Merry Christmas!

Most of the time, living overseas is pretty much like living in the States. We live on base, so all our neighbors are American and our house has a dishwasher and oven. (Most Japanese homes don't.)  We shop at the commissary so we're not stuck eating rice and fish three times a day.

Sometimes, though, being here is very frustrating and has me counting down the days until our RTD. (Bill thinks that stands for Rotation Tour Date...or maybe Rotation Transfer Date.  Whatever it is, it's the day on his orders that tells us when we're supposed to leave Okinawa.)  What occasionally frustrates me the most is my inability for me to get items that are usually relatively simple to find in the States, but unless you plan months ahead, order online at crazy prices, and pray really hard, you learn to do without.  Things that quickly come to mind.....peaches, sweet potatoes, most small electronics, fabric and crafts of any variety.  And then there are extreme shortages for seasonal items.  If you don't buy your Christmas decorations in October, you're out of luck.  Last week I was looking for ball ornaments...you know, the basic, no-frills, glass ball ornaments.....completely sold out.  Today I was looking for scotch tape at the Exchange--no tape anywhere to be found.  Luckily that's an easy one because even Japanese folks use tape so I should be able to find some at the 100 yen stores.  But anything specifically American and it's too bad, so sad.

Which brings me to the real, very sad, reason for this blog post--our Christmas card.  Sometime in mid-November (with plenty of time to spare, so I thought) I ordered our yearly photo Christmas card, making sure they were sent through priority mail.   I'd ordered with this card company before, so I was pretty confident the cards would arrive without a problem.  I won't be specific, but the company name rhymes with StinkFlash.  Anyway, I received the cards on December 14....and they were of someone else's family.  I tried to figure out a way to fix this mess and get the cards out to everyone, but I realized that by the time OUR cards got here and I mailed them out to everyone in the States, it'd probably be Valentine's Day.  So the next day I woke up at 5:45am, called Stinkflash in Rhode Island, and explained the situation.  They (sort of reluctantly) agreed to return my payment.  Thanks for nothing, Stinkflash.

At any rate, since you won't be getting a Christmas card from us this year, I figured I'd use the magic of the blogosphere and send you the card from here.

I usually write something up on our Christmas cards letting people know what we've been up to in the past year, but you guys already know most of the interesting things that have happened to us (and we really aren't that exciting.)  So, instead of the yearly recap, the kids put together this little number for your entertainment pleasure:

Not to be outdone, Bill and I put together this Latin ditty.  You're in for a treat, because we normally don't see these moves without a little help from Captain Morgan.

We hope you have a wonderful Christmas.  We miss you!

I'm back!

Hello again!  

Sorry for that unannounced sabbatical (although if you remember my very first post I was very clear that I have a history of unfinished projects, so don’t say I didnt warn you!)  I had considered just letting this blog go quietly into the dark night, but yesterday I talked to my mother and she asked me what was going on with this thing.  I said I just haven’t had much to write about lately—things have been pretty boring around here and who wants to read about that?  Mom said (and I quote,) “But Laura, people are demanding it!”  I’m suspicious that her comments may have been a combination of mother’s love and exaggeration, but just in case people ARE rioting outside her door, I figured I’d better get back in the saddle and keep up with this thing.   However, I will warn you-- the newness of Okinawa has pretty much worn off so most of the stuff you read about on here will be the boring, uninteresting life of a military family living overseas.  If you fall asleep at your computer/ipad/wherever you’re reading this--don’t blame me. 

Ok, let’s see…I don’t even know where to start.  Last time I wrote, Typhoon Guchol was barreling down on Okinawa right before our summer vacation to the States.  Long story short, we did make it to the States (although it only took 32 hours,) we had a busy, fun, tiring vacation, and by the time we got back here in late July I was sure I wouldn't get back on a trans-Pacific flight for a very, very long time.  But, never say never, right?  And I can already see that I’ll probably go back on my word.  

Here are the kids waiting in Chicago for our flight to Tokyo.

We had about six weeks of sort of lazy summer.  We went to the pool a lot , Andrew started baseball, and I joined a running group.  No, that wasn't a typo.  Last Spring a friend invited me on a run with a group of other moms.  Running is a very popular activity around here, and for several months I had been trying to get into it.  The name of the group was “Stroller Warriors” to which my first response was, “But I don’t have a stroller.”  My friend, Laura (that’s her name too) said not to worry, there are lots of other mom’s without a stroller, and Mary would be just fine riding along with us on her bike.   Apparently I surround myself with people who like to bend the truth to get me to do things, because when I showed up Mary was the solo rider, and I was surrounded by young moms changing diapers, breastfeeding, and pumping up their stroller tires.  I definitely felt out of place, and we hadn't even started running!  Once everyone was fed, pumped, and changed, the leader of the group said something like this.  “We’re going to head on over that huge bridge over there, and once we run over that, start your time.  Go 15 minutes out, then 15 minutes back.”  The idea is that everyone returns at the same time so speed/ability don’t count.  Unfortunately they didn't take into account my fear of heights--or a nervous five-year-old panicked about riding her bike over this huge bridge.  We eventually did make it over the bridge, but by that point most of the runners were heading back from their 15 minute run, so we turned around, went right back over the bridge, and called it a day.

So, a scary first time with the Stroller Warriors, but they were a very nice group of ladies.  In the summer they started a “Couch to 5k” sub group.  “Couch to 5k” is an 8-week training program geared to non-runners who would eventually like to be able to run the distance of 5 kilometers (in a row!)  So, one evening in late July I found myself back in the crowd of diaper changers, breastfeeders, and stroller-tire pumpers.    I also had Mary and Andrew riding their bikes way ahead alongside me.  Apparently when you’re worried that your kids are going to ride into traffic and get run over by a crazy Okinawan motorcyclist, you tend not to notice the pain, breathlessness, and overall misery that accompanies running.  Eventually, all that training paid off, because September 22  I was doing this

I had very low expectations of my first race.  Basically, I wanted to finish without the assistance of an EMT, and I wanted to finish before they shut the whole thing down.   My greatest fear was that I’d be rounding the final stretch, only to see all the race organizers packing it in.  Luckily, I reached my goals. 

So, I should probably throw in something about the kids in this post.  They’re already about a quarter into the school year, and they all seem pretty content with their classmates and teachers.  Michael is well entrenched in middle school as a seventh grader; Emma is enjoying being at the top of the school in 5^th grade; Andrew is happy in his “only 3^rd grade” class.  (versus his 1^st/2^nd combo class of last year) and Mary is loving kindergarten. 

Speaking of Mary, she celebrated her 6^th birthday a few weeks ago.  Rather than a big party with all her friends, she chose to go to the aquarium with her family.  I loved this plan.  We started off the visit with playtime on the wild, death defying playground in front of the aquarium. 

The flying kid in the green shirt is Andrew.  

Then we wandered around the inside of the aquarium for a while.  We spent a long time at the shark exhibit.   Apparently millions of years ago there used to be some big ass sharks swimming in the ocean around here.  I’m very glad they aren't out there anymore.  We got a little silly in this exhibit, and Bill was rather embarrassed by us.  Here we are in the jaws of the giant monster shark.  

Oh my gosh, I almost forgot all about our typhoons!  It has been a crazy year for storms around here.  We had three storms in 6 weeks.  With the first two, they kept telling us, "This is THE BIG ONE" folks.  Make sure you prepare."  So, we brought in all the furniture, tied town the shed, filled the tub with water, stocked up on Chef-boy-ardee and junk food, and completed all the other typhoon preparation tasks.  By the third one, everyone was so tired of typhoons that the warning messages were minimal.   The big preparation message on the radio was basically a version of, "We've been through this twice already....you know what to do people....don't make me tell you again."  So we half-heartedly did most of the stuff we were supposed to do.  Unfortunately, that third one did end up being THE BIG ONE.  You might have seen this video on the news over there.  The car flipping section happened at one of our Marine bases over here.  If the video doesn't work for you, here's the link:  

Typhoon Jelawat flips car

Turn down the volume if you have little ones around--the language is a little PG13.....Marines...what do you expect.....

Luckily, none of our cars flipped over, and other than some minor debris (tree limbs, leaves, parts of other peoples' roofs) we were fine.  Unfortunately for the kids, the typhoons mostly happened on the weekends so they only missed one day of school. The speed of recovery is quite impressive.  One day there are cars flipping all over the place, and the next day it's business as usual.  

Well, folks, that's all I've got. I'm sorry things haven't been more exciting.  Maybe this will inspire us to do some more exploring around here....or even (gulp!) travel to other parts of Asia.  We shall see......

Vacation USA 2012?????

It's 8:45am on a Saturday morning, and I've already been awake for three hours.  Why was I up so early, you may ask?  Well, you can thank this for interrupting my sleep. 

This is Typhoon Guchol.  It is wreaking havoc on my Vacation USA 2012 travel plans.  Over the last 5 days it's taken us on a roller coaster ride of emotions. First it didn't look like it was coming towards Okinawa, then it looked like it was going to land right on top of Okinawa, and now the latest is that it's going to swerve east of Okinawa.  I've become a little obsessed with this thing.  It's not an exaggeration to say that I could have become a meteorologist based on the number of hours I've spent poring over the various typhoon tracking websites.  I've looked at the American ones, the Japanese ones, even took a peek to see what the Chinese and Koreans predicted.  I know what times they update their forecasts (every six hours.)  I've learned to translate the meteorological lingo and have become quite proficient at converting UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) into Japanese time.   I've googled wind speed and aviation and researched the maximum knots of wind speed in which a plane is safe to take off.  (Unfortunately, there's no magic number....it depends on about 17 different factors that you "lay people" probably wouldn't understand.)  I've called two different airlines asking when they think they'll know if the flights will be cancelled, and is there any possible way they might be able to squeeze 6 people onto on airplane on Sunday instead of Monday.  They've all been very polite and tolerated my frustration and whining quite well, but in the end the answer is they can't do anything until the flight is officially cancelled.  I've even enlisted Bill's help in this mania.  Yesterday I sent him this crazy email....

I told you....obsessed doesn't begin to describe my condition. 

My always-steady husband has taken a different approach on our situation.   His tone wavers from unconcerned ("Oh, we will be long gone before this thing gets here.....") to relaxed ("Okinawans get about 10 typhoons a year....it's no big deal to them...they fly in and out of typhoons all the time!") to mad  ("I can't believe this is F%&#g happening!")   (He didn't really say the "f%$#g" part...but I could tell he was thinking it.)   And, I just noticed an empty bottle of Gin on the counter, so either he had a crazy party during the 5 hours that I slept last night, or he's drowning his sorrows in liquor.  Some people drink....some obsess over websites and write crazy blogs.  No judgment people.....unless you've walked in these shoes you just don't know! 

This has all been very frustrating.  We are supposed to leave around one-ish on Monday afternoon.  Emma bravely asked me yesterday why this was stressing me out so much and I snapped back at her, "Well, we've had this thing planned for four months.  When  you plan something 4 months out, it's because you don't want any surprises, and THIS is a big surprise."  (You  "7 Lenses" people have probably guessed that I'm a gold by now.) 

In other news, the kids had their last day of school on Thursday.  I can't believe the school year is over!  We started the morning off with the official last day of school pictures.

"Mr. Cool" Michael thought this was so embarrassing (because every neighbor is watching us at 6:45am)  So, of course, I had to do this.....

Emma and Andrew were a little more cooperative in their pictures....

Forest Gump here didn't blink on accident.  He thinks it's funny to close his eyes in pictures.  See that sneaky smile on his face? 

I took a break from my meteorological research to go to Emma's awards assembly,

then we officially ended the school year with a celebratory lunch at the Exchange food court....

and then dessert at Big Dip Ice Cream.

Now, we're just playing the waiting game trying to figure out what ol' Guchol is going to do.  The girls and I have pre-Vacation pedicures scheduled for this afternoon.  At this point, we're still hoping to make it Indiana this week and our high school reunion next weekend.  I had hoped to look well-rested and put together by then so that my envious classmates would think that the last 20 years were a breeze, but there's a good chance we'll look harried and exhausted.  So, when you see us, just smile, lie and say we look great, and show us where the bar is....because we'll probably need it. 

Vacation USA 2012!

The last several months I have been busily planning our summer trip back home.  (or to "The States" as Mary and the rest of the kids call it--that's the lingo around here.)  Flights have been booked, cars have been rented, and lists have been made.  Mary even made her own list: 

Mary's List:  Book, DVD, nail polish, barbies, gum, snacks

As you can see, Mary's packing needs don't change much.  You'll remember her attempts to "help" the packers on our way out here.  Here is what she planned on bringing to Okinawa: 

It's going to be a busy vacation, and I have no doubt I'll be needing another vacation upon my return to Okinawa.   In the interest of operation security (or OPSEC, as the military folks like to say) I'll be a little vague on dates and exact locations.  You people who know me will know exactly what I'm talking about.  You crazy people reading this hopefully won't be able to find me.

In a few days (!) we will start our short 22 hour journey to Chicago with our four lovely, hopefully quiet, peaceful children.  As an added perk, Bill is joining us for this part of the trip.  We have 2 layovers, but the majority of the flight will take place during (our) night time, which is good because on the off chance our plane plunges into the Pacific Ocean, hopefully I'll sleep right through it. Through the magic of air travel, we will leave Okinawa in the early afternoon, but we make our first landing in the US earlier that same morning. 

Once we get to Chicago, we'll enjoy a 2-hour drive Bill's brother's house  At "In-Law Manor" we will likely find a comfortable bed and plenty of alcoholic beverages  coffee to help in the jet-lag recovery.  For 48 hours we'll enjoy late nights and long talks with the relatives while Mary terrorizes the cousins' bunny rabbit.   

Then we're back to Chicago for a 5:45am flight to Florida.  Upon arrival we'll hopefully be greeted by smiles and hugs from patiently awaiting family members.  However, one family member will be predictably missing as he'll be circling the airport in an effort stick it to the bureaucrats and avoid the outrageous parking fees.   Once luggage has been found and one or two children have been retrieved from riding the baggage carousal, we'll head on over to the car rental counter where we'll sign over our firstborn for the opportunity to rent two vehicles from their establishment.  (Two cars are cheaper than one mini-van!  Go figure!) 

Surprisingly, I'm a little more concerned about American driving habits than I thought I'd be.  I've finally gotten used to walking up to the right side of the car and now I'll have to readjust to the steering wheel being on the left. I'll also have to remind yourself that people drive on the right side of the road in the good ol' USA.  Old ladies with walkers will surely be passing me as I get used to driving faster than 25 miles an hour.

I don't think I'll be a very pleasant passenger, either, as I've really gotten used to the slow ride.  The other day Bill was driving a blazing 60 kph (36 mph) and more than once the phrase "YOU'RE GOING TO KILL US!" flew out of my mouth.   Bottom line, it might be better for everyone involved if am the only occupant in the vehicle. 

Our first stop....CRACKER BARREL.  That's the place Bill and I the kids chose for their first real American experience.  We realize some newer, trendier, probably healthier establiments have probably opened in the year we've been out of the USA, but since we're flying halfway around the world we've decided to be selfish and not ask anyone else where they'd rather go.  Family and friends are welcome to join us, as long as they promise not to mention how many calories are in the yummy, cheesy hash browns.  I'm already dreaming about the little syrup bottles.   Although it's only 2.16 miles from the airport, due to my slow driving it will probably take me 45 minutes to get there, so be patient. 

After a filling breakfast and a painful stroll through the Country Store (where we'll have to say "no" to a child every 4.2 seconds) we'll head on to some relative's house (probably my parents.) But, there's no time to relax.  The following weekend we'll go back in time to 1992, where Bill and I will reminisce with old friends at our 20 year high school reunion.  Twenty Years!  I still can't believe it. 

We'll spend the next week and a half trudging back and forth between relatives' homes.  With any luck we'll spend our days chatting and enjoying the company of the loved ones we've missed in the year overseas.  We will certainly not be exploring the zoo in 95 degree weather, nor will we be taking any rainy day bus tours through historical parts of town.   In 10 short days, I'll be back at the airport to return Bill to Okinawa, so that he may continue earning the paycheck that finances these adventurous travels. 

This starts the most stressful exciting part of the trip...my solo tour  (with four children.)  Every effort will be made to prevent emergency room visits, vomiting children, or any other natural or man-made disasters....but nothing is off the table! 

The next few weeks will hopefully be filled with lazy days at the beach (complete with waves!),  shopping trips to Walmart, Target, Old Navy, and meals at Chick Fil A, Firehouse Subs, and IHOP.  We'll soak up as much of America as we can in 3 1/2 short weeks (while staying in one town) and--after sharing meals, houses, and bathrooms and mediating 216 cousin squabbles--we'll pack up our bags again for the long trip back to Okinawa. 

Before we know it we'll be back at the airline ticket counter weighing our luggage.  There will be another hopefully brief and not too tearful goodbye, and another flight to Chicago.  There will be a short overnight stay in the Windy City, and we'll finally embark on the flight back over the Pacific. 

All this, of course, is at the mercy of Mother Nature.  Just 10 minutes ago I received an informational email suggesting we make preparations for this: 

Ah, this pesky Typhoon Season!  It makes perfect sense that we flew into Okinawa at the tail end of a typhoon, and now as we're trying to leave as another one is threatening to derail our plans.  It's still quite a few days out, so hopefully the path will change and more over towards China.  (That's what you get for being Communist!)  Also, it seems to be a fast mover, so if it does head in our direction hopefully it will pass quickly and we can get on our way.  I have no idea how that would affect our flight plans (trying to find six seats on a flight is not an easy task!) but I'm not going to worry about that right now.  At any rate, please pray this thing doesn't affect our trip.  

This has been the longest I've ever been apart from my family, and we have all been looking forward to this vacation for a long time.  We have all gone through many changes, but I'm sure once we get back it will be like no time has passed.  We can't wait! 

Welcome to the Marine Corps!

Being a Marine wife can be bittersweet at times.  Part of it is full of adventures and excitement...the moving to foreign lands, the new friends, the interesting challenges you're forced to deal with that you never think you'll overcome but in the end somehow you manage, the long awaited reunions with a deployed husband.  Other parts can be downright miserable.... watching good friends move away, saying goodbye to a husband for an indefinite amount of time, trying to make a "home" out of a place that could probably be condemned.  It's a roller coaster, that's for sure.  It all looks so exciting from a distance, but once you're on the ride you are thrilled and terrified and more than once you wish you could get off.  Then, the most surprising part is that point when you can see the end of the ride on the horizon and you wonder, "Am I really ready to get off yet?" 

I'm feeling a bit nostalgic and melancholy this morning because this weekend we had to endure another challenge of Marine Corps living....we missed a family wedding.  Apparently no one received the memo that there will be no important family events while we're on the other side of the Pacific!   It's hard to believe that the bride-to-be was a flower girl at our wedding, and, to top it off, she's marrying a Marine!  Bill and I tried to figure out a way to get at least one of us over there, but it wasn't meant to be.  So, once again,  we'll have to wait to see the pictures and hear the stories of the big day. 

Like many Marine weddings, this one has been wonderfully planned in a few short months.  I asked the bride about the date, and she said it's the only weekend in the next two years that she can be sure her Marine will be able to make it.  (I can sense Marine wives everywhere nodding in sympathy.)  Since we won't be able to join her on this special day, I've asked a collection of seasoned Marine wives to share some of their wisdom.   Welcome to the Marine Corps, Emily.  You're in for quite a ride.  

You know you're a Marine Wife when......

...you wake up at 6am to an empty bed and realize he's been at work for 3 hours already!

...you plan your life in 3 year increments or 2 deployments--which ever comes first.

....you have a dog named Chesty, Hummer, or Gunney!

...you're evacuating (alone) from a hurricane and the only advice you get from your far-away husband is to take his guns and uniforms. 

...when you can count 9 months back from your child's birthday and it's a homecoming/outpost date.

...you're able to throw together a home cooked meal for "a few friends" from work (which means a small platoon) on a 2 hour notice (if you're lucky!)

...the words "deserts" and "green" mean something... and you have a preference.

... instead of him moving in his old ugly furniture and "art", he moves in a house full of uniforms and gear!

...you were sad the day the sleeves-down policy was put into effect. 

...you know his "last four" better than your own.

...you can find your husband (from a distance) in a formation of 100 men in cammies.

... you know the exact day he switches from deserts to woodlands.

...you can spot a USMC sticker on a vehicle 5 miles away.

...Your husbands next job changes several times in one day...and at the end of the day you still don't know where he is going.  Never believe he is getting a specific  job until he has been doing it for at least 30 minutes!

....you go to sleep next to the phone in hopes of a call.

... you roll your eyes everytime you see a soldier wearing their cammies in public.

...you know that "field day" has nothing to do with a field.

...the terms PCS, TMO, and DLA instill feelings of panic, irritation, and excitement....in that order. 

...your daughter's goodnight "lullaby" is The Marines Hymn. 

...you complain everytime your husband comes home from work with that unmistakable "stinky boy smell"...... but secretly you love it. 

...When the only way you can wake up your husband is by shouting his last name as loud as you can!

...you want to shield your children's eyes when a driving by a group of Marines PTing in their green silkies. 

...you associate names like "Tarawa,"  "Guam," "Guadalcanal," and "Pelelieu" as both World War II battlesites and streets that you've lived on. 

...even after all the moving trucks, birthday balls, last kisses, lonely nights, house hunting expeditions, reunions, laughs and tears....you'd still say "I Do." 

Birthdays and Bowling, Liturgies and Lawn Mowers

I'm not even going to apologize for the delay in getting this post up.....you guys know me by now so it's no surprise.  We've had another busy week around here.  On Monday we celebrated the last birthday of our Family Birthday Season....Andrew turned 8.  Naturally he was awoken with muffins and singing, then he went off to school and Mary and I joined him for lunch that day.  For his birthday dinner he chose Dad's steak and "chicken on the bone"  (grilled chicken drumsticks.)  That was followed by presents and a giant birthday cookie cake.  It was a pretty low key birthday, but I think he had a nice day.  Naturally, he was excited about his presents....

A watch.....(now he tells me what time it is....All The Time....)

And another Nerf gun to add to his arsenal.... he's too focused on planning his attack strategy to even smile.....

And some hugs from his sisters....

Andrew wasn't the only one who received exciting gifts on his birthday.  That afternoon while I was in the front yard I saw my neighbor had put his riding lawnmower for sale in his yard.  As this point in the story, it's important to note that I'm the primary lawn maintenance person in the family....followed closely by Michael.  Bill is a distant third.  I quickly dashed inside and typed out this email to Bill.

 (FYI-- A Habu is a very poisonous snake that only lives on Okinawa and prefers to hang around thick, jungly areas--much like the jungle that borders our backyard. The "feet eating fish" place is a spa in town where you soak your feet in a small pool and these little fish eat all the dead skin off your dry, scaly heels. It's "The Thing" to do around here....)

And wouldn't you know it....next time I mowed the yard I did it in style.

So, back to Andrew's birthday.  What he was really looking forward to was his birthday party.  Bill and I have retired from doing the big class party thing, so we told Andrew he could invite a few friends and we'd take them all to a fun place.  He chose the bowling alley/arcade/Pizza Hut (all in the same building.)  He invited his friends--Sam, Ian, and Brady--and on Saturday we drove to Camp Foster to celebrate his big day.

There was bowling....

Cake....(or cheesecake, in this case....)

And presents....

We're pretty simple folks, and a birthday party (and a new lawnmower) are usually more than enough excitement for one week, but we finished the week off with an one last important event....Andrew's First Communion.  In this case I was very grateful that Andrew was a boy because the girls' parents had a heck of a time finding First Communion clothes here on Okinawa.  The morning of the big day I had a neighbor knock on my door desperately asking if by some miracle I had a First Communion veil her daughter could borrow.  The one she ordered several weeks ago never came.  Luckily, I just happened to have brought Emma's veil, and I even knew where it was! Although the boys' Communion attire wasn't too hard to find, our First Communicant was not too happy about wearing it....especially the tie.  (It made me long for those baby years when you can dress them up however you want and they don't know the difference!) 

The First Communion mass went along as most First Communion masses go.  It was held at 4:00pm, which just happened to be nap time for most of the younger kids.  At one point I looked down our pew and four little ones were passed out.  Even our rambunctious Mary fell victim to the sleepies.  As you can see, Michael wasn't too thrilled about having to be her pillow. 

After the celebration we came back home to have a little reception with some friends.  But not before trying to take a family picture in our nice clothes.  Many of you know this, but our children DO NOT like taking pictures.  They act like it's a form of torture to have to stand next to their siblings and parents and smile.  Before I handed the camera over to my friend Laura, I warned her that this would not be a fun experience.  There would probably be yelling and crying before we were finished, but she's a good sport and she still agreed to take the pictures. Here are the shots of our "happy" family on this important day.  Bill and I plowed through, knowing there would be a glass of wine waiting for us when we were finished. 

"It's like trying to herd ants...."

Notice how Emma is making bunny ears on Michael (why do they do that?)  I'm seeing her do this out of corner of my eye and I'm yelling, "NOOOOOO."  Andrew's trying to escape, and Bill has the death grip on him.  And Mary's just yelling like a crazy person.  Don't you love our happy family? 

Still not the best picture, but at some point enough is enough.  You just have to call it a day. 

Finally, picture time was over and we set the kids loose to play and climb trees in the back yard while the adults had some cocktails.   Once we had recovered from the picture trauma, we called the kids in and started eating our family's customary First Communion dinner...a Big Sandwich from Subway.  (yes, we have Subway here.)   This tradition started after Michael's First Communion and since then it's become our standard fare for First Communion receptions. 

That's pretty much it.  We've had a busy few months around here, and I'm looking forward to some down time before summer vacation....when we'll brave another long trek across the Pacific for Vacation USA 2012! 

Happy Birthday Michael!

A couple of weeks ago we celebrated Michael's 12th birthday.  I still can't believe he's 12!  How can this moody, slightly gross but still lovable kid be the same kid who just yesterday (it seems) was building a maze of Thomas tracks all through the house?  Everyone warned me it would all go by so fast, but I guess I didn't believe them. 

Naturally we started off the birthday in our family's traditional way...come on...say it with me.....singing and muffins.  I don't know why, but this time it was extra hard to get up in the pre-dawn hours for the morning serenade.  I almost cursed the day I started this stupid special tradition.  The rest of the day went on as usual....kids to school, and I made the birthday cake (or big birthday cookie in this case.)  Michael decided that he wanted to eat his birthday dinner at Burger King of all places. Afterward, we had to get him to the pool so he could take his swim test for an upcoming Boy Scout Spring Camp.  I know...it was the end of March and surely this outdoor pool would be heated.  Unfortunately for Michael, it wasn't.  A common misconception is that it's always hot on Okinawa, but I can assure you that it's not.  Definitely NOT.  So poor Michael spent the evening of his birthday swimming his little tail off--partly to make sure he passed the swim test, and partly to get out of the freezing pool quicker!  We finally got home for birthday cake cookie and presents, and the kids went off to bed....and Michael anxiously awaited part B of the birthday events....his slumber party sleepover! 

  

Friday night four of his closest friends came over to celebrate his big day.   Within 20 minutes of the boys' arriving, Nerf guns and bullets were strewn around the house and Michael's bedroom stunk like....stinky boys.  I don't know what those boys did to stink it up so quickly--but you can imagine.  Lucky for me, Bill volunteered for party duty so I  called up a girlfriend and begged asked if Mary, Andrew, and I could hang out at her house for a few hours.  (Emma had an event at the youth center, so she had a good escape excuse.)  When I returned home the windows were wide open to get some fresh air circulating, the house was relatively calm and the boys were watching a movie.  Bill stayed up for a while reading, and as much as I tried to stay awake, I was snoring by 11pm.  I think the boys were up until 1am, but that didn't stop them from waking up before seven! 

The next morning we served them a pancake breakfast and we took the kids to a local amusement center called Round One.  I'm not sure how else to describe it, but here is an incomplete list of all the fun things to do at Round One:

• Skating:  In line and Old School
• basketball courts
• Duck pin bowling
• arcade
• indoor tennis courts
• batting cages
• mini-golf
• driving range (or whatever it's called when someone tries to hit a golf ball really far)
• soccer field
• paddleball
• kids maze/ball pit/slide play area
• mechanical bull riding
• And, for the parents....relaxation massaging chairs

I know all this probably doesn't seem like anything out of the ordinary, but the unique thing about this place is that everything was inside a six-story building. So we pretty much set the kids loose with directions to meet back at the mechanical bull in three hours.  

Michael and his friends went straight to the shoot-your-friends-with-foam-balls area....

while Emma tried out the mechanical bull......

Andrew tried his hand at darts.....

  

and my first stop was the massage chair  (big surprise!)   

A few notes about the massage chair (other than that my thighs look freakishly large.)  This chair gives you a full body massage.  See my hands?  Once you stick them in there, you're sort of trapped because my hands and forearms are being squished and kneaded into perfect relaxation.  The chair really did everything--hands, arms, neck, back, legs, feet and, um....posterior.  It was a half hour of bliss.  Well worth the price of admission!   

In another example of superior Japanese interior design, this set of massage chairs is set up in front of the kids' play area. So, instead of playing with their children, parents have the option of taking a well-deserved break (although if the kids need any help they're out of luck because Mom's hands are most likely trapped in the hand massagers.) 

 

Eventually the massage ended and once my muscle function returned, I decided to join  Emma and Mary at skating. 

I just noticed that "Danger" sign behind us...we didn't plan it, but it's quite appropriate! 

All we needed was for the DJ to play "Thriller" on the sound system and it would have been 1984 all over again. Too bad I'd left my leg warmers at home.  For any fellow children of the 80s, all I can say is....it all comes back to you--just like riding a bike.   Emma kept asking, "Mom, how do you know how to do that?"  I guess if you celebrate enough birthdays at The Skating Place, it leaves a mark. 

Even Bill tried roller skating.  Doesn't he look happy?  I think he was hoping the DJ would announce a couples skate....

I guess the skating was too much for him because shortly after we headed over to the relaxation chair room.  (a whole different set of chairs where you can't even hear the kids!) 

All too soon, our three hour play time came to an end. Michael seemed to really enjoy himself with his friends and we vowed to soon return to Round One.   I see a season pass in our future. 

 

This past week as been spring break for the kids.  Michael has been off at scout camp since Monday, and the house has been strangely quiet without him.  I guess my little boy is growing up!  (He'd be so embarrassed if he knew I just wrote that!) 

Happy Birthday Michael!