Aloha Friday

I'm participating for the first time in
An Island Life's weekly Friday Meme. She
says, "In Hawaii, Aloha Friday is the day
that we take it easy and look forward to
the weekend." Which sounds good to me.
Come by and join in on the fun and relaxation!

My Question:

If you had the choice and money..where would
you go for your next vacation?

My Answer:

Egypt and Greece! I've always loved reading
about these places and dreamed of someday
going there.

Journal Entry for Sunday, April 25th

Church was good, not alot of people showed up.

I got to watch over the beehive class and listen

to them go over their upcoming class activities.

Lani, Kat and I are planning on visiting the Eteaki

family this evening. We have three of their daughters

in our Young Women and the eldest is one of our

teachers. We pooled together $70 and a card to take.

After church I ended up baking 10 cakes and 2 large
pans of buns baked in sweetened coconut milk to take
with us to their family. Lani ended up going to the
hospital with her family to visit her father in law, so Kat
and I went for all of us. Their mother welcomed us in
and thanked us for coming by and visiting. We had a
wonderful time talking to her and her daughters and
asked her to call us anytime she needed help.

 We said our good byes and dropped Kat back at her
house and picked up the kids and finally headed home
after 10 pm. So tired when we got home..everyone just
hit the sack and got some good rest.

Final "Eclipse" Trailer is Out!

Oprah is showing this final trailer for Eclipse
this afternoon on her show! As you can see
we're pretty excited about it ourselves! Can't
wait til' it comes out..

Earth Day..Our contribution

Today is Earth Day and I am currently cleaning 

house with the two little ones. Loni doesn't have

school today, so I've recruited their help to recycle

all the magazines we don't need here and take them

out to the recycling bins:) Then I'll talk to them

about doing our part to help save the Earth. 

Afterwards, we'll head over to the mall and walk

around over there and burn off some calories! 

Last night I watched FitTV and learned all about

composting. I didn't understand what that was all

about and was really glad to have watched that.  

Since we live in an apartment complex we don't  

have the compost bins that homes do. So we're   

only able to take advantage of the recycling bins   

that they have outside for the paper, metals and

glass.

Here's what I've been doing to help the environment.

• Wash the foil that has been used and reuse it or put it in the recyling
• When taking showers I get in get wet, turn off the water, scrub, then rinse off. 
• The kids are great at conserving water when brushing their teeth. They got from watching Sesame Street saying, the fishies need water too. So they don't leave the water running.
• Unplug all appliances that are not being used, goes for chargers that don't have a cell phone being charged. 
• When I take showers during the day I'll leave the door open so that way I'll just use the natural light coming in, instead of using the bathroom lights which uses 6 light bulbs. 
• Converted to the CFL light bulbs to save energy. 
• We go through 2 keyboards a year (kids gaming habits) for our computer and recycle that too. If you live in Oregon you can recycle your TV and computer at Oregon E-Cycles.

What are you doing on Earth Day? I'd love to read 

about it on your blogs:)

Fixed..Button Problem

Sorry about the problem with the

button for my blog. I didn't have

time to fix it before and now it's

 been done. Want to learn how to

make your own button? Head over

to Oikology on my blog roll and che

ck out her tutorial on how to make 

your own.. It's easy and fun:) 

Getting Engaged...

Aunt Nipa and Siva

lol..I bet that one caught your attention! Nope
it's not me..my baby sister is getting married.
She's the youngest one. I wish I got to be there
to help out and join in on the celebration.

But seeing the pictures are good enough for
me, for now. My sister told my mom that
her bf wants to come over and ask for her
hand the Tongan way (with his family). I've
never seen one done this way. So this will
be my first (through the pictures).

These are the pictures taken from last night.
When Ray and his family came over..my
daughters, sisters and mom and aunties all
baked cakes from Thursday night into
Friday morning over 100 cakes to present
to the guy and his family. They came with
a huge pig, Tongan mats and other stuff to
present to our family as well..

My daughter Tia took these photos with
the Nikon I gave her for her birthday. So
far she loves taking pics. of everything
with it.

Ray (Siva's Fiancee) on the chair.

Front view

Siva from inside with our aunties and uncles 

hearing her Fiancee talk..or maybe his uncles.

aww..how cute..the proposal..lol

Dad, aunt , Ray, Siva, aunt Nipa and Mom

~Siva and Ray~

Left-Ray's parents, Middle-Ray and Siva, 

Right- Mom and Dad..

No Prize and 2 days of Accidents

Yesterday, I walked with Nesi to the bus stop

to pick up Loni. When the kids came out running

I usually see Loni is happy and running too. 

This time he didn't want to talk to us and just

started running away. I called after him to wait

for his sister as she's running after him. He 

didn't listen and even ignored his friends who 

were trying to talk to him. 

Loni on his happy days...

So I figured he probably had a bad day at 

school. Nesi couldn't catch up with him and 

ended falling face first on the sidewalk. She 

got up crying and I told her, "walking feet, 

no running feet, ok?' So she nodded her head

and just walked with me. 

Mel was at home and asked him, what's the

matter as he comes in and he doesn't say a 

word to his father and just starts crying on 

the couch. 

I asked him what happened at school and 

he said that he couldn't tell me. 

me: You can tell me anything..

Loni: You don't understand.

me: Yes, I will..go ahead.

Loni: I didn't get a prize from my teacher. 

Everyone else got one except for me. 

me: How do you earn a prize? Do you think

you earned one? 

Loni: Yes, I think I earned one. I've been

respectable and considerate this week and 

didn't get a yellow or red light. 

me: I'm sorry things didn't go good for you

at school. I know that you respect people

and their things and are considerate as well.

Loni: I'm so sad about it. 

me: Please just try to think happy thoughts

and ask teacher why you didn't get one. 

Maybe she forgot to give you one. 

Loni: It's not her. It's another lady at the 

school who passes out the tickets, if you're 

good.

Last week, it was 2 days in a row where
he had to come home because he would
just wet his pants and that's not the Loni
I know. He goes when he has to here at
home and we've never dealt with that
problem here at home ever. The first day
he didn't want to explain it.
Second day I demanded (nicely) an
explanation as to why this is happening.
He finally broke down and cried, explaining
that the teacher won't let him go to the
bathroom and he couldn't hold it anymore.

That really ticked me off and I was ready
to call someone ih the office and give them
a piece of my mind. But somehow I calmly
asked Loni when does this happen and he
said, after recess is over and they're back
in class. Well, I could understand that. but
if the kid has to go..let him go.

So I tell Loni..when the recess bell goes
off, instead of running outside, head over
to the lavatory first to handle your business
before you go outside. So by the time you
come back in you've already gone to the
bathroom. He was happy and agreed to do
what I would tell him. Mel just looked at
me and sighed.."hope it works tomorrow"

I told him, don't worry, Loni has this
down, I know he'll do it. Next day, he
comes back and say, look no wet pants
today! Thank heavens for that..

New Giveaways to Check Out!!

Just a reminder to check out our Giveaway and Link UP page above.
We've got some wonderful blogs listing their prizes to be won.
You can also go down the list of other blogs listing more
giveaways going on!!

I Heart Faces: "I Heart Desserts"

This is my first time joining on I Heart 

Faces weekly meme..This week it's 

I Heart Desserts. So instead of taking 

a picture of faces, it would be of desserts. 

I didn't have any other dessert pictures

to enter with. So here's an old picture 

from February of the cupcakes that I last

took pictures of. 

Want to join in the fun? Click here to go to 

i heart faces blog to link up. 

Mamavation Monday: "Move It or Lose It" Challenge

 I've decided to join in on Mamavation's

"Move It or Lose It" Challenge. Today is

the first day of the challenge and those 

who are entering are required to do the 

following: 

1. Create a Mamavation Monday post each week of the
campaign and update us on your weekly weight loss.
2. Include a picture in each post of your toes on the scale.
We need to be able to see how much you weigh in that
picture in order to verify your weight loss.
3. Measure yourself and post your measurements
on your first Mamavation Monday post with week
one of the campaign. Then measure at week 5 and
week 7. Include bust, waist, hips, thighs, & arms.
4. Take pictures of yourself, front and back. Post
them on your first post and then take additional
pictures to post on week 7.
5. Continue to support the Mamavation Sistahood
on twitter and engage with them daily
6. Link your weekly post up on Bookieboo.com
in the Mamavation Group, so others can encourage
you

Here are the updates for my 

first day..yes, scary. But an  

eye opener for me. 

 Don't mind my stubby toes..I had my 6 yo

take the picture so I wouldn't weigh more holding

the camera. Goal weight: 190 at least.

Measurements:

Measurements for Maopa L. aka MPuanani

Weight = 299 pounds

Right Arm = 18 1/2" in.

Left Arm = 17 1/2" in.

 Waist = 45 1/2" in.

Right Thigh = 30 1/2"in.

L Thigh = 30 1/2" in.

Bust = 49" in.

Hips = 55 1/2" in.

uggh..here's my front view.This will change

soon enough! Lei took this while I wasn't look

ing..

My Story

Now that you've seen my pic. and measurements let

me tell you about my story. I've never been skinny &

the closest I've gotten to thin was size 12 after my 

second child, Tia. During my teen years I had reached

size 16 at 5 ft. 9" and wanted to be thin like my friends

but thought that I was just big boned and was meant to

be a thick girl. 

After my 2nd child I was always watching what I

was eating and made sure I stayed at my new size. 

I then found out I was pregnant with #3 (Lei) and 

gained 40 something pounds after her and tried 

to shed the weight. I was currently going through

a divorce after I got out of the hospital and went 

through depression that I tried hard to shake off. 

I stayed at size 18 for a couple of years, then 

got married for the second time and lost it again.

This time going down to 14 for a year. I was 

taking weight loss pills to lose it quickly, but then

it came back and then some. After my fourth 

child I ballooned to a size 20 and stayed there

for 5 years. This year is the heaviest I've ever

been, 300 lbs and size 22 jeans. 

I need help and positive motivation to help me

on my journey to weight loss. I don't receive 

that from my husband at home and feel that 

with the help of the Mamavation moms, I won't

feel alone in my journey. I want to prove to him

that I'm not a fat lump sitting at home doing 

nothing. I take care of our children, clean the 

home, cook his meals, wash his clothes, take 

out the garbage,etc.

I'm pledging to become a part of the Mamavation

Sistahood and hope that I'm doing things 

right so that I may be a Mamavation Sister.

I've created goals to accomplish along the

way, as well as following in Pete Cohen's 28

day program through Mamavation. 

 1. Drink Plenty of H2o daily. I've started 

drinking up to a gallon a day and notice 

that my energy has gone up and my tummy

is starting to go down a tiny bit. 

2. Make sure that the kitchen is well stocked

with fruits and vegetables. Our favorites are 

oranges and bananas. 

Tip: I just learned that a bit of banana can 

help you get rid of bloating!

3. Go back to sleeping early, so when I put

the kids to bed..go to sleep too. Which has 

resulted in my waking up early to get the 

kids to the bus stop on time and more things

getting done earlier during the day. 

4. No more eating after 6pm. This is working

for me. I'll admit it's really hard to keep to 

it in the beginning. But I'm getting used to it

and starting to see the results. Like no more

chest burns in the middle of the night, becau

se I'm up blogging until 3 or 4 in the morning 

and still munching on cookies or sweets. 

That's done away with and I'm feeling really

great so far. 

If you'd like to join in, Visit Mamavation through 

Bookie Boo to learn more. I'm putting up a 

Mamavation page soon to keep track of all 

my activites and weight loss journal. I'll let 

you know once it's up!! Thanks for reading 

and I look forward to meeting you through 

Mamavation!

 

Friday: Family Night Out...

Family Night Out at 

Clackamas Mall

Mel called me from his cell and said that
he wants to go and watch movies tonight
with the kids. I'm suspecting he's getting
hooked on taking us out now..lol.
No complaints there..

The kids were excited when I gave them
the news and Nesi shouted, Diary of a
Wimpy Kid!! Loni said, No...it's going to
be, How to Train A Dragon in 3D!!

Mel laughed and let Loni choose and Nesi
got so frustrated and said that Loni got to
choose last time and we had to go and
watch Clash of The Titans..(which Loni
and I loved..lol) We assured Nesi that
for sure it's Diary of A Wimpy Kid on
Monday Night.



While we were eating there were two
guys sitting next to us at their table. They
weren't eating, just talking..when two
mall cops walked over to them and asked
to see their ID and asked them if they were
so and so..They were saying, no they said
that they had just moved from Reno and
the cop said he's lying and his records show
that he's been living in Oregon for 5 yrs. 

Then the cops proceeded to warn them
of people informing them that those two
are selling drugs to minors in the mens
bathroom. Yikes, I was hoping that no
fights were going to ensue from this. The
two young men were told if they're ever
caught they would be arrested and then
they left. I told dh to get the kids ready
and I went and emptied their trays so we
could leave to watch the movie..so that
was that...we had a fun time watching
the movie and can't wait to watch Karate
Kid with Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan
in June.

Ultimate Blog Party

Ok, I got this in my email last night and I was

meaning to come back and read after our family

outing last night and ended up hitting the pillows

instead of joining the #UBP- Ultimate Blog Party!

I have to admit that this will be a first. I couldn't

understand the twitter parties and didn't have the

time to be able to sit down and chat with other 

cool bloggers. But this I couldn't miss and had 

to finally learn. Turns out it's not as hard as I 

thought. 

So there are tons of new blogs to read, meet 

new blog friends, meet up with old blog friends

 at 5 minutes for Mom's Ultimate Blog Party

and even win some awesome prizes!!

First timer? Click here for directions!!

An Introduction: 

I'm the author of MPuanani and Luscious Deals.
Mother of 5 and wife of 1..I first was introduced
to blogging in 2008 and started in October and 
haven't turned back. I love blogging every spare
chance I get and catching up with new and old 
blog friends.

My Loves...

I love to review and hold giveaways on both my
blogs. So be sure to visit our link up tab above 
the header to either link up your giveaway or 
enter to win some fabulous prizes!! 

As you'll see by most of my posts..My Family:)

Love learning to do new things like painting, 
crafting, sewing and crocheting. 

New love is Zumba..I started going with my 
friend Feina last month, then I fell off the 
bandwagon and gained back 10 pounds that
I had lost through going with her to these 
workouts. Now I'm going back and tracking
it through Mamavation..stay tuned for that
upcoming post!!

Sunny Day..Good Time to Walk..

Yay! It's a Sunny day..

It's mainly been raining here and the kids have

gotten over their runny noses and coughs..so I  

told them we would go walking because we all 

needed some fresh air, space to run and time for

me to burn some calories while having fun with 

the kids.

Nesi couldn't help but run all over the place while

Loni was just taking shots of her. 

Yesterday was finally sunny and we were able to 

get out and get some fresh air and enjoy a brisk walk.

We took this picture from the third floor, actually

Loni did. He insisted on holding and taking pictures

or he wouldn't go walking. So he got his turn.

He's the 6 yo..

Eating Out - vs Cooking at Home

Yesterday we were debating about eating out
and cooking at home after viewing Fox 12 News
and how a deputy is suing Burger King over a
22 yo male employee who spit in his burger.
This deputy had a bad feeling about his burger
and decided to check his burger after these two
employees were acting funny toward him. He
did a DNA testing on the human spit and it linked
back to this 22 yo employee..
Check out the video:


http://www.kptv.com/video/23011377/

We rarely go to restaurants and eat out. Once
 in a while we'll go to treat the kids and avoid
cooking for a day. But after watching this
horrible incident. I am glad that we cook our
meals at home. Dh mostly eats out with his
workers after a hard day pouring concrete.

Which usually is a break for me. Meaning
I don't have to make two different dinners
for us and separately for him, he loves his
polynesian meals while we choose hamburger
helper, or sandwiches on some nights.

Where do you stand on eating out versus
cooking at home?

Our Run In with The Cops Today.

Today started out as a busy morning.
I woke up the older girls to get ready
so that we can drop off Loni at the bus
stop for school and then hit the gym
afterwards.

I felt better not going by myself and plan
on going back in the evening for the
Zumba class. Well, during the day we
ran to Fred Meyers to use our Freebie
coupons to review the Silk Pure Almond
Milk for our upcoming giveaways and
on our way back I noticed lights going
off right behind me and all the kids
shouting to pull over. So I got into the right
lane to find a turn since the road was so
busy. When we pulled over the kids
were asking me if we're going to be okay
and told everyone to keep quiet and keep
their seat belts on.

So the officer gets out and comes to my
door and asks for my DL and I told him
that I forgot it at home and were heading
back from a milk run to the store.

So he comes back and asks if I want to
hear the good news or the bad news first
and all the kids start shouting good and
bad. He started smiling and gave us the
bad news. He told me he's giving me a
ticket for no insurance and the good news
is that I get to drive home and he won't
have the car towed and all the kids started
cheering. I thanked him and told him that
I'm going straight home.

I paid our bills and totally forgot to pay
the auto insurance and let it lapse. Yes,
my fault and I got a harsh reminder today
when I got ticketed and fined $534.00
I told the kids not to say anything to dad
and that I would tell him on my own time.

As soon as we got home the youngest one
Nesi [5 yo] runs in the room and tells her
dad, guess what? I have a secret to tell you
and she goes on to tell him that we got
pulled over by the cop and that he was nice
enough to let us come back home with our
car and not take it away and that mommy
got a ticket.


I told him to stay and not go anywhere
until we pay the insurance and he said,
no worries. So he left and I said, good luck..
lol..at least I gave him fair warning. Well,
that was my day of stress. Now I'm getting
ready to wind down with my stash of mags
that came through the mail yesterday and
a cup of Peppermint Tea. That's my
Theta Mom "me" time for today.

Did you get to spend some time relaxing
after a hard days work? If so, link up
your post at www.thetamom.com and
see what other Theta Moms are up to!