A Celebration for Dad

On one of our nights in the village, we had a celebration for my dad. Everyone brought some food up to our kitchen and we had a feast.

Ellie sat on the floor with cousins and second cousins.


Franklin had a good time with his cousins and relatives.

My favorite part was the end of the night when all the kids made an impromptu choir, and Ellie joined in the singing. She didn't mind that she didn't know all the words or the actions, but she certainly gave it her best shot!

Time at the beach

While we were in Malu'u with Dad, we took some time to enjoy the beach. The beach doesn't look too beautiful in these pics because it was low tide.
Ellie took time to play with her cousins. She also took time to play by herself.


She and her daddy also found enough starfish to spell her name.


Dad spent time swimming in the ocean, and then enjoyed resting on the beach.


Afterwards, we all walked home and enjoyed ice blocks (popsicles) from one of the local shops.

A travelling break

On our trip to the village with Dad, we decided to take a break along the road. Ellie enjoyed her time finding "treasures" at the beach. We enjoyed the view...

WWII Memorial

One day Franklin and Dad went up to the WWII Memorial and took a look around. One of the most interesting things (in my humble opinion) around Honiara and Guadalcanal is all the WWII history. It's amazing that so many reminders are still around, even after so long.







If any visitor needs a break from reading, they can take in the view, too. Not bad, huh?

Solomon Islands' Independence Day 2011

July 7 is Solomon Islands' Independence Day. To celebrate this year, we went to the big event in town where all the dignitaries were in attendance. Different groups lined up very formally and stood for a VERY long time while important people arrived and took turns speaking.


I thought one of the most entertaining parts was when the VIPs arrived in their vehicles, men in traditional dress would pretend to be hiding and then "attack" each car.


Ellie was not captivated by the proceedings, so she took the opportunity to do one of her favorite activities and look through my hair for "mice". :) Just in case you are left wondering... there were none!

A butterfly

I have personally never caught a butterfly with my bare hands. I might have caught one with a net at some point in my life, or maybe I've just read about it in books or seen it in movies. During our times in the Solomons, though, Franklin seemed to catch them on a regular basis.


I love that Ellie can learn to interact with nature the way her daddy does. That's one of the good things about having two parents... hopefully she can learn to love the things we both love.

300, Frangipanis, and Dad's arrival

As I was signing in right now to do this blog post, I realized that this is my 300th post... 300 in about 3 years. I'm alright with that. :)

As you have probably noticed, I am a bit behind in my posting, but I am determined to catch up before our little arrival is here. I want to be able to post up-to-date pictures of our family of four!

In early July my dad came to visit us in the Solomons. We were very excited about his arrival. A few hours before he came, my in-laws came over with my favorite flower in the Solomons, the Frangipani. They had gathered some from beneath a tree and picked some, too, I think.

We made flower garlands to put on my dad when he arrived. I watched Christina do it for a bit, and then I decided I wanted to try. Ellie wanted to help, too.


Eventually everyone got involved. Ellie and Hadassah made necklaces out of beads.


It was so exciting to see my dad arrive! He's the guy in green.