Happy New Year - 2017!

Happy New Year to all of our family and loved ones! We’re on the second day of the New Year here in the future, Japan, but hopefully we’re still barely catching you all celebrating the first day of 2017. We enjoyed a busy but peacefully happy Christmas season thinking about our Savior and then some leisurely/sick days winding up 2016. We miss and love you all and are grateful for your influences in our lives.  Feel free to visit us in Japan at any time!  As a repeat of our nightly routine and last year’s letter, we’re sharing with you our answers to: “What was your high, what was your low, who did you serve, and what do you know?”

Love, Marc, Natalie, Madeleine (8), Sophie (6), Claire (2)

-- in Kyoto, Japan

-- in Sapporo, Japan

Our 2016 Highs Surfing • having Natalie’s parents visit for the month of June and going to Kyoto  and Tokyo with them and having them with us here in Misawa • Madeleine’s baptism • snow skiing • week long camping trip on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido and seeing the new LDS Sapporo Temple • becoming debt-free • #LIGHTtheWORLD advent activities during December •  wonderful two week visit to Utah to hang out with our families in October  • girls’ first Suzuki recital – Sophie on cello and Madeleine on violin • days at the beach • Madeleine was a snowflake in a children’s play on base • having great neighbors and friends on base, and still loving the culture and people of Japan • snow skiing for 3 days right after Christmas • having our friends, the Bunkers, visit us in Misawa • Madeleine and Sophie lose lots of teeth • Claire is a snuggly, smiley girl who is very social • Sophie LOVES Japanese school

Our 2016 Lows Madeleine acts like a terror getting immunizations • Natalie will lose her driving privileges for 30 days due to an unbuckled seatbelt • missing family in the States • Marc’s paddle for his paddleboard broke and he had to send in his wetsuit for repairs so he couldn’t surf for about 4 weeks • the U.S. election was a huge let down for Natalie • saying goodbye to some really dear friends who moved away from Misawa • Claire and Madeleine had severe eczema flare ups • Sophie can recall no lows

How we served Madeleine donated 8 inches of her hair for women battling cancer • Claire was an open, kind, sunny toddler during visits to a nursing home • Sophie collected money for a charity her school supports • Sophie draws many uplifting pictures for friends and family •  Marc is learning service in a new way as Bishop of our small military congregation • Marc maintains status as champion dishwasher • Natalie has been busy concentrating on small daily acts of service • Natalie babysits for the base chapel women’s group

What do we know/learned Claire snow skis for the first time, cute as a button and brave • Sophie learned to ride her bike • Madeleine has [mostly] learned her times tables • Madeleine devours chapter books, her favorite is Harry Potter • Marc passed his Certifying Exam and is a true Radiologist • Sophie is learning to read • Natalie learns that she doesn’t care about gray hairs • Natalie and Marc have learned better communication on roadtrips with little to no navigating mishaps or contention • the girls (including Natalie) are all expanding their Japanese vocabulary

Monthly Goals Report

I'm back!

6 months ago I submitted a list of all the topics I wanted to blog about. Here I am, finally, starting to address some of them.

So, for 2015 I made some monthly goals... I didn't think too far ahead and I tried to keep the goals measurable and realistic. March monthly goal = dental hygiene improvement... namely flossing more. Happy to say that for the month of March I hit about 90%! That's embarrassingly awesome for me. The other good news is that my goal created a habit and I'm now about 85% on flossing daily ever since March. Don't ask my why it's not 100%, it's just not. But better than before! Clearly, I'm not one to be too hard on myself.

April monthly goal = write in my travel journal. We went to Germany (plus a few other places) in April and I bought myself a cute little journal at World Market (miss that store!!) so that I could record a few details about our travels the old school way. For the first 2 weeks I did a great job, details, some long entries, some itineraries recorded. And then, the last two weeks were a flop. Luckily, of course, I have about a thousand pictures. (Can't wait to post some of them, although quite a few are on on Facebook.) But it's still not the same as a few notes highlighting something the girls said about a particular place or noting what the weather was like (mostly GORGEOUS then entire time we were there!) or mentioning what delicious treat we ate that day or recalling some transportation mishap that became forgettable because only the fabulous highlights remain as my core memories. Still, I have 2 weeks of more detailed memories and that is precious to me. Sadly, I haven't been journaling since then, so a good monthly goal, but... maybe in the future. Maybe I'll pick up blogging again. That would be nice. Facebook and Instagram seem to have taken over for their ease, and because I can get those instagram photos automatically put into a photobook which will be my version of scrapbooking.

That's my report! Nothing too grand! Stay tuned for some commentary on living in Northern Japan!

Things I Want to Document

I think this blog stands in need of some major updates. The sidebar? Sheesh. And the content? Well, there is so much missing! However, my PC with most of my pictures is somewhere in the Pacific Ocean (I think...) and my Google+ pictures... well, I'm technologically challenged so I'm not sure how to easily move those to a blog post. So, as is my forte, you're getting mostly (okay, only) words. Sorry!

As of 19 July 2015, these are the posts which I will plan to address in the [near] future or things that I feel I should document:

1. 500+ pictures of our epic trip to Europe (Germany, Paris, Austria, and Luxembourg City)
1a. How I Love Paris More Every Time I Visit
1b. Why Paris Is the Most Magnifique City in the World
1c. Beautiful Bavaria
1d. I Love The Sound of Music!
1e. Train Travel
1f. Surprise! I Love Germany!
1g. What I Wish We Had Done Differently OR Next Time In Europe...
2. Memorial Day: Boating on the Chesapeake
3. Memorial Day Weekend: Madeleine's Birthday
4. Marc's Residency Graduation
5. Farewell, Dear Maryland and Friends!
6. Choosing [Assigned to] Japan!
7. Hectic May: Preparations, Stress, Miracles
8. Saint Nathan and Saint Leidy
9. Moving Is Such Sweet Sorrow [or just Madness]
10. A Month in Utah
10a. Park City and Heber with the Tolleys
10b. Boating Is My Fave!
10c. "Structure Summer"
10d. Trying to Teach the Girls to Ride Bikes and Other Parenting Challenges
10e. Seeing Family is Awesome!
10f. Seeing Friends in Utah
10g. The Few Challenges of Being in Utah
11. Emotions! [Re: Moving to Japan]
12. Updates on the Girls
13. Mission Impossible: Weaning Claire
14. Monthly Goal - March: Dental Hygiene
15. Monthly Goal - April: Writing in my Travel Journal
16. Inspiration from Isaiah and Other Old Testament Books
17. Anticipating Church Callings in Misawa
18. Marc Meets Misawa [Natalie is Jealous]
19. How to Fly Overseas with 3 Small Children and No Spouse [if I survive, I promise to post something about this probably traumatic experience]

Stay tuned! (If you care...)

More Pics with Short Captions

The pressures of time, or lack thereof, make this next post long... but short, in that there are more pics than words. I hope. It's hard for me, folks.

A rare moment without Madeleine. The FOOD exhibit at the National Geographic Museum. We loved it, although maybe not as much as the magazine itself. Sophie had a great "soft" dinosaur roar.

These girls were gifted Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls - homemade! - from their crafty grandmother. 

Marc and I went on a date to the Library of Congress. It was one of the last things on our DC to-do/see list and I cannot believe it took me this long to tour this gorgeous building! The Thomas Jefferson Reading room is full of symbolism and beauty. We had a great day together, finished off with We the Pizza. Now, that's MY kind of date! 

We love visiting the Washington DC Temple Visitor Center. We love the Savior. I feel so happy to have the beliefs I do, to know the gospel of the Savior and know that He is my Savior. There is so much to learn, so much guidance and love and forgiveness and inspiration. So many blessings! 

We had a rather impromptu but welcome visit from Marc's sister and her cute family in February. Cold temps didn't keep us from exploring DC, our neighborhood, and having fun with them!

My favorite falls - Great Falls - and ma bebe and sweet niece!

I had to include this pic... unhappy bathtime! Haha! Actually, they had a blast, all except Claire. Sophie only broke down seconds before the pic.

We attended a celebration of the Chinese/Lunar New Year at the Kogod Courtyard at the National Portrait Gallery. My favorite Smithsonian EVER. Fabulous kid activities and beautiful performances! It was awesome! The girls were enchanted by all the dances and puppet shows.

Coldest day of the year - President's Day - soooo FREEZING and yet we decided to visit Mount Vernon (we have season passes - what were we thinking to go on the coldest and most crowded day?). Call us patriotic! Despite the cold we had, as always, a fabulous time there. 

One tough and awesome daddy! Shoveling and carrying a baby and entertaining his little pack of followers. 

Snow baby. Enough said.

Just a glimpse of regular life. Breakfast chaos.

One night our van got stuck in the snow so we walked to pick up our kids from a nearby neighbor's house where they were being babysat. I have to say that that walk in the snow with my hubby was a perfect way to end our date night. And walking back with the girls was sweet too! There is truly something magical about snowfall. 

Sweet sisters. 

Another date day at the temple! This has been our temple (geographically speaking) for the last 9 years! NINE! When we lived in Philly and also while here. Many good memories and insights. 

One day I took the girls to the Air and Space Smithsonian and they had a martial arts exhibit. The girls loved it and Madeleine kicked through a board! She loved it!

Our Washington DC gals. I love that we live here. LOVE IT. I hope once they grow up they will remember and know how lucky they are to have lived here. I hope they love and remember all the fun things we do as a family in this area.

Picture Time!

A very hot day on the National Mall.

One of our favorite (okay, mine, MY favorite) DC spots: across from National Archives.

On her blessing day.

One year later and I still can't get enough of her. She is the darling of our family. Goodness we love her!

A very doting big sister. The only way to have more babies - having older children!

This girl can always win me over when she smiles.

Sisters. Melt. My. Heart. 

Marc has developed into such a wonderful father! He's always been wonderful, but his "baby" time seems to be better with each new baby.

Whoa! Throw back to May 2014! Madeleine wanted a castle cake. I am really terrible at cake decorating. I'm so done with it. And yet this sweet girl was so happy with how it turned out. Until she ate it and said that the super-lemony cake she requested was "too lemony! And too sweet!" These girls are growing up tooooo fast! Even looking at this picture I can see how much both of them have grown! Please stop! I mean, wait... you can keep maturing, but only in the areas that I want you to, like putting away books in an orderly fashion and opening the van door by yourself and continuing to help out around the house and with Claire and wowing me with your homework and new skills and knowledge. But please stop growing up up and losing your sweet innocence, girls!

Domestic Drudgery

Well, 13 months have gone by, maybe even a little more since I have embraced... duhn duhn duhn... full-time stay-at-home-motherhood sans any distractions such as, um... a Ph.D. And it's been the best of times, it's been the worst of times. :)

There is so very much that I can say about this subject but for now here are my thoughts on one aspect: housework. Yes. Domesticity. Man, it's a beast. There is nothing romantic about it! 

Honestly, yes, sometimes it can be fun: when I enlist Sophie (and sometimes the other children) in her rare moments of motivation and we play music and spin around the kitchen floor with wet mop socks and the work becomes light with many hands. Sometimes it can feel invigorating and refreshing: when all the rooms in the house are clean simultaneously and dinner is made so nothing will be messy for at least a full 12 hours and I was on an energy-high when I was power-cleaning. 

But most of the time it just feels eternal. Never ending. That ecard quip is so on point:

Seriously! I love that ecard. It's exactly how I feel. The front room carpet always needs to be vaccumed. I cannot think of a day when it hasn't needed it (not that I do it every day, but... you know...). No matter how many times I clean up after Claire in her high chair it must be done yet again because, guess what? She always needs to eat. And laundry is a weekly thing, no exceptions. Children must play - and yes, they often play outside or movies and puzzles and blocks are not a big deal and keep the house pretty in tact - but Claire is at that stage where she carries one toy, or thing, from one room to the next and the girls love their crafting and I don't want to stifle their creativity. They do clean up after themselves, but... let's face it, never as well as I want it clean, so in the end I always have some tidying up to do. Yes, we have a dishwasher, but come one, there is still always some pot or plastic item or something that needs to be washed. Usually multiple times a day. Housework is never ending. And I even had house cleaners once a month for 8 months of this year! Which was great! Although I felt like I cleaned before the cleaners came and aside from the deep cleaning they did in the bathrooms and kitchen, I felt like my work was really pretty sufficient. 

I'm not really trying to complain. But I am being realistic. It is what it is. And this year, this year without my Ph.D. and with three, not one or no children, has left me without any excuses. I'm not too busy researching congressional documents that discuss food security or analyzing which years had more media documents highlighting foreign hunger. I have been home with my children and homemaking (oh I hate the sound of that word, but this year I've realized that it's a real thing! You really DO have to make a home! It's crazy!) as my two top priorities. (Don't read that to mean that when I was working on my Ph.D. that my children were not my top priority, they were, but I had to balance a bit more...). So yeah. No distractions and I find that homemaking takes up a ton of time. And I'm still not that great at it. I mean, if you do it right and fully it takes a ton of time. I don't. But it still takes a lot of time to make a mediocre home with dinner most nights. Does anyone else struggle with this?

Again, this is just one aspect of 'staying at home' but here is a summary of what I have discovered this past year:

1. Homemaking is a real thing.

2. It is drudgery. Only because it's never-ending. I can do something for a few days, a week or two even - be 'on top of it.' But then I get burn out and I need a day or two off where the house ends up a mess and I don't make dinner and we don't even have leftovers and I get lazy and Marc really has to step in (he steps alongside me in most of these things, just so you know, but in these moments he pretty much has to take over). 

2a. When I get burn out I usually treat myself to a girls night and/or become a mad woman (in every sense of the word) and storm about cleaning and griping at everyone else to clean.

3. I like a clean house. I may not achieve it all the time, but I feel SO good when it is spotless. 

4. My poor children hear this too much: "Yes, you can do downstairs to play but DON'T get out any toys or mess anything up!" Good thing they are great at imaginative play. 

5. Having a small child (ahem, Claire, I'm talking about you) really makes things so much messier. 

6. I have no excuse. 

7. There is more to life than a clean house. 

8. But I do enjoy it when a clean house (and dinner) is part of my life. I think my family enjoys it as well. 

The end. Gotta get the dinner dishes finally cleared now. :)

February Goal: Exercise!

So, for Feburary 2015 my personal, modest goal was to wake up a wee bit early and exercise a little bit every day (Sundays as exceptions). February's goal average came out to be just about as much as January's... hovering around 70%. Yes, that sounds like a C-. Something that I generally do not find acceptable. But I will tell you that I feel okay. (Wow have my standards lowered! :)) Why do I feel okay? Because 1) it was a little more and better than what I've ever done in the past and, 2) I also incorporated January's goal into my life. So... it's kind of like a President Hinckley motivator: try a little harder to do a little better. This is better goal-making and keeping than previous years, so... I like that!

Full disclosure: I think I only woke up early ONCE to get up and exercise. But I did exercise more than normal on a more frequent basis. I'm not talking about running miles. I'm talking about yoga, doing a short workout via an iPad app, and surfset! A friend of mine in the neighborhood is trying to become certified as a SurfSet instructor, which is basically like an aerobic and yoga work out on a surfboard that is suspended on exercise balls to give the illusion of actually balancing on the water. Pretty fun! It was kind of a win-win-win: I needed to work out, she motivated me by offering to be a 'personal trainer' in something new, and I served as her guinea pig. It was once a week and is still continuing. Luckily she lives in the same neighborhood, otherwise on some of those crazy snow days I probably wouldn't have made it to her. We used to go on Wednesday nights to the gym at the Walter Reed so that I could do yoga with this wonderful instructor and Marc would take the girls swimming, but we had guests and snow and the kids had colds, so February wasn't a great month for that, but other things filled the gap, like the iPad app. So yes. I did work out! Goooooal! And I liked it. I didn't wake up early, but that wasn't the point. I feel happy.

Additionally, I've been keeping up with my January goal. Again, not on a daily basis, but I have been reading my scriptures more and taking more notes and attending an Institute class on the Old Testament. We're studying Isaiah and it's so nice. I thrive in structured learning environments! So even though I was only about 65-70% on my January goal, I'm glad that that goal didn't just disappear at the end of the month. It's become somewhat of a habit! And isn't that the... goal? Yes, yes it is. I feel more cognizant of both my thoughts and spiritual study and cherish the notes I take and I am more mindful of listening to my body and wanting to exercise a bit. Hopefully some degree of these goals will continue to carry with me and truly become habits... Happy!

Modest beginnings for a better year. Stay tuned... March goal: oral hygiene! Read: floss EVERY day.

Here's some pics!

We hang out at the DC Temple Visitor Center at least 1 out of every 4 Sundays after church. My girls love it! It helps pass the time while we are waiting for Marc to finish up clerking stuff. The senior missionary couple there, the Whites, have become friends because we frequent so much!

This girl may be 'underweight' according to some paranoid pediatricians (you can see there is still no love lost between me and pediatric medical personnel - bah!) but this girl can eat! Believe you me! 1 year old, 15 pounds, loves food. 

My two home-bodies. While Madeleine is at school Sophie and Claire have really learned to bond. Most of the time. They love this "magic" sand!

Gymnastics this winter. Both girls have much improved since last year. Madeleine's got mad rope climbing skills and Sophie has become so much more confident on the beam!

Installment #2 of Childhood Memories: Saturday Morning Breakfast

Adding to my memories of my childhood... Saturday morning breakfast were a happy ordeal. I particularly remember when we were young how my brother and I would be watching cartoons (I'm remembering shows like X-men and Looney Tunes) and then my mom and dad would come down, scare us from behind the couch where we were watching TV and then start on breakfast. Pancakes (Bisquick mix!) were my dad's specialty. My mom used to make coconut syrup sometimes, too. And orange julius. Yes, that drink. I'm thinking just ice, sugar, and canned orange juice, but I remembered we thought it such a treat! Sometimes they'd shake it up with Lime Ricky... I think? Grape juice, ice, and lime? I don't remember exactly. But! I do remember sitting and eating our non-cereal breakfast and having my dad read scriptures out loud as we ate. A happy and comforting memory.

Saturdays are still a big deal now with my own kids. Something about having Marc home makes it extra nice. He usually does a big breakfast, responding to the kids' requests: pancakes or crepes are favorites; or his own desires: omelets; and I get my favorites too: eggs, hashbrowns, and bacon. But it's not just the food. We love to go out! We are in D.C. after all and there is much to see and do. We love this city. Smithsonians, plays, free events, holiday celebrations, restaurants, you name it and we are game to try it! And while I think that the past 4 years have enabled us to sample nearly everything in this area I still get surprises of areas and events that I have yet to experience! Vive D.C.!

A children's play in Alexandria, VA. 

Church activities.

The American Visionary Art Museum on MLK Day.

Federal Hill in Baltimore

Outside a delicious Lebanese restaurant near Federal Hill

The best time of the day

I tell ya, it's my favorite part of the day. When the stars align and I don't have to wake up a sleeping baby or toddler (is Sophie still a toddler now that she's 4? well, sometimes she acts like one), or even when I do have to wake them up, and if the weather is decent, and we don't have to drive directly to teach piano after... well then, it's my favorite time of the day! Time to walk to pick up Madeleine from school! I love that it's a short walk - just a half mile - just long enough to hear a bit about her day and short enough for Sophie and Madeleine to reunite in happiness without any sibling bickering.

 I love the neighbors' houses we pass and the trees. I love seeing the girls run ahead, sneak up on kitties, admire the trees, chase squirrels, say 'hi' to Sophie's favorite bush, lay down on the grassy lawns to enjoy gazing up at the sky, jump off stumps, push the stroller, run up the hill to the school cheering themselves on by saying, "I have energy!" (or as Sophie says, "I have super ENGergy!"), peek at Claire in the stroller to see if she's alright, or more recently, walking slowly with Claire hand in hand. I love it when the neighbor girls walk with us and we look like a gaggle of girls in all their backpack, coat, and legging colors. I love when it's just us and I can listen to Sophie and Madeleine exchange information about their day or be excited to tell each other about something wonderful that happened while the other was away. I love it when they count the cracks or lines in the sidewalk or ask me questions or try to scare Claire in the stroller. It's just an idyllic time. Usually. I cherish the walks home from school!

Note; The walks too school are generally a little rushed, but sometimes, when I'm on my A-game, those are just as enjoyable! :)

Another note: These are only half of the great pictures I've taken on our walks... but I cannot seem to find them right now because my picture organization is terrible. Instead of agonizing over it, I just have to move on. Move on! In the name of blogging and getting a FEW memories down in this format, I accept far less than perfect posts! So it is.