Camping in paradise!

This camping trip has to have been the most beautiful and relaxing ever. Our site was right next to the ocean, so we fell asleep listening to the wind and the waves. I will have to say that it was MESSY with all of the sand, but who cares, right? (Okay, Randy cared, he likes it clean). We will definitely return and maybe spend more days there. Oh, it is heavenly living in Hawaii!

Emersyn turns 2

Emersyn's birthday was full of smiles as we started the day with pancakes with a candle on top. She wasn't too fond of being sang to, but cheered up when we told her she could blow out the candle. I gave her the t-shirt I made and she played outside all day until we went camping at Bellows AFS later that evening. As you can see, the sun was already set by the time we got to Bellows, so we had to take pictures and video by lantern! Even though Emersyn already had a Russian doll set, we decided to buy her another one because she played with her pink set so much that one of the dolls cracked! It all turned out great and pictures of the camping trip will be posted shortly!!

Orange Belt success!

Okay, this seriously was the biggest day of Eli's life! If anyone knows Eli, he had a really hard time with doing things WITHOUT his mommy! Today, I proudly say that Eli stood up and yelled his loudest and did his moves with little error, all while forgetting his mommy was in the crowd! I think that he truly is realizing his potential! Christian Karate, you just can't go wrong!

And here is a quick snip of Eli's test. My camera died in the middle, so enjoy what is here!

Potty training and more

So time is flying by and we just keep the activities coming. As our lives keep getting filled with more things to do, Emersyn decided she wanted to potty train!!! Hooray for her, since I was going to milk her being my last and let her go until she was 3! So now we are down to no diapers during the day and pull ups at night, which she usually wakes up dry! Besides potty training, the kids try to get their energy out at the park while Ella swims or they wait until Daddy gets home and wrestle him to the ground. All in all, we love our life here in Hawaii!

Ella at swim team

I was in disbelief that kids as young as 5 can be on a swim team, but it happens. Ella hates competition, but her instructor says she is a natural (of course, she has her mommy's muscular frame ;) and should compete next month....Ella chose to wait a while instead. But I am so astonished at how much stamina she has; they actually swim for 60 minutes straight, working on strokes and small details like how to breath properly. She loves it!

Eli's final stripe so he can test for orange belt

Okay, in karate you have to master 3-4 things before you are allowed to test for the next belt. Eli practiced so hard and was able to do his "Jesus, King of Kings, Jesus" moves with no help! This is his 3rd stripe and will be testing for his orange belt in 2 weeks. He is so excited and I have never seen him so determined, well mannered and obedient in all his life. Christian karate has done wonders!!!

Home Schooling

So as everyone must know by now, we are home schooling Ella and Eli. We chose this, not to "protect" our children, which seems to be needed nowadays, but we chose this because the school systems are really behind mainland schools (including Mississippi...yikes). We chose the Abeka curriculum, which is a wonderful Christian based education and aligns itself with the highest state standards. This program can be bought in kits, to include the lesson plans for parents. The total cost for everything was around $700.00, which is what we would have spent on all the school supplies for both kids public education and school uniforms. This curriculum is great, except kindergarten is not challenging Eli as much as I like since he is so brilliant :) Ella is loving her classes, but there are so many books we keep getting off track, which I hope to get more organized soon. I have also added in an additional science book to the Abeka curriculum to get the kids more "involved" in the work they do. I chose Botany by Apologia books, which shows children all the science behind plants and trees and how it aligns itself with God's creation of the earth. It is phenomenal and the kids are learning Latin words as well. I will also be teaching them Spanish, as soon as we gain access to Rosetta Stone (free to military!) For all the followers of my blog, I will try to post more information if Home Schooling is something that you may want to do in the future.