Stuff To Do In Japan.....Part 2

Give back to the community!
This last Saturday the young women in our branch, Max and I joined the American Redcross in 'Make a Difference Day'. The Main Gate of the Yokosuka Base has several walkways, elevators, and stairways that link the intersection. For some reason, it has been left unclear who is responsible for keeping it clean.........so it has gotten pretty darn nasty. We spent are Saturday scrubbing, scrubbing, scrubbing and we had a lot of fun in the process. (Except for the gum scraping, that was gross..... but an important lesson for Max.... he will never just through his gum on the ground after that.)

The best part of the day...?... As we got home, Max says "I feel really clean now..."
"Oh?" I said, "Is it because your hands got really wet and you were scrubbing things all day?"
"No" he says, "I feel clean, like I did something really good."

Stuff To Do In Japan.....Part 1

Put your kids on the market!
We've jumped on the modeling bandwagon and decided to see if we can get Tobias 'discovered'. I strutted him around the Modeling Fair and so far the reviews are good. We've already been asked for more pictures..!








Wish him luck!

Elizabeth the Elaborate

My slideshow seemed to be cut in half.......so I wasn't even in it. I was the one running around snapping pictures, so there is only one picture of my costume.

I love an excuse to play dress up.......the world needs more of these occasions.

A Knight of Murder

We had the chance to attend 'A Knight of Murder' last weekend. It was a blast! I had a Project Runway moment by pulling together a costume in one afternoon. It rocked and I totally impressed myself with my 'mad skillz'..... not bad for someone that can't sew!

A Shiner and The First Day

So I guess this is substance for two separate posts...and at the rate I've been going I should take advantage of that and stretch it out....but thinking better of it, it's more likely that I wouldn't post 'First Day of School' pictures until well into October........so I'll lump these all together.
First off, I'm proud to say Tobias has given himself his first official Shiner! Well, not proud of my mom neglect (I was in another room and not totally sure of what happened...something involving falling off the couch)....but proud that he lived through it and my mom response has now transformed into a "...well that will teach you not to do that again." Strange how unfazed you can be with your third child.
Something tells me this won't be the last time....and in fact, with the way he has embraced his climbing skills, we might be posting pictures of a cast soon.

He wasn't upset about his eye. He wasn't in pain at all...... He saw the camera...

He wanted the camera.....
He didn't get the camera.........


and here we go.......


Part Two. Lillian Had Here First Day of School! (I would have liked to have a picture of Max and Lillian together, but apparently I was too slow with the camera and Max took off running, not wanting to be walked to school by his mother. I guess that's appropriate for the third grade. I'll settle for his sneaky hugs, that he still calls me 'Mommy' and that when no one is looking, he'll let me kiss him goodbye.) Anyway, back to Lillian......
she was excited, but as she does, she gets really quiet when she's nervous. She lined up with all the other kids and waited for bell to ring. When the bell rang and the door swung open, she gave a little wave.....and that was it. See ya Mom!

Can I just say............YES!!! Two down, one to go! The last few days have been so QUIET! It takes having three to enjoy how easy one can be!

Lillian's Birthday Day!

Do you have those days when your just touched by how sweet and easy your kids can be.....?
Well I don't have many of those days....... but when they happen, I enjoy every second.
Lillian has always been my sweet angel child (until she's not)....and when she awoke on her Birthday I asked her what she wanted to do?
No big plans.......no big presents......she just wanted to make her Birthday cake, all by herself. So she did.



and she loved it!


Tobias....
he's just here for the marshmallows.

Max's Baptism!

It shows my serious blog neglect when I can barely remember my password. It's horrible......but I'm back!
We've been crazy busy with summer camps, house decorating, ballet, church activities, trips out and about, etc, etc, etc...... yawn....I know everyone has a full summer, not a great excuse not to blog......
Anywhoooo......we're back with big news .....
Max had his Baptism this last weekend and it was so touchingly wonderful. I teared up when we sang the opening song "Families Can Be Together Forever", (we sang this at Mark's baptism too) it was just too much.....and on came the water works....
Our Branch meets in a tiny building off base, so we used The Chapel of Hope on base for his big day. We had extended an invitation to all branch members and after sitting and facing forward for a couple of minutes while we got started, I turned back around to see just about every single branch member there....filling up the room. It was so special and such a testimony builder to see how much love surrounds us here.


Max kept saying "Wow! I didn't know I had that many friends. I have so many friends, there were a lot of people that came to my Baptism." It makes me tear up again just thinking about it. It meant a lot to him too. It is such a special occasion, one that is usually shared with family......but it was so special. We've been so blessed that way.

Mark was super nervous, but I've learned that he always does a wonderful job......so I wasn't nervous at all. I just glowed with happiness that two of my favorite men were sharing something so important. (Tobias is a favorite too, but he was busy poking at an unplugged DVD player and fighting off adoring fans....so he'll share the experience through pictures).



Max designed his CTR cake, because the Durben family always has to celebrate with cake! (Did I mention one of Max's favorite shows is The Cake Boss.... loves it!)
Program details aside, I just have to say that I am so proud of Max and his enthusiasm to begin his journey back to Heavenly Father and taking these first steps...and I'm so proud of Mark for all the work that he's gone through to make my dreams come true.

Talk About TEAM Work!

How many Japanese workers does it take to fix a loose shelf in your refrigerator?

4 or sometimes 5.

Nope this isn't a joke and I in no way mean to sound like I'm making fun. To see Japanese work ethic in action is actually pretty Awe Inspiring.

When we moved in, Mark had done the walk around with the building inspector, checking off any existing damage, etc....
The Inspector then said he would be back in 10 days to see if we noticed anything else.
Yesterday at 0800 (SHARP) he was back. The only thing we came up with was..... a floppy refrigerator shelf.

HE WAS ON IT! This morning at 0800 (SHARP) I had a maintenance team knocking on the door. They had with them at least five replacement shelves and a large tool box. Upon an inspection...and a group huddle conference, they concluded that the entire fridge would need to be replaced....
BACK IN FIVE MINUTES (seriously)....I had a new fridge.
They took everything out (with extreme care and respect and gently placed each item on the counter......and then just as carefully restocked it into the new fridge)

I had to take a picture. (sneaky....cause it would have been weird)
I had heard stories of how almost everything done is collaborative....but to see these efficient teams in action was really something.

P.S. This is probably a lame thing to blog about....but until my house is set up, I'm not getting out much.

How Lucky Are We?

It's kind of a pouty day.....
The sky is overcast, Mark didn't get home from work until 0800am, Tobias was up all night throwing up......and the kids are making me CRAZY...and it's only 0900.
I'm looking at empty boxes (just sitting and taking up all our floor space....) everywhere. Our house is still a disaster, and with it being the first week of summer break....it's slow going trying to piece it together.
For half a sec... I try to feel sorry for myself.....but then I look out the window.
Ocean front property makes it impossible to frown........Seriously? How lucky are we?
It reminds me of the views we had in Greece (at our very first $200/per month apartment)...then it reminded me of the views we had in Naples..........oh wait, then it reminded me of the views I enjoyed in Hawaii too...
Indeed, a perk of the Navy I enjoy the most is the Ocean front property. (The kind of views most have to pay thousands for).
This isn't the best picture yet........that will come......but it still makes me so happy to be here, even if the house is CRAZY.

Move 'In' Day

We should be sooooo excited, we've been counting down the days...... but for some reason I'm not feeling so excited today, I'm feeling OVERWHELMED.
Maybe it's because our living room looks like this
and the bedroom looks like this
and the dining room

I think I would rather just play with the kids.


In past moves I was soooooo ready to dive right in and full speed ahead unpack and organize the house. But maybe I'm getting older and change is getting harder..... or maybe because the kids are getting older and they make change harder, we're having a hard time getting things done. Real life continues and kid maintenance is a full time job, whether there is a house to unpack or not.
I guess I'll have to pace myself.........and enjoy the moment.
P.S. I really do love our new place. And the view we have of the Tokoyo Harbor is AWESOME! I'll post pictures when I have a lens that does it justice. And I'll also post the after pictures to these befores........ I'm bummed that the walls are 100% cement and the word is that shelves aren't possible.........but where there is a will there is a way and I REALLY LIKE MY SHELVES.... so it WILL happen.

Our Sweet Ride

Our 'Sweet' ride! Yes! I feel like we are taking steps towards normalcy....step one...
I've convinced myself it doesn't look like a mini-van....more of a big sporty hatch back?
And even if it did....it doesn't really count if your out of the country, right? I mean we have limited options as far as seating and hauling goes....trunk space is a luxury here....and there is no way you can fit two car seats plus one more into a Cube......
(I think it's the rational that movie stars use when shooting commercials overseas, but contractually guarantee that they won't be aired in America....lest people see that they've sold out to Timex).

I may have temporarily crossed over to the dark mini-van side.....but when I saw the vanity stickers I felt it was meant to be.

See Mark......the previous owner Manned it up!


P.S.
Check out this bad boy....

Yah...that's right I'm legal (and I've lost some serious respect for the Licensing Office because I have no business behind the wheel right now.)
On my trial runs to the grocery store I have to block everything out and say "Keep to the LEFT, keep to the LEFT, keep to the LEFT")
and this just in the parking lot!