I dreamed a dream of monk seals...

Here's Cub relaxing at the pool in Poipu. He just woke up from a nap taken in my arms. While sleeping, we explored the adjacent beach a bit and took pictures of the monk seal. He missed it all, but one wonders what his subconscious picks up. Once awake (shown here) he pondered another round in the pool. We love hotel pools! And this resort didn't disappoint.

No Black Friday for me

I'm not shopping today, but I do need to get serious about gifts. I've got a bunch of things to make and need to start the production line. Might need to take a few extra minutes to get organized — earlier in the week, Cub got his hands on my beading workstation and upended my bead mat. The results are represented in this picture. The real scene wasn't so pretty. Lucky for me, most of the loose pieces were projected back on the table and not the floor and all needles (best that I can tell) are accounted for. Yet another reason to give thanks!

Happy Thanksgiving!

May your day be full of friends, family, and good food and may your cornucopia be filled with high fiber snacks like apples and pears. Or at least that's the message I think they are telling preschoolers these days.

Quick weekend on Kauai

We're back home after two days/two nights in Poipu on Kauai. Quick but fun, and as always, left us asking, "Why aren't we staying longer?" and "When can we get back here?" We stayed at the fantastic Marriott property Waiohai Beach Club, adjacent to the public Poipu Beach. Monk seals frequent the area and hang out on the beach for hours, like this one here.

Nation prepares for pumpkin shortage?

Did you hear the news? On Thursday, the Libby's company alerted the public to a potential canned pumpkin shortage. Oh the horror! Flooding in the Midwest damaged the crops, and officials are worried there won't be enough for all the pies on Turkey Day. Upon hearing this I checked my cupboard...and cheered! I had a can left over from who knows when, and it's good until 2011. Whew. When folks 'round here hear talk of a shortage on anything, they hoard. Don't get me started about the rice "shortage" of '07. OK, go ahead, get me started. I found it hysterical. I saw one woman exiting the commissary with an entire shopping cart full of rice. Literally! It ended up there was less available to be shipped here for a few weeks and never a true shortage. But the store shelves emptied anyway.

Hawaiian songbird at the Pearl NEX

Early last week I read about an interesting free concert: Raiatea Helm, well-known and admired Hawaiian singer (from Molokai) performing at the Pearl Navy Exchange. I marked my calendar and we made our way there Saturday evening. I thought she might perform in the Atrium outside the store, but when we got there, were told when asked that she'd be upstairs in the electronics department. A concert first for me! Her image was splashed across all of the demo TVs. She sounded great and signed for the fans after her short set. For the second year, she has partnered with Hawaiian Host (yes, the chocolate mac nut treats) for the holidays. A CD with a couple of her tracks is included with purchase of a box of chocolates. Double yum!

Good times for art-loving Mom

The fall and winter holidays offer endless artistic inspiration for kids and teachers alike - and this preschooler's Mom loves it! We had some fun and interesting pieces show up in the backpack for Halloween. Now here come the Thanksgiving turkeys. I'm getting excited about upcoming travel / holiday plans. We'll be on Kauai for a few days this month, then the boys and I head to California for Christmas for the first time in three or four years.

Halloween fun...at the Lego store

On Saturday night, we headed out to dinner with Noel's parents at the Ala Moana Mall. The mall was hosting trick or treating, so I figured it would be fun there (versus our neighborhood, which is kind of slow). Dinner ran later than expected and we sort of missed the trick or treating window, but that was probably for the best. Robbie wouldn't wear his ghost costume for more than two seconds, and we didn't even attempt to get Cub in anything as he was just being fussy. So we headed down to the Lego store and for these kids, it was better than candy! Robbie zeroed in on the "make your own figurines" bar and made the Lego people below. Cub is above, digging into the "Pick a brick" wall. It's at least 10 feet high, and 12-16 bins across. You can buy individual Lego pieces in bulk.