We finally got our stuff!!!!!!

I'm sorry for not blogging lately....but we've been busy unpacking!!!

I didn't think I'd ever be so happy to unpack boxes in my life.  It's been over 2 months since we've slept in our own bed so this was a very exciting day!

The movers were scheduled to come at 8am and the other company who handles the temp furniture we've been living with gave me a window of 7:30-11am, so we knew there would be a little overlap, but we didn't care...we just wanted our things!!

The day started great....the moving truck pulled up around 7:40am and they waited until exactly 8am to ring our doorbell.

And after 2 cups of coffee-
I. was. ready.

and so were they....

{this was 1/3 of the guys who showed up to move-they brought 10!}

{sayoonara temp furniture}

{1st item I saw = broken}

{oops}

{sweet Japanese guys fixed it!}

{packed guest room closet}

{most boxes gone-let the organization begin}

Other than what you see here, only a few things came broken, so we were relieved.  All the major things (aka-things we really care about) came in one piece.  It probably looks like a disaster, but we are actually almost completely done!  

These guys ROCKED.  

I've never experienced a move like this-10 guys moved all of our stuff in 3 hours.  Break included.

Simply amazing.  

I'll post pictures once everything is organized and finished. :)

Tiger, Tiger Woods y'all!

We had a BEAUTIFUL weekend here in Misawa!  Fall temperatures are here and we're loving it.

My new friend Erin asked me last week if we play golf.
Hmmmmmm.....well......if by we, you mean Jeff and I, you all know that's a no.

Jeff does.  I've attempted.  I think I'm better at being the cart girl.  :)~

But I'm definitely up for anything and knew we would have a great time!

{At least I look the part}

{here we go!}

{putting pros}

{watch out Tiger}

{no problem}

{fore!}

{it was a beautiful day for golf}

BTW-Erin and I discovered they give FREE lessons-she doesn't need them AT. ALL.-so watch out Tiger, we're coming for you!!

It was an amazing day and we'll definitely be going again!

I'm so crafty

Ok, so the title of this post is just hilarious.

I mean, I love Pinterest as much as the next person, but not everything turns out exactly like I've planned it in my head.

We have an arts & crafts center on base that allows you to do small projects such as scrapbooking, canvas painting, drawing, pen making (is exactly what it sounds like it is) and..... painting ceramics! :)
They have a variety of things to paint: dishes, mugs, piggy banks, vases, etc, etc.

I chose mugs....shouldn't be too hard right?!  I've never painted anything in my life and this definitely made me feel even less artistic than I knew I already was!   But overall, they turned out okay and I actually think I'll go back and do more.  Taking orders now. :)

{before}

{after-almost perfect. boo}

{sic em bears}

I just saw they got in some skulls so I might be starting to decorate for Halloween.  My favorite!  And they have a set of plates with skull & crossbones on them...would be awesome for a Halloween dinner party!!
We just need some more friends to invite. ;)

Luck of the Irish-or lucky us!

Irish pubs are always a favorite of mine no matter where we are-
Ireland, Dallas, Las Vegas, Disney World
OR
even HERE IN JAPAN!

Lucky for us there's a great one right out the main gate!  We decided to head there last night with a few friends just to check it out.  The Japanese women who owns it lived in London for 4 years and loved Irish pubs so much she came back and opened her own.

(sorry in advance for my camera skills-flash was not cooperating)

{the pear cider was oiishi}

{a 4 leaf clover on the top of the Guinness}

{my favorite part-edemame was the only snack they served}

Shirahama Beach

Konnichiwa.  Genki des ka.  :)
(Hello!  How are you?)

We had a low key Friday night since I had a woodworking safety class Saturday morning (more on that later!) and we had planned to go to the beach afterwards in Hachinohe.

Hachinohe is a much larger city than Misawa, about an hour southeast, where there is a giant shipping port for this part of the country.  The major export here is squid; shipping out more than most other parts of Japan.   But Hachinohe offers a lot more to do than just eating squid-they have a giant sandy beach!!  So we hopped in the car and off we went!

Although the weather wasn't typical beach weather, it was perfect for us.  It wasn't busy at all and we felt as if we had the entire beach to ourselves.

{view from the parking lot}

{Jeff said the water was cold}

{rocks and pine trees lined part of the beach}

{look closely-pine cones!}

{trying to be cute-should have told that tire to move}

{taken right before the high tide came in and washed it away}

Thanks to the chickens

Some of you know we eat a lot of eggs, well.....actually, I eat a lot of eggs.  We easily go through almost 2 dozen eggs in a week!

You can buy eggs from almost anywhere here...

the commissary on base

Japanese grocery stores

outdoor markets 

AND 

vending machines!!

By the way, Japanese eggs taste better. We think the chickens aren't pumped with any kind of hormones, but we're not really sure.  The yolks are almost orange so they might just have radiation from Fukushima. ;)

So yesterday we desperately needed eggs and I desperately wanted to get them from a vending machine.   

Right out side one of the gates is this sign:

We've seen this sign many times before, but just hadn't had the chance to stop.  

{200 yen for a bag}

{up close}

Walk right up, deposit 200 yen into the slot and pick your bag of eggs!!
Here they are....

So I'm saying a BIG THANK YOU to the local chickens for making my day. :)

Japanese cooking class

Ohayoo gozaimasu!!  (ohio-go-si-mus)  Good morning!  Well, it is here anyway. :)

The base here does a lot of activities to get everyone involved: classes, tours, events, etc.  I decided to sign up for the Japanese cooking class which they offer once a month.  

This month recipes were sweet tofu wrapped rice balls, potato croquettes and egg pudding.   

I actually expected to be cooking myself, but when I walked in to see only 2 stoves I knew that wouldn't be happening.  

Probably for the best. 

Instead, 3 sweet Japanese ladies took over and showed us how to make each part of the meal.  They did give us a hand out with recipes, but while they were cooking I slowly realized they were not following the recipe AT. ALL.  Even the ingredients were different!  

{making croquettes}

{sweet Japanese lady making tempura soju-it's a leaf}

Sooooooo....egg pudding.  

This was gross.  

It has cooked chicken in the bottom and crab on top.  They steam the eggs so it's similar to a custard.

Again, g-ross.  

{ta-da!}

Overall, I'd go back to another class.

Let's hope next time they are doing ramen.

Ja mata!!  (see you later)