Christmas Festivities!

Alright, this website is being a pain... so the pictures are up top because it's too complicated to drag them to the bottom of the post. Anyway, I meant to post this several days ago, but I've been busy and got frustrated uploading pictures. Here's just a few highlights of Christmas Eve...

Joe and I decided that since this was going to be our first Christmas being spent without any family, that we'd make the most of it and celebrate with friends. We had a big group of friends over on Christmas Eve and it was a great day! We had about 18 friends over (we were worried how we were going to manage it in our tiny house, but it turned out to be ok!) to hang out all afternoon, eat yummy food, open presents, play games, watch movies, and just spend the day together relaxing and having a good time! We're so blessed to have so many amazing friends here in Okinawa to make times like these when we can't be with family so much better. It was our first time hosting a party for such a big holiday, but all went well. Only a small glitch with the ham (we couldn't figure out why it was taking so long to heat up) and learned our lesson to let it defrost longer. We'll keep that in mind for next time ;) I convinced Joe to open presents that night since it was almost Christmas Day anyway (10pm). We did and I love all my gifts! Joe was really thoughtful this year and I feel a tad bad the majority of gifts I got him were clothes, but I did manage to get him some good ones.

Christmas Day was great as well. We spent the morning Skyping with our family to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. We even got to do a virtual Christmas with my parents and got to watch them open the gifts we sent them! It was really neat and almost felt like we were together in the same room. Hopefully next year we can all spend it together! We also brought some cupcakes over to our neighbors who are a bit older than us, and are always looking out for us (they're like our "parents" here in Okinawa which I admit, is comforting). They invited us in to chat, have some tea, and then offered us sushi and snacks. We ended up chatting with them for hours and before we knew it, it was already 5pm!

We later went over to Sani and Jay's house for Christmas dinner. It was delicious, and much more intimate with only 6 people (plus one toddler and baby), which was nice. We spent the evening eating great food and playing a few games of Scrabble (our latest addiction). Before we knew it, it was 2:00am and Christmas was over. It was a great two days, and we are so thankful for such great friends. We missed our family a lot this year, but are crossing our fingers (and toes) that next year we can make it out to the states!

Birthday celebration/Girls Night Out

Last week, a big group of us got together to celebrate Carmee and Sani's birthdays!!! We started the evening with dinner at Macaroni Grill (yummy!). It was great food, good company, and we ended the dinner with two cakes!

After Macaroni Grill, all the ladies went out for a much needed Girls Night Out! It was decided earlier that we deserved a night out; Carmee's husband is currently deployed and she's workin full-time and taking care of her three year-old boy, Sani's been busy taking care of 2 month-old, Isla alone while Jay had been out in Diego Garcia and Alaska, and as for me, Joe had been gone for a month in Diego Garcia (living the life of luxury!). After being here 10 months, I've DDed for Joe everytime, so I figured he owed me one night. The boys stayed in and baby-sat (stayed busy playing video games and watching movies), while we went out on the town. We started at a new place advertised on OkinawaHai, but it turned out to be a bust. One drink and $10 later, we decided it'd be a good idea to walk several blocks to Big Echo (karaoke). We soon realized "a few blocks" in high heels was a longer trek that it sounded. We settled in at a bar at the "Crocodile" restaurant. It was an outside bar, but they set us up with fleece blankets and space heaters! It was a great night of chit-chatting, laugher, yummy drinks, and good friends! Can't wait for our next girls night out (whenever that will be!!!).

December Pedi

I finally got the chance to get my December Pedi! Carmee and I enjoyed our morning of pampering!!! :) It doesn't snow here in Okinawa, but I'm in the holiday spirit anyway. :)

I've been so extremley busy subbing and tutoring lately, I haven't had the chance to update the blog. I recently used some of the money I've saved from tutoring to buy myself a Canon Digitial SLR camera. I've been eyeing it for quite some time and finally decided to get it! It takes amazing pictures and I'll be sure to update with some new ones very soon!!!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

It's definitely beginning to feel like the holidays, YAY, it's my favorite time of year!!! As you know, I spent Thanksgiving in the states with my parents. I had a great time, but it was difficult to adjust to the 15 hour time difference and 24-hours of traveling. It was great to see my parents, have a great home-cooked Thanksgiving meal, do a little (okay, a LOT) of shopping, saw some great movies, and had ate out at some yummy places! It was a short trip considering all the traveling, but it was worth it. I can't wait until I get to go back (with Joe!).

Friday was the squadron Christmas Party! I was excited to go and see everyone, but I was soooo exhausted from waking up at 4am (jetlag). We bought some raffle tickets, because rumor had it there were some really good gifts this year! I never win those things, but I bought some anyway. To my surprise, one of my numbers was called and I was super pumped! I went and picked an ornament off the tree which had a number on it. Then "Santa" and his "elf" found the corresponding number and they gave me a really big and heavy box!!! Boy, I was excited thinking I was something AWESOME. Scratch that. It was a....

box of Gatorade. To be more precise, expired Gatorade. Oh well, I still won something. :)

Yesterday, Joe and I decided to get some breakfast at Coffee Casa (our favorite breakfast place). We ran into some friends and ended up having a fun morning. The place was very festive, decorated with Christmas ornaments and Joe even had a little surprise in his drink:

After breakfast, we went on a bike ride on the Habu trail, but it was more of an "advanced" trail than "easy" like Joe claimed. It had lots of steep hills... the ones going down were a breeze (obviously) but going up was killer. I'm out of shape and had to stop. Next time, we'll have to go on a more "flat" trail.

Later on we met up with a group of friends at a place called Round 1. It's a 8 story place with games, sports, & arcades to play! You pay for 3 hours and get to go play anything you want. It was similiar to Mr. Biggs in Colorado Springs (some of you know what that is). We started off playing different sporting games (soccer, tennis, golf, etc.) and then watched the guys do their mini-bike race. It was hilarious! We then went upstairs and played 3 mean games of volleyball. Our (Joe, me, Lydia, Audrey & Chris) team wone 2 out of the 3 games. We called it quits at the end because things were beginning to get a little heated (debate about score) so for the sake of our friendships, we walked away... haha! My wrists and arms are so bruised today! We had a great time playing games and I was so worn out from the bike ride that we got home, ate a quick dinner, and I passed out on the couch almost immediately!

We have plans to hang out Christmas lights this weekend but then came to the realization we don't have a ladder, and we only have icicle strands which might not look that great on our house (and the BX has been sold out of lights for about a month). We'll play it by ear. It's also been rather "cool" which has been great !We're all really getting into the Christmas spirit and I'm so excited!

Updates!

Just thought I'd let everyone know who I haven't talked with recently, what we've been up to! Joe finally made it back home from his trip to Diego Garcia. He was there nearly a month! He had been told he wasn't going to back until at least November 30th, so I went ahead and bought tickets to fly to the states to visit my parents for Thanksgiving. Then ironically hours after I bought my non-refundable ticket, he calls saying they had a change of plans and they were coming back! Oh well, irony has it's way of sneaking up us!

I of course still followed through with my plans to go to the states. After a grueling 23-hour trip, I made it!!! I flew from Naha, to Tokyo, to Seattle, to Chicago, and then Huntsville!!! So far I'm doing pretty well with the jet-lag and time difference. It's good to be back in the states and see my parents. However, it's so strange to be driving on the right side of the road again, driving so fast (ok, anything over 40mph feels like we're FLYING!), and trying to refrain from saying "thank you" in Japanese to people!

I'm only here for a little over a week but I'm planning to make the most of it! It's only been 24-hours and I've been to Wal-Mart, the mall, Target, & the Dollar Store... I'm in heaven!!! I'll be back December 1st, so I'll be sure to update everyone soon!

Food for thought

1. How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are?

2. Which is worse, failing or never trying?

3. If life is so short, why do we do so many things we don't like and like so many things we don't do?

4. When it's all said and done, will you have said more than you've done?

5. What is the one thing you'd most like to change about the world?

6. If happiness was the national currency, what kind of work would make you rich?

7. Are you doing what you believe in, or are you settling for what you are doing?

8. If the average human like span was 40 years, how would you live your life differently?

9. To what degree have you actually controlled the course your life has taken?

10. Are you more worried about doing things right, or doing the right things?

11. You're having lunch with three people you respect and admire. They all start criticizing a close friend if yours, not knowing she is your friend. The criticism is distasteful and unjustified. What do you do?

12. If you could offer a newborn child only one piece of advice, what would it be?

13. Would you break the law to save a loved one?

14. Have you ever seen insanity where you later saw creativity?

15. How come the things that make you happy don't make everyone happy?

16. What's something you know you do differently than most people?

17. What one things have you not done that you really want to do? What's holding you back?

18. Are you holding onto something you need to let go of?

19. If you had to move to a state or country besides the one you currently live in, where would you move and why?

20. Do you push the elevator button more than once? Do you really believe it makes the elevator move faster?

21. Would you rather be a worried genius or a joyful simpleton?

22. Why are you, you?

23. Have you been the kind of friend you want as a friend?

24. Which is worse, when a good friend moves away, or losing touch with a good friend who lives right near you?

25. What are you most grateful for?

26. Would you rather lose all of your old memories, or never be able to make new ones?

27. Is it possible to know the truth without challenging it first?

28. Has your greatest fear ever come true?

29. Do you remember that time 5 years ago when you were extremley upset? Does it really matter now?

30. What is your happiest childhood memory? What makes it so special?

31. At what time in your recent past have you felt most pasionate and alive?

32. If not now, then when?

33. If you havne't achieved it yet, what do you have to lose?

34. Have you ever been with someone, said nothing, an walked away feeling like you just had the best conversation ever?

35. Why do religions that support love cause so many wars?

36. Is it possible to know, without a doubt, what is good and what is evil?

37. If you just won a million dollars, would you quit your job?

38. Would you rather have less work to do, or more work than you actually enjoy doing?

39. Do you feel like you've lived this day a hundred times before?

40. When was the last time you marched into the dark with only the soft glow of an idea you strongly believed in?

41. If you knew that everyone you know was going to die tomorrow, who would you visit today?

42. Would you be willing to reduce your life expectancy by 10 years to become extremley attractive or famous?

43. What is the difference between being alive and truly living?

44. When is it time to stop calculating risk and rewards, and just go ahead and do what you know is right?

45. If we learn from our mistakes, why are we always so afraid to make one?

46. What would you do differently if you knew nobody would judge you?

47. When was the last time you noticed the sound of your own breathing?

48. What do you love? Have any of your recent actions openly expressed this love?

49. In 5 years from now, will you remember what you did yesterday? What about the day before that? Or the day before that?

50. Decisions are being made right now. The questions is: Are you making them for yourself, or are you letting others make them for you?

November Pedi

I would of thought by now people would be tired of seeing my toes every month. Alas, to my surprise, I get the most comments on these pics than anything else. Here's the latest pedi. It's cute, but not exactly what the picture depicted. It was supposed to be more red than white, and more dark red than a pink (I was trying to go for upcoming holiday colors). It's still cute and it just gives me an excuse to go back before Christmas.

Modesty covers up my back cleavage

There is something to say about immodesty. It creates mini-goals throughout the year that keep a woman fit and trim. For example, each Halloween is preceded by a month of dieting and hearty exercise to prepare for a night of immense stomach and leg baring. Why dress up as something like a clown who wears a baggy suit, when you could be a pirate, and why be a pirate when you could be a sexy pirate? For immodest dressers, the year is filled with these mini-goals: New Years, Valentine's, bathing suit season prep, actual bathing suit season, and then around again to Halloween with things like birthdays, anniversaries, and special parties to fill in the gaps.

Unfortunatley for me and many of you, these mini-goals were kicked to the curb at the onset of marriage. Ahhh, marriage. It seems day after day, the pounds creep up out of nowhere. With no single girlfriends around to "dress up" with (I mean really, hardly any married ladies dress immodest and I felt the need to conform accordingly), and with no mini-goals throughout the year, the lbs seem to find a happy home around your middle. I blame my body now on Coco's (rumor has it one meal has over 1,000 calories), leftover Halloween candy, and all the other delicous places to eat around here (okay we were a little deprived in Columbus and have been over indulging ever since we left).

Is there a way around this dilemma? I guess working out and eating "healthy" could work, but that's just not as fun...

Music to my ears

I developed a deep love for country music my freshman year of college. Until then, I loathed country music. If I heard it on the radio, I'd simply change the station. I was all about hip-hop at the time (I was also living in Germany where techno and upbeat music was the trend... not so much country on the stations).

Going to college in Colorado exposed me to lots of country music, whether I liked it or not. At first, I admit, I tried to rebel against it. I had 3 roommates, one whom I shared a room with, and two of the three of them were die-hard country fans. It was constantly playing in our rooms and I tried to tune it out at first. Then, when I was cheering and joining my sorority, I had a close group of girls who were also big country listeners (several who were from Texas). At the time, I had no car and bummed rides from whatever friends would give me one. It was their car, and what do you know, they played country (aside from rockin' out to Britney every once in a while). I decided since I was being forced to listen to country so much, I needed to learn to like it!

I began to search and download popular country songs that were on the radio. At the time I didn't even know who Kenny Chesney, Keith Urban, Martina McBride, etc. were (such a shame, I know!). I made myself listen to it in my spare time and before I knew it, I could recognize the songs on the radio (until then, seriously all country songs sounded the same to me!) and even sing along to a few. Over the year, I developed a true passion for country music! I felt there were so many great songs, and many I could relate to.

I still love country, but I do listen to other music here and there, but country is still my all-time favorite. When we moved here to Okinawa, we have one (yes, ONE) radio station that AFN plays for the American's to listen to. They play a random assortment of music from "then" to "now" which gets old really fast. Our friend told us about an internet radio she uses and can tune in to all her favorite country stations from the states. We bought one several months ago and I am so in love with it! I was out of touch with the newest songs being played, and felt out of the loop with country music. But here I am, back in the groove and couldn't be happier.

I found a station that plays all the new country hits and even ones from several years ago. When I hear certain songs, they bring me back to my freshman year of college. Makes me rememeber how exciting and new everything was for me that year. I've been downloading a bunch of new albums from my favorite artists lately so I have some good music to listen to in the car... which sparked my idea for the blog entry.

People always say scent is the strongest sense we have. I have to disagree... but maybe it's because I haven't been able to smell hardly anything for the last several months due to my serious sinus problems. Music really brings me back in time. I hear a song and can instantly think of what year in school I was when it came out, and memories instantly start flooding my mind. Whether it be songs from the 90's that I would hear in the gym (I refer to them as "gym songs"... only former gymnasts really know what I'm talking about), the days of boy bands, Eminem, or country, they all represent different things to me. Sometimes I find myself hearing a song and just taking a few minutes to remember the good times. It mostly happens with country music and I'll be forever grateful for my friends in college introducing me to country! :)

Cycles

Friendships (with girls especially) have always been a tough thing for me. You can throw me into a room full of new people and I can eloquently converse with anyone, but to find someone that I actually connect with and enjoy is a harder feat. I consequently have very few people in my life that I trust and enjoy. It may be my cynical nature but I don't like most people... ouch. So when I find people that I do like, they are usually a part of my life for a long time (or I hope). I develop an unconditional love for these people and they can treat me poorly or call me once in a blue moon but I maintain the friendship. I think once you see who a person is inside, it is hard to picture them differently, even if they go through rough spots once in a while. But I also know that over time, friendships, like people, change.

I remember at the end of high school thinking that I couldn't have better friends, but was also excited to make new friends in college (without thinking twice that I'd stay in close contact with old friends). College came and went, and in my 4 years my friendships had me feeling like I'd met those friends you were meant to stay friends with for the rest of your life. (I remember my senior English teacher saying you meet your "true" friends in college).

I still have some of my friends from high school and college. Our relationships have changed over time because of circumstances and growth, but in some ways they are better. We maintain the level of friendship, feeding off the intimate friendship we once had, but I don't know enough about them anymore or their daily activities to be annoyed or even affected. Is there a cetain line of intimacy in a friendship that shouldn't be crossed, or am I just past the point of intimate friendships? Maybe I am just doomed to have a 4 year friendship expiration date.

Either way, I'm having a hard time dealing with the shifts in my current friendships. I love these people but I feel like I'm at a crossroads. Maybe friendships are supposed to change, like they would be less fulfilling if they always stayed the same. Sometimes you have a great group of friends and somtimes there's no one you connect with. I have felt that way before, but maybe there is something to enduring a friendship transition with old friends while still making new ones. Am I the only one who's ever felt like this?

Okinawa in November

Just a couple of pictures I snapped while I was at a friend's baby shower this weekend. Not too bad for November, ay?!

Oct/Nov. Pedi

It was time for a new pedi! My friend Carmee and I went today. I'd never been on a weekend before and for a Sunday, it was REALLY crowded! Unfortunatley we didn't even get to sit next to eachother and had to practically shout across to each other, but the pedi was worth it. :) I went for fall like colors!

Thought I'd post and let people know what we've been up to since I have some free time on my hands. Joe's busy flying and working all weekend, so the house is really quiet! With that said, Joe has been flying a lot lately. They are assigning "office jobs" to the newer co-pilots and Joe is excited to hear he is going to get a pretty good one. It's not for sure yet, but I'll let everyone know when he does. That just means when he's not flying, he'll probably be spending most of the "work-day" at the office. No more staying at home and working out whenever he wants!

I've been keeping myself busy with tutoring. I tutor 8 students from age 5-12. It's been a lot of fun and I really enjoy helping students become more confident! I FINALLY finished my paperwork to substitute at the DoDDS schools. It took a long time to fill it all out again, get the fingerprints and background checks completed, but hopefully it will be worth it!

It's finally beginning to "cool" down here. This week it rained a lot and was in the lower 80's/upper 70's. It's funny how 70 degrees here feels a bit chilly! I know, you're thinking I'm crazy but it's true. When it gets to the 60's people will be wearing winter jackets!!! I'm enjoying the cooler weather. I LOVE summer time, but I think I am summer-ed out! Bring on the "fall like" weather Okinawa! I'm ready to bring out my sweaters and boots!

The new house is great, I really enjoy finding new things to decorate it with and finally feeling like it's our "home" because we'll be here for another 2 1/2 years without having to move again (hopefully!). I did have a bit of a scare the other day when security forces came running to my (well my entire neighborhood) door. The man told me I needed to evacuate from the house immediately due to threats in the area. Of course I hadn't showered, eaten anything or gotten ready for the day. I gathered the dogs up on their leashed, threw in their water bottle in my purse, some crackers and threw my hair up and got in the car. They told us to go to a parking lot by the high school. When I got there, there were already a good amount of people there, just waiting around. I called Joe and told him to come home. He tried, but as soon as he got close to our house he said all the roads were being blocked off! I waited in the car for about an hour and then they gave us the all-clear to go home. I was worried, but it turned out to be ok. It's never really a good sign when SF wants you to evacuate from your own house! Hopefully that will be the last time that happens!

We hope everyone is doing well. We'll be sure to take more pictures of things going on with us soon.

Congratulations, Susan & Jay!

Baby girl, Isla, welcomed the world on Friday, October 3rd! We're so happy for our friends! It all started with a phone call after their doctor appointment on Friday afternoon! They were being admitted and needed help picking up family who was flying into town! Of course we agreed to help! I rushed to the store to get some balloons a few little gifts to bring to them! Then off we went down to the Naha Airport to wait for their family. We didn't know what they looked like so we made a big pink sign that was you couldn't miss!

We were able to go visit them at the house and meet baby Isla! My, my she is PRECIOUS!!! She slept the entire time we were there (an hour and a half) which was funny because they were telling us she never sleeps for over 45-minutes. Joe and I were so hoping to catch a glimpse of her eyes, but no such luck... this time. I know we're going to have plenty of time to see baby Isla in the next few years!

I told you the sign was pretty noticable! Haha, Joe is the minority in this crowd I'd say!

I had to get a picture of Joe holding baby Isla! I held her too and she was just so adorable! I think Joe's ready for a baby :)

New House Pics

Well, as promised, here are some new pics of our new house. Well, it's not brand new, but newly rennovated. It's pretty much the same exact layout, except they added a dining room to the front of the house and the kitchen and entry-way were a bit altered. Other than that, they did a really good job modernizing the entire house. Good-bye ugly blue-green tiles in the bathrooms and kitchen. We also have decent wooden cabinets in the kitchen, carpet in all the rooms (minus the dining room) and a bigger back porch. We're really enjoying the house. We've had lots of friends over and have put the big new dining room table to good use. We finally got our fence installed in the backyard for the pups. Unfortunatley, they got so spoiled going on 5-6 walks a day, they still beg to go out on walks instead of the yard. Oh well, that's life!

Front entry area.

Dining room area.

Entry into the kitchen from the front door/stairs/dining room area.

Other section of the kitchen that leads into the living room area.
Living room.

Another side of the living room.

And another side of the living room. We put a little computer nook on the left.

Upstairs hallway. On the right is the master bedroom, the imediate left is a linen closet, then a office, then the guest room. Joe's bathroom/guest bath on the end.

Master bedroom. Still a work in progress.

Guest bedroom... aka-Kella bed.

Joe's office. Still a work in progress.

iE Island Trip

Joe and I ventured out to a small island up north called iE Island (pronounced E-A). We took a 30-minute ferry ride over to the island and we stayed at a place called the YYY Resort. It was small and cozy and we went during the off-season which was nice because there weren't a lot of other people there!

The beach during low tide!

Just taking it all in.

The weather was amazing. It's mid-September and still sunny and in the 90's. On our first day we got there around lunch time. We settled into our room and went out to walk along the beach and check out the resort. We decided to go play tennis, but we quickly realized it was far TOO hot to play! We paid for an hour's worth and played maybe 20 minutes. We walked back to the hotel along this really neat trail that reminded me of LOST.

The meals at the resort were HUGE. Our first night we got the BBQ meal where we got a huge platter of different meats, fish and veggies to grill up. There was so much food and it all tasted great! We ventured out and tried all the different meals they offered (Japanese, Western and BBQ). Well, I should say Joe was the brave one. He tried the Japanese meal for both dinner and breakfast and to say the least, it was very interesting! He didn't know what a lot of it was, but he ate all of it.

One of the days we rented bikes and rode around the island. I tried to think back to the last time I'd actually been on a bike, and I think it must have been back in middle school?! I was a bit wobbly at first, but got the hang of it pretty quickly. However, I got the old-school bike with a big basket and no gears (so I could lug around our drinks and camera) and Joe got the spiffy mountain bike with the gears. We rode around for 2-hours and I think we traveled 6 miles or so. We made it to this cave where the myth is there is a sacred rock and when a woman lifts it, she will soon get pregnant! Guess we'll see what happens...

Most of the time we spent relaxing in the pool or walking along the beach collecting seashells. It was so nice just to unwind from our everyday busy lives. We missed the pups (we had someone watching them) but I will admit, it was nice not to have to take them out every few hours! We didn't get any phone calls and didn't have any computer access. It was just so nice to enjoy nature, eachother and to be able to relax.

Here's Joe playing lawn-golf!

We're back home, but Joe still has a few more days of leave left. We'll probably spend some more time doing finishing touches around the house (I'll post pics soon, I promise) and working on getting his JCI done (Japanese car inspection that has to be done every 2 years) which is a bit of a hassle. He also on a whim decided to run a 1/2 marathon this morning! He ran in 2-hours and 18-minutes, a little slower than his last one, but still impressive for not having trained for it! He hasn't ran in a few weeks and didn't plan on running it until his friends told him about it last night. Of course I opted to sleep in (5:30am is much too early to wake-up on a Saturday!).

I've been staying busy tutoring kids after school for a few hours each day. It's been fun and rewarding working with elementary aged kids again. I plan to submit my substitute application (finally!) sometime next week. I'm sure once they start calling me, I'll be so busy that I'll wish I had more free time on my hands. Oh well, there's always that love/hate relationship with jobs.

The weather is beginning to cool down (still in the 80's but low 70's at night which is very COOL here!) and I'm looking forward to the fall and winter holidays! I think it's my favorite time of year! I'm summered out! Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the cool weather.