DISfunkshion

Arkotec was just recently featured in DISfunkshion, a fashion magazine that just went national. Quite the colorful spread! If you can't read the article, this is what was said;

"Christian Hastings is gradually spinning art in a more positive direction by creating graphics and products which promote a respectful relationship between nature and industry. Hastings has a desire to design fresh art for our fresh new world and while keeping them separate, he derives inspiration from his background as an architect! The love of design has led this local artist right to the birth of Arkotec. Arkotec is an evolving community based artistic company that merges the many concepts of technology, nature, and design. After cruising through Arkotec.com, one can conclude that this company beautifully illuminates the relationship between nature and technology using limitless different media. Arkotec was founded with a concentration on t-shirts, however the company is slowly expanding to photography and home furnishings. The theme (as stressed across some t-shirts), is basically to harmonize opposites. Arkotec considers the Earth as one co-operative laboratory, and thus creates art with this mind set. Interesting subjects for photography, such as the fascinating natural deterioration of both rustic country and urban areas, can also be found on Arkotec.com. Hastings loves to zoom in on ordinary things, a railing for example, and take a closer look. His photography also emphasizes factories and the simple beauty of nature on the Big Island. Various thought-provoking free-lance sketches are also posted on the website. Basically, Hastings has a vision of Arkotec one day being a small but trusted creative hub for artists to exchange design ideas, revere Arkotec as an uplifting community resource, and request products which are parallel to their unique concept of the Earth. Arkotec is an emerging company, with many ideas still in the making. Upon request, many photos, sketches, and other art media can be turned into a product of choice. Therefore, all inquiries should be sent to Christian@arkotec.com. Meanwhile, other products, such as adorable recycled throw pillows, can be found in Chinatown of Honolulu at [area], a vintage furniture store". - By: Catherine Lebongo.

Pretty exciting! I'm a little jealous that the Mrs. didn't get mentioned :) but it's probably better that Christian is the 'face' of Arkotec because he has a cuter one. Grab your copy of DISfunkshion at your local Barnes and Noble or Borders!

4-month old check up

I was really nervous for this check up because he was getting his second set of shots and the first time around was an awful experience. He cried these noises that I have never heard before. I started crying too because it was so hard to see him like that. So this time I came prepared with his medicine and a bottle for comforting. He was in a pretty good mood today and I was so proud of him. As soon as he got his first shot in his upper thigh, he growled at the nurse. It was so cute! He whined a little for his second shot but he didn't even cry. He's a tough little tyke.

As for his stats. The boy is growing! He weighed in at 13 lbs, at 15% (same percent as last month). His height measured at 24 3/4 in., 25% (last month his height was 5%). And his head circumference is 41 cm., 15% (last month his head was 5%). Doc said that he has the strength of a 6 month old. He passed his push up test and he was impressed that he could almost sit and stand on his own. So strong! T still sleeps 10 hours straight every night. It's nice when he wakes up after me, I can get a few things done. We are so blessed to have a healthy baby boy.

Happy Birthday baby T!

mobile

My talented husband made this mobile for T's nursery this past week. I love it and think he did an awesome job. It may appear to be dangerous, but it is completely safe and secure :) It's kind of appropriate because we have these red Cardinals flying around outside and they sit on the trees outside of his window and chirp. Every morning around 5:30 when the sun begins to rise, all of the birds sit on our trees and sing, and they are super loud! We normally sleep through it so it doesn't really bother us. Tristan seems to like his new mobile. Special thanks to his dad for being so creative.

father's day

Father's Day was nice. Tristan slept in a bit. We went to church. I taught my lesson. Tristan was fussy for the full 3 hours. We came home and made Christian's Roast. Had the Gardner's and Larsen's over for dinner, dessert, and this...


Happy Father's Day to all the wonderful fathers in our lives. Especially to my cute husband, who his baby boy just adores. We love you Dad.

poison dart frog

After a good rain in Manoa, we find these guys jumping around everywhere. They are really tiny; probably the size of your thumb. The skin of the frog contains toxins, which is not really a threat to humans, but it allows them to hang out with their predators if they wanted to. We usually see a few jumping around our house. They are really cute. The picture above is from our walk around the neighborhood this morning.

waiting patiently

It's summer time, which means that the surf is up in Honolulu. We no longer have to drive all the way out to the North Shore for Christian to get into the water. (It's flat over there anyways right now). A couple of days a week, we pick Christian up from work with his surfboard and board shorts in tow, and we go straight to the beach, where he jumps in the water and Tristan and I walk. It works out perfect for all of us. Little T loves it. These picture below are of the little one waiting patiently for his dad to paddle in.

roll over

The other day we were filming Tristan while he was laying on the floor, and he decided to roll over for the first time! We caught it all on film.

Note: Christian is topless because he just got back from the beach. Also, ignore the audio, we think we sound silly.

the boy can't help it

He is so scrumptious. We can't get enough of him. Tristan is 3.5 months now and is growing so fast, we try not to blink. His sweet personality is coming out now and he is super alert and active. Those eyes are still bright blue, however they seem to be getting darker and darker. His hair is growing in thicker, minus the sideburns area. In the sunlight, his locks look blondish red. Thank you Jaqueta. We pretty much take a million pictures of him every day. Below are a few of our favs.

Snuggling with Mom.

Tristan helping mama in the kitchen making homemade pizza.

Playtime with Dad. It's hard not to kiss his little face all the time.

This boy loves to be naked. As soon as that diaper comes off he gets a big grin on his face.

Finally Tristan is able to wear real clothes. He looks so grown up here. One of his new favorite things to do is hold his hands together (also see a couple pictures up). To sum up, this kid's freakin awesome.

highschool sweethearts

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad. 32 years!

rebloomed orchids?

I love orchids. This is the first time that I have ever seen our orchids rebloom. The flower usually falls off after a few weeks and then we have a stick plant in our house for a year or two, until I'm over it and think it's ugly and give it away to someone or throw it away because I think it's dead and will never grow back. Our secret this time was to put the stick plant outside on our porch with the direct sun and tons of rain. It took about 6 months or so for these flowers to bloom. Oh so lovely again.

our little lion

Tristan started making these new noises this week and he can't seem to stop. He's growling like a lion. It's so cute how he is discovering the new noises he can make. Watch below.

transition to stay-at-home mom

It has been 3 months since I have officially been unemployed and it feels weird. I have worked since I was 15 years old, mostly in an office with the 8-5 hours. When I’m at the grocery store at 2:00 in the afternoon I feel like I am going to get in trouble for not running my errands during my lunch break and I feel I need to be back at the office. It’s just weird! But let me tell you, it’s wonderful. I always knew I wanted to be a stay-at-home mom. My mom was home with us. I remember coming home from school and seeing her van in the driveway, (the big bubble van). It was the best feeling to know that she was inside waiting for us to come home.

To my surprise, when it came down to telling my work that I was not coming back, it was not easy. I went back and forth on whether I should really do this. Financially, the second income is nice. Working has been my life for over 10 years, I don’t really know any different. I also thought about when/if I wanted to go back to work in the future, I would have this big gap on my resume. But of course all I had to do is look at baby T and I knew I wanted to be with him. I didn’t want to miss him grow. This was a decision that I thought was best for my family and me. I know that every family is different and have different circumstances and some mothers need/want to go back to work. This was what I wanted to do.

So now that I am home...what do I do?? The days fly by SO fast. Caring for a child is a huge job, which leaves me little time for myself. Our typical day; Tristan wakes up at 6:30am, I change him and then bring him into bed with us and feed him and we fall back to sleep for about a half hour. Dad wakes up and plays with T before he heads off to work. We work out together. T gets a bath. He wants to eat again. I change him. He naps. I’m able to either clean, eat something, or sew, etc....for about 45-1 hr before he wakes up. We go through it again. Change him, feed him. Nap. Do his exercises. Run some errands. Walk on the beach. Before we know it, Christian needs to be picked up. Where do the days go? I love it though. I love being home and having a clean house and having meals planned for the week. (Christian is rolling his eyes right about now). It’s not easy but I’m working on it. Our lives are a little more sane.

For Mother’s Day, my mom got me the Dr. Laura book, “In Praise of Stay-at Home Moms”. I’m excited to read it. Overall, I'm really enjoying my time with Tristan. He truly is a blessing in our lives.



Grocery shopping with Tristan. Cute right?

silly faces of a 3 month old