i love my grammy...

my grammy is my mommy's mommy. she helps my parents a lot. she watches me while my parents are at work and gladly has me sleep over her house when my parents aren't feeling well. she is a strong woman and my mommy tells me that my grammy has been through a lot. i think the thing that my parents want me to glean from my grammy is her strong work ethic and her perpetual desire to serve God in whatever capacity God allows.

when i was born my grammy was there and wanted to hold me all the time.

my grammy has a lot of fun.

my grammy was helping my mommy with my first bath.

my grammy gets emotional at times because she too can't believe that God actually gave me to my parents. (i love you grammy.)

you will find my grammy at church A LOT. this is one of the many times that we've walked together along the hallways of our church.

my first trip to my daddy's village...

my daddy's village is literally on the other side of the mountain. this is where my roots lay. my mommy wanted me to see my daddy's village for that very reason. the photo above is my uncle tavita (fitu) with my daddy. he still lives there with my aunty ane and my cousins. it seems that my parents keep in touch with them along with other family members that still reside there.

every year my parents watch the fautasi boat races from samoa and cheer for the fealofani samoa II boat. that is the boat from my daddy's village. if the Lord tarries and provides, my parents want me to row for my daddy's village boat someday. that's a long way away and a lot of saving that i'll have to do. either way, i realize that my parents do not want me to forget about where i am from. i also realize that they desire for me to continually ask God to grant me the resources, gifts and talents to offer a helping hand to my family and people here in american samoa. (GO FEALOFANI SAMOA II!)

this is what is called the mafa. it is the top of the mountain before you descend into my daddy's village. can you believe that my daddy was born and raised here? that's a lot of swimming to meet my mommy. isn't it gorgeous?

this is a photo of the bay once we were in my daddy's village looking out. my daddy said that he and my grand-daddy used to go fishing in these very waters. (you go dad!)

looking at the fagasa bay from another vantage point

we had to be quiet driving up because they were having a a "saofa'i" for one of the biggest chief titles of my daddy's village.

my mommy had to learn what this lady is doing since she was a little girl even though she grew up in the states. culture...culture...culture.

these are men from my daddy's village taking a break before the next phase of the event.

more culture...

this is where the first part of the saofa'i took place. you can see the aumaaga lined up outside of the fale tali malo which belongs to the chief that is receiving the title.

now on to the next phase...

this was a very reverent ceremony.

that's my aunty ane holding me while hanging out with my grammy...

the girls just hanging out...

here is a closer look at my aunty ane (my cousin imelda's mom) holding me.

this is my uncle tavita (fitu) holding me. (this is my aunty ane's husband, and my cousin imelda's dad...are you getting the relation connections here?)

that's my mommy holding me in front of the fagasa bay.

my mommy smiles at me in awe not only because she's actually holding her son, but that she is holding her son while standing in my daddy's village. is God good or what?

that's me taking a nap while my great-auntie faapuaa holds me. while my mommy was sitting with her, she kept commenting on how the fagasa breeze is like none other. she was not only glad to hold me but to remind my mommy about the fagasa pride that she should never forget to pass on to me.

only the best of the pigs were used for such an honorable event like this one.

more culture...

this is another cousin that i met while napping in my daddy's village...

that's my daddy and i by my grandpa selafi's grave.

my parents and i next to my grandpa selafi's grave. this was a solemn and memorable moment.

isn't this bay just breath-taking?

my daddy drove while i just enjoyed the ride.

my mommy and my cousin imelda. imelda is the student body president for fagaitua high school. (needless to say, my mommy and daddy were very proud of that!)

i wonder if this is what my daddy did when he was this age growing up here? hmmm...

my alalafaga...

an alalafaga is when a family gathers together to give thanks to God for one who has returned home from a hospital. so my mommy and daddy's families got together to thank God for my mommy and i coming home healthy from the hospital. my grammy and uncle decided to have some fun with this and connect a family shower to it. some of my mommy's kids (from school) showed up as you will also see below.

we got together to have a family service, enjoyed a lot of food, fun and fellowship. my parents had a pig because that is something my grand-daddy would've wanted had he still been alive. of course grandma and grandpa mays were there. my parents wouldn't have had it any other way. these two just enjoy partying.

our senior pastor and mama posing with their matching ie lavalavas. aren't they just adorable?

my aunty tauave holding me...

...aunty litia (lydia) holding me...

...my aunty q (qiana) being a trusting sport...

...is that aunty edith?

my mommy's kids ready for action...

one of my mommy's kids allowing my family to blindfold him...man is he trusting!

what are we doing?

my uncle faanati's friend jared who frequents my parent's garage is getting his plates while my mommy's kids hang out...

that's my great uncle polita with my aunty luisa

my aunty vaisa smiling at me while i yawn

my aunty oli making sure i'm okay

are those my mommy's kids again?

that's my grammy with her GREAT grandsons. does that mean that i am an uncle already? WOO HOO! isn't my grammy just the cutest?

my daddy eating while my uncle puna (from samoa) continues his conversation at his table

this is my aunty lua (my uncle puna's wife) and i. this was a very hot day.

that's my grammy with my great auntie pola (my great uncle polito's wife)

that's my uncle to (in the yellow). he's the chief of my daddy's family. (hi uncle to!)

are my aunties cute? let's see going from left to right we have my aunty q (qiana), then my auntie tina, oh and there is my aunty heather...and then one of my pilipina aunties...my auntie lucy. my mommy LOVES hanging out with them because they are so much fun. one thing you might want to know about them...they are all single and LOVE Jesus.

there is my uncle fatu (my aunty oli's husband) waving at the camera and my uncle eliapo eating.

smiling for the camera is my uncle siasau and aunty maulalo with my cousin austin in the back of them preoccupied on his cell phone.

on the right is my great uncle faatai and his wife, my great auntie siniue. yes...you read that right. my great uncle's name is my last name. how that happened...i don't know.

that gentleman in the green samoan shirt is my great uncle chico. in front of him is my great aunty muti (his wife).

there had to be a pig at this event because my mommy's daddy would've not had it any other way. that is my great-uncle fetisa and my great auntie line doing what we call "pega le puaa." (GO TEAM!)