May 2024

 Jane's class went on fieldtrip to Hawaii's Plantation Village in Waipahu. 

Kate had a group project on the ecosystem. She was the group leader and very invested in the overall project. She has learned a lot this year about following directions and the difficulties of working with others not so invested in school.

The fun thing about living in Hawaii is the visitors it brings. Kristi and I were able to go out to eat with our cousin Dan and his wife, Jamie. 

Ukulele: I started taking ukulele lessons with the girls. It has been really fun learning some of the popular Hawaiian songs and trying something new. I do get help from my girls, as they have been playing 5 months longer than me and are really good at picking notes.

We had a ukulele concert at the mall over on the windward side of the island. It was fun to have my girls and husband cheer me on while playing "Surf" and "Friends".

Kristi's graduation: Such a fun week full of events with family. My parents and Linsey flew in to celebrate Koko's accomplishment as a DNP graduate from University of Hawaii. 

Commencement Ceremony: Her biggest request was to have a stack of leis (competing against her peers)!

Celebrating the accomplishment at Nancy's Kitchen: A Family Bar.

Kate and Jane enjoyed the extra time with their grandparents. 

Graduation Ceremony: The girls are hoping they will be able to spend a little more time with Koko now that she doesn't have to study! 

Honolulu Museum of Art: Checking off some of the touristy things with my parents and Kristi while the kids are off at school.

Bellows: Again, a must. Unfortunately, it rained for like a week. And this was pretty heavy rainfall. So much that there was a Brown Water advisory, and we weren't able to get in the ocean. We had even booked the cabins for the weekend! Such a bummer... 

Piano Recital: The girls have continued with piano through the entire school year. It was nice that grandma and grandpa were able to attend. 

Kate was so excited for her school field trip to the Ice Palace. 

Because of all the rain, the girls had to perform their Spring Showcase in the cafeteria. This was a bummer because the classes had to be split in half as there wasn't enough room for 5 classes to perform their routine. This also meant the other grades couldn't see each other's performances. The school did an amazing job with being flexible and finding a way because "the show must go on"... 

I am in charge of a hiking group with my church. I try to schedule a hike every 4-6 weeks. The first time I had one person show. The second time two people showed. It has been a struggle because not everyone can go during the day or on the weekend or in the evening. It is also a challenge because some people have stronger hiking skills than others. Hoping the next hike has better compliance among the group! 

Kahana Bay: The best part of this beach, catching chicks and playing in the nearby stream.

Look at my avocado tree!

Last day at Kanoelani Elementary School: May 30, 2024

On to Fourth Grade!

On to Sixth Grade!

June 2021

Kate finished school a week after Jane's kindergarten graduation. Jane had the time of her life hanging out with me, while Kate went to school.  We ran errands, went to the park, shopped, and got our nails done.  Poor Kate was jealous every day we picked her up.  

Kate excels in everything she does.  She is a perfectionist and gets really upset when she misses a question or spells a word incorrectly.  She has really taken off with her reading skills.  I am very proud of her, as that was a big struggle for me with her.

Her class had a field day, which Jane and I attended.  The kids got pizza and played silly games.  

Kate loves her teacher, Ms. Brinson.

One of Kate's friends had a birthday party at a near by trampoline park.  It was fun to have some of the teachers stop by and the kids having one last hooray before summertime.  

We took Howie to Stillhouse Lake.  He was a little skittish with the water, but eventually warmed up (especially when we all got in!).  We have taken him several times since, and he pulls really hard on his leash trying to get down to the water.

I finally got my MRI done.  I was told I have a stress fracture on the right hip.  I needed to start being on crutches from this point until seen by an orthopedic doctor.  I've literally been walking on a broken hip for 2.5 months- what is 1 more week!  

We grew butterflies and released them!

I saw my orthopedic doctor.  After he ordered a rushed CT scan, I found out surgery was required for my fracture.  I was really sad.  My friend Jennifer sent me flowers.  

The next day, I had surgery.  I was supposed to have it on Friday, but because of Juneteenth holiday and some anesthesia providers not wanting to work, I was schedule (without me knowing) for Thursday.  I came to the hospital for pre-operative work ups and ended up having surgery.  It was delayed until the evening because of course I would eat breakfast before coming.  It was very frustrating and I was all alone and my children were at a camp and Bryan was in Oklahoma.  

Luckily, my best friend saved the day! Stacey grabbed the girls from camp and they had the weekend of their lives! 

Meanwhile, I am over here watching too much tv and using crutches for 3 weeks.  

My sister came to help for the week as she was demobilizing at Fort Hood.  What a blessing this was because my mom and dad couldn't make it out.  

The girls weren't sad she was here! I loved cooking for her and she loved pampering me!

Cavity fix! 

Cavity fix.

After about a week after surgery, I was able to get around better.  I took them to their dentist appointment and the YMCA to swim.  I really hated being in crutches.  They are the worst.  

 

May 2020

"Stay at Home" orders continue until the end of May.  

Thank goodness the weather was AWESOME the entire month.  We did schoolwork in the morning and played outside all afternoon.  

I finished my BIG evidence-based research project at the end of April and graduated with my Masters in Nursing Education May 15th.  Of course, no graduation happened, so it was a little anticlimactic.  But yay! I graduated!!

Other happenings:

We made bird seed molds to hang on the trees.  Messiest project ever!

  

We were able to go to the library and checked out A LOT of books.  My kids were happy to finally be somewhere other than our house. 

We made crystals and lots of other science experiences thanks to my mom gifting us some goodies from Amazon. 

We played in the pool and had fancy drinks.  

I learned some new hair-dos. 

The kids played in my treadmills box for hours and hours. 

We put on make-up and learned to paint nails. 

We learned how to wear face masks.  

Kate had a piano recital in front of the family and teacher only.  The last two months of piano lessons were by Skype.  Which meant, I had to teach Kate or sit right beside her the entire lesson.  It really tested my patience. 

We went on a 3 mile hike at Colorado Bend State Park.

We tried on all our new dance costumes! 

It was unfortunate the girl's dance recital was cancelled.  We had previously ordered their outfits, which was not cheap.  Luckily, we were able to have a 3 separate recitals.  One for grandma and grandpa Ahlborn when they came to visit in May.  One for Jennifer and Ryan in Galveston in June.  And one for grandma and grandpa Koplin with our cousins whose recitals were cancelled as well.  

Jane's last day of Pre-K.  Her teacher was amazing throughout the virtual integration.  We had story time every morning on Zoom.  She sent out extra attachments with east, fun, and busy activities. And she wrote Jane a special letter in the mail.  

Kate's last day of 1st grade.  Unfortunately, her teacher dropped the ball over the last 2 months of virtual schooling.  The class had Zoom meetings about twice a week.  I did not feel like she was very involved.  Luckily, I was the awesome mom who made Kate read and write and complete all her school work.  Some days, we would be at the table for hours because Kate was easily distracted and wanted to do Jane's school work.  It was tough, but we made it! 

Hallelujah!   

Yay! 

Now lets go back to school in the fall please!