brand new (the tags are still on it) for less than half the price. A couple down the street had just bought it and found out they had to relocated because of their work - the cost to ship it was more than the couch itself, so they set out on finding a good home for it - ours! We really like it, it's super soft and really comfortable!

In other news, I have been playing the piano a lot, probably much to the dismay of our neighbors! I try to play at "good" times and when I think the baby is not napping. It's a little hard to judge but they haven't complained yet. I was excited when I busted out some of my recital music and played relatively decently. I played some Sonatas and the ever-popular Cannon in D and was very impressed that I had retained more than I thought I would . I think Joe was even more impressed when he got out a Lincoln Park songbook and I played the piano intro to one of his favorite songs!

Finally, I found the trailer for "The Last Song", I really hope it does the book justice... enjoy!

Love Notes :)

In a desperate attempt to get my husband to stop calling me "Casper", I have pulled two of my dining room chairs out to the backyard and am trying to sun my legs on the patio for a few minutes, while I type this blog. For some reason, no matter what I do my legs are always pasty white, so I'll let you know if Hawaii sunshine will do the trick!

Are you ready for the weekend recap? It's going to be Legand (wait for it...) dary - haha yeah I wish! For all of you who don't know, the "legendary" reference is from "How I met your Mother". I don't normally follow sitcom shows but it's one of Joe's favorites - he's got me hooked on it! We watch way to many episodes in a day then I care to admit! It really is a great show - if you start watching it you have to start at Season One.... it's worth it!

Anyway, back to the weekend recap....
I'll skip over Friday for now (you'll hear about that later). Saturday was awesome. We drove to what I call the "pretty side" of the Island. The drive over is so gorgeous, I am just in awe of the natural beauty - Joe and I usually don't talk to much on the "pretty side", we're too busy looking at the scenery! We went to "Valley of the Temples" where we saw the Byodo-In temple, a replica of a temple in Japan, it was built to commemorate the first Japanese immigrants to Hawaii. It was built without the use of nails - it was really cool.


There was an eighteen foot buddha inside the temple - that is one big buddha! Honestly, he creeped me out a bit, I wouldn't go in without Joe and then I didn't stay inside too long.

The grounds were immaculate, had all these rock gardens with neat patterns in them and gorgeous flowers and trees. We even saw some wild pigs and some really pretty swans - the wildlife are so used to people, the swan let Joe walk right up to him with his camera and the bird didn't even flinch! I swear he even posed for the photo!


After our temple adventures, we were on our way to see a blow-hole. It's pretty sad when you arrive at a natural attaction and are like "is this it?" We think we saw it and if so it was kind of cool - I was more impressed by the image of the Hawaii islands that was poured into the concrete of the sidewalk. Make me think of my dad!

On our way to the blow-hole, we passed some gorgeous water and turned around to go find a beach. The water was so many different shades of blue and the sand was so white - amazing - pictures cannot do it justice.

After our busy, sightseeing day, we met up with Matt and some friends for dinner at the Dixie Grill. I was extremely excited about this and thoroughly enjoyed it, even though Joe and I were both quite tired. And, the most surprising thing of all - remember that man I saw peeing in the sink in the bathroom of the restuarant - well...... HE'S FAKE!!!! It's a dummy, I didn't even know it! I was so shocked, I couldn't believe it! Matt and Joe, even took a trip to the ladies room to see for themselves....
All in all it was a great day!

Sunday was filled with church, Joe fixing my bike, a Costco/Home depot trip, and me reading. I read The Lost Song by Nicholas Sparks - I highly recommend it! It was excellent and a great easy read. Go.read.it. It is a tear-jerker though, just a warning.... I hear it's coming out in a movie in April (?), I can't wait, if it's anything like the book, it will be good.


When I got up this morning, I found my husband had left me the following love note, so sweet!
I have this tendency to forget to drink and my husband is quite vigilant at reminding me - this was an extra bonus and made me laugh this morning! I guess that's why our trip to Costco included the purchase of not one, but three water bottles. Gotta love buying in bulk!

Well I guess it's on to Laundry ....time to stop basking in this glorious sunlight...

Looking forward to:

Reading Alicia's blog update....

and seeing this movie...

I get by with a little help from my friends

Wow, I think this is a record - three posts in one day!! I was having a bit of a crummy day earlier but thanks to my wonderful friends and family, I am feeling much better! Yay for phone calls and a mailbox full of mail!! Thanks guys, you're the best!

Standing on the promises

Some of my favorites...relying on them more now than ever

Deuteronomy 31:8
The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.

Zephaniah 3:17
The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with His love, he will rejoice over you with singing.



Some days you just have an "I miss my Mom" kind of day and that's what this has turned into - thinking of my family.

This place is gorgeous!

I don't have much to write today, nothing new is going on -just trying to get the closet organized -a seemingly never-ending process... For all those who know and love me best, y'all know that this could take awhile! I've never been good at moving - whether it be packing or unpacking it just always seems to take me longer than the average person. Yesterday I got a good portion of the closet done, my goal for today is to finish it! I'll let you know how that goes! Now onto more important things....pictures!!!!

Joe trying to navigate Honolulu traffic, on our first official day in Hawaii. It can get confusing but we're getting the hang of it! My biggest problem is learning to keep my mouth shut and let him drive! We were watching the comedian Bill Engvall and his "Twenty-one Years of Marriage" - it was hilarious! You should check out the link (click on the title above) - especially his bit about driving (it's about 5:30 into the program). We were cracking up but the point was taken and I will do better at not telling Joe how to drive - even if that involves keeping me mouth (and eyes) shut!



Here are some pics of what we saw on the ride over from the hotel in Honolulu to the DMV in Kapolei:

A really cool mural on the side of a building - they have several of these around!


Some really pretty foliage - the plants are gorgeous around here! I really want to get some plants and start a flower and maybe even a vegetable garden. My backyard could really use some livening up!



The next picture was taken on our first trip to the local Walmart (where they have the cheapest milk in town - $3.98)! We had no clue what this contraption was - until we saw someone use it! It is a cart carrier - where people put their carts on while they go up the escalator to the parking lot! Ingenious! There is even a friendly little diagram sign telling you to remove your children before placing the cart in the carrier - if I was a kid, I would love to ride on that thing! Wal-mart is pretty strict though about making sure no kids are in it, so I wouldn't try it, if I were you!


Our stuff arrived last Tuesday! It came in seven huge crates & the guys who unloaded it were hilarious! They were so nice and very accommodating - we didn't have to lift a finger. They unpacked everything & moved it into whatever room we told them. They were unbelievably nice and friendly - really went above and beyond! I think I could get used to this whole moving with the Army thing, they made it so easy! It didn't take long either, they were quick about it!

Our bed was such a great deal! We found it on Craigs List and immediately liked it. It was about an hour away, we were a little hesitant about driving that far not knowing if it would fit in the Jeep but we gave it a go! It fit (barely) and we saw some of the most gorgeous scenery I have seen in Hawaii thusfar!


We got this really cool computer hutch/cabinet thing at a garage sale. It is super heavy so we had to get a moving company to bring it it. There is no way Joe and I could have moved it ourselves!


At the same garage sale, we got a piano (!!!!!) and a dining room table & chairs (if you look you can see the table in the background of the picture). I really wanted a piano and we lucked into finding this one. And Joe, was able to talk the lady down in price. I love it & use it practically every day! I just need to get some sheet music, so I have more variety in what I can play!


We also got a neat sectional couch from our neighbors down the street. It's sad that they are moving, they seem like such a sweet couple!

I also added a couple of pictures to the "It's been awhile..." blog, you'll have to check it out!

Patience is a virture

I know many of you have been anxiously awaiting Hawaii photos.... so here's what I have so far! Yesterday, Joe and I went to the beach to watch the sunset (sooo romantic!). We saw some really cool waves, some whales in the distance, a tugboat and a gorgeous sunset! It was a great ending to the day!

Sunday Sniffles :(

It's is absolutely gorgeous in Hawaii today - perfect weather but unfortunately for me I am feeling a bit under the weather :( and nothing seems to be working. Joe and I went to church this morning, the early service...and I wore a sweater. Those should have been my first two clues that something was wrong this morning. It's ok though, while my husband (i LOVE saying that!) is out trying surfing for the first time (I hope he comes back alive!!), I am lying in bed catching up on the American Idol episodes I missed, watching How I Met your Mother (my new favorite show) and reading friends blogs. Thanks to Jessie (http://farrellann.blogspot.com/) for the awesome music. Some new artists but I'm really liking what I'm hearing!
Hopefully I feel better tomorrow and can enjoy all Hawaii has to offer! The best part is Joe has off tomorrow and Tuesday, so we have a five day weekend! Woooo hooo!

"Put some south in your mouth"

...also know as "the house that Bar-B-Que built" but probably better known as the Dixie Grill, is so far my favorite restaurant here. As a sidebar.... their slogans made me laugh so hard, I just had to share!! Joe and I met Matt there one night & enjoyed some amazing food - they even serve popcorn instead of bread as a starter, how cool is that?!? Anyway I love it and would eat there every day, if Joe would let me!If you come visit, we will be going there, promise! The food (and not the subsequent story - keep that in mind) makes it worth the trip.
Although the food was spectacular, this following experience was not....

After enjoying a scrumptious meal (amazing) and some of Joe's oven-baked lemonade (equally amazing), I got directions from Matt on where the restroom was. I found it and walked in, only to see a man standing there peeing! He didn't notice me (thank goodness) so I bolted out of the bathroom!! I shot out of there like a bullet (I am not kidding - my quickness surprised even myself) and literally took out our waiter! He told me "you picked the right room" and I told him that I thought he was mistaken! He went on his way & I took another look at the bathroom door - sure enough it was the ladies room - at least according to the sign. Maybe someone should have told that to the man peeing in the sink.....

It's been awhile

So very much has happened since I've last blogged!

Surprisingly, we were able to pack all the stuff listed in the picture below! Originally, Joe and I were on the same flight from Dulles to San Francisco but had different flights to Honolulu. When we checked in the clerk switched my flight so Joe and I would be on the same flight - she did it without us having to ask and for FREE. She also made it so I only had to pay for one piece of checked luggage instead of two - also without us having to ask and for FREE (my new favorite word!). Yay United! The flight was relatively painless - very long but we did get to watch four decent movies which were all relatively new releases, I was pleasantly surprised! The picture is from about halfway through flight number one - you should have seen me in flight two! There's a reason there aren't any pictures from flight two :) ! By the time we made it to Honolulu and checked into our hotel, we had been up for almost 22 hours and were exhausted to say the least! Even though we were tired, we still managed to find the energy to order room service, though I barely remember eating the food!

Our first "real" day in Hawaii, we went,not to the beach but to where every couple desires to go their first day in tropical paradise....the MVA (or DMV, you know what I mean). After taking two tests (and passing one), I am now the proud owner of a Hawaii drivers license. It's really pretty and is probably the best DMV/MVA picture I have ever taken! We followed our trip to the DMV/MVA with a visit with our rental agent to our new house!!!! :) It is really cute! We have been able to furnish it rather nicely (thanks to Garage Sales and Craigs list) and have some really nice furniture that didn't cost a lot of money!! Pictures will be following soon...stay tuned!

Ok enough about the boring stuff...now onto the beach!
First off, it's about two miles from our house and absolutely gorgeous!!! There aren't a whole lot of people there (we only saw 6-7 people) and it is the bluest ocean! Absolutely beautiful! It was surprising to me though - if I lay facing away from the beach, it looks like I am looking into a regular woods with deciduous trees not palm trees like I was expecting. Either way, it's still amazing and I still can't believe that this will be my home! I got a bicycle today, so I am excited to bike to the beach tomorrow -wooo hooo! For now it's off to bed to rest up for a busy day of unpacking/arranging in addition to some quality beach time!

Challenge of the day

How in the world am I going to fit ALL this stuff into two 70 lb suitcases?!? I'll keep you posted!

Wedding Inspiration

This was the inspiration for my wedding dress! Ha! Actually it was my Mom's wedding dress - we tried it on after we found it in her ceder chest. Not too bad, if you take off the high-neck, lace sleeves, and lace front panel! Hey, I probably could've rocked it, if I would have added cowboy boots!

Harley Pup

Oh how I love my Harley pup! Harley is the 6 month old boxer that we adopted a two months ago. She is an absolute sweetheart, such a lover! A big thanks to John and Hannah who are taking such good care of her since I moved out of the apartment!

She's loved spending time at my parents where she can run & play - she even went sledding with the family! She is a really friendly dog and even tried to make friends with the remote controlled skunk I got my mom as a Christmas present last year - it was hilarious!

Family Christmas!

I love Christmas and this year's holiday celebrations were probably my favorite. Maybe it's because I know I'm moving soon, I really just cherished my time with friends and family that much more. The cousins had a great time hanging out and catching up - especially since Nicholas flew in from Colorado! Everyone had a good time playing with the Web cam Joe and I got our grandparents for Christmas. We Skyped Becky and Stan, who were unable to come since their baby was due so soon! All in all a good time was had by all!


Christmas day was awesome! We all went sledding as a family and had an amazing time! We opened presents and then all settled down for naps as evidenced by the pics (thanks Mom!) My dad and Joe's Dad were able to meet for the first time via Skype (yay Web Cam Christmas Present!) and talked guns and all sorts of guy conversations. It was adorable!