I miss My Fisherman!

Brandon is still commercial fishing with my dad. He looks forward to it every year and I am so thankful that he has a window into the life that I lived and grew up in. I believe working on his A'pa's boat has taught him many things; an excellent work ethic, the value of money, taking pride in one's work, etc. Our family has been fishermen for generations and I am so pleased he is keeping up with the tradition. My dad prides himself in Brandon's willingness and reputation as a young fisherman. He has already experienced 12 years on the good ole Bristol Bay! My buttons are bursting to know he has become such a strong and smart fisherman. I just miss him. Lots. Soon he will be going into 7th grade. I am so blessed to have such a smart, athletic and generous 12 year old, son and big brother. He is a ray of sunshine everywhere he goes.

Super Boys!

Two of the cutest boys you ever saw in your life.

Going into first grade

My baby is going to be a first grader? He absolutely loved kindergarten and the entire school routine. He is ready, I'm not. He has lost a couple more teeth. Three in all, all on the bottom. I cringe every time I look in his mouth though. We had our annual summer exams at the dental office and the dentist smiled at me and told me to "start saving" immediately. Orthodontics are definitely in his future. I just pray that as he grows he will start to have a little more room in his mouth for the permanent teeth as they grow in. Right now, his poor little gums are bursting at the seams, even with his itty-bitty baby teeth.
He is definitely an outside boy. He would spend every waking minute of his summer on his bike if we'd let him. He rides like a wild man too. Every inch of his body is witness to his craziness. Seems every night at bedtime I find more cuts, scrapes and bruises that even he didn't know about. The picture here shows one of his recent battle scars, poor baby. The handle bar did some damage during this wipe-out.

Tysen Layne

Ty is such a firecracker. He is always making us smile. We went shopping one day and he found this super cute hat in Target. He put the hat on and it totally fit his personality. When he smiles his dimple pops out and he makes my heart melt. He posed himself for this picture and it turned out perfect.

As a mother of four boys now, I have recently felt the need to take in EVERY sweet moment. For instance, I love watching my babies sleep. They look so calm, sweet and innocent while they sleep. I kiss them and wish this time with them could last longer. I blink and they grow two inches. I turn around and its time to buy new pants, shoes and shirts. I blink again and months have already gone by. I hope that as they grow older they will look back through the years and remember them as fondly as I will. I hope they cherish the memories and that it will all mean as much to them as it all does to me.

Mason is a two year old!

Well I am a month late, but my baby is now a two year old. I can't believe how fast he flew through his baby phase. Now he is using the potty, learning to talk and riding his tricycle 60MPH in the front yard. He is the classic younger brother and thinks he can do everything his older brothers can do. It is wonderful to see him to active and learning more every day, but Mommy is just having an emotional time knowing that he is already past those baby stages!

Basketbal, Basketball!

Brandon is playing in the Matsu Comp Spring league for the Wasilla team. He usually does not get the chance to play ball during this time of the year and was really excited about extending what is his usual season every year. He is actually playing for a different school (his rival school no less... haha) but just smiles whenever he has to play his home Colony team. He has been playing well and it is exciting for me to see how his skills continually improve. Donovan is finishing up his 3 month basketball clinic at the gym and is dying to take the next class. He cracks me up because he keeps a running total of all the baskets he makes during his practices. He always gives me a daily tally and a total for the season as well. Cute kid.

Easter and Donovan's 6th Birthday

We celebrated Easter, and Donovan's sixth birthday together this year. All the snow was melted off the ground and it was an excellent day to be together and enjoy the day outside. Donovan had chosen a spiderman themed party and Tysen even dressed up in his Spidey costume for the event. We hunted tons and tons of eggs in our yard then came inside for cake and presents.

Native Dance videos

The first Aluutiq dance was about a long-haired woman who had five sons: #1 the eldest, #2, #3 the rubbernecker, #4 the carver, and #5 the baby. It also talks about the three chiefs in the village.The second dance was the Aluutiq traveling song, "Ayadonga."

The third dance was a Yupik dance about a bird walking along who saw thunder and lightening in the sky. It was scared so it ducked into a hole, leaving it's tail feathers in the air, shaking with fear.

The last dance we did was a Yupik Lullaby for little boys. It means "Go go sleep. Don't be afraid. Dream of seal hunting."

Native Dancing

The boys and I joined the MatSu intertribal dance group a few months ago and we have learned about 6 dances. We learned 2 Aluutiq songs and then somehow I became the Yupik instructor. Anyhow, we meet every Tuesday and last night was the boys' first performance. We danced at the MatSu diversity celebration. I spent the day making Ty a new kuspuk (red one) and making the boys their dance fans. They looked adorable. So much so, that the superintendent had to make his way over to introduce himself to us. The boys have been practicing their dances here at home, practically shouting each and ever word to each other, dancing every move but somehow they danced much differently when we were actually onstage. I don't know if it was stage fright or if they just forgot what we were supposed to be doing but they said they still had a blast. Afterwards, we gorged ourselves on yummy fry bread, did some beading crafts, and learned NYO events like the Alaskan high kick, one-foot and two-foot high kicks. What a fun day!

April 14 - A busy Day

Today was an exciting day in the Kelly Household. Brandon received a high honor roll recognition and Donovan had his first (singing) concert. Unfortunately, both happy occurances were scheduled at the same exact hour. So, Dad and Tysen turned right to go support Brandon as he received his reward at Colony Middle School, and Mason and Mom turned left to go to Cottonwood Elementary to watch Donovan.

Brandon received recognition, a new CMS knight t-shirt and a well deserved ice cream treat afterwards.

Donovan learned a song for every letter in the alphabet and performed all 26 songs alongside his classmates and other fellow two kindergarten classes. It was a very cute performance. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

We are so blessed by our children and so proud of their accomplishments..... great job, boys!

Last night Brandon's Colony team played Wasilla first, then the Eagle River team. He played well; scored 17 points, 3 being foul shots. Here he is making one of them.

Donovan is infactuated with Basketball like his big brother. Phillip and I just signed him for for a 12 week session at the club. It doesn't start for another month but he is soooo excited! He wants to be just like his big brother and is going to learn how to dribble, shoot and pass like a pro!

Mason is such a big boy now.

As much as I'd hate to admit it, gone are my baby days with Mason Zayne. He is such a big boy now and gets irritated with me whenever I try to feed him. So much that, he will often clamp down till he is able to feed himself! haha. He loves oatmeal and cereal for breakfast. Here he is enjoing a bowl of Rice Chex (Gluetin free! haha) this morning.

Bring it on!

Well, this is Bradon's 7th year in basketball. He started playing for the YMCA in Kindergarten, and has played basketball for different organizations every year since. He finished up with his Colony Middle School team in December and now he is playing in the Valley Competetive League again. He really loves it and I just can't hardly wait till Saturdays when I get to watch him! He is really developing as a player and his ever-increasing height helps too. He is CONVINCED that he will be playing in the NBA one day... hahaha. I will wish him luck and cheer him along in the meanwhile. Cuz I'm #24's Mama! Woot Woot!

I MISS THIS....

Hawaii was so beautiful = not that Alaska isn't the most beautiful place on earth. But I miss the waves crashing on the shore, the warmth of the sun on my shoulders and the gentle breeze that brought hints of the sea to your senses.

Family pictures from Hawaii

Zoo in Hilo

We traveled to Hilo one day, the other side of the island. Can you believe the zoo there is free? The kids fell in love with the silly monkeys and the Siberian white tiger. Look how close he was to my babies!

aloha

Aloha

Mason only says a few words.... Mama, Dada, num num, yeah, dit doo (thank you). But out of the blue in Hawaii he copied me when I said aloha. I got a kick out of it and had Brandon video him with my phone. Of course, not that we are home he won't say it again.

Donovan learns how to snorkel

Donovan got brave while we were in Hawaii. He learned how to snorkel and swim underwater. I had to watch him closer each day because he ventured further and further out into the deep waters and large waves. He had a blast and kept going back for more. He wants to go back soon!

Hula Daddy Coffee Plantation

http://www.huladaddy.com/watch-kona-coffee-grow.htm

While in Hawaii we had the wonderful time visiting the Hula Daddy Coffee Plantation. They took us on a tour of the place, we did coffee tasting and it turned out to be one of my favorite experiences in HI. We ventured down into the growing area where we were taught how to pick coffee. We split our beans, tasted them and then were shown and taught about the roasting processes. I had my first cup of extra fancy coffee - the most prized coffee available! It was divine! The coffee bean tasted sweet and fruity in your mouth. And did you know that some coffee beans do not have a half split? These are the rarest coffee beans in the world - and both Donovan and Brandon picked one of them while we were there. You can go online and watch the tours or even watch them roasting their coffee live on the webcams. Talk about amazing. I realized nearly everything I thought I knew about coffee was wrong. For instance.... the medium roasts actually have more caffeine than the darker roasts. All you night owls keep that in mind!

Family Vacation, Dec 2010

We celebrated a short Christmas this year then zipped to Anchorge and boarded the airplane to take our first family vacation as a family of six. We ventured to Kona, Hawaii and let me tell ya, I didn't wanna leave. We stayed at a friends house up on the mountain. It had three bedrooms, two baths and was perfect. We were able to cook our meals, and relax. I am ever greatful to my friend Sherri for letting us stay at her home. Mom and Dad met us there and it was special to share the time with them (and have the extra help!) One day, we chartered a fishing boat to go marlin fishing but got skunk. Bummer. We did, however, see whales, porpoise and other small fish. Aside from the charter, we didn't do a whole lot of the many things the island had to offer, it was just too expensive for 8 of us. so, we mostly just hung out at the beach. Which is what I wanted to do in the first place! Brandon learned how to boogie board like a pro and even tried his hand at body surfing towards the end of the trip. Phillip got to snorkel and we saw soooo much more at Turtle Bay then we ever saw on Oahu in past trips. In a one minute glance I saw more fish than I ever saw on our honeymoon. Yellow, striped, long, short, fat, weird and beautiful... we saw such a wonderful array of saltwater fish. There was an abundance of sea turles as well. The boys sat on lava rock a mere 10 inches from them as they fed and basked in the sun. I didn't get to parasail like I had hoped but this time together was sooo worth it. Donovan learned how to swim underwater but it was Mason that surprised me. He was not intimidated by the huge waves crashing on the beach. He was ready to trudge out there, preferably without us. He even learned how to boogie board, not bad for a one-year-old! We can't wait to go back. Phillip things we should try Maui next. Hopefully it won't be another 7 years between our visits because I miss it. already.