And away we go....

After a beautiful farewell party and saying our goodbye's, we are packed up and ready to fly out tomorrow morning. It's hard to believe we are leaving, really leaving, but we WILL be back. With all our wonderful friends and family here there is no doubt we'll be back for visits.

Sofia had a fun day (shoots- a whole fun week!) at daycare and it was hard saying goodbye to our Chu Ohana- they have been so GREAT to Sofia and we were truely blessed to find them. Sofia always enjoyed her time there and through her we've made friends to treasure. Lynnanne & family- we promise to keep you posted on all of Sofia's milestones and fun stories through the years, we love you!

It was a beautiful Hawaiian day (remind me why we are leaving this? j/k) and with whales breaching in the background, our farewell party was a blast! Sofia kept busy running around with all her little friends, while Mom & Dad had a chance to say our goodbyes to our dear friends and colleagues. We will miss our UHH Ohana and those at PACRC. Thanks guys for a wonderful five years, all the love & support and for a great farewell.

So the next time I check in will be from mainland side- crazy thought! Family- here we come, ready or not! :)

Boxes, boxes, boxes...and more boxes!

No wonder moving is up on the tops of "most stressful" lists! Just when you think you're seeing the end, more stuff appears needing to be packed! That said, I think we are getting there- slowly, but surely. We have one car in route, the 20' container coming today, airline tickets booked and the house on the market...the check list is coming along. Sofia doesn't seemed to bothered by it all- in fact she has a new coloring surface: BOXES!

The move brings many emotions and I'm working through them. If I have one more person question why on earth I'd want to move from Hawaii, I'm going to puke! All I have to say is "you can't replace family".

We look forward to getting to Eastern Washington and settling in. Lots to look forward to!

Our forwarding address is: 505 W. Bolan Ave. Spokane, WA 99224 (until we get a PO Box).

Moving Mainland

That's right, we are moving to the "mainland".  We are excited to share we are heading back to Spokane- coming full circle in sorts for me.  I'll be working for EWU- my old biking grounds.  We are working on all the logistics and it's exciting, yet scary- a lot of change for 2009!  We are looking forward to being closer to friends and family.  So stay tuned on our moving adventures!

P.S.  Know anyone who wants to buy a house on the Big Island?  Just joking around, but really we are selling our home (something we are still "processing"- but is necessary to move on). 

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night....

Ho! Ho! Ho!  That seemed to be our theme this year as Sofia recognized who Santa was and learned what he says.  She had a great holiday season and we enjoyed her excitement and youthful joy- kids really do make the holidays FUN!  We spent Christmas morning at home and then went to the Frayne's for a Puerto Rican feast!  YUMMY!  It was a nice Christmas and we have much to be thankful for.  We send out lots of love and happy new year wishes.

Tis the season

We hosted a Holiday Open House today and it was fun to have family and friends gather in our home to celebrate the season.  Sofia had a lot of fun playing hostess, especially to our friend Rogelito. We are in countdown to Christmas- glad we don't have to worry about winter storms (that's for my family and friends in the NW).  Nope- 80 degree days and most likely sunshine for our Christmas morning (I still can't get used to it!).

Sharing in the holiday season...

Grandma Paula was here over the last week and we had a great time sharing our decorated house and in the holiday season (aloha style) with her.  Sofia enjoyed her company a lot, as did Roland and I.  Mom and I got to see the local production of the Nutcracker (cooks & lobsters and all)- a nice evening out for the ladies. We got some Christmas shopping and cookie making in.  Not to mention she was able to join us at our office Holiday party. It was really nice to have her around for the week and we were all sad to see her leave.

Sofia is enjoying the holidays and the decorations, especially a fiber-optic village scene given to us by JoAnne (Riveira).  We set it up at her level and it has seen a lot of action.  The bells as well, she knows she can play with them and we keep re-hiding them on the tree for her to find.  She can really shake her bells! :)  Sofia recognizes Santa and reindeer- but doesn't want to get to close, just enjoys from a distance.  We are looking forward to Christmas morning with her- kids really do make the season a lot more fun!

We send our warmest Aloha wishes for a wonderful season.

Our little turkey

Aloha!

Here is Sofia in her thanksgiving outfit she (ok, her daycare provider) made out of a papersack. She thought she was pretty cool in it, she didn't want to take it off (too bad she didn't feel the same about her Halloween costume- she went as a little girl like her Tia one year). We had a relaxing, laid back Thanksgiving with the Fraynes, only thing missing was the Perez side of the family.

We have our decorations out and Sofia had fun with this little santa chair- mind you its a decoration, not a real chair, but try telling a 20 month old that! She enjoys sitting in front of the Christmas tree looking at the lights and various ornaments. She recognizes who Santa is and likes it when I say "Ho, ho, ho, Merry Christmas"- her reply is "au, au, au"....kind of close. We hope the season is bringing great cheer to you all!