Happy 1st Birthday, Kaia!

Today is Kaia's 1st birthday! I sent a "Happy Birthday" text for Kaia to Sarah; she sent back a short video of Kaia saying, "Thank You" for the birthday wishes. Dad loved it! It made him chuckle. (Can't figure out how to get it off my phone so that I can share it.)

Dad was up early this morning. He was sitting out in the family room when I got up at 6:30, he had already eaten a banana. He met Sam & Kasondra this morning & talked with them for a little bit about what they are doing at the zoo.

Before they left to pick up more seabirds, Sam & Kasondra picked a couple of the low-hanging pomelos. They're going to help me pick the rest of them later. I peeled one of them & got the fruit ready for eating tomorrow. (I gave the rest to the Loi's who really like them; in Chinese culture they represent prosperity.)

Pomelo, before.

Pomelos have thick skins ...

... really thick skins.

Here's the peeled pomelo next to an unpeeled one.

The skin of the sections is tough so must be removed before eating.

Here's the final ready-to-eat product & the pile of seeds that I removed from it.

As I was finishing up the peeling of the pomelo it was time to leave for my meeting with Frank, the Prudential insurance guy assigned to work on Dad's policy. I had called a couple days earlier to find out if we could have Dad's dividend checks automatically deposited in to his account. Frank said they couldn't but they could have it sent to an "accumulative account" that is part of the contract; its kind of like a savings account & could be withdrawn at any time. But in order to do this Dad needed to go in to sign papers; I told him I had power of attorney so I could sign for Dad. Frank's office is on the 28th floor in downtown; the elevator has a glass side with a wide view. This is the highest I have ever been in a downtown office building.

Not sure what that building is, but the mountains in the background are the Waianae Mountains.

After I returned from the meeting with Frank, I made mui with the pomelo rind; I need to find other things to to do with all that rind. But I couldn't find the mui recipe that I used back in January when I made the 1st batch; I had to check on the Internet but couldn't find the one I used. I used another & this time I printed it and put it in Mom's old recipe box.

I cut off a bunch of the pith, leaving the tougher part of the rind.

The rind is then cut in to slivers & mixed with the mui sauce.

It now sits for a week, getting stirred 2 or 3 times a day.

Dad was awake and watching TV after dinner when Sam & Kasondra returned; he remembered them! Both Sam & Kasondra have cats; Kasondra has also worked with cat & dog rescue. They really like having Shiro & Xander around. (They've seen Chibi scramble through the room once.) They had 4 birds today; one will need to be flown to the Hawaii Wildlife Center tomorrow for more rehabilitation.

Happy Birthday also to Lopaka!