Simply Real: Happy Memorial Day!

So... It's official.  Our little family is staying.  We absolutely LOVE it here... especially in Tacoma.  Now now... before anyone goes smack talking Tacoma and throwing around the phrase "Tacompton"... I've heard the stories and honestly, what place on the mainland doesn't have their bad parts.  Luckily for us, God put us right where we needed to be.  We're [I kid you not] 30 seconds away from the Tacoma mall (which by the way... Thomas was told it was the most [excuse the term] ghetto mall... But when we walked in we were like "Woooooow!" [said like a kid in a candy store]).  Our favorite store, Target, is 5 minutes away.  Our bank... 10 minutes away.  My doctor's... 15 minutes away.  TONS of eating places... minutes away.  You get my point...

We're ones to look and count our blessings, we're just so thankful for the opportunity to give our dreams a shot.

Anyway... Our first 11 days went by super fast (hey... that happens when you're having fun right!).  But that meant that it was time for Thomas to return to Hawai'i... to bring a final close to the previous chapter in our lives.  If you're a new reader... Thomas and I have been together since middle school.  We started living together about four years ago (I honestly can't believe it's really been that long already).  That meant that the night before our wedding was the first time in three years that we spent apart.  I was an emotional wreck that day (but give me a break! I was pregnant at the time too... I cried watching The Last Holiday as well okay?!).  I thought that was hard... hard was saying good bye to Thomas and feeling like I was leaving a part of me behind at the airport as I drove away.  *cue the tears again...* I'm such a baby...

But I would really want to take this time to dedicate this post to all of our service men and women... Past. Present. And future.  It was hard for me to say good-bye knowing that Thomas will be back in eleven days.  But families are forced to say good-bye to their loved ones all the time as they leave on deployments and for training.  Luckily for my family and I, our family members who served made it home safely... but my heart truly goes out to those of you who's loved ones made the biggest sacrifice.  I hope everyone takes the time to truly enjoy the blessings we all have in our lives... and take the time to appreciate the ones you love the most.

Until next time!

One of our favorite things to do as a family back home was go for walks.  It's so beautiful here in Washington!

One day out of no where, I noticed Chloe making this face to herself in the mirror.  Then she just started doing it all the time! She's so cute...

Here's a video of her making the faces at us during dinner the other night.  Her personality really has blossomed over the past few weeks.

We found a farmer's market!  Chloe had a blast looking at everything and waving at everyone.  (Yes... that's a lollipop...)

FaceTime with daddy!!!

Simply Real: We Made It!

I'm sorry!  I know that I'm very late on this post... But Thomas, Chloe, and I made our big move to Washington this past Monday!!  Monday was quite hectic.  I spent the morning running around making sure I didn't forget anything.  By the time we got to the airport and through security, we booked it towards our gate.  We were about three gates away when we heard the final boarding call for our flight.  Thomas had all of our carry-on bags, while I was pushing Chloe in the stroller... I sprinted to the gate and we made it just. in.  time.

Phew!  Thomas and I were sweating by the time we were in our seats!

Chloe was soooo good during the flight!  This was her first time on an airplane and she behaved so well!  She fell asleep about an hour into the flight, and again right before we landed.  As you can see she had no trouble getting comfortable.

We were able to catch the sunset just as we were flying in.  The pictures really don't do it any justice.  Just as the sun was hitting the horizon it was this intense fiery color... it was so beautiful!

The past few days have been quite a whirlwind filled with so many mixed emotions for me.  I'm so excited to start this new adventure with my little family but at the same time... I was sad to leave my family and home.  So far... we're absolutely loving Washington!  We happened to come during the most perfect weather!  Ever since we arrived it has been sunny and not too cold.  In fact, it feels like Hawai'i on a nice breezy day!  At night, it is definitely colder but nothing too unbearable... yet. =]

Chloe's first pinecone!  At first, she didn't want to touch it... and then she ended up carrying this one all over the mall with her. =]

I noticed these pretty flowers outside our dining room window when we first got to our apartment.

Then the next morning when I looked outside... they had bloomed into these beautiful blossoms!  I sent a picture to my sisters and Mom.  Shannon said it's a sign of a beautiful new beginning <3 

We've been spending the past few days getting used to the area that we live in and making sure that we get all the essentials squared away.  Tuesday happened to be Thomas' birthday and we spent it exploring the areas around our apartment and shopping.

We felt a bit more comfortable with driving around on Wednesday so we decided to venture into Seattle to pay our respects to Thomas' idol, Bruce Lee.  I had no idea that Bruce Lee was buried in Seattle!  As soon as we finalized our move, Thomas told me that when we got here we had to go see him... and I agreed! My grandfather helped found one of the Chinese Lion Dance clubs down in Chinatown back at home, and my dad also has a love for Kung Fu movies.  Who doesn't love Bruce Lee?!  This was a very moving trip for Thomas... Martial Arts has become a large part of Thomas' life and I cannot begin to explain to you how much he looks up to Bruce Lee!

Here are a few pictures from our visit to Lakeview Cemetery in Seattle, Washington:

Your inspiration continues to guide us toward our personal liberation.

Those eyyyyyyes. 0.0

Anywho... I'm quite tired.  This week has been pretty crazy... and Chloe is still stuck on Hawai'i time which means she's been going to bed around 11/11:30 >.<  Good night!

Simply Real: Chloe is 8 Months Old Today!

Another month has come and gone... Today Chloe makes 8 months (and Thomas pointed out to me that it's also Cinco De Mayo).  Chloe truly is growing leaps and bounds... I feel like over this past month she has learned so much!  She's perfected the art of standing (with assitance), walking along walls/objects/in her crib, sitting up... and so much more!  In fact, this morning I caught her trying put a piece of lint she found on the carpet in her mouth.  There's no stopping her now... she truly is mobile.  She also loves to talk up a storm... she's constantly babbling away consonant-vowel combinations.  I know I mention it all the time... but this kid loves to eat!  She's down to try anything and even though there were a few foods she was kind of if-y about (like avocado) I'm glad to say that she actually likes them!

This month is going to mark the beginning of a new chapter for our little family... It's really exciting to think about what WA has in store for Chloe and our little family.

Simply Honest: May Goals

I can't believe that I'm writing this post already... I feel like I just posted my April goals!

Anyway... Here's a go at a few new goals for this month.


1-  Be the Bigger Person.  I'm at a point in my life where I find myself doing a lot of reflecting... I think about how fast Chloe is growing up.  How fast our time in Hawai'i is coming to an end... and I think holy moly... it's really time to put the big girl pants on.  I think I've done a pretty good job at cutting down my excuses this month... but sometimes I lose sight of my goal and I give in to the urge of proving my point.  I know that there's no need to always argue my point... especially with Thomas.  So I need to be the bigger person... and I need to learn to move on.

2- Transition (as smoothly as possible) from Life in HI to Life in WA.  This is going to be a very big change for us... but we really couldn't be more excited and ready.  We know that home is always going to be here... and that provides us with a lot of comfort.  Now that we've gotten so far in making this dream a reality we wouldn't be able to forgive ourselves if we didn't take the leap.  We are determined to give this our all and we know that we always have our faith & family.

3- Put my Pinterest Boards to Use.  If you've read a few of my posts, you know I have an obsession with Pinterest.  I was telling my Mom and sisters that I pin all this crap and I barely use any of it!  Well... nows the time for me to put it all to use!  I've pinned so many yummy, healthy recipes... so many home decor DIYs... how to budget... how to meal plan etc etc etc... so I want to make it a point to put them all to use!

4- Improve & Keep Up with my Blog.  I cannot express how proud I am of myself for keeping up with this blog for this long!  I can proudly say that ever since the beginning of the year, I have posted at least one new post a week (and just last night I told Thomas we're one month away from being half way done with this year...whaaaaat?!).  Yay me!  I want to keep rolling with this forward momentum and make sure I see this through.  Now more than ever, it's important for me to keep up with this blog.  I know Gramaw Kathy will be faithfully reading every week and I don't want to disappoint her. ^_^

I'm going to be focusing a lot on making sure our move is a smooth one.  That's really one of my biggest goals for this month... But I promise to keep up with my New Year's Resolution of posting regularly and keeping this blog active.  Anywho... Chloe is getting anxious and wants to go hang out outside.  Have a great week everyone!

Here's a few pictures from this week!

Thomas grew up eating shave ice from John's Store in Liliha... so we had to take Chloe before we left.

We also wanted to have Tanioka's one last time.

My {crazy} sister, Shannon, has tempted us all into doing yet another monthly photo a day challenge... Today's word is "us". This is us over the years from dating, to marriage, and finally Chloe. So much as happened and changed over the ten years that Thomas and I have been together and we wouldn't change any of it. We're really excited for what God has in store for our little family!