Happy Halloween!

Here is your first taste of a pictorial essay on Halloween 2009.

Stay tuned for more photos.


I promise we'll explain everything.

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Leave your captions as comments, and we'll pick the winner. Contest closes at 11:59pm CST on Oct 31.

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"Give me your bananas George, and I'll let go of your ears" in an Italian mafia voice.

Sailors sing 'Happy Birthday'

October is a busy month in Okinawa. The humidity dropped from 95 to 80 percent, so locals are pulling on sweaters and drinking hot cocoa. I continue to be warm and missing the chilly autumn weather of home. We bought some pumpkin lanterns for Olivia's first Halloween.

I have a lot of blogging to get caught up on ... so much to say about a used kimono sale, sweet potato festival and the world's biggest tug of war. Plus Olivia turned 7 months old and I have a photo of her taken on Oct. 8 somewhere in my computer. I'm still working to locate it.

But first let's recap the Navy Ball, held on Oct. 11.


We joined the dentists, doctors, post office clerks and public affairs officers around the island to celebrate the Navy's birthday.









And while we were at the Navy Ball, Olivia was in good hands, my friend, Diana.

Thankfully Olivia Sleeps Through the Night

Because Mom and Dad found enough other ways to wake up early on our own.

4am: Phone rings, "Have you seen the score of the Iowa State game? They're beating Nebraska 9-7 at the end of the 2nd quarter." Benny responds, "Don't get me wrong, I'm cheering for ISU, but there is still plenty of time... and they're playing in Nebraska."

4:05am: Benny checks AFN, the game is not televised here, and goes back to bed.

5:30am: Benny's phone goes off, he forgot about the calendar event reminder for the run at Camp Kinser this morning. His other alarm (the one he set last night) wasn't supposed to go off until 6:15am.

5:45am: Benny calls the gym at Kinser to see if the run has been cancelled due to rain (there is a tropical storm that's expected to hit tomorrow). No one wants to drive 45 minutes one way just to find out it's been cancelled. He hears a motivated "NO, we're still running."

5:50am: Benny comes back to bed to sleep another 25 minutes.

6:00am: Benny gets out of bed because he can't sleep. He checks the Iowa State score and sees "Iowa St. forces 8 turnovers, 4 inside the 5-yard line, in upset of Nebraska."

6:05am: Benny emails his old coworker in Yuma who is a HUGE Nebraska fan.

6:30am: After oatmeal and yogurt, Benny heads out into the rain the for the run at Camp Kinser.

It's going to be a motivated great day!

"She was the anchor that held us all together"

In the class, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, there is an emotional exercise where you think about your funeral. You think about the future and what you would want your friends and family members to say about you once you are gone. How would your children describe you as a mother? What would your husband say? How the friends that you have made over the course of a life?

Then you write down these statements. And using those statements as a guide, you write a mission statement and daily goals based on those principles. For example, I wrote that I would want my friends to say that I never forgot their birthdays and no matter where I lived I helped in a small way to make their day special. (Which is why the belated birthday cards I have sitting in my living room are becoming a HUGE weight on my shoulders.)

A year ago, I spent a lot of time thinking about this exercise and applying these principles to my life.

And then I forgot about it. Life happened. Excuses took over. And I lost focus of my personal mission statement and daily goals worksheet. Until this morning.

I was reading online the obituary of my aunt’s mother. I know my cousins are grieving the loss of their grandmother. And anytime a friend or loved one experiences a death of their grandmother, the feelings of my own grandmother’s death swell in my chest immediately. Obviously I can’t physically provide my support by attending the funeral, but I was thinking about my aunt, uncle and cousins, so I decide to search online for Annabel’s obituary during my morning break at work.

I read it completely from beginning to end. And again. And again. I only met Annabel a few times and knew her only as Mary’s mom, so I learned a lot about her life in that short piece. The obit reminded me of those times I saw her and her positive smile and loving hug.

Then I read this:

Those who knew her best all remember …

God gave us the gift of an earthly Angel in the life of our Mother Annabel. Words cannot adequately express the blessing she has been to all of us … she beamed with joy whenever she was around and showed us how to truly love one another. And now, whenever we reach out and touch someone else in life, it will primarily be because of her influence and example.

She never had an ill wish or a bad word for anyone. She welcomed everyone into her life and home. In the hardest times she knew what to say and provided her family and friends with the blessing of her unconditional love and support. She thought about everyone else's needs first. She was the anchor that held us all together.

Mom's laugh was contagious. Who else laughs with their entire body - eyes, mouth, shoulders and belly? We should all have the joy of life like she did. For her it was easy to laugh and smile; easy to show love and kindness to anyone; easy to be God's witness of faithfulness and unwavering love for her Lord.

She was the ultimate caretaker - cooking, serving, worrying and praying for those she loved or even those she had just met. Grandchildren were the special recipients of her unconditional love. She especially enjoyed cooking their favorite foods (chicken noodle soup!!!) and homemade biscuits, sharing stories, playing cards, watching movies and of course giving them her undivided attention as they told of the happenings in their life.

She has completed a wonderful journey and now God has called her home. May the Lord bless and keep you, Annabel Irish Kazynski, for you are with the Angels in Heaven smiling down on all of us. Always in our hearts. Well done, good and faithful servant.

This obit reads like a personal mission statement for Annabel’s life. I would like to adopt it as my own personal mission statement to shape my future decisions and actions.

Annabel touched many lives. Today she touched my heart.

Final Stop: San Fran

We made one final pit stop before boarding the United Airlines long flight to Tokyo. We went to one of my favorite cities in the world: San Francisco.

We stayed at a great hotel for military and retired military families located right in downtown San Francisco for a reasonable price. Much cheaper than the time I took my sister Rachel to this California city.

Only hours after arriving, former Yuman and reporter peer, Tammy, met us in the city. She drove from Reno to spend this time with us. Tammy tagged along as we went shopping, sightseeing and eating. Lots and lots of eating. Luckily Tammy packed her appetite.

Since this was our last stop, I was obsessed with trying to eat as much American food as I could ... all the good stuff I can't get in Okinawa.

So we ate Mexican.

And clam chowder with Anchor Steam beer.

And Italian. This is when (Iowa State drinking buddy) Jim, Brooke and Mylie (who live near Fresno) had dinner with us. They were also generous enough to hop on the train and come into the city for dinner one night. But we were talking and eating so much I completely neglected to take a picture of all of us.

And I also had Cheesecake Factory cheesecake.

My only regret? Not saving room for a corn dog on the pier.

Want to see more photos from this visit, click on Tammy's name above.

It's my vacation and I'll sleep where I want to

Don't take this the wrong way: Olivia is a good baby. She adjusted to the time zone great on the trip. And she was herself on the trip. She was good natured most of the time. She loved the attention from her family and friends. And she continued her 20 minute cat naps.

Everyone was instructed to hold her and not move when she fell asleep. And 20 minutes later, she would wake up refreshed and ready to play some more.

Olivia slept when she wanted to, where she wanted to.

Grandma Donna was a comfortable pillow, apparently.




Same can be said for Grandpa Roy's recliner:



In Aunt Lynne's arms:


I wonder if she will be able to sleep anywhere,anytime when she is 21 years old, like her aunt Rachel:


Or 29 years old, like her dad:

Only time will tell.

Whatever she can get her hands on

Olivia mastered two developmental milestones on this vacation.

1) She learned to roll over from her stomach to her back, her back to her stomach, and back again. She figured out how to roll on purpose to get something that she wanted.

2) She also greatly improved her hand-eye coordination, which meant that she tried to grab everything we were doing ... especially when we were eating.



Here is Olivia showing off her grabbing skills:

Farm life

Finally, Olivia got her first sniff of farm life. She heard the crickets chirping. She explored Grandma's garden. She got to ride with Grandpa in his big John Deere tractor. This was the first time she rode in a tractor, which may seem funny to city folks, but it is definitely a milestone in farm life.

As a child, I don't remember the first time I rode in a tractor. But I do remember requesting to do this activity a lot, especially when my Grandpa Kann was visiting us in either the fall or the spring. I always wanted to make sure that I got a tractor ride with Grandpa. I have a feeling that Olivia will asking for the same thing when she is older.

Olivia also got to see the Mississippi River for the first time. She got a bird's eye view when we were hiking at the Pikes Peak State Park.


Then from the park in downtown Guttenberg.


She spent a single afternoon with her each of her aunts. I forgot to take photos at Rachel's apartment and when we went out for dinner. Sorry Rachel.


But I did remember to take a few pictures at Colleen's house, including the first time that Olivia's toes touched grass. It was in Colleen's backyard.



They say that time flies when you are having fun and that definitely happened when we were in the States.

Olivia's first friend

In Iowa, Olivia met her future Iowa State college roommate.

Yup, Olivia you have no choice in the matter. You have to live with Sidney. Sidney is a month younger than Olivia and she lives in Kansas City. Sidney's mom, Dani, and I are friends from Iowa State. We met in 1998 (wow, that's feels so old to say that) in the dorms in Ames and have been friends ever since.

Dani's parents let me tag along with them during Parents Weekend at Iowa State. Dani also planned our spring break vacations, including an unforgettable week in Cancun, Mexico (my first time out of the country). Dani was my maid of honor. She was one of the few who came to visit me when I lived in Wichita Falls, Texas. I was her matron of honor. And this year, we both became mothers.

So it was definitely special and thoughtful of her and Curt drive 6 hours north to Guttenberg to meet Olivia. We were super excited to be introduced to Sidney. What a sweet and quiet baby. Olivia needs to learn how to nap like that girl.

The only bummer was how fast the weekend went. I wish Dani and I could have spent more time together and swapped more stories about motherhood.

Four generations

Also at the party, Olivia met Great Grandpa Wille and Dorothy. They are the nice people who have sent her so many gifts. Great Grandpa even had a special piggy bank made especially for Olivia. She will always treasure it.

In the Hawkeye State and Cyclone Country

Olivia was hugged by her second cousins during a party that Grandma Donna held in her honor. It was a fun relaxed party at my parent's house. A great group of people came and stayed late into the night.

Twice as Late as I was to Arrive Into This World

You do the math, Olivia was two weeks late x 2 = 4 weeks. These are Olivia's six month pictures we had taken in Minnesota, thanks for the tutu Ms. Dre.

Disclaimer: these pictures arrived in the mail last week.

Aunties!!!

In Iowa, Olivia was spoiled for the first time, but not last time, by her two aunts, Colleen and Rachel.