Get Masters Degree ~ Done!

" Hey everybody, guess what?! My daddy just finished his MBA program. I don't know what that means but Mommy, Nate, and Drew are all excited and so I am too!"

We've had some rough times during this MBA program. It felt like months that Scott was away 1 or 2 nights a week for class (oh yeah, it was months!). Some of us didn't know if we were going to make it!!

But as you can see, we are all smiling; happy to have Scott home, proud of his accomplishment! So what is the graduate doing now.....


just chillin'.

Scott, we know how hard you worked to complete this goal. We missed you all those Monday and Tuesday nights you were in class and those Saturday & Sunday afternoons you spent in your quiet office writing your papers. Your perseverance has paid off. We congratulate you for all your hard work and dedication. Thank you for being a positive role model to us.

We love you!!! Jean, Nate, Drew, and Lilymei

Now sit back and relax at your conference and "down time" in Las Vegas.

Our Newest Promotion, Star Scout!

Congratulations Nate! Nate has just earned the rank of Star Scout in just over a year. We are so proud of him and impressed with how well he has done.
Keep up the good work Nate, only two more ranks to Eagle Scout!

Nate is going to be busy this weekend with cooking for Drew's Cub Scout Pack. He has been busy earning merit badges and is up to about 14 now.

Congrats again Nate, we are so proud of you.
Love
Mom and Dad
P.S. We just want to say Happy 30th Anniversary to Sam and Gayle (Scott's Parents)!

Cub Scout Project

This is a cub scout project that Drew has been working on. He decided to build a wooden stool for Lily to use in the bathroom. Since Lily is potty training now, we are in the bathroom a lot, therefore we are washing our hands a lot! Drew's project has really helped Lily enjoy washing up. She's such a big girl now. Lily is going on 4 weeks wearing "big girl pants". Woo-hoo! Way to go Lily!!!







Drew is so proud of his handy work. Scott and I are too! The plan is to paint the stool when we get to DC. I thought it would be cute to have Lilymei's name on it, maybe with some flowers.











Lily loves her new stool. She tried it out several ways.....this way, upside down, on it's side; you get the idea.

March already?!

Let's get serious here. We are down to our last 3 months on the island. Where did the time go? Scott and I have procrastinated in getting our "Bucket List" written of all the things we want to see and do before it's time to go. Our main focus is on school. As you can see below even Lilymei is studying. No, Lily does not wear glasses now. It looks more like Drew has taken a break from his school work and wants to see if Lily can finish it for him.

Oops! Who put Lily in that basket? It looks like she is upset but she really does like to sit in there. I think she is looking for someone to play hide and seek with her.

Lily loves to wear the boys' mowing hats. She knows Saturdays are mowing days and she will promptly point outside and yell "Mow!" when she sees Scott and the boys getting their gear together. Right now the boys are mowing between 8 and 10 yards a weekend. When we get back to the mainland they are a little worried about how they can make money for their savings accounts.

I thought I would put up a couple of pictures of the boys too. I pulled some photos from 3 years ago. I can't believe how much both of them have grown. Take a look....

Drew, age 7, in Tokyo, Japan June 2006.

Drew, age 10, Guam February 2009

Nate, age 10, Ohio May 2006

Nate, age 13, Guam February 2009

As we stand now, Scott has 3 more weeks of school before he graduates with his MBA degree and the boys have 8 weeks of school left. Hooray! Now, who wants to come over and help me sort through boxes and closets before the movers get here......

Birthday week

"Who needs water and sun when you can sit in the pool and watch Baby Einstein?"

What a fun week we've had this past week. Saturday, the 28th, was my birthday and Scott and the kids had a fun week planned for me. Early in the week Scott brought home 3 bottles of one of my favorite wines. He had to grab three because there is such a run on that particular wine it is rarely in stock. Scott and I still have 2 bottles left......

On Thursday before dinner Scott walked me into Tiffany & Co. and he and the boys promptly purchased my birthday gift ~ silver entwined Tiffany rings.
WOW! What a gift. Thank you Scott, Nate, Drew, and Lily! Then we had dinner at my favorite restaurant and Scott surprised me by inviting a few of our good friends to join us. To my delight we were able to secure a couple of left-over bottles of the pink champagne that we had sipped on for our Valentine dinner....Banfi Rose Regale. Delicious!

"Party? I love parties!"

On my actual birthday Scott, Drew, and Lilymei took me to Lone Star for dinner. Nate was out with the Boy Scouts bowling, or else he would have been with us. Sunday evening we had friends over for a cookout and cake and ice cream. It was a really nice time. After all the party guests left and the kids were in bed Scott and I headed out for a walk. We were about half-way through our walk when something caught our attention and just across the street from us we saw a 20 foot high flame shoot out from one of the power stations on base. Immediately the whole base was out of power. We shortened our walk and came right home to check on the kids. Everyone was fine, so Scott and I spent the next half hour out on the lawn chairs watching the stars. We even saw a shooting star that streaked across the whole sky! I can't imagine that any of my upcoming birthdays will be like this one, at least as warm as this one unless we take a vacation.

Scott and his sweetie pie!

Check back for more birthday weekend photos. I need to get back to the boys' lessons!