Now where were we?

I'm so out of sorts right now, I'm not even sure where I left off. So I'll just pick up somewhere and hope I'm close.

Before Bev and Dick left, we hoped to get in at least one more beach day, but the weather wasn't exactly cooperating. So instead we decided to just go and take a walk at the beach, during which of course the sun came out and the weather was beautiful . . . but we didn't have our suits, so we made the best of it.

Here are a few of my favorite pictures during our beach walk . . . and of course we start off with the kids getting tired less than halfway through our walk and wanting to take breaks . . . I love the pained look on Charley's face.

Their spirits brightened, however, when they found trees to climb on, like monkeys of course.

Can you tell that Zander is completely mesmerized by any sort of mechanical equipment?

Here is a front shot of him concentrating on the bulldozer (or whatever it is) in the background . . . but my favorite part is how he is hiking up his shorts . . . classic.

Bev and Dick left last Friday, so we've spent most of our time ever since catching up on some neglected things. On Saturday Brian hit the books, while I spent the day piddeling around the house trying to figure out where I should start. Needless to say, I didn't get a ton accomplished. On Sunday we powerwashed the entire outside of our house, which was quite a long and wet adventure, and then I cleaned the entire inside of the house on Monday, which left us with one clean house. Today was our weekly grocery shopping excursion, and even though we had a rough start, the kids didn't torture me too badly. And they were dually rewarded with M & M's.

We've also got both kids in swimming lessons right now, and I have to say, I am extremely proud of them both. Charley started in Level 2 this year (you may recall she finally graduated from Level 1 last fall), and Zander started in Level 1. I was a little bit nervous about both kids in lessons, for different reasons . . . with Zander I was nervous because the instructor doesn't usually allow kids to start lessons until they are three years old, but he told me that as long as Zander could follow instructions, he would let him try. This one simple qualification had me a little anxious in the beginning, but Zander has proven himself quite capable of following instructions (with a few distractions mixed in of course) AND he loves the water . . . so we are doing good there. I was a little bit nervous for Charley to start Level 2 because in reality, she barely passed Level 1 last year, and we were told if we practiced with her a bit over the winter, she would be ready for Level 2. Needless to say, despite a lot of beach time, we didn't practice her swimming skills a ton over the winter, so I was a little nervous about whether she would be ready for this class. But she too surprised me by rising to the occasion, and she is a much better swimmer now than she was last fall, despite the lack of practice. Whew, thank goodness we have little fish!!

So now it's time for me to get caught up on emails, pictures, the blog, and return a few phone calls because my communication skills have not been so good this past month. Slowly but surely I'm getting there . . . .

The Many Faces of Charley

Anyone who knows Charley knows that she speaks a lot through her facial expressions, especially when we limit her ability to communicate verbally (i.e. not let her yell at us). As a result, we've experienced some pretty entertaining looks over the past few years, so I thought I would share some of them with you.

Now realize that all of these pictures are posed in that I would give Charley an emotion to convey and she would show me what that "face" looked like. However, many of these faces are accurate representations of what we witness on a daily basis.

Of course, there is the traditional "silly" face . . .
And the "scared" face . . .

Oooo, this is a classic, the Charley "mad" face with the nose wrinkle . . . you can tell she's trying not to smile, but the rest is pretty accurate . . .

The good 'ol "happy" face . . .

Ooooo, the "scary" face . . .

The "disappointed" face . . .

The "embarrassed" face . . .

The "sad" face (with a hint of smile) . . .

The familiar posed "cheese" face . . .

The "thank goodness Mom is finally done taking pictures" face . . .

And there you have it, my beautiful little Charley. Like her momma, she doesn't leave to much to mystery, does she?

Have I mentioned that we have guests?

Yep, it's true . . . I know it's hard to believe (can you sense the sarcasm?), but we have guests right at the moment and have for the past few weeks, which is a perfect explanation as to why I've been such a slacker in the blog department.

Nothing particularly new or exciting has happened, we've just been busy doing the usual stuff . . . you know, the same stuff I write about every time someone comes to Casa de Palm and enjoys our deluxe accommodations, tours, and activities. So rather than bore you with too much talking, I figured I would post a few pics for your viewing pleasure (which also helps remind me what the heck we've been doing).

Of course, when visiting the Palms, there will always be some beautiful beach time . . .


We decided to brave the library one morning with two rambunctious children, but they actually behaved themselves pretty well.


We also decided to do "The Boat" ride to Aloha tower, as Brian's parents have never done this before, but the surf was a bit more choppy this time . . . hence, the "drowned rat" pictures that follow . . . Zander thought it was a blast, but Charley wasn't too happy. Can you tell?

Bev and Dick decided to stay at the beach cabins for a few nights, so we enjoyed some more beach time, exploring (we saw a monk seal and sea turtles on one such outing), grilling, and getting covered in sand, head to toe.

Then the Easter activities began. It started with a nice little egg hunt at Charley's school in which both kids were allowed to participate. They were pretty happy with their finds . . .

Next came egg decorating . . . well, more like egg cracking on Zander's part.

On Friday night, Air Station Barbers Point's held its annual Roast for the guys/gals leaving the station this year. Brian had duty that night and was unable to attend, but I decided to take advantage of the free babysitting (thanks grandparents!) and good company (good times Kathy and Marian, good times), and have an evening out. I didn't take too many pictures, but here is one of me, the Captain, and my friend Marian. The might may or may not have involved us girls singing a lot of bad karaoke.

On Saturday we headed down to a condo on Waikiki that Bev and Dick rented for a week, and we spent the day at the Hale Koa pool. Brian and I were able to sneak out for a nice dinner that evening (thanks Roger and Todd for the gift card, and thanks again to the grandparents for babysitting!), and we enjoyed a nice walk on Waikiki at the end of the night.

The next morning, the kids were excited to discover that the Easter bunny had visited the condo, with tons of eggs to be found, as well as Easter baskets.

After egg hunting and basket rummaging, we headed down to the beach for a nice Easter breakfast and some photos.

So I guess that about covers it. Some beaches, some boats, and a whole lotta Easter stuff. We will continue to have company until April 24th, and then we have a break until May 19th . . . did I mention that we have guests lined up all through the summer? Casa de Palm is booking up fast . . . ;)

I can't even make this stuff up . . . .

Charley: "Grammy, why is your butt so big?"

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Charley: "Mom, I really want my own phone. A cell phone."

Danielle: "Why do you want a cell phone?"

Charley: "I want my OWN cell phone so I can call someone."

Danielle: "Who do you plan on calling?"

Charley: "My Aunt Jen . . . I sure do miss her . . . (sigh)"

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Charley: "Moooommmm, come look at the picture I drew!!!!"

Danielle: "Wow Charley, that's a great picture . . . what is it?"

Charley: "It's a jellybean. See, there are his eyes, and his nose, his mouth, his arms and legs, and there is his peanut."

Danielle: (trying to contain my laughter) "Boy, that's a good picture and I can definitely see all those parts. But let's try to leave private parts out of our pictures, okay?

Charley: (huge sigh and clearly annoyed) "Oooookkkkaaaayyy, Mom."

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Zander: (in the bathtub, mumbling to himself, as Charley plays next to him) "____ then ___ going ___ touch ____'Gina' (our word for girls parts) ."

Danielle: (entering the bathroom) "Zander, did you just say something about touching Gina's?"

Zander: "What Mom?"

Danielle: "Did I just hear you say something about touching Gina's?"

Zander: "Noooo Mom . . . we don't touch Gina's because those are PRIVATE PARTS . . . I'm only going to LOOK at Gina's."

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In the very busy movie theatre bathroom . . . . Zander: (yelling loudly) "PEW Mom!!!!! It's STINKY in here!!!! Did you just take a POOP?!?"

I.O.U.

I know, I know, I owe you all much more than a short little email with no updates, no pictures, and a bunch of excuses. But I promise, they are really GOOD excuses. :)

Between our friends here house hunting and Brian's parents here visiting, we have been running around like a pack of chickens with their heads cut off (you like that little redneck saying I threw in there? ;)). I have hardly had two seconds to check my email lately, much less sit down, download some pictures, and write. But I promise, give me a little more patience and a decent blog entry will be forthcoming.

Suffice it to say, we've had a good spring break, kids are having a blast, and everything seems to be going fairly smoothly. Hopefully your spring is shaping up nicely, and I swear, I WILL be back!!