The Birthday Weekend--a Couple Weekends later..

Sorry...wrote the thing on time but it's taken me forever to get the pictures ready.

All day long Keahi informed every passing stranger that this was his first day as a 5 year old. The school security guard. Rushing parents. People walking their dogs. I think he may have canvased the entire block.

We didn't really do anything all that special on Friday. Besides the cupcakes at class which he told me were uber important, we just relaxed and I let him watch more shows than normal. After Iz got home we played at the school playground and ordered breakfast food as requested by the birthday boy from 5th Ave Diner (plus a cheddar jalapeno burger for the parents--sooooo yummy). At first Keahi insisted that I make the pancakes and he didn't want to go to the restaurant. But when I explained that it was the playground and restaurant or no playground with homemade pancakes, he quickly opted for ordering in. But made sure I still intended to make the all important whipped cream. Don't ask me why he's holding up onions in the pictures. He doesn't even like them.

Dinner was great and then came the mound of presents. I think my mom forgot that she'd already sent his birthday gifts along with his Christmas presents because she sent even more. Jarom kept pointing to boxes and asking, "Is this Jarom's?" Eventually, I ran around grabbing books and treats that popo had sent previously and putting them into one large box which he clutched tightly and repeated declared, "This is Jarom's!" Keahi was pretty good about letting Jarom help open his presents as well. Definitely the highlights were the Leapster game consol and the trumpet. We were pretty impressed that after a few minutes he was actually able to buzz mostly correctly. This is going to be fun. Loud. But fun. Our poor neighbors.

The next day continued the birthday celebration with a daddy-Keahi trip to the Brooklyn Children's Museum for the early paleontologist lab I signed him up for. He loved digging in the sand for "fossils" and came home with a dino imprint in some pseudo plaster of paris mixture--which still hasn't hardend properly, but smells "great" according to Keahi because of the coffee grounds. Later Keahi and I went to the park early to set up for his party. He was a great helper blowing up the balloons and drawing his name in bubble letters on the table paper covering. I'd figured since it was outside with plenty of room to run and right next to the biggest playground in the park we wouldn't need many games. The kids colored on the birthday table sign and ran about, screaming about super heroes and whatnot. I tried to organize a couple of relay games with limited success. The balloon race (holding it between your legs) was hysterical and they kept popping and we'd have to run in replacements. And then with static electricity one got stuck to a girl's backside and she did a little dog-and-tail routine trying to remove it. All while trying to win the race. The egg and spoon relay was more straight forward but the kids had lost their interest about halfway through and the last kid had noone running along side him. But he didn't seem to mind. I really wish I had pics or vids of these relays but Iz hadn't gotten back with the ice so I didn't have the camera. The pinata was a success in that everyone got to have a turn. But it took the aggressive batting of one of the dads to finally shower the kids in candy. I guess I should have followed the online instructions and used a paper bag instead. Nah. I think the dad would have been disappointed if he hadn't been able to take a swing at it.

Costco's sheet cake was surprisingly tasty and moist. Keahi had picked out a carrot cake with apricot mousse filling (and he giggle a lot about mousse and how funny it would be if you took out an S and had mouse filling) instead of the chocolate one with balloons that I was sure he'd want. And since I forgot to make the veggie platter, this cake provided us with both fruit and vegetables. Birthday style, anyway.

Afterward, we carted all of Keahi's new presents home and had another Christmas morning moment. Jarom and Keahi tore through all the purple tissue paper (was there a sale on purple gift wrappings I didn't know about) and got all ecstatic about the new games, cars, and action toys. We've already used the growing crystals kit from Sadie and we're watching it grow on our window sill. We've also used the tv microscope from Popo to look closely at the crystals forming as well as Keahi's hair and up daddy's nose. We've made a borax crystal snowflake and recorded our observations in Keahi's new journal. It's been a fun week.

Oh, and on Monday the present extravaganza continued with one of his friends giving him a late gift at school (some kind of Japanese cartoon card game with action figures that I'm never going to learn or teach Keahi how to play) and a box from popo and Kervin and Mary with battery operated Donald (which goes with the Douglass from Jack) and bathtime squeeze trains that have made bathtime equally more fun and more difficult to end. Wow, this really is the birthday that never ends. Yesterday was his first day not opening presents. And it'll be a while before he's read and played with everything he's gotten.

I think back to when we first moved to Grenada with our 4 books and 4 toys and how content Keahi was rotating through them all every single day. And then how joyful he was when he turned 2 and his book/toy count more than doubled. Now I can't even begin to count in my head all the toys and books they have and sometimes I think life was simpler with just the 4. But, don't get me wrong, we're all grateful for the generosity of our family and friends. Last year the only thing he requested besides a caterpillar birthday cake was homemade cards from his friends. How cool is it that this year Keahi received birthday cards in the mail (Aunty Robbie--just arrived, so cute!), by email (grandma and pa) and by text message (Uncle Kervin). What a lucky boy.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Make a Smilebox slideshow

I Have a 5 Year Old!

I know, trust me to make the title all about me and not about this fantastic little man who's been counting down the days till the big event. Yesterday he told me "This is the last day I will be 4 years old." And this morning he didn't greet me as I'd expected with an announcement of this being the first day he's 5. Instead, in true Keahi fashion, he led with an observation of how he saw green sparks when he rubbed Hadda (the pink hippo Jarom got for Christmas from popo) and how that was electricity. Which then led to Jarom asking for a Sparkle--meaning the Wint-o-mint Lifesaver that I'd given to him weeks ago to show him the "lightning" in the dark when you crunch them.

I love watching my boys grow and seeing what's important to Keahi as he stretches himself into his new 5 year old status. Leading up to the big day, he reminded me about how important it was to bring cupcakes to his class because everyone gets cupcakes on their birthday. He had previously decided that the training wheels would come off his bike when he turned 5 and then he would then need a helmet because that's what it said on his bike. And he's expecting to now receive 5 of everything he used to get only 4 of before. Like 5 smartie candies. Or 5 jelly beans. And whatever treats we ration out like hypocrites as we gorge ourselves in semi-secret.

And my new favorite discovery of Keahi's growing awareness of his place among his equally mature peers: nosepicking. He'll pick his nose till it bleeds at home but never does it at school in front of his friends. I think he saves up all his picking urges to indulge himself in the privacy of his own home because his mother telling him to stop is far less embarrasing than his teacher saying the same thing. It's nice to know where I rank.

But I digress. My nosepicking, brilliant, daring, budding scientist of a son is now 5. What a trip.

I'll finish this post tomorrow after his party. I'm praying for good weather and that my first attempt at a pinata functions as intended. I hope Keahi is happy with the end result. It took me hours and I didn't even add on the pectoral fins as he'd requested because I was just done. And I was out of tissue paper. So there.

Thank You Aunty Tammy!

The boys have definitely enjoyed their Christmas present of Thomas train tracks. I have to say I'm pretty impressed with Keahi's designs. You can't tell from the picture but there are 3 bridges, one of them pretty long which he supported with blocks.

And while I'm giving thanks, there's a secret Santa out there that read the blog about Keahi wanting to play the trumpet and then went ahead and sent us a trumpet that arrived today. There was no note so I don't know who to thank--except that I know it can't be from my mom because there was no QVC logo. Whoever you are, YOU ROCK!

Cold Spell

So right after having 50 degree weather, we got a late season snow storm on Monday. Tons of school were even closed. Including Keahi's, whcih I didn't discover until after getting the kids ready and out the door and realizing that there was no crowd on the sidewalk as usual and then seeing the lack of footprints from the gate to the building and then finally when we watched a lone mom and daughter try the locked door. But the kids still had a blast making snow angels on the basketball court and stumbling about in the snowdrifts. Later after Iz got home, we packed up some hotdogs and went to the park for our second sledding trip. This time the place was packed with tiny toddlers up to grandparents and every age in between. It was awesome. Jarom was quickly tapped out but he regained his enthusiam toward the end when he saw Keahi come down on daddy's back. And he loved wandering about by himself and eating as much snow as he could get away with. Keahi's one solo run didn't go as smoothly as our first sledding experience, but it didn't deter him in the least.

It was so much fun, it made me realize what people were talking about back home when they'd tell me how they missed the seasons on the mainland. Now I get it. Snow is magical and beautiful and every other sappy, cliche description I'd ever heard before. So we can't play in the sand anymore. We still burried Iz. And I suppose eating snow is better for Jarom than eating sand. Oh, and did I mention that they use the old Christmas trees as mulch in the park? Pine scented snowy hills. Color me happy.

Jarom's new school

Well, now that it's been a month since it started, I figured I ought to write about the non-joy school (in that we aren't doing the official Joy School thing that you pay for online, not that it isn't full of joy....most of the time) that some of us moms organized and how much Jarom loves it. Thursday is officially his favorite day of the week.
There are nine of us participating which means we each only have to teach or be the assistant occasionally and simply drop off our kid all the other times. I'm actually pretty excited for my turn. I have the letter J and we're doing jumping jacks and a jellyfish craft. Plus J-arom ought to love that day as well. He certainly loved his first day. For the rest of the week--and yes, he still does it now, a month later--he kept saying he was an Ant and crawling around looking for the anthill and wiggling his antennae. He still can't remember what the welcome song is--which is bad news for me because that means I don't know it for when it's my turn to teach--but he sure got fixated on ants, thank you Julie very much. And he can't stop talking about "his" preschool and he feels like such a big boy. I would have thought he'd enjoy Barns just as much but somehow that didn't make much of an impression. This week's Catterpillars was another big hit. Maybe it's a boys and bugs thing. He didn't do his craft at school so we did it together at home. I think it turned out pretty well. Of course, his big brother helped out as well--dictating the color pattern and the use of wacky tac to adhere the puffs.

I don't have any pics of the preschool (which we hold at the chapel since none of us has a place big enough for nine kids), but here are some from people who actually remember their cameras. One mom took solo pics of each kid to use in the school welcome house and the job chart. I can't wait to see them. These kids are so bright and adorable and I'm so glad Jarom gets to be a big kid with his buddies.

Warm Spell

Last week thing suddenly started warming up, hitting the 50s no less. So we took advantage by dressing in light layers--I even got to wear my denim jacket I'd almost forgotten about--and headed to the playground. It was insanely crowded, of course, with like minded parents and nannies. But we weren't complaining. Keahi even got to play with one of his classmates, Edoardo. As a bonus perk, he had also brought his blue sunglasses so I was able to capture this kodak moment. Keahi's been saying he can't wait for summer time and that he's done with winter. When I reminded him of how much he loves winter and snow, he pointed out that it's been cold with no snow. I have to agree with him on this: what's the point of cold without snow?

So the boys enjoyed running around and jumping off of high things. You might not be able to tell from the pics, but the ladder they're leaping from is a bit taller than me. Such daredevils.

It started to cool off a bit by Saturday but I held onto my illusions by wearing said denim jacket with no tights. Luckily, our friends the Johnstons drove over from NJ and picked me and the kids up or I'd have paid for my wardrobe choices. They also brought Brad, Heather and their not-so-little Braden with them. We haven't seen them since Grenada so it was great to catch up. The kids had a blast with the water area (as per usual) and I actually got to see the tiny reading corner as well as discovering the building toys. I love how gender specific the kids' playing tended to be with my boys roaring with dinos and sweet Jada craddling her dolls. By the end, Jarom was asking to go home and Keahi, of course, had no intention of leaving. I maybe should have tried to snap a group pic at the beginning because all I could manage was sans Braden and minimal participation from Keahi. Jada, of course, was perfectly willing to sit or pose for any and all pictures. Later in the afternoon, after his nap, Jarom was still wiped and lay down on the rug in the living room while Keahi and I built bugs. Of course, Keahi joined him. I kinda like tired kids.....as long as they're happy-tired not whiny-tired.

Kids are fun. Exhausting. But fun.

Oshimas in New York

That last leg of the endless car trip stretched on forever and I think even the adults wanted to whine, "Are we there yet?" It was mostly uneventful as we watched each state drift by us and we amused the kids with a constant rotation of activities. I especially enjoyed these robots Keahi drew on his magnadoodle. There's Got the Robot (at home he as a stuffed cow he named Tau the Cow), his friend, Bam, and his sister, Ella. We made pretty good time until we hit the NJ turnpike at which time we took an hour to go about 2 miles. The scenery was seriously ugly in that dirty industrial wasteland way, but it was softened by this spectacular sunset that our mediocre point and shoot just can't capture. But eventually we made it home at last.

And then came the unloading of the car. Shudder. We came back with more than we had taken with us. And now we had to find space in our tiny NY apartment for it all. I'm already a bit of a minimalist when it comes to interior design and living in our narrow railroad apt has cemented my views on any and all clutter. But I digress.

The next day Kervin, Mary and mom flew in and had just enough time to drop off their luggage before we took the subway to Manhattan to see Rockefeller Center and check out the view from the top. It's half the price of Empire State Bldg. and you can get great pics of the E.S. bldg. We had bought the tickets online a while ago so we didn't have to wait in the insane line to get tickets but we still had to wait a while for the elevator. The worker near us could have been a PCC employee with his cheerful crowd-engaging personality. He'd get everyone near the elevator to welcome the group coming out of the elevator with loud seasons greetings. He made the wait bearable. It was way colder up there than I'd expected and the poor boys were freezing. But it was beautiful.

It was warmer down by the ice rink due to the oppressive crowds. Yeah, definitely the wrong place for an agoraphobe. We snapped a few pics and pushed our way back out to the street.

We were supposed to go to Toys R Us so the kids could go on the ferris wheel, but everyone was so hungry we stopped for dinner along the way at some small Indian restaurant with a big buffet for $10. We ate till we had to be rolled out of there. So awesome. I wish I could remember the name of the place. Then we tried to hurry to the ferris wheel, but Time Square and all the little vendors slowed us down. After Iz took Keahi to run ahead, I tried to herd everybody quickly after him. I crossed a street and looked back to see that nobody was following me. And then I found out why. My 71 year old mother had fallen flat on her face in the road. Oops. Bad daughter. I didn't actually get to witness it but I heard it was pretty hilarious and involved an unseen pothole that Kerv saw and thought about warning her about just a second too late. She wasn't hurt too badly, though she cracked her glasses a little and was bruised up. But, thankfully, no broken bones.

We headed home after that while one of us held onto mom and someone else scoured the street for more potential accidents. Poor Keahi got to the store just in time to watch the last round of kids have their turn on the now closed ferris wheel. We still need to go back there sometime and rectify that.

The next day was a full docket with the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and FAO Schwartz. It was a beautiful day and the ferry ride was so fun for the kids. I think Kerv got his quota of sea gull pics, too. Maybe it's an Oshima thing because when Iz and I were in San Marco square we took about a million pics of the pigeons. It's a good thing I'd bought the tickets earlier online since it was sold out when we got there. There was still a really long line just to get on the boat though a friendly woman was nice enough to let us into the large tent to wait since the boys were obviously cold. And we encountered a new security measure I'd never seen before: a plastic card with interesting facts that they gave us upon entering the waiting tent and then took back from us upon exiting the tent to get on the ferry. I guess it's supposed to detect radiation or explosive material or something dangerous (memory like a sieve). Plus, we got to learn fun facts like how tall the crown is and other tidbits that have likewise fallen out of my head.

Of course, the elevator was broken so mom stayed in the museum area while the rest of us made the trek up 192 steps (which, wow, seems so little compared the the time it took--but that's with 2 little kids...not because I'm out of shape or anything....) to get a better view. I really like my cities like this--from a distance. The NYC skyline looks impressive and quiet and clean from the pedastal.

We didn't spend much time at Ellis Island because we didn't want to disappoint the boys again by missing out on their fun activity. But we were there long enough for mom to verify that even though she was told she'd get her name put on some list of doners when she contributed money to repair the statue years ago, that she couldn't find her name anywhere. Those liars.

FAO Shwartz was just as crowded as the ice rink and we didn't stay long. The line for the floor piano was also way too long so overall it was a pretty disappointing visit. I think everyone will have to come visit sometime other than Christmas when you can actually see and do the things you want without hoards of other tourists. Maybe if we stay here another year mom can come during the summer.

After rushing home and getting the kids to bed, Keahi's former sunbeam teacher, Camilah Cole, came over to babysit so we could go to Peter Lugers. It's been called the best steakhouse in America and it lived up to its rep. Iz and I have never been big on steak till we went to Ruth's Chris back home but now we understand the purity of well aged beef done right. Wow. And the Canadian bacon was outstanding. Pricey, but well worth it. We definitely went home happy.

The next day was New Year's Eve and our friend, Arron, and his sister, Amy, flew in from their trip to Italy (color me jealous) to share bunks with us and ring in the new year. But before they got here, we went to Little Italy to get some good eats. We got some interesting Chinese food along the way (since Chinatown has pretty much swallowed up Little Italy) and missed out on the good Italian import store since it was way too crowded. Jarom was having a tough time and wouldn't stop crying. However, strawberries ended that crisis. Sadly, the restaurant that we picked was rather generic despite the glowing reviews online--which were no doubt paid for by said restaurant. But regardless of the poor food or the freezing weather, the company was good and we had a good time together. After lunch Mary and Iz took the kids back home so Iz could get the Hieatts from the airport and Mary could rest with the kids--poor thing was still sick. Actually I think she was sick for the next two months after she went back to Hawaii.

Kerv, mom, and I wandered about looking at different shops and marvelling at the prices. A cute Hello Kitty headband was quickly replaced upon hearing the price. I remember in college I used to estimate the value of everything in terms of how many Jumbo Jacks I could get for it. That headband was enough to feed all the adults currently residing or visiting in our apartment twice over. Well, maybe with Kervin and Iz it'd be one and a half times. And here I thought Chinatown was supposed to be cheap--price, not just quality. But Kerv did haggle his way into a pretty good deal on a purple sweater and shirt for Mary (so thoughtful), which was quite a feat with the tiny Asian woman harranguing him for wasting her time when he said he only had so much money on him. She eventually gave in and gave him a different set for his asking price. It's good to know that some stereotypes are true and hold true in Hawaii and around the world.

It was nice to get out of the cold and back to our crowded little apartment. Arron's sister, Amy, was great and funny and full of illuminating stories about her big brother when he was little. Apparently, Arron was quite the manipulator. I can see why he grew up to like conducting experiments on people's pyches. But then he must have learned from his parents who told them they'd be taken to the Kid Exchange to be traded in for better ones if they didn't behave (which only worked because little Arron saw a sign on the side of the road, "Kids for sale" and was young enough to accept this version of its meaning). Anyhow, it was nice to meet Amy and to discover another card games addict. We played for hours and talked even longer. I think the Hieatts fit in quite nicely with the Oshimas and the Temples.

Arron and I had talked previously about doing Manhattan for New Year's but after investigating the prices of various venues, we decided watching the fireworks above prospect park was just as good. Plus, we heard Tammy's horror stories about her experience with the freezing weather and standing for hours on end smashed like sardines against total strangers and the ingenous restauranteer who started bringing out food in takeout containers to sell to the crowd and then the equally ingenious people who used those empty containers to solve other waste issues. So, yeah, kicking back in Prospect Park sounded great. But what with jet lag and the cold, he and his sister never saw the fireworks. Actually, Iz and I were the only ones to venture outside at all to see if we could see them from our stoop. It was beautiful and impressive and kinda nice to be able to share it just with eachother in the quiet darkness of our sleepy street. Only one man and his kid walked by and wished us a happy new year. It was perfect.

The next morning the Hieatts left to go back to their different homes. Of course, I got to ring in the new year with the same sickness that Kerv and Mary brought with them. We relaxed in the morning, eating leftovers and watching the kids play with their Christmas toys. Eventually in the afternoon Kervin, mom and I headed back into Manhattan so they could buy more stuff. We spent a lot of time going in and out of 3 neighboring stores, comparing prices and trying not to lose eachother. I got to see this guy on the street hustling people with a card game that I forgot the name of which Kerv could tell me. He even had a patsy or something calling out how much money he'd won on this game today just in time for some poor out-of-towner to drop $200 and lose. We also revisited the scene of the infamous fall and snapped some pics of the monster pothole. Then I snapped a few more of the ferris wheel Keahi never got to ride. Mid shopping, mom and I stopped to watch a guy do caricatures for $2. Mom sat for one and convinced me to come back sometime with the boys to get one of them. Later we went back to the guy and got him to include a big pothole and the sign of the street as well as a crack in her glasses to make the picture more timely. Now that, I think, was a pretty cool purchase.

The next day we relaxed in the morning and I gathered my strength--and my Kleenix--to get ready for another foray into the city. Mom, Keahi and I got on a train to see the big library. I'd been to the Central Brooklyn Library and thought that was pretty impressive, but this library was over the top. It felt more like a museum than a library with intricate ceiling murals and brass work. Even the water fountains were beautiful. I got a kick out of seeing a Harry Potter book in a glass case. I guess it's a hand written copy. One of only seven. And Keahi would have liked to stay longer in the kids section but I was fading pretty quick so we headed back home.

That was really our last outing. I know mom had wanted to see more things but I was pretty much down for the count so I spent the weekend resting. I even had to skip church, leaving the primary secretary to be the only leader there. I'm terrible, I know, but you should have seen me.....actually, I'd rather nobody had to see me like that. So we relaxed at home and I got to have cozy chats with my mom and she got to see her crazy grandsons in action within the walls of our small apartment. Always entertaining. And then, Monday morning she left in a cab to go back to warm, sunny Hawaii. Iz was able to see her off just before heading off to the hospital for his first day of his pscyh rotation. He didn't get much time to relax during our insanely packed Christmas break, but luckily psych is pretty chill.

It was a great visit and things turned out fine. But I will say that hosting such a thing is hard on my system. What with all the preparations and trying to fit in what everyone wants to do in such a small time frame with two active little boys to consider and then stressing out whenever we don't get to do something like eat at Papaya Kings for Kerv (though Iz just tried it out and said it was disgusting so maybe you dodged a bullet there, Kerv), or see the Met for mom, or ride the ferris wheel or go to the zoo for Keahi, December was a frantic month for me. But it ended up well and we got to visit with family and friends which is what it's all about. So here ends the final chapter in the Temple family Christmas Vacation.