RushingAround

I Know An Old lady Who Swallowed a Spider…

We live on the 4th floor and have 2 children under 5 years old. There is going to be stuff tossed from our lanai (balcony), it’s just gonna happen. Once a week or so we go down there and pick it all up. This morning the girls go out to the lanai and start saying “Cup in the tree! Cup in the tree!” I look down and indeed there is a cup in the tree. I go down to the ground with a broom thinking I can reach it. When I get down there I realize it is way too far above my head to actually reach with the broom. Steven comes to the lanai and decides he’s going to get it down by throwing something at it. He picks up a package of pull-ups. Aims and gets right where the cup is at. Unfortunately instead of making the cup fall, it just sits there in the tree stuck.

“Hey! Those things cost money!!” My husband in his infinite wisdom, especially when it comes to money, starts throwing college textbooks…

He got the pull-ups back, but the cup, still in the tree. And I’m absolutely sure our neighbors don’t have any doubts how it got there.

2 Years From Now It’s Going to Be a Ice Cream Haven At My House OR I’m Actively Discussing Someone Else Taking a Scalpel to My Daughters

In the past 2 weeks I have personally taken care of 8 patients who have had tonsillectomies. I’ll tell you what the younger kids do SOOOOO much better and I have come to the definite conclusion that when the girls are 4 and 6 years old they are getting them surgically removed (in the midst of my recovery I said the same thing, but wasn’t sure if I’d think the same thing 6 months later). I have absolutely no desire for their tonsils to get more annoying as they get older and then they have to get them done when they’re 26 because I know from first hand experience that that just plain sucks. I think I’d prefer it in the summer time when there’s no school. So exactly 2 years from now I am planning for them to have surgery.

80’s music is gone…

I don’t really remember the 80’s. I grew up in the 90’s. But my father loved 70’s and 80’s music, and he got me hooked at a very young age. I just call it all 80’s music though, as I don’t always actually know the difference as I wasn’t alive in the 70’s.

In any case I am writing this short piece to protest the move away from the 80’s made by radio stations at the beginning of this year. “80’s, 90’s and now” suddenly became “90’s, 2-k and today” overnight, as if the difference between 31 Dec ’09 and 1 Jan ’10 obsoletes a whole decade worth of music.

So now if I want 80’s music I have to go to “oldies” stations that play 60’s – 80’s music. The only problem with these is that they tend towards oldie rock or oldie pop without a good mixture between them.

2010 killed radio. There, I said it. =)

My Daughters: Little Miss Sunshine and Little Miss Aloha

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So I was all in love with the Mr Men and Little Misses books when I was a kid. They were AWESOME. When I figured out I was marrying Mr. Rushing, I had to run out and buy the Mr. Rush book for him. About a year ago I started seeing Mr Men and Little Miss products here and there. I have a scrub top with Little Miss Helper and Mr Bump and Seporah has a Little Miss Sunshine shirt. It wasn’t until later I realized they had made it into a show. Just thought I’d show everyone. Super cute. Seporah and Felicity love it, they call it Little Sunshine Show. And really my daughters are not afraid of anyone, they ARE Little Miss Sunshine and Little Miss Aloha.

The things I wish I had time for

Yesterday was officially my last day at AWhere Incorporated. I’m really relieved that my Algebra class is finally over.. and I can finally start focusing on making good grades.. instead of just getting bye. I was working about 20-25 hours a week while taking 16 hours a semester. I was just running from one place another and doing my darndest to just stay afloat. So I ended up last semester with 4 B’s and 1 C. My GPA when I transfered to UMHB was a 3.27.. Now it’s a 2.6 something. So pray for Sarah and I as we try and cut 600 dollars out of our budget every month.

Now this brings me to an update on the things that I hope to have time for with the extra hours every day:

Exercise: I’m currently 290 lbs and I want to be 230 again by this time next year. I’m off to a pretty good start as I started watching what I was eating about two weeks ago and I’m already down 10 lbs from then. I’ve swam 500 meters twice and run 3 to 5 miles 3 times in the last two weeks. Prior to that… I hadn’t run since February probably. . .
Writing: Steven has started a writing group and I really want start getting some of the ideas in my head out on paper. My week to submit came right as my finals hit for my math class… so I was the first person not to submit during their week. Not going to happen again! I want to actually get chapters ahead so I’m always submitting something I’ve written weeks ago.. we’ll see if it actually happens
TV!: Has TV ever been as exciting as it is now? Lost is over, but I really want to catch up on all these shows:
             Caprica – Awesome spin off of Battlestar Galactica.
             Castle   - Awesome show with Nathan Fillion (captain from Firefly) If you like Law & Order..       You’ll love Castle!
              Fringe - This is an X-Files meets Lost kind of show, but they have Leonard Nemoy playing a character so I can’t help myself but want to watch it.
              Stargate Universe – I’ve heard a lot of good things about this show, but a few bad things. I’ll judge for myself.

I can’t even remember the last time I got to watch any of them. I may have to download since hulu only caries the last 5 that aired on TV.

The girls are doing nice, the older is making progress with potty training, but mommy and daddy need to gain some patience with the little blunders. And we need a bark collar for the younger one… I’m not joking.. she screams until Sarah picks her up… and she screams loud.. all day long. Since I’m obviously kidding about the bark collar.. any advice on how to get her to be a little less dependant being held 24/7?

Random

Seporah’s Preschool Graduation

Seporah’s Preschool Graduation was today. We thought we’d show you pictures and videos of our big love bug getting so big. The candy around her neck is a tradition here in Hawaii. During graduation it’s common to get many leis and since she’s a little keiki, most of them were candy leis. Seporah totally hammed up the singing and dancing, a little too much on the second song to where she landed on her booty.

Free and Cheap Stuff to Do With Your Keiki

We got to go with Seporah on Friday to The Children’s Museum with Seporah’s class. It’s super fun, we go there all the time. We were surprised to find out we were the only ones who had been there out of her class. It was the same when we went to the zoo, no one else had gone. Not exactly sure why no one else is going there, but thought I’d make a list of free and cheap things to do with your short stops, especially on Oahu:

FREE
-Mondays at the Mililani Town Center at 10:30am, Bungo the clown comes for toddler time.
-Tuesday mornings at Pearlridge Mall and Wednesday mornings at Kahala Mall there’s toddler time at 10:30AM.
-Tuesdays at 10:30AM at Mililani Library there’s story time with a craft.
-The beaches, KoOlina, Aweoaweo and Waikiki are the 3 that we’ve found that have the calmest waters for the keiki.
-Parks, parks, and more parks.
-Free movies this summer at Regal Theaters, check out http://www.regmovies.com/nowshowing/familyfilmfestivalschedule.aspx for more information.
-Bike rides, the girls LOVE the bike and it’s good exercise too.
-Walks/hiking. Depending on where you go, this could cost some for admission or parking, but very minimal. There’s Wahaiwa Botanical Gardens, Waimea Falls, Manoa Falls, Diamondhead.
-At least once a month there’s a Family Fun Fair somewhere. Usually free admission with crafts for the kids and entertainment. They happen downtown and at the colleges and universities and just all over.
-You have to be on the lookout, but quite frequently Museums have free days.
-Tutu and Me. This is a traveling toddler time that’s all over the islands.

Cheap Stuff
-Annual passes to the zoo are $25 for the ENTIRE family! Passes get 20% off gift shop and eatery.
-Annual passes to the aquarium are $60 for the family. Plus 20% off at the gift store
-Annual passes for the Children’s Museum/Discovery Center are a little bit more at $200, but if you average it out it’s sooo worth it. Plus 20% off at the gift store and cafe.
-Annual Passes at the water park are also more expensive, but right now if you buy them online they’re $70 each and they’re good for a whole 12 months, the place doesn’t close for the winter. And they do special events all the time.
-Jamba Juice, we always find these buy 1 get 1 smoothie free coupons. Then we have them put part of each of ours into a keiki cup and we end up getting 4 drinks for the price of one.
-McDonald’s, really for the price of a happy meal you get food, a toy, a playground, and a little peace and quiet. Not bad I’d say.
-The Baby Expo comes around twice a year in May and October. It’s called the BABY expo, but it’s got activities for up to about 6 or 7. It’s only $4.50 for adult, kids are free. There’s always snacks and stuff to do.
-Baby Hui, you have to sign up for it, but it’s Mommy and Me playdates that’s pretty cool. They hook you up with families with kids about the same age.

There’s ALWAYS stuff to do, you just have to look for it. And really this list doesn’t even touch the touristy stuff you can do here on the island. Maybe it would be different if we lived in a huge house with a huge backyard, maybe then I wouldn’t feel the need to do something. But we live in an 800 sq ft place on the 4th floor and we have got to do something everyday.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

I know time is a scarce resource for many of us these days but I just finished this book and you need to make time for it. I have read two serious biographies of President Lincoln and neither told his story so fluidly and enjoyably. And let there be no doubt, this is in fact a biography.

I get it, Abraham Lincoln didn’t actually fight vampires. Vampires don’t actually exist. But the truth that is actually in this biography will have you doubting yourself, really. Seth Grahame-Smith put so much effort into his research that it is difficult to separate fact from fiction. I don’t know how many times I put the book down to look up some minor character or event to find out if they really happened. Without exception they were true to history.

So what is this book? Basically the author (Grahame-Smith) intensely researched Mr. Lincoln and wrote a biography, adding vampires to the whole of it. From the early death of his mother to motivations of southern slavery to Lincoln’s political opponents, vampires are everywhere.

Seriously, make time for this book. You will not regret it.

makakilo ward antics

I go to church at one of the Makakilo wards on drill weekends and it never fails to entertain. Something crazy always happens. Today a newly married couple moved into the ward and got to speak and do their introductions and all that. So this girl gets up and I swear she isn’t a day over 18 but she later told us she is 21. Turns out she met her husband on her mission. Let me try to quote her: “so when I got back home from my mission I flew right back to him and we hooked up and stuff.” *giggles* she totally looks embarrassed and tries to fix it. “i mean, we didn’t “hook up” hook up, we just started dating”. The congregation is rolling by now and she is beet red. I actually felt really bad for her although the laughter was infectious (as crowd laughter tends to be).

Sent from my Palm Pre