Life of Larisa or LOL

The most wonderful time of the year means getting to walk around at night outside of my house wearing my PJ's. Yep, that's me and the boys, out and about looking at Mililani Christmas Lights, in my comfy Old Navy pajamas. Truly the most wonderful time of the year---lights and PJ's. Luckily we don't have to drive too far to be amazed. We put up Christmas lights ourselves, but are clearly outdone by the neighborhood a few streets over. One day (one can only hope), we too will pay an outrageous electric bill during the month of December and have visitors in their PJ's come look at our lights. Gabe's favorite stop on the lights tour had Christmas villages (he is definitely Tutu's great grand) and a train. I lucked out with a Hello Kitty themed house. Isom and Zach weren't impressed with a theme but enjoyed the lights all the same...and the happy expressions the lights brought to me and Gabe's faces. Hope you have a holly jolly Christmas~

I don't know how much credit for this baking project I can actually claim. It was my idea and I started it, but Isom ended up finishing things off (motherhood called)...the putting together of it anyway. I did all oven portions, mixing and stirring portions, and licking the bowl portions. You be the judge. At any rate, it turned out to be a tasty little holiday dessert. Pumpkin, cream cheese, caramel, and almonds. You just can't go wrong...except that I wish I'd made it for Thanksgiving. I'm now inspired to create another version...starring red velvet, cream cheese, and pecans. I'll let you know how that turns out...

Scored by Gabe. And an assist. And several "almost" goals. A perfect (and muddy) way to end his first season of soccer (soccer when he was three doesn't count). Gabe almost didn't play his final game due to the torrential downpour of rain---hindering both sight and cleanliness---the field was a mud pit. Gabe, being the illogical eight year old that he is, was not interested in getting dirty...yet not interested in cleaning his room or taking showers. Go figure. Halfway through the game I think he realized his goal of not getting muddy was not going to happen, and he really went for it. He earned another medal (tallest member in the league...ha, ha), received his certificate, and the knowledge that he could score a goal with a little effort...and a little mud. Looking forward to next season...he'll be better, bigger, and the games will be closer to home. Less traffic and driving makes the goals all the sweeter.

...is Gabe. For soccer. If we gave out teamwork medals at home, he would be out of luck. As he told me on Sunday, "laundry is the worst thing a kid can be made to do". But, at least he is putting forth effort out on the soccer field. This past Saturday he was the lucky recipient of the Teamwork Medal. How does one go about receiving such an esteemed honor? Kick the ball to your teammate. And he did. And he almost scored a goal. We count all the tiny victories here. He is definitely getting the hang of the game more and more with each week's practice. There are only two weeks left for this season and he is already talking about "when he plays next season". Music to my ears. I thought he'd never be interested in anything other than Legos. Here's the proud medal winner. We're proud too...

...OVER! Zachary turned 14 weeks this past Sunday and today, right before no one's eyes, he rolled over. That's right, I missed it. His first big milestone and I was getting a snack from the kitchen. We had just walked in the door from after school pick up and the what seems like daily trip to Wal-mart. It's an exciting life we lead here. We enjoyed a fun morning of Dairy Queen Pumpkin Blizzard and Hui. A typical Tuesday. When we got home, Gabe was out the door to check the mail, and I was foraging...for a granola bar. Zach has a bed of sorts in front of the Christmas tree (don't all babies?) so, I placed him nicely on his back so I could grab my own after school snack. I wasn't gone one minute and upon my return to the living room, he was smiling away...on his tummy. Yay! I guess this is how Isom feels, not seeing the actual event but knowing that it happened. He has yet to repeat the maneuver, but I'm confident we will be snapping photos galore in

What you see before you is a homemade guitar. I would say that Gabe was seeking some extra attention...he knows I'm a sucker for a boy playing a guitar, or in Zach's case, a boy wearing guitar themed clothes. But, this is actually the product of a lot of hard work for a school project. A third grade project on varying pitch and sound. Wow. Third grade was worksheets and copying assignments down from the chalkboard for me. Gabe wrote and then typed a one page speech on how his guitar was created. I'm amazed. I'm amazed there was even a finished product. I'm amazed that the same Gabe who when working on this guitar with me, said he "didn't know how to use scissors...or a glue stick". When dad stepped in (because that comment BLEW MY MIND) to help, the two emerged from the garage with this masterpiece...having used screws, bungee cords, duct tape, scrap wood, and the saw! What? You can't use scissors but you can use a saw (totally supervise