Sarah's Graduation Party

The accuweather gadget I put on the blog is rather misleading. While you all think we are suffering from heat stroke, we are actually not in Phoenix. The weather here in Flagstaff is much more pleasant. It's been in the 75-82 degree range with a warm breeze. Instead of cactuses (cacti?) everywhere, it's pine forests, aspen, birch and oak trees around us. The ground is quite dry and the mountains around us are reddish brown.

Friday night we went to Sarah's house for a dinner. She made us a fabulous lasagne with plenty of meat, cheese and vegetables, salad with mixed greens, strawberries and candied walnuts, garlic bread and red wine.

Saturday we had a big barbecue with Sarah's friends and their families. Her boyfriend Ryan's parents and sister came up from Scottsdale. Ryan's brother and his girlfriend and her family came over. Sarah's landlord and his wife came over. Ryan was the grill master and cooked steaks and chicken for us all afternoon.

Then we went to the park where the boys broke in their new in line skates. There was a big basketball game and Ryan and his brother Andy showed our boys how to slam dunk and hang from the hoop. Of course, it helps to be over 6 feet tall.

Next post: Mother's day in Sedona!

Sarah's and her best friend E.J.

Maya took a shine to Ryan.

Sarah and Andy's girlfriend, Katie

The boys had a great time climbing on the rocks behind Sarah's house.

So did Grandma, Maya and I.

Riley tries out his new in line skates

Chris loving the miles and miles of paved sidewalks that we do not have in Homer.

Maya walks a dog her own size: a long haired dachshund named Schnaps McLovin' Wiener

Maya plays at the park.

The big basketball game.

Maya's First Anniversary

May 5th was Maya's first anniversary joining our family. I was obviously too busy going on 2 field trips per day when I was supposed to be packing to blog about it. I figured between her baptism and her court date, there was enough on the blog that she wouldn't hold it against me. Now that I'm on vacation I can sneak in an extra blog. Especially since Grandma is with us. She has been great about taking the kids out so I can get a minute to myself.

Maya has grown about 2 inches and gained 4 pounds since we picked her up. She went from babbling in baby talk that no one could understand, even the Vietnamese, to 4 word sentences. She can say long words like "accident" and "Christopher". She attends preschool and speech therapy 2 mornings per week. Her favorite part of school is riding the school bus. She can almost count to 10 in English and a little bit of Vietnamese. She visits Yi Ly almost every week to work on her Vietnamese. She sat through an entire dental visit for cleaning and exam.

When we picked her up she was afraid of everything from flower petals that scattered in the wind and butterflies to cats and dogs. Now she pets horses and loves dogs and cats. The other night I asked her "who makes honey?" and she said "bee!". She loves to go bowling. Her favorite foods are noodles, ice chips, cucumbers, and "Sponge Bob Gogurt". She loves books, telephones and all things electronic. She loves to be outside. She loves to swim. She loves to swing and slide. She loves hockey. She is half Curious George and half Ramona the Pest. In Thailand they have a term for petite little girls who are feisty. It's something like Lek Prikki Nu, which means: Little red hot chili pepper. That's sums up Maya Mong Wise!

Wises in Arizona!

"Family Vacation" is an oxymoron. There is nothing relaxing about being on vacation with your family. I'm feeling a little more relaxed now that we are done with the first part of the airplane travel, rental car and hotel situation. If you don't already know what I'm talking about, just rent any of Chevy Chase's family vacation movies or "RV". I think family vacations are more like school field trips. Sometimes they are fun. Sometimes the kids in your charge are so annoying that you are sorry you signed up to chaperon. But it's always a learning experience.


For example, I learned never again to chaperon two field trips on the day before we leave to go on vacation. I also learned not to sign up for the trip to Mud Bay to view shore birds again. It was windy and cold. The kids weren't really very interested. I had to keep telling them to be quiet so I could hear what the biologist was saying, to stop throwing sand around and to keep their binoculars out of the sand. I also learned to say "No!" the next time 4 boys ask if they can bring a chunk of black clay the size of bowling balls back in my car. You know that low tide smell? Yeah...


So, here we are in Arizona. Maya is such a great little traveler. She's always up for a new adventure. She got on the airplane, buckled herself up and announced "I'm ready!" She repeated herself about 30 more times before the plane took off. She stayed awake for the 3.5 hour flight to Seattle, then fell asleep as the plane landed. She slept through the entire 2 hour layover when she was supposed to be running around and woke up just in time to board the next airplane. She stayed awake for that entire flight as well. We landed in Phoenix Wednesday night and crashed at a cheap hotel near the airport. The boys were so excited, we could hardly contain them.


Yesterday we drove north to pick up my mom at my Uncle Richard's house. We had lunch with Uncle Richard and Auntie Marie. Uncle Richard was one of my all time favorite uncles growing up. He was in the Air Force for 2o years, then the State Department for 20 years, so they have lived all over the world. I visited him when I was in college and they were in Delhi, India. He likes to tease me about sending my Christmas cards in June but I swear I've never sent them later than March. Auntie Marie is from Ireland. She is about 4'11" and says things like "What the hang?" After 53 years of marriage she still can't tell when Uncle Richard is joking. Of course, after Matt and I have been married 53 years, I'll still fall for his tricks, too.


After lunch and a quick dip in pool, the boys ran around trying to catch lizards while Matt and I bored the old folks with our stories. We found out that living in Alaska is not too different than Arizona. Other than the change in temperature and scenery, there are a lot of similarities. For example, our joggers have to watch out for moose and bears. Their joggers have to watch out for rattle snakes and havalinas, which are wild pigs. It's amazing how much wildlife there is around here. There are rabbits hopping around, birds flying around. Maybe if we are really lucky we'll get to see a Wiley Coyote and the Road Runner.

The boys didn't understand why we had to rent a minivan instead of this Corvette.

Maya poses for me in front of this pretty flower.

This picture is for Alana.

We arrived in Flagstaff at dinner time and went straight to the restaurant where Sarah works.

Sarah rushes out to meet us in her usual exuberant fashion.

Sarah attacks Chris at our table while taking our order.

It's mango smoothie time!

Then we drove north to Flagstaff. I love this drive because you can watch the landscape change from desert to pine forests within 2 hours. The temperature also dropped almost 30 degrees. I'm so glad we got to see Arizona is the spring time. Here in Flagstaff the birch trees all have brand new little spring green leaves. In Phoenix the cactus was in bloom. I've always wanted to see the desert in bloom. We will be spending most of our time in Flagstaff with a few side trips to the Grand Canyon and Sedona. Arm chair travelers, stay tuned to see the Wises tearing up Arizona!

Heat Wave!

Some people say there are two seasons in Alaska: winter and construction. I beg to differ. I say that we have 4 seasons: depression from October through February, agitated depression in March, hypomania in April and full blown mania from May through September. This past weekend we skipped spring and went straight to summer with a heat wave. It hit 70 degrees in Homer and Fairbanks and 80 degrees in Palmer/Wasilla. You have to realize that 70 degrees in Homer is equivalent to 90 degrees in the rest of the world. The boys were sweltering! Maya refuses to wear clothes and runs around naked when we are home.


We have been so busy with school. Riley's class has about 8 field trips between April and May. Chris' class has 4. Since our spring is so short and school gets out on May 20th, the teachers cram all the field trips in during the last 6 weeks. Tomorrow I am driving on two field trips, then finishing preparations so we can drive to Anchorage tomorrow night. We fly out Wednesday morning to Arizona for Sarah's graduation from college.


Aunt Kristin and Aunt Jill came down to Homer for a 125 mile bike ride on Saturday. They brought their friend Tony. We went down to Bishop's Beach at 8am to see them off on their ride. It was not a race but they were timed because it's one of those rides that qualifies you for real races. We have had beautiful weather for a week and the only reason it did not rain on Saturday was because Matt was on call in the ER.


After the bikers took off, the boys, my mom and I picked up garbage for 2 hours. They had been picking up garbage earlier in the week hoping to win first prize for most bags of garbage collected by a family. First prize was $150 that they planned to split 3 ways. They collected 15 bags on Tuesday and Wednesday. We picked up another 7 bags Saturday morning. Two of the bags were just cans and glass so they counted double. We turned in the equivalent of 24 bags at 11am. We found out on Sunday that they came in 3rd place and will receive $50 plus prizes. The boys were disappointed but for me the real prize is living in a beautiful place relatively free of litter.


After the Earth Day Picnic we went to a birthday party for Falcom, who turned 10 today. It was a swimming party at the high school pool. Maya had a blast on this inflatable orca. After the birthday party we met up with the cyclists for dinner at one of our favorite restaurants: Fat Olives, for pizza, salad and seafood pasta. Then Falcom and Marina both spent the night. Sunday morning I taught Sunday school. After lunch the boys went to a matinee: Monsters v. Aliens.


While Maya was napping the boys were hot and bored so I filled up the kiddie pool with water balloons. They had a blast with the first water balloon fight of the year. After the matinee we headed to Nanna's house for dinner. Do you see what I mean about the mania? All this and the trees have not even budded out yet. That doesn't usually happen until late May. This past week has been warmer than our entire summer last year. We are hoping for an early spring and a long hot summer!

Maya's ready for hockey anytime.

And they're off!

Chris, Riley and Grandma picking up garbage.

This yearling just got chased off by it's mother, because she is about to have a new baby. They always look lost and pathetic for the first few days.

Maya loving the orca at Falcom's birthday party.

Her other favorite part of the party was being chased around by Vince holding a broom. I told Vince he should hire himself out to chase kids at birthday parties. He doesn't even need a clown suit!

Tony was one of the cyclist who stayed at our house. He was so wonderful with Maya, I begged him to stay on as our au pair. Check out the sunburn on his face!

The first water ballon fight of the summer. We hope it won't be the last.

She's finally legally part of our family, forever!

Today was our court date for Maya's final re-adoption. It went off without a hitch. The hardest part was the 8 hours of paperwork I did to save $1500 in legal fees. I am grateful to our social worker for forwarding us the paperwork and holding my hand while I called her every few hours for two days.

Alana showed up to take photos. Both grandmothers attended as well. I did not pull the boys out of school since they are going to miss 10 days for Sarah's graduation in Arizona. It was a nice experience. Maya buttered up Judge Murphy with those Poki cookie sticks you get in the Asian section of the grocery store. Alana brought her the ones that you dip in chocolate. It was a nice reprieve from the usual drunk driving and domestic violence cases they deal with.


The funniest is part is, when Maya saw the judge in her black robe, she bowed her head and folded her hands in prayer!

Belly Science

It's springtime in Alaska and the moose are starting to wander into town in search of food. Soon there will be baby moose following along behind them on spindly legs.

Yesterday Riley went across the bay on a field trip with a fourth grade class. His class is going May 6-8 when we will be in Arizona for Sarah's graduation. Mrs. Kirkham, another teacher, was kind enough to take him across the bay with her 4th grade class. They will learn about the local marine biology of Kachemak Bay. It is a great opportunity and I am so glad he did not have to miss it.

"Belly Science"

I helped drive kids and gear to the boat. We had an hour of "belly science" before they departed. Conrad is a dynamic biologist who can make inverterbrates more interesting than rocket science. In fact, he taught us amazing facts like how NASA studied the substance that blue mussels make to attach themselves to rocks and other things into a sticky glue that does not melt at high temperatures so shingles do not fall off the space shuttle during blast off and re-entry. Conrad also showed us another invertebrate that makes a toxin that scientists are studying because of it's beneficial effects on the immune system. He pulled a six foot rope out of the water and it was teeming with life! He set it down on the pier and pulled out at least 8 different lifeforms.

This giant fringed anemone can live up to 100 years!

Saying goodbye, see you soon, stay warm, brush and floss, be good!

Last Sunday I gave Maya this little stuffed daschund puppy. It looks like my mom's dog, Heidi. My mom also has a yellow lab named Nikki. Maya calls her puppy "HeidiNikki". Look where I found HeidiNikki, hiding out in the cupboard!

Second Chances

In many arenas of life, there are no second chances. You get one shot at something. If you don't make it the first time, there are no do-overs. Last week our friend Falcom found out it did not make the list for Jubilee, Homer's annual talent show. He was devastated. I spent the week trying to convince Alana it was not her fault. Well meaning but misguided friends wanted to take action. Sometimes it is hard as a parent to know when you should fight for your child, and when you should just sit. Learning to cope with disappointment is part of growing up. Failure can be a harsh but powerful teacher.

A couple of days ago Falcom was invited to sing at a fundraiser for our local park. He sang "Here Comes the Sun". He did not have much time to prepare and he did a good job. But his ego had taken a terrible blow the week before and his confidence was quite shaken. After the performance he needed a lot of reassurance. Here's where the hockey mom in me was glad I did not have to be a stage mom.

This morning Maya was baptized in our church. It was a wonderful ceremony. One of those events where everyone who was present felt like they were part of something really special. I asked Falcom to sing a traditional baptism song that is a favorite in our church. He choked on the first verse. Our pastor went over to him and said, "let's try that again". Falcom started over and nailed the rest of the song. With each verse his voice grew louder and more beautiful. He was radiating joy as his confidence returned. While holding Maya in my arms, surrounded by my family and my best friends, in front of my church family, I was grateful that in God's arena, there are as many do-overs as you need.

Riley's dyed his hair red for his birthday, for the third year in a row.

Alana gave Maya a tool belt for her baptism present.

A Vietnamese Alaskan Girl!

The Baptism Barbecue party.

Lyn visits with Nanna

Alana and her mom, Mary

Uncle Michael is not grumpy, I think the sun was in his eyes. Vince looks relaxed.

Grandma having a good time.

Darwin gets a giggle out of Maya and Lyn.

Ly came over to visit, too.

Maya's Godparents: Vince and Alana. L to R: Willie, Falcom, Marina and DeeJay.