Christmas Apart ...

Daniella earns PRINCIPALS LIST (4.0 GPA) 1st quarter of her 4th grade year!
Here are photos of some of her friends and classmates from last year class.  GREAT JOB KIDS!

MomMom & PopPop arrived in time to hear Morgan's Holiday Band Concert (wrong date above... it's 12.16.10)

Keeping busy this holiday with Awards, Concerts and Christmas FUN!  So happy that Mom Mom & Pop Pop are here with us to enjoy it with us... it surely makes this Christmas without Daddy home more bearable!  I LOVE MY PARENTS!  <3  I LOVE MY Family!

My mini-me and ME

There's NO mistaking it... she's definitely MY GIRL! My little mini-me.

"Mommy, I want to go to school now" is what she told me last week.

She's not even 4 years old yet. This is my favorite age... 3 and 4 years old.
Why do they have to grow up so fast?

Little Miss Independent.

Maybe she'll be my only kid who doesn't cry when I drop her off on her 1st day of school.
Dani was already in pre-school at this age... the earliest in school... she's also very bright!

What a GIFT to be able to watch my kids grow! If only there were a PAUSE button!

Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward.
(Psalms 127:3ESV)

California FUN... with family.

FAMILY.  This trip was really ALL about FAMILY!  Not just one side... but all sides!  We had an amazing 10 days in California with every side of my family!  My dad's side, my mom's side... my hubby's side, too!

Pan Family... my dad and his sister, Lily & family

It truly was a wonderful THANKSGIVING celebration.  Even though Daddy couldn't be with us... we were able to skype with him while we were away and feel like he was with us in spirit!  Of course... posting all the photos from our trip for him to see (on Facebook) - was a great way for him to feel like he was with us!

... more PAN family photos

Kim & Corey Knowlton and their boys

Shani & Byron Diehl's beautiful home in Redlands... so happy to see
my little cousin Carmen (Byron's sis), too!  AWESOME reunion!

Uncle Oscar & Auntie Evelyn Juanitas (my mother-in-law's sister)
and family... 

Mom Ramirez and some of our Alamo cousins... on her side of the family!

My parents and Dale's parents hanging out with us at Evelyn & Jake's place in Los Angeles!
Looking forward to being close by for the cousins to see each other more often!

my mom's brother, Uncle Boy taught us how Lola made her famous and delicious Hopia!

THANKSGIVING DAY ... visiting Uncle Rob at his work
and the kids getting an awesome tour! 

... a great THANKSGIVING celebration at my cousin Gladys' house

Wedding Rehearsal of Sharon & Daniel

Rehearsal Dinner with family

DECENA family Cousins!

BEAUTIFUL WEDDING of Sharon & Daniel
Ryan was a Jr. Groomsman & Mia was one of the Flower Girls... it was a GREAT day!

... my dad & his little brother - my uncle Danny & Auntie Rex

Testimonies of Prayer

Yoshie & Pastor Mateus Nanbu

Dear Dale,

Your church family have been praying for your safety. You're certainly missed at Ordot Church. We missed your children's stories. The church has grown bigger, there are church members that you never met before. We are very busy with a November evangelistic series "Life After Death" which starts this coming Sabbath. Hope you were here to help us in the preparation and all.

God bless you always!

Pastor Nanbu and your church family

"The beloved of the Lord shall dwell in safety by him; and the Lord shall cover him all the day long and he shall dwell between his shoulders." Deueronomy 33:12 

Our church Pastor from the Ypao-Ordot Seventh Day Adventist Church sent Dale a beautiful e'card from  www.dayspring.com/ecard  It means so much to both of us to know that he is missed and being prayed for.  
Thank you Pastor Nanbu for this beautiful e'card that you sent to Dale.

TESTIMONIES OF PRAYER

examples of our LORD at work during wartime

"The rain was coming down hard and fast, so thick we could barely make out the desert landscape ahead of us.  It went on for days.  The rain continued to poud us relentlessly until we finally neared the Kuwaiti border.  Our battalion halted.  On the other side the enemy waited.  Rain or no rain, we'd soon be going in.  We awoke on the day of the invasion to clear skies and glorious sunshine.  As we closed in on the border, I couldn't help but stare at the astounding sight before us.  The torrential rains I had prayed to God to stop had washed away the sand to reveal metal discs planted all across the path.  It was an Iraqi minefield." 

 - Major Halt

US Army, Persian Gulf War

"... So I prayed, 'God... you've got to do something.'  There was an open field, we had to get across somehow, but it was going to expose us to the enemy.  And they were firing.  Somehow, from out of nowhere, came this white cloud and surrounded us and we all made it across safely.  Found out later there was this old prayer warrior at our church, Mrs. Tankersly, which God had woken up in the middle of the night and said, 'Spencer's in trouble, pray for him right now.'  And the last part of her prayer was, 'God whatever danger Spencer is in, just cover him with a cloud.'  That's exactly what He did."

- Spencer January

US Army, WWII

"My teacher asked my class to write a letter to an unknown soldier in the gulf.  It was a very special project for me because my daddy was also a soldier.  So I told my unkown soldier what I wanted to tell my daddy... that his family missed him, loved him, and was praying for him.  I wondered if any soldier would even get my letter and then I got a letter back.  I couldn't believe it - I knew the handwriting on it!  And somehow, with all the soldier letters sent by kids across the country, mine had been sent to my very own father.  I still prayed for him every night, but I felt certain that God was watching over my dad."

- Karen Fiorella (at age 10)

daughter of Chuck Fiorella - US Army, Persian Gulf War

"There are thousands of people who pray for me.  It's a humbling experience to think that people I will never have met have lifted me and my family up in prayer.  It's been a comforting feeling to know that is true."

- President George W. Bush

JOIN ME IN PRAYER FOR OUR FAMILIES, OUR FRIENDS, OUR COUNTRY, AND OUR WORLD!


"The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer..."  

-PSALM 18:2 NKJV

PERSEVERE

So last night, I took this online quiz/test thing... I don't usually take these things - but out of boredom decided to answer a few questions.  And it was about the COLOR OF MY SOUL!  Surprisingly, it said I was BLUE!  Interestingly it's right on to how I've been feeling this week.  Not how I typically am in life... but lately, I have to agree that I've been more emotional and "like water" ever-changing!    But I'm pushing through this and ready to PERSEVERE and change that color (within) - because I honestly believe BLUE is just a passing color!!! 

What color is your soul?

Dot got Blue.

You are usually sad, or lonely. Your only true friend is Green souled people. Like water, you are ever-changing and emotional. You enjoy being alone, but also enjoy small parties with a few friends. You clash with fun-loving Yellow soul.

6 hours ago via What color is your soul?  · Comment ·  · Hide Feedback (2) ·Take this Quiz

• • 

    Chantelle Green Lang No way!

    4 hours ago · 
  • 

    Dot Ramirez I know... I was thinking the same thing, Chantelle... thanks for recognizing! :-) It's all so wrong! Perhaps at the moment I was "BLUE"... but seriously? Sad or Lonely?! haha

    44 minutes ago · 

• Persist no matter what.
• Endure discomfort.
• Request help.
• Steadfastly hold on to your beliefs and values.
• Envision triumph.
• Very consistently keep at it.
• Embrace adversity as your teacher.
• Refuse to give up.
• Enjoy and celebrate every tiny bit of progress!

Hebrews 12:1

 ¹ Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.

Weekend of Costumes and fun...

It's been a busy weekend of fun... here's just a few photos of the fun with neighbors and friends.

one hundred days ... and the count continues...

It's been 100 days since we hugged Daddy Dale good-bye.  We are all getting into the groove of doing what we do... praying daily is key and I know that GOD's love continues to embrace us.  We're busy.... but not as busy as before.  Since returning back on island from our summer travels... we're home more and enjoying a lot of down time.  It's nice not having to run around everywhere.  The kids are only taking UKULELE lessons  so that's only one night a week.

Let's see... 100 days in - here's what's going on with everyone.

"Measure me, Mommy...
I'm growing and growing...
now I can ride the Grover ride"
She was too short when we went
to Busch Gardens in Tampa, FL

Mia is such a chatterbox right now.  Negotiating everything!  What she eats, when to sleep, where to go.  It's really funny!  Ahhh... the joy of parenting her with the experience of our older three makes my job as  her mommy such a sweet experience!  I'm so glad that Dale convinced me to go for ONE MORE and stick to our original plan of having 4 kids!  Oh how I still remember that conversation...  I was convinced that we were done with 3!  :-)  Now I can't imagine life without our sweet little Mia!

Every morning Mia wakes up wanting to measure herself to see if she grew.  It's really funny because all you have to say is, "honey, if you want to grow - you have to sleep!"  Mia's memory is amazing... she remembers a lot and will recall conversations that happened 6 months ago or even longer!  She gets frustrated with me when I don't remember what she's talking about... but she's good about describing what is in her thoughts and eventually I figure out what she's saying... or at least pretend to.  Yikes!  She likes to draw and write her name... sometimes the letters get mixed up... but we're working on that!  She starts with the M then the little i with the dot right on top of the line (just like Dani used to do when she was Mia's age)... and then for some reason she sometimes puts the A in front of the M... :-)   She loves to play hide and seek, reading and taking trips to the library.   Underwater World is also one of her favorite things to do. (the aquarium here on Guam).

"can I watch a little bit, Mommy?"

Her new "thing" is watching her movies on our old portable DVD player  (she loves being independent and operating it on her own... hmmm... we're learning how to put all her DVD's away so they don't get all scratched) Mia also loves to cook and help with anything and everything!!!!!  When I do let her help she always thanks me... "Thank you, Mommy for letting me help!"



"Mommy, I have a good endea... I fink we should go to the pool".  She absolutely loves her pool time with and swim lessons with Ms. Mandi.  Her favorite place is swimming at the hotel slide pool here at Leo Palace.

She named her crutches
Mark & Vanessa
(silly girl!)

Dani
is such a big helper  consistently - even 100 days in.   She loves her baby sister!  She loves to surprise me.  Cleaning up and cooking whenever she has a chance... her specialty - making pancakes on Sunday Morning.  Today she is limping around on crutches because she got slammed on her ankle by one of her brothers.  Xrays were taken... nothing broken... just some deep bruising!  Sometimes it's tough being a younger sister to 2 big brothers... but she definitely can hold her own!  She is really developing into such a beautiful young lady... with a heart so sweet and loving.  Spending quality time with her is key!  I know she misses her daddy so much - and she is always so much happier when she is able to skype with him.  Dani is having a great school year... "4th grade is the best" (she says)... she has a wonderful teacher and class this year!   Thank you, Mr. Zimms!   Yippeeee!!!

Thumbs up, Ry!  The rice filled sock
holds the heat to "melt away" his
eye bump... it's actually almost gone!
Rice on his eye... rice on his plate....
can you get any more Asian than this?

                  Ryan loves to cook and spice things up to anything he is making.  He's all about the spices and the flavor.  He's so full of energy and so the biggest challenge I find is trying to channel it properly.  Fifth grade is absolutely fun and social for him... he's all about his friends and recess and soccer and for awhile - he was all about the silly band craze.  He's since stopped wearing them... so that came and went.  He's been the bus drivers helper on the school bus... with our little neighbor friend - Christopher... and has helped him transition into being a kindergartener.  I love that Ryan is very aware of people around him.  His love language of "touch" is also his way of expressing love.  So with that... he's my hands on - back crackin' and walkin' on my back masseuse.  Surprisingly, for as little as he is - he's got skills!   Our neighbor even comes over to get an adjustment from my little man Ry!

 Morgan... He is STILL growing and may be as tall as Daddy soon!

He's almost a teenager.  It's just so hard to believe!

Stretching into a size 16 pants... size 9 shoe... and his low voice throws me because it's so deep already... yet he's only 12!  Although his body seems to be rushing into manhood... there's absolutely NO RUSHING my boy!   Mo is my steady and even tempered kid.  He's tolerant and when something finally bothers him... you'll definitely hear about it!    How nice it is to have his BABYSITTING status and abilities so that I can go and do my photo shoots.  Now I know it's team work as far as the kids go - because Dani & Ryan are also very big helpers with Mia... but he is the one of age to keep it LEGAL!  My challenge has been making sure he stays motivated to turn in his work on time (crazy part is... he's done with the work... just forgets to turn it in!  HELLO!)  He's the silent, mysterious type!  So taking time to "hear" him and communicate is key!  He's all about MUSIC, Kung Fu and Wushu (gymnastics w/ kung fu moves).  If he's not kicking or looking up different martial art styles online he's on youTUBE looking up a song and within an hour or two playing it on the piano or ukulele.  That amazes me!  Mo definitely has his daddy's ear for music!  Maybe all that Mozart that I constantly played for him during his naps and at night when he was a baby really did open some spacial reasoning and musical abilities.

... at least the pup has more hair than Dale! ha ha!
Your eyebrows look less thick with that stash, honey!

You know I LOVE YOU! Even from afar you make us laugh!

Dale... ooh my sweet husband... let me first say, "I am so thankful for you and for what you're doing."   Imagine my reaction when he skyped us one day and we saw his upper lip a bit THICK!  At 100 days in... he's growing a moustache!  Yes!   It's true!  He decided to join in on a MWR (Morale Welfare and Recreation) competition to see who could grow the best moustache.  Needless to say, it has been fun making fun of him.  We love you daddy with it or without it... but we can't wait for the contest to be over... haha!    :-)  Work is keeping Dale busy in Kuwait.  I'm so thankful for skype and facebook so we can stay connected!  Thanks to the USO - he's definitely seeing his share of celebrities and even professional cheerleaders come through their facility... haha... "it's all for the Morale of the patients", he says!    I love that he's learned to download and edit photos on his new little point & shoot camera... he's able to share his photos and we can see his life away from us.

ME - busy mommy of four.  I'm constantly making sure everyone is fed, clean, clothed and on schedule.  Although, I'm blessed that my kids love to be independent.   Lucky for me, they enjoy preparing food and helping themselves in the kitchen.  On school mornings this is especially helpful - since my kids LOVE to wake up at the crack of dawn!  One day they'll learn to enjoy the idea of sleeping in.  

I purchased tickets to go back to the states for Thanksgiving to be with my family.... I'll admit... it was an emotional purchase because at the time (when we first got back to GUAM) I was missing my hubby and family - A LOT!  I was an emotional mess... I admit it... a few choice friends even witnessed it and hugged me through it.  Well, now that reality is in my face, I decided to take on MORE photo shoots to pay off 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 plane tickets... *gulp* YES, 5 plane tickets!  So far so good!  100 days in... and I'm a few photo shoots away from taking care of that!  Yeah!  No regrets though... because I know it will be GREAT to surround ourselves with family - especially during Thanksgiving, my favorite HOLIDAY of the year!    I'm relieved to say that the heaviness in my heart (since Dale left)  has been lifted.  Every day I pray that God opens the eyes of my heart so I can see HIS awesomeness working in my life.   Truly... there is so much to be thankful for!  SO MUCH! 

Happy 100 Days... we're in the 3 digits now... so that's a good sign... a sign that we're closer to the end of our time apart!!!  We'll continue to count up... until Dale's return... and when we learn of a return date - then we'll start a count down... but for now we're on the up and up!

Thanks for all your thoughts, prayers, e'mails and phone calls!!!  How blessed we are to have amazing family & friends, like you!!

Ephesians 1:18-20 (New International Version © 2010)

¹⁸ I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, ¹⁹ and his incomparably great power for us who believe.

united through love...

neighbors . best friends . cousins through marriage . Mia and Jazzie

our neighbors . and family through marriage
Jason . Pame . Jazzie

What do you do on a rainy day on Guam?  Not a whole lot.  The entire day - it rained.  So around 7pm, instead of getting ready for bed... we decided to pile into Dale's jeep and drove to the Hotel Belvedere within our resort.  We played for an hour.  A little ping pong, "window shopped" at the gift shop and the two little BFF's played and danced around in the play place.    

our cousins connect us
Aaron . lil Melea . Melva
Hwang

  

  



The toughest part about being in the military is making such amazing connections... and knowing that our time is short.  The advantages of knowing these facts is that we seize the moments and embrace the time allowed!  Just as you start to get comfortable...we will move again... this time to San Diego, California in about 11 months.  (August 2011)   We are neighbors with Jazzie, Mia's BFF.  Her dad, Jason has a 1st cousin (on his dad's side) Aaron, who is married to my 2nd cousin (on my mom's side) Melva.... yeah, I know... small world!  So we're related through marriage.  Very cool!  It's so awesome that we were placed side by side in a duplex all the way over here on Guam!

Mia is 3 1/2 years old and Jazzie is only 2 years old.  They love each other so much.  What will they remember about each other?  After all, they're both so young.   They miss each other when they can't be together.  Yet their personalities are both so strong that sometimes they argue and fight for the same things.  I love that they have each other to learn & grow.  Sharing.  Compromising.  Learning compassion.  Friendships.  Love.  It's fantastic to watch them grow... and learn to figure things out!  Sometimes through sharing... a lot of times through power struggles... but always united through LOVE!

Some video clips... so they will always remember.

WHERE'S YOUR BALL?

It's tough to share at this age.  Both girls have gone through (and sometimes still going through) the "MINE" stage.  Thankfully, big sister Dani is always there to quickly dissolve most conflicts between these two BFF's!  Thanks Dani!

DANCING, LAUGHING & PLAYING

MIA DANCING

(funny girl... she is in her own little world!)

“Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like 

nobody's watching, 

and live like its heaven on earth!"  - Mark Twain

CLEAN UP

(Praising the actions... training to be leaders... leading by example... even at a young age... it starts now!)

Colossians 2:2-7 (New International Version)

²My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, ³in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. ⁴I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments. ⁵For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit and delight to see how orderly you are and how firm your faith in Christ is.  

 ⁶So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, ⁷rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

Mia Moments...

Mia saw a couple kissing on her PARENT TRAP MOVIE and said, "eeewwww!!!" and I just smiled at her and pouted my lips and said, "I miss kissing your daddy" and pretended to fake cry.

Quickly, she holds up her hands and says to me... "No Mommy, Mommy, Mommy! Don't be sad, daddy will be home soon, okay?! okay?" All  with her sweet little 3 year old smile and fantastic gestures!
haha... I love having my Mia Moments! :-) She put such a BIG smile on my face... and gave me the BEST wiggle kiss! ♥ love those Mia wiggle kisses!!!! ♥

15 years ago... I married my BEST friend (1995)... what an awesome journey it has been so far!! Chicago, IL - Sicily, Italy - Annapolis, MD - Norfolk, VA - Charleston, SC - GUAM. He has been away from us since July 11, 2010... and returning from Kuwait back to us on Guam sometime in March 2011. NINE LONG MONTHS. Our journey continues - just apart for awhile.... but always together in our hearts!!! I ♥ this wonderful man - for the life we've established, the 4 LIVES we've created... and the life we have yet to experience together!! 

http://everyday-joshua1nine.blogspot.com/

Jer 29:11 & Joshua 1:9 will carry us through this time apart! :-) Thank you all for your love and support! We are so blessed with incredible family & friends! God has placed you in our lives for a reason, perhaps for a season... but hopefully for a LIFETIME!

a PEACEful weekend - CeLeBrAtiNg 41 yEaRs!

SLIDESHOW of my BIRTHDAY WEEKEND

 

Today I am forty-one years old.  I look at that number and can hardly believe it myself.  I'm in my 40's.  FORTY'S. Fabulous and Forty!  As much as I say it, read it and try to absorb it... it hasn't quite sunk in yet.  The fact that I'm 41.

When the beautiful floral arrangement arrived at my door (from my parents)... it jump started our weekend early!

If I was going to be Forty-one and Fabulous... I had to get my hair colored (greys seem to multiply faster now).  The entire family ended up getting "cleaned up" and looking good for our weekend of FAMILY FUN!

The kids all went to the food court to eat dinner while I had a little pampering and coloring done to my "greys"... a scalp massage that put me to sleep, literally, on the chair!  It was fabulous and so PEACEful!

Last year, our family traveled to Japan for my 40th birthday.   This year, with Daddy deployed... we opted on a STAY-cation here on Guam.  And what better place than the PIC!  The Pacific Island Club!

There is so much to do & so much fun to be had while staying at the PIC...  there's just never enough time to do it all!    The news said, RAIN ALL WEEKEND - and I'm so glad that they got it ALL wrong!  It was fabulous!  Unfortunately... Mia wasn't 100% (health-wise) to start off our weekend - so we kept a low profile and let the 3 older ones run around and have FUN!  I was content to just sit on the lounger chairs with Mia snuggled on my lap.  After all, I wasn't having to clean, cook or run around.  It was still total relaxation and fun!

*note:  Daniella did convince me to take Mia down one of the water slides at the park - and that alone was enough adventure for Mia and I for the entire weekend!  We sat on our mat at the top of the water slide... and swirled, whirled and twisted our way down to the pool, screaming and catching air at times... until the very end when I was holding onto Mia by the strap of her life vest, hit the pool full force backwards and face down... getting a huge rush of water up my nose for that instant pain to my head... hat flying, googles sunk and Mia and I just staring at each other, thankful that it was over.  I had to start laughing because I'm sure we were quite the sight!  Thinking about that still makes me laugh!

Pacific Island Club - Guam
Beautiful at Night!

We ate at Proa.  *Thanks to the Robertson Family for the $50 gift certificate!  The kids enjoyed their first Proa experience!  Can't wait to take Dale there when he returns!  Mia ate a little bit of her pasta and announced, "I'm going to take a rest for a little bit".  Which she did.  Such a great little sleeper-on-the-go!



Sunday morning Mia woke me up early to see the sunrise.  It was gorgeous!  Absolutely breath-taking.  But it was too early... so I made us all go back to sleep... shut the shades so it was dark in our hotel room and we were all out for a few more hours... until...

There was a surprise knock on our door that jolted me!  Who could that be?  Peeking through the peep hole - there was my amazing friend and neighbor - Shelley with a heart shaped cake, flowers and cards.  She put my kids to work on friday afternoon while I was on a photo shoot and let them make a cake for me, decorate it, picked flowers and made cards.  I teared up by such the sweetness of her heart and gesture to give my kids an opportunity to GIVE with their talents and love!   Thanks  SHELLEY - you always make me feel so incredibly loved and special!

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU, Shelley Darabos!  

Hangin' out at the PIC on my 41st birthday was such a GREAT idea!
Don't you just love Mia's bearded sunscreen face?  I LOVE these kids!!! 

I love this girl!

Sneaky little Dani was so excited to pull off the surprise with the help of Ms. Shelley!  Her backpack was left in our jeep and she was so bummed the night before that she didn't have it.  Apparently, she was wanting to surprise me with balloons all over the floor when I woke up!  What a sweet gesture.  I love that about her... Dani is always so thoughtful and loving!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox
oxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Wishing my daddy a HAPPY BIRTHDAY today, too!  As I am turning 41... my dad is turning 70!  There's so much to be thankful for!  Praying that we will be able to celebrate many more years filled with PEACE with the ones we love!

Numbers 6:24-26 (New International Version)

 ²⁴ "The LORD bless you
       and keep you;
 ²⁵ the LORD make his face shine upon you
       and be gracious to you;
 ²⁶ the LORD turn his face toward you
       and give you peace." '