Minnesota is Heaven, But Virginia is Home

One of my first priorities when I got to Japan was to find a babysitter.  I told myself that THIS time, this duty station, we would have a reliable babysitter that we would use.  Key word being use. To this end, I joined a Facebook page called Sitterclub and found a sitter to come sit with the kids at the Navy Lodge on 8/15 and 8/16.  On 8/15 in the a.m., she wrote to ask me if she could bring her 7-year-old sister along.  To the Navy Lodge--where my three kids were already crammed into one room.  So, I cancelled.  But I truly needed her on 8/16, when I was taking my driver's course and getting my license (no children allowed in class), so I just rolled with it.  She showed up and the kids had fun.  My only bone was that her phone "wasn't charged", so I couldn't text or contact her directly. Anyway, today I took a class at FFSC called "Getting Started Teaching English"...thought the class was from 10-2, so I scheduled with babysitter from 9:30...

Annika's special manicure (cheetah spot nail polish strips). As usual, impossible to get a perfect shot of all three! We must face east, the sun was directly in their faces.  I told Josiah and Annika to hold up four and two fingers, respectively.  William, contrary to his fingers, is NOT going to be a sophomore this year. When you walk with the preschooler, you walk as through quicksand.  Oh well, I'm doing them a favor by keeping a distance.  Josiah's getting to be of the age where he squirms a little when I hug him in public.  A view that I will miss if we ever do return to the Midwest...the ocean, I mean, not Yokosuka. Playing at yet another playground (commissary in the background and for those curious, the white building on the hill is, I believe, the weather station). The low building in the foreground is The Sullivans.  The story of the Sullivan brothers is pretty interesting...there were four or five brothers, all se...

Somewhere in Virginia, my granite countertops are embarrassed for me...        Living with the gov loaner furniture--not the worst, but pretty bare.  At least I have my Dixie cup of wine.  And my lamp that mysteriously looks melted.  This picture is NOT the result of me taking pictures of lamp after drinking said wine. OR #1...I keep expecting to find McDreamy here...oh wait, that sterile space is a kitchen ! Why yes, I'm glad you asked.  The washer and dryer DO have to sit a foot away from the wall.  Someone did NOT do a good job of venting.  Aw, who wanted that extra 6 SF in this little place anyway?  The laundry room is bigger than William's bedroom.  Go figure. Waiting for the dentist?  Why no, that's our living room!  Cozy, eh? Welcome to the splendor of gov furniture dining...the best part are the bar code stickers all over each piece of furniture:  PROPERTY OF US GOVERNMENT....

Well, my faithful readers, you already know that we visited the Giant Buddha at Kamakura this weekend.  I am thrilled to report that we had a fairly successful outing.  I would give it solid "B", and that's pretty dang good when my kids are regularly scoring in the 50-60% range.  Everyone was reasonably well behaved, except for the one moment I turned my back on Will and before I could blink, he had hopped the rope barrier around Buddha and was standing on Buddha's version of the Ten Commandments.  There was a distinct intake of Buddhist breaths all around before I warped over and removed him.  Thankfully, Buddha's tablets are behind Buddha and not in front of Buddha, where many more people would have witnessed this horrifying faux pas. The picture that didn't make it to Facebook was of William after he had finished his chocolate ice cream cone, the one in which I am growing red-faced with anger as I watch him stick the ice cream cone in his mouth, then ...

I've been keeping up on Facebook pretty well, so I haven't really felt the need to come to MN is Heaven to blog all that much. I made some changes to the background, I hope you like them.  Someday, I will pay some sort of professional to make me the perfect, modern background.  Until then, I have to import photos and use the stock backgrounds Blogger provides.  Sorry. It is Friday here, Friday evening, actually.  6:15 p.m.  Everyone has eaten.  Pancakes.  I spent almost $400 at the commissary last weekend and still have trouble finding something to eat, but dammit, I have four bottles of Method countertop spray and enough cleaning supplies to last me the entire tour.  I had coupons.  I blame the coupons for buying all that stuff.  Who can resist $5.00/off coupons on super nice razors that are $6.99?  On SALE for $6.99?  Regularly $9.99?  I can't, that's who.  I got about $100.00 worth of razors for about $10. Se...

Lots of visits with new and old friends who are stationed in Newport. I got to go back to my old salon and get my hair colored and sneak in a quick pedicure while being processed.  I am now glamorous enough to get on a 14 hour flight to Tokyo. You think being glamorous has nothing to do with it?  Oh yes, I must look like I have my stuff together because I am doing this alone with three children.  Having perfectly done toenails and no roots showing helps boost my confidence, which in turn helps me to deflect the glares of every other passenger on that jumbo jet.  You know, the "You are DARING to bring CHILDREN on this FLIGHT?!" look? Mom and Dad won't recall this since we didn't fly anywhere together.  Well, and since my siblings and I were always very well-behaved, quiet and obedient.  Even if we had gotten on a flight bound for Heathrow in 1985, no one would have batted an eyelash. Furiously charging Kindles, checking to make sure everyone has suff...

I think all sixteen of you know by now that we made it to Newport.  Fifteen, I should say because my husband doesn't even read this blog. I'm writing this mainly for my father and my mother-in-law, apparently.  Hi guys!  Hope you are enjoying this dying art form.  Some day I'll be able to tell my children "I was there for the beginning of blogging and I was there as it slowly succumbed to Facebook and Twitter". Apparently, blogging is old-fashioned.  No one wants to take the time to read super-long blog posts.  Everyone wants to read quick Facebook or Twitter posts.  Quick, quick, quick.  No one has time to sit still for five minutes and read something of substance. By the way, I'm in no way implying that Minnesota is Heaven is a blog of substance. Anyway, here we are, in the Newport Chalet which is not all bad in that it is clean enough and is free!  Many thanks to the US taxpayers.  They also have free washers and dryers here, ...