M&M BIRTHDAY BASH

Have you ever wanted a party filled with M&Ms. Well, considering my twins, that is just what they wanted and just what they got. We played games all with M&Ms and had a M&M candy station. It was tons of fun and the kids loved it.

The first part of our party was the arrival games. We had a guessing how many m&ms were in the jar, we had music and M&M balloons to play with. After that it wsa outside play time.

 We had ropes strung up in our backyard and had a race to see who could do the course the fastest while carring an m&M on a spoon. They had tons of fun and winner got a prize.

We had about 15kids and they had so much fun. After the ropes course we headed inside to play don't eat M&M PETE, We had two different groups and they all had so much fun.

 This is one of the groups playing the game. After don't eat pete. We went outside and played M&M Dodge ball with little rubber balls the kids got to take home with them.  Sorry, no picutres. I was too busy playing referee.

We had music playing and dancing while we did all the games. It was so much fun.

 Then we headed in for Presents. Lots of kids and lots of fun. The twins were pretty spoiled.

 Cake time. M &M for my M&Ms they designed there own cake and I made it. They wanted a bag and each their own m&M.  They even wore clothes to the party that matched there M&M. Cute girls. I can't believe they are 9. Wow, how time flys.

After cake and Ice cream. We headed outside for the color part of our night. We tried to make glow in the dark bubbles, but the bubble jars glowed but not the bubbles themselves. Maybe next time I can try adding more glowstick.  They had fun painting with it on my porch and playing with the glowsticks.

 We gave them all glow sticks and they had a great time in the dark.

At the end of the night, we prepared an M&M stations with tons of different kids of M&Ms and they each got to fill a bag with their favorite kinds. It was a mess, but so much fun for the kids and us. This party was totally worth it and they had so much fun.

Beach Bonfire

Momoishi beach is beautiful and a great setting for a bonfire. The ward members here are amazing and because all of us are so far from family we are each others family. We support and love each other through everything. We went down to the beach with members of the ward family and had a big bonfire. It was so fun.

Melanie digging a hole and building a castle.

 

Just great Fun, love and laughter.

Hirosaki Castle and cherry blossoms

Cherry blossoms are beautiful.  The Japanese love these trees and have them planted everywhere. During there week long blossoming there are blossoms everywhere and it is gorgeous. There is a big festival at Hirosaki Castle so and with this castle closing in the coming months because of construction, we decided to pay a visit to this festival. It was beautiful.

 The festival had water glass players, drummers, and chanters.

 

 The water glass family was one of my favorites and even played music we recognized.

 

 The grounds of the castle are covered in cherry blossoms and they have beautiful red bridges carrying you across the motes.

 Going with friends made it even more special. It was a great way to have fun in Japan and make lasting relationships.

Some twin love with the blossoms! I just love how much they love and care for each other.

 I was there too. It was beautiful, and oh so very crowded. I am surprised we got a picture with just us in it. The bridges are filled with people.

 

The Blossoms are beautiful. I also posted a few on Facebook for all to see. Hope you enjoy the beauty Gods gives you each and every day.

Field Trip. Air space museum

Landon got the opportunity to go to the Air Space museum here in Japan. It was a wonderful fun place to go.

 They put us in a tube and shot us up into the sky. It was fun and the kids loved it.

 This was Landon being strapped in. They each got to control how they tuned and twisted.

Giant imprinting machine.

 

It was a great fieldtrip with tons of fun.

Landon Spelling Bee

Landon is such a smarty pants. He made it in the school spelling bee without even studying. He just remembers things. Good job Landon. He came in 3rd.  Way to Go LANDON!

Melanie and marissa Recycled performance

Wow we have had so many different performances lately. They have been so much fun and I am so grateful that the school and teachers are so dedicated to fun ways of learning. The twins participated in a performance about keeping the Earth clean and taken care of. They talked about Recycling and danced and sang. It was wonderful.

spring Break, part 4. Jesus's Grave

On the top of a steep hill in a corner of northern Japan lies the tomb of a shepherd who, two millennia ago, settled down there to grow garlic. He fell in love with a farmer’s daughter named Miyuko, fathered three kids and died at the ripe old age of 106. In the mountainous area of Shingo, he’s remembered by the name Daitenku Taro Jurai. The rest of the world knows him as Jesus Christ.

Japanese love their folklore and have many stories and traditions that they participate in on a regular basis. We discovered an interesting folklore and decided we needed to see and hear about it in person.

 

Shingo, is a city near where we live. They have the greatest story that they tell about Jesus Christ and this is how it goes......

Jesus first came to Japan at the age of 21 to study theology. This was during his so-called “lost years,” a 12-year gap unaccounted for in the New Testament. He landed at the west coast port of Amanohashidate, a spit of land that juts across Miyazu Bay, and became a disciple of a great master near Mount Fuji, learning the Japanese language and Eastern culture. At 33, he returned to Judea—by way of Morocco!—to talk up what a museum brochure calls the “sacred land” he had just visited.

Having run afoul of the Roman authorities, Jesus was arrested and condemned to crucifixion for heresy. But he cheated the executioners by trading places with the unsung, if not unremembered, Isukiri. To escape persecution, Jesus fled back to the promised land of Japan with two keepsakes: one of his sibling’s ears and a lock of the Virgin Mary’s hair. He trekked across the frozen wilderness of Siberia to Alaska, a journey of four years, 6,000 miles and innumerable privations. This alternative Second Coming ended after he sailed to Hachinohe, an ox-cart ride from Shingo.

Upon reaching the village, Jesus retired to a life in exile, adopted a new identity and raised a family. He is said to have lived out his natural life ministering to the needy. He sported a balding gray pate, a coat of many folds and a distinctive nose, which, the museum brochure observes, earned him a reputation as a “long-nosed goblin.”

When Jesus died, his body was left exposed on a hilltop for four years. In keeping with the customs of the time, his bones were then bundled and buried in a grave—the same mound of earth that is now topped by a timber cross and surrounded by a picket fence. Though the Japanese Jesus performed no miracles, one could be forgiven for wondering whether he ever turned water into sake.

 

It turns out that Jesus of Nazareth—the Messiah, worker of miracles and spiritual figurehead for one of the world’s foremost religions—did not die on the cross at Calvary, as widely reported. According to local folklore, that was his kid brother, Isukiri, whose severed ear was intombed in an adjacent burial mound in Japan.

All of this sounds like the life of an average Joe, but the truth for the Japanese remains the same.

The Shingo Savior is argued vigorously in the museum and enlivened by folklore. In ancient times, it’s believed, villagers of this city maintained traditions that did not resemble the rest of Japan. Men wore clothes that resembled the toga-like robes of biblical Palestine, women wore veils, and babies were toted around in woven baskets like those in the Holy Land. Not only were newborns swaddled in clothes embroidered with a design that resembled a Star of David, but, as a talisman, their foreheads were marked with charcoal crosses.

With all of these interesting facts and stories we needed to see where Christ was buried. So we traveled to this quaint little hill, the area is beautiful and peaceful. It has a short quarter mile walk with ponds, and crosses and little shrines, all while following a little stream. The Woods were beautiful and serene and we were grateful that we got to visit this beautiful place that they have deemed a holy place.

This is both Jesus burial sight and his brothers ear.

Stream while walking the grounds.

Spring Break part 3

So you know the movie CARS?!   When they cars are put into an elevator. That is what happened to our car. We pulled in onto a turn table, it turned us 90degrees and then you dove into the elevator. You leave your vehicle and get a ticket. Bye Bye car. It was tucked safely in. Then when we returned you push some buttons pay your money and your car is returned in the elevator. CRAZY! But AWESOME.

 

Then for the last adventure of Wednesday we went to see big Buddha.

 

This is not big Buddha but it is on the same grounds. This is a five story Pagoda. Pagodas were originally shorter and used for enshrining Buddha's remains. India brought it into Japan along with Buddhism. The most famous Pagoda is in Kyoto and is 180ft high. This one is 120ft high and is the highest north of Kyoto. It is made of Japanese cypress trees.  The center pillar at the top is actually hanging from the very top it helps it to be resistant to earthquakes by absorbing the tremors by swinging back and forth like a pendulum. They have never had one destroyed by and earthquake do to its design.

A little farther down the path you find these beautiful pin-wheels. Pinwheels are traditionally toys for children. The hillside is covered in many pinwheels. These are for unborn children. Their mothers come and pray to their unborn children.  They light candles, incense and leave sweets and stuffed animals for them.  They also have a guardian of the children who have passed on.

This is a statue of Kannon, if you look near his feet you can see an old man and old woman. This is a deity for older people who are beginning to forget things. Japan has the worlds highest longevity rate. They live longer, and they love living a healthy life without dementia, this protects people from dementia.

Big Buddha stands for the Japanese people to express there gratitude and Pray for their loved ones who died in war WWII. There is a place on the inside dedicated to praying for their souls and praying for their peace. This sacred structure is to lead you in the right direction. Temples are to sooth our restless minds and to lead us to peace and tranquility.

 

This path as you leave the statue is a place where you may make a wish. What did you wish for?

 

 

 

This concludes our wonderful busy Wednesday. It was fun and full of adventure.

 

Thursday morning we went to a park that reminded us of home. The good old USA. It is called Liberty Park (or at least this is what us americans call it)

 

 

 

 

What a beautiful park reminding us of America and our freedoms.

They had a rope zip line that was fun for the kids.

They also had a large roller slide. This was a big hit with the kids and they spent a long time on it.

 This is Lady liberty's baby since she is smaller.

 

It was a wonder start for Thursday. We even took our neighbors dog along for the adventure.

 

Part 4 has the last trek of our week, but it has an amazing story you all will want to read.

Spring Break...Part 2

Here is part 2. I hope you enjoy our many adventures.

Wednesday- AMori
        
Dad took off work so we headed to a city about 1 1/2hr away and did some sight seeing and some awesome things.
First stop was the aquarium.....

Here is the group ready to head in for some sea friendly fun.

 

These two fish were crazy. The little fish would swim into the big fish's mouth and clean it. Then swim out and the big fish let him without being tempted to eat him. Crazy.

These were weird looking eels,  They had a huge variety of sea creature I had never seen before, must be some different creatures on this side of the world.

We had the opportunity to watch them feed the dolphins. This one even stuck his tongue out for us. So cute.

They have a dolphin show. It was so much fun. The people were fascinated by our American family and kept taking pictures of us. It was funny.  We may not of understood what was said during the show, but it was beautiful and amazing.

 

 

After the dolphin show we went on another adventure........... We headed across the bay to an island called.... you know, that island called YUNO! (I think I am pretty funny) this was a great experience and well worth the time and money. This island is small but in april it is covered in little purple, white and maroon flowers. They are unique. They grow backwards. They point down towards the ground and then their petals grow up towards the sky. It is almost like they are flying flowers. We had a Japanese tour guide and understood a few things. Depending on how many petals are on the flower determines

the color. Also the white ones are rare and you really have to look for them if you want to see them. There is also a shrine and tori gate on the island. It was wonderful and a hidden gem that most people miss.

 

The Japanese are always so helpful and so kind.

We all enjoyed the boat ride to the island.

What a beautiful view to be able to drive out to.

Tori gate.

This was a Japanese tour guide. He was so kind even though we didn't speak much. He showed us and helped us along the path.

He pointed things out, like this big rock that fell down the hill and got stuck in this tree. It then began to grow around it.

Here is the whole group on the steep trail with beautiful flowers all around us.

Everywhere you turned there were beautiful blossoming flowers.

 

 

Here they are, pointing toward the ground instead of the sun. These purple ones were all over.

 The white ones were very rare. In fact in the whole island we only saw about 5 and the Japanese tour guide pointed them all out for us. I think he knew where they were. It was beautiful. So clean and pure.

 At the top there is a sign with more flowers. and you get a beautiful view. It was a great hike and a great day to enjoy the beauties that God has given to us.

There were also these vines near the bottom of the island. It reminded me about how we are stronger when we are united together. SO I took a picture to remember the thought.

This was a little shrine on the island. It was peaceful and quite, a place to reflect. I may not be Buddhist, but I sure appreciate how peaceful and calm they are and how much they are trying to do their best. Their shrines are respected and you can feel that when you are there.

Beautiful stairway leading to the shrine.

One of my favorite things are the tori gates. They are there to mark a sacred place. They are beautiful and calming. To enter a shrine you are supposed to enter through the gates, to show respect for the sacred place.

This day was full of beauty and love. We had one more stop this day, but so this post doesn't get too long I will post about it in my next segment. Stay tuned...... YOu don't want to miss out on BIG BUDAH