This is our condo. Paul and Airi were a couple of buildings away but we ran back and forth and ate all of our meals together.

This is the Kurihara Family. Paul and Steve were mission companions. It just took Paul a while to find such a great woman like Airi and so his children are a little younger than ours. Even though the kids are different ages they all had fun together.

This is a beautiful view of the taro fields. As you go down the hill towards these fields there is a one lane bridge that everyone takes turns crossing. The locals have fought to keep it a one lane bridge.

This is the Kilauea Lighthouse. We wanted to go see it but found it was $5/person so we just drove a little higher and got a beautiful view.

Opaeka Falls on Kauai

For Christmas our dear friends, the Kurihara's, invited us to go to Kauai with them for a week. We had so much fun!! What a beautiful island! This is just one of the places we visited.

How High Can You Go?

Two blogs in one day?????? What else can you do on a rainy day when everything is canceled - besides cook for your husband? I've been wanting to put this on for a couple of weeks now but I haven't had time so today was the day. Every since Matt left on his mission we have had an extra bed. Casey didn't want the bed up in his room because it was taking up space so he just stacked it on his bed and made it higher. That really made Tanner and Cody jealous because a big tall bed looks so much fun. We had company not too long ago and so we took the extra matress off for them. When they left Tanner and Cody grabbed it and decided to make a really high bed in their room. They still sleep in the same bed together often (usually it is when one of them has seen a cockroach on their bed or something.) I went in the other morning to find the bed stacked and both of them in it. It was so high that it was tilting and Cody had rolled down into Tanner and Tanner looked like he was just about to roll off the bed. This picture is R-rated because Tanner sleeps in his underwear. (It's too hot to sleep in much else here.)

A Day Off

In Hawaii we have times when the clouds seem to open and it downpours for about five minutes and then it stops. Last night it downpoured all night long! It wasn't a slow steady rain, it poured all night. It is rare that we ever get thunder and lightening but it went throughout the night. I thought if it was real bad the power would go out but we never lost power. I awoke at 4:45 as usual to get ready for seminary. I left for the church an hour later with the rain still pouring down. I started driving with my windshielf wipes going on high speed. I drove my usual way but the road was flooded so I tried a new route. I never made it to the church. Everything has been canceled for the day. There is no school, very few stores are opened, roads are closed and bridges are "compromised." Many homes are full of water. BYU-Hawaii is closed except for the testing center. The Red Cross has moved in and set up shelters.
You think everyone would be in their homes enjoying a good video - but not in Hawaii. The kids are loving it. People are rafting and kayaking up and down the streets and having a blast. The rain has slowed but continues. Steve told me it seems like a baking day. I think that is a major hint so I'll spend the rest of the day making up some goodies. If the rain would have been snow we would really be ready for Christmas.

Give the Good Old Days

I was really looking forward to Thanksgiving this year. Steve is a bishop of a BYU ward and because most students do not go home for Thanksgiving the ward has a big Thanksgiving dinner. The students decided they wanted to wake up early and hike to Makapuu lighthouse. We would return about 1:00 p.m., pick up all the catered food and head to the church to eat. After eating we would all meet at the park for a game of football. Doesn't that just sound like the greatest Thanksgiving day? It sure did to me and I was excited. I wouldn't be slaving over the stove for two days and I could just take it easy. Anyone who has cooked a Thanksgiving dinner knows all the work that goes into it. The hardest thing is having everything ready at the same time to go on the table - the oven is going nonstop to cook the turkey, the fresh rolls, the desserts etc. In Hawaii where our electricity is at a premium (we always pay between $300-$400 monthly) that would even save us on our budget this month.

Everything went as planned. The hike was absolutely gorgeous. We hiked down from the lighthouse to the ocean where there were blow holes that the water spouted through every few minutes. (Remember my camera is not working properly so I have no pictures.) Tanner loved sticking his face as close as he could get it. He had the nicest hair style after a few blows. We even got introduced to the "pickle weed" which grows down on the rocks. We all ate several leaves and it truly tastes like a pickle. Three girls, from the Phillipines, got lost on the trail on their way back up and ran out of steam. They had to be rescued by the big strong guys from the ward. Other than that it was really a pleasant morning.

As we were driving home (Makapuu is on the other end of the island) I'm thinking how nice this day has been. The students picked up most of the food but Steve and I had to go get the turkeys. We went to the church and I'm slicing the turkey and getting hungrier by the minute. We offer a blessing on the food and the men let the woman go first to dish up. Naturally the first thing in line is rice. I pass it right up choosing instead to use that space for my mashed potatoes and gravy. That is really a treat here in Hawaii! After my plate was full I went back to the table and began to eat. The potatoes were fake! I couldn't believe it. Fake potatoes on Thanksgiving? I hear all the students around me saying how delicious everything is and I can't believe it. The salad was from a bag so it tasted like preservatives. The yams had been dumped out of a can with a few marshmellows thrown on top. I was really disappointed and so was the family! I guess with 80% of the ward from other countries they didn't even seem to notice this wasn't a real Thanksgiving dinner.

I really look forward to next year. I look forward to slaving over the stove, running up my electrical bill, trying to get everything on the table at the same time and still having it be warm. The more I thought about it the more I realized that you just don't get something great without hard work. I guess I have to learn that over and over again.

Peace in the Neighborhood

I just have to say I will be so glad when the elections are over. I've had enough of it all. I don't think either choice is that great. The funny thing is Tanner, our youngest, has really got involved. He makes me think of my nephew Jeremy who was a Rush Limbaugh follower at about age five, ok maybe six or seven years of age. We were driving into town the other day and they were talking on the radio about how Obama is a big pro-abortion man. They talked about how he even supports partial birth abortion and then went on to explain what it was. Tanner was appalled with what he heard and we discussed it openly. You can imagine his horror later that day when the neighbor posted a Obama/Biden sign in their front yard. After they had gone inside he went out to survey the problem. Then he hollered up to my bedroom window "Mom, look out the window and look at this sign." Keep in mind that here in Hawaii no one closes their windows so you can hear everything. He then asked if he could "burn the sign." I had him come in and we had a little discussion about how to act in such circumstances. He couldn't leave it alone though. About fifteen minutes later I hear him discussing the issue with the neighbor's two children, ages 11 and 8. He was asking them how they could support a "baby killer." I once again called him in and we had another little talk and I gave a stern warning. About ten minutes later I hear him chanting "Ralph Nader for president." I have to say that Steve and I have never spoke of Ralph Nader so I have no idea where he got that. We have never hooked up our TV in Hawaii and so his favorite website is CNN. To make a long story short we finally had to have him come inside for the rest of the day just to keep the peace in the neighborhood.

Why I Really Feel Old

Computers make me feel really old. I remember going to college many years ago and learning "key punch." Computers didn't exist! I try to keep up with technology but I think it moves too fast for me. About two months ago I began homeschooling. Maybe you cannot call it homeschooling because the boys are really in a school but everything is done on their laptops, (which the school furnishes for them) from home. Because we had more than one computer we order a "wireless" something so they could all be on at once. This week, out of the blue, Tanner's new laptop stopped picking up a wireless signal. I immediately texted Big Al, our family's computer specialist, for help. He was so great to hear the panic in my text and called. He proceeded to try to help me over the phone find out the problem. Keep in mind who he was working with! After trying a few things and still not figuring out the problem, he said in a very patient tone of voice "Look around on the sides or anywhere and see if you can find a switch that is the "on" "off" switch for wireless." I turned the computer upside down, sideways, and every which way and didn't see one single switch for wireless. He then asked what kind it was. I told him it was an HP and then he said to look above the keyboard by the power button and sure enough.... there was a little wireless logo. That is why I'm saying I really feel old when it comes to doing much on computers. Maybe I don't feel old.... maybe I just feel dumb!

Our Family Has Grown

Referring to the picture below you are probably wondering where we got the gorgeous dark haired girl in the picture. Since our move to Hawaii we have adopted two new daughters. The gorgeous one in the picture is our adopted daughter Puna. After graduation she moved to the mainland to keep our other gorgeous adopted daughter, Michelle company. Since Michelle was not here for family pictures we will have to post another photo of her. She is a professional photographer so we are hoping that she can make it back home over the Christmas holidays and then we will get photos of the whole family minus the missionaries.

Better Family Picture

We are waiting for our professional web designer to fix the top picture that we all have double chins in :) So until then here is one that makes us all look thinner.

From Tuellers

It's growin' now!

Tell me this doesn't make you laugh.. and i will call you a liar.

Beach Boys

Cody likes surfing more than Tanner, but since he can't go by himself he is constantly begging anyone to go. Today was a lucky day so we decided to document it.

A few of the 19th Ward students.

Kaena Point

There were two sea lions just laying on the rocks in the sun. We were able to get fairly close. Tanner got in the water and started swimming and one of the seal lions jumped in to go after him. He got out as fast as he could. They can be mean and he wasn't taking any chances.

Last weekend we hiked with Steve's ward to Kaena Point. It is the north west point of the island. It was really beautiful and we had a great time hiking and getting to know the students in the ward better. They are really great people!

This is the Tueller blog which we hope will allow our friends and family to keep up with our happenings here in Hawaii (and where ever else we might move in the future.) I'm not that great at keeping up with things so I'm hoping my children will help out and post along with me.