Goodness Gracious! 11 Years!

I know, I can't believe it either!  It has gone by so quickly in some ways and in others I feel like we have earned each year we celebrated last night!

we so love fancy drinks!

We usually have been celebrating big for our anniversary in the summer, like August.  But this year we spent August in a hotel room, not being very happy.  So this year for our anniversary, we went on a great date in downtown Waikiki!  Chris loves it down there and there is so much to do because it's such a touristy kind of place.  I didn't know at all what he had planned seeing as I was still focused on getting settled and being a new mom for the fifth time.  But he got us a babysitter and had me dress up and drove us downtown in the icky traffic.  I was so excited!  I love surprises from Chris, most of the time.

He parked and walked us directly to a restaurant called "The Top of Waikiki".  It's a tall tower with a spinning restaurant at the top.  The best time to go is just before sunset.  Let me just tell you!  It was amazing.  The dinner was so yummy and reminded me very much of a dinner we'd had on our honeymoon in Canada.  The best part was that I got to see my very first Hawaiian sunset!  It was gorgeous!  The company was good, the food was good, and the view was amazing!  What a fun night.

So I don't want to be super mushy - not really my style - but I do want to share how much I love my husband.  Twelve years seems like a lifetime in today's world since so many people never even get married in their relationships, but it seems like such a short amount of time to have done all that we have.  We have both earned our Bachelor's degrees, we've both begun careers (though mine is on hold for the time being), we have five beautiful and healthy children, we love the Lord and work hard to invite him into our home and our marriage, and we are finally beginning to get on top of our finances!  What more could a woman want?  Chris has helped me reach so many goals and made so many of my dream opportunities happen that I'm constantly trying to figure out what else I might want to do.  I'm not being "dreamy" or silly, I really have had my needs and wants taken care of with my best friend.  He loves me and our kids.  He loves his country.  He loves our God.  He is a good man and I am so honored to be his friend and wife.  I'm so glad he was patient enough to wait until I was ready before he asked me to be his wife.  Should have known then it was going to be an adventurous ride!

Love my husband!  Happy 11th Anniversary husband of mine!

First Date Night in Waikiki

So we have officially been in our house like maybe two weeks or so.  Enough time to realize how much we need a date night.

Chris has been having a hard time with the fact that we live in the amazing place and he can't even tell we live here while he's at work.  He has no window in his space and the one in the office doesn't even show palm trees, or so I'm told.  

So since we have a sitter and it's time to go out, he's dying to go downtown to Waikiki.  

We found this great place called "Duke's".  They have an inside area for the regular fare, and an on-the-beach section that's more burgers and fries.  It was so much fun.  Chris especially liked watching the sun go down over the ocean while we waited for our food.  The beach is literally just beyond the little wall that separates us in the restaurant from the beach goers near the shoreline.  We even watched a catamaran come ashore.  It was great.  Chris is a fan of the tiki torches and so he took this picture.

He wants to get tikis for our backyard, but all I had to do was mention all the ways the kids could get into trouble with fire so close at hand and he was kind enough to let it go for the evening.

So silly!

Our very first date in Hawaii!

Oh how wonderful are the parents!  So we've been her in town only a little while and guess who comes to help us out?  The Fosburgs!  Originally they had planned to help when Vaughn was born, but I was able to convince them to come visit us in Hawaii and set up house!  I'm so glad they agreed.

After 6 long weeks in a hotel on island and finally getting a house and then getting all our HHG (stuff), I have to admit I was a bit (or a lot) overwhelmed with the idea of organizing and putting together a whole new home.  Plus somewhere in there I'm supposed to mother.  It's been difficult to say the least.  The worst part?  Chris has been a bit depressed with his new job.  His last job was very high demand on his time and his skills while he doesn't really have a job here so the difference is stark.  They are readjusting his department and don't know where they want him yet.  Not so good.  He's even more unhappy due to the fact that he can't even tell that he's on an island because he can't see the beach from the house or his office.

Anyway, so when Mike and Ronda came down we were all very happy.  Something familiar in a sea of unfamiliarity has really helped us calm down and start slow on all the work that needs to be done to get the new place up and running.  One of the best things about my in-laws is that they are so much more than that.  They are a major support and great friends.  So when they saw how frazzled and overwhelmed I was, and how sad and depressed Chris was, they encouraged Chris to surprise me with our first moment of alone time in a while!  Chris took me to THE BEST snorkeling spot on our new island.  We went to Hanauma Bay.

Hanauma Bay is the best for a reason.  It's a wildlife preserve so there are extra steps to visiting.  We were let in free because we are military and then we had to watch a video about proper conduct while in the water and on the beach.  It is so impressive right from the first view!  Absolutely gorgeous!

We had such a great time.  I loved all the fish.  I even saw the state fish, Humuhumunukunukuapaua'a! Yes that's it's name.  It is beautiful.  We saw so many different kinds of fish and coral and all by ourselves.  It was amazing.  I even got to lay on the beach for a while and get my token Hawaiian sunburn.  (I don't tan, just to remind you!)  I also got to enjoy the little beach birds.  I had a small snack which several tried to steal!  It cracked me up!

What a great surprise.  I got my husband, a beach, and a time to be a young woman in Hawaii.  What more could a girl ask for?  More time, maybe?  Ok fine, I'll come home.

Thank you Chris.  Thank you Mom and Dad.  So many wonderful people who love me!

Welcome the Fosburgs to 2012!

So we finally made it to the New Year!  It's been such a great one so far.


With our family as young and constantly changing as it is, every day and every week there is something new going on.  This post is all about some of the random great things we've been doing.  Here we GO!!!

For some reason I found Lizzy under here this day.  Still haven't got a clue as to why.  Any takers?  It was so funny to come into the bedroom, knowing Lizzy was napping, but not being able to find her.  Cracked me up.  She is such a sound sleeper sometimes!

Then there's this adorable video.  The whole family was being so loud I couldn't figure out what was going on.  Then I grabbed my camera as quickly as possible.  See if you can figure it out!

You guessed it!  The whole family is cheering for Ally as she practices walking.  Isn't that wonderful?  She will never remember this, but she'll always know how loved she is!

Then there's the advent of the BEDS!  For Christmas Nana and Papa helped us get new bed sets for our kids.  Evie got princess, of course, Joe got Spider man, Liz got Tinkerbell for her toddler bed, and Ally got a new Winnie the Pooh pac n' play so V could have the crib.  I was so excited to get these big kid beds finally.  We used our tax return which I was able to get done so much earlier this year.  The bunk beds will not stay like this (we hope) forever, but for now they help us with our serious space issue.

 We had so much fun 'giving' them this surprise.  It took us almost a full week to purchase, get home, and put together.  So glad they liked it after all that work!  Now they build forts off the top (thanks to mom!) and have their own personal space to be in a room that they are currently sharing.  Both kids HAVE to ask permission to be on each other's beds.  It's been a good thing for Evie's independence and Joe's growing into a big kid.  


I'm so proud of all of my kids as they get bigger.  I originally thought Lizzy would have a hard time moving to the toddler bed, but unlike both Eve and Joe, she was so ready it was like that's where she'd been the whole time.  She's amazing.  I personally felt a lot better when Ally moved into her new bed.  She was beginning to climb out of the crib and for some reason, the older kids kept climbing in to get to her.  Not a good thing!  So now Ally can't climb out and the kids respect where she is - to a point.


These next pictures are of something we do every now and then.  With Chris and I loving video games the way we do (often our date nites are spent playing together) we often find games the kids might enjoy as free downloads.  This one is a carnival game with the PS3 move controller.  The kids love to participate and do a great job taking turns.  Normally, I'm not a fan of introducing our young children to electronics, but we do this as a family activity and it only lasts about 45 min.  The kids are also learning that these are things we do all together.  They rarely see daddy play video games alone, and he never plays inappropriate games (violence, language, etc) when the kids are around or awake to know.  He's a great dad who appreciates my sensitivity to their viewing habits.

 Eve is by far more capable with this than I imagined!

 Joe has been learning great hand-eye coordination in a fun way

Lizzy is just learning how the controller in her hand connects with the actions on the screen

It's amazing to see their learning curves!

 Even Ally participates - but mostly by clapping for the older kids and playing quietly with whatever they toss her way.

Later in the new year we got a great box from Aunt Katie with our family Christmas presents.  For those who are thinking, how shameful, just take a look at the amazing gifts!  

 the girls (all three) got these beautiful skirts - which Eve wears to ballet class every Monday...

 and Joe will hardly let his superhero blanket go for a few minutes so I can wash it!

Doesn't he look so cute?

At the beginning of February, my sweet Aunt Terry passed away.  She's my father's little sister.  His family was so kind and flew me, my sister, and my big brother out to Las Vegas to be there for him.  I was very grateful and for the second time in the same year, I travelled alone.  While I was gone, my great husband, being the awesome daddy that he is, kept me in touch with my adorable little ones.

this is Eve bearing her testimony during an FHE.  Isn't she so cute?

Chris and the kids always crack me up and I love seeing the fun things he does with them when I'm not around.  We do things differently, and while sometimes that's frustrating, in cases like these, it's invaluable.  Way to go Chris!!!

Then, we finally made it to Valentine's Day which is usually pretty low key for our family in general.  The kids were learning about the letter 'I' this day in school so we let Joseph write it on daddy's card.  Isn't it so great?

 daddy of course is always the perfect gift receiver!

 Once I got home I quickly helped daddy schedule his first ever BOYS DAY!  I found that Columbia was hosting a monster truck mash up at the local arena and that it was something we could totally afford.  I encouraged Chris to go with just Joseph, though I'm sure Eve would've liked it too.  Anyway, they both loved it!  Joe had so much fun he still includes the event in his prayers reminding Heavenly Father of the truck that rolled over and caught on fire.  Apparently it made a big impression on him.  I got a great picture out of it and Joe got a plastic purple mug shaped like a skull.  What a boy!

Aren't little boys great!?

So that was the beginning of our new year.  My kids are great!  I did some new things and some great things personally.  And my family benefited from a happy, relaxed, and enjoying life kind of mommy at this point!  Good for all of us and way to go daddy for being a great example of fatherhood and a supportive, loving husband!

Pre-holiday Fun Stuff

As each holiday approaches, we as a family get to do a lot of interesting things together.  Some of those things are just random outings like these.  

about the only thing she could play on

We take our kids to the local McD's quite often - not to eat - just to play.  We'll get them snacks like the apples or a water, maybe ice cream if they've been good.  We love to let our kids run around without having to tell them to be quiet and with no stairs in our home it's a good place for our little ones to practice new skills.  This was one of Ally's first times on the equipment at McD's.  Obviously it was a hit with everyone.

yes, this is normal for Liz

peek-a-boo!

even daddy had fun!

We also get to do our toy shopping as a family.  It's not always very fun, but we try to make it interesting and as secretive as we can get.  Luckily they're still little so beyond the short attention span their memories are not that great.  Thank goodness!

Got Bottle? Happy kid!

she loves to try everything out - we don't mind

he was trying to get away from the camera - he's belted in

We also had the chance for something a bit unique!  I found these great cookies that you could color.  Literally, we took markers and colored our sugar cookies.  It was a lot of fun and something totally tailored to my kids' desire to color everything imaginable.  They got a kick out of it.

Evie was very careful.  She really loved this idea.

Lizzy, not so careful, but still very happy

I don't even know if he colored it!  At least it tasted good.

soon after this picture she was belted in every time!

See?  So pretty - the cookie too.

We also had to do something we've never done.  We had a professional photographer - not a family member or friend - take our pix this year.  We get family pix every year, usually the day after Thanksgiving or somewhere near there.  But I was out of town this last year and we obviously had lots to do as you can tell if you've been reading!  So, I know most of you have seen the pix, we included them in our family update/Christmas letter, but here they are for those of you who didn't get them!  Enjoy!  I was shocked at how well they turned out!

I LOVE this picture!  My family is soooo cute! (I'm biased, I know)

We look almost the same as we did when we were married - is that weird?
Still happy and in love 10 yrs later.  Who would've guessed?

Ohhhh! I'm so in love with my own kids.  I mean, seriously, if anyone's going to be in love with them, shouldn't it be mom?  They are so cute and I was so surprised by how well they did at the studio.  They did so good I couldn't tell if they were actually mine!

Anniversary Continued - Ft. Lauderdale, FL

So here we are at the end of one of the best vacations I've ever had - not as good as Italy - but pretty fantastic nonetheless.

We got into Ft. Lauderdale super early in the morning for a cruise.  Because we'd gone all out for the room we were considered the VIP's on board.  As I said at the beginning this allowed us quick embarking and at the end it allowed us early debarking too.  Our luggage was picked up from our room the night before so we didn't have to haul it ourselves.

We took our very ripe, yummy mango from Antigua and asked the waiter in the restaurant to slice it up for us.  I don't know if I said it or not, but most often we ate at the breakfast bar in the morning.  One morning we were taking it slower and ate at the big restaurant.  We had so much fun that day.  We sat at a very large family style round table with lots of people we didn't know.  Thankfully on a cruise, not knowing others doesn't last more than a smile and a shared passion for over-medium eggs.  We met some great people that day.  So when we had the chance to eat, we chose to do it at the restaurant again.  We met some more great people and REALLY enjoyed that mango for breakfast.

At some point we realized it was time to go.  I have to say, I was a bit sad and a bit ready.  Can't tell which feeling was stronger at that point.  I can only vacation for so long before I'm ready to go home.  Thankfully, that wasn't the end of our time alone, but it was time to get off the ship.  That's when we got our bill and I freaked just a bit.  We had spent a lot at the spa!  Chris was good though.  Where we had paid our parking and our Ft. Lauderdale hotel in advance it wasn't a big deal as it could have been.

I think the hardest part for me was eating at a Wendy's for lunch.  I know, isn't that strange?  After being treated to such good food, without paying, it was kind of an odd shock to sit in a fast food place and know I'd paid for something that wasn't near as good!  Anyway, we explored a bit that day in Florida and grabbed some food for our little mini fridge, but eventually just hung out in the hotel and went to bed early.

Ok, not so early - we were on vacation!  We actually spent the evening discussing the history of US foreign policy.  I know doesn't sound real interesting for most people and no, my husband did not tie me to a chair and force me to listen.  I asked some questions that led into the discussion.  It was such a fascinating topic and Chris is so knowledgeable on it and patient with me that I kept asking questions.  I love history and for those of you who don't know, I really enjoy politics.  It's just so rare to talk about it outside our marriage.  Most men don't want to know what I think about politics - in general I'm assumed to be as uninterested as the other women they know, and most women are not interested in politics or tend to just relate what their husbands say.  I'm not knocking girls or guys, I'm just saying that Chris is the only one who really knows how interesting and fun I find politics.  It was amazing and I took notes so I wouldn't forget!  Chris thought it was really funny and I'm sure, a bit flattering though he'd never say so.

We knew we only had a couple days, but our first full day in Ft. Lauderdale we did... absolutely nothing!  I mean it too.  We slept in late, woke up to our mini fridge breakfast and went back to bed.  Literally for the rest of the day we sat in bed and watched TV - Jaws to be exact and some other watery adventures.  At some point we got hungry for a real meal and got out of bed in time for dinner and a movie.  I know, like we didn't watch enough that day or something.  We went to the third installment of the Transformers in 3D.

The most fun of the whole evening was wandering around in Florida.  We'd never been there and assumed it was unlikely we would get back before we moved so we took our opportunity.  We found... a mall!  Just kidding, we did have fun though.  Found this great little shop in their food court.  It was all about Italian foods!  Their gelato was actually real gelato!  It was an amazing find for two lovers of Italy.

The next day was pure fun.  We went to the beach!  We knew that we wanted to go snorkeling again before we left the coast, and due to our fabulous wandering capabilities we'd found a great place and a dive shop that loaned us some gear for super cheap.  We grabbed some Subway and lots of quarters for the parking.  It was such a great time.  We loved it especially since Hurricane Irene was on it's way and we knew people would be having to go home soon.  School for most of the kids had just started as well so there were very few tourists to deal with.  Great for us.

We had such a wonderful time.  I love the water!  Can't stand how salty the ocean is.  I guess that's what happens when you grow up in an area with lots of fresh water to play in!  We played in and out of the waves and laid in the sun.  It was such a great afternoon.  When we were done at the beach we were soooo tired.  We found a great place to eat for dinner and so enjoyed the rest of the evening.

Well, originally we had planned to stay another day or two, but with the Hurricane close on our heels ever since we were in the Caribbean and hearing some anxious news about home (apparently our sitter wasn't aware that her schooling was going to start before we were going to be home), we decided that it would be okay to cut the trip a bit short.  It wasn't like we didn't have enough fun for an anniversary!

So on Wed we jumped in the car and headed home.  The drive wasn't that bad, Chris and I have been traveling by car for a long time.  We love to see new places and do new things.  So anyway, after a 10hr drive we finally made it home.

It was so great to see my kids.  They didn't seem bigger this time (guess not enough time had passed), but they sure were fun to hold and cuddle.  The next couple of days we just spent time showing them pictures and giving out the fun presents we'd collected.  The best part was Chris didn't have to go back to work right away!

And that was our fabulous 10th anniversary celebration!  Thanks for reading!