Kohl's Cares for Kids $10M Giveback Contest!

I got a newsletter from school yesterday that read...

"Greetings William Wright Families,

Please assist our friends at Frobuss ES with their goal of winning $500,000 from Kohls! Since early July, Forbuss has diligently been working on earning votes from the Las Vegas community and winning this contest. If Forbuss ES wins, Wright ES wins too!

All you need to do is:
1. Visit www.facebook.com/kohls
2. Click on the top box "Kohls cares"
3. Click on the arrow "vote now"
4. Enter Forbuss Elementary in search for schools
5. Click on "like and "allow" in the boxes that pop up
6. Vote five (5) times for your school and Forbuss Elementary School
7. Make sure you get your 5 stars to turn green at the top of the page.
8. Tell all friends and family to on and vote!

Currently Forbuss has more than 4,500 votes and is 17th in the nation! Each Facebook account can vote 5 times for Frobuss. If you need more information on this contest or Forbuss Elementary School please go to http://schools.ccsd.net/forbuss/ . Contest ends 9/3/10."

All 3 of my boys attend William Wright and I think this would be super beneficial for all the kids in the neighborhood. I know that there are so many of us out there with facebook accounts and taking 5 seconds out of your day to vote for Forbuss would mean so much to us!!!

Thank you,

Fangupo Family

twenty.seven

Aaaah another year has come and gone. I celebrated my 27th birthday on Saturday, August 28th. Friday night at work was seriously a disaster. As the clock rolled past midnight and my shift came to an end one of my coworkers, Senayt, wished me a Happy Birthday. I thanked her and thought "hmph, some way to ring in your birthday!" Senayt and I have the same shifts. A lot of times we're lucky enough to get scheduled to go to break together. We talk a lot about work, life, and just random things. On our way out of the office Friday night (Saturday morning) I was telling her how horrible my day was. She listened and said that the night was over, and that I no longer had to worry about those guests or problems. When we walked pass the employee dining room we started talking about chocolate and she mentioned that chocolate was her favorite flavor and asked me what mine was. I told her strawberry and she says "strawberry ice cream or strawberry cake?"... "both!" I replied. Our conversation turned to another topic and before we parted ways I noticed that she had a beautiful ring on her finger, so I complimented her on it and told her how pretty I thought it was. We ended our conversation and wished each other a goodnight knowing we'd see each other later that day to do it all over again. Ti picked me up and the whole ride home I told him about how bad my night was. When we got home it took me a while to clear my mind and finally fall asleep. The next morning I woke up to the boys showering me with birthday hugs and wishes. I could tell that Ti Tonga had put Mote in charge of carrying a bag in to the room for me. It was a huge plastic Bed, Bath & Beyond bag. The first thing that came to my mind was "What in the heck did Ti Tonga buy from Bed Bath & Beyond?" I couldn't think of anything that I may have suggested our house lacked so I was really confused. I pulled out not 1, but 2 items that were almost identical in shape and size. Hmmm... So honestly I was thinking, "Wow, he seriously felt the need to get me 2 of the same items? Maybe one of each color?" Yeah I know I sounded ungrateful, but those were my honest thoughts at the time. I turned the first item over and noticed a trademark sticker that completely caught me off guard. My eyes finally adjusted to the light and I noticed the tissue paper that it was wrapped in was patterned in the letter "C". I tore it open to find a new Coach bag!! I was soooo surprised and thrilled!!! The Bed Bath & Beyond bag was intentionally used to throw me off. I've been wanting a black bag for the longest time and finally got one! I hugged the kids tight and couldn't stop saying how much I loved it as I thanked Ti Tonga over and over again. Then I realized there was still one more package. "Ti!! What the heck you bought me more than 1?!!" He just smiled and told me to open it. So I opened the 2nd gift to find the most beautiful handbag with the most darling bow tied around it. I couldn't believe it. Not 1, but 2 new hand bags!!


That morning we went and did some last minute school shopping for the kids and got something to eat. When we got home we hung out at home and watched a movie before it was time for me to get ready for work. Siope saw me in my bathroom and asked "Mom, what are you doing? Are you going to work?" I told him yes and he pouted saying "Awwwe man! I don't want your birthday to be over!" It was sad and cute at the same time. Although I wished I could've stayed home with my family on my birthday I had to go in to work.
When I got there I noticed something in my mailbox. It looked like a gift box. I looked around for some kind of clue as to who left the box. I found a card with my name on it, a cute message, and it was signed by Senayt. I opened the box to find a set of MAC lipstick and lipgloss, and a ring just like the one I was admiring the night before.


As soon as I got up to the desk I found Senayt, gave her a hug and thanked her for such a thoughtful gift. Then she told me that she baked me cupcakes and had them downstairs... strawberry cupcakes! How sweet is that?!! We talk all the time, but I couldn't believe that she took what I said the previous night and went out of her way to do so many special things for me on my birthday. I think it has to be the most thoughtful gift(s) I have ever received!! The night went by pretty smooth. I didn't have too many problem guests and when my manager Brian got there he pulled me aside, sincerely wished me a Happy Birthday, then asked if I wanted to go home early. I jumped at the offer. I don't think I've ever left home from work with a bigger smile. It was one of the most memorable birthdays I've had. At the end of the night I realized how blessed and great my life is. It actually feels wonderful to be 27-- who would've thought?

Party Time!

Today marked Siope's 5th year of life. He adds so much vigor to our little family. I would have to say that the thing we admire most about him is his quick wit and his incredible sense of humor. He has the most adorable smile. His trademark of course is his unruly curls. Although he is 5, he still holds his blanky near and dear to his heart and has a collection of stuffed animals who he considers close pals. Besides his blanky and stuffies, a few of his favorite things include: Spongebob Square Pants, WWE Wrestling and The Incredible Hulk. His favorite color is green and he is super excited to start Kindergarten next Monday.

We celebrated Siope's birthday today with some of our friends and family. He wanted to go swimming on his special day so as soon as his cousins arrived we headed to the pool.

We came back home and cracked open the pinata...
filled our bellies with some nummy food...

and topped it all off with chocolate cake.

Can you tell that we're a Spongebob family?

^Samiu, Gabrielle, Siope, Toakesa, Nic, Fotu, Mote & Max

Happy Birthday Siope Saione!!

Family Reunion 2010 - Salt Lake City, UT

Last month we traveled back home to Salt Lake. Although the main purpose of the trip was for Ti's Fangupo reunion, it had been a while since I'd seen my family, so for me it was also an opportunity to reunite with my Moala family. I remember when we first moved out to Vegas-- our trips back home were a lot different. Me and Ti would try to cram in as many lunch/dinner dates with as many friends as we could. Our trips now are so much more mellow. Most of the time we are just lounging around in our parent's living room or eating a home cooked meal in their kitchen. Although I do miss my friends I've found that I really just want to be surrounded by family when I'm in town.

Day 1:
We arrived in Salt Lake later than I'd hoped on Thursday. We got to my parents house and they immediately wanted to take us out to eat. Me and Ti fell in love with a Chinese restaurant there and now every time we visit my Mom goes out of her way to take us there to dine. So we rounded up the entire family and went out for dinner. After, we all went up to the lake with no intentions of getting wet. No one came dressed to swim, but 95% of our group somehow ended up in the water. The best part for me was having my parents there. They are the biggest home-bodies. They seldom go out and when we asked them if they wanted to go to the lake before dinner they said for us just to go without them. I was surprised when my Dad was the one who brought up the lake on our way home from the restaurant. Their grandkids really are so special to them. That day I sat there and just watched my family and was so full of joy and gratitude. I felt like the luckiest person on earth to belong to such an amazing and loving family. The only thing that could have made that day better was for Misi to be there. We stayed and swam until it was too dark to see.
Day 2:
The next day we woke up and headed up to Provo for our annual Fangupo reunion. This was by far the smallest one we've had, but I'm glad we kept the tradition alive by coming together.

(above: Ti & the boys w/ Ti's parents
below: me & baby Tevita)

We played games at the park then hit up the pool with the kids. I don't think I've ever swam for so long before. The highlight of the water park was definitely the water slides! I didn't think the kids would be tall enough to go down them, but as long as an adult accompanied them they were good to go! So I took the boys one-by-one on each of the slides. Oh man I felt like a kid again!! And the boys loooooved it!

The white water slides in the back are the ones we went on with the boys

We left the pool right before they closed and came back to a table overflowing with food. They had more games for the kids then the adults did our white elephant gift exchange. Me and Ti totally bought something last minute, but wanted Jr & Tina to choose it so I had Toa convince her to pick my bag. They are huge BYU fans and so I thought it was only right to get them some proper fan gear ;)...We ended the night with a slide show on an outdoor jumbo movie screen. I've seen pictures of these things, but this was my first time actually watching a film on one- it was way cool!We also watched old footage of the very first Fangupo reunion back in the day. It was hilarious.

Day 3:

Saturday we went back to the lake with my family. My parents stayed behind this time so it was just us kids. The weather unfortunately did not want to let us play. It rained, but we decided that since we were up there we might as well make use of the trip and hop in the water. After an hour or two of swimming I looked up to see a truck pulling in and out come my parents with a cooler full of drinks and food for us.There was a family of ducks who also thought that it was a good day for a swim

Mei bossing around Ti Tonga. She's the cutest.We talked and laughed forever, then went back to my parents house where we all gathered around my dad's home made fire pit ;)... and roasted marshmallows for s'mores.

We got back with a van full of sand, memories that will not soon be forgotten, and a greater love and appreciation for our family.

It's a Utah Thing!

While we were out in Utah we went to the lake a couple times with my family --blogs still to come. But anyway the boys were sitting in back of Neo's car and Siope came across this...

He picked it up and asked, "Neo what's this?" Twirled it around a couple times in his hand and said , "Wow this is a BIG toothbrush!"

After recovering from a good laugh, Neo explained to him that it's used to scrape the ice and snow off your windshields. Something we don't have to deal with here in Vegas.

Sink or Swim We're Diving In!

There are a lot of things I wish I could be better at. I'm not sure if it's natural to want your kids to excel at the things you fall short of, but I am guilty of doing just that. I hate that I'm so shy and wish I could be more outgoing so I encourage my kids to be social. I'm always the one chanting their names and cheering them on when they sing or dance in front of a crowd. Ti says that I am the pickiest eater so I make the boys try new foods at least once (sometimes twice) before allowing them to say that they don't like the taste of something. I also have a fear of drowning because I've never learned to swim. My boys are the complete opposite. They love everything about water. This summer they've started putting a lot of different twists on their dives. Siope has finally ditched his life jacket. He was the slowest to do so. I didn't think he'd make the switch on his own so I told him that this would be the last summer he could wear it in order to prep him for next year. They went to the pool yesterday and I asked him where his life jacket was and he told me he didn't want to wear it anymore. Here's some pics Neo sent me of the kids at her pool.