Elmer Sandwich

2010-10-15T15:02:00.000-07:00

What I am Thankful for .....

2009-11-25T18:39:00.000-08:00

Need I say more?!?!?

(I love you, my Elmer's! ;) )

Dear Elmer Kai,

2009-11-23T15:53:00.001-08:00

I can't believe you have only been in my life for two years now and already you have made me change in ways that would have otherwise taken a life time. Before I had you I couldn't even comprehend just how much my heart could love and now that you are here I can't believe how much that love grows everyday, it seems as if my heart would burst but somehow it just keeps growing. It is so strange to me how someone soo small and soo helpless has changed my life so much. Sleepless nights and almost killing myself tripping over toys isn't what I am talking about either. From the moment they put you in my arms you fell right into my heart and there you have stayed pulling on those heart strings with every laugh, smile, and cry. Mommy LOVES you Elmer Kai, even when I say "No, no" and you cry, I still love you. You are such a special boy with so much to offer this world, I know that God loves me because he gave me you!!! Happy 2nd Birthday my 'tinky poo!!!

ps. His birthday was two days ago, pics to come! The above pic is from visiting Gma house in UT! ;)

The real Elmer Sandwich

2009-09-25T12:36:00.001-07:00

I remember the first time I met Elmer I made him show me his ID. I honestly thought he was yanking my chain telling me his real name was Elmer. I had never met an Elmer before and all I could think is who would name their kid ELMER!?!?! :) Little did I know that this handsome guy with a silly name would not only steal my heart but make me fall in love with his name. I am blessed to have three Elmer's in my life and I can honestly say that when I found out Elmer Kai was a boy there was no competition for the name of my baby. I think it suits all three of them perfectly.

The Picture is of my father in law Elmer, my Elmer and of course Elmer Kai at Elmer's brother's wedding. Things tend to get a little confusing when we go to Grandpa's house!

The grass is always greener on the other side...

2009-09-22T13:35:00.000-07:00

Lately I have been walking around like this, pants falling to my ankles every time I take a step! Wearing a belt is no solution either, putting one on creates a HUGE MANLY BULGE, and I know you know what I mean...not pretty! My whole life I have struggled with weight, if I would have known that all I needed was a toddler I would have done this whole "mom" thing along time ago. Last night after Kai went to bed I decided to dig THEM out, my skinny jeans.... you know the pair of jeans that you keep, they don't fit you but you keep them because they are where you want to be size wise... you know, those skinny jeans! Well as I was saying, last night I dug them out just to see. I can't tell you how long I have had these things and how many times I would try them on only to have them stop at the knee. Much to my surprise they slipped on easily, I was even able to button them all the way up! What I found to be an even bigger surprise was the pure UNsatisfaction that I felt. There I was standing in my SkInNy JeAnS and all I wanted was a BIG, fat belly with a baby inside....and I still do. Who knows, maybe if I wear my skinny jeans more I just might get that baby...Elmer did say I LOokeD GoOd!

2009-09-03T16:18:00.000-07:00

Can you GuEsS what song we have been singing around here lately... nOn StOp? I'll give you one cLuE....

2009-09-01T16:48:00.000-07:00

Small talk...

2009-08-31T11:44:00.000-07:00

Elmer and I aren't big talkers. When Kai was first born, Elmer was in Hawaii and I was still in Washington ; it was like pulling teeth to get him to talk to me for more than 15 minutes. It isn't a bad thing, we just don't find the need to fill every minute together with words. Sometimes it is nice to just be tOgThEr, but who wants to sit silently on the phone for hours? Not me and certainly not Elmer! Long distance relationships are hard like that and if I had to do it again I don't think I could. I nEed ThIs mAn! That is why I love our sMalL tAlk, when we are jUst BeInG tOgTheR, doing nothing at all:

Me: "I love you baby!"

Elmer: "I love you more!"

Me: "No, I love you more!!!"

Elmer: "NO, I LOVE YOU MORE!!!"

Me: "Okay, you can love me more but I loved you first..."

... And you know what?!?! Every day when I wake up I love him mOrE!!!!

What Storm???

2009-08-18T18:34:00.000-07:00

So that big storm we were supposed to have only produced a small puddle outside my house. I went to go take a picture of it and it had already dried up because of the hEaT we are now enduring! Yeah it is hOt alright and that is why Kai now hangs out like this......

2009-08-10T18:28:00.000-07:00

Today we are busy as bees getting ready for the storm.

Felicia is headed our way!

Wish us luck!!!

A lovely shade of blue...

2009-08-07T12:34:00.000-07:00

This is the smirk he gives me everytime he is naughty!

And this is the face he gives us when we say "NO"!

This face is to let us know he doesn't like being told no.

And this is the face he makes to let us know he is sorry... sorry he got caught!!! Little stinker! Not even Daddy wanted a kiss from this mouth!

My Thoughtful Husband...

2009-06-11T13:10:00.000-07:00

This last year during Christmas time money was tight, so Elmer and I decided that we would only be doing presents for Kai. Sometimes to poke fun at our own situation I would ask what Elmer wanted Santa to bring him, and he would ask the same to me. " A dishwasher!!!" I would always say with googly eyes. I went to bed on Christmas Eve with my cupboards empty. Every dish in my house was dirty, but I was too tired to care, way too tired! I guess I was naughty this year because Santa didn't deliver my dishwasher , instead I woke up to something much better. All the dishes that had once crowed the kitchen sink were sparkling clean and put away neatly back into the cupboards. My dear husband had given me my dishwasher, and even though it wasn't the real big metal machine it is a gift that I will remember always . Now I can't help but get googly eyes when I see my "dishwasher" at work ;) ! Thanks for being so thoughtful I love you baby!!!

An Amazing Woman

2009-05-28T22:26:00.000-07:00

The world lost an amazing woman today. I will miss you Aunt Linda but I will remember you ALWAYS! I hope that I can be even just half the woman you were. Until we meet again love you lots Linda Lou!

See Kai Learn

2009-03-20T14:05:00.001-07:00

Is it just me or does anyone else think that pre-school is waaaay too expensive? I do so I am doing something about it. Coming soon.... a blog for Mom's with preschoolers showing the how to do preschool at home. There will be daily lessons (or weekly, we will see how I do!) with fun activities and songs and great pointers for parents! I plan on calling it See Kai Learn! So what do you think? Good idea or bad idea? I have found many great resources and one of them is a retired Montisorri prschool teacher who is going to share EVERYTHING she knows about being a preschool teacher. We are with our children all day long... wouldn't it be nice if for just a bit you and your child were ingaged in intersting, STIMULATING, educational FUN TOGETHER!?!? I really want to make this useful so if you have any, ANY books or web sites or anything about preshool please let me know! Really, what do you think?!?!?

Garth's lyrics... My Love Note!

2009-03-19T10:18:00.000-07:00

(Pic from honeymoon, I don't think either of us had ever been tireder or happier!)

Dear Elmer Baby,

When the rain is blowing in your face, and the whole world is on your case; I would offer you a wArM eMbRaCe to make you feel my lOvE! When the evening shadows and the stars appear, and there is no one to dry your tears I cOuLd hOlD yOu foR a MilLiOn YeArS, to make you feel my lOvE! I know you haven't made your mind up yet, but I would never do you wrong. I've known it from the mOMenT that we met, nO dOubt in my mind where yOu BeLOnG! I'd go hungry, I'd go blind for you ;I'd go crawling down the aisle for you! There ain't nothing that I wouldn't do to make you feel my LoVe! The storms are raging on a rolling sea Down the highway of regret. The winds of change are blowing wild and free But you ain't seen nothing like me yet! There ain't nothing that I wouldn't do: Go to the enDs Of tHe eArTH for you, make you hApPY, make your DrEAmS cOmE tRuE , to make you feel my lOvE! I love you Elmer Baby! Thank you for loving me!

(yes this is a Garth Brooks song, but shh! don't tell Elmer! ;-) )

Details.....

2009-03-17T03:38:00.000-07:00

ireally want a Some of you may have been wondering why I have been holding out on my WeDdInG DeTaiLs but that is because I have been so busy getting mArRiEd and BeInG iN LoVe to fill you all in. YES! That is right I said mArrIed!! I can now FINALLY say that I have never been HaPpIeR iN AlL mY LiFe and I owe it all to lOvE oF mY LiFe!! I am still waiting on my professional pictures to come back so I can sHoW you all the details, there really isn't much ( I did it all with less than $450 including the ring! YAY US! ) but until then I will give you a taste: A BeAcH in HawAiI, sUnSeT, WhItE dReSs and wHiTe LeIs; nothing else but a few close friends, some family and oUr lOvE to bRigHteN the grey cloudy sky!!! Yes everyone I was jUst MaUieD and am now MrS. eLMeR M. bArRiEnToS!!!

HeRe'S tO uS!!!

And then.... IT DID!

2009-03-03T13:27:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I forget just how goOD mY LiFe iS. Bills and laundry, housework and endless trips to the super-market can make me forget just how bLesSEd I am; BUT then there are those times when kAi and eLmER and i are all tOgEtHeR doing nothing much but just enjoying each other. Last night was one of those days. As I sat HApPiLy watching Kai and Elmer PLaY, I thought to myself "Could life get any better?"; And then.... It did! We're getting mARriED!!!!

Brrr....

2009-03-02T15:49:00.000-08:00

I remember the first time I came to HaWaIi. It was winter of last year. The weather was FrEeZinG on the mainland and a week in wArM weather was VERY appeal ling... until I got here and couldn't even breath it was so HoT!! Too hot to breathe meant that cUdDliNg was way out of the question. LuCkIlY for me this winter has been unusually cold; CoLd eNoUgH tO cUdDLe! The only bad part about the cold is at night Elmer's toes are IcEcIcLeS. When I crawled into bed the other night I was greeted by those cHiLlY tOeS sliding underneath my nice wArM leg. The SHIVERS it sent down my spine were quickly replaced by wArM fUzZiEs all over as Elmer's arm pulled me toward him for my most favorite thing in the wHoLe WiDE wOrLd; a GoOd oL' cUdDLe!!!! I lOvE yOu Elmer M Barrientos!!! Be grateful for the cold all you who live in it, the only SnOw mAn that Kai and I made this year was out of sAnD!!!

Kai LOVES bOoKs!!!

2009-03-01T02:30:00.000-08:00

I have been putting off hOuSe WoRk for awhile now and last night it finally GoT tO mE, the house HAD to be cLeAnEd !!I was finding all of the usual mIspLAcEd things until I got to mR. eLmEr KaI's room. Tucked away in his favorite corner was a bOoK.... A HALF EATEN BOOK!!! No wonder the kid won't eAt HiS dInNeR!!! (The book is six pages and he ate through the corner of ALL of them!)

CoOkIe mOnStEr!!!

2009-02-28T14:58:00.000-08:00

Being the sWeeT tOOth that I am I tried really hard not to give Kai any cookies or candy, only HeaLtHy fOoD, and I did a good job, until...GrAnDmA came to town and all my efforts went right out the window! The vErY fIrSt thing she did when we got home from the airport was give Kai a OrEo cOoKie. Kai was a little weary at first but after the first taste he was iN lOvE!!! Grandma had stolen Kai's heart with an oReO! That wasn't the only thing she stole that day... my hEaLtHy EaTeR has been replaced by a cOoKiE mOnStEr!!! Oh well, isn't that why we all loved our grandma's!?!

2009-02-27T17:34:00.000-08:00

I am back in AcTiON and ready to bLOg. Life is a lot more FUN with the wEb. ThANkS everyone for letting me know I was mIsSeD!!! YoU aLl were missed too!!! Now I just need to figure out wHeRe to BeGiN!?!

A day late

2008-11-05T18:28:00.000-08:00

I would like to wish my friend Allison a very happy belated birthday!! I was too busy voting and chasing my walking cute little boy!!

2008-10-16T17:37:00.000-07:00

Isn't it funny how kids change you? My whole life I have been a NigHt oWL and now I am what I thought I would never be; a mORniNG bIRd! It wasn't by choice at first, but now I lOvE evERytHInG aBOut MoRniNg! Elmer leaves for work by 6:30 so Kai is still fast asleep when we get up, giving Elmer and I some very RARE us time. It might only be ten minutes that we get to spend together, but it is sooo worth it. I lOvE tHIs mAn MorE tHan SlEep, and I LOVE sleep! Sometimes after oUr KiSs gOOdbYe, I sneak back to bed for another hour of sleep; but most days my little stinker wakes just as dAddy's TrUCk leaves the drive way. He is up and REadY tO PlaY! Into my bed we go to sNuGgle wItH ThE pIlLoWs, BlAnkEts AnD eACh OthER! Sweet coos of I lOvE YoU mOMmy and gENtle KiSseS from Kai's slobbery mouth help to start the day off right. Of course the occasional slap in the face from Kai is quite invigorating also! What helps you start your day off right?

2008-10-08T19:30:00.000-07:00

hiNotice any CHanGes lately? ??

I have been rather InSPirIEd and felt that it

h tiME fOR a cHAngE,

time to

SEE thINgs

iN a WHolE nEw

LIGHT!!!

Creativity

is brewing....

I HAVE AN ANNOUNCEMENT!

2008-10-04T13:55:00.000-07:00

Don't worry mom, we aren't having another baby! We are becoming nudists. Yep! That is right, nudists. "Why?" you ask. Because I am sick of laundry! Do I really need to explain that? WHO IS WITH ME NOW?!?!?!

Meet ... One Tooth!

2008-09-30T15:25:00.000-07:00

I have meet babies before, and maybe one of them is yours, who start teething at 4 months. Kai is now ten months and has just one tooth, but I swear he has been teething FOREVER! Just one tooth to show for all of that work but I am now getting a sweet reward; laughter and lots of it. Maybe it is the wild animal in me, I don't know, but ever since he was brand new I would tell Kai how much I love him and then gently "roar" in his ear to reassure him of how strong my love is. Knowing this you wouldn't think it odd that Kai now does it too, the funny thing is that Kai didn't start "roaring" until he got his one tooth. My sweet little baby who used to coo and cuddle with me is now a BIG, scary, one toothed monster who "ROARS" really loud while chasing me around the house, making sure I know that I am loved!!! Needless to say Kai's new nick name is one tooth and every one he meets he proudly shows them his one tooth with a "ROAR". Mommy LOVES you Kai!!!

Just a quick note...

2008-09-28T13:17:00.000-07:00

...on why I love this man. Lately I have been a little home sick. I think it is because of the fact that it is fall time and I don't get to enjoy all the fun things I love about fall. Yesterday after reading a few of your blogs I expressed my sorrow aloud. Elmer, who HATES to see me sad, quickly tried to reassure me "It is fall here too!" he said. "Oh yeah?" I replied in disbelief. "Yeah babe..." he said looking around kind of hopeless due to the lack of any presence of fall, "... FALLing temperatures!!!" I love you Elmer!

Don't worry be happy now!

2008-09-25T17:26:00.000-07:00

Does anyone else feel this way lately? Right now I am totally kicking myself for not finishing nursing school! I knew the time would come after having Kai that I would need to get job and with the pure uncertainty of our economy, the time is here. With gas being $6/gal and milk $11/gal you can imagine the coast of living on this beautiful island, EXPENSIVE. So I open the newspaper to look for a job and in the help wanted section it was full of personal ads offering THEIR service. "Are you kidding me?" I thought. A big industry for Hawaii residents was the airlines and they all went under so now the unemployment rate in Hawaii is SUPER high, along with all this chaos on wall street and even more jobs are being threatened. So the job hunt is on and this time it really is going to be a hunt. Have you ever heard "write it sown make it happen" will since this is really the only place I write, I am writing it down. I have a fun, well-paying job TODAY! This is me being positive or at least trying too! In an effort to stay positive I put this song on our blog, Don't Worry - Be Happy and let the words get stuck in my head, I figure it is better to keep singing 'don't worry be happy now' then to think of all the bad things that are happening. I really should only watch the news maybe once a week, too much bad news makes me cranky. Wish me luck!!!

My Brillant Baby ... My Absentmind

2008-09-23T11:39:00.000-07:00

I recently came across this study that says women with wider hips tend to have babies with higher I.Q.'s (more room to grow?? they didn't specify). Then the other day at the pharmacy these Chinese women kept looking at Kai. When I came to the counter they commented on how round Kai's head was. This wasn't the first time I heard this, when he was born all the nurses told me I had a perfectly shaped baby doll for a baby, and he was! From the way the Chinese women were looking at it, closely examining the shape and size, I didn't know if it was a bad thing and nervously asked 'why?'. They quickly reassured me that it was a good thing and that they believe that babies with really round heads are smart. Silly me! I know my baby is smart why would I even worry!?!

Of course he is smart, now at 10 months he is full of clever surprises. Elmer is bilingual and only talks to Kai in Spanish, I think it has advanced his language skills because Kai will put two words together now. When he wants his bottle he tells me "baba mama, BABA!" and when Kai and Elmer are dancing and jammin to music Kai happily babbles "Ya dada, ya!". He points his finger, waves goodbye, says "Hi" or what sounds like hi, claps his hands, plays peek-a-boo, and crawls and climbs on anything and everything. He is a boy alright, and a boy who knows how to FLIRT! Watch out all you girls!

My baby is brilliant and I.. I am absentminded, all the time! STILL!!! So I have a theory, because I used to be smart, at least I think I did. My baby stole my brain. Since I first got pregnant til, well... now, I have spent the better part of my day walking in circles because I forgot what I was doing. As far a specifics episodes go, I can't really remember but a few days ago my absentmindedness really got the better of me. I went to the ATM put int the card, checked my balance and... walked away, with the card in the ATM, pin entered and the screen asking if I wanted another transaction, and I walked away!! Luckily an honest women came up behind me and got my attention before I got to far. Does it ever go away? I wasn't always this stupid was I??? I don't think I have any brains left for other kids. Please I need a little reassurance!

P.S. I think that every mother should brag about their children to let them know they are loved! I know you all have brilliant kids too, despite the size of your hips! So if you haven't bragged about your little bugs, DO IT!

Summer Days... all year long!!!

2008-09-19T23:19:00.000-07:00

Elmer and Kai at sunset

One of the reasons it is so great to live in Hawaii is no doubt the weather. All year long the sun pours its blissful rays of sunshine down on this beautiful island allowing the great outdoors to be discovered any day of the year. While most of you are baking in 90 degrees or hotter our hot summer days barely reach the 90's, and then while most of you are knee deep in snow the only thing that I may be knee deep in is sand! But whether it is winter or summer the beautiful seaside parks continues to be the "great outdoors" that Kai has been discovering lately. Looking back on my expectations of what the whole motherhood experience would be like I never thought it could be this much fun doing the most mundane things. Like just last night I was making the bed and Kai saw this as an opportunity to play peek-a-boo. His head barely reached above the mattress but was high enough for me to see his delightful smile and twinkling eyes. What should have only taken 2 minutes keep both Kai and mommy fully entertained for a good hour. I am constantly amazed by just how much I love this little boy. Every day my love grows deeper and deeper for this little man that has only been in my life a little over a year and a half ( 10months plus pregnancy ) and everyday I wonder how I ever lived life without Kai.

On this particular day we were going to a church BBQ in the park on Labor Day. Kai loves the swings and while this wasn't his first experience of the swings it was his first of grass. He had another first this day, he ate fish and... loved it!!!

My adventurous baby boy loves the swing and he loves it even more when he swings HIGH.

I can't even stand how STINKING CUTE he is!!!

From the look on his face I would say he enjoys sand between his toes better.

Happy Birthday Christian!!!

2008-09-18T14:09:00.000-07:00

This post is mostly for my brother Chris but I wanted to share with all of you just how special he is to me. While most of my memories of my brothers growing up are of being teased or picked on there are a few where I got to see just how cool they really are. Chris was always a really good example to me and was willing to take me along for the fun. Being his kid sister and 6 years younger than him this was super cool to me. Going to girls camp each year and having the older girls find out I was Chris Petersen's little sister was my claim to fame. You might not have known it Chris, but you had secrete admirers, cute ones too. When Chris was in high school he was my mom's FAVORITE. I remember getting kicked off the couch ( while I was sleeping ) so that Chris could take a nap there. I can't say that I blame her you are very lovable Chris. I love you and am so thankful that you are my older brother. You are an amazing father and wonderful friend. Happy Birthday Chrissy Poo!

Beach Baby

2008-09-12T12:34:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things about living here on Maui is that we can go to the beach any time we want and there are so many beautiful beaches. When Elmer and I were picking out names for our baby the name Kai was a quick pick. Not only was it cute but in the Hawaiian language Kai means ocean, but with a deeper meaning. The ocean to the Hawaiians was a giver of life. My little Kai really has given me the gift of living. Each day he takes me with him and shares his joy in discovering this beautiful world. When we first got here Elmer took Kai out to the ocean and jumped in. He was only 4 months then and the BIG, cold, noisy waves that came crashing down only scared him for a minute, over the next couple of months he learned to LOVE the ocean. We go to the beach often, almost daily and while we might not always get in the water nothing feels better to me than to be snugly in my Elmer Sandwich watching the waves come and go.

My brave little boy faces waves that were as big as he is when the first hit.

I love to watch him learn. And am constantly wondering "just what is he thinking about"

Kai was perfectly happy doing nothing but putting his toes in the cool wet sand

I think that if you could take a picture of my heart you would find the same image, Kai's precious little foot prints all over my heart. I LOVE YOU KAI!!!
Work it Baby, work it! He is already posing for pictures on the beach half naked!!!

My 'tinky poo...Elmer Kai

2008-09-10T12:31:00.000-07:00

My 'tinky poo LOVES his pillow. It is too hot here to ever want a blanket so Kai uses his pillow for comfort. Lucky for me he doesn't need much pillow comforting outside of the house. My 'tinky poo loves his showers with daddy ( mommy loves this too!) Splashing and playing, squealing and laughing with daddy in the shower helps to burn up the last of his seemingly endless amount of energy at the end of the day, and gives mom a minute to find some! I LOVE that my 'tinky poo still loves to cuddle. I still remember the way it felt when he was first in my arms and I have to remind myself to let it be that way every time we cuddle. My 'tinky poo loves to say mama. When he was still really little he would cry "waaamamama" and now he is constantly babbling ''mama" when he is happy, mad and tired. The mad and tired "mama" is loud and very demanding, the happy "mama" is so sweet and touches my heart, I know he is telling me he loves me when he says it so sweet. I love you Elmer Kai you will always be mommy's 'tinky poo!!!