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!

Language Collision (or Confusion)

Check out Max......... He is signing along with a Spanish song while living in Japan! (No...I didn't misspell that....I meant sign language)

You can imagine my surprise upon realizing that he was placed in a Spanish Immersion classroom just three days after arrival. Normally I would have been excited by the challenge.....maybe at the beginning of the school year. But with just weeks to go....it's caused a bit of an ego blow for poor Max (who was honestly having enough trouble with English). And aside from the fact that Spanish in Japan wasn't making a lot of sense to me either...?
Oh well. On with the show! We attended the schools year end Spanish Celebration....


and again I get that Spanish is a very valuable language, but with the melting pot of ethnicity's at his school.....(mostly from Asian origins) Spanish may very well be one of the few languages not already spoken at home.... so are all the kids at an equal disadvantage? This is also the day I realized I need a new lens for my camera. The zoom capability is just not going to work.....I mean really..... I couldn't take years and years of pictures like this.
"Look Mom!....See that little dot right there...?..There I am!"

Keeping Lillian entertained was a chore... so as always, I break down and hand over the camera...

Join me on a tangent...
Am I the only one that over thinks this?
We are sitting in a very packed assembly room. And luckily we arrived early enough to get a chair. After five minutes or so....the place is packed and Lillian keeps hopping up and down...inching her way on the floor to all the other kids.
Leaving an open chair next to me. Some late straggler Dad claims it and sits down.........Fine.
But as I look around.... I'm thinking....Does it look like this guy is my husband? Probably. People that I don't know and have yet to meet will assume so.......And it bugged me!
I'm sure he's a nice enough guy, but I realized how much I enjoy it when Mark swoops in and my second half is introduced. Ya, Mark is crazy and loud and sometimes I shudder at what comes out of his mouth......but I do think he's awfully good-looking and has some serious muscles to appreciate......so call me shallow (or spoiled), but I get a little sensitive about just some random guy sitting so close. I married for love and looks I guess.

Rodeo Boy III And Other Random Oddities

From the makers of Rodeo Boy I and Rodeo Boy II, they now bring to you.....

because every house needs some 'bucking fun'...?

Out and about with some girlfriends, we stumbled upon this little home entertainment gem. Right where it should be...next to the stair masters and home foot spas.

I've been enjoying myself, checking out all the local shops and malls and I've been trying to keep an open mind.... happy to try some new things...because you never know....?

Now I do.

This looked pretty good.....

...but it's not!
It's literally all chicken skin on a stick.

I thought these noodles would be a go.....
I even felt confident with the preschool picture directions...how can noodles be wrong?
Do you remember the 1980's, when perms were big? Do you remember how the salon smelled when the solution hit your hair and chemically burned your wave?

That's how this noodle sauce smelled.
And it tasted like it smelled.

'just cause I couldn't help it....it's so to the point.


And then I found the cutest little store, with what I assumed was all children's furniture...

Tobias loves this little table....we'll have to get it.
And I loved this for Max's room! It could be a little 'kid lounge'...and the price seemed to good to be true....only about $260.00

It was to good to be true .......$260 is how much the fabric cost, the actually sofa is $560.00, plus fabric......and it's actually for adults.....very little adults.

And my new favorite fast food joint. (With stroller parking out front because they don't fit inside....)
I think they put crack in their curry......it's ridiculously good. (And two days later your back for more.)

Happy 1st Birthday!

Just sharing some pictures from Tobias's first birthday....can you believe it's been a year? I can't....!






They look awfully similar to Max's party picts...go figure.
Bummed about having a party in a hotel...but oh wellThe day after his birthday he decided that he could walk (maybe he was waiting for an official date to mark the transition).....and just started to....just like that!

Our Waterfront Park Is Bigger Than Yours Is......

We've spent some wonderful times down on the waterfront. Waterfront park in Silverdale was the backdrop for many a picnic or get together..... and offered a pretty nice visual for pictures too.
Pearl Harbor had a so-so spot, but when in Hawaii you just can't compete with Waikiki or Ko Olina anyway.
But check this baby out.......The Yokosuka Waterfront Park takes the Harbor theme very seriously and it's pretty darn nice.
We stumbled upon what seemed to be a food festival this last Saturday. There was booths organized just like you would find at any community festival, but most of the food seemed deceptive. What would look like the doughnut booth (and Max's hopes would flair) would turn out to be fried dough with a meat mixture inside. And what looked a little like funnel cakes.....fried squid. The visual and the smell didn't match up most of the time. Luckily, Ice-cream is Ice-cream! (And we had hit Taco Bell before we set off so we didn't have desperately hungry kids. (You might think that if they're hungry enough they'll eat anything, but we've found the opposite to be true....they just get frustrated and cry faster).
Did I mention it was a gorgeous day! I only wish I had taken pictures of all the waterfalls, streams and fountain pools. We were there during the day, but it looks like it lights up into a beautiful display after dark. We'll have to check it out again.

Embrace The Wind

This crappy picture is relevant and important because:
A. I finally figured out how to take a picture with my fancy, new, and instructions still in Japanese cell phone! It's not great, but I was proud to stumble along and make it happen. (I've later since been able to change some of it to English.....Yes!)
Anyone want to call a Japanese cell phone? Try 090.4203.8222

B. I've learned to embrace my fine, thin, straight and very flat hair. I'm letting go of the fight against it and will accept that this is what it will look like for the next three years.........whether I spend 20 minutes fussing and fluffing...or not....IT WILL END UP LOOKING LIKE THIS the second I step outside.

C. Monsoon winds! The weather here is a strange mix. It's HOT, HUMID (worse than Hawaii....can you imagine?), but windy and stormy at the same time. It's tricky for your senses....you look outside and gear up with a coat, hood and umbrella.....only to find it's waaaaay to hot for a coat, the hood blows off and the umbrella gets flipped inside out. CRAZY.....glad I stored the patio furniture.

D. This is what I look like while waiting for the bus.....playing with my camera phone.........which I do a lot! Still no car.....

It's My Birthday?

With the move, a new school, a hotel for home and a serious lack of toys.....the kids have been surprisingly adjustable and upbeat. They seem to delight in the simplest things. Both were thrilled that
"Japan has a bowling alley and a pool?... just like Washington." "A soccer field and baseball field too..?...what more do we need?" When we took a trip up to Ikego and discovered all the little cabins for camping rentals.......they might as well have been in Disneyland.
Oh, did I mention that there are snack and drink machines everywhere.....I mean EVERYWHERE. At first I indulged the novelty.......but I'm over it. They still can't pass a snack machine without asking for something though.
Max struck up some friends from day one.......Lillian has been stuck making them on the fly (the one and only Preschool is totally booked).....but is happy with a couple of familiar faces here and there.
Soooo with all the newness going on, it wasn't a shock that Max had completely forgotten about his birthday. I think he had a vague idea it was coming up, but he had no idea what day it was.
We decided to show up at the school with cupcakes and balloons and surprise him.......and boy was he surprised. When he saw the whole family at the classroom door, he thought maybe something was wrong. We asked him if he had felt there was anything special about that day....? (actually they were having some kind of art festival that day and he had really enjoyed the Mimes....was that it?)
Lillian just couldn't wait anymore. "It's your Birthday Max! Happy Birthday!"
He loved it!
Later in our room we had his favorite dinner (Pizza from the pizza man.....cause it just tastes better than what Mom makes) and a small cake.
He also picked out some kind of magnetic roller-coaster contraption that took three hours for Mark and Max to build the next morning and Tobias about 30 seconds to destroy...."guess it will have to wait until you have your own room Bud."

Bon Voyage Party (and serious blog catch-up)

Falling behind on the blog, I'm sad.... because there are definitely tidbits I want to remember, so please bare with me while I play catch-up for a couple of posts.

The weekend before we packed up we hosted a 'Bon Voyage Open House', and it was a great send off! The kids were so excited about planning the party and helped brainstorm for themes and ideas.......ending up with all things Japanese. We also decided to share our new found appreciation for the art and beauty of sushi and decided to get creative with the veggie tray too. (The kids didn't seem to appreciate the food selection as much as the grown ups......go figure)

The Jannson's created a beautiful Syonara Durbens cake.......it was awesome! (The kids liked the cake part, and the endless fortune cookies, although I think those are technically Chinese) We had such a great time, and all the while I thought..."Having such great friends kind of sucks because I know how much we will miss them.......and that all these wonderful families will be a tough act to follow.......
So sad......I don't want to think about it................ I'll just focus on how happy I am we've gotten to know such great families! Love you guys!

Whirlwind of Settling

Who would have thought 'settling in' would mean a whirlwind of activity........errand running, appointment making, class attending, registration, enrollment, SHOTS!, and walking, walking everywhere (because we don't have a car and if you read my previous blog.....I'm in no rush to tackle a Japanese Drivers license).
Anywhooooo, it's been so fun and I've gotten to know the Yokosuka base inside and out by now. I love to tackle the maps and then walk (or run) every square inch until it feels like home.
Max started school this morning (which helps with our 'hurry-up-and-get-out-of-the-hotel-room-for-the-day-before-you-kids-drive-me-crazy routine). He was such a trooper and looked just fine as I waved goodbye this morning (let me stress MORNING because school starts at 7:20AM....which is CRAZY!). He was happy to discover that there was two other boys that were new too.
Today has been quiet..............finally! And now I can start to blog...Yaay! I'll start posting pictures as soon as I find out what I can and cannot take pictures of on base......and when we finally get out on the scene. Thanks for all the comments guys...................I miss you all and love to hear from you!

Hooray! We've Made It!

Yessssss! We've finally made it to Japan! After a groddy stopover hotel, five hours of hanging out in the Seatac airport (at 1:00am till 5:00am, wonderfully pleasant hours with small children), a 10 hour flight, a two hour bus ride and a very testy, tired and miserable baby............We're here! All in one piece and so happy to have the worst of it over!
We haven't seen to much up close (just cruising in the bus half delirious with exhaustion).....but the base is nice. Super neat and tidy. It's like 'tropical industrial' style. All the buildings look like heavy duty cement bunkers from the outside. (Mark says it's for good reason, we're right on the water and typhoon season is about to start, so we'll see why.)
The Fry family is picking us up for dinner tonight and I'm looking forward to seeing more of the local city..............check back soon for updates!

No Time for Picts

If I were to have pictures right now, they wouldn't be pretty anyway....... but I've given up waiting for something cute to blog about, I'll just share an update on the ugly truth...
So the movers are packing (and no complaints on how carefully they are wrapping each and every individual piece.....but it's taking FOREVER.....and boy they use a lot of tape)......And why do they need to leave all the windows and doors of the house open? All day?
Anyways, this visual chaos wasn't enough to test my sanity sooooo........ after selling and sending our washer and dryer on their way..........Tobias decided to get sick (very sick) all over his clothes (10 outfits so far) and every last towel and clean sheet we had....
Lillian burst out in a ridiculously persistent rash that is now spreading up her legs...(Yikes...no more play dates for now)
And I seem to have the early symptoms of Mastitis starting again.....

Don't get me wrong, I'm not whining......just a little overwhelmed.