Here's to A Better 2014!

Hi Everyone,

Hope you are doing well.  I don't even know who reads this anymore, and I feel terrible about not updating. It's been a rough 2013... maybe 13 really is a bad luck number! I'm going to hope that 2014 brings us happiness, financial stability, and comfort.

My New Year's Resolution post will be up in a day or two, but I thought I would summarize 2013, since I didn't blog as much. (Sorry!) As I said, it's been a tough year, but that's no excuse. Anyway, Josh, Jacob and I still had a lot of fun in 2013, and I should count my blessings.

Just as a mini update:

• Jacob took swim lessons at the YMCA thanks to Josh's parents.  I wouldn't say he can swim, quite yet, but he's really good at floating and kicking with a kickboard now.  One more session and I think he will be able to swim.
• Our neighborhood has what looks like a block party during Halloween, and Jacob had fun as the Red Power Ranger.  
• We lost baby #3 as a miscarriage in December and named him Jaime.  (To my family and friends who are just finding out from this blog - sorry if this is how you are finding out, but no one really knew that I was 14 weeks pregnant.) - Don't worry, we are all okay.
• We got a new addition to the family... a puppy named Lilo! Jacob named her. At first he wanted her name to be Stephanie, but we explained that we have an Aunty Stephanie so that wouldn't work.  Then, he wanted to name her Stitch, but he realized Stitch was a boy, so he finally decided on Lilo.  She's a tiny puppy that we got from the Humane Society, and we love her.  In case you are wondering and have been keeping up with our family situation, Jacob is no longer allergic to puppy saliva. Phew!
• Jacob has a new cousin, which brings the grandkid count in our family to 3! Baby K is still tiny, and it'll definitely be fun to watch him grow.

Here's a picture-summary of the later half of 2013. I look forward to blogging way more often in 2014 and re-connecting with you all.

Jacob took swim lessons and can now float on his own.

 

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He was a Power Ranger for Halloween.

A very rare family photo.

Happy Holidays 2013.

We got a puppy for Christmas!

Jacob has a little cousin - Baby K!

Jacob Playing the Harmonica (With Daddy on Guitar)

We found an activity that isn't so loud as the drum set upstairs... and he sounds on key most of the time. Haha!  This is Jacob's debut at playing the harmonica :-)

No Apologies

Phew... It's been a while since I've updated, and if any of you have been reading my blog for a while, you know that normally, this is the section where I would apologize. Haha. This time around, however, I have decided I am not going to apologize for not updating. Here's why:

1. I started a new career and I am no longer a teacher. I miss my students, but I LOVE my new job. At my new job, I sit in front of a computer ALL DAY.  When I come home, I don't feel like sitting in front of a computer, so it's been tough trying to get motivated to sit and type. Eeek. (I have to start telling myself that this is for Jacob.) Seriously, though, bad excuse.
   
2. My job schedule is now Monday - Friday, 8:30am - 4:30pm.  This allows me to have a routine when I come home. With teaching, I never knew what time I was coming home or if I had to grade papers at night.  However, with this job, I come home by 5, cook dinner, then spend the rest of my evening hanging out with my family. (Did I say how much I love this new job?)  

I guess my point is that I would much rather hang out with Hubby and Jacob at night than type... Okay I realized as I re-read that I'm lying a little here... I also enjoy vegging out in front of the TV. Hahaha.

So now that I've settled into my new job and evening routine, I have made a goal to continue my blog, only this time, I am not going to put pressure on myself if I don't write for a while, because that just means I'm hanging out with my family more. I hope I can say I'll be updating more often, but that just adds to the pressure!  Here's to no pressure!! :-)

So here are some pictures from the past few months...

Three Year Old Doctor Check Up

Easter 2013

He's potty trained!! Wahoo!

Congrats! - ProgressOH! Winner

I can't believe I forgot to mention the winner of the ProgressOH! Giveaway. The winner was selected through Rafflecopter. Congratulations Deb!

Deb won 2 cans of yummy Progresso Soup, a makeup bag, and compact mirror/brush.

More giveaways coming soon!

Chores for a Two Year Old?

When is it too early to teach your child about chores and helping others? I say, never.

As you may or may not know, I am a high school teacher, and I enjoy having conversations with my students during recess and lunch. We'll talk about a variety of things, from family life to school life, or even about their relationship issues.  It's nice to be able to connect with them outside of the class lessons.

One common thing I notice in some of my students is that they do not take the time to learn household chores from their parents. (I won't say all students are like this, because there are many who help at home.)  I always lecture suggest that they should take the time to learn some home-cooked meals and recipes from their parents before it's too late. I know I wish I learned more recipes from my parents before I moved out.  Of course, all I have to do is call them to ask how to make something, but it's definitely not the same.

Jacob's always been good about helping Hubby and I around the house. We haven't decided on a chore system yet, because I think he's still too young for that, but he does have certain things he's "in charge" of.

Jacob's responsible for putting the soap into the dishwasher:

And he helps with other things too:

I think a part of it, too, is that Jacob feels important when he's helping. He's proud of himself when he feels as though he has accomplished a task or is helping his parents. 

Okay I can't figure out a way to end this post, because my goal isn't to lecture on proper parenting, so I'll just post another picture of Jacob, haha.

Chinese Lion Dance / Keopuolani Park

Kung Hee Fat Choy!

Between my two jobs, I normally work 6 days a week, so Saturdays are our "Family Days" when we are free from all obligations.  [Yep... today's post is about a Saturday, and today's Monday. Sue me. Ha] This Saturday was an action packed day, and by the end of the night, I was exhausted.

First, we went to the Maui Mall for their Annual Chinese New Year Celebration.  I'm going to be honest and say that the food could have been a little better. The hallway was lined with 6 or 7 different food booths that served Chinese and Vietnamese food, and most were oily and/or deep fried.  I wasn't impressed.  In fact, Hubby, Jacob, and I had to do a mini-detour to Whole Foods to get some breakfast.  I'm normally not picky when it comes to food, and I hate to be negative, but the food wasn't the best. In any case, we didn't let it spoil our day!  

After we finished eating, the Chinese Lion came dancing by. 

 I'm not sure if it's Hawaii tradition or Chinese tradition, and maybe some of you can help me on being accurate here, but it's believed the lion will bring you good luck if you give him a red envelope filled with money.  As soon as we spotted the lion, I grabbed Jacob, tossed the camera to Hubby, and ran towards the lion so Jacob could give him some money. Literally. Ran. LOL. Good thing I ran because I beat the crowd. Muahaha.

 I was pretty surprised that Jacob wasn't scared at all. In fact, he gave the lion money twice. I'm wondering who had more fun:  Jacob or his mommy. lol... Oh yah, and I should probably note that I made it sound like we gave the lion a bunch of money, but the red envelopes had a dollar in each. He can't tell who gave what, right?

So, anyway, after we celebrated the Chinese New Year, Jacob said he wanted to go to the park, so we made a short trip to Keopuolani Park in Kahului, Maui.  If you are living on Maui and haven't taken your kiddies to Keopuolani Park, I highly recommend it!

There are two different playground sets, one for toddlers and one for older kiddies, and they are both quite large. Jacob plays on both of them, but he prefers the one for older kids. I like it better when he plays on the toddler jungle gym because you don't have to stand close by and watch him on that one, but Jacob doesn't care what mommy wants, right? Haha. He wants to be with the big kids. :-)

                        

Phew. Long day. There's more.  So after we went to Keopuolani Park, Hubby and Jacob went home while I  went to a two-hour Zumba class with my mom, MIL, and SIL.  I've never been to TWO HOURS of Zumba before, and all I'll say is I SURVIVED!  I was sore, but I survived.

What a fun-filled day.  I love my family!

WW: Just Jacob and Me

~Wordless Wednesdays 2/6/13~

ProgressOh! Review, Contest, and GIVEAWAY [Ends 2/20]

Sigh. It's 9:30pm on a Monday night and I just came home from working at my part-time job as a deli attendant, after working at my teaching job of course. If you've been keeping up with my blog here, you know that one of my New Year's Resolutions is to eat one serving per meal... which essentially means I'm trying to watch what I eat. There. I bravely said it. Ha. Anyway, lol, it's not easy to watch my calories since I eat at such odd times, like after my 4:30pm to 8:30pm shift, so I found the perfect go-to meal.

 Progresso Soup! 

With only 100 calories per serving (and roughly 2 servings per can), it is the perfect meal for me to eat late at night while I try to watch what I eat,or really at any time,lol. I mean, seriously, creamy soup that's only 100 calories per serving? I didn't even know that was possible. YES, PLEASE!

Earlier this month, I was so excited to receive my cosmetic bag in the mail, which came with:

• 2 cans of Progresso Soup
• Light Creamy Potato with Bacon & Cheese
• Light Chicken Pot Pie Style
• A cute Cosmetic Bag
• A Compact Mirror and Brush

We are very excited. Hehe.

Woohoo for Soup!

And here's the silly Jacob trying to open the can...

Okay, last pictures, I promise. I wish I used a better bowl, but here's Jacob enjoying the Light Creamy Potato with Bacon and Cheese.  

I know that I said I was going to eat it for dinner tonight, but he said he wanted to try some.

Jacob approves! (So do I, by the way.) Oye, I really wish I used a cuter bowl. Haha.

Anyway, did you know that right now, Progresso is holding a contest that you can enter on Facebook?* According to their website, "three grand prize winners will get to take the ultimate trip full of ProgressOh! experiences - from a head-to-toe makeover to sightseeing in LA!"  All you have to do is go to http://www.facebook.com/progresso and enter the following information.

• Complete an official entry form
• Share a photo
• Tell them why you love Progresso soup
• Tell them why you deserve a ProgressOh! makeover

I have never been to LA before, so I am entering as soon as I finish this post. :-)  I'm excited and I hope I get picked... Even though I know I'm probably not going to win, I figure it's worth a shot. (In fact, a small greedy part of me is saying not to tell all you blogger peeps so I have a better chance of winning. Hahaha. I'm evil.)

Anyway, good luck if you're going to enter the contest! You have until February 11.

For my Giveaway, if you would like to win your own Progresso Gift Pack, which includes 2 cans of soup, a cosmetic bag, and a compact brush/mirror, please enter through the rafflecopter below. My giveaway ends on February 20, 2013, when one winner will be randomly selected to win the gift pack. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Disclosure: The information, products and ProgressOh! gift packs were provided by Progresso through MyBlogSpark.

*Contest Rules Copy Pasted:  *NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Many will enter, few will win. Subject to official rules. Void where prohibited. Open only to legal residents of the 50 US (and D.C.) who are at least 21 years of age at the time of entry. Contest begins 12/17/2012 at 12:00 a.m. CT and ends on 2/11/2013 at 11:59 p.m. CT. For Official Rules, prize descriptions and odds disclosure, visit www.facebook.com/Progresso. Sole Sponsor: General Mills Sales, Inc., One General Mills Blvd., Minneapolis, MN 55440. This Contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook. Any questions, comments or complaints regarding the Contest must be directed to the Sponsor, and not to Facebook.

February 1?

Whaaat? It's February already? I have a couple of giveaways to post and I'm falling behind on grading my students' homework. I better work hard to catch up this weekend. Stay tuned...

Date Night - Dinner (Ramen Ya) and a Movie

Hubby and I are very lucky that both of our parents live near us, just in case we have to go somewhere without Jacob, and when Hubby asked if I wanted to go out last night, I jumped at the chance!  In fact, Jacob ended up sleeping over at his grandparents' house last night.  I know of some kids who can't sleep over anywhere if their parents aren't with them, but Jacob is independent, so we're pretty lucky. He's been sleeping over at his grandparents' houses every once in a while since he was 1 years old.

So... date night. The night started off with a trip to Ramen Ya at the mall. (Kaahumanu Shopping Center)  While it's not the fanciest of places and is always crowded, the food is tasty and the menu prices are AWESOME. Plus, there's always parking because it's at the main mall on Maui.

I got the Combo A, which included a small order of Shoyu Ramen, fried rice, and 4 pieces of gyoza (pot stickers).  Hubby got the Combo B, which was a small order of Won Ton Min, chicken katsu curry, and 4 pieces of gyoza.  Both combos were a steal, only $9.50, and the portions were huge humongous!  (Sorry, there aren't any pictures of Hubby's combo because he started digging in before I could get out my camera.)  

I truly recommend this restaurant if you're looking for a quick, cheap place to eat.

Next, we decided to see "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" at the mall's theatre, Consolidated Theaters.  First, I would like begin by saying Hubby and I don't get to go out to watch movies that often because we have a very active child who wouldn't sit still in a movie if our life depended on it... and because we don't get out much, I don't know what the prices are like in other cities, but did you see the prices in my picture above?  $10 to watch a movie, and that's just one person! Then, Hubby said he couldn't go to a movie and not get anything, so we shared this:

One small water bottle and a small ice cream cup... drum roll please... $8.50! So while we saved money on dinner, the movie cost us a total of $28.50. Sheesh.  And to make things worse, Hubby fell asleep in the movie! (The Hobbit didn't up being his favorite movie, I guess. Ha.)  For $10, I should have woken him up! (I will leave a review of the movie up to the critics, but let's just say it wasn't our favorite.)

In any case, despite the cost associated with the movie, I had a nice night.

While we missed this goofball...

I also think it's important for us as a couple to  spend time with each other, alone.  When Jacob is around, we focus entirely on him, so we don't necessarily get to have sophisticated conversations.... mostly about animals and mac 'n cheese.  Plus, Jacob gets to spend time with his grandparents. It's win-win. Thank you grandparents (both paternal and maternal) for being there for our family!

A Maui Mommy Blog Redesign

When I turned on my computer at 9:30 pm, I did not have it in my head that I was going to redesign my blog at that very moment.  However, I attended a social media conference today, which must have energized me to do it, because it's 1:30 am and I've finally completed the new re-design of A Maui Mommy!   It was getting a little embarrassing having pictures of Jacob when he was just 6 months old.  Speaking of "Jacob"...

One thing that you will notice as I'm posting new things:  I've decided to "re-name" us.  I know you're thinking, what the heck are you talking about? You can't just re-name people.  Well... too bad. I just did!  "BJ", which stood for Baby Jacob, will now be referred to as Jacob.  "HJ", which stood for Hubby Josh, will now be referred to as Hubby.  I originally nicknamed them BJ and HJ because I thought it would be easier when I typed, but I realized it was just confusing.  Plus, we don't call Jacob, "BJ", in real life, so I felt like I was lying to all of my readers. So..... I'm not lying anymore. His name is Jacob! haha.

Okay I think it's time for me to go to bed now... I'm looking forward to blogging more now that I don't have to feel so bad about the baby pictures.

Aloha and Mahalo,

Tracy

New Year's Resolutions

This post is long overdue, but I need to write this on blogger because it will hold me accountable for my actions.  I've been doing well on all of my New Year's resolutions, except for one. Blogging!  Haha.  Soooo... here are my New Year Resolutions.

1.  Blogging 

Okay I had been doing so much better towards the last part of 2012... and then life got to me. I'm going to get back to blogging again because I miss writing about BJ. In fact, my goal is to re-do my entire blog because these pictures of BJ are so old. Haha. He's almost 3 but you can't tell looking at my blog design. Woops.

2. Log My Calories Daily and Eat One Serving Per Meal

As you probably know from a previous post, I was pregnant about a month ago, and I had gained about 10 pounds from that pregnancy.  However, I didn't want to just put "Lose Weight" as my resolution, because that's not my real intention.  HJ and I decided we would like to live a healthier lifestyle, and make it a lifelong commitment, especially for BJ's sake, so we decided that only eating one serving per meal is a start. If this resolution helps me lose weight, then so be it.  And you know what?  It's been working. With keeping track of my calories and eating only one serving, I've already lost 7 pounds.  I have to keep going, though.

3.   Be Better About Chores at Home

Let's face it:  We all have our lazy days.  Well, those of us that are human anyways.  For me, I had more lazy days than productive days when it came to house chores, mostly because I had a difficult time balancing work and home.  This year, I would like to stay on top of my household chores so I don't feel overwhelmed and it doesn't look like a bomb went off in our house. My goals to help with this were to do at least one load of laundry daily, make sure the dishes are washed at night, and pack my home lunch at night.  It has been so much easier when trying to leave the house in the morning, and I've been happier with myself overall.



These are my three goals for the year.  I'm sure I'll have more as the year goes on, but I figured that I have to start somewhere.  I hope to continue these things so that I can be a better wife, mom, and person.  Wish me luck! :-)