Melissa Malahoff-Kamei and me enjoying the world-famous Hamura’s Saimin Lilikoi Chiffon Pie.
The Kam Family Blog is coming up on its one year anniversary in August and I think most of my colleagues at McNeil Wilson Communications know I update this thing religiously. So I thought it would be fun to do a little test to see if my fellow PR associates actually visits this site (or has McNeil Wilson setup on their Google News Alerts). I have a feeling the answer is no, but I’m about to find out. Here’s how.
We celebrated Melissa Malahoff-Kamei’s birthday yesterday with some delicious Hamura’s Saimin Lilikoi Chiffon Pie which Emele Freiberg brought back following her trip to Kauai. At the same time, I took a bunch of candid photos of the Travel and Tourism Division staff who were in the office having fun and working hard. If anything will get them to the site, this is it.
From left: Emele Frieberg, Patrick Dugan, Noreen Kam (@buzzbunny), Melissa Malahoff-Kamei, and Jeanne Datz-Rice.
From left: Dara Lum, Rhegan Liwanag-Luat (@rherhe) and Michael Ni (@kruz808).
From left: Erin Kinoshita (@shmerin), Kimberly Miyashiro, and Andrea Lum (intern).
To my fellow McNeil Wilson colleagues, if you would like your photo removed, please let me know and I’ll take it down. Either post a comment or corner me in my office.
Disclaimer: No PR people were harmed (at least not to my knowledge) during this experimental process. If you don’t know what the “@” references mean that follow some names, click the links or you better ask somebody. Here’s a hint: TWITTER!
We had a “rockin” time celebrating Ensen’s first birthday this Saturday at Dave & Busters with nearly 130 of our closest family and friends gathering in The Showroom for the “rock n’ roll” themed party. We decided to keep things fairly simple and straight-forward…no formal program, play a few games, provide a delicious lunch buffet and open bar for all, sing Happy Birthday, then give all the kids Power Cards and turn them lose in the arcade. That formula seemed to have worked as everyone said they had a good time. Mission accomplished.
Getting ready for everyone to arrive. The tables are set with the favors and goodie bags for the kiddies. Everyone getting seated and ready to party.
Truth be told, Kelly gets all the credit for the success of this event spending the past five months planning and executing with her sister Kim. My sister Erin and her friend Kim D. helped out as well, but the bulk of the work was really done by my awesome wife. She did it all…invitations, slide show, favors, and everything else in between..all while transitioning into a new full-time job. KELLY ROCKS!
Kelly and Ensen greeting people as they arrive. Glen putting the finishing touches on the birthday cake. Those awesome guitars were made by Kelly’s sister Kim out of fondant. Yes, Kim and Glen are both pastry chefs…our personal Ace of Cakes!
As for me, I attempted to keep Ensen out of Kelly’s hair (most times unsuccessfully) so she could get everything done and helped out when asked. I think I was also supposed to take photos at the party, but managed to fail at that task too. However, I did manage to get a few good photos, but we’ll need to rely on our friends and family to send more.
Brad and Lia say “hi” to Ensen and my mom (aka Kona Grandma). Ensen celebrated by having lunch with Kaui (the first girl he kissed…other than mom). The birthday boy and me.
Kona Grandpa and Grandma strike a pose with Little E. Kailua Grandpa capturing Ensen taking a swipe out of his birthday cake.
Ensen always enjoys spending time with Aunty Kim and Uncle Glen. Same can be said when he sees Maui Grandma. By the end of the party, the little guy was spent. Always a sign of a good party!
A huge mahalo to everyone who helped celebrate Ensen’s first birthday with us and thanks for all the gifts. Stay tuned for more photos throughout the week.
It’s been a while since we got together with friends at our place, so we had an impromptu gathering to grind, play some Wii, and have some fun to kick off the weekend. While the competition between couples got quite heated playing bowling on Wii Sports, the main focus of the night was our friends Brad and Tricia’s 6-month-old daughter Lia and our dude Ensen (12 months).
From left: Ensen with Uncle Chris and Aunty Kris, Lia, and Uncle Regan.
From left: Ensen with Regan and Aunty Cathy, everyone having a good time playing Wii, and Brad trying to roll a strike.
From left: Ensen handing out with Chris and watching Aunty Tricia play with Lia. Our cat Jabbey making sure Lia sleeps peacefully.
Ensen turned the big “1″ yesterday and the Kam family celebrated the very special occasion at Farrell’s in Pearlridge Center. This was just the “warm up” party with family for the big gathering coming in a couple of weeks. Ensen was super happy to have everyone come celebrate with him, including Kona Grandma (no Kona Grandpa since he was busy working), Kailua Grandpa and Grandma, Aunty Kim and Uncle Glen, Uncle Jon, and Grandma Ishii.
This place is the perfect venue for kids with a lot of noise and action going on every minute of your meal. The staff sings to everyone celebrating a birthday which Ensen just loved. We managed to have a great meal and even had room for the Pig’s Trough dessert at the end. So ono!
In typical Kam Family Blog style, here’s a bunch of pictures from last night.
From left: Mommy and Ensen on our way to the party. Ensen, Kelly, and Jon. Ensen eating dinner…baked potato.
From left: Glen, Kim, Ensen and Kelly. Everyone enjoying dinner. Ensen checking out the other babies at the restaurant.
From left: Singing “Happy Birthday” to Ensen. The Pig’s Trough dessert enough to feed up to 10 people. Glen, Kim, and Ensen.
From left: Kona Grandma with the little man of the hour. Kailua Grandpa showing Ensen all the toys. Everyone happy to be celebrating with the little guy.
Ensen’s pal Dane came by last night with his parents (and our friends) Julie and Brandon after cutting his hair at Pigtails & Crewcuts. The two kids played like there was no tomorrow and Kelly managed to snap this sweet shot of Ensen going a little bit nuts. As you can see, Dane was not phased by the madness.
This would have been a great photo with Abe, Tate, and Lori, but what ruined it was the lighting. Okay, just kidding…what ruined it was my eyes being closed! Darn it!
The Kam family had a great time at Tate’s 3rd birthday party this weekend at Central Oahu Regional Park. Our friends Lori and Abe put together a great afternoon of food and entertainment, which included face painting and bunny rabbit petting for the kids. There were tons of kids and Ensen had a blast playing with most of them. Here’s a quick recap of the party…
From left: It was good to see Gale, Terry, and Abigail at the party too. Ensen had fun playing with Abigail and the cute bunny rabbits. He also had fun playing with the other kids too at the playground. He’s got a knack for making friends.
From left: Ensen checking out the playground at Central Oahu Regional Park. Tate (in the middle with the face paint) blows out her candles and cake is served. There’s Kelly and Ensen in the background looking in on the action.
From left: Tate, Ensen, Kelly, Gale, and Abigail pose for a shot. A Kam family photo before leaving the park. Since Ensen drools so much, we had to put his nametag on his back.
My theory on taking photos with a digital camera is to take as many as you can because you’re bound to get one good one…like this one above. Priceless!
Cathy and Kelly doing their best Robert Palmer girls impersonation while playing Guitar Hero.
It was another crazy weekend for the Kam family. The madness started on Saturday when we got together with our friends Regan and Cathy for dinner at Tadashi. This place has quickly become one of our favorite Japanese restaurants in Hawaii and our meal there this weekend was no exception. The miso butterfish is to die for. After a dinner, we all came back to our place for a little Wii and Playstation fun.
Then on Sunday, it was off to Tsukiji Fish Market for my cousin Caitie’s birthday party. Always good to see the family and Ensen had a blast playing with all of the young cousins and other babies there. As much as I don’t like buffets, Tsukiji is one of the better ones…as I previously wrote about in a prior blog post. That’s Ensen above playing with Kaena right before we left.
Later Sunday night, we headed to Aunty Kim’s house for dinner. In the spirt of basketball playoffs, Ensen sported his styling Dwayne Wade shoes (see photo above) given to him by Uncle Jon a while ago. We had a wonderful BBQ dinner as always and had fun playing Wii Fit, which is a great way to sweat indoors while having fun. I think we need to get one now. That’s Ensen playing above with Uncle Jon and Uncle Glen looking on. Oh, and last but not least, meet Mochi, Kim and Glen’s new long hair dachshund. That’s him in the third photo above. Mochi joins their other two dachshunds Rusty and Lucky.
And finally, our Memorial Day was spend down in Kailua helping Kelly’s parents clean up the house and swimming in the pool. It was a beautiful day and we couldn’t pass up getting Ensen’s in the water for a second time. He’s slowly getting used to the pool, but still not a huge fan. That’s him doing his “surfer dude” pose in his wet suit. The other photos were randomly taken in the yard. Oh and by the way, it was such a nice, sunny day I decided to get one hell of a sunburn on my back and shoulders. What an idiot! All I can say is OUCH!
Those who follow the Kam Family Blog know that I love to eat…and eat well when I can. So I couldn’t pass up the invitation to have dinner with my friend and colleague Nancy Daniels (director of PR for Outrigger Enterprises Group) and her husband Dan at the brand new Spada Bar and Restaurant at The Wyland Waikiki. We turned it into a family night out with Kelly and Ensen joining us as well.
Let me just cut to the chase and say the food was fabulous. Executive Chef Tony Domingue’sNorthern Italian menu was a hit with everyone. The portions plentiful and the dishes were flavorful! Couple this with the very attentive service and casual ambiance that captures the essence of Italian culture, and I think Spada has come up with a winning recipe for success in Waikiki. This the second Spada restaurant to open on Oahu (the other one is downtown…see my friend Melissa Chang’s blogfor a review on the restaurant) and is a welcomed addition to The Wyland Waikiki and the Kuhio/Royal Hawaiian Avenue section of Waikiki.
But I digress. What did we feast on you ask? We managed to sample just a tip of the iceberg. I’ll let the photos do the talking…
We ordered the Shrimp Saltimbocca (jumbo shrimp filled with sage and fontina, wrapped in proscuitto with marsala butter) and the Crabcakes (blue and king crab with tarragon marscapone, sauteed and served with a rustic tomato coulis) as appetizers. Needless to say, both were amazing and a great way to start our meal. The last photo is the wonderful focaccia bread served with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Yum!
For the main course, Kelly ordered the Pork Tenderloin which was huge and very tasty. I ordered the Paglia E Gamberettie (thin pasta with olive oil, garlic, shrimp, white wine, tomatoes, and basil) which was simple and delicious! Dan ordered the Pesce Del Giorno or the fresh fish of the day which happened to be ono. The fact that his plate was clean at the end of dinner indicates to me he liked the dish.
Nancy went for the Spaghetti Alla Puttanesca sans the anchovies and red sauce (spaghetti served with anchovies, garlic, capers, olives, and red chili marinara sauce). According to her feedback, it was also delicious. To end the evening, our server suggested we order the Tiramisu (homemade lady fingers drizzled with espresso and frangelico, layered with marscapone cheese and cream) and the Flourless Chocolate Cake (chocolate cake drizzled with a Kona Coffee reduction, served with a shot of vanilla rum creme). Both were “broke da mouth” and I highly recommend the Tiramisu which was one of the best I’ve ever tasted.
It was a great evening with friends and this won’t be the last time the Kam Family patronizes Spada Bar and Restaurant. If you’re looking for a great place to eat in Waikiki that’s casual, intimate (72 seats inside, 32 al fresco style), and serves great Italian food, Spada is the place for you.
Spada Bar & Restaurant at The Wyland Waikiki
400 Royal Hawaiian Avenue, Waikiki
Phone: 808-931-6222
Open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner
Sunday-Thursday: 7-10:30 a.m. (B) / 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. (L) / 5:30-10 p.m. (D)
Friday-Saturday: 7-10:30 a.m. (B) / 11 a.m.-2 p.m. (L) / 5:30-11 p.m. (D)
-NGK
[Mahalo to Nancy Daniels for providing the last three photos in this post. Your Canon camera rocks!]
Okay, so get this. After participating in the Visitor Industry Charity Walk early on Saturday morning, the Kam family had a little Wii party at the condo later in the evening. We had the Valdez (Tino, Katrina, and Oren) and Yuen (Kyle and Julie) families over for dinner and a little Wii and PlayStation fun. We’ve known these folks since college so it’s always great to get together to shoot the breeze.
We had a great dinner and Ensen and Oren really enjoyed playing with one another. But the main event of the night was the grown-ups playing a variety of video games…Wii Sports, Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games…and no gaming night would be complete without a little PlayStation2 Guitar Hero action! Here’s a photo montage of an awesome night of friends and fun!
From left: Oren, Katrina, and Jabbey having dinner. Uncle Kyle and Ensen snacking on Cheerios. The video games begin with some Wii bowling. That’s Tino in the green shirt.
From left: Kelly and Ensen watching everyone bowl. Tino cheers after a strike, while Kyle get’s really to roll one himself. Aunty Julie, Ensen, and Oren take break from the action.
A little bottle break for Ensen, while Oren plays on in the background.
Towards the end of the night, Ensen and Oren got a bit affectionate. That’s my boy!
Aunty Julie always enjoys spending time with Ensen. From the looks of these pictures, the feeling is mutual.
Walkers prepare to exit Ala Moana Beach Park at 7 a.m. for the six mile walk through Waikiki.
I never knew a six mile walk around Ala Moana and Waikiki could be so painful. Afterall, the Hawaii Hotel and Lodging Association’s Visitor Industry Charity Walk seemed like an innocent enough event for the Kam family to participate in yesterday. But today has been rough…body aches and exhaustion!
It turned out to be a great event to support a good cause, but my body today feels like I ran a marathon. I know what you’re thinking…how pathetic! And I agree. But, I need to blame it on the fact that it was 91 degrees outside, there were no trade winds blowing to cool us off, and the fact that Kelly and I carried little 17-pound-plus Ensen (11 months old) for about half the walk!
From left: Kam family getting ready to walk. The Weyerhaeuser gang! My co-workers Michael Ni and LeeAnne Matthews strike a pose along the course.
But it was all worth it. We got to spend some time with friends and helped to raise more than $1 million for local charities according to a story in the Honolulu Advertiser today. It’s a wonderful event that everyone should support. Don’t believe me? Here’s a few photos we took along the way.
From left: My co-workers Noreen Kam (no relation to us…as far as we know), her son Tyler, and Erin Kinoshita pass Royal Hawaiian Center in good spirits. Ensen and me as we stroll along Kalakaua Avenue. Kelly and Ensen enjoying a delicious strawberry from the Pacific Beach Hotel checkpoint.
From left: The Waikiki Beach Marriott checkpoint was one of our favorites handing out shave ice and watermelon. It was just what we needed on a hot Hawaii day. One of the final stops was the Waikiki Beach Walk where we ran into my friend and colleague Nancy Daniels (in red…Outrigger Enterprises Group director of public relations) and her husband Dan.
Here’s some proof of how hot it was yesterday. The temperature gauge on our RAV registered 91 degrees. As Paris Hilton would say, “that’s HOT.”
…K-I-S-S-I-N-G! Well not exactly a tree as you see above, but rather in our living room last night. How cute are Kaui (17 months) and Ensen (10.5 months)? Aunty Erin (my sister) and Kaui’s mommy Aunty Kim (my sister’s friend) stopped by for dinner. Not even five minutes after getting here, we were egging them on. Kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss! And they did! So what did they both think after their first kiss together? Click here to find out.
After a little more playing and getting to know each other better, Ensen ditched the kissing and insisted on showing Kaui his more aggressive way of showing affection. That would be his “ram-like” head butting technique. Check out the video below.
So will this love connection go any farther than just one night? Only time will tell.
The view from the 14th floor of Hilton Hawaiian Village’s Rainbow Tower with famous Diamond Head (Leahi) in the background.
Last weekend my pal Chris turned the big 3-0! So in celebration of this significant milestone in his life, his girlfriend Kris threw him a surprise party at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Resort & Spa in Waikiki. It was an awesome day with some good friends and delicious food. We also took advantage of a quick dip in the cool Pacific Ocean, as well as the newly renovated Duke Kahanamoku Lagoon and hot tub in the Kalia Tower. It was the first time I’ve touched saltwater in a while. A few photos below to recount the day. Happy Birthday Christopher!
Kris did a good job surprising Chris. Too many people named Kris/Chris in this post.
From left: The birthday boy and his girlfriend. Lorne, Regan, Cathy, and Ensen. Abe, Nicole, Jackson, and Wes.
From left: Aunty Cathy, Kelly, and Ensen. A Kam family portrait from the lanai. Regan and Cathy.
Our friends Brad and Trica stopped by this weekend with their 3-month-old daughter Lia. Ensen (9 months old) always loves hanging out with other babies and Lia is no exception. So cute!
Team “Anthologists Anonymous” consisted of me, Ashley, Keith, Erin, and Page.
With four Anthology Marketing Group teams participating in the College Connections Quiz Bowl this past weekend, one of our brilliant groups was bound to make it to the finals, right? WRONG! The elimination round consisting of 100 multiple choice questions “edited” all of the Anthology teams our of competition. With almost 30 teams competing, the 15 minutes given to complete the quiz flew by in no time. Only the top eight made it to the “TV round” of competition, while the rest of the teams enjoyed the good food, cold beverages, and fun served up at the Hawaii Japanese Cultural Center.
My apologies to team “Sexual Chocolate” – comprised of Michael, Maria, Mei Jeanne, Wendy, and Deral – who I failed to photograph that evening. Someone send me a photo to post. And kudos to Amy Hennessey, College Connections board member and VP at McNeil Wilson, for putting everything together. The other two teams are shown below (sorry, still didn’t get a “real” digital camera yet…cell phone shots).
“Team Hogwarts” showed some spirit and really dressed up for the evening. Brooke, Lori, Patrick, Scott, and John deserved the “Best Costume” award, but somehow it was given to a team dressed up as the Starwars brigade.
The “Mainland Media Anthologists” team couldn’t kill the competition with their smarts and good looks, but Lee, Melissa, Darcy, Casey, and Kalei all had a great time.
Congratulations to the “Seventy Sevens” – a group of attorneys I’m told – who to took home the championship this year. I’m certain we’ll do a lot better next year. Bring it on!!!
It’s been more than a year since Kelly and I saw our friends Lori (my former colleague at McNeil Wilson), Abe, and their cute daughter Tate (2.5 years old). So it was good to get together with the Michimoto-Toma gang this weekend so we could introduce them to Ensen (7.5 months old), catch up on old times, and find out what’s keeping everyone busy these days.
Unfortunately, I played in a golf tournament the day before which resulted in our digital camera being ejected from the golf cart onto the ground and breaking into pieces. Not good. So, most of these photos are taken with my Palm Treo 700p cell phone and the good ones are provided by Lori. As you can see (hopefully), Ensen and Tate had a great time together. Hope we can do it again real soon.
However, I did manage to get a few good photos, but we’ll need to rely on our friends and family to send more.
