blogging

yes, i'm horrible at blogging!! please join facebook to keep up with us. i will try to blog more, but facebook is just so darn easy to update!!! love you all!! miss you!!

russell, our new pup

sentosa island, singapore

merlion statue, singapore

night safari, singapore zoo

breakfast with the orangutans, singapore zoo

orchard road, singapore

orchard road, singapore

k in the electric chair, science center, singapore

a in the electric chair, science center, singapore

h in the electric chair, science center, singapore

k, science center, singapore

a, science center, singapore

science center entrance, singapore

orchard road, singapore

oh, forgot to add that h's arm is doing better. he had surgery to place a pin in it a couple of days after we returned from vacation. he's getting the pin out at the end of this month and will go into another cast for at least 2 months, but the bone is healing and he's adapting well.

ok, now i'm really going to bed. nite nite.

where to start....

hello! i've been dying to find time to get on here and update y'all on what's been going on. let's see...daddy came home early from his school and was able to help us move...and able to go on vacation with us to singapore! oh, let me back up a minute and give you the whole story. we moved in and it went pretty well. i was supposed to run a 10k a couple of days after we moved, but i messed up the ligament in my knee and couldn't run the race. i was super bummed. anyway, on the friday right before we were to go on vacation, h was cruising the new 'hood on his bicycle with a new friend. and lo and behold, he came home and calmly said "um, mom, can you come out here? i think i broke my arm." now, remember, this is h, who is really dramatic and screams things like "i'm bleeding to death" when he scrapes his knee. so, i called out the front door that i'd be out in a minute. when i went out, he was still pretty calm but said he was in alot of pain. so i get on the phone to daddy, since he was on his way home. he tells me to look at h's arm and when h removes his hand, the forearm kind of just sags like there aren't any bones in it. i almost passed out. i get all the kids in the car and we meet daddy halfway to the hospital. almost 7 hours later, daddy and h get home with a sling, splint and the news that h has broken his ulna and radius, and it's pretty bad. he might not get to go to singapore. i think i was just in complete denial that this could happen. anyway, we had to go to the hospital on the monday morning that we were flying to singapore. our flight was around noon. we packed separate bags and if it was a no-go, h and daddy would stay behind. however, they casted h's arm, cut seams in the sides, to compensate for any swelling on the flight, and we were off to the airport. it was an awesome vacation. i highly recommend visiting singapore if you get the chance. it was beautiful, CLEAN, friendly, easy to get around, CLEAN, amazing shopping, CLEAN, and did i mention CLEAN??? they really do fine you or cane you for littering, spitting, chewing gum, vandalism and the list goes on. we got to experience so many cool things, and do it as a family, which made it all the more special. of course, daddy did get to fly alone on the tokyo/singapore/tokyo flights. go figure. that last minute ticket had to be on a separate airline. we were very lucky in that the flights were arriving and departing within 30 minutes of eachother, and we did get to leave here and arrive here together. our vacation was so awesome and i really can't describe it all, but here's the skinny on what we did and saw: we ate, shopped, saw chinatown, sentosa island, toured the merlion statue, road a monorail, visited an awesome science center, ate breakfast with orangutans at the zoo, and also rode an elephant there, did the night safari, went to the national museum, and so much else.

what else is new?

daddy changed jobs and will be home alot more, which is really such a blessing that we can't even begin to appreciate it. he's been gone so much of the last year and a half that it feels like he just visits us here now and then. we are all so excited to have more family time and are thrilled with this new opportunity.

we got a puppy. he's a french bulldog and will be 6 months old at the end of this month. he's been super with the kids and even daddy is starting to like him. it's so weird having a dog that is not over 150 lbs and a drool monster. oh, his name is russell (from survivor). he's a little white guy with all this confidence. except our russell is more of a cream color, but still fits the bill.

ok, that's about it for tonight. i'm ready to fall asleep at the keyboard! i'll post pics tomorrow, since i'm somehow not able to connect to the desktop from my laptop. darn wireless issues!!!

you are all loved and missed.

what's going on

hello! we've been uber busy and i've really wanted to blog. no, really, i've wanted to, but of course, haven't. we went to 2 new parks recently. we've been on island for around 18 months and i have no clue how we've missed these parks, but they were super cool! one is a playstructure shaped like a giant shisa dog. the other is a series of 3 treehouses, all connected. 2 are connected by a rope bridge, and the other is connected by a tunnel that reminded me of an ant colony type thing. the kids and i had a great time at them, with our friends.

the kids and the "k" family

the tunnel

rope bridge between 2 of the treehouses

the shisa park

also, we went away last weekend to the local resort run by the air force here. it was fun. 3 women, 10 kids. seem crazy? not really, it was a great time!! the weather was chilly and rainy, but we still managed a quick hike and alot of fun!

me with the girls, t and l (no hubbys = no makeup, which is why i look terrible!)

t and i had to get a pic with this guy, look at his awesome hair!

cherry blossoms at the resort

remember last post, when i said the kids got so much junk for christmas that i was thinking about moving to a new house? well, i did it. we move on the 3rd of march. it's just that the kids are getting bigger, and the apartment is seeming so much smaller. c gave me the go ahead, so i jumped at the opportunity. i had a new house within 24 hours of his approval. even though it's at the worst possible time (i've got the quarter marathon coming up, plus we head to singapore just 5 days after we move in), it was a perfect opportunity and i knew if i waited, the house would be gone.

the new place

the boys (k and h) are doing a baseball clinic tomorrow with the yokohama bay stars. it's a really neat opportunity for them to learn some cool tricks from a professional team and get some awesome pictures! plus, they get out of school early for it. can it get any better than that???

okay, off to play a quick game with h before bedtime.

nite nite, all. i'll post pics of the baseball clinic sometime in the next few days.

a new year

Gee, here it is almost the end of January and I haven't been on here in ages. Christmas has come and gone. The family had a wonderful Christmas and New Year's. Daddy was home, so that was all we really needed, but still everyone got a bit spoiled. The boys got so much loot, I was thinking about moving into a bigger house!

K playing at the aquarium playground

H making the big jump

A just being cute

We kept pretty busy from the time daddy took leave until it was time for him to go again. He took the boys camping for 3 days! I have never been away from the kids, except to for giving birth, so it was a wonderful present for me. However, I missed them all so much that I was ready for them to come home the first night! We also did a trip to the aquarium and as usual, it was a super fun time. We spent time exploring around here; places we hadn't been to see as a family. We visited a mura (an old village), a lighthouse and little road trips here and there. Also, our little A turned 4 on Jan 6. Hard to believe our baby is now 4 years old!! Then, of course, it was time for daddy to leave...again. He will be gone anywhere from 2 months to 6 months, depending on how things play out. I've been keeping the boys extremely busy, since they always have a bit of a hard time right after daddy leaves. Thank goodness for wonderful friends to help us pass the time!

Daddy testing out his new camera at the mura

The boys at zanpa point

I went on a field trip with H's class last week. Holy cow! That was pretty hectic. I now know that I am definitely cut out to be a teacher.

We've got a weekend trip coming up and are really looking forward to it. It's going to be 3 women and 10 kids. Think we're crazy for going away for the weekend??? Even with all those kids, it will be a super time, since the kids all get along so well. It's a varied age group, with the oldest being 11 and the youngest is 3. I'll be sure to get some good pics and get them up on the blog when we return.

Also, I've been spending lots of time planning for our vacation to Singapore in March. I'm taking the boys for 6 days. I wish daddy could go, but since he's gone so much, we decided to go ahead and venture out. It's going to be such a wonderful experience for all of us. The boys are so excited about the possibility of riding an elephant at the zoo. I've got a full itinerary for us, so we should be very tired at the end of each evening.

And, I finally quit facebook! I just got so tired of all the drama and gossip that it was time to go. I mean, who cares who is getting drunk all the time, or who has fake boobs? Why do people have to post such nonsense?? I loved being able to connect with family and friends back in the states, but it just got too "high school" for me. It's amazing what a timesucker it had become. I've now caught up on my reading and have more time in the evenings to get more done around the house.

Well, that's a semi-quick version of what's been happening in our lives.

Take care, everyone!

long time, no blog

Ok, so it's been a little while since I blogged. Where have we been? What have we been doing? I know, you're all just dying to know. Well, at least the 3 or 4 people who actually read this blog once in a while. It's been a busy few months here in our little corner of the world. Daddy was here, then left, came home early, stayed a bit, then left again. Go figure. He's gone now until mid December, we think. We were expecting him to have Thanksgiving with us, but no, he'll be gone again this year. BUT, he will be here for Christmas, so we're super excited about that!

Kids are all doing well. Growing up too fast, and getting too big. H started 3rd grade, K started kindergarten and little A is doing a part time preschool.

A quick rundown of what's been going on:

did some festivals here that were kind of fun

went to the Chinese Gardens (yes, here, not in China)

H and K participated in another karate festival

finally made it to the zoo (which is tiny, but has really funny signs in Engrish) and children's museum

had a fun Halloween with friends

attempted to take pics of the boys for a Christmas card - will attempt again next weekend (little buggers)

oh, and I got hooked on those darn Twilight books and it's taking all my time in the evenings!

the sign by the chimps at the zoo - and one actually had a mouthful of poo, just ready to throw it

H enjoying the big chair at the children's museum

A enjoying some playtime at the park

K doing the obligatory peace sign

Daddy and the boys at the Fukushu-en Chinese Gardens

this pretty much sums up our picture taking experience. A looks like he's about to fly away, K looks like he smelled something fishy and H is almost ready to laugh. wish us luck for the next photo shoot

That's it in a nutshell. See, not that exciting, was it? I'll TRY to be better about updating this blog. Seriously, I will.