"Is my mom in trouble?"

So when something BAD happens to me, I have the habit of writing about it.

Cuz then I feel better.

So this is about today.

The day was beautiful, the morning was bright.

I dropped Kai off at his preschool. He's been learning lots and I've been so impressed.

"Good bye Kai! Have fun and learn lots!"

Gosh, I'm such a "mom" now, saying the same lame (sweet) things every other mom says.

With a light tune in my heart, I drove to the local Kroger. Tuesday's my shopping day.

I got everything I needed and checked out.

The total rang up to be $65.

I hand the cashier my wad of coupons and watched as the price came down.

Final cost for me? $12. I was ecstatic.

Great trip! I tell myself in my head. This is our week's groceries for a family of four, plus I got a few free CAT foods to donate to some people in our branch.

With a lighter heart, I headed to my all time favorite store.

Target.

I MISSED YOU! I think to myself, being away from this place while I was in Japan was a hard thing to do!

I wandered the aisles snatching up clearance items and clothes for the boys and much needed things, then was ready to go get Kai.

"MAMA!!"

aww, the smile that melts my heart. Someday, I think to myself, he won't even want to acknowledge me. Well, I'm gonna enjoy it for now. I give him a big squeeze and a fat kiss on the cheek.

"Ready to go meet your friends at Chick-fil-a?!" I ask excitedly. We've all been looking forward to it.

We cranked up some kids songs and headed out to meet our friends. Driving along the road, I see a bike coming from the opposite direction. By the time I realized it was a cop motocycle, it was too late, he had flipped a U and had his lights on. "ME?" I thought to myself incredulously. Let me tell you, that out of my decade of driving history, I've only received ONE ticket-and that was when I was 18. I also got pulled over while driving to AZ last year, but luckily, I didn't get a ticket, and that's about it. I've been a clean and good driver.

Well, to say the least, this cop wasn't very nice and I knew I was gonna get it this time.

Mean while, the kids were EXCITED.

"Hi!"

Kai called out from his seat in the back.

"Hi!"

said Jaiden too.

A friendly duo of sons I have.

"Hi!! HI!! Hello!?!"

Again, this cop wasn't a very friendly one.

"HELLO?!?!"

Kai and Jaiden were adamant to get a reply.

"Hi, are you a bike man?"

"Umm, ARE YOU A POLICE?"

The cop's still ignoring my boys and I'm antsy to turn around to hush them.

"Hey!" Kai was puzzled as to why he wasn't getting a reply, because they were plenty LOUD.

I finally turned around and spoke as softly and patiently as I could and in Japanese said;

"Hey kids, be quiet please, mommy's talking to this police man."

"IS MY MOMMY IN TROUBLE?!"

Kai was shocked but sounded pretty excited.

Please do tell me Mr. police man, why my mother is in trouble! He seemed to be amused.

I felt my face get hot with embarrassment or laughter, but this was no time to laugh.

the cop continued to interrogate me with questions.

"HI MR. BIKE POLICE MAN, IS MY MOMMY IN BIG TROUBLE?"

The cop never did crack a smile or even return a simple child's "hello."

JERK.

He wrote me up for two citations. Speeding, and for not having an updated insurance card in the car. Oh, and he said something about my license.

JERK.

Oh well.

Kids sure make things fun huh.

Glad this didn't happen on a day/week where I was on the verge of breaking. I think I handled it pretty well.

It's funny, because when I got pulled over in AZ back in June, my mom laughed at me (not mean). the following week, she got a speeding ticket. Then while in Japan, I laughed at her about it, bragging that although I've been pulled over, I've not received a ticket in a decade. So, it figures this should happen to me.

Anyway, on a random thought, I'm always thinking of how relieved I am that it was ONLY a speeding ticket or a citation. Why you ask? It's a good reminder to me to slow down and really obey traffic laws. It's so much better than if I would have gotten in an accident, or worse, had injured someone. It's a good reminder to us all that laws are really out there for our own safety.

The cop could have been a bit nicer though!

JERK.

The Book Thief

So I'll be honest, it was a slower start for me with this book, but I just LOVED the writing (very original, very creative and VERY different, yet "aww" striking) (guess I'm not so good with words if I'm making them up! ;) and it was a GOOD story. Great characters and great writing equals great book. It really made me feel things...well, you'll just have to read it!

The Book Thief

My Rating: 5/5 (really)
Pages: 550 - Speed: Fast
Subject: Historical Fiction

This is one of the most creatively written books about WWII given from a German citizen's perspective. Witty and refreshingly inventive, Zusak was inspired by his German mother's stories of the Nazi rein (watch it here). One particular memory was when a herd of Jews lead through town heading to the concentration camp. An old man that couldn't keep up was given bread by a watching boy. Weeping in the boy's feet, the man poured out gratitude. But a soldier tore the bread away, whipped the man dry and beat the boy to the ground. This story inspired the two polars of the novel, which are pure love and destructive evil- both part of the human experience. A little girl named Liesel is the main character who looses her family and is emotionally lost. She catches the eye of Death-the narrator-who is haunted by human suffering (instead of the other way around). He is gathering her little brother's soul when he notices the girl and takes pity on her (though he complains he was so busy those days). She is taken in by an unlikely couple who dangerously and quietly object to the Nazi agenda. Her old "father," Hans Hubermann, has such depth that you grow an extra heart valve for this shy accordion player. Saved by a Jewish comrade in WWI, he vowed to reciprocate to his rescuer if the need arose. In the middle of a city not unlike Munich, where "the sky was the color of Jews," the rescuer's son, Max Vandenburg, appears starving at the door where Hans is his only hope. Finding refuge in a corner of Hans's basement, Max and Liesel develop friendship while white-painting over the pages of "Mein Kampf" and writing in their own creations. Liesel becomes obsessed with the craft of book thieving in a mansion house where she delivers laundry. The little joy she can exude includes reading a stolen text, one titled "The Grave Digger." During rampant war, the characters are trying to find beautiful moments to maintain dignity and purpose. The novel speaks frankly of alluded terror and secret heroism, but does so so delicately it is appropriate for young teenage readers as well as adults. For example, referring to human nature, Death says, "So much good, so much evil, just add water." This is simply unforgettable and bound to be a favorite.

{Thanks http://jenbrownbooks.blogspot.com/}

Home

O-hoy hoy! I'm home!

Japan was good.

I learned a lot and felt a lot of things.

All good things.

It all seemed like a dream, to be there with my biological family, including my mother! It was truly a dream come true.

(photo above: Oba-chan (my grandmother), my mom, and me!)

Who do I have to thank for the amazing time?

so many people.

Thank you Oji-chan and Oba-chan, my aunts and uncles, thank you mom, thank you to those who helped my family while I was away in any way. (Marnie and Brett, that's you)

and thank you RONNY.

He watched the kids 24/7 for the whole 12 days I was gone.

Yes, he missed me.

He said the kids were more wild and harder to take care of than last year.

I laughed.

He said of all the 20 (estimation) things he had planned to get done around the house, he got done maybe ONE.

I laughed.

He said he's pretty tired and needs a vacation from that vacation.

I laughed.

He told me how grateful he was of me.

AWW.

He found himself getting LONELY,

with NO ONE TO TALK TO DURING THE DAY.

I laughed.

Now he will understand my late night PILLOW TALKS.

YAY!

He said he was ECSTATIC when he had visitors.

It's true.

Then the visitors complimented on "how clean the house was."

"why, thank you!"

he thought.

then he realized: I don't give enough compliments and "thank you's" to Monika.

That was nice, although I still laughed.

All in all, I've decided that I need to do this more often! ;)

I love you Ronny.

Thank you.

(left: Oji-chan (grandpa) me, Oba-chan, and mom)

Japan

I'm going to Japan in just a day or so. I can't wait. I don't know what awaits me, just that this is a very special trip for so many reasons. I hope I can come home and tell you all some neat stories!

I'll be gone from 10/27-11/7. I'll be in a providence called "Aichi-ken" with my biological mother, staying with her parents, my grandparents who I re-met just last year.

I thank Ronny and all of you who are already offering to help with the kids while I'm gone.

Please take care of my little family! I will miss them terribly.

Anatomy 101

We had babysitters this weekend while Ronny and I went out.

This is a story the babysitters told me as I went to drop them off.

Jaiden had been climbing on something, to which Eliza (babysitter) told him to get down, "because you might fall and crack your head open."

This is what Kai said:

"oh, that's okay, because I'd like to see what Jaiden's brain looks like!"

umm...

I've been trying to expand Kai's horizon a bit more since he's been in BUG WORLD for a while. Nothing wrong with it, I just want to encourage him to learn about other things too. So, to do this, we often go to the library and pick up random books from the "discovery" series. Spaceships, kings and knights, castles, ocean creatures, fossils, you name it, they've got it.

Kai's been into Anatomy and things like Brains and Hearts lately, so I'm guessing that's where this comes from, but a bit morbid! Just too funny.

Apple Pie

per a friend's request, here's my homemade apple pie recipe.

Pie Crust:

1 C. shortening

2 C. Flour

1 tsp. salt

5-7 Tbsp. cold water

Whisk flour and salt together. Add shortening and using a fork, cut it into the flour mixture until it mixes, making tiny balls of shortening and flour. Add 5-7 tbsp. of cold water into the mixture and make two dough balls. (for two crust layers) Roll out into pie dish

Apple filling:

6-8 large apples (golden delicious is best for pie) thinly sliced and peeled

1 tbsp. lemon juice (optional)

1 cup sugar

2 tbsp. flour

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg

mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Pour filling into the crust and layer the second crust on top. Slice open a few slits in the top crust to let air escape while cooking.

cook in oven 350 degrees for 1 hour, let cool before slicing.

Genocide

I just recently read a book called "Left to tell" (see entry in older post) about the Rwandan genocide that took place not even two decades ago. Tonight, I'm watching a story about genocides all over the world on PBS. It's mind-boggling to think that genocides happen everywhere...all the time.

I have shed a few tears watching this show tonight, and more than anything, I have a burning desire to help. "Help" is a helpless word to me right now, but I want to do something. I don't know what, but my heart goes out to the world. What is there that I can do? Not only do I want to learn about genocides and what happens around us, but I want to make a difference, somehow...

As I watch this program though, I've really been humbled. Most things I do each day don't even matter in comparison. The shopping, the glam, the makeup, the silly TV shows, the gossip...what really does matter is that I get to hold my boys tight in my arms and tell them how much I love them each day.

How grateful I am that no one will machete me and my family down to pieces, or rape and torture me and smash my babies into the ground. Gosh, if I've learned anything from both the book and this program, it's to try to live...live the life that matters....

So much of what the world has to offer just doesn't matter...

and I have SO much to be grateful for.

I pray that the Lord will guide me in preparing myself now for something that I can do in the future that might make a difference to make this world a better place.

Creepy

It's dark outside, despite it being 6:15am.

All is quiet around the house, and not even a cricket stirs outside.

The air is chilly and I don't want to get out of the bed.

Suddenly, I see my bedroom door open and Kai staggers in with his white blanky dragging behind him.

Oh sweet child, come lay with mama in my bed.

He comes and snuggles with me as he does every morning.

Suddenly, Kai whispers from under the covers...

"Someone's coming..."

My heart stops.

I try to play the child's sentence off like it was nothing, but suddenly, everything in the room looks like hungry monsters waiting to attack. I close my eyes.

Then the child snaps up in a sitting position and says

"Someone's here," as he begins to talk to him...or her...or IT.

I try to calm myself but my head's in a panic as I lie still, hoping that by me not moving, the "monster" won't notice me.

I don't know why he did it, or if there really was anything...but to my embarrassment, I got scared. lol Writing this now seems pretty silly, but when all is dark outside, it can be your worst nightmare. (I didn't mean for this post to be dark and scary, it was supposed to be funny, but I don't think it came out to be!)

Has anyone had this happen before? CREEPY! I have heard that kids are "more in in tune" with the spirit world or wherever, but is it true? anyway, I thought it was silly, but it did scare me...

Cooking Day

I have here, tomato and meat sauce (front right), roasted homemade salsa (back right), shredded boiled chicken (left front) going at the same time.

This is what my kitchen looks like on a big cooking/prepping day.

This is another cooking day I did recently. As I said before, I like to BULK COOK, which simply means that I COOK IN BULK.

Here's a few pictures of what I did.

Grated cheeses (we use a lot of shredded cheese for omelets, scrambled eggs, Mexican dishes, over rice for the kids, etc, sliced cheese--for grilled cheese sandwiches, diced some cheese--for kids snacks, chopped red onions--excellent in egg dishes or Mexican dishes, chopped olives-- sliced baby tomatoes, made potato salad, shredded cabbage---great on sandwiches or ramen, stir fry or soups and made some Japanese miso-soup (you can kind of see it behind the tomato and cabbage)

I made a HUGE pot of meat and tomato sauce. I figure I got about 5-8 spaghetti meals out of it, or a few lasagnas and a few spaghetti dinners.

This is the spaghetti sauce divided up into smaller containers--and into the freezer!

Here, you can see the diced cheddar cheese I like to give the kids for snacks, and I chopped up sausages(handy for breakfast, lunch or dinner in egg dishes, mac and cheese, or fried rice or just by them self), chicken meat in strips for "Ritz cracker chicken", cooked and shredded chicken for Enchiladas or soups, and etc--these went into the freezer.

I usually have my veggies rinsed, DRIED and chopped/sliced/cut/diced/shredded and in tupperware in the fridge at all times. (I take about one day of the week to do this) This way, we seem to eat more veggies. Making eggs? Simply pull out a few containers of already chopped olives, tomatoes, mushrooms, bell peppers, sausages, etc and make an omelette or yummy veggie filled scrambled eggs!

No time to cook and resorting to ramen? Boil with it, a handful of shredded cabbage and sliced carrots! Want something quick for snack time? How about sliced apples or cheese, or Ants on a log (celery sticks with PB and cranberries on it)?

anyway, I think you get the idea, but I just wanted to show you a few pictures of what my cooking day looks like. It takes a little bit of time to get all this done from washed, dried to cut and in containers, but in the end, you save SO MUCH time in the end, and you'll find yourself eating healthier, because in a sense, everything is right at your finger tips. Just pull out a container, and throw in a few ingredients to finish off your dish!

Jaiden

Jaiden's to be quite a cute little kid. He's still a punk most days, but he's definitely a charmer.

He's learned this new trick where he says

"Oh, HI MAMA!" or "Oh, HI DADDY!" with the darnest smile and tone.

If you're not careful, you get suckered into it and have your heart melted on the spot.

"Oh hi Jaiden...."

you say with all smiles...

wait a minute....

JAIDEEEEN?!?!

He only does that when he's being mischievous and he knows it.

but it's just the cutest thing!! :)

He's been saying more and more words, and I'm afraid he'll be talking non-stop in no time.

OH HOW I DREAD THAT!

;)

If he's anything like his big brother, SHOOT ME NOW!

His new found love is for GHOSTS, saying "TRICK-OR TREAT", WITCHES and anything to do with Halloween. He's also saying lots of words in Japanese, like "atta (I got it), doko (where), "haku" (to put on his shoes), etc and he most certainly does understand everything I say to him in Japanese. It's amazing how kids can be bilingual at such an early age! It never ceases to amaze me.

Jaiden loves his brother and is FEARLESS.

The other day, we went to Chick-fil-a with some friends for lunch. as I glanced up from the table to check on the boys who were all in the play-ground area when I saw little Jaiden snatch a shoe from a rather tall and older boy and RUN with it. The boy began to run after him, not knowing what had just happened, but realizing Jaiden had tiny fast legs, couldn't catch up to him and began to cry. It all happened in matters of seconds, but I COULD NOT BELIEVE IT! That little punk! He really knows no bound.

And yet, we have time and time again decided that we'll keep him. :)

We sure do love his energy, and well, for the laughs he brings in to our lives.

We never can fathom what life would have been without him, although it was a close call and give many many thanks to our Heavenly Father for allowing him to stay with us...punk!

;)