Tupouatas around the World

Chatted with MarkyBo recently (smiles to Tate*tatefaaumu.blogspot.com*) and from the looks of things, he's doing good! It reminded me that I haven't done an elder update in a while!

These cool guys decided to make life easy for themselves and started sending mass emails with updates about how they're doing along with pictures. I figured instead of writing my own update, I'd post their most recent ones. For all of you ladies out there who are looking for an RM in another year or so...pay close attention to the email addresses I'm gonna post. Maybe you'll end up on the mass email list. ;-)

Elder Mark Tupou Ata
Quezon City, Philippines
mark.ata@myldsmail.net
magandang gabi mga kapatid!!

In an attempt to get some emails and to not have to reply to everyone at once..i decided to finally do one of these groups emails. so..so far im in my 3rd area san miguel bulacan. baliwag zone ive trained and been a district leader, ive lost 64pounds and now can officially speak the language..lol..as for the work it has been great..many mistakes but no regrets. the church is true and i will try to keep this updated..dont have lots of time right now so this one is actualy pretty whack but watevs..write me peeps...ask me anything!!...love u all.

ingat kayo lagi.. sa susunod nalang!


Elder Eric Tuihalangingie
Marshall Islands
alika.tuihalangingie@myldsmail.net
HEY WORLD. HOW YAH BEEN?

WELL THE MISSIONS GOIN WELL FOR ME AND MY COMP HERE IN THE OUTIES, HAVING FUN SERVIN THE LORD. I MEAN YOU GOTTAH HAVE FUN WHILE YOUR AT IT RIGHT? HAHA. HOPE ALL IS GOOD WITH YOU WORLD. WELL HERES A FEW PICS FROM THESE PAST COUPLE WEEKS. NOTHIN BUT THE WORK. TILL NEXT TIME.

GET AT ME.


Elder Siaosi Tupou'ata
Sao Paulo, Brazil
siaosi.tupouata@myldsmail.net
Eai Seus Bandidos

wassup everybody. i hope all is well with you all. another week down on the mission. time flys when your having fun lol man ive learned so much being in a different country and a different world. ive learned how much i took for granted the small things that i have in my life like my family and friends that are always there for me, the roof ive always had over my head,food on the table always, and even the toilet paper i used for you know what lol. here in a third world country you dont always got those things. its sad seeing it but im doing my best to help them find a better way of life through the gospel of Jesus Christ. ive met so many cool people and so many crazy people but they have all helped me grow physically, mentally and spiritually. i know that God lives and he loves us all. hope you all are doing good and staying busy. i miss you all and love you all so much. hit me up with some updates on how the world is on your side. know that its looking pretty good on mines lol much love from ya boi Elder Tupouata........

Fica firme na rocha ai. eu amo voces com todo meu coracao.espero que tudo ta bem com voces.
throwin up the deuces

Elder Tali Tuihalangingie
Honolulu, Hawaii
tali.tuihalangingie@myldsmail.net
well hows it?? The mission is still the best thing going!! I'm still serving here in the Honolulu Zone, and im going on six months in this area. I got new companions now, an elder Ence from St. George Utah, and an Elder Wagner from Bellvue Ohio. The mission is flying bye, and man its been a blast. The work here in this area is solid. We cover the Honolulu Tongan ward, and the Kahala Ward. The Tongan ward is cool, they push missionary work tuff!, and they love the missionaries. The Kahala ward is cool, but they aint really pushing at all. So far i have no complaints about the area or the mission, besides all the fetchin food they feed us..haha...i guess i gotta be greatful, i know some of you out there on the mission is starving, but man i know the Lord got you wherever you might be. Well enough aobout me, hows everything going back wherever you might be?? hows the work for you missionaries? Hopefully you love it, because ots the best, i know it is!!!, well alohaz and mahaloz...have a solid day!!!

Peanut Butter Bars

I found this recipe online and LOVED it! Not only because it's soooooo good but even more because it's so easy. No baking involved! I tweaked it just a little to cater to the chocolate lovers at home but it's still super simple. Just a little mixing, a quick chill and voila! All done. My kids and Siua are HUGE peanut butter fans. Add a little chocolate to the mix and it's like Heaven. Enjoy!!

1 cup butter or margarine, melted
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup peanut butter
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
4 tablespoons peanut butter


In a medium bowl, mix together the butter or margarine, graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar, and 1 cup peanut butter until well blended. Press evenly into the bottom of an ungreased pan.

In a metal bowl over simmering water, or in the microwave, melt the chocolate chips with the peanut butter, stirring occasionally until smooth. Spread over the prepared crust. Refrigerate for at least one hour before cutting into squares. That's it!!!

Wordless Wednesday - Celebrity Edition

Highlights - Feb 2012

I saw a tweet today regarding HIGHLIGHTS of February from the one and only Miss Kulu (http://misskulu.blogspot.com or @yummmmmmmmmy) and thought it was a cute idea! Why not put a little spotlight on the things that stuck out in a month. It's so easy to let the little things float away with time. I figured in order to help myself remember the small, simple things, I'd do a little monthly highlight myself via blogs! So here's my very first "highlight" blog.

February 2012 Highlights
-Courtney's Baptism and the blessings of her twins Taylor and Tabitha. What a sweet weekend! It was so nice to see my lifelong friend become a member of the church and bless her daughters in this great gospel! She's still beaming.
-Salomay's house warming. Girls who are like sisters, Games and FOOD!!! Need I say more? Super happy for my sister boo and her new digs!
-Siua's trip to Vegas. That guy was BEAMING! He had a blast and he totally deserved it!
-Work, work and more work! I started at Hercules Technology in PA. First time working in Palo Alto and so far, I love it!
-Boys started at Boys and Girls club and they are really enjoying the after school activities and structure. I love hearing their sweet stories about what new things they did.
-Luvie is STILL potty training! When will it stop? After this experience I can confirm, boys are ten times easier than girls! My sweet face is doing a good job though.
-Valentines day! Nothing better than a whole day to celebrate LOVE. Watched Safe House with the hubs and had dinner at King Fish with Tangi and Vita Kioa after. Good times!
-Papa is LOVING piano with Connie! She's such an amazing teacher.
-We performed an indian number at our ward conference. It was fun!
- FHE with the extended Oakland fam is always a treat! We decided we're going to do it once a month from now on.
-I officially hit the 30lbs mark for my weight loss. THANK GOODNESS!!

On to March it is! I can't wait for all of the fun things this month has in store for my little family! I can't believe we're into the end of the first quarter of 2012!

Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

Wow! It's been several weeks even a full month since the last time I blogged. Soooooooo much has changed but we'll get to that later. More importantly, today is Valentines Day!!! Oh how I LOVE an entire day dedicated to LOVE! I've said it before and if you know me it's pretty obvious that I'm not a PDA kinda gal. I keep my love and affection behind closed doors. ;-) My poor hubby is super sensitive and affectionate so sometimes he says I'm "cold" for my lack of mushy-ness. But today is valentines day and I have been lucky enough to be married to my hubby for 10 years this year. So I think it's about time he gets a special shot out.

One of my little sisters asked me recently how it's possible to be with someone for so long and still continue to be interested in one another. I felt like it was a question that I couldn't answer because I have no clue! 10 years seems long, but in the grand scheme of things it's just the tip of the iceberg. What I do know is that I couldn't have been blessed with a more perfect match.

This past weekend Siua had the opportunity to go to Vegas for the Rugby 7's with his brother and cousins. I had no interest in going and since he's never really gotten the chance to have a "Guys Getaway" I thought it was a good idea for him to go. My poor babies cried real tears the night their dad left. He was only going to be gone for 3 full days but since he had never really gone anywhere for an extended period of time they took it extra hard. It was bittersweet to watch them get teary eyed when they said their goodbyes. It took forever to convince them that we had a fun weekend planned and dad would be home in no time.

I tried to entertain my babies over the weekend with fun things to keep their mind off of the fact that their dad was out of town. I had the hardest time! No matter what fun activity we did, they continued to ask "how many more days?" and "can we call daddy?". Man that guy has some hard shoes to fill! From the day each of our kids were born, Siua has managed to build a strong bond with them individually. Thanks to his sweet surprises and the time that he dedicates to making them happy, all three of our kids are majorly attached to their dad. Needless to say, they made it through the weekend and Siua was home by Sunday night.

After reflecting on the days we spent apart, I realized exactly how lucky I am. Not only is he an amazing and inspiring Dad, Siua is endlessly supportive of all of the things that I take on. While he isn't Mormon himself and has his own reasons for why he hasn't converted, he still continues to allow me to take our children to church and even joins because he believes that as a family, we should be at church together on Sundays. I'm constantly volunteering to help with different tasks at home, work and church without thinking twice about how I'm going to juggle it all because I know I have his help. Whether I'm on the move with a random project or trying out something new he's never once complained about having to deal with my random things. In the entire time that we've been married he's called me the same thing, no matter how much weight I gained or lost, whether I was all dressed and ready to go out or just waking up in the morning, while the hospital bed for whatever reason or just hanging out at home, Siua has always called me "Beautiful". He's never used any other mushy name or loving phrase and over time I've grown used to it. So much so, that I forget how simply sweet it is.

I'm not an easy person to live with, I admit it. At times my mom asks Siua how he could possibly deal with my strong personality, neat freakyness, loud mouth and strong will for so long. LOL I'm lucky. I realize that and I couldn't be more grateful for the loving husband, best friend and patient father that is the head of our family.

Happy Valentines Day cool guy. Enjoy your shot out for now, it's back to private business tomorrow. <3

Papa-Dapa-Lous

-We turned 21!
-Attended my very first concert, Siua had gone to one before.
-Found out that I had gall stones.
-Siua and I actually saved and bought a car with ONLY our money.
-Went in and out of the emergency room 27 times because of Gall Bladder pains.
-I had an emergency Gall Bladder removal surgery which was my very first surgery.
-My brother Rich left for his mission.
-My cousins Ginger and Harold returned from theirs.
-Siua lost his father. (10/19/03 R.I.P. Kineleti Nisa)

Yup, ALL of these major events occurred between the time I found out I was pregnant with Papa and the time he was born. Needless to say, my pregnancy was a stressful and difficult one. Most especially after the loss of Siua's dad. After having emergency surgery at just 4 months pregnant and suffering through my entire first tri-mester because of gall bladder pains, the sudden passing of the head of Siua's family made me feel as if all of my past months troubles were a breeze. Kineleti had a major stroke and passed away suddenly on the morning of October 13th, just 6 days before Siuas 21st birthday. I was 7 months pregnant.

Two months later, my sweet baby boy was born. Siua's Auntie Meta was in town because of Leti's funeral and she was due to leave at the end of that week. Our Papa came 2 weeks early on December 13th. EXACTLY two months to the day that Siua's dad passed. He was due Christmas Eve and Siua's auntie was convinced that he was born on that day for a reason. She named him Kineleti Mt. Eden Nisa, after his grandfather and his final resting place. He got his nickname "Papa" after Isabel (Gos and Isa's daughter who was the only grandchild before Papa) asked Siua what the babies name was. Siua replied with "Kineleti" and Isabel said "That's Papa!" meaning her Grandpa's name. Her innocent 2 year old response stuck. :-) Papa must have known that his parents were tired and drained because after 9 long hard months, he made his grand entrance into this world after a short 52 minutes of labor. We couldn't have been more in love and he couldn't have come at a more perfect time. It was the hardest most trying time for his dad and he couldn't possibly know it, but we needed him more than he needed us. I'm convinced that my short and sweet labor was a small indication of what a sweet tempered, mild mannered boy we were blessed with. He was such a mild tempered, easy baby and he has proven to be just as easy through his childhood so far. He never hesitates to help and he's always anxious to learn new things. He and I happen to share a love of baking and cooking which is so exciting for me. My Papa man couldn't be any more perfectly built to be the oldest of my children and I can't believe he turned 8 this week. It's crazy how time flies!

Happy Birthday Papadapalous. I love you more than you know Papa man! Endlessly and Unconditionally. <3

Bloggers Block

Geez it's been a while! I promise I'm not intentionally staying away! Those who are FB friends or twitter followers know that I haven't been keeping up with that much either. It's just been CRAZY busy for some reason! A lot has been going on and I hope to play bloggers catch up real soon. We all know we're fast approaching my favorite time of the year so hopefully I'll have some fun things to share real soon. I wish I could commit to doing a "Thankful" list which has become popular this month. Maybe I'll do one long blog soon to list all of the many things I am so grateful for. It just wouldn't be right to let November pass without giving (and documenting) the many things I am so truly thankful for. So stay tuned...I know I'm dropping the ball but I promise I'll start juggling again real soon. ;-)