Sam's First Bath

She didn't really like it.

She cried the entire time...

...until we got the towel around her. She liked that.

She has graduated to baby baths now, instead of the sponge bath. But she still doesn't like it all too much.

The Fruit of Our Looms

This is almost ALL that we got out of our garden last year.

This is our garden around July 15th this year.

We grew some bell peppers...

...some jalapeños...

...some tomatoes...

...some onions and more.

Oliver's favorite are the strawberries.

See.

This was the first handful of things we picked this year. We grilled the squash and onions and ate them with Cory and Mary at their house. They were super good. I had the bell pepper on my turkey sandwich the other day.

I took all of these...

...and turned them into salsa with the help of a lime and some garlic. The onions are a bit strong, but it wasn't the worst salsa ever.

We are looking forward to carving the pumpkins we have growing right now into jack-o-lanterns for Halloween. Nicole has also made a few jars of fresh pesto sauce with the basil we have grown. We have more squash than we know what to do with. Any suggestions? They get so big, they don't taste good.

Hawaii Scmawaii

Hey family. Thanks for posting pictures. Here is what I've been doing. I went swimming with Andy's underwater camera. It was fun but my eyes sting from so much salt water.

This is a picture of Andy just before he got clobbered by a wave. You can see it coming. I saw it coming, but I was more interested in taking the picture than warning him.

The tide was super high because a storm had passed by the day before. The surf was going off for the Big Island. We went to a local beach and watched a few dudes catch the waves of their life.

We went exploring a few waterfall locations. We found a tunnel of trees that was dark and scary. We thought that a monkey might be in there, but there wasn't.

This is us at Akaka falls. it sounds like "a caca." The named it that because it "dumps" thousands of gallons of water a minute.

While I was here, I looked all over for proof that President Obama was really born in Hawaii and not in some "other" country like Stenborgia or Grenyarnia. I found no "birth certificate" but I did find a "certificate of live birth" (who knows what that is) and the New Testament written in Pidgin.

At work after it rained for a few minutes, we found a GIANT snail. It was at least 4 inches long. Tried to bite off my face when I poke it with a stick.

I miss you guys. Hawaii is fun and all, but not as fun as you are. Can't wait to come home...for a few days.

More photos for Dusty

Here are a few more photos for you Dusten. It is too late for me to think of anything clever or funny to say. We love you and can't wait for you to come home!

Oliver really needs a hair cut when you get home. Its looking awesome!

Samantha looks like a totally different baby with a hat on. She is so dang cute!

We Miss You Daddy!

Hello blogging world! It has been forever since I have posted on this blog. In fact Dusten took posting rights away from me and I had to sign on under his name to even post today! Dusten is in Hawaii for the next two weeks and I was given strict instructions to post new pictures of Samantha every day while he is gone. Well he has been gone since Monday and I am finally posting a few pictures (I figure that's not too bad given my current mental status!) For those of you who are concerned about Dusten's absence so soon after Samantha was born, have no fear, my great mom is still here and will be here for another week to take care of us. I couldn't do it without her! Here are a few pictures, Dust. Sorry they aren't great. You are right...we need a new camera!
She always has her hands by her face when she sleeps.

Hanging in the swing.

Getting ready for another nap. Sleeping babies are the best!

Oliver rockin his glasses like the cool boy that he is!

Mama, I'm Coming Home.

Guess who came home this morning?

Oliver celebrated with a dance. He loves the balloon that his grandpa sent.

Oliver finally got to hold Samantha.

We think he likes her.

Now at home it's two girls...

...against two boys

Sam sleeps alot.

And Oliver watches "Bolt." A LOT!

Sammy: Day Three

Day 3 had its goods and bads.

She got cuter.

But because she is still being monitored, we checked out of the hospital without her.

She's eating a ton now. If she eats steady for 24 hours, we can take her home. Hopefully that will be tomorrow afternoon.

We never imagined that we would have to leave the hospital without her. It was rough.

But we got to go home and hang out with this cooky kid, so that cheered us up.

After we got unpacked and ate a fantastic dinner some good friends dropped off, we took Oliver to meet his seester for the first time. But he could only see her through a pane of glass. The Hospital would normally let siblings in the nursery, but he's got a bit of a cough. So this was as close as he could get.

Did I mention she's tiny?

Last night she weighed 6 lbs. 7 oz. Hopefully she will be back up by the time we take her home tomorrow.