... a little OT

2 weeks of winter break.

4 mom's.

12 kids.

*pics today from Underwater World & JW Tumblers

- Tumon, Guam

My oxygen mask theory. On airplanes the flight attendants remind us that if the air in the cabins go out - oxygen masks will fall... place your mask over YOUR head first and then assist your children and others around you. Makes sense to me... I have to BREATHE to help others.

So the MOM's went out tonight for a little OXYGEN TIME (OT)... while the daddy's watched the kids. We shopped at Macy's, browsed around the mall, ate dinner and then decided to give 2009 a NEW LOOK! Tori had already chopped her hair earlier in the day... and that is what started the CHANGE! Tori's cute little pixie inspired Amy to chop hers off, too... and WOW, it looks so good! Shelly cut hers about 3 inches shorter.... and mine was already short... so not much change - some layers & side bangs - CHANGE was definitely necessary!

*Amy decides to go short!

*smilin' Shelly!!!

Here's a BEFORE pix:

Here's an AFTER pix:

Looks like 2009 is off to a good start. Our oxygen masks are on... we're breathin' right... and our 12 kids & hubbies can only benefit from a few hours of OT! The saying is so true...

"When Mama's HAPPY - everyone's HAPPY!"

A day or a lifetime?

... Teaching moments come and go and I often wonder what sticks in the minds of my kids. What lessons can they learn... how can we expand their thinking?

Sitting around the table for dinner on Christmas Day... Mo was telling a joke about "how do you frustrate a rich man"... without skipping a beat - Dale turns the conversation around and asked... "why not ask - how can we help someone in need?" There was silence.

A few moments later - Ryan breaks the silence and says, "Well, if you give a man a fish you feed him for a day... if you teach him how to fish you feed him for a lifetime"

If you've met our little 9 year old Ryan - you'll agree that he's not your average 9 year old! My little miracle boy never ceases to amaze me! Dale & I just looked at each other & starting laughing while shaking our heads over our sons philosophical Chinese Proverb moment. He understood exactly what we were trying to teach... and thankfully he has some really good teachers (Mr. B - his PE Teacher taught him this quote) at McCool Elementary who are also taking the time to expand our kids thinking! The best part is knowing that Ryan is actually listening... and as always - his timing impeccable!

Now those cute little fishy ornaments I bought in Hong Kong that hang on our Christmas tree have new meaning... reminding me to always ask myself- how are we feeding our kids? In the rush of life... am I just feeding them for the day... or am I taking the time to teach them for a lifetime?

Table for twenty-two, please!

Happy Momma's enjoying the gift of not having to cook or clean on CHRISTMAS DAY!

Our 1st CHRISTMAS on Guam and we're surrounded with friends! What a true blessing it is - especially when I'm missing my family so much during this time of year! Brunch at the Hyatt was a fantastic idea!!

No cooking ... No cleaning ... No mess!
Great food ... Great friends ... Great time!


Our friends - Mark & Christina and their beautiful girls - Brinley & Nyla - just moved to Guam from South Carolina (like us). Hafa Adai, my friends!!! So glad that you're FINALLY here!

After brunch - we headed over to the HILTON to look at the Christmas decor and see the large model train displayed. Mia waved at the statue Santa that greeted us at the door... as we walked around the lobby Christmas tree - there he was - Chamorro Santa! Mia screamed and wanted NOTHING to do with the dude in the red suit! Oooh well, maybe next year!

Our "10" Hong Kong Trip highlights!

We met 10 New Relatives...
Thanks to my mom for contacting family prior to our trip... we had the chance to meet up with my dad's side of the family (10 of them, to be exact!) and embrace my 1/4 Chinese blood! We had a wonderful visit. We met at a restaurant in the Cultural Centre across the street from our 1st hotel in Kowloon... the YMCA Salisbury. Walked over to a coffee shop to meet more cousins - which gave our kids a great chance to bond with their cousins. Our kids enjoyed learning to say a few words in Cantonese, thanks to their cousin Timothy!



9 of us brave SPACE MOUNTAIN...

1st group to ride...

2nd group to go... (lucky kids!)

"Can we ride Space Mountain again?" Our kids would've LOVED to ride Space Mountain ALL DAY LONG ! It was our first ride of the day and 9 of us were excited to go! My little thrill seekers rode it 4 times and wanted MORE MORE MORE! Hong Kong had so much to offer and we didn't even scratch the surface. However, we did enjoy our one day in Disneyland where the lines were minimal and the MAGIC of Disney sparkled! The cooler weather, the Christmas Spectacular Parade & even the fake snow that fell from the sky was nothing short of fantastic and in true DISNEY form!



8 Incredible travelin' Kids...

Yes, our 8 little peeps did amazing! Six boys & two girls! Mo (10), Ry (9), Dani (7), Logan (6), Tyler (3), Howie (2), Mia (20 mo) & Ryland (15 mo). We pushed these little legs and they kept up with hardly any complaints! I was MOST impressed by my little 3 yr old friend Tyler - with no stroller... his little feet kept up with the big kids and was a trooper! SERIOUSLY! I don't know if any of my kids would've done that much walking without complaining when they were only 3!


7.5 average HK$ exchange rate to our US $1 dollar...

It was hard wrapping my brain around the exchange rate... my little jeweled calculator came in handy on the days we went to the Ladies Market in MongKok, the city’s largest shopping district and a favorite place for locals to hang out. Manuevering our strollers had it's difficulties - but somehow we managed... being the MISSION SHOPPERS that we were! The district offered lots of shopping and dining opportunities! Our men took all the kids and hung out at CPK (California Pizza Kitchen) while the ladies shopped! Now that's a GREAT EXCHANGE!

Part of the fun of shopping in the Ladies Market was challenging the sellers to come down in price and being able to walk away. DALE had an encounter when he looked at some "ROLEX" watches, tried to walk away and the girl literally chased him down and hit him in the arm screaming, "I open already, I open already" Uh yeah... that's one way to make a sale lady! W'ZUP?!

6 Lifelong friends...

Yes, although we were out-numbered by the kids... this trip was definitely LOTS of fun for the adults! I have to say, it was a fantastic group... we all seemed to mesh just right! You know how sometimes you have girlfriends and the guys don't get along or vica versa... This wasn't the case at all! The men had as much fun together as we did!

5 Days of Adventure...
* Day 1 was spent mostly traveling by car, by air, by subway, by foot, by bus! Arriving finally to Hong Kong - we enjoyed the local cuisine for dinner and walked to the waterfront of Victoria Harbor!


* Day 2 - We joined a tour bus that brought us to Victoria's Peak where tourists can stand and marvel at the restless city of Kowloon at all hours of the day. Located on the western side of the island, it is the highest point in Hong Kong. At Aberdeen we saw how modern high-rise buildings dramatically clashed with the old-fashioned boats (i.e floating homes & sampans) & simple fishing villiage. I still remember visiting Aberdeen with my family when I was a teenager - and the water is MUCH cleaner now! Had there been more time - it would've been fun to eat at the JUMBO floating restaurant & experience the feast! We went to a Jewelry Factory and then on to Stanley Market. The time spent at Stanley Market was too short to do any damage shopping & gave me just enough time to feed Mia on a park bench, while the kids ran around with daddy to get the wiggles out!

* Day 3 - Is when we went to MongKok to shop at the Ladies Market & where Dale was "assaulted" (ha!)... more shopping... more shopping... and more shopping! Then headed over to the Disney Hollywood Hotel and had a fantastic Disney style buffet / dinner.

* Day 4 - DISNEYLAND!

* Day 5 - Mountainous Lantau Island to ride the Cable Car up to see Tian Tan Buddha... or BIG BUDDHA!


4 Nights...

From our hotel room in Kowloon - we enjoyed A SYMPHONY OF LIGHTS the spectacular multimedia display, named the "World's Largest Permanent Light and Sound Show" by Guinness World Records, it involves 44 key buildings on both sides of Victoria Harbour. The show creates an all-round vision of coloured lights, laser beams and searchlights performing a stunning, unforgettable spectacle synchronised to music and narration that celebrates the energy, spirit and diversity of Hong Kong.

... and at Disney - the fireworks were even more spectacular with the special EYE wear that was passed out. When you looked through them the lights reflected little angels blowing horns!


3 families - now known as -

. . . . . the SimMorRez Family

Meet the SIMmon family


... the MORrison family

... and us - the ramiREZ family

2 Hotels...

... first 2 nights were in downtown Kowloon at the YMCA Salisbury - a great location, near the subway and Victoria Harbor.


... last 2 nights were at the Disney Hollywood Hotel!

1 BIG Buddha...

... and finally on our last day we went to see one very big Buddha! We rode the Ngong Ping 360 cable car... and walked up all these stairs to see Tian Tan Buddha up close! This is the largest outdoor seated Buddha!

Where do we live?

When I drive down the beautiful hills where we live and see the big blue Ocean that surrounds us - it is truly breathtaking! We've been here for 3 months and are really enjoying ourselves! What an amazing opportunity for our family!

Some GUAM facts from the internet:
Guam, the largest and southernmost island of the Mariana archipelago, is the westernmost possession of the United States, and has been since 1898. The island is approximately 6,000 miles west of San Francisco; 3,700 miles west-southwest of Honolulu; 1,500 miles southeast of Tokyo; 2,100 miles southeast of Hongkong; 1,500 miles east of Manila; and 3,100 miles northwest of Sydney at 13 north latitude and 144 East longitude. The Marianas Trench, the deepest known ocean depth (-39,198 ft.), is located southeast of Guam. Guam lies at the southern end of the Marianas Islands chain, and it is the most populated and highly developed island serving as the area's communication and transportation hub.

Daniella's little finger is pointing to the Philippines where her Great Grandma Pan still lives and we hope to visit in January. Grandma Pan has only met Morgan and he was only 9 months when we were there last.

The kids are so excited about our upcoming trip to Hong Kong and I love the idea that they get to experience this side of the world! What better way to learn about geography than to actually travel there and immerse into that culture!!!

...driving down Marine Drive - this is what I see as I drive - every day! The toughest part is having to slow down my driving since the highest speed limit I've seen so far on the island is 45 mph! YES, 45 mph!

Island life as well as a small city life of shopping and restaurants. Downtown in Tumon - which is only about 20 minutes from our house - there's so many different restaurants - TGIF, Hard Rock, Planet Hollywood, California Pizza Kitchen, Vitale's, Sam Choy's... and so much high end shopping that you would find in any big city!

There's a lot of "happenings" here on Guam... various events and opportunities that we are available to! Wish we could do it all... but we have to pick and chose.

One of the best weekends was when my friend AMY called the Sunday before Thanskgiving and invited us to try diving for FREE! How could we turn that down? So Dale, Morgan & I decided to give it a try. It was so much fun! A BIG difference when I became certified way back when in Michigan... hmmm - diving in Lake Michigan or diving on Guam? HUGE DIFFERENCE!

- diving at San Luis Beach... a great day spent with our growing boy, Mo!

- diving with friends - Tori & Amy

- Morgan's first diving experience!

... first time to try out our underwater camera... how cool!

... enjoying a GUAM sunset!

Chris (Amy's hubby) was THE MAN and watched our other kids... along with his 3 boys. THANKS AGAIN CHRIS!

The weekend of Thanksgiving we hit the Annual Japan Festival and enjoyed the entertainment and delicious food!!!

... same night drove down the street to see the CHRISTMAS LIGHTS and entertainment...

My sweet Dani asked me, "Mommy, am I too old to sit on Santa's lap and tell him what I want for Christmas?" ***sigh*** Oh sweetie, "NO"! Please don't grow up too fast!

Ryan... looks so thrilled!

Where else can you have a carabao ride? I thought it was so cute that Mia kept her hands raised the whole time as if she were on some fast roller coaster!

As we celebrate our first warm island Christmas here on Guam we are thankful that we are together as a family... making new friends... reuniting with family & good friends from our past (school and other commands)... And we're so thankful for where we live! Embracing the moments that we have here! Creating new memories...