Are you feelin this?! I love it

Rendezvous at LAX

Any opportunity to get together with our good friends is one we have to take advantage of! My friend Jenna (I miss her so much) and little Maddox (I also miss him, isn't he such a cutie!) had a layover in LAX so Lana, Jared and I picked them up and tried to make the most of the short time we had to spend together. Lana and Maddox are so funny to watch as they are so close in age that they enjoy doing a lot of the same things. It was also nice to have them pick on each other equally and we even caught them kissing. Well, caught Lana kissing Maddox. hehe. Have fun in the islands...we miss you guys!

Jared

This past month Jared has really been growing fast. So...he's gonna be 5 months and he weighs 21 lbs. Yep...that's right. He's starting to scoot around a little now (backwards) and has found himself in some tight situations: under the Christmas tree with the presents and halfway under the couch. He's such a sweet boy and loves to laugh, smile and lights up when Lana is around. He is still our little spitter and loves to poop out his diaper on a regular basis, but we just can't get enough of our little man.

This cheers me up

Our Hula Princess

Well, I have such a cool sister! Mat's little sister, U'i, came to visit us for Thanksgiving and it was such a treat for all of us. We really really really miss the islands and it was nice for her to come and bring some of that aloha that she's so good at spreading around. As you can see, she's beautiful inside and out, talented like you wouldn't believe, and we all really enjoyed her company. Bless her heart- she put up with my Thanksgiving cooking madness (way to go on those pumpkin pies!) and our pretty boring schedule. Luckily her friend lives close to us so she was able to do some fun things with them too. We really miss you U'i! Come visit us anytime. But hopefully we'll come visit you soon!

Giggles caught on Camera

Jared is such a sweet, happy baby but I can never catch his giggles and laughs on camera. I was lucky and caught a giggle on camera while Mat was playing with him. It's short...but sweet and better than nothing.

I'M SO BORING!

Lana: (really whining) I'M SO BORING!!!
Me: I think you mean "I'm so bored."

Love you Mom!

To my mom and all the other mom's out there...

Free Nursing Cover

There's an awesome deal right now at uddercovers.com (I don't like the name either). It's a FREE Nursing cover when you use the promo code: thankyou. I just ordered one and all you pay is the shipping and handling ($8.95). I know all you crafters out there make your own but for those of you who just want one now or want to give a gift, I thought this was a great deal. And I love me a good deal. Enjoy

Not to compare or anything...

The Fam

We all joined Mat on a little work trip this week and found a fun photobooth. I love how these pictures are pretty typical of what our family is like. HA! Enjoy

Dedicated to Jared-from Lana

Lana loves to sing to Jared and it really calms him down most of the time. Here's Lana singing "I Am a Child of God" for Jared cause he was a little fussy while I was trying to make dinner. The picture is of Jared about 3 seconds after she was singing to him. Nice work, huh?!

PS. This is my 100th post. Pretty cool.

Happy Halloween 2009

We had a great Halloween. It was the perfect mix of fun, casual preparation and good company. We carved pumpkins with friends (Kristine has all of the good pictures!), had a fun trunk-o-treat activity for church and a great trick-o-treating night on Halloween with our buddies the Enos' family. They're always good for a party! Honestly I'm excited that the spooky holiday is over and we're on to more positive and uplifting celebrations. Here's to the rest of the holiday season. We hope yours will be wonderful!

Earning Their Wings

The kids and I took a trip to Kansas to welcome Shaefer home from his mission. It was such a wonderful time to be with the family and the only thing we were missing was our MAT! The kids were great on the plane and the stewardess gave both Lana and Jared their own set of wings which were rightfully earned. It was such a treat to be spoiled by my parents and Lana and Jared were entertained the WHOLE time. We played some killer games of racquetball (some of us walked away bruised...right Mischa?hehe), went to the zoo, the movies, had some wonderful meals and great company. The week just flew by so quickly and before we knew it we were back home. Welcome home Shaefer...we missed you and we're so proud of all the service you gave these past two years. Now, don't have too much fun in Hawaii! We're coming to visit you!

The Saddest Face

Lana drew a fantastic picture of our family on her little doodle pad. I told her I'd take a picture of it so that we could save it and she could erase her pad and draw another picture. She was so excited to pose for the picture but pinched her finger in the hidden drawer of the doodle pad. That is how we ended up with the saddest face ever. Even though she was crying and in pain she still wanted the picture. I couldn't stop laughing. The other two pictures are just so I can remember how small Jared was at one point. He just seems to get bigger every time I look at him :)

My Cutie-pies

My two little kids...growing up so fast. I love how Jared just puts up with being hugged and kissed and squeezed by his big sister. For now all he can do is grunt. haha

Surprise!

I asked Lana to hold the fort down while I took a quick (and desperately needed)shower. After my shower, Lana was waiting for me and said, "Mom...I have a surprise for you! Close your eyes." At this point I'm thinking "uh-oh. This could mean anything." So, I play along and she leads me to the living room. When I open my eyes I see that while I was in the shower she cleaned up the whole living room putting all her toys away and even other things that were out and about. It was such a great surprise and made me soooo happy- especially because I didn't ask. Since this episode, Lana has done it one more time and I'm hoping for many more in the future. :)

Motivation

While squishing my tummy, Lana declares,"I think you have another baby in there!" Now, if that's not motivation to work out...I don't know what is!

Little Tokyo

We joined Mat on a quick trip downtown for work last week and ended up down the street from Little Tokyo which we've been wanting to go to for a while. Although we just made a short stop for lunch we had a fun time. We stopped at a curry house and ordered some...you guessed it...curry. It was right next door to a Japanese book store (I think we went to a similar one in New York) and we had fun checking it out. I saw my new favorite kids book: Everyone Poops. By the same author: The Gas We Pass. hehehe. Then on the way back to the car we stopped off at Marukai's just "to look" and ended up leaving with a handful of goodies. Mat found his favorite juice: Hawaiian Sun and I picked up some Hawaiian salt, nori, shoyu and some Japanese candy. Can't wait to go back. :)

Fun first day

Today was Lana's first day of "Mommy and Me" class or as we call it: school. (Since all her other friends are going to school it helps her not feel too left out. I'm sure she still wonders why I stay with her all day!) We loved todays class and were a little sad about not seeing some of our friends there but were happy to see a few familiar faces and meet some new friends. I'm so glad that Lana is so good at adapting to new things. On the way out the door she goes, "Mom! When I grow up I want to be a teacher!" Looks like we chose a good teacher!

In case you didn't know...

In case you didn't know, Lana is Japanese and this picture is the perfect picture to illustrate that. Her cute little friend Shana got both Lana AND Jared these Japanese outfits called Jinbei. Lana was home for two seconds before demanding to wear it and I think she looks so great in it. And comfy too...I want one! :) I can't wait until Jared fits his. I'll have to post that picture when the time comes. If he keeps growing like he is, then that won't be too long at all! Oh, and a cute little story: Lana's friend Veronica started school recently and told her mom that there's a girl in her class with "Lana eyes." Too funny!

The computer picture is one of two reasons that I haven't posted anything for a while- Lana has become more comfortable using the mouse and enjoys playing her "ABC" game any time she can. The second reason is cause I'm too lazy. haha

It's nice to...

go somewhere ALONE and without a diaper bag!

I want...

this sweet bike seat for the kiddos. Hmmm...now that I have two, it might be better to get a bike trailer.

He's Here!!!

I'd like to introduce the newest little addition to our Tanigawa clan:

Jared Keali'imaluhia
Born on July 28th at 12:16pm
7lbs 2oz
19in

Mat and I noticed from the moment he was born that he was very mild and very peaceful. He's already proved to be quite a sweetheart and we all love him so much. As for the big sister, she's great and is jumping quite nicely into the role. She loves to give him hugs and kisses and has been very good about this life-changing event. Mat is loving having a son and especially one that looks just like him!!! We just sit around and compare the two and crack up at the similarities. As for the mama, I'm doing alright. I'll feel better with more sleep and regular-sized boobs that don't hurt from nursing. That's the latest...my apologies for not being on top of the updating business.

What a difference a day makes!

On our way to the hospital...then the next day: another little one joins our family. Beautiful. (except for my belly in the last picture. haha)

A Kaiser Kid

My little Lana has been such a great sport about coming with me to all 5,000 prenatal appointments at Kaiser. They are too often, too redundant and sometimes we wait too long for the doc. But she's always so good and patient and has the routine down pat! When I need blood drawn, she tells the nurse, "Use the BIG needle!" And she always laughs really loud and enjoys telling everyone in the waiting room that I just made shi-shi in a cup. Getting my blood pressure checked is also a favorite and she's become quite a chatter box with the doctors and nurses. They are really good about involving her in the appointment and asking her how she feels about being a big sister. And finally, she's beginning to know her way around the building pretty well. On the way out we can't leave without having "storytime" where they sell books for kids. That's the bribe I hang over her head for her to be good during the appointment and it works every time. So, thanks...Lana for being a good sport and here's to being DONE with going to all those annoying appointments!

*This picture is of a little fountain we pass by on the way back to the car