The Happenings of Summer (May-August)

Good thing I keep a journal so when I don't update my blog for forever I can go back and find the highlights that happened each month :)

May

Randy and I swam out to Chinaman's Hat with our friends Eric and Allison and good ole' Beau. We also had some of our friends, Meghan and Ellis, visit us from Utah. We went snorkeling, boogie boarding, and took a few walks to the beach. Randy and I were also working our booties off (we promise we don't always play).  

Cave at Chinaman's Hat

Randy, me, Beau, and Eric at the very top!

I loved this day!

One of our neighbors on the papaya

June 

What a busy month! I turned 25 on the 6th and Randy took me on a shopping trip and also got my favorite---chocolate haupia pie from Ted's Bakery! He also made me an elaborate card (home made cards are one of my favorite things---especially from him) and decorated our door. Kip and Brittany also came to visit us! We had a wonderful time going to the beach as a family, eating at Haleiwa Joes, hiking to Sacred Falls, snorkeling at Shark's Cove,  and playing the most hilarious game of tennis. We also made them our specialty---peanut butter banana smoothies. For one week, Randy volunteered at the scout camp up in Pupukea where it rained almost the whole time and he would come home soaked! We also attended Kay's wedding in Haleiwa and enjoyed dancing with the kiddies! For work I attended a leadership retreat at Kualoa Ranch.

Turning 25!

Kip and Brittany hiking Sacred Falls with us.

Smooching :)

Me at Sacred Falls

Randy playing tour guide

Dancing at Kay's wedding

My basketball coach, Srgt. Edwards passed away on the 17th. He was such a good soul! When I first met him in high school he scared me.  I mean after all, he was the JROTC teacher and you could tell during our practices and drills. However, soon after having him as a coach, I developed a huge amount of respect and love for him. He always supported me and as cliche as it sounds he believed in me (probably more than I did in myself). He also wasn't scared to give me a good scolding or yell during practice. I can picture myself on the basketball court and hear him yell "Shoot that mug!" He was a good man and I will always be grateful for the amount of time and energy he put into the lives of his students and athletes. 

He even came to our wedding

 July 

 It was my mother's 50th birthday on the 9th so I made her an epic card and got her a membership to drfuhrman.com for the recipes. On the fourth of July I worked in the afternoon and made a glorious berry trifle cake that the residents and staff loved. In the evening, Randy and I had a BBQ with our landlords/friends Chris and Jill. They are some of the most kind and sincere people we have met while being out here. After we stuffed our bellies we drove to Turtle Bay and parked on the side and watched the fireworks. On one evening, Randy and I also walked down to the beach and watched the sun set. It almost feels like a community event with everyone gathering on the sand taking pictures of the beautiful sky! Playing tennis kept us busy as well and and Randy helped Craig with some electrician work over at the PCC. We also went on a hike with Beau to some mini falls behind BYUH and the boys found a massive crawdad!

 

 

Watching the sun set

 

Another one of our neighbors

Being boys

August

We were very busy working this month. Randy subbed at a correctional facility in Kailua for 6 weeks. He is such a hard worker and woke up at 4:30 am to get ready to catch the bus so I could have the car for work and we could save some mulah in the process. The Honolulu Fire Dept. also contacted us to let Randy know he will be coming in for an interview next month! We were so stoked! I have also been trying to exercise regularly and ride my bike to Sunset Elementary in the mornings to exercise with a group of women from the area. Most of them are moms and have their kids play at the park while we work out. Randy also found a dead shark at Backyards! He pulled the shark out of the water and took a few pictures with it, but decided not to bring it home (which I didn't mind). We also took family pictures for our friends (Lezlie and Ethan) by Leftovers. 

At Leftovers, no photoshop I swear!

    

Taking family pics for the Lees

Well I think this covers the highlights from the the past couple of months. A few big events are coming our way in the near future. At the end of October Randy and I will have been married for a WHOLE year! This blows my mind because it feels like just last week we were driving to the Newport Beach temple to get hitched. Also, in the beginning of November we will have been in Hawaii for a year!

April is over?

Koko Head

      This month has been so good! I am trying to think of where to begin. First, Randy is in the middle of taking the physical test for applying with the Honolulu Fire Department. He went through the swimming/diving portion and got to climb up a 70 foot ladder yesterday! He did a great job and will be taking the second portion of the test this coming Friday. The first part was a written exam that he took back in June of 2012 and scored a 96% (yeah my babe is smart)! The final portion is an interview (it could be months if not longer before this part). So after this weekend we will be 2/3's of the way there!

     In other news we have had a few visitors over this month. Randy's cousins came down from Utah and Alaska for a vacation and appointed himself to be their personal tour guide. He took them kayaking, snorkeling, and even scored them free tickets to the PCC (thanks to some of our amazing friends). We also went to their beach house and spent some time hanging out. It was a cool experience for Randy to meet a few of his cousins who he hadn't seen in years!

Randy with the fam

    Jayli and Wyatt also came out to visit! They are staying in Wakiki, but came over to the North Shore to hang out with us this past Sunday. We made breakfast, went to church, then had some lunch and caught up. We ended the evening with a walk to the beach and playing some Boggle (Randy and I are in love with this game).  

    I am really enjoying my new job! It takes up a lot of my time, but it is VERY rewarding work. Everyone is so friendly to me and although I am still new and trying to figure everything out I feel a sense of peace because I know God is with me every step of the way. I am constantly trying to plan and implement new activities and create more time-efficient ways to do things through the day. The residents are friendly and very patient with me as I get to know them better. Randy has been such a support for me through this job too. Anytime I can't figure out a problem he is right there helping me find the solution.

    A couple weeks ago, I went on this INSANE hike called Stairway to Heaven. If you have not heard about or done it, definitely google it! I went with a group of women (some from my ward) and it was tough! These women are hard core because the majority of them have 3+ kids and are in phenomenal shape---super inspiring to see! Anyway, I guess this hike is possibly illegal? They have a guard by the entrance, but instead of telling us to leave he just cautioned us to be safe. It is very steep and on the day we went it had been raining, which made everything pretty slippery and even more sketch. Luckily, I made it to the top, but I will have to say I don't think I have sweat so much before in such a concentrated period of time! I plan to go again this weekend with Randy, since he has never done it, and with some friends!

Don't let these sweet smiles fool you---we are TOUGH!

      Randy and I have also been surfing a little more this month. He has even gone at night! I would have to say my favorite spots right now are Freddy's and Castles. These are smaller breaks and great places for beginners like myself. Randy has gone to Turkey Bowls and a few other places I can't ever remember the names of. I got a soft top board for $30!! You can't beat that!

Turkey Bowls

Castles

         We also recently got bikes from this guy named Richard on our street for $40 each! We love going for simple bike rides or riding to a specific beach on the bike trail or making a trip to Foodland for groceries. Seriously, we could not ask for a better place to live! We also bought some cheap tennis racquets and went to Sunset Elementary School (across from Pipe) and played tennis together for the first time since being here! We really enjoyed it and at first I was kicking Randy's butt until hunger and fatigue set in and then I was humbled.

Doing tricks on the way to the grocery store.

I even have a basket! 

 Other short adventerous bits from this month. 

•   We are in LOVE with peanut butter and banana shakes (we have tried to copy the Shark's Cove recipe)
• At times we go on walks down different streets in our area to check out the cool homes around us. When we went down Comsat road this CRAZY pigeon flew right to our feet and started dancing for us. Seriously, this thing was insanely tame and followed us as we tried to walk past him. I think he needs friends! 
• We have also been creating our own chocolate sauce made with no bad staff. aka butter or refined sugar and it is to die for! 
• The power went out two days in a row for a couple hours each, but we really didn't mind. It's so peaceful and I swear more people go out of their homes to hang out because they don't have tv! 
• We just discovered that there is a Goodwill in Wahiawa and love it! I got a ton of "professional" clothes for my new job at dirt cheap prices. 
• We have started getting into Dave Ramsey cd's. My sweet cousin and her husband got them for us as a wedding gift and I am so grateful to have them! Right now we are doing things with the intensity of the gazelle!
• Randy has come to discover that I do NOT like "double dipping" at Costco. (aka: taking more than one sample from each person giving out food). Randy was so shocked and almost disgusted that he began to challenge me to go get more samples. ha I don't know exactly what it is about taking more than one----I mean, I know they won't say no, but it just seems weird to take more. ha Anyway, don't worry everyone because Randy is slowly converting me to the double dipper ways! This past Costco trip I got two mini cups of ice cream and blue berries.
• Our car was having issues, but thankfully we have an amazing mechanic (Louis) who even drove the car back down to our house for us so we wouldn't have to take the bus. Whose mechanic does that?! 
• Randy has also found a new passion in life! Taking pictures of geckos. He will take the camera out to the plants in our front yard and try to take National Geographic worthy photos of these guys. 

Look how bright!

    So things are going well! I just have to acknowledge God through all of this! None of our successes would be possible it wasn't for Him. I am grateful that so much joy can be found in the small happenings of life! Trials definitely come to us all, but each time we ask for help we receive it! 

March Madness (in a good way)

This month was very busy and exciting! My mother and youngest sister came out to Hawaii to visit Randy and I. We had a blast! They arrived on the 9th and stayed till the 18th. We did a ton! I took them hiking to Kaena Point, visited the Dole Plantation and went downtown to Waikiki to check out International Market Place, went snorkeling and body boarding at Electric Beach, spent one whole day and night at the Polynesian Cultural Center at BYU-Hawaii, went to the Laie temple,took them to a local farmer's market, and relaxed at Waimea where Randy lost his wedding ring!

We also had fun eating good food. Elise turned 20 on the 10th so I made pizza and this AMAZING dessert called Jim Boles' Raspberry Torte Cake. It was to die for ... for reals! We also went to this farm in Kahuku and had the most amazing grilled veggie paninis and pizza (everything grown locally and super fresh). Towards the end of their trip we walked down to Ted's Bakery and bought a whole chocolate haupia cream pie.

Throughout their trip we also enjoyed really simple things like playing Boggle for a million hours on end. I don't know why this game is so amazing, but we seem to never get sick of it (same goes for Bananagrams and Catchphrase). I loved making these memories with my family, especially because Elise is leaving to go on a mission to Cordoba, Argentina. I am so proud of her and the good decisions and sacrifices she makes to serve others. She is a wonderful example for our family and is even known as the "golden child". She went into the mission training center (MTC) on the 27th. I know she will be a great missionary and has been preparing for this opportunity.

 It was also a wonderful experience to be in the temple with my mom and sister. There was something special about us being together in such a sacred place. I am grateful to my Heavenly Father for eternal families and for the restoration of the gospel on the earth through Joseph Smith. I can't imagine my life without my Savior and the scriptures. I feel so much joy for all the blessings I have been given!

This leads into the next big event for this month in my life. I got a job!!! This was a miracle all on its own and I feel that the credit really has to be given to my Father in heaven. I will be working as the recreation director at Kahuku Medical Center. It is full-time, good pay, excellent benefits, and SUPER close to where I live! Now maybe this does not sound that miraculous to you, but if you understand where I live and how I found out about the job, made connections with people, etc. then you do begin to understand how there was so much being done for me than I could not have done myself.

I have been trying to get a job for quite some time and when you live on the North Shore with one vehicle to share, it can be tough. I was offered a few jobs in town, but the commute was going to be 2 1/2 hours each way (no I am not joking) by bus. I became frustrated and at times felt desperate to take anything, even if it did not pay much, but Randy and many others told me to hold out and keep looking. This is another time where Randy stays calm and positive while I kind of spaz out and he ends up being right!

I know God listens to my prayers AND answers them ... in His timing. The trick is to be patient and remain faithful while you wait on His timetable. I finally prayed for help and asked for very specific things concerning a job. I finished the prayer by letting Him know that if this was not His will for me I would do whatever needed to be done. I also know God wants us to have full joy in our lives so I tried to also remember this while going through this process. And sure enough, I got an amazing job and received EVERY single thing I asked for PLUS more! I ended up crying at one point because I could feel the love God had for me so much. I know I am just one small person on this earth, but I know God is concerned about the small things going on in my life and in the lives of everyone on this planet! Sorry if this is somewhat long-winded. I just feel the need to show my gratitude and recognize that these things were made possible because of Him.

Another great thing: Randy received an email from the Honolulu Fire Department a few days ago to let him know they will be starting the second part of the application process (the physical) at the end of April! After this part is the interview. Slowly but surely we are making progress and moving forward with this!

 One other cool thing I did this month was go surfing with my friend Lezlie at Castles at 6 am (I know - super early). She let me use one her long boards and all on my own I was able to paddle into a wave and stand up for more than 5 seconds! It was such a cool feeling! I can see why people like this sport so much. ha Anyway, it just made me so happy. I love actually being able to notice progress when you are learning to do something new.

It was also Randy's birthday this month of the 22nd. He asked if I would make Jim Boles' Raspberry Torte cake and guacamole. He is not the biggest fan of birthday parties so we went spent the day together at home.

My wonderful husband!

 Also, today was Easter Sunday. Church was great. One of our 14 year-old sunday school students offered to teach the lesson (who even does that?!) and did an excellent job teaching us all about the last week of the Savior's life. I know He suffered for my sins and died for me and because of His atonement I will have the opportunity to return to live with Him again. AMEN.

Moving to Hawaii (for reals)

Randy and I knew we wanted to move here for quite some time. We worked hard to save our money so we could afford to do so. Many people thought we were a little crazy and even "financially irresponsible" but Randy and I seem to have a different approach for what we want out of life compared to most people so this wasn't really a surprise. 

We left from Phoenix for Honolulu on November 9, 2012. My mom drove us to the airport and we said our goodbyes with one suitcase each and our backpacks. Randy's sister picked us up from the airport in Honolulu and we headed to her place in Mililani. Our niece and nephew Nadia and Holden didn't seem to be fans of us at the very beginning, but over the course of the next month we all really grew to love one another.

We began the process of starting from scratch. Our first goal was to get a vehicle. This took about 3 weeks of diligent searching on Craigslist, but finally we found "the one." We got a 2003 Saturn Vue (perfect for hauling things and sliding in surf boards). It also took 3 weeks because of issues we had with banks. Who knew there was no Wells Fargo on Oahu (we didn't)?

After another week we found the PERFECT place to live! At first we almost took a place in Hauula, but the landlords ended up giving it away to someone else who put down six months of rent up front. We were  bummed because of the sparse housing on the North Shore and didn't know when we would be able to find another place we could afford. We decided to fast and pray for help to find a place. Sure enough, the next day we found a place in Sunset Beach! Seriously, who could ask for anything better? I have noticed this pattern in our life lately:

1) We find something we really want (the studio apt in Hauula)
2) We try to obtain it, but are rejected (apartment given away)
3) We begin to worry and feel a little discouraged (what i f we can't find anything else?)
4) Decide to suck it up and ask for God's help and decide to exercise some faith (pray/fast for place to live)
5) We not only get EXACTLY what we want it is usually 100 times better! (i.e.; our place in Sunset Beach)

Randy is a lot better at remaining calm compared to me. He has an amazing ability to be extremely positive when things get stressful or discouraging and deeply believes life will work together for our good. I really admire that about him and try to have more faith in God. So far he has been right on the money with every challenge that has come our way.

 Our place is great though! We do not need a lot to live happily and really believe in simplicity. We live in a studio/1 bedroom place under our landlords who are amazing! We are a five minute walk to the beach and live right by the beautiful running/biking trail that goes all the way to Waimea. We can even see a little part of the ocean from our kitchen window and in the back of us are beautiful green hills and mountains.

Work: Randy has begun to work as a substitute teacher while we try to get on with the Honolulu Fire department. I am still in the process of looking for full-time work but have managed to find small jobs here and there. I just finished the lengthy process to work at some pre-schools in the area.

Play: We are pro's when it comes to this part. We love the ocean and have tried to go boogie boarding and surfing. I have only been surfing a few times, but I am excited to learn, especially as the waves get smaller. Recently, we went surfing at Kahana Bay and I loved it! I have also developed a little bit of a fascination for beach glass and cooking. We also love the library! I never thought I would be a huge fan of this place since I never really seemed to have an interest in reading a lot when I was younger, but it feels like this whole new world has been opened to me that I don't think I fully realized even existed! Seriously, you can learn just about anything and it is FREE! Randy loves history and I tend to gravitate towards anything having to do with health.

Food: Yes, food does have its own category. Lately I have really enjoyed making new recipes, which is very different from my "college self". Although our apartment does not have an oven (common in Hawaii) we have this awesome toaster oven and have felt no limits in what I can make. I also LOVE my blender and make smoothies daily. Some of Randy's favorite recipes I make are home made pizza and cauliflower soup. We are also trying to eat healthier. I read this book called Eat to Live and it has changed how I look at food and approach eating. Basically try to consume as many nutrients as you can through your food choices and try to eliminate or limit things that don't do much for ya. I still have a lot to learn and improve on, but I am loving my progress so far! And don't worry, we still eat cookies and enjoy pies and ice cream as much as the next person. My mother and I are somewhat obsessed and talk about this book constantly during our weekly phone calls. 

 Church: We are part of a massive ward and meet in Kahuku. Randy and I teach sunday school for the 14 year-old youth. Randy is such a wonderful teacher. I am so grateful we have this opportunity because it really pushes us to learn more and challenges us to be better examples and draw closer to Christ. I also find myself needing these lessons probably more than anyone else in the class.