This is Hawaii, of course, so you have to begin your day with two rainbows in the sky. Here's the picture from my parent's deck overlooking Pearl Harbor...
As noted in a previous posting, many in our family gathered to celebrate my father's 86th birthday. I pointed out a few days ago that we all thought it remarkable that our dad jumped in the Mustang to ride with me to the gathering.
But what I forgot to post is that only my dad would ride in a Mustang but park in a handicapped parking stall...
Somehow he managed to talk his doctor into giving him a handicapped parking stall placard. He apparently convinced the doctor that he wasn't able to walk very far any more. Yet amazingly he still manages to walk up and down the buffet line several times over!
My sister Dawn and her boys posed in their own unique way...
And Donovan and his girlfriend Christyn decided to dress up like tourists complete with the matching outfits...
I guess that's what happens when you're from Molokai. The good news is that none of us have ever seen Donovan as happy and content as he is now with Christyn.
While in Honolulu Donovan said he needed to go shopping for a new sheet and comforter set for their bed. Apparently Christyn is a huge fan of the color pink - my wife's favorite color as well. But Donovan is a man now, and men don't sleep on pink sheets.
So his Aunty Cari and I told them that we'd pay for the new set but it had to be pink. We figured that Christyn needed all the backing she could get living with our nephew.
Anyway, after the big luncheon I decided to work off some of the calories by dancing like an Egyptian all the way down the stairs...
But that was a few days ago. More recently, we celebrated Dad's birthday a second time on the actual day of his birth.
And like his Grandson David whose birthday is the very next day, my father celebrated with a birthday pie...
Kimberly was in town from Lanai, hapai as one can ever be, and she joined us for dinner...
Kim is the eldest daughter of the greatest cook not only in our family, but the the universe, Adorna.
In honor of his birthday, my father made one of his (im)famous concoctions...
For those who cannot see the cans clearly, let me spell out the ingredients in the mixture. Equal parts diet pepsi and coconut milk, topped off with a scoop of ice cream.
Make one yourself and enjoy. Really. Go ahead. Try it and see how it tastes.
As Alyssa was sitting at the table next to her grandma, we noticed something...
My mom has now lived in Hawaii for fifty years (having moved from Manitowoc, Wisconsin). Alyssa has lived here for five days. Yet somehow my mother still doesn't have much more of a tan...
My daugther Nalani would be very pleased at Grandma's choice of plates upon which the pie was served...
My sister Dawn cracked open a few bottles of wine and clearly she can't hold her liquor. Just look at the mess she made on the tablecloth...
You can't take her anywhere.
Speaking of Dawn, here's a picture of our Dad being tormented by his daughters...
That's Dawn on the left and Renee on the right.
Although Dawn has a regular job on Molokai by day, she is a profesional singer at night...
Gotta love those sleeves!
When visiting my sister Renee's house the other day, I was reminded about her exciting but all to brief professional singing career as well.
At a Barry Manilow concert in Hawaii a few years back, Barry pulled someone from the audience on stage to sing a bit with him.
And it just happened to be the biggest Barry Manilow fan in the world - my sister Renee...
Yes, the pictures are real, this is Renee's professional debut...
Okay, done with all that. Now we really should get down to the real issue that everyone wants to know
Where was lunch?
Yes, that's the famous Shiro's Saimin Haven in Waimalu.
We arrived in Hawaii a few days ago to celebrate my father's 86th birthday.
And because we're Bicoys, that means it's time to eat.
So while Alyssa, Christyn (my nephew Donovan's girlfriend), my mom, and my sister Dawn were fooling around in the living room...
My father and I decided that there was no time to waste... a buffet awaited.
And amazingly, he jumped with me into the Mustang convertible I had rented and off we went...
Our destination was my sister Renee's favorite place to eat, Tsukiji Fish Market. It's an enormous buffet of sushi, tempura, udon, and lots of other stuff which simply demand to be piled high on a plate.
But my brother James, ever the meticulous and wonderful chef in his own right...
...made sure his plate of sushi was presented just the right way...
Of course, my presentation consisted largely of tilting the plate so everything would just roll off into my mouth...
There was so much terrific food that even my lactose intolerate vegetarian daughter found things she could enjoy...
Uh, well, kinda enjoy, I think.
It was a nice gathering of family members as my sisters Dawn and Renee sat with our Dad...
And while my brother Bernie couldn't make it, Jimmy was there to joke it up with our Dad...
Happy Birthday Dad!
Next year, I say we should gather at my favorite place to eat in the whole wide world, Soon's!
Recently we celebrated the 18th birthday of my oldest daughter Alyssa.
Yes, I did say 18th birthday.
As in adulthood. Grown-up-city. Maturity-ville.
Happy Birthday Alyssa...
She is now old enough to vote. She is old enough to join the army.
She is old enough for lots of things.
As for me, I'm just old.
She received lots of presents and cards on her birthday as usual, but her brother David was too lazy to make a card...
If you look closely, he took a card that his little sister Nalani made for a previous birthday and just decided to re-use it...
Alyssa thinks recycling is important, so I suppose this makes sense.
As for Nalani, she would have gotten mad but she disappeared. In her place was this guy who showed up...
He introduced himself as "Mr. Gazpacho."
Seriously, Nalani walked around with this moustache and decided on her own to tell everyone her name was Mr. Gazpacho.
Must have gotten that particular gene from her mother.
Speaking of Cari, not too long ago were the Academy Awards - which means that everyone in our house gets dressed up for our very own Oscar party...
The kids looked great but I just loved Kekoa's outfit.
It's a leisure suit right out of the 1970s...
Of course, the biggest news is that Alyssa has finally taken her driver's exam. She's been old enough for the last several years, but only recently did she decide to finally take it.
As a parent, I must say that I am already very concerned about her driving habits.
The other day I was driving home and passed Alyssa in the van driving in the opposite direction with Cari. Through the windshield of my car I could see Alyssa fiddling with the radio and talking to Cari rather than paying attention to the road!
I got so mad that I dropped my electric shaver in my coffee and it spilled all over my blackberry just as I was sending a text message.
Okay, I know that another blog entry about sledding isn't all that interesting.
After all, it's not like we haven't posted pictures like this before...
But today was particularly exciting for our family. Joining us on Fireman's Hill for the first time since we returned to Wisconsin was our oldest daughter Alyssa.
Although I will admit that it's hard to tell that it's actually Alyssa sitting next to Cari on the bench because of her ninja mask...
And while she wasn't exactly jumping for joy about rolling around in the snow, she did get in on the action...
As Cari and all six of our kids formed a chain of sleds...
You just knew that the chain would end at the bottom of the hill with Cari flying off a sled and rolling around on the ground...
But we all had a good time...
In fact we all got so excited that I just had to give myself a reminder from Alyssa's favorite television show...
In December, Green Bay experienced a record total of 46 inches of snow. That's nearly 4 feet!
To give you an idea of how much snow this is, in the land of the frozen tundra, the previous record for December was 36 inches set in 1887.
With all this snow, it can only mean one thing.
Sledding!
Cari and Nalani had a grand old time...
Nalani and Malia dressed in their purple best...
David and Bret Jr. were little daredevils flying down the hill...
And even I got in on the act...
Kekoa sled constantly, but somehow he always ended up with his sled flying off in one direction and him rolling down the hill...
Despite hours of pleading last night by her little brothers and sisters, Alyssa prefered not to play and stayed home.
Imagine our shock and surprise.
In any case, that didn't slow down Malia!
For the first time, our baby Malia (who's not so much a baby anymore), decided that she was ready to go down the hill all on her own.
So she did...
And she did again...
To give you an idea of how brave this little girl has become, here she is at the bottom of the hill...
Of course, the worst part about sledding to the bottom of the hill is that you have to walk back to the top...
Cari was plum tuckered out...
Nalani and Malia were smart enough to convince their brother Bret Jr. to pull them...
It seemed like a good idea to me so I put Nalani and Malia to work pulling my sled...
Now a history lesson.
During the Filipino-American War (yes, there was a Filipino-American War), the term "Flip" was coined. It was a horribly derogatory and insulting term used by the soldiers to demonize the Filipinos. It is comparable to the term "gook" and "chink" that were used in other wars.
On a complete aside, I believe it was also during the Filipino-American War that the famous Filipino Battle Hymn was written. It's lyrics are as follows:
Oh Philippines my Philippines We always fight but no can win
You fight for me I fight for you
You die for me Too bad for you
Oh Philippines my Philippines We always fight but no can win
In any case, "Flip" has been co-opted and given a whole new meaning which is emblazened on my hat...
Yep, those Bicoys are Flips - "Fine Looking Island People."
During all those years we lived in Wisconsin, most Christmases were anything but white. But since we've returned, Mother Nature seems to be celebrating by providing us record amounts of snow.
Last winter saw more snowfall than all but three or four years in the last century. And believe it or not, this year is on pace to make it an even snowier winter!
There is no journey quite so unusual as life with six kids!
With friends and family spread from Boston back east to Aiea in the middle of the pacific, we offer this little record of our adventures for all to share. Whether you're one of our kids' grandparents, uncles, aunties, or one of their many, many cousins, we welcome you to follow along.
And if you’re just someone who needs a bit of ridiculousness in their life (or a cure for insomnia), please join us on our nonsensical travels!
Bret & Cari
TRANSITION TO FACEBOOK: Once upon a time, this was the best way to communicate with our friends and family who were so far away from us. Today, we just use Facebook. So if you're a friend or family member from afar, looks us up on Facebook and let's follow each other!
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