going to hawaii

So I'm off (so to speak) I'll be going to Hawaii sometime late October till just after the first week of November.
I haven't quite decided as to where I'll be staying (maybe I'll rotate with my 2 brothers, one of my nieces and the old homestead) so much to choose from (no hotel bill for me though it does have a certain lure (no fighting amongst the siblings).
My list of things to do:
#1 priority is visit mom as much as I can.
#2 visit my dad and my numerous relatives at their final resting place.
#3 attend my best friends BBQ that she's throwing me.
#4 attend my nieces baby shower.
#5 shop.
#6 eat at all my favorite places.
#7 attend the beach picnic with all my friends from school.
I'll hit at minimum 6 of the 7 which isn't bad.
I can't wait.... will keep you posted!

It's official... I'm old

This picture was taken about 15 years ago at a family reunion. I'm surprised that they were able to corral this many of the kids together at one time. Here's why I titled today's blog as I did. These kids are now between the ages of 25 - 32 and according to facebook, a few of them in this picture have now taken it upon themselves to coordinate the next big family reunion for 2011. My generation has never had the opportunity to put one together because my mom and her gang have always done it. The kids are now in the planning stage and will begin to put together a facebook page so all family members can keep up on the plans. They will include relatives nation and world wide. Our ancestors originated from Norway and a few of them have always made it out to Hawaii for the reunion. How fun is that. I have always loved planning events like this and now I won't have the opportunity. I guess it's best since I don't live in Hawaii and all events need to be planned from there. Oh well.... I know I'll have fun and I'll be sure to post lots of pictures.

Little did he know.....

Martin (a very dear family friend) was 77 years young when he passed away yesterday.
Little did he know that during a 3 minute wait for the car that that would be his last moment of life.
It was a freak accident that had killed him. He was leaving a restaurant after a lunch/meeting with a couple of fellow Masons (there were 5 in all). Four of the men waited outside while the 5th went to get the SUV. The SUV was converted for a left foot driver because the owner had had a stroke a few years back. The person retrieving the vehicle was not the owner and had forgotten about the conversion. Needless to say he hit the four men waiting. 2 of them died at the scene, 1 was taken to the hospital in critical condition and the 4th walked away.
We must always remember to enjoy life as it may be your last.
My prayers go out to the 2 who were killed, the one in the hospital, the other who walked away but also to the driver whom was a friend to all 4. He is heartbroken, the feeling of guilt races through him for causing the death of friends and injuring the others. I know that he is forgiven.
Here's my take on life and death....When we are born we then begin to die. How we die is not as important as to when. Things are put in front of us to make sure that when your time is up, you just need to come home. We all just never know.

Oopsey.... but it was a save!

Before taking this photo, the seasoning was at the top of the label

this is after I had flipped the bowl upside down in the sink

this is how much fell into the sink

As the story goes.... I was making dinner for my husband who was bringing a friend home for dinner. Everything was going great until I made the potato salad. Instead of flipping the top of the seasoning bottle, I unscrewed it. I wasn't looking when I poured because I thought I was just sprinkling the seasoning in. Much to my horror when I did look did I realize what I had done. I was going to chuck the whole thing but then I calmed myself down and fixed it. I didn't think to take an after picture till we ate it. Moral of the story... look before you pour.

I'm about due to help out in Hawaii

Sandy Beach

Kahala Beach Park

Kahala Beach Park

Kahala Beach Park

Learning to surf at Waikiki

Surf board rentals

The Pink Palace

Waikiki "Walls"

My bestest buddies!

We've known each other since we were 6 yrs old.

Yes it's been almost a year since I've been home and I feel really guilty. I normally try to make it back to Hawaii every 4 months and stay for about 1 1/2 to 2 months. It's hard to go home but I feel as a daughter, I should pull my fair share and help my siblings with the care of my mother who isn't very well. My mother has Alzheimer's and currently lives at home with a few of the siblings. Last week I got a call from my sister with news that my mom pulled her first disappearing act. Mom's dog was crying at my brothers bedroom door sometime after midnight. When my brother woke up, he checked on my mom only to find her gone. After a thorough check of the house, he got mom's dog and went to find her. The dog lead him to the corner gas station (a bit over a 1/4 mile). The police had been called and were trying to get information from her when my brother showed up to claim her. Now 2 of my other siblings are on the search for the right facility.

Of course the perks are great... I get to see my mom, siblings, relatives, shop for local items that I can't get state side and of course, need I mention.....eating my fill of the local food :)

The one and only reason I will not return home to live is the cost of living. With that said, there's a lot to love about Hawaii. The scenery is killer! The area in which I grew up in, I guess you could say is small with a sense of community. Whenever I'm home, it never fails that I run into someone I've known since elementary school. It's always nice to see them, and now with facebook it's easier to get a bunch of us together for a bbq at the beach. Maybe I'll go home mid Oct till the 1st week of Nov. we'll have to see. I'll keep you posted!

Oh I forgot to mention, I spoke to the Wilton instructor and I'll start attending her class 1st week of Sept. I'll keep you posted on that as well. Oh I can't wait!

Ciao bella ;)

Missing Florida

Just prior to leaving Florida to my new home in Texas, my husband and I spent the evening visiting with his brother. The photos above were a mere steps from the front door. Oh how I miss my friends and family and hope to visit soon.

Another project

Hmmm... I'm thinking of trying my hand at working with fondant. I don't know, I think I'll buy a tub and try working with it... rolling it, maybe try some flowers. If I fail at it.... there's a Wilton decorating class that's starting in a week and a half that I may have to sign up for. I'm thinking this as the project.. a princess cake with matching cookies. It looks fairly easy. I'll let you know how it turns out. Cross your fingers for me!

See you soon :)

Barb

As promised.. the wedding pictures

tiana

the bride

john & tiana
life begins

the bridal party

the cake from above & below
hey what's he doin...

it's what our family does best
brother & sister
we had so much fun

I must say... what our family is really good at is throwing a shin dig. When the music starts up our family is always the first on the floor. When the cousins get together it's always fun to watch them dance. The uncles..... (my husband and his siblings) are there right behind the kids. The food.. we always cook way too much or in this case order too much. We expected about 130 people and purchased enough for 150. We never ever run out of food for our guest. The next wedding is in Feb. we can't wait!
See you soon :)

Another crafty wedding

My niece Tiana was married last year and we had lots to do. Here are a few of the wedding crafts that I made.

The tiki torches that led to the wedding site

The bridal bouquettheir leis, the bouquet and the bouquet to toss

part one of the favors

the final product

These are just some of the items I made... tomorrow I'll post some of the pictures of their wedding... it really was beautiful.

The wedding and such

Yesterday I shared with you one of my hobbies...photography. Today I'll share with you another... baking and crafting. My daughter was the maid of honor of a very special young lady, a bridal shower shared with family and friends. The theme of the shower was country garden, here are the favors and cookies I made for the bride and her guest.

How I just love facebook

It's funny how much you can learn from your friends on facebook.

A lot of my friends are people I've grown up with starting in elementary school through high school. Michael posted a picture of himself and a friend we knew from Jr. high, his comment said "enjoying the ocean with my Baby Girl ;)" . My comment back was hmmmmm. He asked what I was hmmming about. I said it was an innocent hmmm but now he had me wondering and I asked if he had anything he wanted to get of his chest. Uh huh just what I thought... he sent me a private message letting me know that they were not only dating but now living together. hehehe. To the public he wrote "very funny barb".

I had another childhood friend who asked me today if I was running from her since she posted she was leaving Japan and moving to Florida and I'm no longer there.

I had another friend post her wedding pictures today. I can't re-post her professional pictures but I will share a few with you of some that I took. Enjoy!

What can I say... I love taking pictures!

my first blog

Here's the thing. I love photography, crafting and baking. I'm a wanna be. I wish I could do all these things well but to me, I always seem to fall short. My blog will have tons of pictures of things I've done over the years.
One of the reasons for this blog is... my husband and I just relocated from Florida to Texas due to a position change my husband just scored. We've been here now for 3 weeks and I have lots of time on my hands. At least here I can share and hope that someone is looking, reading and willing to follow me on my new journey.
Because I don't know anyone here in Texas, I've decide to catch up on a few things. As of yesterday, I started to re-do my recipe box, next will be my photo's and in between blogging. Well it's time for me to start dinner. I think I'll make fish with stir fry veggies and rice.
Stay tuned......
Barb