I wish I didn't have to wait until April for Glee

This sentence is about as exciting as the majority of my time at work right now.

Since the IRS has officially started accepting returns, business will continue to pick up which will help the days go by faster. I've only been full time for 2 weeks but I've already found myself singing "everybody's working for the weekend" by Tuesday afternoon. I've noticed that I'm getting paler and fatter (I don't think I'm fat) from sitting all day every day. I even worked out a few times this week after the kiddies went to bed. Marlene has been a good coach.

Another good thing about my temporary roomie (there are many good things about her) is she surfs. So last Sunday we had a little "church-n-surf" sesh and I caught a wave or two on my own but Waikiki wasn't really helping much. So we just walked around Diamond Head and chatted. Tomorrow we're doing the same thing but going somewhere else where she said it should be better conditions for me. I'm pumped. Next goal: get up way early to go surf then be at work by 9am. Then I will be even more of an island girl.

Speaking of which, once I reach such goal, I've dubbed a term for myself over here...an "island belle." A combination of island girl and southern belle. Get it? Clever? No? lalalala I can't hear you. I think it is appropriate because I plan to regain my tan from September after Elisabeth left and learn to confidently surf solo while not abandoning my pearls, croakies, sperrys, and bows around the waste. Not to mention that out here apparently I have an accent. I tried to tell a few people I was a local haole (white person) but they all called my bluff.

In other news, to wrap up, Chris and Carrie are in Atlanta with Mykah and Jackson (their new kiddies!) and we are picking them up Monday afternoon here in Honolulu where the entire and complete Elliott family will be together for the first time. There will be pictures. There will be waterfalls from all of our eyeholes. Waterfalls of joy and love. It will be a beautiful thing.

Then I pick up Megan on Wednesday. She has been missed.

Some goodies: First, my mini-me. I was playing with Gracen and hear "I'm Kayleigh! I'm Kayleigh!" and turn to see this sassy thing:

New Year's Eve...or "the Day of Fireworks"

This time of year I will say with confidence that when it comes to per-capita fireworks sales Hawaii's top of the list. In our neighborhood, people about go Griswold-crazy with lights (and inflatable holiday-themed exhibits....who knew Santa flew in planes, rode merry-go-rounds and swings like at the fair? Not to mention the snow globe he skated in...). It isn't quite as much as the Griswolds, but compared to neighborhoods I've lived in before, it was quite impressive. Then there's the Elliott's. I forgot to take a picture but that is probably a good thing to save from embarrassment. On either side you have the works, then you look at our house in the middle. One night to appease Colin and Maddie, Megan and I attempted to put icicle lights on a palm tree in the yard and on our balcony. The ones on our balcony lasted about 5 hours and fell, never to be restored. Whatever, they had something to plug in outside so they were happy.

Another tradition during the month of December besides outdoor decorations, is freaking fireworks every night. Every single night at some point you would hear some neighbor setting them off. Sometimes aerials, then often the regular littler ones. This however did not prepare me for New Years Eve when fireworks and barbequing is a full day affair. All day it sounded like bombs being dropped in the Ewa by Gentry war zone. By the end of the night, there is a haze in the sky accompanied by the smell of gunpowder. 

On the morning of December 31, 2009. I woke up at 4:30am at Heather's after a few hours of sleep where their dog managed to finagle more bedspace that I. Heather, her oldest son (Braden, 6yo) and I went to join others for a sunrise hike to the top of Koko Head crater. It is on the windward (eastern) side of the island so after climbing 1000+ steps we made it to the top and saw the last sunrise over the Pacific of 2009. My final day of the year was a really really good one. Post-hike we met up with the rest of the Holliday family for an oceanfront brunch with banana-macademia nut pancakes. So Hawaiian, I know. I had a successful Target trip (where I only purchased what I went in there to purchase...this is probs the first time I've been in there and left without spending enough to cover their mortgage payment for the month). Heather basically found me some friends in my peer group so I danced the night away with a fun group of people. To top it off, every time I got into Julia (my truck) on that day, Beyonce was playing on the radio. New Year's Day was uneventful--I basically spent all but 4 hours in bed passed out/trying to give my legs (dead tired and sore from hike/dancing) a pep talk and reminding them how to put one in front of the other, etc.

Starting today, however, my 5 month Hawaiian vacation of paradise has come to its close. I started a job. I'll be doing taxes, so that's good in that it'll be me on top of things, but the idea of working in general is still something to get used to. The thing that will keep me going is that the software we use is TPS which means we print out "TPS reports." I just might have to watch that movie soon.

That's probs all I'll really have to report in the next few weeks until Carrie finally comes home with Mykah and Jackson! So in the meantime, I'm going to have to ask you if you could come in on Saturday...

Mele Kalikimaka

...me ka Hau'oli Makahiki Hou! 

It is day 133 on the island. Megan's husband Sawyer and friends started their whole time travel gig around day 100, but I've decided to keep on pushing forward instead because I'm a survivor(what)/I'm not gonna give up (what)/I'm not gon' stop (what)/I'm gonna work harder as Beyonce puts it so eloquently with her former gal pals for life. (Thinking back to "making the video" days I do recall this being filmed by the ocean which only makes it even more appropriate).

Megan was able to go home for the holidays, and since her flight didn't leave until 10pm, we were able to spend the day on the north shore for the Billabong Pipeline Masters finals. So fun. He didn't win, but my boyfriend Kelly Slater did make it to the finals to serve as eye candy even if he did get dominated by Taj Burrow. Afterwards we make the short hike back to the car for me to pull out Megan's flight info. Remember when she told me her flight left at 10pm? well, pause for a second then give me a big fat PSYCH! It was 2:30pm when we left the north shore, and her flight was leaving at 5:50. We had an hour drive home, followed by her getting last minute stuff together and approx. 30 minute drive to the airport and to check bags, etc. I know you're in a panic but of course I kept my cool because if you remember my little NYC adventure with Lice-Face last July, you'd remember that I live for this kind of down-to-the-last-minute stuff. Needless to say, this story is pretty anticlimactic because she made it in plenty of time. We totally could have still stopped at Matsumoto's for Shave Ice. I didn't even have to go over 60mph on the highway to make it on time.

Ten days later, I was able to celebrate Christmas with the Elliotts (well, most of them...click here to find out where the absent ones are...and join a team of prayer warriors for a quick return!). Since I mainly hang out with mom's and their kids, it has been neat to see different ways Christmas is celebrated in the house during the season. I really admire how the Elliott's have such an emphasis on educating their kids about Christmas and its history, what different symbols mean, etc. They have an advent wreath and I felt like one of the kids learning more about the candles and advent in general. Let's be honest--I hear it every year in church but it has become more of a formality to me, unfortunately. you have a wreath, you light a candle each Sunday, the one in the middle for Christmas Eve, yadda yadda... Also through church and kids books I learned how the theme of Christ and Jesus' birth is even more embedded in Christmasy "things" than just a nativity scene. So many people, believers and non-believers alike, celebrate the season with many symbols of Christ even if they don't realize it! I can tell I'm mumbling so I'll move on. 

On Christmas morning, as I watched Colin and Maddie tear through paper and the room morphed into a Princess and Star Wars mini mall I did miss my family, real bad. I have to admit, I was surprised that I didn't have a call yet saying that dad was boohooing over my not being there. However, thanks to the miracle that is the world wide web, and moreso, SKYPE, I was able to enjoy two wonderful hours with my dad's side of the family enjoying (or, watching them enjoy) one of the few meals mom actually cooks in a year and opening my aunt's hilarious gag-gifts for Christmas. This year I got a second tiny souvenir plate (it might actually be a saucer sans teacup) and a leopard print stuffed frog. Can't wait to get it in the mail, Bernard will be happy to have a friend. On Saturday I was able to Skype in again while some of mom's side of the family was over and joined in a few games of "4-on-the-couch" and had a blast. Technology amazes me.

Megan did get me The Office trivia board game, which is for 2 to 6 players. While she is gone, I now have to find 2 to 6 friends so I can play. Heather (one of the mom's) invited me on a hike with her family and a run club she goes to (remember the one Megan goes to, but I stay clear of the "r" word...I'll salsaerobics instead mahalo nui loa (thank you very much)). It was a fun, super muddy hike. The water at the falls was refreshing and full of bacteria (plenty of signage along the way to remind us) We jumped off one of the waterfalls which was fun. Anyway, eventually out of that came Heather finding me some friends so that's good news. Thursday morning I'm going with Heather et al for a sunrise hike to close out the year, so it'll be the starting point to testing the water with people in my peer group.

Well, that'll have to do pigs, for now. Although I will share this little gem I experienced earlier today. We turned off the A/C and have windows open instead. This means I get to share life a little more with the neighbors, whether it is listening to the ones on the right watching "The Hangover" while I'm in the bathroom, or hearing someone to the left to nicely ask their kids to "get off the ledge"...this eventually escalates to "GET OFF THE LEDGE NOW!" and I couldn't help but chuckle and think of this oldie but goodie.

Get Off The Shed! - The funniest bloopers are right here

Meet Stella.

I'll be sure to dress this up with photos once Megan and I aren't on the internet at the same time. For some reason the connection goes iffy when we are both using it.  I keep telling her to date a nerd so he can explain fix these things.

I spent two weeks on the mainland (that's the contiguous 48 states for those of you not familiar with island language/references). In those two weeks I got to hang out with my 2 friends still left in Lynchburg (there were some moments of regret in convincing Megan to move to Hawaii with me seeing as that was one less person to pass time with in Lynchburg). I even agreed to workout at the YMCA with Spike Hamilton twice within 15 hours of each other. Why I even agreed to workout at 8am one morning in the first place is beyond me, but for me to agree to go to a "muscle grip" class the evening before as well?! Something must've been slipped into all of the cheese toast I ate since my mom no longer keeps the kitchen stocked and what we do have in there my dad monitors to make sure there is enough to cook the dogs breakfast. 

I may be the oldest--but no contest that they are the favorites. I also was able to take lots of naps with sweet baby Stella, eat lots of food with extended family on both sides, and cook eat dinner with my family in Columbia. Oh, and I did I mention I got to see my Gamecocks dominate Clemsux's Tigers? So fun. I got my ticket from a Clemsux fan for under face value so I felt like I won twice that day.

As I mentioned earlier, on Friday, November 20th, sweet baby Stella Carter Dean was born around 2:30am! 

A freaking 22in, 9.5-pounder, at that. To put it in perspective I have come up with this simple to type illustration:

I (this represents Maggie...a stick) gave birth to this: O (representing a big baby with the cutest, softest, chubbiest cheeks you've ever seen)

I know your mind is blown. I spent as much quality time with my new niece as I could while in town. We cuddled and took naps together often. She is an incredible sleeper--I know she gets it from me, and I keep telling Maggie "you're welcome" and even though she doesn't really show her appreciation, I know she secretly thanks me often...it was Thanksgiving, after all.

After Thanksgiving happenings (which included killing my cousin Michelle in the game "Aggravation" which is an older version of "Sorry") I traveled down to my old stompin' grounds, South Carolina. It was so good to be back. I was able to see many people I wanted to see, and even a few I didn't. (I wonder how many people who actually read this just got paranoid. Don't worry, I was only mostly joking). Anyway, at a family dinner (minus Pat and Brittany, who were missed) everyone loved their souvenir neon splatter-painted tourist t-shirts (I got a killer deal at the International Market), see?

Even though it was just a few hours, it was still nice just having most of us in the same room again. With people getting married, going on adventures, getting new jobs, etc (basically growing up) definitely presents its new challenges to keeping a group of close friends together.

Coming back to Hawaii, I had to jump right in to the chaos that took off right after I left for VA. Carrie is in Africa adopting the two children I mentioned in my previous post (carrieelliott.blogspot.com to read more about that) and Chris had to go to Texas for a couple of weeks because The Man (Army) said so. So it's me, Megan, and grandma (Pam...I keep thinking "Pammy cakes" from The Office) until the 14th. There are ups and downs, but we're all pulling together and making it through. My first morning back I was working on schoolwork with Colin. I was still exhausted from a full day of flying and not much sleep because of jetlag, so I had dark circles under my eyes and I put my head down for a second. Megan is sitting at the table too:

Colin: Kayleigh's like a dead rat
Kayleigh: do your math
Colin: dead rats don't talk

all I could think was "touche." This kid has so many one-liners, it is hard to keep a straight face. He so serious when he says anything and so you can't laugh at him or he calls you out/gets upset about it. Later that day for science I had to read to him about fish and their mating process. I'm pretty sure the author of the book just took a super awkward birds-and-bees talk one would give to a child and changed it to apply to fish. Whatev. We made it through and I stayed very mature about the entire thing, laughing only on the inside.

this past Monday, Megan and I met up with Heather and Andrew at 4:30am to head to the north shore for some ridiculous 40-50 ft waves. "The Eddie" is a surf contest that only happens when specific conditions are met and it hasn't happened since 2004. Thousands of people were at Waimea Bay waiting for the call, but even though they were set up it didn't happen yesterday. Pro surfers (and others) still went out so we got to watch them for a few hours. You don't realize exactly how big the waves are until you see people on them. The contest actually happened today and since we couldn't physically be there with 30,000 of our closest friends on the island, we watched it pretty much all day live on tv. It is quickly mesmerizing. So cool that I was able to go see the waves, but now I'm pumped to go watch a north shore contest live as Pipeline Masters (the contest Blue Crush is about) is getting started.

Alrighty, so that catches you up in a nutshell. I hear about and see pictures of the snow/ice everyone is getting and I am glad I got out just in time. I saw a few flurries when I was in Blacksburg over Thanksgiving and that was enough of a white christmas for me. I'm all about the "Mele Kalikimaka" now. Speaking of Christmas right quick, FYI: apparently "dressing festively" for a Christmas party is some unwritten Hawaiian lingo for "wear regular street clothes." I got my Christmas Party 2K9 outfit spending a total of $3 at Goodwill and nobody else dressed up. Oh well, I don't regret my sequined skirt, poinsettia vest, and shiny red half-jacket. You never know when those will come in handy. Also for the Dirty Santa, I ended up with the book "What to Do Until Love Finds You: Getting Ready for Mr Right" please tell me you are laughing at that as much as I am. I tried to read it to 5-yr old Kelia but she seemed to have no interest despite my plea that it is never too early to start getting ready for Mr Right.

Until next time, Mahalo for reading and Aloha.

Nine Lives

Exciting things have happened very suddenly in the past 72 hours or so on the Elliott front. The Elliotts (who we live with) have been officially matched with two children for adoption! To put it short: the entire process has been hurry up and wait since last spring or so. They've been praying and wanting to have the kids home by Christmas, and right when that wasn't looking too realistic, God once again shows his control of all things and Chris and Carrie get an email with a picture of their son (Jackson, who will be 3 on Jan. 1) and their daughter (Mykah, turning 4 on Dec. 26) waiting to be brought home. Then on top of that, they want Carrie to be there ASAP, so she is leaving on Saturday. Needless to say, things are crazy right now trying to figure out logistics with me being gone for two weeks, then Chris for two weeks, then Megan for two weeks. I told God I wanted adventure, and He is definitely delivering. We don't know if Carrie will be back in time for Christmas, but regardless, she will still be spending the holidays with family, whether it is the nine of us on Kauoha Place (I know how to pronounce my street name now!) or with two of her dear, sweet children in Africa. Maddie (3 yrs old) is so excited to have another sister. From the moment she saw her picture, she started talking about painting her nails and doing her hair. Mykah will be princess-ified in no time once Madeline gets her hands on her :) It just warms my heart everytime I hear Colin and Maddie talk about their new brother and sister. Since I've been here (before there was even a hint of a match), every night at the dinner table, or before bed when they would pray they would ask God to keep their siblings safe in Africa. A 5 yr old and 3 yr old challenge me to be persistent in prayer requests and they don't even realize it the slightest bit. Sweet baby Gracen will just be excited to have more people to chase after and beg for food :) It has been fun watching Gracen (18 mo.) grow up in the past three months. That chica is ambitious. She is now learning to sit at the dinner table and is feeding herself with a spoon. She already can distinguish (and loves) hot coffee from blended drinks, climbs bunk beds and jumps (falls) down without a care assuming someone will be there, wants nothing more than to be independent in the pool and swimming on her own, among other things. There is nothing this girl won't try to do--she laughs in the face of her age so to speak.

Megan and I have begun the dreaded job search. It has been humbling, to say the least. This is the first time either of us have had to actually work to find jobs. I know we'll find something.

Talking about finding jobs makes my head hurt almost as much as Taylor Swift songs on the radio do right now. (I usually don't mind her, but after her opening number on the CMA's her voice makes my ears hurt a little). I would like to brag for a moment, however. I share a room with a wonderful Sesame Street licensed tshirt designer who's designs are in big name stores! At an old job Megan designed most of the Sesame Street kids shirts which are selling like hot cakes at Target, Bloomingdales (I think), Barneys New York, and most recently Fred Segal in LA to name a few. I am so proud of her! The shirts are wayy cute, and if I had a kid and was willing to spring $70 bucks for a shirt he/she'd grow out of by the end of the day, I'd buy all of them but one.

Changing subjects again, since Megan and I have prescribed each other heaping doses of "beach therapy" (it is illegal to self-prescribe), we have started to be more active so we can have hot bods like the professional dancers on Dancing with the Stars. (I'm slowly getting Megan hooked on my shows!) This is being done through a carefully scheduled out routine (well, we're working on making it routine but when it comes down to watching that extra episode of NCIS and driving to the YMCA, it's a tough call. When I opt for the former, I merely think of it as a sacrifice because by not driving I'm not contributing as much to pollution and my carbon footprint. You're welcome earth.) Anyway, our repertoire consists of Zumba, Salsaerobics, Dance Core Kill Your Abs So It Hurts to Move for 2 Days, Run Club (don't have a heart attack, Megan's the only one doing this. I don't even think these two words should be in the same sentence without a negative), and Ultimate Frisbee (that one is me). I tried softball again, and other than an RBI my highlight reel will consist of all of those times I almost hit the ball, or almost made it to first base.

Well, time to finish packing for the mainland for two weeks. My first neice should arrive any day now (or any second if you ask Megan), I will eat plenty of Chick-Fil-A (LOVE those minis), and of course watch my beloved Gamecocks play against Clemson (provided Carolina actually decides to show up and play a game this year...if not, there's always next year! SEC Champs 2010? Anyone?)

California Dreaming

not only did I vacation and have dreams in California, but it was also a great TV show and is an even greater restaurant (miss those croissants). Triple Threat. Bam.

It seems like a good idea to wait and update after long vacations are over, but in hindsight I've realized that I can't possibly remember all of the memorable-worthy moments. So this time when I say I'll be better about updating, I mean it.

Our first trip to the west coast was a way fun and busy one. 

Lodi (our home base, so to speak) actually produces more wine grapes than Napa Valley so we chose to go on our wine tasting endeavours right where we were. Some places don't have tasting fees, and the ones that did waived it for us citing our unemployment as the reason. I don't want to hold a grudge against the one place that did make us pay, we just assume they didn't give themselves the chance to get to know us first. We went to the Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi winery for a tour and were the only two there so we got quite the extensive golf-cart tour from the wonderful Karen. When we were done and about to go in for tasting she saw grape trucks roll up, so she spoiled us for a bit then we got to go see the actual process taking place. Pretty neat. We also go to eat some of the cabernet grapes so if you buy a bottle of Woodbridge's 2009 cabernet, know that our hands have touched some of those grapes so there is a little extra love in that bottle. Karen then continued to let us taste all of the wines on the list and then some.  We bought a bottle of Tempranillo (a spanish grape I'd never heard of since I'm new to this whole wine education thing) as a thank you.

We got to go on some fun family outings such as Big Trees to see all of the Redwoods and we got to see the cute kiddies get ready for Halloween. Colin asked what I was going to be and I told him we were going as his babysitters and it got a little scream out of him. We figured our costumes would be too scary for other kids to see so went to watch the Gamecocks dominate the Vols at PoisonApplebees instead.

Other things on the agenda included a taping of the Jay Leno show with Dr Phil (we should've gone to Conan. Next time.), being touristy in Hollywood (walk of fame or whatever it's called, Kodak Theatre, Beverly Hills/Rodeo Dr. Okay, pause. We were told to go use the bathroom in the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in BH which is where Pretty Woman was filmed. This bathroom was awesome. Each stall was it's own little private room so you could have complete privacy to take care of things. I recommend it if you ever visit. Okay, unpause. We walked around Pepperdine University (it is ridiculous how beautiful that campus is. Not to mention the view from campus. Seriously I feel like for what private schools cost you get a little more bang for your buck there just from looking out the window.), saw some cool beaches in San Diego (Diago), and met with old friends in San Francisco where we got to take in a lovely view of the city from Dolores Park.

ANNNDD at the top of the list of things we saw in Californ-i-a-a-a are these two glorious sights:



That's right. Two things we are deprived of here in Hawai'i. Oh the sacrifices one must make living in paradise. Eating those chikin minis tasted almost as good as the first time, and nobody in Hawai'i drives over 60mph so I was able to fulfill my little need for speed.

Well, now here's a little treat for you. Our in-house entertainment, Madeline "Maddie" Elliott. This is just a teaser. Just wait until we get her dancing along with Dancing with the Stars. Priceless.

Reality finally slaps me in the face...in a good way

A lot has happened in the past few weeks. I had allowed myself to be ignorant to the reality of the lost and brokenness out here. A couple of weekends ago I went on the YL leadership weekend on the north shore. I wanted to not only be around people my age, but also learn about YL out here and what it looks like, how it is structured, etc. To say things are different would be an understatement. A high schooler's basic need is the same: to feel loved and accepted, however the daily reality and struggles that kids face in their journey to find acceptance are very different from what I'm used to in the south. When I would think about someone growing up in Hawaii, my naive self would immediately think "like omg, how awesome would that be? Surrounded by beaches, summer weather year round...rough life." Well for many of the local kids it is pretty rough. I took for granted the parental involvement we have in Cola YL and even at times wondered why more people didn't step up. On Oahu, many of the parents are addicted to drugs, etc and have already checked out. There are high school kids who have grown up on the island their entire life yet have never seen the ocean. After school for many kids it is then about what gang you are a part of (who has your back) and protecting your "territory" (various parks, neighborhoods, etc). My heart just broke and I yearn for these kids to know the perfect love of a perfect Father. There was no doubt that God wanted me to be involved in YL out here, but I didn't feel as though it was by taking on a role of a leader again--at least not at this time. From the wisdom of Carrie (I'll try not to go on again about how awesome the Elliotts are, but they are in the process of adopting 2 boys from Africa, check out www.carrieelliott.blogspot.com to read some more about their journey and adoption in general) I am now volunteering administratively to help the area director, since he is the only staff person for the island and it is a lot for him and his wonderful wife to do. Right now the big thing is the main fundraiser for the year--the banquet. As mentioned earlier, parental involvement isn't as "easy" to recruit as back home, and YL is starting to try and build a name for itself in the community. Please pray for the YL Oahu Banquet on Thursday, Oct. 22. Pray for not only that money will be raised, but also for potential committee members, and other interest in involvement from adults in the community.

In other news, I finally bought Julia. Julia is a 1999 Land Rover Discovery II. She needs some TLC, but she is wonderful. We're going to pick up Megan from the airport in a couple of hours--Jules is real pumped, mainly because right now she just loves driving around as we get to know each other.

I gave surfing another shot. I was almost stuck with the board that dominated me before, but I asked for another one. I'll get a chance to even the score with my arch enemy of surfboards, but I needed to build up some confidence beforehand. I can get up and ride the waves, so now the next step is being able to read the waves and catch one without any help. There are two girls, Heather and Christine, who go out almost weekly by where I live so I'll get some more practice. I think there are pictures of me somewhere, I'll just have to find out where.

Booked my flight to come home to welcome my niece, Stella Carter Dean into this world before Thanksgiving. I'll be in Cola Nov. 27-Dec. 1. Feel free to find me a free ticket to the Carolina/Clemson game.

Okay, time to finishing cleaning up/organizing so Megan has somewhere to put her stuff! Be on the lookout for an update from her soon!