I'm thankful for maui.

We went to the family homestead for T-day. We stayed home:

We went and played:




We were curious onlookers as amazing feats of deliciousness occurred:



We saw flowers:






And visited Uncle George Kahumoku Jr.'s farm:








And ate out:



And went to the aquarium:

And stood around hugging each other:

Lilikoi is fun to eat. You slurp out the insides, seeds and all. Maile had a lovely time squelching this lilikoi and rubbing it all over her body. She is 8 months old and I'm not sure she's ever actually eaten any food. Mostly she smacks it on her plate, holds it in her mouth, spits it out and gnaws on it. Probably doesn't help that I am intensely paranoid about choking and so I end up fishing any food remnants out of her mouth after a minute or so. Slurping up poi.

Taking her bike for a walk...
Packing boxes can be fun!
Yes, I know it's almost thanksgiving. But Happy Halloweeeeen! Rosie was a carrot (I don't know where she got the idea from. But she was very clear for several weeks before Halloween-- she was going to be a carrot. Okay! So I painted a old pillowcase with a carrot on the front and back, cut out neck and arm holes, and sewed on some carrot-tops... I was a rabbit.
And Maile was a Spam Musubi!
Doesn't baby look so cute and happy in the car?

It's a lie and a deception. This is what she does in the car:
And Rosie has suddenly, overnight, started drawing really identifiable things. Sharks, Rapunzels in towers, and here is the whole family. From Left, a cat, the baby, me (with earrings and a bun), Daddy with a beard, and Rosie with her swimskirt on.
One morning I needed my dear sweet child out of my hair so I gave her a bunch of containers and water and foodcolor and... turmeric.
A little light reading...
I finally unearthed "Lazarusa" my poor harp, and Rosie has been plinking away. But I can't find my tuning key! So I haven't been able to really play or fix the broken strings. I'm hoping it shows up as the organizing/packing proceeds.

Monster mask + portrait of Matt plus "DAD"

Bridget rocks, by the way. Anybody who lives over here has heard of these playgroups-- every morning there are free playgroups in different places in the island. And last week Bridget completely outdid herself. She put on a "family fun day"-- completely free-- complete with a petting zoo (two mini bantam roosters, a couple humongous rhodies, 2 piglets, a goat, and a rabbit), horseback rides, three bouncy castles, a water slide, fancy crafts, and hotdogs for all. The woman should be the event planner for the superbowl. And she makes it all look easy.

Bouncy houses are fun.
This is what Rosie chose for lunch at Ishiharas. A quarter pound of raw tiny octopuses. She insisted at the store, but when the time came to actually eat the darn things, she wouldn't even give 'em a lick. So I ate them all. Very tasty! Not on the top of my "buy this again" list, but still.
The horses seemed to have an instant magical effect on all the kids. Rosie rode around and around the arena-- she didn't even look for me. She's had an independence growth spurt, which I love and appreciate, but is also a little sad.