Sabbath afternoon hike

2-28-09: It's a gorgeous winter day in Loma Linda, CA, and the kids and dogs want to go out and run around in nature, so off we went to the local park to hike in the hills. A great way to spend the Sabbath afternoon with family and friends.

We ended back at the park and sang some songs with our featured guitar players, "3 Shades of Heaven", and then after sunset, headed to Souplantation for dinner! Nice end to the Sabbath.

Sat. night craziness!

2-21-09: After Easter play practice, the kids wanted to get together, so we had a "short" get together (some of the kids are going tubing tomorrow with Adventurers, while others have a swim meet!).

Here are some of the crazy stuff that we did at the Makowskis after sundown worship. These kids have endless energy!

Pathfinders hit the slopes!

2-15-09: The Azure Hills Pathfinders hit the slopes of Snow Summit for a day of skiing and snowboarding. Although a bit crowded because it was a holiday weekend, and because we were in between storms, the snow, weather, and most of all, the friends were great! Check out the videoclip. Sorry I didn't get everyone in there (like the Choi family), and we're glad that Moriah, who had a couple of crashes on her first run and spent time with first aid and the ER, is fine.

Newest all-girl trio!

2-14-09: Watch out Dixie Chicks, you have another all-girl trio coming out of Azure Hills! Check out this video clip of Hannah (recorder), Gaby (trumpet), and Chloe (violin) jam as they practice for their debut in church in a couple of weeks.

AU Alum get-together

2-8-09 Braving cold drizzle, about 100 SoCal AU Alum gathered together at the Spaghetti Factory in Riverside to catch up on the news from AU. It was great to see our friends from AU--Alumni Director Tami, Recruiter Chris (not pictured), VP Faehner, and President Andreason.

Great meal and great fellowship!

IE Piano Competition

2-8-09: Summer, her cousins Josh and Jake, and some swim teammates, all played in the Inland Empire Piano Festival. They played before 2 judges and awards were given. While she didn't win any awards, she did very well and we were all proud of her. It's very high pressure, and a great experience, sort of like swimming in a competition when everyone is watching and you're being judged!

Congrats to Jake and Josh for getting "honorable mention" in the duet division. You can see a clip of their piece here. I haven't converted Summer's solo and duet yet, but will upload it here when I do.

Dee celebrates his 50-something b-day!

2-7-09: Dee "The Sultan of Slam" Elias celebrated his 50-something b-day by inviting a few close families out for his fave treat, Cherry on Top yogurt. It was very yummy and a new way to get yogurt--we can see why it's his fave!

While the adults had a nice time chatting in the warm yogurt parlor, I had the good fortune of bringing all the kids outside in the cold drizzly rain to play games (or they would've torn the inside apart! LOL!)

We had fun playing all kinds of games, and fortunately, no one ran off and got lost. Too bad I didn't take a picture of the security guy asking us not to play on the lamp post--I did ask if he had handcuffs and would he handcuff one of the kids, but he just smiled and walked away.

New fence for future dogs

1-28-09: In order to get new dogs, we had to replace our broken fence (Ozzy was too old to try and get out of the backyard). Thanks to our 3 neighbors sharing the cost and AAA home insurance, we were able to get a vinyl fence! No more staining and sealing--yeah!!!

Pathfinder Gamenight!

1-24-09 What fun we had at Pathfinder Game Night! After a short vespers, we made cookies and played games! Directors Mike and Ellen are doing a great job with our Pathfinders.

1st trip to snow in '09

1-20-09: Rasheed, Mike, Steve, and I took the AM off to head up to Snow Summit for some ski/snowboard time. It was gorgeous, as you can see! Check out Steve's jump on the video clip...he's young!

Sydney & Sophia visit their SoCal cousins!

1-18-09: Our visit visit with Sophia Taylor, the newest cousin. And Sydney is growing so much!

Pizza night at Choi's

1-17-09 Sat. night pizza at the Choi's! Whole wheat thin crust Boboli crust...mmmm!!! Knowlton clan came over after their b-ball games. A chillaxn evening playing Up-and-Down the River (where the Rockets won...can't believe the Ninjas lost!). Will Nanci allow a ping pong table in the living room? Yeah, right! Can't forget when Nanci almost came into the bathroom to help me "clean up"!!! Wish I had an "oculcam" to capture the expression on her face when I opened the bathroom door. Priceless!

1st 2009 Party!

1-5-09 Because so many friends were gone over the holidays, we didn't have our get-together till tonight! Thx to the Elias family for hosting our first get-together of the new year. Besides the purple kangaroo gift exchange, the finals of the King of Ping tournament was held...see who won that trophy! ;-) Special visitor from MI, Uncle Ben, the ping pong master, and his son, Ben Jr.

Ozzy, 1992-2009

1-2-09: The new year went downhill quickly with the passing of our 17-year old first dependent, Ozzy, who we had for 14 years. It was quite emotional for the family, especially Summer, who has known Ozzy all her life. We've had so many great memories with him, and look forward to seeing him in heaven with us, as he was family. We're working on a slideshow of his life, so stay tuned!

Here are his final days with us...may Ozzy boy rest in peace.

Welcome 2009!

1-1-09 We start off the 2009 with our annual New Year's Day sunrise hike! Folks from Azure Hills church and Beaver Medical Group gathered together at Hulda Crooks Park to do a short hike and hear some words of inspiration from Pastor John Choi. Check out the pixs!

Summer's ballet solo

12-17-08: Summer's ballet solo, with fan commentary by Pastor Alex and Chris Harter, and Natalie and Conchita Portilla. This was her solo in among the rest of her class's number, which she danced with as well.

Christmas Ballet Prog

12-17-08 Last night, Summer had her ballet school's Christmas program. She had a blast because she is now on pointe and had a solo! Check out the video clip for that. She had a nice crowd of family and friends on the front row--Grandparents Kuniyoshi, Conchita and Natalie Portilla, and Pastor Alex, Chris, and the kids.

Even standing on pointe, Summer is still shorter than Natalie!Gisella gives her "serious model" look...
Grandpa and grandma drove all the way from Upland in the dark and rain to see Summer.
Swim teammate Mei also danced in a jazz and ballet number.
Another swim teammate, Victoria, danced ballet as well. She's a very good dancer!
Conchita insisted on getting a parent & child shot, so here we are!
With her Ballet IV class. No, she's not a ballet protege, she's just short! The girls are all about the same age as Summer!
This is what happens when you stand on pointe too long...arch cramp!!!

Foosball championship born

12-13-08 Later that evening, we went over to the Choi residence (I can't remember his first name...what was it???) and tested out their foosball table. Unfortunately, Team India lost, but we will be back!!!


The moms can now be like Nanci and make sushi!

Christmas tickle of the ivories

12-13-08 Had our annual Christmas piano recital with Auntie Helen (Juman). Summer had 2 duets. The Knowlton boys had a duet as well. Stay tuned for the video clips!

Oct to Nov whirlwind!

11-8-08 Wow, since the Agassi gala in Las Vegas early Oct., it's been a crazy whirlwind this last month so far. And the big holiday start is around the corner so I thought I'd just stick in a slide show catching you up on what's happened this past month. Sort of a potpourri of pixs. Enjoy!

(Click on the "pause" if you need more time to read the captions)