Cheese cake from the Cheese Cake Factory
Friday, December 19, 2008
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Monday, December 15, 2008
Sunday, December 14, 2008
On the 7th Day Before Going Home...
Japan gave to me...
a beatiful mini-cake from Paris Tei (pastry shop)
Friday, December 12, 2008
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
On the 11th Day Before Going Home...
Japan gave to me...
a Christmas ice cream from 31 (Baskin Robbins)!!
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Monday, December 1, 2008
You Know its Christmas When.....
The stockings are hung....
The count down is on....
The Christmas tree is up and shining....
The smell of cookies is in the air....
Countless hours of Christmas shopping are done....(with many more to go!)
The snow markers are up on the roads....(yes it snow that much here!!)
And the bags are packed for home!!!
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Let it snow!
Well, we had our first snow in Japan and it lasted for two days! If this is any indication of what the Winter will be like in Hirosaki we are not looking forward to it! After our first day in the snow we realized there are a few interesting things about Japan when it snows..
.. . it really snows! For the first snow of the season we had at least 8 inches, maybe more!
Everyone uses umbrellas to keep from getting all wet!
and, they do not plow the roads! The paths are made by the cars and the people.. . really quite dangerous for walkers since there also aren't many sidewalks so you are walking on the path made by the car. When a car comes you are in danger of your life and getting splashed with all sorts of slush from the snow! Needless to say this will be an interesting winter!!!
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
couldn't do it without Him
So, one Monday night every month a church in Hirosaki (Zion Church) has a pizza party for gaijins (foreigners) and young people in their 20's. We eat lots of yummy pizza, do worship, and listen to someone's testimony. Both, Travis and I have given our testimony at the pizza party and have enjoyed hearing other fellow-believers' testimonies. We had the pizza party this Monday, and while we were worshiping I couldn't help but be in awe of where I was. When we do worship at the pizza party we sing the song in English and then in Japanese, and then back in English. I really enjoy this because it's amazing to be able to sing in a different language to the God that I love and to know that He understands me even though sometimes I have no idea what I am singing! For some reason this time though it really hit me that I am in Japan, and 5 years ago there is no way I would be here. I was way too selfish back then to move this far away and be so far away from my family and friends.
"And, everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life."- Matthew 19:29
We really enjoy it here, we love our students and enjoy spending time with them, but it is also very very difficult living here. We still do not speak Japanese very well. Even though we get to talk to our family through skype, it's very hard being so far away from home. We don't get to actually hug our parents or see our nephews growing up. We very seldomly get to talk with our friends, and we are missing out on weddings and babies, and all sorts of things that make it really hard to be here.
"If anyone would come after me, he msut deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it."- Luke 9:23-24
But, we know that our purpose is here. We know that God made it possible for us to come here, and we see how He is reaching our students through us, and that makes it worthwhile to be here. I am just amazed everyday at the joy and peace that He gives me to be here so far away from home and the comfortable life we lived in the U.S. On Monday night I just really realized how I never would have imagined doing this before I was a Christian, and sometimes I can't believe that I am actually doing this and just how much God has changed who I am and has enabled me to be here.
"Then Jesus came to them and said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them int he name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.'"- Matthew 28:18-20
All glory be to God, who has changed my life to do His work and the Holy Spirit that enables me to do ALL things through Christ.
"And, everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life."- Matthew 19:29
We really enjoy it here, we love our students and enjoy spending time with them, but it is also very very difficult living here. We still do not speak Japanese very well. Even though we get to talk to our family through skype, it's very hard being so far away from home. We don't get to actually hug our parents or see our nephews growing up. We very seldomly get to talk with our friends, and we are missing out on weddings and babies, and all sorts of things that make it really hard to be here.
"If anyone would come after me, he msut deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it."- Luke 9:23-24
But, we know that our purpose is here. We know that God made it possible for us to come here, and we see how He is reaching our students through us, and that makes it worthwhile to be here. I am just amazed everyday at the joy and peace that He gives me to be here so far away from home and the comfortable life we lived in the U.S. On Monday night I just really realized how I never would have imagined doing this before I was a Christian, and sometimes I can't believe that I am actually doing this and just how much God has changed who I am and has enabled me to be here.
"Then Jesus came to them and said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them int he name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.'"- Matthew 28:18-20
All glory be to God, who has changed my life to do His work and the Holy Spirit that enables me to do ALL things through Christ.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Fall Goodies
Well, we are well into the school year and well into the fall season! It has been getting much colder here, we've been pulling out the hats and scarfs! We are waiting still for the first snow fall and to the time when we can no longer ride our bikes :( Although we don't enjoy the cold weather so much, we do enjoy the beautiful changes in the leaves' colors! There was a fall festival for about 2 weeks, and Hirosaki celebrates by growing Chrysanthemum flowers in a way we have never seen before! Words cannot describe.. .
These puppies are huge!!!
These puppies are huge!!!
Yes, their clothes are made out of Chrysanthemums!
And of course you can't have a Chrysanthemum festival without some Chrysanthemum animals!
Other than the fall festival we have been busy helping our 3rd year students prepare for college interviews, our 1st and 2nd years prepare for the Eiken (an english proefficiency test), and have English club dinners at our apartment! It is just over a month before we come home, and we are getting ansy!!! We love and miss American food, I mean, our family and friends :)
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Fun for All
Two weeks ago went took a pleasant trip to Anmon no Take which is a set of three waterfalls. We went along with our English Fellowship pastors and our friend Chris. It was a beautiful adventure with the leaves changing. We enjoyed it throughly.
Last weekend we went to a concert in Hirosaki. Two of our students played in it so we went to watch and support them. 
It was a classical Japanese concert where they played traditional Japanese instruments. It was very interesting and fun to watch and we enjoyed seeing our students.
Yesterday was our Halloween party!! Our students got to experience first hand what Halloween is all about. We had the traditional Halloween edibles such as: pumpkin pie, pumpkin seeds, pumpkin bread, and orange frosted cookies!! Yum Yum--all made from scratch! (Yes, we mashed our own squash) They rarely have pumpkins here so we had to make do with squash.
We also had the traditional games of bobbing for apples....
and toilet paper mummy wrap.
And of course they carved pumpkins(squash).
Sunday, October 5, 2008
picnics for everyone!
These last few weeks have been pretty busy, both at school and at home! On Friday we had no classes- the second years are on their class trips, the first years had emergency drill training, and the third years had a class picnic near the mountain! We got to go on the picnic with the third years, and oh, was it a picnic!
There were about 300 students, and each class brought their own food for small groups within the class and man did they cook!
We took buses to the picnic site, and of course a bus ride would not be a bus ride w/o some karaoke over the announcer's mic!
There were about 300 students, and each class brought their own food for small groups within the class and man did they cook!Our 33 and 34 classes made curry, chinese noodles, yaki-niku (meat), a korean dish, and this other meat/ramen dish that they dip in raw egg!!!
Then, on Saturday we decided to get out of Hirosaki for awhile, so we headed to the coast- Aomori, where we did some shopping, eating, and sight-seeing!
We went for a walk across the bridge..
Saw a taxi driver trying to catch pigeons..
so Angie of course thought she should try too.
We rented bikes and headed out to the pagoda and Japan's largest outdoor buddha.. .
as you can see this ginormus buddha is about as tall as 20 travis' or bigger, we don't really know, but it was HUGE!!!
and here we are amazed at just how big it is.. and we couldn't help but think at least mega churches are built so that people can fit in them, i mean really, what is the point of a buddha THIS big!
The pagoda and buddha are a memorial to the dead soldiers of WWII. There was also a walkway between the pagoda and the buddha, and in the woods there were pinwheels in the ground as a memorial for infants who have died in Japan.
Then today, we headed toward the mountains in Owani (the town next to Hirosaki) and had some worship in a cabin there..
and then headed outside to play some games and eat some meat!!!
It's been busy, and it's been fun!
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