My parent's visit: week 2

 I have continued to be lame with my blog, and have yet another big catch-up post! So just a warning...this one is long!

The second week that my parents were here, started with Easter. On Saturday we did a scavenger hunt. At each clue they had to do something active such as push-ups...

 ...jumping up and down, or dancing around. It was quite comical. Luckily my mom and I put it together, so we were able to watch and get a good laugh.

 They eventually found the loot and started to dig in!

On Sunday we tried to stick to the more spiritual side of Easter and did a little activity with the boys about the meaning of Easter.

 We spent one afternoon at White Beach. The tide was extremely low, which we were not anticipating, so it wasn't as pretty as it usually is. We found tons of good shells though and Justin and my dad went exploring.

Jack had a robot project that we all helped him with. He drew the blueprint and we copied it as best we could. I thought it turned out pretty good!

 A friend had told me about a little fishing village up north called Bise. It has a really cool trail of trees and lots of traditional style Japanese houses. It was really neat to walk around.

 We stopped at Ufoya restaurant on our way back. The setting was amazing! It was up on a hill buried in the trees. It was so beautiful. The food on the other hand...let's just say it's SUPER traditional, and traditional Japanese food is not our favorite. We can handle fried rice and udon noodles, but other than that, we are not really fans. So we didn't love the food, but the experience was neat. If we ever go there again, it will be strictly for the cream puffs. 

 We spent time at Okinawa World, and Shuri castle.

 We found an awesome lookout spot at Shuri castle. Check out all that concrete behind me! Now you know why they call it the concrete jungle. There's more jungle/rural parts up north or farther south, but this is what it looks like close to where we live. Crazy!

 We went to Zanpa point to see the lighthouse and practice our samurai moves. We are working on our inner peace.

 We even saw a sea turtle swimming!

The weather was not the greatest while they were here, but we managed to get out on the nice days and make the best of it. We LOVED having visitors! It's so fun to show people our life here on our little island. We can't wait for more!!

My parent's visit: week 1

 We went and saw a number of things while my parents were here visiting. We had quite a few rainy days when they were here, so when it wasn't raining, we took full advantage! 

 We saw Nakagusuku castle.

 Toguchi Beach. This is where they do most of the baptisms here. It's a really beautiful spot.

 We fed the fish at Fukushuen Gardens in downtown Naha,

 We spent some time at the Peace Prayer Memorial Park

 Anderson was showing off his yoga skills. Not bad for having a broken arm!

We braved the rain and went to Okinawa World. We walked through this huge underground cave, which you couldn't take any pictures in. It took us forever to walk through it. It was really cool, but I was starting to get a little claustrophobic. I had to concentrate on happy thoughts. :) I'm such a weenie! 

Harlem Shake

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While my parents were here, my siblings challenged us to a Harlem Shake-off. Everyone made their own version of the Harlem Shake and sent them to each other. This was our version. Everyone was surprised by the ending! I think we won the shake-off. :)

Recovery

Wow. I have officially put my blog on the back burner for 2 months. It's never been neglected this long in the history of my blog! I feel like I have a good excuse though. A lot has happened since my last update. 

We got home from Thailand 2 days before Valentine's Day/my birthday. I am now in my last year of my youth. 29. Oh so depressing. I feel like after you turn 30, you're a real adult, and kind of old. In your 20's you just kind of pretend that you're an adult. I guess I only have 9 months left until I'm in the with the old crowd.

 In March I took a trip up to Sasebo, Japan to see the young women in our church. They are part of our district even though they are an airplane ride away. It was really fun to see a different part of Japan. It had a much more traditional feel to it and had lots of beautiful mountains. The young women up there were awesome. They are a very talented group of girls.

 My parents planned a trip out here and the day they were flying in, Anderson fell off the neighbor's trampoline and fractured his arm. Bad timing Anderson! Justin spent three hours with him at the ER, while I continued getting ready for my parents to come. Then on Monday we took him in and they put the actual cast on. It was so sad because the whole time my parents were here, he couldn't jump on the tramp, ride his scooter, or do most of the things that he loves to do outside. He was a good sport about it though. It hardly bothered him except when it was time for the bath. You can't get it wet, so we just had him stand up in two inches of water with his arm in the air while we carefully washed the rest of him. He was so glad to have play time in the bath again when it came off.

 My parents arrival was definitely a highlight for us! (I will post more pictures of their trip here later) We feel so far away from everyone and it was so nice to have family here with us. The boys had been counting down the days and could not wait for them to get here. I loved seeing them so happy to have their grandma and grandpa around. 

They were here for Easter, which makes a first for hosting family for an official holiday. We've hosted plenty of friends, but we are always the ones traveling to see family for the holidays. It was really fun to actually have someone come to us! And yes, as sad as this picture is, it is probably the best family shot from the day. Bad lighting and blue lips. Oh well!

 The week ofter my parents left was Girl's Camp. (More pictures to come!) I spent hours and hours painting a gazillion beads for their necklaces. It was a lot of work, but I always love using my creative juices. I feel like I already need to start again for next year!

 Anderson was SO excited to get his cast off. I thought for sure he would freak out when they put those headphones on him and turned on the loud machine to cut it off. But to my surprise he was totally calm and braved the whole thing like it was nothing. 

 He still talks about how brave he was and how much he loves having it off. A couple weeks ago, Justin was laying by him in bed. He turned to Anderson and said, "I'm sure glad that you're my boy." Anderson replied, "And I'm sure glad that my cast is off."

The real reason for my blog neglect is this little jelly bean!

 I started feeling nauseous as soon as my parents got here. I still feel bad that I was sick and not quite myself while they were here. Then the week after was Girl's Camp and I was sick the entire time, trying to fake a smile because I didn't want the whole world to know that I was 8 weeks pregnant. Then the for a couple weeks after that, I was on the couch doing absolutely nothing. I have been way more nauseous with this one than my other two. I still haven't thrown up, but I just feel nasty and exhausted. We have been trying to get pregnant for 2 and a half years, and I keep telling myself, "This is what I wanted. This is what I wanted." It is no fun to be sick!! Last week, I had a couple really good days and thought I was starting to come out of it. But now that I am 12 weeks along I feel like I am digressing. What the heck? I am dying to feel somewhat "normal". My poor family. I know they are all anxiously awaiting the day when I feel like making dinner and be someone who is fun to be around. Oh well. I guess that's their part of the sacrifice. I get to be sick and they get to deal with me. Besides the sickness, we are very excited. We could not believe the pregnancy test had a positive result! It was an awesome moment for us. Now we anxiously await Nov. 22 for this little jelly bean to join our family.