Wednesday, November 30, 2011

A Tin of Tea

in your Backpack Wins You LOTS of Attention in American Airports! No one even ASKED on the way here. LOL  "Why, Yes, I DO have a metal cylinder in my backpack!" ::snort::  I checked it through.


Most Dangerous Tea on the Market
I told the kids, "Let's write about yesterday for the blog," and Stacia replied, "It was a cold, long and boring day. And that's the end."  ::snort:: 


We arrived EARLY to check in and were told we had to pay $9 per person to board, $25 per checked bag (not even the first would be free) and $29 per seat. Wow....we are NOT in Japan any longer. Where's the sushi, free slippers and blankets? 


 We talked back and forth. I was gracious - if incredulous. She told me it's been this way for years. I told her I've not flown domestic in several years.  I told her we did NOT want to pay for seats which I thought should obviously be included in the price of the ticket. It turns out all they had left when we bought our ticket were some sort of "upgrade" seat...but that is not MY problem. I did not REQUEST these seats. I booked online and expected to take what they gave me. She finally understood my logic. I also explained there was no reason we needed special boarding, so she removed that charge too. 


Friends are telling me that they waive the fee for baggage if you are active duty or a dependent....but they told me you had to have the active duty member with you and be on orders. I will try again when we leave. LOL 


She warned me the meals on the plane would be for "purchase only".  $10 for a sandwich, $3 for a pack of crackers (you know those snack packs???) and $6 for the snack bag of chips. We ran through a little store on the way to our gate..... No bentos or rice balls in sight...but we did o.k. I told the kids they are American Bentos.  On the plane several men asked for what the kids had (we were all in different spots).  They proudly said, "Mom bought these before we got on." ::snort:: 

I could have sold this meal for a MINT



We did fine in TX - and we'll need the full hour on our return trip to make connections - but we can do it. We RAN through the halls but made it....even had time to snap a photo of this vending machine. Now we're talking....



Jamin showed up at the airport early to pick us up. He decided to sit and study for a final. As we exited - we set off an alarm. Jamin looked up and said, "Yep, the families here." ::snort:: Meanwhile, the man was saying in a stern voice "turn around and step away" so we did...then he shouted "go through the exit"....so we did...then he said, "Turn around and step back from the exit"....so we did....then he said, "I'm talking to the man in the blue coat." ::snort::  I really couldn't figure out how WE set the thing off. LOL  Evidently the man went through, realized he forgot something and wanted to come back through, was told no and did it anyway - right as Zander approached the exit gate. ::grin::

Josiah and Shelby showed up and we came to the hotel, had pizza and slept well.

Note to travelers coming in on the 20th - we DID get here at 9:00 p.m. rather than 9:20 p.m. regardless of what the ticket said. LOL

Choosing Joy!
©2011 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Monday, November 28, 2011

Traveling -

Monday we spent with my folks and the girls.....knowing we were heading down the road on Tuesday. I was NOT feeling well on Monday night or Tuesday.

Tuesday was a travel day. We turned in the rental car and found a bus to our hotel. As I was feeling yucky, the plan was to swim and rest in the afternoon and rest well.

Video Machines in America are kept under lock & chains

Fairly good travelers
We were surprised in Portland with an afternoon evening with BreAnne. She was to pick friends up at 10:30 (she thought a.m. but it was p.m.). When we arrived we got a message on FB to call her. SO....we went to LEARNING PALACE, Red Robin, Ross and Ikea.  IKEA - a store so big you need a MAP to find your way out. Wow. Our first experience...glad Bre was with us or we would have never found our way out.
Girls liked the leaves over the beds

I wonder....in IKEA
How many parents have had a Tim Hawkins experience with display toilets? Bre and I also had a good laugh thinking about his IKEA blurb, "We get it - you're Sweedish!" ::grin::

We came back and swam, visited and watched a movie.

It was a HARD night of sleep last night...trains, planes, traffic....all but Stacia have made it through breakfast. Zander is ticked I won't let him have breakfast dessert, of all things. He complains each and every plane trip of nausea and often throws up when we take off and land...he has a better chance of landing on the moon than me letting him stuff himself with donuts before a flight. ::snort::  I'm really looking forward to getting home and having a "real food only" diet for a few weeks. LOL

We leave in an hour or so and will arrive in TX - our destination - in 13 hours.

Choosing Joy!
©2011 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Sunday Update

We slept. Woot!  We enjoyed Sunday. 


I booked tickets to TX and tickets to Seattle and talked to the contractors who now handle Space A rather than  AMC. LOL  


We saw Bre at Church. Arielle and Stacia were in "Ms. Bre's" Children's Church.


The church Michael and I were married in
 After church we met up with Krista (who works in a church across town) and Nolan. Gma, Gpa, all of us at their favorite lunch spot....
Pie shakes? Wow. Pie/Shake in a blender who would have thunk?
 Bre went home for a nap after lunch. Krista joined us for a bit at the hotel pool. Gma and Gpa came over too. We swam until Stacia's toes were bleeding - and we discovered something gross in the pool.

This is not us - but we made splashes like this! 
 Krista headed home to host College Age group at their apartment. Bre works tonight until 4 a.m. We all changed clothes, booked tickets, talked on the phone and then headed to my folks. Our mission - find ICE CREAM - it IS Sunday Night...and it's our family tradition. Gma and Gpa agreed to come with us.

The new mini size is PERFECT
 We loved seeing all the Christmas lights on the way home. I do miss Christmas lights living in Northern Japan. I hear rumors that they have Christmas lights in Tokyo...but not really up where we live.


Tonight I have all the kids at the hotel with me. The girls are back to work.....we'll leave on Tuesday or Wednesday to make our way to TX. We fly out of Portland on the 30th. I'm still deciding how much margin we need...do we want to turn the car in on the 29th and spend the night up there...or drive up early that a.m., turn the car in and hop on a plane? We shall see. 


Choosing Joy!
©2011 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Saturday, November 26, 2011

Mystery Solved!

Stacia sat straight up in bed at 11:19 a.m. and said, "Did we miss it?"  

Free breakfast from 7:00 - 9:30 a.m. 

Yep - you missed it.... I, however, went to sleep with you at 3 a.m. and woke up when the neighbors went for free breakfast. LOL  I spent the 4 hours of solitude "resting with Jesus"...but I'm tired now. LOL 

We were so late getting out this a.m.  everyone was trying to track us down. I took the two to lunch and then we headed to Gma and Gpa's to watch "the game".  We also got to watch Gma work her holiday magic....
A whole lotta nativities - Stacia is impressed



Yes, the Ducks won! Go ducks.  We visited with my folks for a bit, Bre went to work, Krista and the kids and I ran to Fred Meyers for "supplies" and then home to the hotel.  The kids swam. I did more onsen/hot tub research. I'm starting to gross myself out about hot tubs, really.  Krista, Arielle and Nolan headed to her apartment...
Look what we found in our room -  note from the housekeeper.
I have been perplexed about how CRAZY this hotel has been since Thanksgiving. I am amazed so many families would come to Eugene, spend the night in a hotel and SHOP......but TODAY...we solved the mystery! It's "THE GAME" - the Civil War - UofO and OSU...today...here in Eugene....Our parking lot is full of both Duck and Beaver cars.

Sampling....also yellow pom poms & all manner of Duck accessories



Beavers are serious fans too

One of my favorite Duck fans
I'm VERY HOPEFUL the hotel craziness and noise will calm down a bit tomorrow...I would assume even Ducks and Beavers have to be back to their routines by Monday. 

Supplies.....
Yes, I know it's horrible....Day 5 of jet lag and I'm ready for these younger ones to sleep......I'm hopeful....if Stacia would quit talking, I think she'd fall asleep. It's 10:30 p.m.  I tried for Calm Forte...but they didn't have it.....I medicated in the hopes we can get up in time for breakfast and make it to church tomorrow. Druggies for Jesus.  I'm off to take mine now.  FWIW the Tylenol pm has 2 ingredients. The kids stuff just one - the 2nd ingredient in Tylenol PM - I'm hopeful. 

Choosing Joy!
©2011 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Hidden Treasures/Rest

Deeply enjoying rest.... I don't go to sleep until 3 a.m. (jet lag) but I'm up at 7:30 or 8:00....the older Gherkins are at the girl's and the younger two Gherkins sleep until I wake them.  Lots of uninterrupted time to spend with Jesus, which is the REST I need more than sleep.   I've been thinking about the secret life (ala Sermon on the Mount - Matt 6 - love my Misawa peeps)....it's become a huge tapestry with many threads to connect.  God is granting me TIME, alone for REST, RECOVERY, REFUGE and RENEWAL. 


Quick thought (one of many) this a.m. Col 2:1-3 -  a verse I found as I followed the thread from Matthew on "secrets" and "hidden things".... in Christ Himself are "hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." I wanted to dig a bit as this merged several themes I've been pondering....kingdom treasures, intimacy, secrecy, proper/opportune times....


The following is from Dr. Zodhiates' Complete Dictionary of Word study in Pocket Bible.

"secret/hidden" - Strongs 2927 - Kruptos - hidden, concealed, secret, in secret where one cannot be seen by others (oh this appeals to me as I've been in such a public season of service), to be covered.  


BTW Krupte (2926) secret cell or vault. 


 "God keeps certain things secret from us for a certain time, but this is for our good....One can never know certain truths which are treasures unless one knows Jesus Christ Himself. Our knowledge of what Christ knows comes only as we become intimately related to Him and in the growth of that relationship. The treasures of wisdom are hidden from people as long as they do not know Christ Himself. "


I want to KNOW Him, alone - intimately. HE is my treasure. So often we scramble around looking for treasures which are simply hidden until we KNOW Christ. We know Christ as we spend time with Him in the "inner room/vault" - in secret - He is THERE - waiting (matt 6:4, 6, 18).


In the midst of a public season, taking time to be hidden with Christ in the secret place is my lifeline, the solace and rest I crave. This is the  "cave" Abba Father lovingly grants  in this public season where I'm not allowed to "go anonymous".  I can be hidden/anonymous every time I enter the "secret place" with Him. 


Choosing Joy!
©2011 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Friday, November 25, 2011

NESCO Simplicity (Michael)

Dinner has become the daily challenge.  Usually by the end of the day, Jared and I are just ready to eat "something."  Today, though, we had more than just "something."  The turkey that had been thawing in the refrigerator was too thawed to go back into the freezer.  So, another plan was hatched.  A quick check of the NESCO site, and we had a recipe for cooking the turkey.  Yeah, it is after Thanksgiving, but we had turkey at the Dining Facility on base for Thanksgiving.  Yesterday was too busy with airplane tickets and stuff, but today, well, that was very different.  Using the NESCO roaster was actually an easy way to cook a turkey, and it even got done a bit early (yup, 190 degrees inside).  Sufficiently satisfied!



Living large, loving life and choosing joy!!! 
Michael


Choosing Joy!
©2011 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Snippets

Rather than share all my witty thoughts throughout the day on Facebook, where they are not easily accessible for family posterity, I'll blog them - snippets:


  • "May the Lord continue to richly bless them." (Stated when we were given fresh towels.)
  • "Keep Santa Clause away from your sister!" 
  • Researching the difference between onsens and hot tubs. 
  • Zander says, "Stacia, raining is what it DOES in OR. Probably because it's so high in the mountains."
  • The older Gherkins watched Wallace on VHS; Stacia and Nolan watch him on my ipad!"
  • Zander at 11:30 pm as we entered our hotel room, "It's good to be home. Home is where ever you sleep." ::snort:: 
  • I explain to Stacia that old men in America should NOT be rubbing her head or arms.
We woke up in time for our free breakfast at the hotel. Denny's is better for $2, $4 or $6. ::snort:: BUT we could go to breakfast in our pj's....then on to the POOL. 


See the little hot tube in the upper left corner - I AM diligent about my research. ::snort:: 

Today was a GORGEOUS day for a picnic in Eugene. Can you believe it? We drove to Skinner's Butte (because I was lost and trying to meet with the Girls and my folks at the park), had lunch in the park and then walked along the river. 

Six Gherkins and a Grandpa! 
Zander HARD at work! 

His work pulled this little car with several children on it

I played on this same whale as a child
After the park, Gma and Gpa went home.  We went to Bre and Krista's apartment. We admired the girls' Christmas decorations (put up sometime before or after midnight madness)....the kids played games....I napped....

Krista
 Shawn, Marsa, Kent and Taleena (7) came over and most played a rousing game of Monopoly. Goecker's rule as Krista won a hard fought game.  Taleena, Stacia and I baked cookies.


During the drive we saw this...and I figure I must not totally understand America's culture.

I've been pondering this all day. If you have valid complaints, how will sleeping in a tent on public property and being hateful to all who walk by help  achieve your objectives....and WHY would you occupy Eugene or Wall street rather than simply working to bring about changes? And do you REALLY think you are the 99%? WHAT does WALL STREET have to do with YOU being homeless? Maybe. I wanted to think of some creative and Christ-like response....but I was perplexed when faced with the question, "How many homeless does it take to make a billionaire?" The premise is faulty. It doesn't compute. I keep wondering what they are asking. First, I'm not a billionaire. And I would guess that THEY are probably part of the 1%, most of us are part of the 98% and the billionaires are part of 1%. If you take 100 penniless people you would have 100 penniless people....they would never spontaneously combust to form a billionaire. Like I said....the whole thing perplexes me. I can tell you THIS....food and supplies to TROOPS in the Pacific (as in Japan and Korea) have been delayed due to the Occupy Oakland. How is that helping them? Do they not care who they hurt to "be heard"?

  I keep thinking of other scenes with folks living in temporary shelters which I've witnessed....

Cardboard walls, all their belongings in a box
 

these folks lost EVERYTHING....yet they stood up and are fighting their way back to some sort of "normalcy".  Yes, I maybe should have kept quiet as I'm sure there are subtleties I'm not understanding...but it's been on my mind...and I'm still wondering if there is something the kids and I could do while here? Maybe they just want to be heard. I've been warned many of the drifters and rowdy elements of town are in the fence and it may not be the best idea to take the kids down.  But then the kids went into the devastation of Northern Japan....shining the light where it's dark.

On the way home to the hotel the gas light came on. I happened to be a mile from the cheapest spot in the area to buy gas. Done....gotta remember they like to pump for you in OR. ::grin::

I stopped by the front desk and they'll extend me a couple of days if I'd like. I will check for the best prices for flights to TX tomorrow - now that I know where the kids and I need to end up to find our way back to the pacific. We ARE going to try for Space A so need to eventually end up back in Seattle.  Which means I now know I need to fly from SEA to TX and back to SEA - rather than Portland to TX to Tokyo. LOL

Choosing Joy!
©2011 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

The Morning After

Thankful for:

  •  5 hours of sleep with Stacia and Zander. 
  • Sweet EARLY a.m. whispers
  • Getting all up for FREE breakfast (though I'm thinking $2 at Denny's may be worth sleeping in)
  • Comfy beds to sleep in 

Thoughts: 
  • No, sir and maam, your CHILD is not bad nor crazy....you are questionable for taking a toddler shopping at midnight and then screaming in hotel hallways about how bad they are at 03:30. 
  • Strange santa men handing out treats and candy ONLY to little girls are to be held  suspect
  • Swimming after such few hours of sleep may not be the most relaxing way to spend the day - but it will work....
  • Can't believe we didn't take even ONE photo of Thanksgiving! 
  • Observing families in the pool - one very sweet LARGE family with well behaved children is much nicer to share with than 4 extended families of two ill-behaved each....not to worry they shopped all night and should sleep soon. LOL 
  • Wonder when the midnight lions and lionesses will check in. LOL 

Choosing Joy!
©2011 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Thursday, November 24, 2011

A Very Full Day

Wow - what a day. Jet lag is whipping us around.  When I travel alone I just give in to it. With four children along (well only three at the hotel) that is not such a good idea. I'm thinking about blue pills in the pudding tomorrow night. ::snort::  Just kidding - sort of. ::wink:: 


Wonderful Thanksgiving meal at moms with six of our nine children, myself, Mom and Dad, Amy and Harmony and Andrew.  It was fun to visit with Will and Sherri's kids. We missed those not with us. 


Zander was thrilled when the Cowboys won at football.

We Skyped with Michael and realized the price of he and Jared's tickets to TX are quite a bit more than we expected. So much more that the four other children and I myself will have to take our luck with Space A when we leave the states. I was hoping we could fly from DFW to Tokyo....but oh well.  It cost $150 for us to fly from Misawa to SEA.... sure beats $10K. I am trying to get info on what flights may be heading back to any Japan location the week of 17 Dec.  I REALLY WOULD LOVE TO BE HOME A FEW WEEKS BEFORE I HAVE TWO TRIPS TO TAKE IN JANUARY. I'm really a homebody. LOL

Nolan and Arielle are out to experience "midnight madness" with the older gherkins.  I sent them with Christmas money and a clothing allowance. They'll spend the night at the girls apartment. I'm not sure what all they're planning for us tomorrow. I plan to sleep in until I HAVE to get up...this a.m. folks began dragging suitcases above our head, slamming car doors outside the window and yelling in the hallways....around 7 a.m. About 9:30 it quieted down and we slept until someone called to see if we wanted our room clean. I bit my tongue - so wanted to say "Um....do not disturb would mean no." ::snort:: Hoping for more sleep tonight.

I've been trying to Skype with Michael tonight but am not making connections.

I took Zander and Stacia to the pool for their end of the day swim. We've been spoiled by being the only family in the pool the last two nights. There were 28 people in it tonight. YIKES. Watching the family dynamics in the pool (not ours) was actually sobering and heartbreaking.


Choosing Joy!
©2011 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

SURPRISE - sort of!

We waited for Arielle and BreAnne to get out of the shower and for the girls to show up at our hotel. During this time, having slept through the FREE hot breakfast at the hotel, we discovered Denny's will feed us ALL - all you can eat breakfast for under $20. Now THAT'S a deal. LOL 


BreAnne and Krista drove over to my parents. Their mission was to get my parents out to the kitchen. The kids and I followed. We simply walked into the house and on into the kitchen.  I have a picture where my mother looks TOTALLY surprised - but she's sticking her tongue out so I won't post it. ::snort::

Mom said she knew we were coming. I'm glad we did (as we didn't even know we were coming until yesterday) or she would have been very disappointed.  She had seen a comment on Facebook early in the a.m. and said she figured we were coming. We still say she SUSPECTED we were coming but wasn't sure so it counts as a surprise.

Happy even if not totally surprised as we'd hoped and planned

Dad was in the back. She called for him to come help her in the kitchen. He came...and we SURPRISED him.....no doubt. 

Surprised! 

We spent the rest of the day visiting with Mom and Dad. Arielle decided to go to youth group with Krista. BreAnne was watching Harmony (our grandniece). I took them all out to dinner and then we split ways.
Oldest Gherkin and Harmony
BreAnne and Harmony agreed to meet the 3 younger ones and I at Target. I nearly had culture shock right there in the store. Wow. I DID get pants long enough for my thin, long-legged children. I scoped out a new camera (Cannon Powershot ELPH - on SALE Michael) but didn't buy it. I heard someone call my name and was thrilled to turn around and see our niece. How fun to steal a quick hug before the morning. We dearly love our Harmony lovin.

I'm having QUITE the time remembering NOT to get on the left side of the road. I'm not sure why this is so hard for me. Good grief.

The younger ones wanted to swim....so I took them swimming from 8:00 - 10:00 p.m. BreAnne went home, got her suit and joined us. Then we visited a bit. I dearly miss the heart to hearts with the older gherkins. What a blessing to be here!

It's now 1:27 a.m. on thanksgiving HERE - so I think I'm going to try to fall asleep so I can stay awake when I'm supposed to be awake tomorrow to EAT. ::snort::

Happy Thanksgiving All.

Choosing Joy!
©2011 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Yes, It IS a Miracle!

Zander spent most of this day telling one and all "Jesus did a miracle for us!" I suspect he's 100% accurate. What led to this? 


Josiah, our oldest son, is graduating from college 10 Dec. We didn't think Michael could make it because of a base event which requires him to be in Misawa. He was given permission to cut out and fly home. He'll fly commercial as he can't leave until the evening of the 9th. Jared has a new job and will go with him. Michael has been hoping the rest of us (myself and four children) would catch Space A home on the 29th of Nov or the 5th of Dec. The flights are cancelled the week of Dec 5th due to the aforementioned base event. 


That left the 22nd or the 29th of November for Space A  flights to the states.  I will admit I really did NOT want to travel in November. I wanted to rest. We KNEW the 29th would be full as the 5th was cancelled.....We began to hear the 22nd was going to be full as well. In fact, there were 20 seats on the plane for space A - all categories. The past two weeks Cat 2 folks didn't even make it on the plane. The kids and I would be Cat 4 as Michael wouldn't be flying with us. We went ahead and got on the list - ON FRIDAY.  Sunday we heard Annette was 70 on the list and we signed up well after her. Other friends, Anna and Kurt, hoped to travel Cat 2. They were told on Monday they were number 21 and 22 (remember there were 20 seats after those who are moving and on orders were on the plane).  


The kids were packed by Monday morning. I kept telling them it was very unlikely we'd fly out this week. We didn't tell family we were trying.  The terminal was still saying 20 seats and we were somewhere between 70 - 90 on the list. Michael and I debated, and decided we'd go ahead and go to roll call.  What could it hurt? My plan was to try to get out of Yokota AB  on Wed, and if I didn't get out by then, I'd book commercial flights. We wouldn't leave until December and we'd go straight to TX. 


Twenty-eight hours ago we showed up to be marked present at the Misawa Passenger Terminal . The men told us that if no one else showed up we may make it....there were now 23 seats on the plane. They had had a couple of families of 4 remove themselves from the list. We waited. I began to hope as I didn't see many new folks coming in after us. They posted the list and we could see there was one person after us.......Anna and Kurt made it on.....Annette made it on...I suggested Stacia could ride in the toilet. ::snort:: They called our name. We were the very last seats on. An active duty man on Cat 2 showed up after our name had been called and I heard them saying, "I'm sorry you were supposed to be here to be marked present, after we do roll call we don't change seats." So we got on. I was surprised...and hadn't really planned to fly. 


We even got FIVE SEATS IN FIRST CLASS. Wow. They apologized that we were C - G - I didn't care at all. ::snort:: 


Michael put the turkey back in the freezer and called Akikosan to change the dates of our thanksgiving dinner. I realized I had something scheduled for EVERY day of the week (sometimes two - three things) for the next 13 days....and I began to see Michael's wisdom. As much as I wanted to stay HOME - and rest.....I think I will get far more rest away from Misawa. LOL 
REST - that's the ticket!


We landed....rented a car...took off for OR. I had to pull over at a rest area in WA somewhere as the kids had all fallen asleep and I was seeing triple tail lights - moving in strange patterns.  The rain was so BAD in WA I couldn't even see the traffic in front of me. I locked the doors and we all slept for an hour. Then I drove on. We saw Krista and Bre (our oldest two) tonight. I found a hotel for us...a family suite that will sleep 6 of us (and as 6 of us aren't with us - it WORKS).  It's within walking distance of Outback, Denny's,Target, Applebees and McDonalds. It has a pool and a FITNESS center. LOL 


Tomorrow a.m. (Wed stateside - Thursday Misawa time) we will surprise my parents. We can't wait. We are staying about 5 minutes from them - 8 minutes from the girls. 


We're tried, jet lagged and a bit stunned...but we're stateside. We'll stay here about a week and then drive back to SEA and fly to DFW or San Angelo. If we go to DFW I'll drive down to San Angelo.....we shall see.  I need to figure out those details - tomorrow - or soon. LOL 


For those who saw Facebook - I HAD to keep up posting or my parents would KNOW I wasn't in Misawa and we didn't want them to suspect.....note what I said...totally true and Annette and Anna helped me craft it. "Full plane...checking with Yokota. They have weekly flights. If I get to the states, I can figure out how to get to TX." And later, "Choosing joy."

As I mentioned - I didn't THINK we'd be flying out - have no DOLLARS with me, no PHONE NUMBERS for friends along our path today.....taught me to try to guess the Space A system.

Sharing a Dessert.....

And a yummy dessert it was! 

Zander enjoys the pool after the torture of 9 hours on a plane  and 6 hours in a car
Kids haven't stopped thanking me all day.... LOL 




Arielle, Bre and I enjoyed a "foot onsen". LOL Krista was at work.

Poor thing....
I tried to tire the kids out in the pool. They are still awake...it's 16:00 in Japan.....they are watching some nature show about wildebeests. Arielle went home to spend the night with Krista and Bre.


Choosing Joy!
©2011 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...