Love the 100 Yen Store

I'm uninspired today so I'm going back to my list of suggestions from a few days ago.

I'm going to skip the suggestion "Why I have the Best Husband" for now and use Marta's suggestion:  Favorite 100 Yen Treasures.

(Oh, and Thank you Marta for the compliment.  I also love my little yellow tea pot.  If only I drank tea it would be PERFECT!)

So let me tell you a little about the 100 Yen Store.  They're sorta like Dollar Stores.  Only much MUCH better.  The one we like is called "The".  Well, it's "The" and then something in Kanji.  So we call it "The."  Anyway, it's really cool.  

Now, not EVERYTHING in them is 100 Yen.  But most things are and we've gotten some real treasures.  Here's a list of everything I can think of off the top of my head;

Stationary

Chopsticks

(If you can blow up this picture, read the second to last bullet.)

Pottery

battery operated bullet train toys

A fly swatter

Plastic containers perfect for organizing cupboards

more stationary

Sushi Erasers

Plastic Samurai Swords and Shields

Small Plants

hangers

ties

socks

wooden toys

swim goggles

hardware

mouse pad

The 100 Yen store has a veritable plethora of treasures  (Yes.  I WOULD say plethora) and if we ever have visitors, we'll take them shopping there first.  In the mean time, let me know if you want me to pick something up for you.  

I'll take any excuse I can get to go again!

Chapter Two Coming Soon

I'm not gonna lie. Yesterday's post took me pretty much all day to finish. First I had to dig out my scrapbooks and unpack my stash of old loose photo's. Then I had to sit on the floor looking through all of them for an hour or two reminiscing. Then I had to figure out how to connect the scanner, do all the scanning, edit out all the red eyes in Photoshop, decide which photo's to use and then stare at the screen for a solid hour wondering whether or not what I had written was too personal to publish. So yeah. It was a little time consuming.

Therefore, I'm going to wait a few days to do Chapter 2. I really REALLY need to go grocery shopping... and do some laundry...

and maybe vacuum...

and consider doing ANOTHER load of dishes.

So yeah...

it'll be a few days. In the mean time, there will be more trivial--less time consuming--posts like this one to keep you entertained.

See you tomorrow.

How I Met Your Mother...

er, Father.

I'm trying to be clever here. Give me a break.

Okay. Since this is the month of Gratuitous Posting (thanks NaBloPoMo) I'm going to tell a gratuitous story. The story of how I met Doug. Or at least the first chapter.

This needs to be recorded for posterity anyway, since Doug's memory is shockingly unreliable. (Puh-lease...I did NOT flirt as shamelessly as he claims!) (Or, if I did, he can't prove it.)

If you are one of the friends mentioned in this story, please feel free to correct or add to my details. Doug accuses me all the time of being a pathological liar, but in fact, I just have a creative memory. (No. Not like the scrapbook company.)

But I need to start at the beginning. Or at least, I need to start at the beginning of the year. Actually, the end of the year. Actually, Christmas 1999. Okay, I'm just going to start...

On Christmas Day, 1999, I broke up with my fiance. Over the phone. He was in Utah, I was visiting home in Carlsbad. It was a mutual thing but I'm not gonna lie...it pretty much ruined my day. There was much wailing and gnashing of teeth. Many tears were shed and one very regrettable e-mail was sent. By me.

My sister tried to help by getting me a date for THE VERY NEXT DAY! The guy was in fact very cute, but I'm afraid I wasn't good company...being all listless and staring off into space as I was.

My mom's effort to help ended up being more effective. She took me to visit my Uncle Clyde for solace and advice. Now, Uncle Clyde and Aunt Jeannette are two of the best people you'll never meet. Uncle Clyde was my surrogate dad after my parents separated. He helped me get through the last two years of High School with my head on straight. He was also my spiritual advisor, and I was in desperate need of advisement.

You see, I had met T when I was 16. I had fallen madly in love with him when I was 18. And at 21, I thought I would marry him. So our broken engagement threw me for a loop.

(Seeing T off on his 2-year Mission, August 1996.)

(This picture could be titled "He's Just Not That Into You". We had just gotten back together after a one year break and he called me the wrong name two times that night. Whoops.)

ANYWAY, back to Uncle Clyde. I went to him for help and that night he gave me a very special Priesthood Blessing*. A blessing that put me completely at ease and helped to heal a lot of my heartbreak. In my blessing I learned two very important things: 1) I had not yet met the man I would marry, and 2) It would be through my friends that I would meet him.

Of COURSE I was still heart broken. But I was at peace.

Unfortunately, I was stuck in San Diego because T was supposed to have been my ride back to Utah.

Fortunately, roommate PB and our friends Jayson and Chris drove out from Utah, celebrated Y2K with me in San Diego, (when I had been hoping to get my ring) and then drove me home to get on with my life.

Life, just then, found me living at The Old Mill with two of my very best friends and my favorite 76 year old German; PB (Michelle), Anna, (Banana), and Ursula.

And things were pretty good there. Being in our early 20's, we were on the young side in that particular complex. (All except Ursula, of course, who tended to be on the slightly older side.)This meant we got plenty of attention from guys.

I resolved that I wasn't going to worry/obsess so much about boys any more. I was just going to date whoever I wanted, keep it casual, and focus on having fun. (Oh, and on school, of course...)

Thanks to the blessing from Uncle Clyde, I felt that confident that I wasn't supposed to marry T which made it much easier to move on and date other people. Which I did. Frequently. (But not nearly as many as my petite long-haired roommate PB, darn her!)

{In case you're skeptical, I should note here that I used to spend quite a bit of time in the ol' tanning beds, plus I had access to the wardrobes of two very fashionable roommates. So yeah...I was in top form and quite capable of securing a free meal most Friday and Saturday nights.}

It was towards the end of March when I got a call from Bryant**. Bryant was a friend of a friend and we'd been on one date and hung out a bit. He worked at a ski resort and I thought he was pretty darn cute. Anyway, he was calling because he wanted to go rock climbing and thought maybe my roommate Anna could get us in to The Rock Garden for free! Two other girls living in my complex had been wanting to go too, (Anna had offered) so I called them up and we all went together. Unfortunately, when we arrived, Anna had already gotten off work and none of us had brought money. I was JUST about to give up trying to sweet talk her co-worker into letting us climb when she walked in.

Turns out she had left work earlier and--I think-- had gone around the corner to visit her dad. On her way back, she noticed my car in the parking lot and came back in.

Just in the nick of time. We were set!

To be continued...

*The priesthood is the eternal power and authority of God. Through the priesthood God created and governs the heavens and the earth. Through this power He redeems and exalts His children, bringing to pass "the immortality and eternal life of man" (Moses 1:39). God gives priesthood authority to worthy male members of the Church so they can act in His name for the salvation of His children. Priesthood holders can be authorized to preach the gospel, administer the ordinances of salvation, and govern the kingdom of God on the earth. (Definition from LDS.org) Don't knock it 'till you've tried it.

**I went on one official date with Bryant and rock climbing wasn't it. He found out I'd never been fishing and decided to remedy that. We drove up a mountain. The road to the lake was blocked off. We parked the car and hiked through snow to the lake. It was cold. The lake was frozen solid. He taught me to "cast" for a few minutes until my fingers were blue and then we hiked back down to the car. It was a bit anticlimactic as far as first dates go, but I still managed to have a huge unrequited crush on him anyway.

Sunday Thoughts and Observations

• There are several families in our branch who have deployed husbands/fathers and yet their wives, these "single" mom's, still manage to get themselves--and their children--to church every.single.week...ON TIME?!?!?!?  (9 a.m.!!!)  (Props, ladies!  Serious props!)
  

• Today was the primary program*.   Three different dads came up to me after and commented on Max's award winning performance.  He was singing loud enough to be heard on the back row and had his brow furrowed in extreme concentration.  It was indeed a sight to behold!
  

• Doug and I team-teach the CTR-5 class.  Our class is composed of nine five-year-old girls.  (There is one boy in the class but he doesn't come...yet.)  Today the lesson was about "service".  We talked about ways we give and receive service and then gave some examples of how Jesus gave service while he was on the earth.  I mentioned that back in the day everyone wore sandals and got really dirty feet, but Jesus was so nice he washed the feet of all his friends!  There were some "eeewwww's" from the audience. Then I asked, "Would YOU wash JESUS'S feet if he were here?"  Chorus of "Yeeeeeees!" ...except from Aubrey who said "I'd take Jesus home and give him a bath!"  (awesome.)

Well, that's all for today folks!  We're having the neighbors over for a Crepe Party (sometimes known as 'dinner'.)  I'd better go start spooning Nutella into decorative bowls.  I'll be back tomorrow with the first installment of "How I Met Your Father".  Stay tuned, it'll be juicy!

Happy Sunday!

*All the kids under 12 sing songs they've been practicing and say short lines in Sacrament Meeting**.

**Sacrament Meeting.  Usually the first meeting in the three hour block.  The entire congregation meets together for 70 minutes with the emphasis on  the passing and partaking of the Sacrament.  The rest of the time is filled with opening/closing prayers, opening/closing hymns, sometimes an intermediate hymn, and usually two or three speakers.  The speakers are mostly members of the congregation.  Sometimes they're given by those in leadership positions.  It's very non-threatening.  If you've read this far, you're probably not a Mormon.  So you should try it sometime.  I PROMISE no one will try to baptize you.  (At least not on your FIRST visit.  buahahahahaha!)

Remembering Warmer Days...

when I could still do projects outside...

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Our Car

We bought a $500 car.  Yes, that's right.  Someone let us borrow it when we first got here, and we ended up buying it.  I mean, you really can't beat $500--even around here--and the A/C and 4-wheel-drive are all in tack.   We figured, Why not?  We'll drive it 'till it dies then get something nicer!  So it's not like we were unprepared.  We knew there would be problems.  

***flash forward two months***

It was one of those good days. I was driving the carpool to preschool. The windows were down and I was blasting AFN which was playing that one song that everyone likes...goes like this...

 "little ditty about Jack and Di-aaaaaane!  Two 'merican kids growin' up in-the-heart-land!"  (You know the one.)  Anyway, all of the sudden, I honked the horn!  Just a little toot.  I thought my arm must have bumped it in my zeal.  Then it happened again.  HONK!  Then again.  HONK HONK!!!

There were cars in front of me.  This was starting to get embarrassing.  I wasn't touching the horn but it was in fact honking.  Repeatedly.  Randomly.  Loudly.

 A second later I arrived at an intersection where a Japanese man stood directing traffic around some road construction.  The horn blared at him.  I raised my hands in the air and looked sheepish.  He laughed and laughed while I drove away honking and pounding the steering wheel in frustration and annoyance.

By the time I got Sam to preschool, the random honking had stopped and I had partially recovered from my embarrassment.

In the next few days, the horn would blow at random times.  Sometimes going over a bump, sometimes just a random toot to say hello to a passerby.

I rolled my eyes.  What do you expect from a $500 car?

Then one night, at about 8 p.m.  I heard someone honking outside.  

Loud and long.  

Shattering the quiet of the peaceful evening.  

It caught my attention.  

I listened.  

I realized it was in fact MY car making that noise.

CRAP!  

I jumped up and ran for the door  yelling behind me 

"DOUG!!!  GET A SCREWDRIVER!!!"

I barely made it in to the car.  The noise almost burst my eardrums.  I started my futile pounding and pulling in a vain effort to make it stop.  

Finally Doug arrived with a screwdriver.    With a few wrenches and a little wire pulling he got it to turn off.

It was a quick fix.  

Later, we would take more drastic and permanent action...

But at least, there will be no more random honking.

Ever.

And that's what we get for buying 

a $500 car.

The End

It's Finally Over!!!

Well, we have a new President.  Congratulations, President Obama.  I would have sooner stabbed my eye out with a fork than vote for you, BUT since you're now the President, I support you and really really hope you'll do a great job and be as wonderful as everyone thinks you'll be!!!

Now, before you ask, NO I did not vote.  But not for lack of trying.  We THOUGHT we had filled out the correct information to do the absentee ballot, but evidently it didn't go through or get processed correctly or something.  Which was a bummer.  But whatdaya do?

The good news is, Prop 8 passed in California!!!  (YAY!!!!)  Which means the definition of marriage will not change!  (For now)  Which means I haven't changed my plans to move there in the future!

So there you go!  You win some you lose some!  Hope all of YOUR wildest election day dreams came true!

See you tomorrow.

P.S.  My dad was asking what the stance of the Air Force is politically.  In the last few weeks, we've been subject to MANY lame commercials about exercising our right to vote.  But the Air Force does NOT support one candidate over another.  They stay non-partisan and keep the emphasis on voting...not who you should vote for.  So now you know!

P.P.S.  To vote here, people have to fill out an absentee ballot from their legal state of residence.  

How to Make a Six Year Old Really REALLY Mad...

You give away his Halloween candy while he's out trick or treating.  (The candy he got at Dad's work party which was much better and more plentiful than what he got Halloween night.)  

What kind of mother would do such a thing?  The kind confronted with literal HORDES of Japanese trick or treaters who had been bused on to base.  (These pictures don't do justice to the waves of humanity lapping at my front door.)
I started out with probably 15 bags of candy.  It wasn't nearly enough.  We went through all of our candy (and Maxwell's) within the first hour.  After that, I was forced to turn off the porch light (and every other light in the house) and cower sheepishly in the darkness.
Oh well.  It was fun while it lasted.  I saw some of the cutest kids!!!  Many of the Japanese children had been practicing for days at school to learn how to say "Treeck oh Tah-reat", "Happy Harroween", and "Sank you bery much."  It was the cutest thing ever.  (And they were all impressed when I said 'you're welcome' in Japanese.)

Now I know that next year I'll need at least 30 bags to even be able to show my face Halloween night.  (But I'm afraid it's gonna be the cheap stuff.  I bought all yummy chocolate in case there was any left over...I wont make that mistake again.)

As for Max, Doug took him to the Commissary last night and he got to pick a bag of clearance Halloween M&M's.  So I've been forgiven and all is now right with the world.

Good thing Halloween only comes once a year!

See you tomorrow!  

(Now go vote!)

Lost in Translation...

A few fabulous shopping finds:

I got me some new stationary at the 100 Yen store.  Jealous???
"Many flowers are in bloom here.

It seems that flowers who do not have the name are singing.

funny flowers."

Oooh, so close...  "Pittsburgu"

I usually don't condone propaganda, but they seem so sincere at this Farmer's Market!!!!

"Parsley-na is raising it from the seed.  

Our being aiming must become more natural 

in the vicinity.  Because the green earth is loved, 

one seed is valued.  "Raise it" it is our eternal theme.  

Please make your wonderful flower bloom!!!"

And it's always nice to get a few extra cooking tips from your dinner-ware...  (We found these at a Recycle Shop and gifted them to our vegetarian neighbors.)
VEGETABLE COOKING

You can make dishes from Vegetables.  If you want to eat full, best cooking is boil.  Well, What's your favorite menu?

(Well, what IS your favorite menu???)

I would have definitely purchased this shirt for one of the boys if it hadn't cost $17.   (Found it at an expensive children's clothing boutique.)  'Cause really...who DOESN'T want to 'watch various cultures as going on trip to several countries' when they grow up???

I know I do.

It's fun here.  Care to join us?

For Melissa

Melissa commented first when I asked for posting ideas so this is JUST FOR HER!!!

But before I fill her request, let me introduce everyone.  

Everyone, this is Melissa.  Melissa is from Southern California but is currently living in Rhode Island (which is where we met) but will be moving back to Southern California.   She is the wife of Chad and mom to adorable baby Grant.  (Chad was a co-resident of Doug's last year and is finishing up his last year of Peds residency this year.)   

Melissa is just a kick-bottom cool girl.  She's lots of fun to be around, and she appears to be the World's Greatest Mom to cutie-pie-Grant!

Melissa, this is everyone.  They're blog stalkers!  

Now that we're all introduced...

Without further ado, here is what Melissa requested: cute pictures of the kids and some Sammy quotes. 

It just so happens that I have some of BOTH! 

Here ya go!

Sammy quotes from 10/28/08

Sam: "Mom, when my pants awe on, dat means it’s time to go back upstais
and my pants awe on! Wets go!!!"Sam: "Mom, awe you nuts?"Sam: (with extreme exasperation in his voice!) "MOM! You can do betta den dat!!!" (I pulled up his undies for him, but accidentally left them a little twisted in back.)

And here are a few more cute pictures:

(Max has since lost his second bottom front tooth earning him a total of 600 yen.)

And here are some shots of Gabey in the raw.  He's had a bit of, let's call it sprinting bowel syndrome resulting in a terribly sore bottom resulting in...well, obviously...

Can't rain on his parade, though. 

If any of you have problems with the gratuitous nekkidness in this post, please forward your complaints to Melissa!

See you tomorrow!

Doug-Quotes

Me: Doug, look! (Pointing at something of extreme importance.)

Me: Doug LOOK! (Pointing more pointedly.)

D: What? (Without looking up.)

Me: I said 'look!’

D: Just tell me!

Me: When I say 'look', you have to look or you'll miss it.

D: Or you could just tell me...

Me: If I wanted to tell you, I would have told you!

Me: Usually saying “look” means there’s something I want you to see!

D: You’re taking 8 years of baggage and applying it to this situation.

Me: (trying not to laugh while also throwing something at his head.)

(Okay, I didn't throw anything this time, but I would have been totally justified.)

(Sadly, he's right.  It's true!)

Blog Topics...!

I need some help. If I'm gonna write a post a day, I'm gonna need a few ideas. Actually, like 29. I just asked Doug and he rattled off;
Craziest Thing I've Ever Done, and Top 5 Weird Things About Myself. So I'm good for two days. Just 27 more.

What about you guys? Any questions? Anything you want to know about the Japan Dubs? Or just Japan? Let me know!

Domo arigato gozimas.

NaBloPoMo--Did You Know?

It's NaBloPoMo ya know? What is NaBloPoMo you ask? Besides something that's sorta fun to say 10 times fast, it stands for National Blog Posting Month. And it was set up to inspire people to write a blog post once a day, every day, for the whole month of November.

I'm gonna try it.
Why?
Why the heck not. It's not like I have kids or a husband or housework or a life or anything else to do!
Will I succeed in posting that much?
Umm...I have no idea.
Do you actually want to hear that much from me?
Highly unlikely. But you're going to have to learn to deal.

Sooooo......guess I'll see you tomorrow!?! (Pause for awkward look...)
Alrighty then!

hasta manana!

Happy Halloween!!!

Thanks Melissa!

(Can we still be friends democrats?)

Why Does My Floor Look This Way?

Why?  I'll tell you why.

Because they're boys.  

And they wanted to build a track.  

And they wanted to destroy that track and leave the detritus all over my family room floor, of course!

This pretty much sums up my feelings on the matter...

I Make Bread, He Makes Mess

Monday night we had guests for dinner.  

I wanted to impress them with my mad skillz so I made 

Fae's Awesome Homemade Whole Wheat Bread 

in the Bosch.   

I was about to dump the dough onto the floured counter when something, (possibly a smell?) made me turn around.  

Aww kids!  You gotta love 'em!!!

(Actually, you don't, but it sure helps...!)

(The bread was very good, btw.  Go to my recipe blog if you want the recipe.)

Weekend Update: Meet Yuri and Natsuki

We had some very special visitors this weekend!  Meet Yurina and Natsuki!

Two beautiful 17-year-old students.  They came to stay with us through a home-stay program through their English Club at school.    (Do you like my new curtains from Target.com?)

Saturday, we took them with us to The Salmon Festival.  

In this picture, Natusuki is eating "Devil's Tongue".  She said it's very good and offered me a bite.  I politely declined.

The main event at The Salmon Festival, is the Salmon Catch.  You wade into a shallow pool of water and have 3 minutes to catch a live salmon swimming past.

Of COURSE Doug did it!  He caught his salmon (with his bare/masculine hands!) in just under two minutes.

(I think he'll probably post the whole story on his blog, so keep an eye out for that.  We have video and everything!!!)

That night, we went to dinner at the base Mexican restaurant, Los Guerros, and then to the base Halloween festivities which included a Trunk or Treat, bonfire, and a Haunted Forest.  

(Doug took Max and the girls through the Forest while I stayed at the bonfire with the little boys.  He said they screamed all the way through.  The girls, not Max...)

We said good bye on Sunday and were sad to see them go!

Sayonara Ladies!  Keep in touch!!!

Thank you for teaching me how to say "you're welcome"!

("do u i tashi mashite")

WHERE IS MY CAMERA????

Gabe just climbed into the dryer to play.  Instead of getting him out, I ran to find my camera.

I think he was lured over to the laundry area by his clean blankie in a laundry basket, then decided to climb in for a look-see.

Unfortunately after a quick circuit through the main rooms of the house, I realized I wouldn't find the camera before he got bored and climbed out.

Fortunately, once he learns a new trick (like climbing from the toilet into the bathroom sink to play with the hand soap) he usually repeats it a few times.  I'll just have to remember to leave the dryer door open and a basket of fresh clean baby blankets in front of it.  Then I'll be able to capture photo documentation of his adorable/naughty-ness.

In other news, I just told whiny Sam to "Get a drink out of the carton!"  So I could quickly finish typing this post without further interruption.  Oh, yes I did!  All while picturing my teenaged brother Brandon, in the kitchen at Camino, swigging from the gallon jug while being severely chastened by my mom.

How far I've fallen!!!

Heaven help me!

Wanderlust in Japan

Listen here people...99% of the time, I'm perfectly happy and content with my life here in Japan!!!  

(Italics added for emphasis!)

The other 1%, I'm reading the blog of a friend of ours who now lives with her family in Switzerland.   And then I'm just slightly discontented.

Seemingly every weekend they're either on an awesome European travel adventure or busy hiking up a beautiful mountainside.  Reading her blog pretty much makes me green with envy since--as we all know--I'd L.O.V.E. to live in Europe.  

Anyway, recently they took a vacation and stayed on a "Bio Farm" in Austria.  (All Organic, I believe...?)  The pictures and descriptions made me moan in anguish and abject self-pity.  I want to visit those places sooooo badly.   (And I'm pretty sure I saw the exact place they're staying on the Travel Channel...)

BUT when I'm not reading her blog, like I said, I'm perfectly content with my current residence.

(Abrupt change in topic...)

Now, a few days after I read the Bio Farm post, a friend who will remain nameless, 

invited me to join her for a mid-week picnic off base.  (I threw in 'mid-week' to emphasize the fact that sometimes I leave the base, sans-Doug, during the week.)

I followed the caravan to...

Kawayo Green Farm.

Did you know Japan also has "Green Farms"? (Which I'm betting are just as eco-cool as 'bio' farms?)  I personally did not know Japan had anything of the sort!  

We walked to a grassy hillside with a beautiful view of the surrounding farm and countryside and ate our picnic lunches.   (PB&Honey and apple slices for us.)

It was remarkably idyllic with rolling green hills and farm animals grazing in the distance.  

After eating lunch, we ventured down the hill and sheepishly fed some hungry sheep...  

(Gabe was slightly afraid...)

then visited a barn with a large and intimidating bull 

(Gabe was very afraid...)

bypassing some cows and horses along the way...

and then inhaled some very rich and creamy ice cream!

(Gabe was not even remotely afraid.)

(Nor was he inclined to share.)

There is also a Fancy Restaurant, Youth Hostel, and Golf Driving Range on the premises.

Who knew?

(Besides her...!)

It was a great day and a SLIGHT consolation that I'm not living in Switzerland.  Or Germany.  Or ideally, England.  But whatever.  Bloom where you're planted, right?

Japan rocks 99% of the time!  

I've just gotta stop reading Tanya's blog.  

(Wanna share Tanya's wanderlust?  Click here to read about her Bio Farm adventure!  After leaving a comment here, that is...)