The monarch caterpillar we were “hosting” hatched!!! We woke Sammy up to see it – he said “this is EXCITING!” 

Yesterday I kept Sam out of preschool and enjoyed a totally unscripted long morning with the boys, starting with a run onto base for doctor appointments. On our way through the gate we saw Obama’s motorcade coming out (they’d been working out at the gym).

We gave a big wave and saw some smiles and waves in return. That was exciting :) After our appointments, we talked to a few Marines having coffee. I always enjoy getting first-hand accounts of the various theatres to which they’ve been deployed. One is being sent to Okinawa for jungle warfare training, so I asked what that entails and shared our recent hike through the mud at Makapu’u. We laughed when they saw Sam’s new BROWN crocs – they’re perfect for mud slogs…”tactical” in Marine terms! Then off to the playground and finally home to the great smell of slumgullion cooking away in the kitchen. Gail took cooking off my plate (literally!) yesterday and made one of Dave’s favorite meals – enough for us as well as a family of nine that I’ve been bringing meals to periodically just to help out. (They have 7 kids and are expecting twins!!!) A great day…