Mommy Moments

In own version of creeping into a child's room to rock them and chant, "I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always...."....I crept into bedrooms this a.m. and snatched photos of the sweet, sleeping children. Arielle had gotten up and gone back to bed with Stacia on the futon.

::snap:: ::flash::

:::stretch:: and Stacia moans, "You're making me lose my dreams!" Boys sleep through anything. ::snort::

I'm now up to 44lbs in the bag and I have no clue in the carry on - over 21 lbs....and I decided to wear the pillow around my neck and carry one more book under my arm. Ready to go and 90 minutes before my ride arrives. ::snort:: I've been up since 3 a.m. this is going to be a long day...probably fall asleep on the shuttle through Tokyo and miss the airport. ::snort::

Oh - an earthquake I feel and can see. Always exciting living in Japan. It snowed a bit last night too.

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

Let the Travels Begin

Lists have been made and checked and rechecked. I bought a train ticket for the ride home from Tokyo in a week. I've checked tickets. I can't check in for the International flight online. I've packed a suitcase - 40 lbs lbs - and a carry on - 21 lbs.  I think I'll be able to schlep it across Tokyo on the trains. LOL

I think I'm as ready as I'm going to be. Please pray for a renewing and refreshing week at Vision Week. There will be a couple of board meetings, speakers, prayer and worship time, a time to focus on the vision for PWOCI for the upcoming year of ministry.

Pray for the kids and Nate here at home. They have a great plan. We went over lesson plans, groceries are bought, bread is baked, numbers have been given......I wish I could have talked to Mike before I left, but time changes are what they are.

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

Sensational Saturday

I've made a conscious effort to get the kids out of the house and out of the neighborhood. They'll be housebound for the next week or two. Nate isn't allowed to drive in Japan.

From 2010-02-27

The snow is melting.....and now there is LOTS OF MUD! We still enjoyed a nice walk around the perimeter of Swan Park.

From 2010-02-27

From 2010-02-27

From 2010-02-27

We stopped at the Produce Market on the way home. This is cool. They have greenhouse upon greenhouse of strawberries, bananas, mangoes and pineapples. So WARM.

From 2010-02-27

From 2010-02-27

The strawberries are sold by weight. You pick the berry you want and snip it with scissors. Our container, about a quart, were Y700 ( a bit over $7), but oh are they good and not ONE bad berry in our container.

From 2010-02-27

Our last stop of the day was the OCEAN.

From 2010-02-27

In the evening Nate and the kids stayed home and devoured a roast, played games.....and I joined some friends at Yakiniku house. A fun day from start to finish.

Ah, chapel just called to make sure I know we're under a tsunami warning and I should stay away from the ocean today.  There are times having AFN might be a good idea. LOL

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

Beware -

From 2010-02-25

While this isn't incredibly amusing to the world at large, it IS amusing to us. From the side you can't tell that you are in the presence of a student driver.....except that I noted someone up there is a bit more timid than I about that center line. ::snort::

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

Stubborn Twig by Lauren Kessler

I listened to Stubborn Twigs: Three Generations in the Life of a Japanese American Family, on the player while I rode the exercise bike. LOL 

I found this book to be irritating, challenging, illuminating and fascinating. The first couple of chapters bored me, but I quickly became hooked. I hadn't a CLUE that Hood River, OR used to have a major Japanese Immigrant community. Having family roots in OR this was interesting to me. Living in Japan NOW - this book really interested me.   Stubborn Twig follows the Yasui family as they leave Kobe to work on the railroad near Tacoma, WA. The original plan was to save up $ and come back to Japan. The older brother did just that. The younger two brothers move to Hood River, buy property, become major land holders and fruit producers...and eventually face internment during WW2.

This book is well worth the read/listen if you are interested in this time in history. I believe it helped me understand the Japanese culture and the Japanese experience in America better.  I think it would be a good book for high school students who are studying the WW2 era to read. This is not an America-bashing book, but it IS an honest portrayal of this family's experience in America.

In an amusing aside, our homework this week is to note items that are "yasui" or "takai," (inexpensive/expensive).  I was writing my sentence....and kept thinking yasui - that can't be right that's the name of the family in Stubborn Twigs...then I remembered.....ah HA they changed their name so they could advertise their business.....

This is part of my 2010 reading list.
Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Fun, fun, fun

Looks fine in Picasa and flips when loaded....

Jared and Arielle went skiing with some friends. Thanks again, Joel and Mary. It was their first time and they had varying success.

Nate, the youngers ones and I headed to Statue of liberty park.

Throwing rocks into an iced over pond...while Nate takes photos....they made holes and water spurted out of the ice all over the pond. Very fun.

I got a call from the chapel saying that Mike had been trying to Skype me and would call back in 20 minutes. We raced home.  I began to consider the itouch so that I could have Skype.

We went to base and got Nate a pass. We checked out the BX - the Apple Rep is SURE that I need not only wi-fi but a WIDE BAND connection to skype on the itouch. This means it would work at home....but not on base...and um...if I'm home I don't NEED Skype on a tiny screen. I have computers. ::snort:: I'm still researching.

We went to the nursing home to sing Happy Birthday to six women. This is always fun.

Youngers and Twyla's boys (she says they can be on the blog)

Stacia passes out a birthday gift. The doll display has to do with a doll festival - which I'll miss but I'll try to blog about later.  The four ladies to the right are all over 90 years old. Emily had her 5 month old baby along, and she was a HIT!

We came home. The older kids got home. Joel went home to work on a paper. Mary and the kids stayed to eat pizza and watch Saun the Sheep with us. LOL  Nate and I Skyped with Mom and Dad after I took Mary and the kids home.

A full day - and I have much to do to get ready to travel tomorrow and Sunday.

Choosing Joy!

©2010 D.R.G.

~Coram Deo~

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

Nate's here

Stacia wastes no time in getting Uncle Nate to dance with her

Nate's plane was an hour late.  Shortly after he arrived the ladies arrived for our luncheon. I then ran to the base for some local interviews. Arielle and I went to rent skis for her. I drove home and found this....

Animal Instincts - like Apples to Apples with Animals

Earlier today...well....I had a SENIOR MOMENT. I was rushing out the door to make it to the base by 3:15 p.m. Jared waved at us. We waved back and kept going. I arrived at the chapel and realized that JARED NEEDED TO COME WITH US TO RENT SKIS. Oops.....so we drove home and collected everyone and headed back to the base to rent Jared skis.

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

Busy Day

• School
• Cleaning
• Shopping
• Waxing and Trimming
• Grocery Shopping
• Mailed 4 packages
• Preparing for Nate to arrive tomorrow
• Preparing for Play and Pray - Bible Study group - tomorrow
• Preparing for local LST Interviews
• Sweet time with Nolan who wanted to run errands with me
• Spent more time loading things on to this new machine

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

Spring Fever

 Really, Stacia? Shorts? Sweatshirt?  Believe it or not she INSISTED she was warm and I finally MADE her go back inside to get some pants and a real coat. The big piles of snow are melting, but Nolan and Stacia enjoyed a few tame slides down this "snow bump." I'm telling everyone to be careful, we are very close to travel dates and I dont' want anyone sick or hurt. ::grin::

We enjoyed a walk over to the pond this afternoon. Still frozen......

 Does anyone local know WHY there may have been groups, large groups, of chanting men and women out in the farm lands today? Really loud...we could hear them in the house....and they continued until about 7:30 p.m. Loudspeakers, chanting, loud speaking....

We enjoyed a beautiful sunset today....and we really wonder if spring may be here.....regardless of all those warning me that the snow will be on the ground until May......

Off to read a chapter of good ole' Nate Saint and then have a piece of Daddy Chocolate.  This has been a long day and I'm ready for bed.
Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Glorious Tease?

Could this be true? Look at those temps 39*, 47*, 49*!!!!! Could it be that SPRING is really here???? Already? No more ice???? No need to attend "Slippery Weasel" to learn how to drive in the winter in Northern Japan? Really? What do you think?
Choosing Joy!
© 2010 D.R.G.
~ Coram Deo ~
Living all of life before the face of God ...

New computers.....

There you have it...a new laptop and *I* have to figure the thing out. ::snort:: I had planned to wait until Mike was home, but I only have 2 weeks to return it. We wanted two so that Mike can take one with him on his extended travels. Gotta have email and/or Skype!

I'm working on it.....and as you can see above....I discovered the snipping tool and the sticky notes from Windows 7.  One more way to feed my list obsession. ::snort::

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

A New Week

We had a good day of school.

We had piano lessons.

I worked on a bit of regional PWOC and more local PWOC stuff.

I talked with Nate via Skype and worked out the final details for his trip.

I talked with Mom and Dad via Skype.

Stacia had 3 small cavities filled. She USED to love the dentist. She's not 100% sure any longer. She was doing fairly well until they put something in her mouth that made her spit...not a good thing at the dentist. BUT they'd not told her to use the magic straw until after she spit. ::snort::

The dentist asked Stacia, "Are you the one with all the brothers and sisters?"

She said, "Yes, and my Daddy's gone too." ::grin::

We dropped Jared off early for Youth Group.

I was glad to get a call and be able to pick this up....

From 2010-02-22

It's much bigger but I had to crop out the name on the uniform. I didn't get a photo of her hugging the thing. We had the base media center mount it and they were much faster than predicted. I had planned to make it more life-like by cutting around the shoulders and head....but it may be sturdier if I leave it as a block.

Murphy's Law says that the minute I leave home Mike will Skype. ::snort:: OR that when I do make contact with him the mic or speakers won't work...but we had a nice IM.

Spur of the moment I invited Windy to drive to base with me so we could visit. That made the drive back in to pick up Jared much more of a social outing. THEN I realized that I could probably ARRANGE a bit of social interaction during youth group. Hmmm....I may not want to give this perk up when Mike returns.

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

Safe Wars and Roses

Renee told me she understands today...so we're either both psycho or I'm o.k. Sunday's are simply hard when your husband is a chaplain and away. Most the week you simply move on, get a routine...but on Sunday so many things remind you that your husband is not with you.....and while this is NOT the real thing yet...it feels like the real thing. I love our chaplains. We had a great service today....but knowing that we're gearing up for a longish separation, it was hard.

Mike always gives the girls and I "Deployment roses". I get 1/2 a dozen. I always dry them. He gives me the remaining 1/2 dozen when he returns. I didn't get roses this time...because again...he'll be home in a few weeks. I have realized that the roses are a nice touch in that first week of adjustment. I hadn't mentioned this to anyone.

Kyle came and called Jared away at the end of worship. I figured they needed him in the sound booth or something. It happens. At the end of the service, Jared walked up and gave me THESE.

From 2010-02-21

Arielle, Jared and Nolan had purchased them. They thought I may be lonely at chapel. Isn't that incredibly, amazingly, sweet?

 

At a chapel service we take prayer requests. Zander has been telling me each day how many days it will be before Uncle Nate arrives. The kids are SO excited to have time with him. I'm so very thankful he's coming and that Mike suggested he come visit. Zander raised his hand. I asked him what he was going to say - just sort of a good idea with Zander. He said, "Pray that Uncle Nate has a safe trip." I agreed. He left his hand up and was the last one that was called on. He must have spent the time thinking.

"Alexander? What would you like us to pray for?"

"Pray Dad has a safe war."

Choosing Joy!

©2010 D.R.G.

~Coram Deo~

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

*Blogger in draft is making me daft! WHY is it rearranging paragraphs and centering things though it looks fine on the preview?

Routines

No photos to share as life has been too busy, crazy, boring, routine really.
~Thursday~
MOPS.  Renee, our speaker this month, did a great job of challenging us to teach our children to pray.

 BIBLE STUDY - we finished Esther. Good study.  LANGUAGE LESSONS - Akiko made my day when she reached out and gave me a HUG as we said goodbye. We won't have lessons in March due to my travels.  I promised to send her postcards...and she'd love me to get a photo of Korean Idols....like pop idols....

~Friday~
 SPOUSES BREAKFAST. I enjoy meeting monthly with this group of ladies. Both Renee and I will soon be without our husbands for a bit of time. We have made plans to drive to the Cherry Blossom festival in April.  It seems to have become a "habit" for me to go to the BX and find Polish Pottery after Annette feeds us our lovely breakfast. The very things I didn't buy at $20 a pop last month, were clearanced at $2.77 or $4.17....what a deal. I wouldn't have known of this if Connie hadn't mentioned it. I hope that they'll be bringing more pottery in...more plates. I need plates....

 DENTAL VISIT - Jared had his consult for getting his wisdom teeth pulled. What are they teaching doctors these days? "So, after seeing the clip on risks, is this what you want to have done?," and "Which anesetia would you think is better for your situation?" Um......I'm not the oral surgeon. ::snort::

FAMILY NIGHT - yep, our family size is shrinking but we persist in setting aside Friday night for US. Pizza and a movie this week.

~Saturday~
FRIENDS - Nolan, Jared and I met Erika, Twyla and boys at the Sushi-Go-Round for lunch. Both Twyla and I have husbands who are not here.  There was a paint ball tournament on base. Erika is a young lady who is INTO paint ball and so she took the boys to watch the tournament. THANKS! I ran home to pick up the other children. We had hoped to run errands, but ran out of time.

MOVIE - Erika dropped Nolan and Jared off at the movie theater. We all vegged in the theater...not often something comes to base that I think "may" be o.k. to go see. It is CERTAINLY cheaper ON BASE than off base to catch a movie.
That's about all for now..... OH, After 3 days I was able to hear Mike's voice. That's all I needed. The 20th is Jamin's birthday, 19 years old. We'll try to reach him some more, however, this is rodeo season in San Angelo and I'm sure he's busy. LOL

Choosing Joy!

©2010 D.R.G.

~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

I Live in a House Full of Clowns

Quips from Jared's Facebook:

Jared David was playing the piano, I'm learning something new and so it didn't sound that good...my little brother walked into the room and watched for a minute and then said, "Oh thank goodness, it's just Jared playing the piano, we thought a donkey was in the house."

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

Today....

Mike was able to Skype with us quite a few times. He arrived three hours EARLY in OR. Not a bad start to a separation.

I pulled out Step into Fitness by Becky Tirabasi. I realized that I first did this thing 19 years ago....and today my knees creaked when I did it. I certainly am not going to be able to do that 6 days a week. LOL Friends loaned us an exercise bike which proudly sits in the living room. I get a harder workout with something like the video - but my knee doesn't ache as much with the bike. I'll alternate.

We had a good day of school.

Piano lessons went well. Olivia came along and that play date was just about right for Stacia.

We had a pancake dinner and I told the kids Lent was beginning...but I'd missed the REAL pancake day...since all of you are just about to wake up and celebrate - it worked. LOL I've not really been led to fast any differently during Lent than I do year round. When I start hearing folks saying they are giving things up for Lent, I start feeling, "I WANT TO GIVE SOMETHING UP TOO." I had a V8 moment. It's fairly obvious what we're called to give up for Lent this year....Michael. ::snort:: I'm sure God will continue to speak to me about how He'd have us best focus on His death and resurrection. This also means it's time to prepare for PASSOVER.

We ran out of time to read about Nate Saint today, but we did have family time and a piece of chocolate.

Kids are in bed, floor is swept and mopped, bathroom is clean, downstairs is dusted....I'm ready for a busy Thursday.

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

Dug Down Deep by Joshua Harris

This book is AWESOME! There, I gushed. ::snort::

Joshua Harris has succeeded in writing a primer on orthodox doctrine and theology in Dug Down Deep: Unearthing what I believe and why it matters. Theology - the study of God. Doctrine - Teachings of the gospel. These are things that EVERY Christian should know and be concerned about. Unfortunately, that's not the case. Josh has written a book that is EASY to read (and many theology books aren't), is sound, is rock-solid and personal.

I loved Joshua's honest sharing of his journey with God. I wholeheartedly agree with his premise that orthodoxy, doctrine and theology matter! However, more than having it right, we need to apply what we know! We need to be more concerned about "getting it right" and "living it right" ourselves, than we are about judging others' orthodoxy. Josh brings these points home.

I planned to share extensive quotes, but after listening to my thoughts on this book, Mike packed it. I plan to have all my children read this book. Unfortunately, I don't have a copy to giveaway, but this book is well-worth the price to have in your home library.

Author Bio: Joshua Harris is senior pastor of Covenant Life in Gaithersburg, Maryland, which belongs to the Sovereign Grace network of local churches. A passionate speaker with a gift for making theological truth easy to understand, Joshua is perhaps best known for his runaway bestseller, I Kissed Dating Goodbye, which he wrote at the age of twenty-one. His later books include Boy Meets Girl, Sex Is Not the Problem (Lust Is), and Stop Dating the Church. The founder of the NEXT conferences for young adults, Joshua is committed to seeing the gospel transferred to a new generation of Christians. He and his wife, Shannon, have three children.

This book is on my 2010 Reading List.

Disclaimer: This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group. I receive no payment, other than the book, for posting this review. If you'd like more information, click the link in the sidebar.

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

He's Off....

From 2010-02-16_mike flies

I think I've spent a lifetime lagging behind at airports. ::snort:: There was a bit of drama when we arrived at the AMC terminal.

"Major G, is that you?"

We were congratulating ourselves for arriving 20 minutes early, only to find out they'd moved the time up 1 1/2 hours and the message hadn't reached Mike. LOL

From 2010-02-16_mike flies

Stacia was VERY preoccupied with making sure that Mike knew...." it's time for a last hug."

From 2010-02-16_mike flies

I do think it is good that Michael is coming home for a few days in March. I know it will be tough to say goodbye all over again, but it does two big things: 1. Let's me pretend this is not a long trip at all, and 2. Let's Stacia see that Dad leaves and Dad comes back before Mike's more extensive travels.

I have been tasked by Michael to keep a list of everything I think of that we've not done yet and he'll take care of it in March....and the list is growing.

Has Arielle been driven to chocolate at Mike's departure?

From 2010-02-16_mike flies

At MOPS a few months back, Melissa shared that they have a candy jar that starts full and goes down as the days near for Dad's return. I thought this sounded like much more fun than a paper chain. Of course, I think Melissa waits until near the end of the countdown....but we wanted to count the whole thing down....we figured a nice little chocolate after family circle would be a great way of bringing Dad into our family prayer....but um.....

From 2010-02-16_mike flies

THIS is enough for each of us to have a piece nightly until he returns in a month....to do 200 days...well....honestly....I'm going to either have to make the kids share chocolate, get smaller chocolate OR buy a 25 gal aquarium!

We are brainstorming about various ways to count time: weekly celebrations, various places we want to visit, and ways to surprise Mike in the upcoming months. We'd love to hear your ideas. Our Flat Daddy is at the base's media shop...they said it would take two weeks...humph! BUT they were very impressed with the size (20 x 27) and the quality of the photo. LOL

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

Savoring (and packing ::snort::)

We've spent the past couple of days simply savoring each moment we have together. How strange that it takes an upcoming separation to really slow down and savor....to laugh about the snoring, reach for hands more often when running errands, hug and cuddle more often, silly little glances, snuggling close to hear the heartbeat you won't hear for a bit of time....savoring. One of the joys of deployments; a new awareness of how much you truly do mean to each other.

We are staying up late to watch Star Wars; a special, special treat for the kids.

Tomorrow, we begin our "deployment trial" as Mike leaves for a month. He'll be home mid-March for a bit more time and then the real thing. Our goal in the next month is to find all the little things we've not thought of and take care of them before the real thing. We've never had the luxury of a trial run before. ::snort::

One of the fun things about these trips are the new toys Michael brings home!

From 2010-02-15

From 2010-02-15

Nah, I won't get preachy - but - (ah shoot; I'm a teacher,I have to get preachy) if you have the luxury of keeping your spouse home, why not pretend you have a long separation coming up and see if you can't savor a bit of the fun without the parting?

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

26 Years & All of Japan is Celebrating With Us....

Twenty-six years ago today, I married my best friend.

From 2010-02-14

We had a great day. To do it justice, I'll have to write it up later.

Twenty-six years later....

From 2010-02-14

From 2010-02-14

Snow...fireworks...and a new cultural experience. It just doesn't get any better than this.

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

Saturday Sledding

I have a FANTASTIC husband!

Mike took the kids out sledding and told me to go to bed. I was on Day 3 of a migraine, which started with Jared's science experiment. I hadn't had time to sleep it off and the meds were having limited success. I agreed, with the understanding that they'd take lots of photos.

From 2010-02-13

They headed to this great hill on the base. We were a bit sad when we couldn't find "sleds" earlier in the season, but this snow mover has proven to be wonderful fun.

From 2010-02-13

Mike finds the size to be a bit limiting. Jared commented that watching Mike slide down the hill was "like watching a giraffe do the things giraffes do."

From 2010-02-13

This is the photo that made all wish they'd had video running.

From 2010-02-13

As the story goes, Stacia, Zander and Arielle were sliding down the hill. They hit a bump and Stacia flew out. She continued holding on to the sled and the sled went over the top of her.....with Arielle commenting, "One minute Stacia was there and the next all I saw were her arms under the sled." Since no one got hurt, and it really was funny to see, we enjoyed a good laugh.

From 2010-02-13

Stacia got back on the sled and the day ended well. She told me ALL about the day several times when they arrived home.

Mike came home with lasagna and garlic bread to throw into the oven. Shew. What a blessing.

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

Amusing Sign

From 2010-02-03

Ah, the permission to follow the rabbit trail. I love diversions and have to guard so closely against them in so many areas of life. This amused me.

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

I'm dreaming of exercise equipment again...

There was a GREAT machine at the gym in San Angelo. I told everyone it was HARDER than an elliptical, yet easier than an elliptical. It adjusted to your strength and stride....no buttons....just change your pace....awesome machine...great workouts....cross between a stepper and an elliptical and you could run on it as well....without hurting your knee.

Mike has been talking about a machine at the gym. It's the one above....very, very similar to the one I loved in TX.......and now I KNOW which machine I want to buy....trouble is, it's spendy - I've found it for $5,000.00 - $8,000.00 and no one will ship this puppy to Japan. ::snort::

BUT we've finally found a machine that both Mike (tall, long stride) and I (somewhat short) both would be happy to own.....in the meantime, now that I KNOW this wonder is at the base gym....when the ice goes away....maybe I'll drive all the way up there....once we get school well under way. LOL

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

What's a nice TEXAN girl doing in a predicament like this?????

What's a girl to do when she's over by the ponies, sledding down a hill, blocks from home and realizes she has to go potty....

From 2010-02-11

I heard her coming and ran to open the door....but the drama was over...."It went all out my leg," she told me.

I needed to wash another load of snow pants and coats anyway. ::snort::
Choosing Joy!
©2010 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Tanjobi Omedeto Alexsan & Language Bloopers

Zander has decided that Japanese lessons aren't terrible after all. Akikosan won his heart with Valentine Chocolate.

From 2010-02-11

These are Japanese animated characters. The one on the left is a bread roll filled with adzuki bean paste. He's like superman. The other hero is the piece of bread. The chocolate was good.

From 2010-02-11

Today Zander turns 8! What a very long ways he has come in the last 4 - 5 years. We're proud of him. Akiko is now working on base. We've moved our lessons from afternoon to evening. Mike made it home right before Akiko arrived.....so we saved his Ice Cream Cake (icesu creamo keki - slaughtered that spelling LOL)to share.

From 2010-02-11

She seemed to really like the ice cream cake. Later this evening Jared remarked that we probably should have explained the pig hat so that she doesn't think it's an American tradition.

From 2010-02-11

From 2010-02-11

From 2010-02-11

From 2010-02-11

Today's Japanese language humor is once again brought to you at my expense. I replied, "Watashi WA kokeshi doll" and it should have been "Watashi NO kokeshi doll". I said, "I am a Kokesihi doll," instead of "That's MY Kokeishi doll." Jared and Akiko realized my mistake at the same moment.

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