MIRIAM IS IN TOWN VISITING STEPH

so we took them floating.

We had perfect weather and so much fun!  We're not ready for summer to come to an end.

POLYNESIAN CULTURAL CENTER

PCC is the coolest! If you have never been, put it on your list to do - you'll be so glad you did!

Our favorite PCC employee - Apele!

In the Tahitian Village, we discovered that Tahitian Coconut Bread is vegan.  So good, and they even give you the recipe!

We HAD to take a picture with a Fijian warrior in the Fiji Village.  Fiji hold such a special place in our hearts.

Ice cold coconut water and learning the hula.

We were practicing our New Zealand eyes.  This picture cracks me up!

We were at PCC the whole day, from open until close. One of my favorite parts was getting a ukulele lesson!

SHE DID IT! SHE DID IT! SHE REALLY, REALLY DID IT!

It was such a fun and special day watching my sister graduate from BYU-Hawaii.

The graduates are entering and taking their seats.

Our proud parents have a front row seat.

The speakers were inspiring.

She's crossing the stage in all her glory.

I love this picture of her and one of her best friends.

The campus is gorgeous!

What a wonderful day!  My sister is amazing.

WE HAD A GIRLS, AND PARENT'S, WEEKEND IN HAWAII

so that we could see my sister graduate from college.
We stayed on the North Shore and had wonderful long weekend in paradise. The only thing that would have made it better was if my man clan were there too.

 My favorite fruit stand is Kahuku Land Farms.  They have a plethora of fresh fruit and super yummy fried banana mochi balls.

They also have the cutest little piglet!

TODAY IS HER BIRTHDAY!

My sister is another year older and another year young at heart.

Stephanie is

adventurous and fun

interesting and interested

loving and caring

talented

and

an awesome aunt and a superb sister

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY STEPH!

WE LOVE YOU!!

WHAT'S YOUR SUPERPOWER?

My sister, Stephanie, is working on a project for her Human Development in the Social Environment class.  She is creating awareness on acceptance and self-esteem. Her idea is to take normal traits, skills and / or talents and to turn them into a superpower.
She is a wonderful artist and has created several characters that showcase different skills or talents.  Her site helps children to think and to decide what their superpower is. She wants to help children build up self-esteem by showing them that differences aren't bad and that we all have something that makes us who we are and most importantly to embrace their uniqueness. She's also wanting to promote accepting others even if they are quirky or "different" from other kids in the classroom or society.
Here's an example of a few of her characters:

Grif, the honest boy from Georgia. He uses his superpower to always be honest in every place and thing he does. He's well respected in his home, school and within the community. Everyone knows they can rely on Captain Truth!

Layla  from Egypt. She uses her superpower to touch her friends and the community on levels that words alone can't. She agrees with Mr. Hamlet about practicing on a talent that you love is important. She's often praised for having a voice of an angel.

This is Hugh from California and he's adventurous. He uses his superpower to explore the world around him. After he discovers new places and things to do, he'll come back and share it with his friends. He believes excitement in life is important.

There are postcards that can be printed for each character and the back of the card has places for the kids to create their own superhero.

Visit your-superpower.blogspot.com and check it out and share it.

A MIDNIGHT SISTER DATE

Stephanie flew in late last night.  Our parents were going to pick her up, but we decided that a midnight airport pickup would be way more fun if it was a surprise sister date.  She is only here for the weekend, so we have to get all the time we can with her.

Erica and I arrived with signs and a lei.  Sarah couldn't make it so we put her head on a stick, so she could still participate.  We provided a lot of giggles and smiles at the airport.  It's not everyday you see a smiling head on a stick.

I know this photo is horrible, but it's the only one we have of us all together.

Since we couldn't celebrate her birthday with her earlier this month, we took Stephanie to Voodoo Donuts on the way home.  We got her favorite donut and brought a candle along for her to make a wish.

It was such a fun surprise!