just a little blurb...

we just found out Antonio made Tech! yay! we are all so excited and proud of him!
sadly, we won't be able to attend his "pin-on" ceremony, cause he'll be back in the desert again.

Gratz to our boys

before we get further into our summer break...
i must comment on how well Michael and Donovan have done this school year. of course, i anticipate them doing well every year, but one step at a time.

Donovan past the first grade with all high marks; excelling in math and reading.
(additional note: when asking Dondan to put a new sheet on his bed, he replies, "that's too hard." my response, "no. it's not. you can do it." he retorts, "yes it is, it's NOT like math, math is EASY!") i always get a chuckle from that.
He did well adjusting to his new environment, considering the circumstances. getting acquainted was a little difficult at first, but in the end he made many new friends.

Michael has come a long way. I am so very proud of him, i will always be proud of our kids regardless, because i know they will do their best.
When we left WA we were still undergoing some therapies including biofeedback and tweaking meds to suite his needs. it's been a really, really long process for all of us. i was very stubborn and weary about using meds. (i think that's what held us back alot.) he finished the 7th grade with the bare minimum to pass and started this school year with "D's" and "F's" with an occasional "C". He brought his grades up, (we started on meds and worked on different ones) and staggered at "C's" and "B's" for a while. Anyone who knows Michael, knows he's very bright. aside from being a bookworm, he's very methodical in his thinking. So it was frustrating for him and for everyone who loves him to see him suffer this way. He was "labeled" and treated differently since he was in the first grade.
So, here we are 8th grade, starting over in a foreign country, thrown in the middle of the school year, different curriculum, new procedures, etc.... starting with his "B's" and "C's", DAY ONE! LABELED! ALREADY!
(i won't go into detail about those stories right now, but let's just say i have been in that school and in their faces several times. Not all the staff is bad, most of the teachers are for the students, but the administration staff leave VERY MUCH to be desired.)
a couple weeks in.... Michael "WOWS" them. not only that. he shuts them up by his performance. then, OH YES, he floors them with numerous projects and presentations. finally, jaws dropping as he reels in several honors and awards for outstanding grades and achievements.
He leaves that school with a 3.89 GPA.
yes. leaves. and i am so glad he is moving on to the High school next year. sure maybe there will be issues, but i can't stand that middle school. (did i mention that it's a new school and this is the first year they were open?! yeah, they have ALOT of modifications ahead of them.)
I would post some of these certificates, but Michael has "misplaced" them, he says they don't mean much to him, cause it's the fact that he came away with knowledge and experience, which he will always keep. kudos to you Mike.
NOTE: we did not attend the two separate awards ceremonies. the first one, i wasn't notified till the day of and the second, was a luncheon i was NOT bringing Nona to. We had our own celebrations at home. they were more fun and meant a whole lot more.

RANDOM: so that's where THAT goes

Dell is A-OK in my book

i try to keep this blog mostly about the kids and family-goings-ons. This isn't exactly a "family" post, but it kinda is... cause we lurvs computers here at Johnsonerd land.

I have an early edition of the XPS (1710) it's about 2 yrs old. In our home, that's usually the time to upgrade or get a new RIG, but we were stretching it out to 3yrs. Having kids in the mix, well, let's just say: kids and technology don't always mix.

so far...

1. i've replaced the graphics card (512) it was overheating, common issue on earlier models. refer to old post
2. i had a control key broken off - Dondan informs me it was "Notme", apparently this child named "Notme" contributes to many antics in our home.
3. Ding in my monitor - Nona hits a hard plastic kitchen utensil spoon on my desk, it shatters, sending a SHARD right into my monitor. it's not too too bad. (the size of a pencil lead tip)


If you have a DELL and kids, DO buy the extended warranty. it was so worth it and only $100. But it might just be XPS, they have their own section of customer service.

OK, so long story short: we called to receive replacement parts, so we can just change them out. just like i did with the grafix card.
and......
i received a BRAND NEW COMPLETELY UPDATED FULLY LOADED XPS1730!!!
(w/dual graphics and 64bit vista)




aaaaaaaaand.... a laptop/ carry-on backpack (huge!) it is almost 2feet tall (21 in).
all. for. free.
can you say WOOT!?
it's better than Toenail's XPS1730 which is almost a year old.

Toenail: "we can trade, since it came in blue.... "
Me: *smiles*... "no thanx, honey, i don't mind blue".

...some pix of the bag:





yes. that is a extra bag and a sleeve for other accessories and software sleeve.

RANDOM: So that's where THAT goes

Torii beach

Low tide... not much water, but a whole lotta fun!
You could easily walk out a mile on the reef, it was awesome.
there was so much to discover in the coral. it was a little different
to walk on, you definitely need shoes.

The tide was very low this day. you can see at this spot how deep the water usually is, from the weight to the buoys. yes, those are the ropes that mark off the swimming area, that are suppose to be floating.

we had lots of fun discovering and playing with all the sea life.
Dondan handling the sea cucumbers. yes. they DO spit out this
web-like substance that IS very sticky. there we hundreds
of these guys around.

this is a lovely brittle star fish. they like to hide under rocks and

grab their meal with their legs.

a clam buried in the coral bed.

a pretty blue fish swimming amongst the urchins.

Red star fish


A blue starfish...

Dondan discovers a sea slug...

RANDOM: so that's where THAT goes...

Araha Beach

There are SO many fun things to do on this little island. i am astonished at how many parks and playgrounds are stuffed in every little nook and cranny. Our goal this summer is to discover as many of these gems as possible.

This particular beach, not so hidden, has the typical "boardwalk" feel to it. i can see this becoming a favorite spot real quick. Complete with pirate ship, zip line and ice cream shop, how can you go wrong?

"I'M ON A BOAT"

Lings

Found these little lings hagin' around.

Playground at Ocean EXPO

This place is amazing! It was a GINORMOUS play area made of nets! A kids paradise for sure. There is a 3-6 yr old area and a 6-12 yr old area, so that the smaller kids aren't trampled. It was rather empty when we were there... i guess everyone was in school, hmmm.

I tried to blow up the picture so the layout is visible.

We were leaving and decided to stop and play for a little bit. I recorded only a fraction of the playground.

*Due to my sluggish internet, i am unable to load this VDO. So i must load it on youtube.*

I've been trying for days....