MARK ANTHONY MURAMOTO

Mark, Steve (his step-dad), Norma (his Mom), Matthew (his brother) and Ahn (Matthew's girlfriend)

A Man of God
Buff, dark and handsome
One heck of a baseball player
A smile that was contagious
Happiness
Laughing
Family
Loving

My oldest cousin Mark Anthony Muramoto died today in a motorcycle accident. The only thing that gives me Peace during this tragedy is knowing (without a doubt in my mind) that he is in heaven right now. He is in a better place. I will miss him dearly at family functions. I can't even begin to explain how many laughs he brought to our family. Please pray for his Mom, 10 year old son Keanu, his brother Matthew Muramoto, girlfriend Jaclyn and his ex wife Stella as they mourn the loss of an amazing man.

Mark,
The selfish part of me is crying because I miss you and want you back. But you are in heaven now, looking down on us. You were an amazing father, brother and son and I have so much respect for you. You were an amazing baseball player. Thank you for always bringing a smile when you were around and for making us laugh. I ONLY have good thoughts of you. I know I will get to see you one day. Thank you for loving me and my family........ it's so hard to say goodbye.... I LOVE YOU AND MISS YOU.

With Moon Eyes,
Your Cousin Lynnae


If anyone could light up a room it was Mark. If anyone could get the whole room laughing so hard they would cry, it was Mark. If anyone put others first, it was Mark. If anyones eyes disappeared when they smiled, it was Mark. If anyone was to model what a loving father is like, it was Mark.

Who Said Life Is Easy As A Kid?

I use the line ALL the time when my kids are whining or just having a rough time.... You've heard it.. the one that goes...

" OOOOh Life is rough being a kid, isn't it????"

And then I think, I wish I had it that easy. Someone to feed me, change my diaper, make dinner, I could play all day, take as many naps as I want and people shove food in my face. I sooooo wish I had it that easy.

But, today I look at my sad Brielyn who is cutting four top teeth and life as an infant doesn't look so easy.

I know it seems cruel but as sad as the face is, I had to capture it. She's so sweet. You can tell it's a rough day just by looking at her.

I Never Liked The Number 6 Til Yesterday!

Well, I didn't really have any takers on joining me in a Life Change but I know you are all dying to know...... How's it going? How much weight did you lose? Are you still documenting what you eat? Have you had any cheat days? etc..... Well, maybe you really don't want to know but I'm going to tell you anyways!

Well, I jumped onto my friends scale yesterday and I've lost 6 lbs. Not too shabby, that brought a smile to my face and it helped me since now I know I have a jump start. I'm no where near where I want to be, but I'm happy with the progress so far and I'm more pumped now that I know what I'm doing is in deed working. I am still documenting everything I eat and that's going well. Something about writing it down and having it documented helps you realize and re think what you are about to put in your mouth and if it's worth it, how many calories you have left for the day etc.. It works for me. I have been going to the gym 3 times a week with my Mom and we keep eachother motivated. I haven't had a REAL cheat day. Lynelle, Mom and I had a girls night where they came over and we watched "Enchanted" and we snacked on 100 calorie pak chips, 100 calorie pak hersheys and red vines. So, it was a little Cheat Night but not full blown.

My idea of a cheat day is going out to dinner or lunch and having something like Potato Cheese Soup in a Sourdough bread bowl or Frisco Burger from Claim Jumper. Or Macadamia Nut Crusted Halibut from Dukes in Huntington or King's Fish in Orange with a fat side of garlic mashed potatoes. Or.... A big fat breakfast burrito from ANYWHERE. Are you hungry yet? I am.. but I'm done for today. I have a snack left!

Here's to many more pounds off my hips and thighs.... CHEERS.

AUTUMN NOELLE BOULTON

PICTURE FROM ONE OF OUR SLEEPOVERS

Most of you who are reading know who Autumn is. Autumn is my niece. She's also Alexa and Brielyn's ONLY GIRL cousin. That means we really have a bond with her. She holds a very special place in our hearts. The girls love to play with all of their cousins and value them deeply. But, Miss Autumn gets to do special girl things like sleep over in princess sleeping bags and watch Cinderella as well as play tea set until her tummy is so full that you can hear the water jiggling inside of her. I'm being serious. She does all of this because she loves Alexa so much.

Last night was Mimi night and although she will only be present once a month from now on.... we will cherish every moment with her. We love you Autumn and can't wait to have another sleep over. We look forward to having girls nights and special girls days.

Saying goodbye last night was one of the hardest things I've had to do. I wanted to fix everything and shelter her from the pain. I couldn't hold her long enough, hug her hard enough, kiss her soft enough. I didn't want to let her go.

I Miss You Autumn.

BAND AID

In this season of my life I find myself at a point where the BAND AID has fallen off and the wound is being revealed. Leaking heavily and throbbing.

I want to share a special message from my heart. I've realized that I'm in a different place in the season of my life. I am strong, hopeful and thankful. However, the dramatic family change is no longer surreal. The reality has hit and I am grieving and learning how to deal with this one step at a time.

For those of you that are close to me and call me a friend, you know what I am going through. Thank you for your prayers! That's the best thing you can do. For those of you who have no idea what is going on...I am sorry I may not provide you with only happy blogs. I've realized that during this time considering my blog is therapy, I will post what is heavily on my heart. You may not enjoy or like the content as it may seem boring or dull and negative to you. I am a REAL person. I never considered myself one to hold things inside and I won't. If you are close to me, you know my whole life history and I thank you for being that friend and I invite you to share with me a painful season in my life and walk beside of me as we embrace God's love, purpose, plan and his grace! I know the season will change and I can look back at this and see how amazing God is.

This is not intended to make you feel sorry for me or make you sad. IT'S ALL ABOUT BEING REAL. I NEED love, support and prayers. God Will be the ointment that saturates the wound helps with the healing process and will reveal the new fresh skin.

GOD WILL

Who will calm the storm? GOD WILL
Who will restore hearts? GOD WILL
Who will give me the strength? GOD WILL
Who will bring good out of this horrible situation? GOD WILL
Who will feed the innocent children truth? GOD WILL
Who will be a light unto my path? GOD WILL
Who will hear my cry in the middle of the day? GOD WILL
Who will hear my prayers every hour of the day? GOD WILL
Who will give me hope? GOD WILL.

GOD WILL .

A Promising Thought

Bart baptizing Austin

Dave Sloan baptizing Bart

FOREVER God is faithful

FOREVER God is strong

FOREVER God is with us

FOREVER and EVER and EVER

As I was worshipping in church today singing this song to God, something resonated with me. My thought was such a beautiful one.... God IS faithful, strong and with us FOREVER. We can't say that much for anyone else. How awesome and powerful is that? When everyone else fails us, we always have GOD. Not most of the time, not part of the time, not sometimes, BUT FOREVER!

AMEN.