Halibut Help?

We have 55 pounds of halibut in our freezer from Eric’s Alaska trip, which we haven’t had time to blog about yet. Anyway, I am in desperate need of as many halibut recipes as I can get my hands on. Looking online for recipes has left me only mildly impressed. So, if you have any recipes that you know are awesome, please pass them on!

The new house to do list

We have officially moved into our new house. And the list of "to do's" is long, but we are loving every minute of it!!!

Our new house.

Our list goes a little like this:

-dining table and chairs
-couch/chair/2 end tables/cocktail table
-entertainment center
-bedroom furniture for Master bedroom/kids/Guest rooms
-blinds and window treatments
-re-tile entry way, kitchen, dinning area, and three bathrooms
-landscape front and backyard, including major stone retaining walls
-light fixtures, dining and family room are priority
-paint the entire interior of house
-find different cabinet pulls
-*baseboards and moldings for entire inside of house
*that's right, a brand new house in Hawaii doesn't come with baseboards!
-rain drain system


Furniture we have picked so far:

Our dining table is from Environment Furniture, which uses reclaimed wood. TIME Magazine recognized Environment Furniture in its annual Green Design 100 for there minimalist lines and eco edge of sustainable home furnishing designs. I guess am into being green. We asked the store Mesh, where we purchased the table, for lighting direction. They said they have seen all different types over this table, from traditional, to Mediterranean, to modern...That wasn't much help. I was hoping for a clear direction. Many options make it hard to choose.

We bought two parson benches, in an ebony finish like the legs on the table above, for the kids. And for the end of the table, we want to find two upholstered chairs with a funky patterned fabric.

Also, in twelve weeks we will have something to sit on from the Cisco Brothers.

Kind of looks like this, except the arms are a high modern shape, and it's a nine by nine L shape. We went to every furniture store on the Island and this couch by Cisco brothers was the most comfortable couch ever. The store that carries the Cisco brothers line is So'Mace, which is listed in my 'just for kicks' link list.

Lighting. So many choices. Here are a few that we like:

My first thought is drama! This is by??? I forget. sorry.

Love the pattern it makes on the ceiling.

This chandelier would go with the stainless steel appliances and hardware in the kitchen.

Simple and fun.

Too Fun?

Mark Chai, a Hawaiian-Chinese sculpture makes theses chandeliers out of wood.




At night they're glowing works of art.

more.....



Traditional/contemporary chandeliers by Candice Olsen,
a fellow Canadian. The Chandeliers on the right and center
could go over the dining table, but the chandelier on the right
could go in the Master bed room, except in a silver finish.


Art Deco/modern? Uhm?

I like this one, but maybe not for the dining room.

Window treatments:

We have decided on the woven blinds with a privacy lining that allows the light to still shine thru.

This is basically how the blinds will look in our kitchen, with light wood cabinets and a black counters.

We have three sets of french doors in the main living area. I am thinking of hanging dupioni silk drapes in lemongrass or clay from Pottery Barn. I am still trying to decide on the style of draper hardware: grammets in picture above or.....

...... ring-top...

This is the lemongrass color. I like the way these hang.

.....or pole pocket.

Opinions? Ideas? We welcome them all.

Pearce turns three

Even though Pearce turned 3 more than a month ago, I wanted to honor him with a brief recap of his existence so far. So, here are some highlights:

First day. Honolulu Hawaii.

First Cry.

First Wash. Second Cry.

First nap with Dad. My favorite.

First full day at home. Momma and Baby. I look tired!

First blessing. Honolulu Tabernacle, Hawaii.

First beach day. One month old. Hawaii.

First Shower.

First bubble bath. Arizona.

First taste of real food. An apple.

First taste of human flesh. His toe.

First taste of sand. Hawaii.

First body surfing lesson.

First surfing lesson.

First hike.

First Halloween. Superman.

First Flight as Superman.

First Christmas.

First Disneyland ride.

First tuk. Oh, those baby blues.

First advance.

First Utah grass.

First Houseboat trip to Lake Powell.

First water skiing lesson.

First Jet ski ride.

First birthday Party. Houseboat at Lake Powell.

First snow day. Big Island of Hawaii, Hawaii.

Second snow day. Cottonwood Canyon, Utah.

First Timeout. Coincidentally, first massage.

First hair cut.

First BFF, Eli the Elephant. Also, fondly known as "baby."

Second Birthday.Gymboree, Hawaii.

First show at the theaters that Pearce sat completely thru, "Kung Fu Panda."

First major owies. Phillips Lake House, Arizona.

First solo swim with swim muscles. Our pool, Honolulu.

Second Halloween. Punk Rocker.

First pumpkin.

First Dance with his First Cousin.

First hike Pearce actually hiked. Hawaii.

First blackmail. Don't they look guilty?

First crab and Junk boat ride. Halong Bay, Vietnam.

First Pagoda. The flower, Vietnam.

First Vietnamese wedding. And self-appointed role as Destroyer of the Fan.

First Oyster. Hanoi, Vietnam.

First slide down a sand dune. An Phuoc, Vietnam.

First alpine slide. Da Lat, Vietnam

First elephant ride. Da Lat, Vietnam.

First exploration of Angkor Wat Ruins. Cambodia.

First death camp. God willing, last death camp. Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Second elephant ride. Chiang Mai, Thailand.

First play date with baby tigers. Chiang Mai, Thailand.

First motorcycle ride. Da Lat, Vietnam.
Actually it was in Hanoi--for like three months before this instance--but we have no pictures of him riding there.

First snake bite. Except Pearce was doing the biting. Hanoi, Vietnam.

First experience traveling by boat on the Mekong River through Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. Different boats for each country of course, for those looking at a map!!!

First time piloting a boat down the Mekong. Somewhere near the Vietnam-Cambodia border.

First grapefruit bowling game. Chau Doc, Vietnam.

Third Halloween. Boxing Champion.

First non-Halloween dress up. He didn't take it off for five days.

First pee-pee!!!

First Easter Egg Hunt

Second kayaking trip. Hawaii. Can't find a picture of his first. He was one years old. We kayaked to Captain Cooks momument on Big Island to snorkel. Pearce screamed the entire time because he thought I had left him forever. Since then he has loved kayaking.

First s'mores on an ocean beach. Hawaii.

First computer, a Mac. Pearce is a whiz on the computer. He should be the next apple commercial!

First tube ride. Phillips Lake House, Arizona.

First Legoland trip.

First Major League baseball game. Spring Training still counts, right?

First swing towards being in the Majors.

First putt-putt.

First dunk.

First snorkel.

First back flip into the 'Pit'




First house, and a preview of the next post. And the reason this was the first post in months.

Foodies

We wanted to try a new restaurant and we wanted noodles, so I checked out the Honolulu restaurant guide. I found a little Japanese restaurant called Matsugen that caught my eye. Their object of desire is Soba. And as restaurants in Japan, Matsugen also grinds its own buckwheat flour, meaning fresh noodles made everyday. Matsugen boasts about pairing seemingly simple noodles with Shingo Shibano crafting steaming hot Soba or Mori Soba, noodles served cold with dashi-mirinshoyu sauce, some wasabi and sliced green onions. The menu also offers Udon and Izakaya dishes, from poke to top-grade meat cooked on a hot rock.

When our Japanese buckwheat noodles were served, Pearce beamed, "I am all for this." Yeah, one more thing to add to his foodies list. Pearce also noticed that when eating hot dishes, a wooden spoon was much better than a metal spoon, "no hot lips" he declared.



Our love affair with Japanese buckwheat noodles ended when our bowls where empty, but we were still hungry. Yes, we admit we have a good old American appetite and these noodles just felt more like an appetizer than dinner. I wish Matsugen served sushi, that would have filled in our hunger hole. Until Matsugen does, this probably will be our first and last time dining with them. Nothings worse than leaving a restaurant hungry.

Super Pearce

Pearce wishes everyone a super day!

Phong & Nan Visit

Eric's mission companion, Ben Chadwick (aka Phong ), and his wife Nan visited us two weeks ago, sans their two daughters, who stayed in Utah with Phong's parents. Eric and Phong were companions for an astounding 11 months of their mission, including two months in the MTC. Even when they weren't companions, they were still only five minutes away from each other, serving in the same branch of Vietnamese the entire time. Needless to say, they have a very unique and thick bond. Both admit that a lot of who they are today was a result of their mission time together.

We hadn't seen Phong since our wedding, and Nan even longer, so the visit was almost like making a re-acquaintance--especially for me. Early on, we discovered that they are also foodies, resulting in a week-long quest for Hawaii's tastiest treats. On Eric's 31st birthday, we went to Ninnikuya, a Japanese garlic restaurant. That means every dish is themed around garlic, including their ice cream. When we first moved to Hawaii, this was arguably our favorite restaurant. But after a few lackluster visits, we put it behind several other joints. Eric, however, wanted to give it another shot.Thank goodness, he did. Ninnikuya is officially back in the running for our top spot. Their spinach-bacon salad is the best I've ever had, and Eric liked his seared ahi dish so much that he may have officially had an affair with it.

Eric and Phong enjoy the feast

Eric taught Phong to surf and we also saw Star Trek on Hawaii's new IMAX (it gave me chills). But probably the funnest thing we did was our kayaking excursion in Kailua Bay out to the Mokes islands. This gave us an opportunity to try out our new underwater case for our canon. It also gave us a chance to test how well Pearce handled a long kayak excursion. We were planning to take him this weekend on a much longer excursion to Kauai to paddle the Na Pali coast. It's 16 miles long and would have taken us three nights/four days. National Geographic named it one of the most adventurous trips in the world. Turns out, though, the swells never went down enough, plus Eric got real sick. So we're going to try again in July. Pray it works out so you're not reading our obit instead of our blog.

Pearce and Nan wait while the guys get the kayaks ready.

Phong and Nan ready to get going.

Nan, Phong, Pearce and Eric. I'm in my own inflatable kayak taking the pictures.


A gorgeous day. Eric and PP inside the inflatable kayak that I got for him for his 30th birthday last year.

Paddling hard.

Taking a picture of myself.

Almost to the Mokes.


Everyone else had the same idea, I guess.

Our destination.

Pearce checks out the animals found around the Island Sanctuary.



Pearce disturbing someones rock tower.



Eric takes a nap in the sand.

Phong gets ready to snorkel. Where's the sun?

Pearce asleep on the paddle back.

We love playing, and sharing our Island with friends. Unfortunately it had to come to an end. Thanks for coming Phong and Nan!

Random

This morning Pearce woke up and declared, " I had crazy dream in my entire life". He is so darn cute.



A couple days ago, Pearce and I were at Nordstroms cafe eating their Tomato Basil soup. Out of nowhere, a guy comes over to our table and says, "You have the most handsome son." He then pulled a linty carrot stick from his coat pocket and offered it to Pearce, who just looked to me for instruction. Politely, I said, "No thank you." The man quickly replied, "Oh, that's okay, you probable shouldn't take food from a stranger anyway." And with that, the man dipped his linty carrot stick into my soup and ate it. I sat there completely frozen. Shocked. Stunned. His reaction? He decided to whip out another linty carrot stick from his coat pocket, dip it into my soup again, then try to feed it to me. FOR THE LOVE! My first thought was, OK, where's Ashton Kutcher? When I finally realized I wasn't being punk'ed, I stood up and waived over the nearest server, then turned to him and said, "You know, you really shouldn't be dipping your carrots into other peoples' soup." He quickly fled into the Nordstoms. When the server came over, I informed her that there was a man loose in the cafe, dipping his linty carrots into peoples' soup. I was met with a blank expression. I think she thought I was punking her. Eventually, the Manager came over and after a few more times of me telling her about my violated soup, she believed me. The manager's response was to mobilize her two fastest servers into the Nordstroms to hunt the linty carrot dipper down. Unfortunately they came back empty handed. He was nowhere to be found. The manager was so horrified that this happened on her watch. She quickly replaced our tainted coat pocket linty carrot soup with fresh bowls and apologetically gave her business card with valid for one complimentary meal scribbled on the back.

Honestly, I am starting to believe I'm a crazies magnet. Why? Maybe I am too nice, too approachable, or maybe I'm just always in the wrong place at the wrong time. I am really not sure, but I do know I could write a book on 'crazies' who have randomly stumbled into my life. If you can commiserate with me, or you've seen the linty carrot dipper yourself, I would love to hear all about your 'crazies.'

Easter

Holidays are different when you are far from the fun family that you love. Hawaii, though, is a happy alternate. Love as a verb is openly encouraged in Hawaii and so everyone treats each other like family. Total strangers refer to other adults as Auntie or Uncle. Once, I was in a grocery store carrying too many items and as I was ready to drop something, a lady said to her son, go help Auntie. The son came right over to help me. A few weeks ago, Eric, Pearce and I were walking through a beach park and a family asked if we wanted to join them for BBQ or grindz as they call it here. Those are just a few of the examples. Of course, once in while we come across a rotten egg. But overall, the aloha spirit exists. And not just on holidays, birthdays, or special occasions.

We celebrated Easter this year with our Ohana. We had several Easter egg hunts. Some with plastic eggs, and some with real eggs we dyed. At our McCully playgroup a creative mom hollowed out real eggs, dyed them and carefully filled them each with stickers and treats. The idea was when you find an egg you have to crush it to get the prize inside. It made for a lot of excited toddlers. But first she had the kids make and decorate their own Easter baskets.

Decorating Easter baskets.


And Voila! A beautiful Easter basket.

Ready, set, hunt for Easter eggs.


Jackpot!


Open please!



The kids really loved stomping and crushing the eggs.

Grandmama and Papa Piller sent an Easter Rabbit filled with goodies.

Pearce had fun finding the treats.

The rabbits neck and belly also held treats. Yummy treats.

As always, this season filled us with gratitude for the life we have been given and the opportunity to make it better.

Our math whiz

Way to go Connor!!!!!

March Break

March break was all about family fun with the Grandparents. Minus Eric who had to stay behind. First, we flew to Arizona to visit my parents, Spencer and Pam Piller. As always it took a couple of days to shake off the jet lag. And, of course, Connor had a major project, on the subject "Absolute Zero"? I don't know where they come up with these topics. We decided not to procrastinate and get it done so we could kick back and.....

Visit the

A great place to learn about prehistoric Arizona. We discovered Paleozoic seas and a Triassic petrified forest and learned about what Arizona once looked like. We also learned about North America’s first inhabitants, hunters and gatherers, and Arizona’s first settlers, the Hohokam. This exhibit shows a replica village and authentic pottery. The Hohokam built ancient temples and networks of enormous irrigation canals that apparently still lie beneath Arizona's homes and streets. Then we traveled from the Spanish colonial times to today. All along the way there were interactive activities for the boys, like panning for gold......

We explored the Mars Exhibit, and experienced simulations of planetary processes. We tested full size Mars Rovers and Landers, and compared the geological histories of Earth and Mars. The boys even dug for fossil remains that could potentially be found on Mars. Digging is always a winning activity with my kids.

A canyon on Mars, Valles Marineris, that stretches the length of the United States and a volcano as large as Arizona, Olympus Mons. And below a Rover.

Unfortunately, I forgot my camera and in my quest to get pictures of the boys having fun with Grandmama, and proof that they did have fun at a museum, I opted for my cell phone camera, but as of now I have no way to transfer the pictures to our computer. Until then, I thought I would inject pictures from the last time we went. I'm not even sure if Pearce was an "idea" back then.

The next day, Connor and I spent time with my Dad, while Grandmama enjoyed Pearce all to herself.

Papa Piller gave us private golfing lessons.

Good form.

Connor in full swing.

Wendi and Connor trying to keep their heads down.

Beautiful day. Thanks Daddy.

After a full day in the Arizona sun a Gelato run was the perfect ending.

In preparation for march break, I asked Connor what he would like to do, and with no hesitation he suggested it would be fun to take Pearce to Legoland. What a great brother!!!! Legoland is mainly for tots and young children. But Connor, 11 now, convinced me that he would have fun too. So after 5 days and nights with Grandmama and Papa Piller we flew to California. Grandma Gayla picked us up at the airport and leisurely drove up the coast to the Carlsbad Sheraton Legoland Resort. We dropped our bags off, went out to eat and stopped at a large strawberry patch. I know that sounds random. But who can resist strawberries?

Big beautiful strawberries were calling our names.

Yummy.

We went back to the resort and and played around in the heated pool. And thankfully it was heated. It was quite cold outside. The next couple of days were full of non-stop fun at Legoland and the Sea Life Aquarium. Kelsey, my sister in law, who attends Whittier college in L.A for vocal performance, met up with us too.

Legoland

Connor, Kelsey, Wendi and Pearce. Notice we all are holding hot chocolate. It was a chilly day.

Pearce tackling the Pirates Cove playground.

Pearce in the tunnel looking for Connor, who was running and climbing with a pack of big kids.

Pearce is admiring this character made out of Legos in Castle Hill.

Almost the entire park is made out of legos. It's amazing. While Connor and Grandma Gayla rode the Dragon coaster, Pearce and I found Knights of the Round Table foam swords. This was the greatest find of the day for PP. He probably finished off over a thousand imaginary "bad guys" by the end of the day. Next, was Miniland USA.

Pearce, Connor and Grandma Gayla looking on the mini replica of Washington D.C.

They even staged President Obama's inauguration.

Even Michelle Obama in her gold dress.

Las Vegas

The famous Chinese Theater in Hollywood

Hollywood, I mean Legowood.

San Francisco

Golden Gate Bridge

NYC, even the Nascar speed way....but no mini Hawaii?

Pearce in the Imagination Zone.

Pearce and Kelsey building.

Connor building a race car.

Pearce ready to race.


And mysteriously, Pearce's car comes flying off the track.

Picking a fight with Darth Vader.

Kelsey and I join in.

Pearce was in love with Lego R2D2. He begged that we take it home.

Pearce and I on a Safari Ride in the Explorer Village.

Peace was excited to be driving again like in Vietnam. He still doesn't understand why he can't drive in the States. We explain that the police will send his Daddy and Mommy to jail, but I'm not sure he understands the consequences of incarceration just yet.

Connor and Kelsey.




Pearce shocked to see a Rhino.

Pearce, even more shocked to see a velociraptor in the bushes. He didn't breathe for straight five minutes.

While Connor and Grandma Gayla screamed around the prehistoric Coastersaurus. Pearce and I put our paleontology skills to work, and dug for skeletal remains of dinosaurs buried in over 30 cubic yards of sand in Dino Island.

A Boat ride through Fairytale Land.

The prince is talking on a cell phone.

Aladin's cave.

Pearce driving a lego Volvo.

Connor and Grandma Gayla on a water ride.

Sea Life Aquaruim

Connor dares to touch the anemmenies.

Building a Lego sand castle.

The jelly fish tank was my favorite.




Pearce watching the sting rays....

.....and the sharks.

Connor in the middle of the aquarium.

One of the nights we celebrated an early birthday for me! The chocolate cake was delicious.

Back in Arizona, Tutu and Papa Phillips picked us up at the airport and drove us straight out to the lake house. We woke ready to have some fun...

Riding the tub with the boys. The Phillips lake house behind us.

Connor, Wendi and Pearce.


Joci's turn.

Papa making a sharp turn, the babies look worried!

Joci and Pearce asked to get out! LOL.

Now in the boat...the babes are happier.

Papa David trying to dump us in the lake.

The babies at play. Callen, Joci, Pearce and Brinly.

Brin and Pearce.

My brother in-law, Todd, running the slalom course, while Camille, his 8 month prego wife drives! I love that.

Both Todd and Eric have been world-ranked waterskiiers since they were kids, competing in slalom, trick and jump. Eric was the youngest ever (11) to win the Western Regionals and at one time was ranked in the top five in the world. Both he and Todd won national championships on their collegiate water ski teams (Todd at Central Florida and Eric at ASU) and were All-Americans throughout their career. I think if waterskiing was an Olympic sport or at least offerred a more "sustainable" career, Eric would have kept going. I will stop there...Eric dislikes bragging.

Hot tub'n with the babies. Jesse holding Callen and Izzy, Joci, Todd holding Brin, and Pearce.

Callen, Jesse, Evelyn and Izzy.

Fishing off the dock with Uncle Todd.

Pearce caught one!

The boys building a fire for smores.

Pearce free bouncing on the trampoline at his cousins house. Pearce is 100% addicted to trampolines. If (when?) we get one, I think there is a very good chance he will stay outside bouncing until he falls asleep.

Visiting with more cousins. Lt to Rt: Kristin holding Corine, Calob, Gunner and Kari holding Bree, and Wendi holding Pearce.

Pearce and Gunner.

Kari and Bree. Beautiful Breezy is almost finished her Chemo and it's looking good!

Pearce and Bree.

Bathing with the cousins. Brin, Joci and Pearce.

Sleepover.

At the Cubs Spring Training baseball game wearing Diamondback colors!

Pearce, Papa David, and Connor.

Our last night in Arizona was spent at GG Phillips house. She made a fabulous dinner for us. Connor helped mow her lawn.

Thank you GG, Grandmas, Papas, Uncles, Aunties, Cousins for playing and loving us over these last two weeks. We feel truly blessed and we love you and miss you already xoxo.

Pearce's latest

Buzz Light-year!

Pearce's latest accessory obsessions are: a Buzz Light-year wrist compass that his Grate Grandpa Taylor gave him for Christmas and a Buzz Light-year suit that was sent in the mail by his Tutu and Papa Phillips. As the compass or suit goes on, Pearce transforms into Buzz, saving all life forms from the dreaded Zurge.....I love his imagination.

To infinity and beyond........

Close encounters

...of the Chicken kind.