First Haircuts

So I probably waited a little longer than most to get their hair cut (Avery is almost 4!), but it was sad for me to see their baby hair go...I loved Noah's curls, so I'm kind of regretting his cut, but he needed his bangs out of his eyes. Avery just got hers evened out which was also needed.

Avery was all ready to go, until they told us she needed to get hers cut at the "beauty parlor" next door. They were full for the day, so I took Avery back the next day to get hers cut.
P.S. Saturday is the day the "clothes fairy" doesn't leave out clothes for the kids...so they get to choose their outfits. Which is why Avery is in her Sleepy Beauty costume.=)

Noah sat in Steve's lap and did just fine.

 Ice cream afterwards!

 Avery all ready!

 She was such a big girl. Towards the end, she did say very quietly to me "mommy, this is taking a long time..." haha...luckily, the hairdresser didn't hear her.

 All evened out! And yes, I saved both kids hair. That may be weird, but I don't care!=)

My mom and dad got them the cutest little outfits...here'a picture of them together. Sorry, it had to be when they were watching a show! Also, the white tank top hadn't come yet, but she has this pink one that matches perfectly! Avery is always very excited to get clothes!

Avery's Preschool Graduation

Avery got to graduate early because her teacher is moving.=( We loved the school, but they decided to expand their elementary and close their preschool. Avery talks about her friends there all the time, but she can't wait to start up at another school. Still not sure what I'm doing about that for next year. I can't believe she only has one more year until kindergarten. That is just crazy.
I can't believe she is already sounding out words, writing, cutting, drawing....etc, etc. The progress she's made in just the 4 months she was at school is amazing.


Fun idea for teacher's gifts from Pinterest. Seed packets in a chalkboard pot!

She was so proud!

 She did so many fun things at school. They stuffed their own teddy bears on the last day because it was teddy bear week.

Yummy Produce

I'm officially buying ALL my produce out in town at either the Japanese grocery stores or the produce stands or markets they have everywhere. It's no secret that the produce at the commissary is horrible here, but the stuff that it gets SPRAYED with prior to getting off the boat...yuck! You see, everything gets shipped from the U.S., so it's half frozen, a month old, and already gone of most nutriants. The good news is the produce out in town is so fresh and delicious....and cheaper than the commissary...but still expessive. But that doesn't stop me from buying it. I refuse to eat only canned and frozen vegetables. Some, but not all. One of our favorite stands is by a park so it works out well. The kids love the apples. They cost about $1.50 each. Yes, expensive. But everything is very very good.

 Here we all having a little picnic.

 The market is that building to the right of Avery.

My Big Boy

Noah and I go to MOPS on Tuesdays (Avery now that she no longer has school). I get two hours of kid free time to socialize, do crafts, listen to speakers, etc, while Noah plays with other kids. Him and Avery are night and day in that regard. From day one he just waltzed right in the room without even saying goodbye. He has never had a hard time being away from me. On Avery's first day (even at almost 4 years old) she clung to me. But she was so strong, didn't cry, and had a great time. But she was hesitant because it was new. She's always been that way.
One day I went to pick up Noah and they had put his backpack on him. He just looked so grown up to me. I had never put his backpack on before, so I took a picture. He's a sweet little boy. I know he'll love school just like Avery does.

 Yes, I know, he does need a haircut. It is short now. Will share soon!

Every Little Girl Does this Once...

I'm always wanted Avery to grow out her bangs, but I ESPECIALLY did after the horrendous "trim" that my dad gave to them before she was 2 (it's ok, dad, she's not scarred!). Avery's hair went from this:

 To THIS!!! Not exactly a trim:

It took awhile to grow. This is what it looked like a month later:

Anyway, that was the only time her hair has ever been cut. Until the day Avery took it upon herself to cut her own. Just her bangs. Nothing else. I guess they were bothering her. She had been asking to get a hair cut! 

 So I realized they both needed haircuts. Here's some more pictures prior to:

 She actually did a pretty good job on her bangs. Not too short! She must have remembered them being so short before!

 We love our balcony.=)

Update

I wish I could keep this blog closer to "real time," but I'm finding that difficult! I always thought I'd have MORE free time as my kids got older, but I'm finding the opposite actually. We are just SO busy with something planned every day. Also, one child does not nap and likes to stay up until 9 (Avery) while the other child has been having some trouble sleeping at night (Noah - teething, I think). And, Steve's in the Philippines for 6 weeks.  But we're having fun doing lots of things, playing, cooking, cleaning...I love it all!  I'm not complaining a bit. I know that before long they'll be in school and I'll miss them.=( I'm working on a few special ordered hats for some friends and I'm finding it so hard to find the time to do them. I'm not sure how I used to whip hats out like I did. Well, I guess I didn't sleep much last year...haha.
Here's a cute little picture to leave you with that I forgot about. It's when we first moved in because our walls are no longer that bright of blue, and we don't have that black couch anymore (we sold it because we decided the black was just too dark for us).

 Oh, the pacifiers, so hard to get rid of them....

Mida Point

The heat and humidity has finally come to the island, and we are so ready for it!! I can't wait to take many trips to the pool and beaches. As much as we LOVED California, you could only go swimming a number of days in the year without being cold. You could lay out, but to actually get in was another story. It just didn't get that hot too often, and I only like to swim when it's HOT. Plus, the ocean water in CA is freezing! Here it is much warmer.
This place was so pretty. It was basically a big swimming pool on top of a coral reef because the water was shallow up until it got dark blue. I couldn't believe how turquoise the water was. These pictures weren't even taken with my nice camera.

 Heading to the little beach there to the right in the picture below. You can also get there by hiking a little trail.

Made it to the beach then we found a cave.

 One of the gunman lookout points during WW2

 Look at all the pretty colors! No more than chest deep until the water turns dark blue.

 ahhh....Avery LOVED getting in the water...Noah was more interested in throwing rocks in the water.

 Steve paddle boarding, Avery "swimming," Noah throwing rocks, and me relaxing.=)

 The first part of the island that reminded us of SOCAL with the cliffs and nice buildings.

 The cafe we stopped at. I always forget to take pictures in restaurants.

 The street the cafe was on. Nice little area.