Yoshinaka Family

By Popular Demand . . .

2010-04-11T23:17:00.000-07:00

Yep, tap class!

Let's do some comparing

2010-03-21T00:32:00.001-07:00

Marina and Mitch are two very different people, so I don't want to spend too much time comparing them against each other, especially as they get older and both understand everything we're saying. Having said that, however, I thought it would be fun to shoot a quick video of Mitch doing something Marina did at roughly the same age. We think she was a bit younger, maybe a month or so.

As usual, I have not posted for a LONG time!

2010-02-17T21:34:00.000-08:00

I am going to make a better effort to post to this blog. the M&Ms have changed SO MUCH! Here are recent pictures of them... well, from Christmas...

Marina's 2nd Birthday!

2009-10-29T21:28:00.001-07:00

Only about a month late, but here are a few photos from Marina's 2nd birthday party. She is really turning into quite the little girl. She's very outgoing and loves to talk and play hard! I guess that's probably like every 2 year old, though.... except it's MARINA!

Another Summer Post

2009-09-13T21:28:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone.

I am sorry it has taken me so long to do another blog posting. It has been a very busy summer, and I spend a lot of time helping Mom and Dad take care of Mitch. I don't know what they would do without me.

Let's see, where should I start? Mom and Dad took me to the beach in August, and we spent a lot time running around on the beach. It was one of those rare days when it's not too cold or windy at the beach. We had a great time.

Mom made lunch for us.

Dad didn't let me win the race.

Mitch and I got to share a bath in the big tub at the beach house.

I am so glad he caught me.

Oh, did I tell you that we got a new stroller? My old stroller's name is Big BOB. The new one's name is MONSTER BOB! It is really cool!

I think Mitch and I will get lots of use out of this thing.

We gave Monster BOB a great workout at the Oregon State Fair. Mitch and I had a great time with our friends Judah and Micah. They have a double BOB, too, but I am not sure what its name is.

Here is Mitch enjoying the sights and sounds of the fair.

I didn't like the sheep.

Mom and Mitch

Judah let me borrow a hat.

Well, it is getting late. I will save the other stuff for another message. But hey, check out my hair.

More photos...

2009-07-11T23:57:00.000-07:00

Marina and Judah in Judah's Crabby Sandbox.

Marina holding Mitch!

Daddy and Marina!

Photo updates of the kiddies

2009-07-11T23:38:00.000-07:00

Well, so far, Mitch is a wonderful, mellow little baby. Marina loves him and loves to help take care of her little brother. We have taken lots of little outings with the girl and the boy and Mitch has met lots of people. Marina went to Judah's birthday party today (and brought mom, dad and Mitch) and had a great time, of course! Here are some photos of Mitch and Marina the past week or so.

This is Mitch and his pediatrician, Dr. DeKlotz!

Mitch on his first walk.

Marina eating her first cob of corn.

Mitch looking super cute!

Judah and Marina at his birthday party.

Mitchell Donald Scharbrough Yoshinaka

2009-07-04T22:33:00.001-07:00

2009-07-01T05:33:00.001-07:00

2009-07-01T05:32:00.000-07:00

Baby Boy Yoshinaka

2009-06-30T22:19:00.000-07:00

Well, the ticker at the top of our page isn't worth crap! Boy decided to come early, as in June 30th in stead of July. He weighed 6 lbs 12 oz and was 18 3/4 inches long. I'll send some photos from my phone as I don't have the camera cord here this morning.

I'm certainly glad that c-section is over. They are not fun! (I know, I know - real labor and delivery are probably not fun either!)

Ft. Stevens Camping Trip

2009-06-08T23:15:00.000-07:00

We wanted to take a trip with just the three of us this summer and decided to take a little camping trip. Since I'm a huge preggo now, we reserved a Yurt at Ft. Stevens State Park. It was so much fun! Here are a few photos from our trip. I can't wait to go back next year with the 4 of us!

"Marinaese"

2009-05-25T15:53:00.000-07:00

I am such a bad blogger, but since Marina is napping and I am laying beside her and can't sleep, I thought I'd make an entry. Brian and I have been meaning to make a list of Marina's vocabulary words, but have been too lazy to start. Now, her list is so long we probably wouldn't be able to capture it. Here are a few of her "cuter" words:

Pococo = Popsicle

Nina = Marina (name given to her by her friend Judah and she now calls herself "Nina")

Dubby = Shelby (dog)

Nummy = Millie (dog)

Gha gha = kitty

Pich = chips (favorite food)

Peeta = pizza (phrase is "Oh boy, Peeta!")

Lollup = roll up (fruit roll up)

Dadoo = either stroller or shower (both current obsessions), depending on the emphasis

Guy = anyone who is not a baby (awkward when she says it to women who sort of look like guys - I find myself over explaining to them)

Yoyo = yellow (the first color she learned)

Gmm = (I don't know how to put the sound into letters) room, broom or boom

Oya = Hola (we eat at Mazatlan Restaurant a lot and everyone knows her)

Bo bo = Sombrero (again, from Mazatlan)

Ba ba = Crab (one of her first words - she's a big fan)

Pow = she says "pow" and bumps fists with us. The cutest is she will "pow" everyone around her and then say "Nina pow" and pow herself. She knows the timing too and will do it when she does something cool or thinks we are funny.

Not a word, but the only sign language she knows is more (knocking her fists together). The best part is you can tell by the placement how bad she wants something. If it's in front of her, that's "more", but the higher it gets, the more she wants the item. Above the head is basically "If I don't get it, I'm going to make you pay!"

I'm sure there are lots more, but right now that's all I can think of. I'll post more when I think of them.

I hope everyone is having a fun and sunny Memorial Day.

Would you care for some ice?

2009-04-22T21:51:00.001-07:00

Well, this is my first post, so I thought I'd do something special and post a video. Here's a behind the scenes look at some of the exciting stuff that goes on in our kitchen. Try to forget about this the next time you're over and we offer you a glass of water or a Coke or well, anything to drink.

That's the dryer you hear in the background.

I'll try post more videos soon.

Catching up!

2009-03-05T21:26:00.000-08:00

I have once again been guilted in to blogging by my friend Melissa. Thanks for kicking my butt and making me do this!

As we left off at New Years, I do suppose I have a bit of catching up to do. In January, I had the usual blood tests and early ultrasound tests to screen the baby for some chromosomal abnormalities. I can now say I don't recommend these tests. The blood test came back with an increased chance of the baby having some issues. We then had an amnio which came back perfectly fine. I've talked to more than a few people since this all started that said their blood tests did the same thing and it sucks, because it stresses you out for no reason. Plus, the amnio (while not horrible) was not pleasant. We did get to find out early that the baby is a boy! We are very excited to get to have one of each and I think Marina is going to be an awesome big sister!

I celebrated my 35th birthday in January, which was good, but sort of depressing. 35 is old! Plus, it was my first birthday without my dad. Just another milestone to remind me of how much I miss him.

February was a good month. We had a few play dates with friends and Brian, Marina and I went to Lincoln City for Presidents Day/Valentine's Day weekend. Then my mom, Marina and I went out the next week for more R&R at the beach. Brian turned 38 last week, so even though I feel old, he will always be older!

Marina has been up to her same old tricks and adding new ones to her playlist. We've had some fun trips to the indoor playground as well as the playground outside on good days. She is still in swimming classes, which she actually is starting to love. The biggest thing though is her music and dance career. She is obsessed. I mean OBSESSED with Beyonce. She LOVES her "Single Ladies" song and demands to listen to it many times throughout the day. I bought the video for my computer and iPhone and now that she knows she can watch the video on demand, she demands that as well. She points to the phone and says "Oo Oo! Oo Oo!" I'm trying to teach her Beyonce's hand moves in the video and she's catching on. It's a little scary how single minded she is about it, but at the same time, its nice that she has passion! Oh, Elmo and Abby Cadabby (both Sesame Street characters) are also her faves. She loves the show and I made her one Elmo blanket and have the fabric for another one.

Remodeling started and finished in Marina's new room! She had a suicide window in her room that was almost floor to ceiling, single pane, un-tempered glass that had to be removed as well as some other weird stuff that the previous owner did. So we had a smaller window put in as well as a new door and moulding. We painted it a pretty green and it looks awesome! I ordered her a big girl quilt from Pottery Barn Kids that is purple and green and her room is going to be so cute when it's completed!! Here is a picture of her loving her new pillow sham. :)

Oh, before Boy is born I really wanted to take a family trip with just Brian, Marina and me. I had wanted to go to Disneyland, but something a little cheaper was more likely. So, I made reservations for us to go on our first camping trip as a family. We're going to Fort Stevens State Park and going to stay in a yurt! I'm SO excited! I hope she enjoys it and the weather is good. We're doing the yurt partly because it's a little early in the year (May/June) and they are heated. Also, I'm going to be a whale, so it will hopefully be a bit more comfortable for me.

Okay well, I think that about covers it. Oh, I am almost done with the Twilight series. It has been awesome, but right now I just want to finish it. Mostly my desire comes from the fact that I've been reading during Marina and my naptime and I'd like to get back to napping during nap time.

Finally, here is a picture of Marina taken today at Pump It Up Jr. It's an inflatable play area for little ones. I have to post because she looks awesome!

Melissa - you make me want a Clarisonic. I hate you for all of your good ideas and recommendations. :)

Happy New Year

2009-01-18T21:37:00.000-08:00

We rang in the new year with one of our favorite movies. Marina loves it now too!

Bad Blogger

2009-01-06T21:41:00.000-08:00

I was told by my friend Melissa that I am a bad blogger for not giving any updates for over a month. I think she might be the only person that follows our blog, so here I go!

Let's see. Thanksgiving was fine. Marina enjoyed all of the food that we did and I hit the after Thanksgiving sales. It was hard having the first big holiday without my dad, but we made it through. I think that's probably my main reason for not writing about recent events. Everything is so weird without him.

In early December, we took a trip to Seattle to see some friends and some of Brian's relatives. It was a fun, exhausting trip. Marina got to hang out with her "old" friend London and made new friends with Tyler and Carter.

Mid to late December was a blur of snow. Marina and I barely left the house for over two weeks and I thought I was going to shoot myself by the time things thawed out. It's not that I can't stay home, but "knowing" you can't leave makes you want to leave that much more.

Christmas was good also. Brian's parents were here and my mom spent the night on Christmas Eve. Marina got a boatload of presents - it was sick, really, and she loves them all. She'll be discovering new ones for months to come.

Brian, Marina, the dogs and I went to my parents' place in Lincoln City for New Years. That was probably the best part. We just relaxed and played and had a great time together. It was stormy, so that was cool and Marina had a really fun time hanging out.

Ok, I think we're caught up now. Happy New Year to everyone. I hope 2009 is better than 2008!!

(I'll try to post some photos as well.)

Halloween - part 3

2008-11-01T11:03:00.001-07:00

Here's just a picture of mom, dad & me.

My 2nd Halloween - part 2!

2008-11-01T10:51:00.000-07:00

Mom can't figure out this blogging stuff, so here is part 2 of Halloween.

After Angela's, we went to April & Kevin's house. We hung out for a while and I played with Alexis, Kayla, Hayley & Brianna. I also stole Kevin's wig. This is what I'll look like if Mom ever tries to perm my hair! Oh no!! I tried to steal Hayley's candy, but I wasn't fast enough. All in all, it was a really fun day. Now I have to start thinking of what to be next year!

My 2nd Halloween!!

2008-11-01T10:35:00.000-07:00

I celebrated my 2nd Halloween yesterday with lots of visiting and fun! First, mom dressed me up and took me to the mall to see Mary. She cuts mom and dad's hair and someday will cut mine. All the girls at the hair salon liked my witch costume. Then we went to St. Helens to see mom's cousin Kim & Don at their store. Lucky for my parents, I slept the whole way there and most of the way home so I was fully charged for the evening's activities. Grandma came over and had dinner with mom and dad and me (a pumpkin shaped pizza from Papa Murphys). Then we went to visit dad's friend Phyllis and Hal. Then it was off to mom's friend Angela's house. She was dressed up as a she-devil.

Lots of catch up for October

2008-11-01T10:07:00.000-07:00

Wow! I can't believe how time flies. It's already November and I haven't blogged much. Here's some stuff we've been doing since the pumpkin patch.

A couple of weeks ago, mom and dad's friends Jon & Susan came and brought their new baby, London. Here's a picture of me holding him. He's a cool new friend. We went downtown together in our BOBs and out to dinner and lots of fun hanging out stuff.

Then, I went to the beach with mom and grandma. It was really fun. I crawled in the sand and practiced walking with mom and grandma's help. I also chased Bob (the dog) around a lot!

More recently, I met one of daddy's good friends, Brendan Riley. He was really fun too. He's going to get married to his girlfriend Colleen I heard. Congratulations!!!

My first trip to the pumpkin patch

2008-10-16T09:13:00.000-07:00

Yesterday mom and dad took me to the pumpkin patch for the first time. It was SO FUN! I got really dirty and played with the pumpkins and grass and dirt and loved it. We went to Lakeview Farms in North Plains and took a train ride and a boat ride - both my first. The train was fun but the boat was a little scary. Here are some photos:

Pumpkin patch!

2008-10-15T14:21:00.000-07:00

National Brain Tumor Society Angel Adventure Walk 2008

2008-10-05T23:33:00.000-07:00

Saturday was the 3rd Annual National Brain Tumor Society's Angel Adventure Walk in Portland. I participated with some dear friends and received many generous donations from others close to my family. I set a $1,000 goal for myself and was surprised to beat it!

Thank you to my friends who made up our team! I am touched that each of you was able and willing to help support my cause.

April & Kevin Reeves

Clark & Peggy Williams

Pauline Edwards

Angela Edwards

Marv & Pat Yoshinaka

Brian Yoshinaka

and of course, Marina!!

And of course, thank you so much to those of you who donated! You were all very generous and I couldn't have made my goal without each of you.

Joyce Scharbrough

Todd Call

Marv & Pat Yoshinaka

Jared & Emma Jane McArthur

Colleen & Troy Humphrey

Ed & Janet Fitzgerald

Jason & Susan Milliren

Pam Hutcheson

Cathy Hyde

Tilaura Rackley

Janice Bredahl

Cindy Hilligoss

Josette Parker & Brian Riley

Phil Sneed of Sneed's Interiors

Tom Jackson

T.J. & Kelly O'Connor

Becky Stardig of Metzger Tax Service

My real birthday - October 1st

2008-10-05T23:23:00.000-07:00

On my actual birthday, I had a long but fun day! Mom and dad took me to the zoo and we had a picnic lunch. I also met Sam, the new baby elephant at the zoo. The monkeys and sea lions were cool too! Later that day, we went to the Spaghetti Factory with Grandma. I had my own plate of spaghetti and ICE CREAM!! Yay for dairy products!!! Here are some photos from the big day:

More Birthday Party photos

2008-10-05T23:18:00.000-07:00

Marina's First Birthday Party!!

2008-09-28T22:17:00.000-07:00

Today was Marina's first birthday party and she had so much fun!!! Thank you to everyone who came! She loves all of her presents and can't wait to play with them more. Here are a couple of good photos from the preparations and the actual party.

Here is Marina being nosy about the cupcakes I made for the party. Can you see the expression on her face?

Here is Brian installing our new area rug before the party: Marina was suspicious...

Latest events...

2008-09-14T17:19:00.001-07:00

The past few weeks have been pretty busy! We had a get together with other babies from childbirth class. Ronan, Ronan, Hope and I were there. We hung out at Sip n Kranz for a while and played really hard! Here we are in a tub together!

I also made a new friend from swimming. His name is Judah and I went to his house. He is super fun also. What is it with all these boys?!

Today we went to my friend Haylee's birthday party. It was really fun. More in a later post. Here is a picture of Haylee and her grandma and me and my grandma. And one of Haylee and Peggy helping me to walk!

I want a scooter!

2008-09-14T16:57:00.000-07:00

Today I went with dad and Grandma to my friend Haylee's birthday party. It was the first one I've attended and I learned a few things. I found out none of the presents were for me. That was lame. I also learned not to crawl through my mom's plate of cake. Oops! Sorry mom!

Oh, and the best gift was this scooter! I loved it! Check me out on my first ride.

Water Safety!

2008-09-03T14:36:00.000-07:00

Apparently mom forgot to tell you about "Water Safety" day at swimming. Actually, it wasn't that bad! At least with a life preserver on, I can't get dunked!

What happened to August?

2008-09-03T14:11:00.000-07:00

Wow, I can't believe August is over! I started this blog with good intentions - of writing a lot, etc, but then Marina started crawling, so that went out the window! August was a busy month. We saw lots of people and went lots of places. We spent time with my cousin and her family, Brian's aunt, uncle & cousin, his parents in Sunriver, my mom, and friends! Here are a couple of pictures from the month and I'll try to be better in September.

We went to The Bite with Dory, Ronan & Jarrod and ate lots of food!!

A rare nap on Grandma...

Hanging out with Aunt Carol and cousin Ryan.

Stopping to see my friend Angela while she was camping at Detroit Lake.

Updates!

2008-08-13T17:15:00.000-07:00

Marina has a new friend!! My friend Susan and her husband Jon had a baby boy on August 5th! Congratulations to them!!

Last week we went to the zoo with my friend Cindy and her daughter, Sophia. Sophia is almost 2 and its amazing what we have to look forward to! She was so excited to see the animals but Marina was more interested in watching Sophia. We also went to The Bite with her friend Ronan and his parents. Oh, and found time to go to lunch with Ace, and coffee with the other Ronan! Marina is a social butterfly!!

This week, Brian's aunt, uncle, and cousin are stopping in to meet Marina. She's been keeping us on our toes with crawling and climbing the stairs about 20 times a day!

My 2 tv junkies

2008-08-01T17:10:00.000-07:00

I'm testing out the mobile blogger function. Here are Marina and
Millie faithfully watching their favorite TV show. They are so lazy!

My week

2008-07-31T23:12:00.000-07:00

This past week has been exciting. Last Friday, mom and I babysat my friend Ace and hung out with he and his mom, Michelle. We had a good time and played really hard.

That night, "The Chans" (Baachan and Jiichan) came and stayed at my house and played with me. We had a really good time and on Saturday, they took me out to breakfast! Saturday night we hung out with Grandma and Sunday we went swimming. Our swim trip was cut short though, because some kid pooped in the pool. :( Oh well, I was tired of dunking under the water anyway. On Monday, we went walking with mom's friend, Angela. She basically kicked our butt and we walked really far! We did find time to play on the swings, though. Mom and I have been sick this week but are starting to feel better. Hmm - could it be because of the poopy pool kid? Ick.

My other boyfriend...

2008-07-23T17:50:00.000-07:00

What on earth could inspire Brian and I to go on a "date" without Marina? I can't imagine anything. A movie? No. Dinner? No. The circus? Doubtful. The greatest singer EVER? YES!!! I guess it was only fitting that Brian and my first night out without Marina should be for something REALLY good. So, we went to Seattle to see George Michael. I've pretty much loved him since my dad took April and I to see his concert in junior high and this time he was just as awesome!! Brian won't admit it, but I'm pretty sure he's his favorite artist too. :)

Big week

2008-07-19T20:22:00.000-07:00

It's been a big week here at our house. Nothing major new to report, but I've been spending a lot of time crawling (forward!) and rolling around. I like to pretend to take a nap with my mom and then roll and sit up and laugh at her. Earlier in the week mom took me to swimming and we also checked out a new park to play at. Tonight mom, dad and I went to a neighborhood bbq. It was pretty fun. Mom took a picture of dad and I. We're a good pair.

Beach trip with grandma, mom, and dad

2008-07-13T18:50:00.000-07:00

After my doctor appointment last Wednesday, mom, grandma and I (and three dogs) took off for the beach. Big things happened that night after we got there. Mom discovered that I had cut my first tooth. Finally! I mean really, my friends all have at least 4 teeth by now. I have a long way to go to catch up, but I'm working on it. I played a lot during our trip. On Friday night, dad came out to stay with us too. He was bummed he wasn't there for the tooth discovery, but was excited to see it (and feel it) first hand. Saturday was my grandpa's birthday. We celebrated it by going to the beach and playing in the sand and having a nice dinner together. We miss him a lot but hopefully he got a kick out of watching me in the sand.

Here is a shot of me eating Cheerios. They are my favorite!Here I am at the beach. I thought it was going to be warmer, so I had to borrow dad's t-shirt. It was fun anyway.Here I am at the beach again, just having a good time. It's a pretty good shot of my first tooth, too!

9 month appointment

2008-07-09T14:29:00.000-07:00

Today I had my 9 month check up. I basically rocked it! I am in the 90th percentile for height, 65th for weight and 97th for head size! I think my daddy gave me his big head. I've been practicing my wrestling moves today on my alphapillar. I will probably go pro in a year or so...

Me??

2008-07-08T16:48:00.000-07:00

Oh no - I have to blog!! I can't even read yet. Today I tried avocado for the first time. It was really good. Tomorrow I have my 9 month doctor appointment. I heard there are no shots, but I will have to have blood taken. If I'm up for it, I'll be headed to swim class with mom after that. Woo hoo! More dunking. Yuck!!

Blogging looks fun!

2008-07-08T15:57:00.000-07:00

The way I update our .mac account, this may be my first and only entry on this blog. I may have to assign this blog to our daughter, Marina. Hmm. Good idea!