First known moving loss

My Christmas decorations have not arrived in Okinawa!! Silly Katie saw the boxes labeled "Christmas decorations" (there were two of them) and thought, oh, there are my Christmas decorations. That is what the power of deduction leads one to deduce. Well, I open said boxes today and my mouth dropped. The first one, a cardboard box, has one all-weather rug, a random towel and my christmas ornaments, on the very bottom of the box with no tissue paper protective barrier or anything of the like. I was then anxious to open the next box, a rubbermaid tote. IT IS EMPTY!!!!! Thank goodness for our nativity set, which I packed with our picture frames, and our christmas tree ornaments or it would really feel empty here.

I'm kind of sad because it's looking like we'll have to stay here for Christmas and I wanted at least some creature comforts (material items) to make Christmas here feel like Christmas as I know it.

Lesson learned: check ALL boxes upon arrival. Also, the next time we move come up with a better plan to help the movers. I was so proud of my color coded post-it notes, but apparently that didn't work. I will definitely figure out a better plan by the next time we move.

The Christmas Rhinoceros!

Driving home from my tennis lesson today, I spotted this:

You know it's Christmas season when the rhino is lit up in a way reminiscent of the different cuts of meat.

My Thanksgiving 2008

I am notorious for making too much food. I can't help it-it's hard to cook for 2. Here's a look at our by-invitation-only Thanksgiving.

All the cooking really makes the apartment smell like home, for the first time. We also have the mistletoe candles burning (favorite scent ever!).

I think we are going to try to wake up early to catch everyone at my parents house during their Thanksgiving dinner. Hopefully Skype will cooperate!

Hopefully you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family. Honestly, this particular holiday was never one near to my heart until this year. It was very nice and I hope you all have a very nice one as well.

The cooking continues...

I have so much more gratitude towards the cooks who have prepared Thanksgiving dinners for me in the past. Goodness, does it take a long time! Jared decided he wanted real potatoes (I was going to cheat and go with Potato Buds and spruce them up with sour cream). He also made his Grandma Veteto's dressing (stuffing?), which is in individual, like cookies. He also was quite proud of his gravy.

I am thankful for...

A job. I am so thankful to have a job, a job that I enjoy and provides a steady paycheck. I also have an awesome view of the Pacific Ocean.

My Grandma Goldie turning 90. She is a remarkable woman and we had the most wonderful birthday celebration to celebrate her turning 90. I am so thankful we were able to delay our flight to Okinawa after her party.

I am thankful for my hometown. That town has treated me, and my nearest and dearest, quite well. People genuinely care for you in my hometown, they have a vested interest in you and your well being. I am so excited for the day when I can return to my hometown.

Our summer vacation. We were able to visit the Gulf Coast and our Florida family. We had a ball and now hope to be able to visit our Florida family every summer. We love you very much!

Our second trip to Florida in as many months. Jared and I were honored to be chosen as Godparents for our cousin, Elizabeth. She is a remarkable little girl and we feel so thankful to have her in our lives.

Speaking of babies born in 2008, my favorite little boy in the whole wide world was born, Jacob. I am SO thankful for him, for the long journey of his short life, and the wonderful people who have come into his life. I am also thankful for the relationships his life has created.

My friends. I am so lucky to have so many good people I can count as friends! Jodi, Heather, Krystle, oh how I miss you. You made college the experience it was for me. Mandi, oh I miss you so much! Adam, same goes for you (and Brian and Tadam). Jessica, goodness am I thankful for you! And Kev (Feder)-you are such a true blue and loyal person. Kevin McCaffrey, even though we don't get to see you nearly as much as we wish we could, seeing you in the spring was wonderful. You are a wonderful person. I cannot write every person down (and please do not feel offended if I didn't type your name-I was just writing as memories poured into my head).

My family. I feel so thankful to be able to spend some time with my brother while we lived in the same zip code this past spring/summer. I'm thankful my brother is a good guy, and very patient with his older sister. My grandmothers (and Joe, Grandma Joan's husband), I am so thankful to have been able to live in such close proximity to you. I am so thankful for my parents-they have helped with making this transition to moving to Okinawa, me pursuing the dream of teaching with DoDDS, easy. I cannot imagine how I would react if my daughter accepted a job halfway across the world, but they did so with such grace and love and support. Same with my in-laws; I took their son to a coral rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, and they provide so much encouragement, prayer and support. I am so lucky, so thankful. Both of us are truly so thankful to have you as parents. I am also very thankful for our extended families, aunts and uncles. I was able to spend an awesome evening on Lake Geneva with Mom's extended family and it was awesome. We also had a wonderful day at Churchill Downs with Jared's Grandpa Hank (See Saw) and Diane, Doug & Griff. That was such a special day and we were so thankful to do that before we left.

My husband. My husband left everything he loves so I could accept a new job. He supports me, drives me to and from work everyday, due to my stubbornness, is patient with me and loves I am SO thankful for him.

Faith. Faith was put to the test several times this year, and after each instance faith grew stronger.

God. God let this past year happen the way it did. God brought these people into my life, God brought this opportunity into my life.

The internet. I obviously didn't write a decent enough transition from God to the worldwide web, but the internet makes these 8000 miles feel not as far apart. Skype particularly helps.

There is much, much more I am thankful for. I would say these are the "main ideas" of what I am thankful for. Thank you for being a part of my Thanksgiving!

And so it begins

My pie!

Making the trifle.

I wish you could smell this!

It's holiday season here in Okinawa! We started preparing our Thanksgiving meal (for two) today. I made my FIRST pecan pie and I wish we had smell-o-vision or something so you could smell what my kitchen smelled like. I also made a pumpkin-gingersnap trifle. We'll see how that one works out. I prepared the deviled eggs for tomorrow (Jared's favorite) and chopped all my veggies needed for the turkey. I even cleaned up as I went. I had to take a photo as evidence for Mama Jean.

I'll post more pics of our Thanksgiving celebration as we progress. At least this way it's like we are all together. In case you can't tell, I miss you all, a lot. I'm very lucky to have you in my life and feel so thankful for your kindness, love, and friendship.

Crunk

No, not the music,silly. Apparently that is how we say "Crunch" in Japanese.

I wanted a piece of chocolate, so I just HAD to choose the chocolate with the goofiest name at the San A yesterday. And her you have it, Crunky. It's crunkolicious, and that's as far as I'm going with that word.

Can you spot it?

Can you spot it?

I have TWO patches of GRAY hair!!!! Argh! Freshly 27 and noticing gray hair in bathroom mirrors. Like, mirrors in public, not in the safety and security of my own home. I noticed them for the first time two days ago. I've had a few strands of gray since I was 21, one or two since I was 17, but this was legitimate. Jared even noticed, but was too sweet to mention it until I brought the matter up.

Ay yi yi.

Culinary Discovery

We discovered we could make Japanese style curry in the comfort of our own home yesterday! Here's the kicker-you in the 'burg (or wherever you are located) can make it, too!

S&B Curry is sold in the "Asian" section of the int'l aisle at Wal-Mart. Cook according to directions, add rice and voila, you can transport yourself to Coco Curry House, several locations in Okinawa and hundreds (thousands?) across Japan.

Try it-it's delicious!

The not-so glamorous life

If you've thought we've been livin' the high life on this piece of coral in the Pacific Ocean, I hate to inform you that you have been sadly mistaken. November on Okinawa is like November in Indiana-not a whole lot. Honestly, we probably would be doing more if we were at home. You know, football games, watching live football, talking about football with our co-workers. No live football to be found on our one AFN channel.
Work has taken a lot of my attention this month. We are committing ourselves to being tourists in Okinawa over the Thanksgiving break. There is a place here that offers water buffalo rides through a tropical garden or something, we are very excited about this! There is also a "Connor Prarie" of Okinawa called Murasaki Mura (or something like that) we plan on visiting over Turkey break.
The weather has "cooled" to a chilly 65 degee low, in the evenings. We haven't needed to use the A/C the past two nights. The a/c is still on at school and it's incredibly cold in my classroom. I can't believe I'm wearing a (light) sweater when it's in the upper 60s/low 70s. I feel like a Floridian, getting cold in what we would consider short sleeve weather in Indiana.
We hope to explore Gate 2 Street this weekend. This is the area outside one of the gates on the air base that is pretty popular with Americans. Lots of pictures will follow!

Orchids

My husband bought me orchids a couple weeks ago. I have dreamed of being a responsible enough green-thumb to keep orchids alive. Well, these puppies have been thriving since November 7-hopefully they'll keep it up!

driving around in our automobile

We drove around Okinawa on Sunday, stopping by a BIG 100 yen store. I wanted to take pictures in the 100 yen store, but felt completely overwhelmed and like I stood out like a pink elephant in a bar.

Included are some random pictures driving north on Hwy. 58 from Ginowan to Chatan-the main high way on Okinawa. It took FOREVER, as Sunday is the main day both Americans and Okinawans are off work. That is one thing that crosses cultural lines-everyone enjoys their Sundays!

CoCo Ichinanya Curry House

random pretty manhole cover outside of CoCo's. Manhole covers are really pretty here!

Outside patio of CoCo's. Lots of pretty flowers, in November!

Jared liked his curry.

Outside of the restaurant.

Oh, is this the place to be. From what little research I have done, Japanese curry is more mild and sweet than Indian curry or Thai curry. Also there is no coconut milk. Honestly, it's warm, tasty and filling. We've heard people raving about CoCo's. I thought they meant Cocok's, the nail salon, or even Coco the convenience store. Nope, this is CoCo, the curry house. Cocoa, and all the variations of the spelling, is a popular word on this island.

Last Sunday we ventured to a CoCo located near the air base. It was a tad overwhelming walking in, as our Japanese is non-existent and we haven't eaten at many Japanese-speaking exclusively restaurants off base. Somehow we managed to sit at the bar and looked through the SEVEN different menu cards. CoCo's must be popular because there are like 7 different languages on the menu cards. We somehow figure out we want Tonkatsu, pork cutlet. Pork cutlets in Japan taste just like pork cutlets in Indiana, but a little more crispy. Yum, yum, yum. Jared chose a slightly more spicy curry than I did and it was equally delicious.

I feel like we have a bit more "street cred" now that we've tackled CoCo's. And honestly, I'm kind of craving some right now! We met a shopkeeper yesterday at the Foster PX (shopping center at the Marine base) who recommended a brand new type of curry-oh, too many choices for indecisive Katie!!

College Night

The two DoDDS high schools on the island have an awesome plan for the ever necessary College Night. They can't foot the bill of 100 plus college reps flying halfway across the world, so they ask the "experts" of the individual institutes of higher education, the alumni.
We jumped at the chance to represent our Ball State Cardinals. A friend in admissions helped us out (thanks a million, Liz!) and we'd like to share our adventure with you.







Jared re-living his UST days with the display.

Jared and I proudly represented our Ball State Cardinals. And guess what? A kid actually called us out on our awesome winning streak! LET'S GO BALL STATE!!!

Happy Birthday, Dad!

My dad recently celebrated his birthday on November 6. It stinks that we weren't there to celebrate with him and the fam, but he's off on his way to Hawaii as I type this, so I don't feel too bad for him.

Happy Birthday, Dad! I love you!

Cheap Books

Anyone know a good website where I could find some cheap childrens books? New, used-cheap is all I care about.I need to create a classroom library. I thought I shipped books over, but apparently not as many as I thought I did.

Thanks in advance!
Katie