HAPPY GRANDPARENTS DAY!!!!

Dear Bambino,

Without a doubt you are one very loved little man but there are two people who probably love you just as much as mama does. Who are those people?

Your Poppie & Tutu.

When mama flew to tell your grandparents the big news she got two expected responses. Your Tutu's immediate response was a smile - how special is that? The moment that your Tutu found out that she was going to be a grandma - she just smiled. Wide-eyed and all. Your Poppie's reaction, though not overjoyed, was expected as well but know this little one: he only reacts with worry because he loves us that much! But guess what Bambino - your Poppie is an old softy and is obsessed with finding the next great thing for you and does nothing but give your mama advice on how to be a good parent; i.e. how to provide.

Your Tutu & Poppie are so important to mama. They brought your mama into their lives purely by choice - they adopted me. They have provided mama with a great life; visits to the zoo, picnics by the sea, paying for soccer & college, and love, love, love. Sometimes they're tough but it's tough love, it's their generation, and how they were raised.

Tutu grew up in Hawai'i on the island of Oahu - she has eight...read 8 siblings and she's the baby of the family. That means we have a VERY big family and still haven't met ALL of them. Perhaps a family reunion is in order? When mama was little your Tutu was visiting her niece (mama's biological mother) Patty who know as Nana Patty or just Nana. Tutu saw me with Nana and jokingly said that she'd take me. Well a year later I was on a plane to your Tutu to be her daughter...I still remember seeing her when we arrived in San Diego. Growing up your Tutu and mama had some tough times but we also had some great times. Tutu was always present for mama's big events like her spelling bee or last minute presentation preparation to soccer games. But mama was a bit of a daddy's girl so she wasn't able to apprecaite your Tutu until she left the nest. Though mama is still a bit of a daddy's girl - she needs your Tutu more than anyone else, she is her rock and blanket wrapped in one being - I mean Tutu CHOSE your mama...how lovely is that? Tutu also taught mama the importance of family - which she has really learned from living in Boston and here in Hawai'i. She loves you so much Bambino - so much so that she just may burst when she sees you again. I'm hoping we can get home soon so that the two of you can become best friends - which I have no doubt will happen.

Poppie suffers from the eldest child (of 5, 1 brother & 3 sisters) syndrome which means he's extremely organized and bossy, symptoms he also acquired from being in the Navy. He's a tough old goat but he's got so much love; seriously he's an ooey gooey softy on the inside. He can scold better than any drill seargant but he'll hug you in a split second if he sees that you're in distress. Mama loooooooooooooooves your Poppie and hates disappointing him - though it's just inevitable; we can't make everyone happy ALL the time. Anyway, your mama & Poppie have a lot of things in common - in fact mama enjoys saying that, "and that's how I take after my dad!" We both have a love passion for travel and learning about new cultures. We love languages though mama's a bit better at them *wink* We love good food, no gourmet food, food with flavor and zest, food that we can tell that someone put a whole lot of lovin' into makin' it. And food from a diner. We love learning about new things. We want to help, ALL THE TIME but Poppie's a little better at doing that than mama is right now. We like looking good and Poppie sure can look dapper at times. To summarize your Poppie has put culture into your mama's life and she is forever thankful for that. I hope that you will be more open minded than mama was when Poppie tells you about what he's experienced and tries to show you the world. That's all that Poppie wants to do is love and show people the world. Oh and your Poppie is happier than he looks in that photo - his cousin John Scott just snapped the photo at an awkward moment. Poppie loves you so much that he made a comparison chart of the two of you when you were born...that's love right there.

So that's your Poppie & Tutu my little love.

And now I leave you with a great photo of them when they were....younger....

Love,

Mama

Fotes: Unpicniked

Some random raw photos of the Bambino and moi - though I do plan on fixing them I just wanted to share them the public.

Here's the Bambino crawling around trying to get to my camera - I like that he looks a bit like me in this photo. Yes, that is correct I want my child to look like me, I mean how else are people going to believe that this beautiful, peach bum Bambino was shot out of a polynesian's va-jay-jay? Perhaps it's time to do a photo comparison of me and the babe?

Heia for Poulsbo, my little Norway. I miss home. The Bambino's Poppie, the Bambino, and I went walking around downtown; it was cold but sunny. Forgive me for being less creative with the words but I'm just not drinking the word juice right now. Anyway, I loved walking downtown with my dad and the Bambino - my two favorite fellas. We miss you Poppie! (and Grammy Tutu)
Me and the Bambino again. I posted this to show how I had almost lost the majority of the babyweight: my face was almost back to normal, my legs, definitely not the tummy in fact that's where the leftovers were hanging. So it was awesome I was on a good path to losing the poundage until I came to Hawai'i where I sit on my ass at a desk all day, DRIVE to and from work (versus the commuting and walking that I used to do), and well I also went OVERBOARD with the food. It had been 10 years since I had tasted the goodness of my homeland in my homeland. What's a girl to do? Start a new project but that's in the makings right now so more shall be revealed later.

How do I get this thing to open? The Bambino loves to play with his food and he's so great at trying to figure things out. Fortunately he wasn't able to open the jar of baby food but I suspect that if I handed him one everyday, he'd figure out within a week. Anyway, he made sweet music banging his spoon on the jar - do I sense a rockstar in the making?

You can't tell very well but he's playing with some oatmeal I slabbed on the tray. He was getting irriated with me so I just showed him who was boss but throwing some food on his tray so that he could have free reign on the messiness. Happy 4th of July Bambino.

I feel as happy as a donkey named Eeor! Seriously mom, do you need to continute to take these incessant self portraits of us? Do you not realize that I want to drool and chew on your camera until it is malfunctioning so that you STOP with the photo taking? Do you get it ma? Plus I don't like that it looks like I have girl hair. In fact when I'm older I'll get you back for even posting this photo. Can you say dentures?

He really does love me, I swear.