Three!

THREE kids in front of THREE computers. 

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

After six weeks Jared is officially crutch free. He will have some more Physical Therapy to strengthen the ankle, but he is walking...and happy for it. We celebrated.....dessert first.....

Then....well....dessert again. Actually we ate out...but Stacia really loved the chocolate fountain....NO she did not eat from the chocolate fountain...this was her second trip. 

We also checked out a few shops.....

Ok, we went in and explored. Yes, the name of the shop is Drug Store's Shop - what every girl likes....and it's a clothing store.....and the mascot is a pig....because girls like to commune with mother nature.....it's all on the shirt...which I will probably have to go back and purchase. LOL 

This bag caught my eye...see DRUG STORE...pigs...symbol of happiness, who would have guessed? AND the quiet noize....I so understand. 

Another fun store name....also clothes. 

We had never checked out Sports Authority. Jared is happy once again. LOL Arielle was thrilled to find a SELECTION of modest swim suits....and chose the one Stacia is holding. They were 30% off and we discovered at the door that they give a 5% military discount too. 

Jared's nickname is STITCH

Bought swim caps for all of us so we can go to the public pool. 

In addition to celebrating at the mall....we went to the gym, schooled, saw our sweet physical therapist, cleaned and went for a walk. A full day.

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

FOUR!

FOUR Unabridged audio books....perfect for bedtime for three young men...or so they tell me. 


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

FIVE

Unbelievable!!!! FIVE....5.... F*I*V*E.....

Charming FIVE year old who loves the toilets in Japan....and pushes each button at least FIVE times when we are out together.......Since she has blond hair the obasans just smile and rub her hair as she exits having kept everyone waiting for far too long. 

Or.....FIVE eagerly counting children.

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

Taiiku no hi - In Hind Sight....

Today is Columbus day. We decided to fit in one last adventure before Michael's return. We set out for Oirase (oh eee la say) Gorge. Oriase Gorge is listed as one of Japan's National Treasures (sort of like National Park system in America).  The drive is beautiful and Lake Towada is a gorgeous "crater" lake. You can read more here.  This area is highly popular with Japanese. We've noted it isn't quite as popular as a tourist spot for other nationals. Fine with us. LOL  

Good GRIEF....what was with all the traffic. I deduced it had to be a national holiday of some sort. We have a knack of hitting these holidays...like the day we went to the Ocean on Ocean Day. We spent the day suggesting possible holidays. Sure enough - today is 
Taiiku no hi, Health and Sports Day. Evidently many schools hold field days today...but also evident is the fact that many believe walking in the gorgeous nature is good for your health. We were happy to see festival food and rentals - so all in all it was just fine. 

 (体育の日 Taiiku no hi^?), also known as Health-Sports Day or Sports Day, is a national holiday in Japan held annually on the second Monday in October. It commemorates the opening of the 1964 Summer Olympics being held in Tokyo, and exists to promote sports and an active lifestyle.

We stopped quite often.

We Hiked 

We Played Pooh Sticks

We Took Group Shots - Day 5 is tomorrow

We Laughed (Yet another men's room with no door)

We Bowed and Chatted with other tourists....

They count kids in Japanese too...but she must have assumed Jared was the father...four kids...she was shocked....I didn't have the heart to mention the 4 who weren't with us. 

The kids really wanted to rent a boat. I knew this may the last chance this season. Jared couldn't. Only four could fit in one boat.....at this moment I realized I had just sent my four youngest ALONE out into a lake with no life jackets, a huge language barrier...and it was their first time to work a paddle boat. 

They did fine....and I soon realized that everyone but the American kids had blue boats....I figure they kept a good eye out on them. 

Hmmm....waning sun SHOULD have been a clue to head for home!

We hiked the forest trails instead. ::snort:: 

In hind sight - it would have been good to skip the last forest hike....it was DARK at night on those narrow, twisty roads....no street lights....the roads were hard to fine (which led to another adventure and a few u-turns on narrow, twisty roads)....

The colors are just starting to change. We all wonder if Michael would like to go up in a couple of weeks. Will the mountains be covered in red????

Choosing Joy!

©2010 D.R.G. 

~Coram Deo~ 

Living all of life before the face of God...

SIX.......

Sweet......Mr. Roku (Low Ku)....Roku is six in Japanese. 

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

Seven -

We were out driving on Saturday, always on the look out for countdown photos when we happened upon this family cemetery WAY in the middle of no where......7 Buddhist graves.

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