Kaila's 3rd year

Kaila's third year was full of lots of different friends, we moved to Clovis CA with a great friend of mine and her son. It was kind of like Kaila had an older brother during that time, because he was so good with her and played with her and protected her, but also got annoyed by her. Kaila was a non stop talker, well still is :-) but that's just her personality. On road trips she would talk the whole time, even if it was a 6hour trip... just gotta love my little storyteller it was just hard for people that weren't use to her. At first when you look at her she's the cutest little thang that is sooo very quiet, but then she gets comfortable and you just have to be ready with lots of energy to handle her. That is the one trait Kaila definitely gets from her dad, because I am complete opposite and can sit for hours & not say one word and be perfectly content!

Kaila's 3rd birthday was full of partying, Mike & I took her to Sequoia National Park for a little hike... it was cold but beautiful. On her actual birthday we had cake for her at my brother's house, just his little family and me & Kaila... afterwards we headed over to the Old Adventure Park in Hanford and her best friend at the time Mia joined Kaila and Kaila's cousin Ayden for some fun on the go carts. She did have a huge party, but it wasn't until a month after her birthday because she had a joint birthday party with Mia at Rollertowne in Visalia. Sandy Olmstead made each of the girls cakes which were awesome and delicious. Kaila of course wasn't feeling good, so she basically just ran around the rink in her socks or someone was cuddling with her which she loved being held. She is the sweetest little girl and deserved all the attention she got her 3rd year.

Kaiu 3-6months

Kaiu's life has already been fill with so much excitement at such a young age. He enjoyed trips everywhere and was such a great little traveler. We went on tons of road trips that consisted of hours of driving and very little stopping. He was such a trooper, I bet because he loved the attention of someone sitting next to him staring at him for long periods of time :-) For Halloween Kaiu was a "Sweet Pea" he was so adorable, everyone just wanted to eat him up HA HA. Kaiu was introduced to a couple different pumpkin patches and we went three times. He watched on with excitement when everyone got to shoot off their pumpkins in the giant canon... his eyes were wide open when that loud noise occurred over & over. He also got to experience his very first corn maze which took a long long time, thank god there was a snack bar & a seating area in the middle of the thing LOL.

When Kaiu was 6months old he joined us on his very first trip to Las Vegas NV. It wasn't just any trip, he got to vacation with our Van Natta Family as well as our Stone Family and some even flew in from afar, because Kaiu's Mommy & Daddy were finally going to tie the knot (3kids later, but better later then never and to add to it, we had got over our rough patch couples usually go through the first couple years of their marriage) It was during The Thanksgiving Holiday, so not only did we celebrate our marriage we also got to celebrate the holidays together with both sides of our family. Kaiu went to his first dinner show on Thanksgiving which was kind of like a Horse Knights show. The wedding was small, but fabulous; Kaila was the Flower Girl, Makai was the Best Man and Baby Kaiu was our Ring Barer... they were all as cute as can be and of course so quiet & respectful through the whole ceremony. The Wedding Reception was held at Dick's Last Resort which the kids absolutely loved, because they had great laughs listening to the Waiter yelling at all of us adults. Well minus the Bride, they were mean to everyone except me... it was absolutely hilarious. That is what the restaurant is all about, the staff making their guests where crazy hats with really inappropriate sayings and being awfully mean to everyone that steps foot in their restaurant. Good Times Good Times. Wish Kaiu would remember this magical day, but of course we'll have pics for him to look back on.

Makai's 2nd year

Makai's second year of life, we lived at River Oaks around the corner from my moms house... just Mommy, Kaila & Makai. We had a townhouse and the kids loved sliding down the stairs, playing on the back patio and especially playing out front with our neighbors granddaughters. It was good times, Mike and I got along very well during that year... he would come to visit whenever he had a free moment. I was working full time in Fresno during this year so Makai spent a whole lot of time with his Aunt Colly and cousin Xander, he absolutely loved going over there it was like a play date every day! Of course we had our monthly getaways, touring the amusements parks and introducing Makai to all the fun California provides :-) Him & Kaila were very close and still are, they really enjoy hanging out with each other. It's amazing how much they get a long, Kaila will play cars with Makai and Makai will play dolls with Kaila just as long as they are playing together he is one happy camper.

His 2nd birthday party was held at Freedom Park in Hanford, he had a bounce house which was cars theme and we bounced for hours, YES "WE" I loved bouncing in the fun house with the kiddos. It was a nice warm day with lots to do and lots of people celebrating, even some that traveled from afar. We of course enjoyed a Filipino Cuisine and had a Disney Cars Cupcake Cake which Makai chowed down on. The party ended with a big bang; meaning "cake in the face" which is a ritual at every party we throw ;-) He got so many gifts, he absolutely had a blast playing with all the car/truck toys he got, but funny & true his favorite gifts that day were the clothes... he's such a good boy and always happy/goofy as can be!

Kaila's 2nd year

Kaila's 2nd year of life was full of road trips, we literally travelled every single weekend either just her & I went to the beach to the mountains to amusement parks and sometimes we even had family & friends join us. We spent at least once a month visiting my sister and Kaila's cousins Forrest & Skylar in Santa Cruz which was awesome, because she lived in the mountains and also lived 6miles from the beach. Kaila & I also lived in the mountains which we absolutely loved, we lived in Coarsegold CA. It was perfectly nestled in a quiet mountain neighborhood with the golf course down below our backyard. We would wake up in the morning with deer in our backyard, because our fence was only a foot high or they would even be cozy underneath our front window. In the winter time snow fall even hit our house which was rare because we lived in the foothills, but it was so beautiful and perfect because it would be melted by the time the sun heated up. The only thing missing was having my family right around the corner from us so it definitely did get lonely at times, but we found a lot of indoor/outdoor activities to keep us occupied. Kaila & her lil friend loved hiding under the chairs and playing peek a boo, it was the cutest and attached is one of those cute moments.

We celebrated Kaila's 2nd birthday at my brother's house in Hanford, she was not feeling good. I had given Kaila cold medicine before the party started so she'd feel ok, guests started gathering and Kaila started gaining a little energy, but when my mom got there she saw how sick Kaila was and dosed her up with cold medicine not realizing she had just been given some. Poor baby as you'll see in the pic below, she was completely out of it and did not enjoy her birthday party. From what I recall, her friends even opened her presents for her. After her party ended, we made the long trek home to Coarsegold and just relaxed the rest of the weekend. During the summer of Kaila's 2nd year of life she flew to DE with her PopPop and spent 7weeks with her paternal family, they celebrated her birthday, they went to the beach, the boardwalk and she had tons of fun. When she flew back to Cali she was able to start Pre-School because she was full on potty trained at 2 1/2years old she attended Kiddie Kountry in Clovis CA and she learned so much. She learned all her letters and counted up to 20 before she was 3yrs old. She sure is one smart cookie and I praise her for all the hard work and good that she always does.

Kaiu's first 3months

Kaiu was born about 5pm on Mother's Day in the same room Makai was born in "Room 103". Mike & my sister Tricia were both in the room with me and we had lots of visitor's in the hospital. I got to enjoy him in my hospital room for the first two days, then when there were talks about releasing us his test for Jaundice had gotten worse so they moved him over to the NICU and there began my depression of him spending another week in the hospital. Luckily Kaiser Permanente had a guest room open, so they were able to move me so I wouldn't have to make the daily drive to visit him from Lemoore and drop off booby juice and I wouldn't be charged any hospital room fees either. I was nursing, but they had me pump over and over and over, because the Dr didn't want the baby being removed from the light. Whenever the Dr wasn't there the NICU nurses would call me to come in and nurse the baby, because they said he wasn't as bad as the Dr was making it out to be and they noticed that Kaiu seemed to get a boost of happiness whenever I would Koala hold him. I loved those nurses, they put a big smile on my face when all I thought I had in me was tears at that time. He was released after a week and I realized when we got home, his cool take home outfit was on backwards LOL.

We got home to My mom (Nanny), Kaila & Makai welcoming baby Kaiu home. It was nice to have Kaila home the first month of Kaiu's life, then she flew to stay with her daddy in DE the weekend of Father's Day! After she left we had guest after guest after guest stay with us over the summer and it was awesome. My friends Curtis & Connie stopped by to visit a few days during a Coast to Coast road trip they did on their way home to WA. Then my friend Ann stopped by a couple days from NE while she was in Cali for her High School reunion. Last but not least my dad (Grandpa Stone), my step-mom and lil sis Jenny flew in to visit a week, they met Makai & Kaiu for the 1st time. When Kaila flew home, we took Kaiu to his first amusement park Universal Studios... of course he was only 3months old so he'll never remember it, but it was so much fun and it was like he was a little star, because he got so much attention there. He certainly is a little attention getter, considering he literally woke up every 1-2hours throughout the whole day & night. He was a little colicky, but mainly just wanted me to hold him & he absolutely loved the Strawberry Sling I would hold him in which my sister hand made years and years ago. He's very insecure and when he sensed I wasn't near he would freak out til I cuddled him for awhile. Although he is a very needy baby, I kind of like it, because I love always holding him :-).

Makai's 1st year

Makai's first year of life was a roller coaster, but thank god he was too little to feel the ride. I took 12weeks off of work, so Makai was just about 3months old when I started making the daily drive back and forth from Hanford to Fresno. I moved back in with my mom for a short period of time after a few months, I depended on my mom so much at that time for her emotional and physical support with the kids. It was a rough life, but it was our life and Mike & I seemed to be able to work together and make it through it. Mike had Makai and he even kept Kaila too on his days off and came over to visit whenever he had time in between work & his newly found love "Jiu Jitsu". Makai was a joy to have around, he was such a momma's boy and still is. I nursed him until he was 13months old, it was my way of keeping him close and a reason to take him from the person holding him ;-) and of course for the nutritional value too! He got his first tooth when he was about 6months old and they started popping out after they, his teeth were huge and bright white; I'm so glad he grew into them LOL. Makai didn't talk much as a little guy, but he started walking when he was about 10months old.

A whole year had passed and we traveled quite a bit his first year. The weekend of Makai's 1st birthday, we took him camping at Henry Cowell near Santa Cruz, my sister made him Orange Cake cooked in the orange peel over the camp fire to celebrate his special day. It was a blast and of course he loved playing in the dirt. The pic attached was the funniest moment of that weekend, Makai lost his balance fell backwards and that's how he stayed probably about 5mins... he was a little goofball and still is; always trying to make everyone laugh. The weekend after Makai's 1st birthday, we went to Disneyland and my brother & his fam joined us. Makai had a birthday party at Ariel's Grotto, yes it was a princess party but what boy wouldn't want beautiful princesses giving him all the attention he deserves. He loved it and his little Mickey Mouse cake. I'll never forget Makai & his cousin Xander would not stop staring at the princesses. The weekend after that, we had a huge 1st birthday party locally with all of our friends and family... he got tons of cars, balls and clothes. He was one spoiled 1yr old, but well deserving of it :-)

Kaila's 1st year

Kaila's first year of life went by so fast. Although I had lots of help & lived with my Brother... it was tough being a new mommy, so I went back to work when she was just over 4weeks old. Kaila stayed with my sister in law while I was at work and Kaila's dad would pick her up for a few hours from her before his workday began. It was kind of nice working opposite schedules, because he was able to hang out with her while I was at work, so I didn't feel like I was missing out on my time with her. Kaila was a very very smart baby girl, she started holding her own bottle at 4months, she started talking at least 3word sentences at 9months and started walking at 11months. The picture of Kaila in the red dress is the actual day she started walking on her own. I took her to play at Lions Park in Lemoore, we walked there and she kept falling over and over and then all of a suddent she didn't fall, I was able to snap a photo and she has been walking ever since that day. She was also a toothless baby until she was 11 1/2months old which was super cute! Kaila had her Christening at New Beginnings Church in Hanford by Pastor Walt Black with two other friends Mia & Hayden. Her God-Mother Marianela was there for the special occasion as well as lots of family & friends in the pews.

Kaila's 1st birthday party was at my mom's house (Nanny), it was Strawberry Shortcake theme... she hated getting dirty so when it came time to eat her cake she was not thrilled & after I realized that the red frosting stained I was not thrilled either. It was a rather small birthday party, we had my parents, my siblings, their kids, a couple friends of mine and their kids and that's about it. It was just enough people to have a blast and of course a fabulous cake fight :-)

Kaiu David born May 9, 2010

All about my baby Kaiu. He is the baby that essentially glued my little family together. Mike and I had a year long rough patch and had went our separate ways with hopes that one day it'll work, because it really is tough having to live a life passing kids back and forth between parents.

My pregnancy with Kaiu was horrible, I remember my good friend Heather told me she was pregnant and I told her "you know what I think I might be too, because every time I ride the elevator at work I feel like puking" So on my way home that night I bought a test, it came back positive so I made my appointment with my OB/GYN and went to see him the next day. Surprisingly the test at the Dr's office came back negative, so I asked for a blood test just to find out why I'm so dizzy all of the time. While at work the actual Dr calls me and says they found out their box of tests are bad and they had to throw them out and per my blood test I am in fact definitely pregnant and asked me to come in after work for an ultrasound. I didn't tell Mike for about a month and when I did I sent him an email with the ultrasound pic. I was so sick every single day for over four months, I ended up double dosing flinstone vitamins in place of prenatal vitamins and instantly my puking stopped... it was a long horrible pregnancy. I chose to take off work 4weeks before my due date, a few days after being off work I decided to pamper myself with a full on pedicure... I should not have done that, because at 4 in the morning I woke up feeling funny and like I was going to pee my pants LOL. Well I ran to the restroom and sure enough my water broke, thank god I was sitting on the potty :-) Mike heard me scrambling packing a bag with clothes and stuff and was confused, because it was still a month before my due date. I told him "so much for shopping for myself on Mother's Day today, because we need to head to the hospital" My sister showed up to take my kids to my moms. I drove Mike & I to Kaiser Permanente in Fresno (yes you heard right "I DROVE") and waited for my sister to arrive and she made it YAY! The funny thing is, we had such a blast laughing and telling stories. It was so much fun the nurses were hanging out in our room. I had no clue if I was having a boy or a girl and just had a feeling it was a girl and my mind was set on the name Mykel Mercedes. Mike wasn't too keen on naming the baby Kai if it was a boy and our nurse Kaitlyn mentioned the cartoon Caillou. Mike said he actually likes that name and we talked about how that is Makai's favorite cartoon, we would just spell it Kaiu if it does pop out a boy. It came time to push & I told the nurse it's her call, but I really shouldn't push until after the Dr is in the room... she kind of laughed, but we said we were serious and told her what happened with Makai's delivery so she said she definitely will call the Dr first then. Every one gowned up Tricia & Mike holding each of my feet and one push and the baby was out. I wanted the doctor to yell out if it's a boy or girl, but he didn't. He just laid the baby on my chest and said "Happy Mother's Day" all I saw was the baby's "parts" and I yelled very loudly "ARE THOSE BALLS omg it's a boy" and then I look over at Mike and he's dancing around the room "literally" he said he would if it was a boy and I looked at my sis and she was bawling and the nurse told Tricia "don't be fooled delivering a baby is normally never this easy" because Tricia had told her earlier in the day this is the 1st birth that she'll be witnessing. We were in the hospital for over a week with Kaiu, because of his jaundice.

Makai Stone born October 3, 2007

It is now time for Makai to shine. Makai's daddy and I have been friends since my Freshman Year in High School, but had only been officially dating for a few months when I found out I was pregnant. I honestly don't even remember what prompted me to take a test one night in our duplex, but I did and it wasn't the result I was hoping for. I walked into the Master Room tossed the test across the room to Mike, when I saw the smirk on his face I walked out very angry and there began the beginning of my very hormonal pregnancy. I absolutely loved being pregnant with Makai, I was so happy and I felt so pretty all of the time EXCEPT when his daddy was around... some unknown anger would kick in and I had no clue why I still have no clue why, but I made it through the pregnancy and it felt like forever before I gave birth; maybe because how short my pregnancy felt with Kaila.

Well here's a little recap of how the labor began... my water broke in the middle of the night. I called my brother, but told him when he gets here to be quiet because Mike was asleep on the couch & I didn't want him to freak out! While I was on the phone with my sister sitting on the ground in my closet, Mike comes in frantic because my brother called him for directions or something. I told him to calm down I'm talking to my sis because I want her to start making the drive from Santa Cruz to be there with me(she got there a 1/2hr after Makai was born). After my brother got to my house to pick up Kaila, Mike & I made the drive to Kaiser Permanente in Fresno. Mike took his best friend Clint's advise and sat very quiet saying very little the whole time. This time I opted to be given Pain Meds even though I'm allergic, because I absolutely did not ever want to feel the pain again that I felt when I was in labor with my first child. The nurse had me start pushing a little before the doctor came in the room "very bad idea" because Makai started slipping out without me even doing anything. The doctor rushed in and before he was even gowned & gloved the baby was laying on the bed while the nurse held one hand on him so he wouldn't fall while the doctor finished gearing up. We had lots of medical staff in the room by that point, a nurse for me, a nurse for the baby, my doctor, the baby's doctor and the door was wide open with two medical students standing in the doorway observing... it wasn't awkward at the moment, but looking back WOW is all I can say.

I will admit I was extremely upset when I found out I was going to have a boy, but when the doctor laid that little guy on my chest... it was a type of bond I had never felt before & I did not want to share Makai with anyone!

Kaila Ann born December 4, 2003

Today I am going to give you a little glimpse into Kaila's babyhood. She is definitely my little surprise baby as I didn't find out I was pregnant with her until I was already 6months into it. You better believe I was in COMPLETE SHOCK!!! I found out I was pregnant, I was having a girl and I was about 6months along 'all in one day.' So the search began for this guy I had a fling with during a short breakup with my boyfriend at that time. My step-dad filled Bryan in with the news and there really was no question just emotions flying everywhere. Needless to say my boyfriend didn't stick around, but the most important person besides Kaila's MOMMY did stick around; Kaila's DADDY.

A short 3months later my water broke at work, I was driven to Central Valley Hospital in Hanford and a baby girl was born after 18hours of labor with her daddy's eyes in view and my friend Tina there holding my frightened hand. It was the most painful scary overwhelmingly magical moment I had ever had!
AND... although I dressed her like a boy in all sorts of different army clothes she was the most beautiful baby girl I had ever seen in my life!

My Three Kai's

I have a daughter named Kaila, a son named Makai and son named Kaiu... these are my three "Kai's" and I love them with all my heart. Each one of them has a different personality, different likes, different dislikes and although they have very similar names they have very different stories. I can't wait to update you on how My life with My "Kai's" has been from the first ones birth to how My life with My "Kai's" is today. There is a lot to look forward to and I hope you enjoy reading!