Our home was dizzy with Christmas Eve anticipation last night -- so much so that we were able to capture the rare picture when every one of our six kids were smiling their biggest grins...
Sometime in the middle of the night Santa visited our home.
He moved all the presents out from under the tree to the center of the living room and left a few others of his own.
Early in the morning all the kids rushed downstairs and the sat around the pile...
The couldn't open the presents until everyone was downstairs. Naturally, they were waiting for their Daddy (hey, even on Christmas, a Bicoy needs to begin his day with some thoughtful contemplation).
Kekoa was so excited he made the strangest of faces...
And wonderful sister Nalani was only to ready to help out with opening every present.
Bretty could hardly contain his enthusiasm for his new oxford shirt...
He likes it, he just doesn't want to admit it or clothes might become a new gift trend -- something we don't want to overdo, after all.
Alyssa received a brand spanking new laptop from Mom and Dad...
And she is already surfing the wireless internet.
But Alyssa really liked the laptop pillow desk that Nalani picked out as her Christmas present to her sister...
Each of the kids draws a name from a hat and has to buy a present for another. The older ones use their allowance, but Nalani was lucky to have Mom and Dad pay the bill!
David quickly got busy with his Jedi training...
It's actually a really cool video game. You set up this electronic eye on top of your television and use a wireless lightsaber to stand in front of the TV and fight in the Star Wars world.
But Daddy was perhaps most excited of all...
Every football fan should own a personalized Dallas Cowboys jersey at some point (regardless of their home team, they should experience the overwhelming joy that comes with opening a gift of a jersey of the winningest Super Bowl team of all time, but I digress...).
Of course, our loving and caring little girl, Malia, loved her Carebear...
When you see Malia, you immediately think Carebear.
One of those always happy, always smiling, always playful little creatures who spread joy everywhere they go.
Just like Malia, when you ask her to smile for the camera...
Yeah, stubborn, but she's still wonderful!
Merry Christmas to all!
Greetings and salutations! Welcome to the 2005 edition of the Bicoy Beacon. I’m sure you’ve all been waiting patiently by your mailboxes with baited breathe, anxiously counting down the days until you receive our annual missive.
Then again, perhaps like my brother, you’ve just confused us with the latest Victoria’s Secret catalog (people often confuse me with Heidi Klum when I’m wearing, well, let’s not get into that).
This holiday season marks the start of our second year living in Fabulous Las Vegas, Nevada (our Mayor enacted an ordinance requiring that you use the word “fabulous” when writing the name of our fair city – unless, of course, you’re writing graffiti, in which case your hand will be cut off – which is real tough if you’re a fourth grader because then you can’t hold more than one glass of gin when stranded on a desert island – but I digress…).
It seems that in the last few years we have moved quite a bit – and this year was no different – although thankfully this move was simply to the other side of town. We bought ourselves a house in the Centennial Hills part of Las Vegas – which is yet another of the brand new neighborhoods that seem to spring up overnight.
Visiting San Diego – Malia & Nalani (sitting in strollers)
Kekoa, Bretty, Cari, Alyssa & David
What’s really changing, however, are the kids. They are growing up so darn quickly. To the left is a recent picture of a Christmas Tree wall-hanging that we first made about a decade ago...
Each year the kids pick out a new shape and glue on an ornament to reflect their height. The hearts at the top reflect Cari’s and my height – and it’s disturbing to see how Alyssa’s most recent purple ornament has now surpassed Cari and will soon go beyond me too! In case you’re curious, white is for David, orange for Bretty, blue for Kekoa, pink for Nalani, and lavender is for Malia. We made it when there was only one child in our house – who knew it would ever get that crowded! Must be because I’m so darn irresistible (my lovely wife is reading this over my shoulder and just smacked me upside my head!).
The Sexy Queen and Jedi Bret
Well, here are just a few of the highlights of our past year. We hope yours was as much fun as ours! And if you don’t already call the Las Vegas Valley home, please be sure to drop us a note if you’re in town. Since we’ve moved to Vegas, we’ve become far more popular!
Mele Kalikimaka…
Bret & Cari Bicoy
Alyssa, as you can see from the picture below, has gone from our little girl to being a young woman. In just two short months, she’ll be 15 years old! Needless to say, we have recently installed window bars and locks outside her room. Slimy boys lurk all around, after all.
Alyssa just before her freshman homecoming
(wearing makeup, which is immoral, if you ask me!)
She’s a freshman (or “first-year” as my friend from Wellesley College used to say) at a magnet school for exceptional students who are interested in technology. Alyssa certainly has become quite savvy with computers, and I have no idea how that happened! Seriously, it’s not as if we sat down and taught her, and until this year, she’s never taken any courses in writing in html, for instance. Yet somehow she just seems to know how to do this stuff! She has her own website and is building one for the TV show Dawson's Creek.
And if that weren’t enough to demonstrate how grown up she’s getting, this past summer Alyssa flew to visit her grandparents in Green Bay all by herself. She was really grateful that she was there during the summer, though, as during her visit the temperature averaged a much warmer 42 degrees.
If you ever talk with Alyssa, all we ask is that you not tell her what we were doing when we were her age!
David has grown into quite a little man. The picture below is from earlier this year when he still was wishing for his two front teeth. Well, they’ve since arrived and so has his personality! From his quiet shell has emerged a pretty funny guy who loves stories which make people laugh. And unlike his father, people are laughing with him, not at him.
David wishing for his two front teeth
David is also the artist in our family. He is constantly drawing and even saves his allowance to buy sketch books and better quality colored pencils. This young man can spend hours just sitting on the couch, working on one of his drawings.
He is now in the third grade and they tell us he is reading at a 6th grade level. David is currently mastering multiplication – something Cari and I mastered many years ago (albeit in a different way).
Now David would be disappointed if we didn’t point out what an exceptional swimmer he has become. Basically, we think David is part dolphin because since we’ve moved into our new home, he has lived in the pool. If only we put in some fish and gave him a three-pronged spear… hmmm.
Bretty, Alyssa, David, and Kekoa’s body – all underwater
Bret Jr., or Bretty as we call him, is also becoming a good swimmer, but for completely different reasons than his older brother. David is a born athlete, and it comes easy for him. Bretty swims well simply because he refuses to not swim well. This boy makes up his mind to become proficient at something and either does it enough times until he is, or he figures out his own path toward reaching the desired goal.
For instance, Cari brought home a few diving rings – which are just plastic circles with weights on them so they sink to the bottom. Bretty couldn’t grab them because he can’t swim to the bottom no matter how much he tries. Instead, he figured out that you can jump in from the side of the pool and your momentum will carry you to the bottom. Amazingly, this little boy is usually the first one to return to the surface with the rings! He is one very determined young man.
Kekoa & Bretty – either singing or sticking their tongues out
(both of which occur with great regularity), much to Nalani’s enjoyment
Bretty is also one of those kids for whom school just comes easily. He started first grade this year and is doing extremely well. Bretty is as comfortable in front of a school book as he is before a mixed plate of meat juhn, kal-bi and rice – and as a Bicoy, that’s really saying something!
Kekoa started kindergarten this year and is having a grand old time! He loves being one of the big kids who have somewhere to go each day while his little sisters stay behind with mommy at home. Kekoa’s teachers absolutely adore him because he is filled with energy but is such a good boy that he can easily sit quietly when he’s supposed to (just like his daddy, right?).
Nalani and a distracted Kekoa
He has always been our most independent child – being perfectly content to do his own thing at his own pace. That characteristic continues as Kekoa might wander away if something catches his eye while the other children are playing together in another room. What is surprising to see, however, is how creative he is becoming. Kekoa loves telling stories and makes up some of the wildest tales you’ll ever hear. It’s almost as if he’s destined to follow his father and grandfathers into politics.
His creativity makes Kekoa an ideal friend for Nalani, as the two of them can spend hours playing together. Of course, Nalani being Nalani, poor Kekoa can never play long enough to keep that little girl happy!
Nalani is as girly a girl as a girl can possibly be. She turned three years old over the summer and her favorite thing is to play “house” with Kekoa, but playing house is not enough. Nalani has to put on her high heel shoes, her Snow White outfit, and anything else pink that she can pull out of her dresser. Even at dinner time she has to have the pink Tupperware cup. No one can ever argue that “nature” doesn’t play as critical a role as “nurture” because although we have three daughters, it is Nalani who is every bit the stereotypical girl.
Nalani & Malia (again, sitting in strollers!)
David, Kekoa, Cari, Bretty & Alyssa at Disneyland
Nalani is sweet, loving, and cares about the feelings of everyone around her even at a very young age.
The best part of this for us is that Nalani is a wonderful big sister to Malia. Nalani is so giving and caring that she’s always looking out to make sure her little sister is included. Unfortunately for Nalani, even at such a young age, Malia sometimes demonstrates why her last name is “Bicoy.”
Malia is an absolutely wonderful little girl who also just happens to be the most stubborn child I have ever met. Were someone to take a toy away from Nalani, she gets upset and cries. Do the same thing to Malia and she’ll pick up another toy and try to smack you upside the head. Seriously, this little girl has a mind of her own!
Our littlest "angel" - Malia
Although she just turned 2, Malia constantly talks with everyone – well, maybe talking isn’t the right word – it’s more like she tells you what she wants you to do.
But then again she can be so loving and helpful. Malia will often come up to you for no apparent reason and give you a kiss (which I’m sure will worry me far more if this continues into her teenage years).
Nalani, Bretty, Alyssa, Malia, David & Kekoa
Welcome to the madness that is our home!
Ah, such is a life with six children. Crazy, loud, chaotic, strange, joyful, maddening, and wonderful. We wouldn’t have it any other way.
Mele Kalikimaka, Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, or just Have a Nice Day.
So went the befuddling question we faced this evening as a family.
After a lengthy discussion, our kids decided that sheep must produce milk -- it is a characteristic of mammals, after all. The real question was whether sheep produced milk of sufficient quality that it was both drinkable and desired enough that someone would pay money for it.
What? Your kids don't have similar debates in your home?
Okay, let me explain.
This year we printed out some disturbing pictures of how poverty forces some children to live in the world. After thinking about it, they all agreed to spend part of their own Christmas money to help out someone who doesn't have as much as we do.
A friend of the Nevada Community Foundation invited us to sit at her table at an event sponsored by
Quite frankly, this is an amazing organization. They provide animals and husbandry education to families in villages across the world. The animals are both a source of food and revenue to help raise people out of poverty and hunger one family at a time. As the animals reproduce, the family is required "pass on" the offspring to others in their village -- thereby making the project sustainable.
Anyway, as terrific as Heifer is, the great thing for us was watching our children makes decisions as to how they were going to help.
Their collective money allowed them to purchase a pig, a sheep, or a goat which would be placed with some family in a community somewhere in the world.
The kids quickly dismissed the pig idea -- that just didn't work for them. But they couldn't come to an agreement as to whether they should buy a sheep or a goat. And we said that they had to discuss it amongst themselves and come to a consensus.
Kekoa, Nalani and Malia really didn't understand the discussion -- so they just focused on the animals they liked best. Our three older kids, though, really got into a serious debate! We printed out the information sheets on the various animals so the kids could see what made each one valuable to the family that would receive them.
Bretty was convinced that we should get a sheep like this one from Heifer International...
Alyssa and David wanted a goat...
We made each of the kids explain their arguments as to why they thought one animal was better to give than another.
Bretty argued that a sheep produces wool which would keep you warm. He also said that he knows a sheep must be good to eat because he's seen his daddy eat a lamb chop! So the family could sell any baby lambs to earn more money.
Alyssa said that a goat was best because it produced milk -- and you need to drink every day. And the family could sell the milk for extra money.
But Bretty pointed out that a sheep was cuter than a goat so the family would probably love the sheep more and take better care of it.Alyssa then argued that a goat didn't take up much grazing area and could fit better in small places.These two kids went back and forth for quite a while. Neither would give up on their preferred animal so we even considered alternatives like a llama.Finally, it was pointed out that a goat would pretty much eat anything -- which made it easy to care for. And David reminded Bretty that eating anything in front of you makes Bretty a lot like a goat.The kids decided that if a sheep could produce drinkable milk for humans, that would have sealed the deal. But lacking that, a goat seemed the better option.So our kids are buying a goat for a family through Heifer International.
Although Nalani was a bit upset because she thought we would have to actually go out and buy a goat before delivering it to a family as a present! She wanted to give the goat a hug before we gave it away! Goat hug or not, the best part is that they decided to do this together. And they didn't just give money away, they put real thought into deciding the best method to help other people -- which apparently is through a goat!
It certainly is a very Merry Christmas for us!
Ah, the things that go on at home while I'm at work!
Since we arrived in Nevada, Cari has actively been involved in various Mom's groups through the website Meetup. She was the founder of the Henderson Mom's Meetup Group and continued to organize it until just recently. It simply became too problematic to try to participate in the Henderson group since we bought our home in Centennial Hills on the other side of town.
So Cari is now regularly attending the Northwest Las Vegas Mom's Meetup Group which serves Centennial Hills, Aliante, and northern parts of Summerlin.
Anyway, the point is that while I was at work today, our home was overrun by women in their pajamas...
The Moms decided to have a pajama party over breakfast with the kids first thing in the morning.
Of course, from some of the pictures, its clear that there are more than a few folks who apparently wear jeans to bed...
It was a potluck breakfast, with everyone bringing a little something over to our house...
Which was the best part for me.
By the time I got home late this evening, the folks may have departed -- but the leftovers remain!
Monday marked the last day we spent at the Magic Kingdom, and most everyone was overjoyed to spend the day there. As you can see from the picture below, the word "most" is quite appropriate...
Yes, our littlest Malia was a bit tired of her perpetual state of being freaked out. It started out with the Pirates of the Caribbean first thing on Sunday, and it pretty much degraded from there.
Unfortunately, just getting near a ride began to upset the little girl, even when they were rides designed for kids.
Here she is on Snow White's ride...
And here she is desperately trying to get off her visit to Neverland with Peter Pan...
The funny part is that yesterday, October 31st, was Malia's birthday!
Bretty had lots of fun, though. Like Madonna, he decided to strike a pose...
That's Bretty and Aladdin, of course.
Disneyland is a remarkable place, I must say. On the way out of town last night, we stopped at a McDonald's for a quick dinner -- saving some $35 over what we would have paid for a similar meal at Disneyland.
The difference?
Well, at Disneyland, we never saw a single piece of trash on the ground. At Disneyland, we never sat at a sticky table. At Disneyland, there were always napkins in the dispensers. At Disneyland, there was no ketchup stains on the counter. At Disneyland, everyone behind the counter was remarkably friendly. At Disneyland, 50 times as many people were being served a meal and it took less than half the time for our food to be ready.
I must say that after a few days at the wonderfully idealistic world of Disneyland, the real world seems rather, well, dirty.
It's amazing how a clean and friendly place tends to encourage trust among people. Consider this scene...
Everywhere you go, folks just leave their strollers as they go into the rides. They leave bags of souvenirs and lots of personal belongings right there in the open, and not once did we ever notice anyone having a problem. Folks just trusted one another and people lived up to that trust.
It really was quite heartening. It made you believe in the best in people.
Of course, it also could make you sick to your stomach. At least a few of the rides did...
A spinning teacup. Ugh.
But the kids loved it.
Maybe my stomach was just upset after lunch. Disneyland tries to cater to all sorts of diverse cultures reflecting the dietary habits of their visitors.
It appears that Disneyland is frequently visited by Mexican Vikings...
Turkey legs and chimichangas.
What more could you possibly ask for?
Of course, your stomach can get upset when you try out radical skateboarding moves like me...
We spent the final hours in Disneyland at their new theme park, Disneyland's California Adventure.
Mostly the California Adventure consists of rides inappropriate for little kids. But there are some nice attractions including the best part of all -- the nightly block party!
Every evening in the original Disneyland park a parade goes down its famous Main Street. It's nice, but really, it's just a parade.
At the California Adventure, however, the parade becomes an interactive party in which the characters and dancers interact directlywith the crowds...
Or in our case, my lovely wife Cari and Bretty jumped into the middle of the action...
And of course Buzz Lightyear looks over the festivities from his spaceship above the crowds...
Which reminds me of one of the boy's most favorite rides. Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters sends you out in a spaceship in which you must conquer the evil Emporer Zurg with your blaster. It's amazing how automated everything becomes as your picture is taken during the ride and emailed to you with your score!
Here are Bretty and Alyssa...
Cari, Nalani and David...
And Kekoa, Malia and me...
Disneyland truly is a wonderful place. As David proclaimed on the way out of the park, "We have to do this again!"
Welcome to Disneyland! Or as they call it here, the Magic Kingdom...
Cari has been to Disneyworld years ago, and I've been to Disneyland even more years back then that. So as we get older, it's amazing to see some of the classic exhibits that have been refocused as times change.
For instance, remember the Swiss Family Robinson?
Yep, those are my kids in the classic treehouse from the classic movie. When I was 8 years old and visited Disneyland last time around, this this set was from the movie Swiss Family Robinson.
The problem is that none of my kids ever saw the movie or have any clue who the heck the Swiss Family Robinson even is. Disney knows this, obviously, so their treehouse and camp have become transformed to "Tarzan's Treehouse" -- with new characters from the Disney cartoon of a few years ago.
Ah, yes, older I must be (as Yoda would say).
We did have lots of fun in Toontown (from the Roger Rabbit movie), which is where Mickey and his friends live. Note the population counter that is constantly spinning...
It used all sort of nonsensical numbers.
Kinda like this president's idea of a balanced budget.
The kids were a little crazy, so they were locked up...
Actually, most rides were fun, but some of them were dark, bouncy, or otherwise freaky and thus freaked out the kids a little bit.
You can just imagine David's reaction once he turns around and sees where our boat is going...
Bretty tried really hard to overcome his fear.
The Indiana Jones ride starts you through a meandering series of tunnels, complete with flickering lights, unexpected blasts of cold air, and eerie noises all around you. Note Bretty's expression and how even when I was taking his picture he had to hold my hand...
The ride itself was a bit spooky, but a heck of a lot of fun. Bretty said he didn't ever want to do that again, but look at how pleased he is with himself as the only one willing to join Alyssa and me on the ride...
Of course, Nalani was brave too, in her own way.
She was the one who loved posing with all those characters she knows like Snow White...
And Minnie Mouse...
It took about a half hour of standing in line, but we finally got a personal audience with Mickey...
Seriously, it was a personal audience. You meader through Mickey's house, exploring the oddities within, then you are escorted into a private room with Mickey (and a few of the Disney crew) for personal pictures with him.
We all had to admit, Disneyland is one very impressive place.
After dinner, we returned to the park to watch a parade down Main Street. Here's the final float with King Mickey and Queen Mickey on the top...
Then later that night we watched Fantasmic -- Mickey's idea of using his imagination. The whole thing takes place on an island in the middle of the park, complete with boats, fireworks, and massive projectors set against the backdrop of a water mist. It really was quite remarkable...
So much so that Malia was enthralled...
And Nalani couldn't control her enthusiasm...
In case you're curious, yes, Nalani is tied to the stroller. Her head kept falling over so we tied my jacket around her to help hold her head up!
Of course, all this stuff is not cheap. Consider our lunch, which consisted of just a few cheeseburgers, fries and soda pop...
Yes, that's $61.51 for basically a McDonald's like lunch.
The good news is that you get tremendous value for your money. Look at how pleased Bretty is with his lunch gift...
Yes, it's a straw that changes color as soda moves through it.
Definitely worth every one of the 6,151 pennies I spent on the meal.
My favorite ride is Star Tours. Imagine that you are just a regular traveller getting on a space shuttle flying to Endor, the forest moon. Suddenly, your robot pilot screws up and you find yourself in the middle of a huge space battle. It is really cool!
The best part, though, was when Cari and I got to dress up...
May the force be with you.
Tomorrow, one last day at Disneyland before going home.
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