Hello folks...We have a lot of catching up to do in this post. Let's start with our visit to Hawai'i for Tai Tai's 90th birthday celebration
For this trip, we split the kids up for their (and everyone else on the plane's) comfort. Cashel got to ride on one plane with Popo. Peter flew with Mom and Dad.
Just landed...reunited siblings are ready to roll...and eat.
First stop...Mac 24/7 for the pancake challenge (three 14-in pancakes)
She almost finished it, but not quite (actually we all joined in but still couldn't get it done).
Dim sum time in Chinatown. Cashel loves the chicken feet, but it's a lot work to eat.
Trying to sneak up on some pigeons, but they were onto her
Bishop Museum time
Cashel's Kumu recorded a version of "Ku'u Papale Lauhala" for her to bring to Hawai'i to dance for Tai Tai.
She did a wonderful job.
Here's a video of her performance.
Cashel watching Tai Tai do her own hula performance
Happy Birthday Tai Tai!
Meanwhile, Peter just worked on looking cool...
...with varying degrees of success
Cashel could not get enough of the beach and the ocean on this trip. She could have gone every day.
View from our rental house...pretty amazing
There were 2 things that Cashel really wanted to do on this trip: The first was to go fishing. So we went bamboo fishing at Sandy Beach with Uncle Darrell and Aunty Megan. Cashel caught 2 fishes!
Appalled that there was no birthday party for Daddy, Cashel spearheaded an effort to make a cake and sing "Happy Birthday." It was very sweet of her.
Our annual trip to the Honolulu Zoo. We have a tradition of taking a photo in front of the Keiki Zoo every time.
This is from 2011...
...and 2010.
On this particular trip, we met up with our friends, Katy, Andrew, and Keawe (who joined in on this pose).
Guinea Pigs
Can't get the milk to come out of the plastic cow.
Time to pose
The second thing that Cashel had to do was go kayaking, which she got to do with Aunty Megan at Kailua Beach.
Peter enjoyed himself a lot more at the beach than the last time he was here
Kapiolani Community College Farmers Market
Visiting Gung Gung
Time for Tai Tai's birthday dinner
Everyone loved Peter's "Jason Mraz-style" hat
Family photo. It was a lovely party and we had a great time in Hawai'i.
Back in Oregon, it's now time for Mommy's birthday
Guess who decorated the cake?
In August we went to the Lane County Fair,where Peter got to sit in a fire truck.
Not quite a Disneyland ride, but they enjoyed it quite a bit.
Overall it was fun watching the kiddos ride together.
Cashel's first solo coaster ride...
...and Peter's first solo ride.
He didn't realize he could make the ship go higher until the very end of the ride.
Cashel REALLY wanted to ride the revolving swings
She loved it (though Dad wasn't too excited about it).
A rare moment where both are quietly reading.
Peter being Peter.
New big kid bed (complete with construction vehicle sheets)!
We usually go camping every summer, but this year we didn't make it. Instead, we did a day/night in the backyard.
"Go Heehawks!"
First day of 1st grade!
For Peter's Birthday, we again had his friends over for a backyard party, and Mom made this awesome cake.
burp
Playground from orangewker on Vimeo.
We thought Peter was saying "Start the wheel," but clearly he wasn't.
Fun at Target
Peter's first bean bag encounter
First time roller skating with her friend Callie.
Ready for a wedding. Before our trip to Lake Placid for Uncle Matt and Aunty Jackie's wedding.
This is her "pretending to be shy/embarrassed" face.
It was a beautiful wedding!
The wedding was held at a big resort, and we traveled in style.
We did a little sightseeing around upstate New York. The fall colors were beautiful!
We got to visit the Baseball Hall of Fame. Cashel took a quick nap in Hank Aaron's locker.
Cashel's school does music ed via an artist-in-residence program. The first visiting artist taught the kids to fiddle. They've also had African drumming and are just now starting the flute. She loves it!
Pillow forts are a daily activity.
Mom gave Cashel a special, Pinterest-inspired Halloween manicure.
The kids had a great time participating in the annual on-campus trick-or-treating event. Cashel was a lovely Snow White, and Peter charmed everyone as a train engineer.
Happy 7th Birthday! This year she close a party at Chuck E. Cheese. It was a little crazy, but we were really impressed with their party hosting system.
This stylish look was for the "ticket blaster booth." The birthday kid gets to stand in a booth and try to catch prize tickets that are being blown around. It was awesome!
Between the booth, her game winnings, and birthday gift tickets from Chuck E. himself, she had a lot of prize tickets to count up.
She just needs one of those old-fashioned bookkeeper's visors.
Potty training! It's important to document these auspicious moments to show his future prom dates.
Working hard on her math homework.
Haircuts! Cashel really wanted to cut her hair short - at least 6 inches got lopped off. Super cute.
We visited the grand opening of the Hands-On Children's Museum in Olympia. It's an amazing space and we had a wonderful time!
The kids really loved the superhero section, with fire trucks, police cars, and ambulances.
Cashel had fun making body impressions on the pin wall...
...and a clay forest in the art space.
We could barely pry Peter out of the little builder's room. He was ready for some serious business.
Silliness at the mall.
Clover doesn't use her bed, so Peter's trying it out.
