Horseback riding at Aunt Laura and Uncle Elton's

When we were in California we were able to go to my cousin Jesse's high school graduation open house. It was so nice to be able to see my Aunt Laura and Uncle Elton as well as my Grandparents on my dad's side. And of course see Jesse and Layna. They have a beautiful home on 30 or 40 acres. They have two horses and so we were lucky enough to have Layna give the kids the opportunity to ride one of them. She gave each kid a turn on the horse. The kids loved it! Kylee was really nervous, but in the end she decided to ride and really did well. Nathan surprisingly wasn't nervous at all and hopped right on the horse. Scott was very hesitant to let the kids ride since he didn't know the horses. He watched from the house and then heard that Kylee was trotting with the horse and got even more nervous. But they did great and Layna was wonderful with all of them.

Sariah was so excited to go see the horse that she didn't want to wait for the rest of us so she started running down the hill in the direction of the tallest grass, not down the path. She kept getting deeper and deeper until she asked for help...in comes Grandma to the rescue. She how high the grass is on her. She is such a doll.

Here are the kiddos waiting for their turn, hanging out on the gate.

Most precious nieces ever!!

Here are Kylee and Nathan taking their turns. They did so good I am so proud of them. Kylee got to steer the horse herself and get her going around the ring. Layna helped Nathan.

Our week

This week consisted of training a puppy, a work in progress for sure, oh and training cats and kids on how to act with a puppy. Below you can see the stare down that Ash and Cali gave Kona. They are asserting their dominance and not taking any crud from her:-)

Here is Kona's reaction. She back peddled all the way behind the chair she was so scared. I am glad that she is scared and not chasing the cats around. After this stare down the cats have started coming around to the whole dog idea. That is until Kona thinks Ash's tail is a chew toy...that doesn't make Ash too happy. There is still a hiss here and a growl there, but overall I think we are making great progress!

As you can see by the pictures the cats have nothing to worry about. Kona is a big softy and is scared of almost all noises, including the vacuum rolling on the tile...not even turned on. Here she is with Daddy loving on her.

She tends to sleep a lot. And we have all fallen under her sleeping spell this week. Having a warm puppy snuggled up to you somehow induces a deep sleep:-) Or we are just being lazy...

Nathan has been quite the character this week. Here he is hiding in his knew spot, the kitchen cupboard. He is too cute.
We decided to take the kids and Kona to ice cream at Baskin Robins the other night since they have tables outside and we could take Kona. Nathan was sitting in this chair eating his ice cream when he suddenly slipped through the cracks. Of course before helping him Daddy had to get the picture. It may look as though his bum is touching the ground, but really it is suspended in the air. We were all cracking up.

Our new addition Kona

Saturday night we drove to Show Low, AZ about 3.5 hrs away and stayed the night. Then on Sunday we drove a little further to meet this little Rhodesian Ridgeback puppy. We of course fell in love and decided to bring her home. We named her Kona after the Kona side of the big island in Hawaii since we love to vacation there with my family. She is a pure bred Rhodesian Ridgeback and is three months old today. She was born on March 14, 2010.

We drove the almost 4 hours home with her. She threw up, in the trash bag, within the first 10 miles of the ride. The rest of the trip she lay on my lap and slept, as you can see in the first picture. Once we got home we fed her and she scarfed down all her food. She played with us and mostly slept for her first night. We put together her crate with a comforter and put her in it for bed. I ended up sleeping next to the open door to the crate to make sure she was okay. She slept all night in the crate until 6:30 this morning when Scott got up and took her potty and on a walk. She seems must more adjusted today. She hasn't slept near as much and is playing with the kids and walking around the house. When Nathan cried because of a brother-sister argument Kona walked up to him and licked him to make sure he was okay.

As for the cats they are not so convinced this was a good idea. They seemed kind of okay with her last night until she moved, then they ran and have chosen to stay up stairs unless they get hungry and then they walk along the wall to get to their food. We are giving them lots of loves and of course treats in hopes that they will forgive us and like Kona. I think Cali got scared because of Kona, whose head is at least three times Cali's, sniffing her face. It was quite cute until Cali ran off:-).

Here are some pictures of our new puppy...

Asleep on the couch with her favorite toy...the duck.
Isn't she a cutie!
Nathan, Daddy, Kona and Kylee. Oh and the duck.

Nathan turned 6 on May 21

Nathan Robert Kinoshita turned 6 years old on May 21, 2010. He had a wonderful birthday party at the park with his friends and Scott's family, followed by dinner and the movie Iron Man 2. A week later he got to celebrate his birthday with my family in California. We had all the cousins over to Grandmas house for water slide fun and a BBQ.

Nathan is an amazingly loving little guy. We have enjoyed every moment of his 6 years. His personality is hilarious which we have truly enjoyed. Below are a few of his first pictures. It makes me tear up just seeing how little he once was. They grow up too fast!!

Here he is at the hospital, all 7lbs 11 oz.

One of the few times he actually sucked his thumb.
One of his first smiles.
So cute!

Here he is when he opened the XBox 360 we got him. He was just a little excited

Here are his cupcakes. We couldn't get the candle to light because of the wind.

Cutie little Ben. I asked him to say cheese and this is the face I got. So cute!!

Here we all are at mom's house. Everyone came over for Nathan and Catie's birthday.

About to blow out his candles on his Iron Man cake that Grandma made for him.

Daddy and Nathan studying the Pirate book Aunt TT and family gave him.

Dillon helping Nathan with the super soaker Aunt Angie and family gave him.

Nathan getting Jace with the super soaker. Such a great shot.

Nathan reading one of his cards. I liked the way the light hit his face in this picture.

Aunt Angie accidentally got him an I'm 5 Today card and so she made some sharpie modifications.

This is what baby Capri did during the party. Isn't she precious.

Here is Myla playing with her goody bag prizes.

Here is Catie opening her birthday gifts.

Nathan loved the spy kit Grandma got him.

Almost all of the cousins. We are missing cutie Sariah and Capri and Paige.

Tiffany and I got to catch up during the party. It was so nice to see my sisters and their kiddos.