The Start of the Hot and Humid Week

I forget how long it takes to travel just across the country in the U.S. We left Troy's parents house around 8:30 am and arrived in Tampa at midnight (9 pm Phoenix time). That is a lot of hours of domestic traveling. The kids were exhausted and went to sleep right away which was a huge relief since we were all in one hotel room. 

Saku's first flight in his own seat. Though he did end up spending a good amount of time on our laps. 

After Saku told the captain "good landing", the captain gave him a set of wings. 

We had one day in Tampa before our cruise would take off. True to Florida's August weather, we experienced their rain right away and walked through  a three inch puddle when we went to check out Aino's wedding dress. 

Saku is showing his lack of cooperation when it comes to pictures. But otherwise an awesome picture. Tatu and Paula were shopping and therefore missing in the "family" picture. 

My beautiful sisters. 

One day my kids will look at the camera and smile, right?

The main event in Tampa was a visit to the Tampa Bay Aquarium. We figured that it was a good place for the kids and adults to enjoy themselves. 

We broke the "no food or drink" rule and had a rest moment with some juice boxes. 

Little did we know that we would get to see these kind of fish even closer  when we would go snorkeling later in the week.

Our miss E is a daredevil. She is totally into things that give her an adrenaline rush. So she was in heaven at the aquarium's huge splash pad. We were bad citizens and let her play there even though she didn't have a swimming diaper, which was required. I just couldn't deny her.

She was obviously soaking wet afterwards and not happy when I told her that we were done. She had to stripped to her diaper and ended up getting a new shirt from Gap since we were going to the Cheesecake Factory right after and I didn't think they would really like a naked little girl there. 

Our first day of vacation was a success. We ate delicious Cheesecake Factory food, which was a celebration of Aino's birthday. We tried out the hotel's swimming pool, but the water was little chilly and there were too many mosquitos. I also ate about 1/2 pound of Finnish candy, but that was no surprise after I hadn't had any for six months. 

Sign Language Debate

We have been immersing ourselves with sign language lately. Eerika is obsessed with the Signing Time  videos and she actually signs "signing time" when she wants to watch it. 

The other day, I happened to observe Saku and Eerika having a "yes" "no" "yes" "no" debate in sign language. Eerika would sign "yes" and Saku would sign "no" and they went on for a while. 

Saku often asks "how do you say that with your hands?" Yesterday he wanted to know how to sign "microwave". I didn't have an answer for him.

Eerika is learning so quickly. She probably knows close to 20 signs now. And I can tell that it helps her frustration.  But oh she can throw one heck of a temper tantrum as well. 

She has also said her second word, which is "go" and she will also say "moi moi". 

While I do not think that Eerika is delayed in any way nor do I worry about it, at least yet, it is a great reminder about how individual each child's growth and development is. 

In spite of the fact that she doesn't talk, she seems older than her peers. Maybe her advanced motor skills and her wild nature and lack of fear makes me think that. Or maybe I am just biased as her mother:) 

These pictures are from our nature walk few weeks ago. 

We didn't make it too far before we started sweating too much.

Many prayers

I have much need for improvement when it comes to saying my prayers. However, I say a prayer, without a fail, each time I go to work. I want to make sure that I am not working "alone" as I take care of my patients. I hope that my patients will not be "worse off" because they have a nurse who only works few days a month. I pray that I might be sensitive to the Holy Ghost so it can prompt me to notice changes and have the confidence to act when needed.

During my most recent shift, I said multiple prayers. I prayed for comfort and guidance and reassurance. It was a tough assignment. I only had three patients which is a great ratio as I usually take care of five patients; however, it meant that my patients were sicker and needed more of my time and skills.

Patient#1: She is a middle aged lady who has been on and off our unit for the past 20 months. Her enemy is cervical cancer and it has reached a point where there is nothing that can be done. She is dying. I have taken care of her multiple times as her status as improved and then declined, improved again and declined. As her nurse, I need to face her husband who is devastated. As her nurse, I hope that she is still breathing each time I walk into her room. As her nurse, I try to take tender and good care of her while I watch her in pain and slowly getting worse and worse. I watch her and I imagine my own mom as cancer was attacking her body and I am grateful that she didn't endure months of pain and slow decline. I wonder how caring and tender her nurses were.

Patient#2: A sweet guy with a tongue cancer who required four surgeries in four consecutive days. He has a tracheostomy to allow him to breath so he can't talk. He patiently writes on the white board to communicate. He cant eat and he has been in the hospital for two weeks, and expecting to stay another week. I marvel at his enduring patience and kindness. I had a nervousness of his trach the whole night.

Patient#3: A domestic violence case. It was my very first one. She came in with multiple injuries and a long history of abuse. I saw her physical bruises and scars, but knew that her emotional ones were much deeper and more difficult to heal. I wondered how to be professional yet show empathy and kindness. How to ask questions without sounding judgmental. How to show support and be present without exhausting her with my presence.

All the patients were fine throughout the night and I was grateful for that. I came home so humbled and grateful for the fact that I have this job and the flexible schedule.

And I am so grateful for Troy who supports me in my decision to work.

Happy Sunday

Last Sunday we stayed in the chapel for the entire sacrament meeting. Both kids had a great time in nursery. It is fun to watch Eerika interact with the other kids in nursery.

Everyone was in a great mood after church. Troy made scrambled eggs for lunch and I took a blissful nap in preparation for going to work that night.

Only Eerika got herself documented on this splendid Sunday.

Her response to "say cheese".



Check out her big girl piggy tails. I might be slightly obsessed at how adorable she looks when I do her hair.


And she likes to check herself on the camera.

Saku's Official Three Year Stats

We went to see Dr. Hickey for Saku's three year check up. 

He was 37.3 inches (38%) and 3 lbs 6oz (43%). I went back to check his height and weight at two years and interestingly enough, he is now on a higher percentile for weight than for height.  The doctor said that if he stayed on this curve, he would end up being around 5"10.

Everything is well with Saku's development. I was proud of his cooperation at the appointment. He was little hesitant at first to get measured, but he quickly got brave and handled everything really well. I might have promised him a marshmallow if he listened to the doctor and behaved well. Fortunately, there weren't any shots scheduled. I had even talked to him about the possibility of shots, so it was a fun surprise for both of us that he didn't get poked. 

Really "Quiet Time"

On most days, Saku doesn't take a nap anymore. We do "quiet time". 

However one afternoon his "quiet time" ended up being nap time as he fell asleep on the floor.

So "neaky"

Saku has always been a wild child. A loud and active one. And at the same time, he is very sensitive.  However, he has never been a trouble maker or a naughty kid. 

I would still not characterize him as a naughty kid, but we have had few episodes of planned disobedience.

Last Sunday Troy and I though that the kids were taking a nap as the house was completely quiet and we decided to use the opportunity to take a nap as well. I remember thinking how I should blog about the rare occasion of everyone napping at the same time.

An hour later, I woke up to some noise. I thought it was Eerika. As I came out of our bedroom, I encountered naked Saku, which isn't that much of a surprise, who had painted himself.

To be more specific, he had painted the bottom of his feet, his neck, his thighs and cheeks. 

When I asked him why he painted himself, his answer was "I wanted to be a Zebra".

So I scrubbed him down in the shower.

Then we proceeded to check out his room. He had painted on his dresser and on the wall and in the process, some of the paint had gotten on the floor.

He had painted "a volcano" on the dresser. Fortunately, he painted on the side of the dresser that can't be seen when you walk into the room. He painted there because he could "hide" behind the dresser while doing it.

I was proud of myself for not yelling or getting mad. I might have scrubbed him little more roughly than was necessary but it was not easy to get that paint off. 

Act II of sneakiness happened yesterday.

Saku asked to color with the markers. I told him that he needed to wait until Eerika was asleep. 

I went downstairs to put in some laundry and to clean up the kitchen a bit. Then I realized how quiet it was. 

I called out for the kids. And I got no answer. So I went up the stairs to check out what was going on.

I found them in our guest room closet, sitting on the floor and coloring on themselves with the markers. They had colorful chins and foreheads and bottom of their feet, again!

I was not happy. OK I was mad that he was so openly disobedient.

Parenting can really be a trip sometimes. 

This kid keeps us on our toes, but he sure is a handsome one!

First day of Joy School

Ok I realize that it is the first day of a Joy School, which is not even an official academic preschool, but I still cant believe that my little man went to school.

Because Saku tends to have a hard time parting from us, we made a huge deal about school. We talked about it, we bought a new Spiderman shirt for him, we packed his backpack (with extra underwear and shorts), we ate delicious cinnamon rolls  and took pictures of him.

Few days before the first day, he told Troy that he was going to school and he was going to take the bus. Unfortunately, there are no busses for him, but he seemed just fine with our transportation. 

Troy was able to stay home in the morning so Saku had the whole family dropping him off. Yes, we are very much first time parents. Saku found his name , which is amazing to me, on the Joy School House and happily check out his picture behind the flaps.  Then he gave Troy a high five and went to play with the other kids.

He was just silly with excitement

Isi: "Saku and Eerika hug each other". Eerika wasn't so excited about this situation

What a big boy!

 When I picked him up 2.5 hours later and asked how he liked it, his answer was "I didn't cry". Yes, he was very proud of himself and so was I. And he was all smiles. 

The first mom teaching is Farrah, and she said that Saku wasn't too excited about the singing. When I asked what his favorite part of school was, Saku said "singing". So funny. He probably didnt know any of the songs and wasn't singing, but as long as he liked it, we are happy.

He will be going twice a week and I teach every 7th week. The whole program is pretty laid back, which I like. We just wanted him to learn to listen instructions and act appropriately and have fun. 

Saku likes to tell Eerika that he goes to school and she doesn't.  Gotta love the three year old's need to feel superior.

It is so bitter sweet to see your kid grow up. I love the time I can spend with Eerika, but I do miss him while he is gone. Of course, then he will drive me crazy within hours again, but isn't that how parenting is?

Stylish kids

We planned a family night at the mall few weeks ago. We hardly ever go there, so it was bit of an adventure. Troy met us there after work.

We ended up shopping at Children's Place and the kids loved trying on hats and backpacks. We left with few new treasures such an overpriced Spiderman shirt Saku and cute sunglasses and a hat for Eerika. Because of the generosity of our friends, we don't have to buy new clothes for our kids very often, so when we do, it is super fun.

Saku gave us a little scare when he hid inside a clothes' rack and did not make a sound when we called his name.










After the shopping, we ended the night at the playground and the kids shared a Cinnabon. Since I am trying to cut back down on my sweets, I did not have one single bite. It was a huge mental victory.

The mall is so crowded that it really isn't my favorite place, but it is fun to visit every once in a while.