Protective Gear and Lightweight Infantry?

So, this is for all you taxpayers out there.

Here is Brad in his new flack jacket (Wikipedia description: A flak jacket or flak vest (or flack jacket)[1] is a form of protective clothing designed to provide protection from shrapnel and other indirect low velocity projectiles. Today it frequently refers to bulletproof vests, particularly Type III and above which have added steel, titanium, ceramic or polyethylene plates which can withstand high-powered rounds such as those from rifles.

Now, you may (or may not) remember when OIF 1 happened (wow, was that 5 years ago?) and there was a HUGE stink about how crappy the "bullet proof vests" were and a large umber of military moms stormed onto the Capital and also wrote degrading letters to their congressmen/women about how horrible the mlitary was to send our boys to war wearing nothing but and old, tired vest.

Well, I am happy to announce that they have been replaced. Brad originally had one that was the one for training and usage here, and then, once finding out about his upcoming trip to the big sand box (those of you who didn't know that, we can fill you in later, I can't post it) he was upgraded.

Now, my fine tax paying citizens, you will be happy to know that your boy is covered with 45 pounds of man saving materials (yes, 45 pounds!!). (I will get a better picture when the baby-making protection piece is on there, that is the best part ). I am not sure how exactly any of them move, or are able to walk with any other gear, but thankfully those internal organs are protected. (Although I keep thinking that maybe chainmail pants might be a nice addition)

I still think he sort of looks like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle... don't you?

Muddy Puddle

I needed to stop and think about what it is I like about Japan. It seems that this island has sort of taken over and become our home. How does that happen? I was thinking today while driving through one of the busier towns on the way to Olivia's Karate Class that I remembered the first time we drove that road and how OVERWHELMED I felt - not knowing where we were, how to get from here to there etc. AND, all the sudden, here we are relatively comfortable (I say relatively because I still have days when I drive my big van down a little Japanese road and wonder if I (or the van) are going to make it out unscathed), driving opposite normal and really not phased by the incredible amounts of Kanji writing everywhere.

Today Alessandra and I walked Olivia to the bus stop and then took a run/jog on the beach walk and I kept thinking - HOW CAN THIS FEEL SO NORMAL? Like all along I have been doing it forever (the beach part, not the painful jog). We ran into people that we know at the store (and we really do not know that many people). We picked up Olivia and a friend for the 1/2 day off of school (yes, a playdate with a friend - this is really home!). We went to Karate and she looks like she knows what she is doing (and she wasn't the newest one in the class anymore). We got wet in a sudden downpour and didn't even blink (or run to cover), just touseled our hair, shook off and waited to dry. Since when did this become normal?

It is funny to me as I think back to each move we have made and how different each of them have been. They have all been equally wonderful, painful, exciting, and terrifying. This one tops the largest in range of emotions for me. Never have I felt so far away from family and friends (but so incredibly able to be in touch with you all due to technology). Never have I felt so fortunate to meet new friends who are in the EXACT same situation as me at the same time. Never have I felt such incredible pressure to make the move smooth and as easy as possible for others (kids that is). Never have I lived in such a gorgeous place.

It is all a muddy puddle (which probably helps me rectify that temporary insanity that I feel day to day with still just not having it all together). The light at the end of the tunnel is that the sunshine is out (metaphorically speaking, we are getting the rainy part of the typhoon off of Taiwan) and the puddle is drying and someday soon, I won't be able to claim that I haven't been here long at all.

That's Honda or Honda That's

This photo is for my brother - Happy Birthday David!

The first of many (I am sure) of cars in Okinawa.

Here are Olivia and Mommy last night around sunset and after dinner. Brad took a shot of us because "Kelly, you are never in the blog" HERE I AM!! (also note, Alessandra was not particularly interested in being a part of our hug fest... the sand was WAY more exciting!)

I know.. I know I haven't been very good at updating. So sorry for the delay (ehem.. laziness) I will work on it. REALLY, what it is is that we aren't really doing all that much exciting stuff. We had a pretty normal week (oh yes, but daddy came home from Thailand early - that was exiciting). In reality we are in our routine - which is our new normal I guess.

The big excitement: We got rain (a LOT of rain), Kelly got a haircut, Olivia got a haircut and Brad came home. There we go, now you are updated.

This is where we had dinner last night. We found all of these groovy beach cafes (think trailer/shack with great food) and finally got the chance to check one out. The best part, this one had Thai food similar to what Brad ate in Thailand, so I was able to (somewhat) experience his eating extravaganza.



These are the rocks by the swimming beach. The sunset was pretty muted, but interesting and I just like these rocks.

This is today. Alessandra enjoyed jumping in the hole that daddy was digging and then trying to fill it with more water. It is fun to have kids who don't have a whole lot of beach experience really start to understand how to play on the beach!

Karate Kid

Hey folks! Sorry for the delay on blogging. I hope that everyone over there made it through IKE safely. We are thinking of you!!!

On to our update:

Olivia started Karate last week. It always makes me chuckle when I think of the things that SHE has initiated. When we moved here she said "Mom, I want to take Karate in Okinawa" and I asked her why and her response was "because that's what we do in Japan"... point taken.

I found out about an off base Dojo (place to take Karate) that is run by an American man (Ron) and his Okinawan wife (Akemi). All I had read was that they were terrific with the kids and that the energy was positive. Well, let me tell you.. that could not be anymore true!! We walked up to the building and met Sensei (Ron) and it was one of the first things we have done that I had NO question about. The energy of that first class amazed me. He pulled Olivia in to the class to participate and SHE LOVED IT!! The class goes for an hour. The first 1/2 hour is warm up with all the kids and the second half the class splits and the less experienced stay downstairs with Akemi and practice and the more expereinced go upstairs with Ron. What is the most interesting to me is that it fits Olivia's personality VERY well. She is a perfectionist in so many ways, and martial arts are quite precise, so I think it will work well with her. Ron and Akemi make it fun and SO positive!! It is worth the little trek it takes us to get there twice a week!

Here is our little karate girl in her new gei (I am not sure how to spell that) outside the Dojo

And here is some of the practice with Akemi

What else can I tell you? We have been BUSY. School is in full swing for Olivia. Things have gotten much better for her and she looks forward to it now (thank goodness). Alessandra is busy as a bee too! I took her to the CDC (Child Development Center) on base for a few hours last week and she LOVED it. I wasn't sure how she was going do (she is such a mommy's girl) and she did great. We even got another drop-in spot later in the week and she was excited about it (picture her with her little backpack RUNNING up the steps to the center shouting "play with kids... play with kids"

I can't get these two to stop saying "cheese" - just in case you wanted to see their teeth...

We spent the weekend ready to hunker down due to the big typhoon in our neighborhood. We didn't get hit (aside from a lot of rain), but Taiwan got it pretty bad. One thing that was good about the whole experience was just figuring out what we needed to do to be prepared.

Aside from that we have been having playdates, meeting friends for dinner, playing at home and enjoying the island life. We love and miss you !! Sayonara!

Sinlaku Bypassing Us!

Not sure if you looked at any of our weather, but it looks like SUPER Typhoon Sinlaku is going to miss us. We will still get a lot of rain and some thunderstorms, but the original route moved and it seems that we aren't in the direct path anymore. Our weather report calls for 100% chance of precipitaion tomorrow - guess we had better get the umbrella's out!

Thanks for your happy thoughts. We were ready for it! Maybe next time!

Typhoon Sinlaku Approaching

Just wanted to give you a heads up that we may get to experience the first Typhoon since our arrival (and our first one EVER)

Check out:
http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=DNA

For updated information and groovy visuals of the whole thing. Apparently the Okinawan's have built these homes/apartments for the weather, so I'm not too concerned about that (although I had better pull the stuff in from the balcony). Olivia was a little concerned about the whole thing, until I told her it meant that we needed to watch movies, read books, play games and possibly camp out together for the night. She was over it.

The worst of the storm is expected to hit Friday night and Saturday. I expect we will be soggy and hot. How's that for a guess - pretty scientific don't you think?

Give me Sexy and Glamorous...

This post is especially for the Amy's in my life (especially shoe and bag Amy). I pass this store pretty much every day and I finally was able to snap a photo of it.

Then befitting the title of this post: Glamorous Olivia who really wanted me to take a photo of her yesterday morning (she even brushed her teeth for it). (Please also note the new shirt from Susu and Grandpa)

And here is Ms. Glamorous in her room (excuse the mess, it was morning and the weekend). Alessandra sleeps on the bottom bunk (that is probably obvious huh?) and Olivia up top. The window has the "view" also. These girls have no idea how lucky they are. (And Mom, since you asked, I will add more photos of the girls room and the rest of the house soon).

Beach Babies

This post is for Ruth (aka Granny) who asked if we had been swimming yet...

We went to the beach this morning (our 5th time). The water was gorgeous and calm, the sun was out, but it wasn't too hot yet, it wasn't too crowded yet. It was just lovely.

The girls love the water (although Olivia now has a new unfounded fear of the "crab holes" in the sand), Olivia still a little unsure of her swimming ability really loves the little innertube thing. Alessandra on the other hand, isn't so keen on it (although I make her use it) and her favorite thing to do is stand with the water up to her chest and then stand with it up to her neck.. and then (and yes, this is true) she walks into the water deeper. Thankfully when she does this, I am nearby and keep her from the risky "David Blaine" stunt lifestyle.

These photos are from the beginning of the beach day today - I was a little nervous about breaking out the camera post swim, as the sand had eeked its way into just about everything...

This is Alessandra in her new swim cap. We bought it because we have seen a lot of Japanese kids wearing them, and we figure maybe it will keep her from getting her noggin burnt. It lasted on her head for about 1/2 the beach experience.

You can't hear what she is saying (yes, obviously Kelly), but it goes something like this "mom, do you see any crabs in here? how about their holes?" "no, Olivia, I don't see any crab holes today", "that's good, maybe they all got fished out of here for someone's dinnner"

Connected at last...

Just had to throw in a photo of tonight's sunset. It was really gorgeous and makes me have to pinch myself in reminder that "no kelly, you are not on vacation and yes, you must clean the toilets" Ahh, where is my live-in maid when I need her?

This week went quickly. Olivia finished her first 1/2 week off on a bumpy road. She isn't too sure what she thinks of this whole Kindergarten thing, but we are certain next week will be better and things will smooth out. Alessandra also made it through the week without her big sister around (although, she asked about her all day long - which was really cute, and had to tell everyone that "sissy go kool"). We started a Mommy and Me class (her first one ever - poor neglected second child). It just put a few more blocks together in our little world here and reminded me that our new "normal" is just that - NEW.

I took this photo this morning at the school bus stop. Here are the girls with our new sun umbrellas - the sun is SO HOT here, so we decided to go local and carry umbrella's everywhere for instant shade. It makes me wish I hadn't packed this super groovy umbrella Ruth got for me last year with Monet style art on it - it would have been PERFECT here... cool and fun umbrella's are a must (or, so are cheap, functional ones that the kid can carry)

Today I also went out with one of my new friend's Nicole. We had planned to go on this tour of local grocery stores, but apparentely the date was messed up and it is on Monday. SO, we decided to check some more food stuff out on our own. We wandered around the food department of Jusco for about an hour and figured out what most of the meat was and the fish. The rice is a little tougher (since it is packed in huge bags with Kanji writing on it), and when it comes to a lot of the packages stuff, you just hope you can see through the container or there is a picture on the front. All in all, I love grocery stores of any kind, so it is just fun.

Here is the last photo of the post for today. It is a bit blurry (I still had the camera on "sunset" mode), but I thought it was cute and wanted to pass it on. Brad leaves tomorrow for a couple of weeks in another part of Asia and the girls and I plan on being adventurous in our own right. SO, don't be a stranger and check back soon!

Kindergarten is Kool

(the above isn'tvery flattering for either girl, but I had to share it, Alessandra was bound and determined to go to school too, so here she is, with a lunchbox ready to go (and she carried it with us ALL day today).

The day is upon us. Our eldest has entered the realm of elementary school and now there is no turning back. (for her, or for us!)

Anxiety seems to be one of Olivia's traits that was slow to arrive in her world. Knowing that for Sundborn she cried every day for two weeks (when I picked her up), I was sure that Kindergarten would be a breeze...

She was anxious. She was nervous. I am sure it had to do with a lot of things, but mostly because it was new and she didn't know anyone in her class. The school is big and for the first time (a couple of days ago) she realized that there were going to be "big kids" there. We had met her teacher, the teacher's aid and had been to the school and in the classroom twice, but it was still all SO new.

Before we left the house this morning, her new dress (bought at her request from a Japanese store - "because Mom, it is fun to shop in Japan", lunchbox (there is a gecko on the other side) and wearing her Keen's ("because mom, my Keen's are the best thing for the playground" - I love a girl with priorities).

In the front doorway of the school - this is where she wanted to get her first day of school shot, so that we made sure the gecko was in it.

And here is our big girl sucking back the big elephant tears she had rolling down her cheeks. She held it together, teared a bit more while hugging Alessandra goodbye (and mommy too) and headed off with her class.

Quite flattering self-portrait of mommy, who yes, also cried. I couldn't help it. Seeing her so worried just killed me! (thank heavens for Alessandra who kept yelling "donut, donut, go, go" at me - they had a coffee for the new Kindergarten moms and dads and I had promised her a donut - it helped me chuckle.

After school at the pick up area - that is her teacher Mrs. Byrom right behind her.

Now, that is the smile I had been waiting for all day!

Technology is NOT all that fun...

Who doesn't love some great Noodles??

This week I had been planning on updating you on all the exciting going's on. I even took pictures of more food! However, I am feeling a bit exhausted and overwhelmed by technology. We finally are online and have a local phone number (if you want to call it is: 098-926-3238) Our Vonage thingy is not working yet (I have no idea what is going wrong with it - or me for that matter). So, I am irritated by that part (because I was ready to make a phone call or two!) and because I think we are just ready to be settled and this just adds more kinks to the process.... darn it...



Girls and Noodles - those should at least make you smile...

Otherwise, we are all. We had a lovely long weekend. We spent quiet time at home (we can actually SEE the guest room floor and bed), we went north to Camp Hanson/Kin/Kanna area to visit with our friends from move in time Angela, Juan, Sage and Sophia and we got to celebrate Sage's 2nd Birthday (I love cake), we walked to the American Village from our house (which was actually a lot closer than it seems) and had a nice dinner, walked back, saw a fun dance festival going on, caught more fireworks (they happen every weekend here somewhere) and just tried to not stay too busy.

So, I promise to update more with food photos and additional fun, but I need to get to bed. Big Day Tomorrow - First Day of Kindergarten.

Love you all.