Monday, February 28, 2011

Hina Matsuri

It's always fun to see what Akikosan has in store for us each Thursday night. This week, due to my upcoming travel, we met on Tuesday night. We reviewed verbs, nouns, body parts, days of the week....and then she brought out an activity.  (Of course we learned shapes, craft words and such as we worked).

March 3rd is Hina Matsuri Day in Japan. Girls Day..... For the past couple of weeks displays of dolls have been cropping up at the mall and in other public places. 

Some displays are elaborate but Akikosan said most are smaller these days. The practice is to put the dolls out mid-end of Feb. Parents must remove them before mid-night on March 3rd or it means the daughters will marry OLD. The longer the display stays up the later your daughter will marry. Of course, this practice has some religious roots, but we think it's a great holiday.

They have special treats, leave the dolls up a couple of weeks, and pray for all the daughters on this special day. We can do that.

Akikosan helped us make a set of Origami  Hina Matsuri dolls.  The black hats with sticks are men - the ones with tiaras and fans are women. We aren't sure what Jared's doll (the pink one with the top hat) really is. ::snort::  She left us supplies to make a set for each one of us.....

This is one holiday we plan to "Goeckerize" and adapt.

Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Locks of Love

We found a new hair dresser. She works on base out of her home. She understands fine hair like mine...and we had a good laugh over Arielle's THICK hair. Arielle has been growing her hair for a couple of years.



She followed Bre's foot steps and decided to donate to Locks of Love. Many don't realize that you can donate shorter amounts of hair which locks of love will sell for cash to make their wigs....nonetheless, Arielle had more than 10 inches to donate.  Below is a side section - the back was longer.


A goal met - Well Done, Arielle. 


Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Relaxation....


This lotus water fountain was one of my birthday gifts. Michael got it up and running and we removed the stones to be replaced with sea glass. I love it. The glass sparkles in the water and it reminds me of the lessons God is teaching me...the tinkling water sound is relaxing too. 




Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Friday, February 25, 2011

Weekly Recap

I sat down to begin copying the blog to mail to Dad and Mom G and realized there is not a thing on here that isn't about food, health, or school.  I guess that sums up my life this week, but I usually don't send large amounts of that sort of post to family. So, what else have we been doing?  Usually, when I've not posted any "real update" for a week, I can check my camera and find out what we've been up to.......


Hmmmm......what could this mean? ::snort:: 
My friend, Tina, did the turn and burn trip to Osan last week. You fly out Monday a.m., shop in Korea that afternoon and fly back to Japan on Tuesday. She bought this purse which is JUST what I  have been looking for. Anyone know where I can buy this near Osan or Yongsan? I figure I'll take the photo when I spend a week in Korea and show it around the shops. LOL 


This photo also reminds me that Tina has been graciously helping me all week with retreat stuff. Yep, local retreat stuff has filled my days.  We've got a great team and all are getting set up to keep working as I travel this month. Our retreat is the end of April. Tina is the chapel funds' accountant and I've been spending money all week. ::snort:: 


Monday night the kids had human video practice and youth. I didn't have Bible study. I WAS blessed when a 20 year old gal stopped by to visit with me. She came back Tuesday a.m. for Bible study. I love it.  I spent this time visiting with Chelsea and putting together a display board for the PWOC Spring Retreat. 



Jared has had 2 a day practices all week. He found out last night he's made the Edgren soccer team. No, he's never played soccer before but he's FAST and he's been working since his ankle healed to make it on to the soccer team. When he had to quit football he told the therapist his goal was for it to heal and strengthen in time for soccer. Goal met.  Jared's first practice of the day has been 0600 - we leave our home at 0520. I head to the gym. This has been GREAT for me.  The roads were clear all week. It's snowing today...and I'm glad that I won't HAVE to go in in the early mornings next week. I'll workout at home and let him ride in to do school and go to practice with Mike. 

We've spent a bit of time trying to find size 13 indoor soccer shoes in the Misawa area.  Coach was going to order Jared a pair when he ordered the team jerseys but that company doesn't sell size 13 either. Evidently, tall boys only play basketball? SO.....we're still looking. He DID find outdoor soccer cleats.  Guess he can't play the indoor games. ::snort:: 

Tuesday we welcomed a darling baby to the Misawa Family. I won't post a photo as I've not asked his Mommy and Daddy.....you local folks are going to love little Ricky U the 3rd. 


Arielle and a couple of her friends have been blessed to be mentored by a local young woman. They meet every Wed and encourage each other while they study about going deeper in their Christian walk. I love it. No, I don't attend and no this isn't actually a photo of their small group. 


Akikosan came on Thursday. I fear I'm hopeless...but she loves spending time with our family and the kids are picking it up. Nolan has voiced he would like to live in Japan forever and be a missionary. I understand that feeling.


Friday Ch. Cyr (no, I didn't take this photo either) was our guest on Misawa and spoke at our Prayer Luncheon.  Friday was the first time I've been coined by a General....and the first time I coined a general. The chapel staff had dinner with Chaplain Cyr and CMSGT Johnson at Ohashi's last night.


March 3rd is Hina Matsuri (Girls Day). Above is the display at our local nursing home. Yesterday afternoon PWOC visited to wish this month's residents Tanjobi Omedeto (Happy Birthday). This is always fun. We were especially happy to see how the residents were using the blankets we had made them for Christmas. No, this wasn't staged. We can tell they've been using them. 

See the lady on the left? Everyone got a teddy bear and she got a frog? Her reaction was priceless. I wanted to talk with her....and realized I could say "frog wa nihongo de nan desu ka?" (How do you say frog in Japanese). We spent some happy moments as she tutored me on how to say frog.

In addition to the above we've been doing school.

I've been planning March's upcoming travels. I'll be flying to Vision Summit in DC, driving to Tokyo for a Ladies Retreat and then flying to Korea for Faith Lift.  I plan to take others with me on two of the trips - maximizing the travel benefits. LOL  We'll see how it works out.

It took me four tries to get the paperwork in for us to travel Space A to Korea. I plan to take the girls with me as I'll be in country a week in order to be there for Faithlift.  It will be a great time with the girls and I'll not charge the region a dime....so we all win. LOL

Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Sugar Update

Seven days without any added sugar. That means honey, rapadura, stevia, refined sugar, syrup,  chocolate etc. I've even skipped my favorite Luna bar as it is chocolate and therefore feels like cheating. LOL 


It hasn't been as tough as I've expected. I did find that I began craving tomatoes, squash and such on day 4. I hadn't decided, and still haven't, about the family's weekly ice cream treat. I'm not sure eating it will hurt me but it may make it that much harder going into week 2. 


I've turned down MANY offerings of sweets from the kids this week....I keep reminding them, "Mommy is fasting from sugar for a month, remember?"  This makes me realize that they all KNOW the way to my heart is through chocolate. ::snort:: Time to kick the habit. 


Weight wise - I've been to the gym 5 days in a row. I ate the same amount of calories but no sugar and lost 3 lbs. LOL 


Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

What About Protein?


Americans seem to fear not getting enough protein.  When I went on the "cholesterol program" at Goodfellow and folks heard that I was eating huge amounts of vegetables and whole grains the most oft repeated comment was, "Be sure you get enough protein" and "What about protein"?  I'm limiting animal protein again - because it is high in cholesterol.  I'm eating whole grains, a variety of fruit and many servings of vegetables. This is a GOOD diet for any of us. I'm also limiting processed food and preservatives etc - eating clean - as it's good for us. Zander, especially,  does much better on a clean diet....spectrum issues.

BUT WHAT ABOUT PROTEIN? 

This answer, found at answers.com, is representative of what the nutritionists and dietitians at three bases have told me.  I am writing this out so that I have a ready place to find the info when I'm checking up on myself periodically.  I don't care if you are in the "I must eat massive amounts of protein at each meal camp," that is fine...for me eating as I described above results in lower cholesterol and higher energy. I simply feel better (and I eventually start to lose weight).


The figure I was given to help my nutritional counseling clients was a person's weight multiplied by .4536 divided by 2 will equal the number of grams per day protein needed for optimum health. For a person who is morbidly obese, choose the highest end of a healthy weight range for this calculation. (pounds converted into kilograms multiplied by .5 = grams of protein) 
For example; a woman weighing 135 pounds should eat about 31 grams of protein each day. (135 x .4536 x .5 = 30.61) 
I will add that the World Health Organization recommends the multiplier be between .45 minimum (for sedentary individuals) and .8 (very active). The US RDA sets the range between .66 and .8 with pregnant and lactating women at .88 to 1.1.
This would make that same 135 pound woman eating somewhere between 26 and 49 grams, depending on her activity level. If she were pregnant or nursing, that number would increase to as high as 67 grams. 
A warning here; many protein supplements are not entirely usable in the human body. Be wary of protein powders (and even more the sales representatives that are pushing them) that encourage massive doses. These will most likely NOT be bioavailable and worse, will actually cause serious stress to your kidneys.
What about the protein? I only need 31 grams a day. My breakfast of whole grain steel cut oats, skim milk, and garden veggie patty had 26 grams of protein. Take away the patty (which I don't have often) and it is still 16 grams of protein. Over HALF of a days protein needs for me and not a bit of cholesterol or red meat/fat.  I have a variety of Luna bars and Kind Bars (all nuts - yum)...each has 9 - 12 grams of protein. I limit myself to one a day of these. That breakfast and one bar puts me OVER my protein requirements.  Before I even EAT ANY MEAT. 


My family loves slabs of red meat - good on them.  I'm convinced I can get my protein needs without the fat and cholesterol. As a family we tend to eat more organic chicken and salmon than red meat. Even the "hamburger" dishes we love are made with ground turkey. We eat red meat once or twice a week.  They make up their slab of meat cravings when we eat out (on base as you don't find slabs of meat at Japanese restaurants). LOL 




I have learned that an ideal snack will have a bit of carbs and protein - quick energy and long lasting energy....think apple and almond butter, crackers and cheese or peanut butter, celery and peanut butter....or a KIND or Luna bar which balances both without me having to think. 


I wanted to check and SEE what amount of protein I really need and check a typical day to see if I'm getting it. I am.  I think most Americans get plenty of protein, way MORE than the USDA recommends.  Last night's edamame was probably a whole days serving alone. LOL 


I realize some feel BEST eating lots of red meat. Go for it. I'm lucky I feel best eating clean as I'm dealing with our family history of cholesterol and eating lots of red meat would only make it worse. LOL  




Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Oven Roasted Tomatoes (ehow.com)

I found this simple recipe at ehow.com. I "don't like" tomatoes. However, today (day 4 of  sugar fast) I began to CRAVE roasted tomatoes. I didn't even know HOW to roast tomatoes.  The hardest part was not eating them before they roasted. They were yummy and served with a squash  we discovered over here. Yep, Mike and I went totally vegetarian again and loved it. LOL 




Preheat oven to 375*. 


Things You'll Need: 
Baking Sheet
Cooking Spray
Small bowl
3 Cups of tomatoes (a mixture is fine)
2 T fruity olive oil (WHAT is fruity olive oil - I just used extra virgin)
Dried herbs such as tarragon, basil, marjoram, oregano to taste (I used an Italian blend)
1 tsp rapadura (or sugar or honey)
2 cloves (or more of fresh) garlic, minced
Sea salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Wash and dry tomatoes. Core and slice large tomatoes into chunks, halve miniature tomatoes.

Place the tomatoes in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Add herbs, garlic and sugar, and season with salt and pepper. Use your hands to combine. Raw and nearly irresistible.

Spray a cooking sheet. Oven-roast tomatoes by placing them in a hot oven for 25 - 30 min or until shriveled and lightly charred (ours weren't charred, I didn't want MUSH).

I wish I'd had some left for my lunch salad tomorrow.

For more yummy eats click the recipe page at the top of the blog.

Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Belly or.....?

This is our 21st year of homeschooling! It's a lifestyle we love. I've taught (or watched as they taught themselves) seven children to read.  I have a few tried and true tricks. For instance, I've taken parts of the various phonics programs we've used to create our own program. Kids often confuse lower case b and d. 



With EIGHT children I've told them "B says Buh - and has a  Big Belly"....and they've bought it. When they've confused "b" and "d".....I've simply reminded them that b has a belly.  

"Which one has the B elly - remember it says buh".

 No one has EVER questioned this.

Mini me is learning her alphabet. She got stuck. I said, "Which one has a buh buh belly?" 

She responded by pointing to "b," "This one has a buh buh belly." Just as I was about to congratulate her she continued, "But, Mom, this one (pointing to the "d" has a buh buh butt."  

I was stunned! I later told our 25 yo daughter, Bre, and she told me she'd always wondered about that when I shared the trick. What in the world? 

Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

God has a Sense of Humor

I have made the commitment to get my work-outs in full tilt again. Our travels in November and December threw me off. Four birthdays and an anniversary in February created a bit of chaos in our eating lifestyle.

I spent the past week truthfully evaluating and deciding what things needed attention first. I decided to go back to Chantel Hobb's challenge to work out 5 consecutive days each week (I had been doing 6 but 5 is a good start) and to give up a weakness for a month. For me that will be "added sugar".....as in anything that isn't fruit....so honey, rapadura etc. This means chocolate. I am praying about my trips....because I can't get Chocolate Molten Lava in Northern Japan and may be in a spot where I can order it this month....so maybe ONCE in the month would be o.k.?

ANYWAY - I wanted to start going to the gym, but it seems so daunting to drive 20 min to the gym..... Sunday night I spent a bit of time telling God I really DO want to be disciplined but that the machines work BEST for me at the gym.....

Would you believe Jared's soccer coach has called surprise practices at 6 a.m. every day this week?????? ::snort:: When you live 20 min from the high school and the practice is an hour long at 6 a.m......what ELSE are you going to do for an hour at 6 a.m.?

Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

My Husband Should Treat Me Like Dirt?

We tell our girls to treat their brothers with respect, not to nag etc. We explain that we want them to KNOW what a godly woman looks like and  to expect women to  treat them accordingly. 


We tell our boys to act like gentlemen...to treat their sisters with gentleness and kindness...so that they KNOW how  a godly young man should treat them.  I have been known to say, "I don't want your sister to think it is o.k. for men to treat her like dirt."

My mini me came down the stairs this evening, and said, "Mom, when your told me this a.m. to come down and help clean up, it made me feel like my husband should treat me like dirt."

Don't tell me that girl can't reason. ::snort:: We talked about the fact that godly wives take care of their responsibilities.


Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Sweet Night for Wives of the Deployed

Last weekend Carol Summar Simpson was a guest on Misawa. I have served with Carol on PWOC Central Region Board and knew that she has a big heart for women and an engaging way of presenting her  message. Carol tours military bases as a Christian Comedian. I knew she'd done Valentine's Day events for deployed spouses and it was a dream to host her if I was ever where the budget and the group vision lined up.  At our summer Misawa PWOC board planning meeting I shared my heart and our ladies RAN with it. Our chapel agreed to up our budget enough to allow us to pull off this event. 


Misawa's PWOC board invited Carol to be our guest speaker at a night planned for wives of our deployed spouses. We chose February on purpose as this is another holiday that goes in the "missed holiday file" for deployed spouses. We chose to have dessert and drinks and make it a "Sweet Night for Wives of the Deployed". Our POC, Twyla, is herself a deployed spouse. It was my joy to serve as her assistant during this event. During the planning  7 of our 9 board members were deployed spouses themselves. Twyla's heart of mercy and vision for deployed spouses made this event SHINE. 
We envisioned a night of pampering for our spouses and HUMOR. What a blessing! It's good for the weary to laugh. We had 79 people in the building. Only 18 turned out to be deployed spouses....but they were blessed. Everyone was treated to a variety of decadent and elegant homemade desserts. Each woman had a pretty setting, flowers and a chocolate rose.





Carol shared the adventure of her trip from CA to Misawa with us. She had us laughing as we remembered our first impressions of Japan. She had some of us crying with her lessons learned from deployments..."I DO snore", "No matter how deep I burrow into the covers no one else will let the dog out", and more. She encouraged us to maintain faith on behalf of others through the story of the four friends who brought their friend to Jesus, doing whatever it took to get him to Jesus. 



 The deployed wives were gifted with a handmade pillowcase - Twyla rocks! These were made from Japanese fabric. 

An event like this is a huge undertaking. The entire PWOC board participated. Many other women baked desserts, ministered to children, set up tables, cleaned up facilities, decorated.....it was a great time to be part of the body. 

Our prayer is that each deployed spouse left feeling pampered, loved, supported and encouraged. She also knows what the local chapel has to offer and that we care about her deeply. 


Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Amusing Bumper Sticker


There is a bit of kanji on here that I can't read....but I'm fairly certain this is meant to encourage you to carefully pass the car.  Logical understanding didn't stop us from enjoying a  good chuckle at the thought of literally passing the baby through traffic.


Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Quick Weekly Recap

Thursday - Arielle saw the orthodontist and picked blue bands this time. ::snort:: Scheduled an ortho eval for Nolan.  We also enjoyed a session with Akikosan. I'm not sure we're learning much, but we sure enjoy our times together. LOL 


Friday - Local retreat team meeting. We have a great bunch of ladies all committed to serving women in Misawa at the upcoming spring retreat.  Lots of encouraging ideas floating around. I'm excited to watch this all come together.  You know what the photo below means now, right?


That's right - the onsen fluzy struck again.  I invited the entire retreat team to go to the onsen after our meeting. Only one took me up on it this time, but another friend joined us.  I had waited far too long between trips.

Jared tried out for soccer.

Mike and I went out to celebrate our anniversary (which was the 14th).

I spent a lot of time this week working on retreat details. I'll be traveling quite a bit in March. Our retreat is in April. I also spent quite a bit of time arranging flights and such. Wow - this yen rate is killing us. It was 98/1 last year at this time and is 78/1 last time I took yen out. OUCH.

I also spent a fair bit of time talking myself back into my healthy lifestyle. LOL

Saturday - I went to the gym while Jared went to soccer practice at 6 a.m. I have MISSED going to the gym. I'm just not as good at home...but I'll keep trying.

Jared needs an inside pair of soccer shoes and  a pair of soccer cleats. We went to Sports Authority - the biggest shoe they make here is men's 10. That's not going to work....need 3 1/2 sizes bigger. I did get a lot of great produce and fresh salmon.

Continued to work on PWOC Regional stuff.

Going to bed - only slept 2 hours last night. Really need to crack this sleep thing....more exercise? I've heard women of a certain age have irregular sleep patterns.....

Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

DENTISTS and SHOTS

Jared and Arielle went in to the base today with Michael. They'll have uninterrupted quiet to work on school. Jared likes to do this from time to time.

Arielle has small group this afternoon. Jared is meeting a couple of friends to play soccer this afternoon. I'm happy to let them go in with Michael.

Nolan, relishing his newly allowed time at home alone, stayed home.

I took Stacia and Zander to see the dentist. Zander was SURE he may die from it all - but it was much easier than last year. LOL He freaked Stacia out a bit....but she ended up doing just fine. I had no way to avoid her seeing Zander's appointment.

After the dentist Stacia asked if we could go get her another shot. It has been two weeks and I'd began hinting on Monday that it would be a good idea. We marched down for a shot...waited our 20 minutes to be sure she didn't have an initial reaction and then headed to.....

I would guess this is the reason for her begging to have another shot. LOL  We've spent a relaxing afternoon at home.....I've got a giant pot of spaghetti sauce simmering, we've done some school, I've answered emails and done some laundry.

Tonight I have a dinner to attend.

I feel much better having blogged TODAY...even if I'm still a bit behind. LOL

Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Zander had a BIRTHDAY

On the 11th, but he was happy to celebrate on the 10th while we waited for it to be time to go pick up Carol. LOL  He turned 9 years old. 


He chose the Neo Swine over the Classic Pig hat. 

This gift from Stacia is a hit....literally. LOL 


Love that happy face...yes, we DID have two ice cream cakes in one week. LOL One mint chocolate chip and one cookies and cream. 



Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Feb 10th - More

We also had Japanese lessons on the 10th of Feb. Akikosan brought us all sort of Japanese valentine things to sample. It was fun.  You can read more about how Valentine's Day is celebrated in Japan  here


I spent most the afternoon working on Chocolate roses for PWOC's Sweet Night for Deployed Wives


We were expecting a friend from PWOC, Carol Simpson in this evening.  She was to be the Comedian at Sweet Night and at a chapel event on Sunday night.  We were all praying the plane wasn't delayed, she figured out the train system and arrived on the 10th. Jess and I picked her up at 10:15 p.m.  Shew. She had quite the trip - starting with a canceled trip and having to take a taxi ride to LAX from Ontario, CA. LOL

We were blessed to have her here and I'll write more about the time as I catch up the blog. LOL

Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Feb 10th - MOPS Meeting

I am a MOPS mentor mom. 


Last week it was my joy to speak to our local MOPS group on marriage. I've never talked much on marriage and it took me quite a bit of time to figure out WHAT I wanted to say MOST. Our MOPS director agreed to let me take a bit longer with the speaking so that I could build small group discussion in to my "talk". I love her. 


I decided I wanted the ladies to know three things....1. All relationships go through stages and if you are in a bad season you can choose to push through it, 2. We are to unconditionally RESPECT our husband (this is the way to fully love them), and 3. Our marriages must come before the children - second only to God.  Of course, there are always "on the fly comments" and the beauty of small group participation is that you hear from so many more perspectives....I was sure to point out that we aren't looking for cookie cutter marriages. LOL 


I created a power point slide show - which I've done before. But THIS time I learned how to download Youtube clips to my to my hard drive and add them to the power point presentation. YES.  All in all it was a fun experience. 


Want more info? 


Stages of relationship - we briefly highlighted each one and talked about the good, the bad, and the ugly of each. 


Flirting/Infatuation Stage

Reality Stage

Mature or Practical Stage 


Married Romance (My personal favorite)
A relationship like this begins NOW......


I then talked about respect and loved the varied answers on what respect IS and what it ISN'T and how to show it to our husbands. Since we had discussion time for that I did not make out a handout.

I transitioned to practical ways to keep our marriages first in the midst of the MOPS years with this clip....(Stacia LOVES this one - and I figure the message is ok). LOL




Below is a hand out of ideas I passed out....and we shared others. First Things First





Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

YES....

...as a matter of fact....life has been a bit out of control the past two weeks. 

The signs are all there. Increasing number of folks are saying, "I don't know how you do it all" and/or "Are you ok? You don't look well."  Neither are good signs. One leads me to evaluate if I'm trying to be super-woman again and the other....well... I'd quit eating and my sugar was tanking quite often last week.  Yep, it's been TWO very hectic, incredibly productive weeks.

We've had 6 dental appointments, 2 birthdays, piano and Japanese lessons. I've taught on marriage, taught 4 sessions on James (2 a week), hosted a friend from the states who did a major PWOC event and a Sunday event... planned and ordered quite a bit for our upcoming local PWOC retreat....and really....it would have been "busy but doable" if I'd had a car. ::snort:: It was TOUGH being ME in a one car family. In the next couple of days I'll attempt to update the blog with posts and photos of the various events.

I realized how busy I'd been when I came here to print out the last FOUR weeks of the blog for Mom Mary....and realized I'd not blogged in 10 days. ::snort::

For now let me say how HAPPY I am to have my little Prairie Joy back.  I'm THRILLED to be nearly done with dental appointments (3 more this week).  I'm starting to breathe again and I never want to go back to a frenzied lifestyle I used to live. I'm looking for onsen partners before I begin the March traveling schedule.

I discovered in the past two weeks, at 47 I CAN still do it - but I don't want to. ::snort:: I need self-care before I crash. LOL

Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Tuesday, February 08, 2011

Nolan is Twelve


I'm not quite sure when or how it happened, but NOLAN - one of the littles - is now TWELVE!!!! Hmm.....I may need a new name for that category....maybe the sequels. LOL It takes a milestone like a "little" turning 12, suddenly standing inches above me, hearing a gravely voice from my "little man"....to realize that time is rushing on. 

We are so blessed by the character developing in Nolan  right along with the height an voice changes. He's still a gentle leader but we do see him becoming more of a leader with the younger two. Nolan went with the classic pig hat for his special night. 

 Zander had asked for "3 nunchucks"....when he saw this he said, "That's o.k. I can still get two nunchucks." LOL 
Mike and I owed Nolan a game from his last birthday. We bought a computer game and found it to be inappropriate...of course you can't return at that point....and then we couldn't find any that WERE appropriate over here.....all the kids games seem to have moved to the new gaming systems.....so we bought him this to replace the game we never found for him last year.....and he is THRILLED at the idea of being IN Monopoly.....but pointed out that Goecker Rules will probable not be allowed in Wii Monopoly. 
 The kids got him a couple of more Mario Wii games and Voyage of the Dawn Treader - all of which needs to be ordered.....

We totally surprised him with a little ipod - a true sign of maturity around here as there is no way we'd spend that kind of money unless we thought he was responsible enough not to lose it. LOL 


Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Saturday, February 05, 2011

In Honor of Four Chaplains Day




A priest, a rabbi, two ministers. All chaplains. Brothers, as they shared the same FATHER.

Today is  Four Chaplains Day. We'd never remembered this day until we began attending military Chapels.

Before boarding the USAT Dorchester, Chaplain Poling had asked his father to pray for him, "Not for my safe return, that wouldn't be fair. Just pray that I shall do my duty...never be a coward...and have the strength, courage and understanding of men. Just pray that I shall be adequate."

On February 3rd, 1943, at 12:55 in the morning, the USAT Dorchester, carrying 902 servicemen took a torpedo mid-ship and began taking on water rapidly. Panic and chaos was rampant aboard the ship as men sought to save their lives pushing and shoving to find a place in one of the lifeboats.
The following excerpt from Home of Heroes says it much more eloquently than I.

"In less than half an hour, water was beginning to flow across the deck of the sinking Dorchester. Working against time the Chaplains continued to pass out the life vests from the lockers as the soldiers pressed forward in a ragged line. And then....the lockers were all empty...the life jackets gone. Those still pressing in line began to realize they were doomed, there was no hope. And then something amazing happened, something those who were there would never forget. All Four Chaplains began taking their own life jackets off....and putting them on the men around them. Together they sacrificed their last shred of hope for survival, to insure the survival of other men.... most of them total strangers. Then time ran out. The Chaplains had done all they could for those who would survive, and nothing more could be done for the remaining...including themselves.

Those who had been fortunate enough to reach lifeboats struggled to distance themselves from the sinking ship, lest they be pulled beneath the ocean swells by the chasm created as the transport slipped into a watery grave. Then, amid the screams of pain and horror that permeated the cold dark night, they heard the strong voices of the Chaplains. "Shma Yisroel Adonai Elohenu Adonai Echod." "Our Father, which art in Heaven, Hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done."

Looking back they saw the slanting deck of the Dorchester, its demise almost complete. Braced against the railings were the Four Chaplains...praying...singing, giving strength to others by their final valiant declaration of faith. Their arms were linked together as they braced against the railing and leaned into each other for support, Reverend Fox, Rabbi Goode, Reverend Poling, and Father Washington. Said one of the survivors, "It was the finest thing I have ever seen this side of heaven." 

You can find out more about this story by doing a simple google search of "The Four Chaplains."
Photobucket


Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Winter Adventure - Towada Horse Park

We decided to head out to Towada Horse Park to see if the slide were open. Other adventures at the horse park and directions are here and here.  It was a warm day.  The roads were great until we turned into the driveway of the park.....glad Mike was driving. The kids said they would have gotten out and walked if I'd been driving. ::snort::  We knew the slides would probably be closed, but it was fun to see the park in its winter finery. 

Our refuge from prior downpours....
 Even this guy was wearing winter boots
 Sleigh rides complete with tea and ramen.....
We hiked as high up the mountain/roads as we could and then the kids sled all the way down to the park area...great fun. 






We headed over to the area where a Japanese family was sledding. We were the only ones on the hill.....perfect. We were able to watch how they used these peculiar pieces of bamboo. 


To the delight of our examples, we got some to try for ourselves....some of us did anyway...Nolan was a natural.



 When the mom and daughter next to us tried to double up - so did the boys. ::snort:: 
 Arielle took the prize today for most spectacular biffs and snow burns. 





It's been nearly a year since Mike left for Afghanistan and three months since he's been home. We're still so very thankful to have him home.  He makes every outing much more fun. 


Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...