Welcome to Okinawa "Home" Andy

We welcomed Andy back home on my birthday, great gift idea. So I'm only about 2 months behind on posting, so sorry. But with Andy's arrival also came summer and and all the fun that comes along with it. Andy is doing so well and looking so good. We see him on weekends and sometimes during the week. Just last week he went with us to the "Twilight Swim" at one of the base pools. We do allow him to have a life of his own, it is hard for us, but we are getting better, ha ha ha. I will post more pics ASAP as I don't want to get behind anymore. A few highlights/news is we are officially a FARM now. Having a dog, two cats, one indoor and one outdoor. In Japan this certainly qualifies you as a Loony Farm nonetheless. So, we try to live up to the expectations of our peers. Although, now that the dog and cat aren't out to kill each other and are very civil, life is manageable. Upon the ending of school, we immediately made a mad dash for OKUMA Resort and spent a week, just the 5 of us. Tom and I are getting old as we got up early, played in the water for a few ours, brought the kids in for food, reading, crafts, naps (us too), then out again in late afternoon for more water fun. Even at that Bethany started out as a Japanese princess, ending up looking like an Hawaiian princess all brown and beautiful. And this was with layers of sunscreen. The past few weeks have been filled with summer school for Juda and summer home school activities for Bethany along with many visits to the library for summer reading programs. Water park visits, pool visits, fireworks demo in the front yard for the 4th etc.......We continue to meet many new Japanese folks, bringing them home with us and hoping they'll come back again, ha ha ha. Oh, did I mention we will be moving in Dec. So stay tuned to the blog to here more about that. Tomoyuki is crawling and doing a great job at it, getting into the dog/cat bowls, etc....... The Ai no Kesshin Ministry is going strong and keeping us busy, just the way we like it. Pray for birthmothers that they will choose life for their babies and that if they can't raise them to please not put them in orphanages, to let us place them in christian homes. We seem to be getting so close to some mighty work here and it is exciting for us, still with lots of hard work ahead. All our children are doing quite well and are all healthy at present time, which makes for a happy household. More to come, keep watching for some pics, I'll do my best. Oh, one more thing.....we have an up and coming model/models among us, take a look at the pic again and see if you can guess who it is. Keep checking the blog for more late and breaking news.

Eating IceCream should be FUN!!!

Since Tomoyuki's tonsilectomy, we have been giving him ice cream to sooth his throat. Soooo I thought he'd like to try eating it from a little cone by himself. Well.......so much for what I thought. Or maybe it is just too cold for his finger. Who knows....because within a few seconds he was fine again.....


mmmmmm gooooooood...................
By the way....I am just about back to my old self since surgery and sleeping all night long, and breathing very well. Now for more hearing tests and to get ready for hearing aids.......

Spring Pics

Happy Easter to you all, better late than never...... Hey look what came in this little Easter Basket.......
Tom celebrated his 46th Birthday. In Japan they use the big candles to represent a decade and the little ones for single years. They are so creative. So....see the 4 big ones and the 6 little ones glowing. This keeps from catching your cake on fire in your later years of life. Especially because they have such small B Day cakes. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, they are delicisious.
It looks like Tomo is saying "WooHoo, that was some good BDay cake. Get in my belly!"
Only in the Smith Family do we reward children for blowing bubbles....out their nose!

Juda dressed as none the less...."The Cat in the Hat", at the Reading Parade at school.
Juda is so proud of his egg collection, found mostly in the bushes behind him.
Bethany dressed in her PJ's, for the "Sleep Book" by Dr. Seuss along with her teacher.
Bessy dropping them in as fast as she can......
Tomo trying real hard to reach just one in the bushes......his first egg hunt, yippee....

A little of what we are up to, besides being too busy to post of the blog........

Okuma in January was beautiful and just what we needed to recoup after the holiday travels.
Always fun to have an excuse to enjoy a giant chocolate chip cookies, "Happy Valentines Day"
Tomoyuki warming on a rock just like a little, or should I say, BIG lizzard

W will try to dig up a picture from when Bethany and Juda were not even walking, trying to balance themselves on this same little bridge at Okuma years ago.

Meet "Brodie", our new family member. We weren't planning on a new family member, seems we hear our selves saying that alot of late, however, he needed a home and he has fit in nicely. He doesn't realize he is a dog, so when we leave him home along, and don't take him with us, which he loves to ride in the van, instead he stays in his nice little house, which looks like a jail, he likes to chew up whatever is left with him. So a baby blanket and a nice little doggy bed is of no more, well if you want to sew them back together they could be once again, but he likes to show is dislike of being left alone by chewing. No he is not a puppy, he is 4 years old. As hoped for he loves to sleep with whomever. He starts out the evening with Bethany, then takes turns between Ben and Caleb, sometimes ending up in bed with Tom and I. He is a sweet little guy, we are enjoying him alot. And one of the guidelines I made sure of was that our next pet would be small enough to fit under the airplane seat not in the belly of the plane, and he made is way to Okinawa just that way, so there you have it.
Bethany and Juda enjoying a game of bowling, notice the bright pink ball about to take out a few pins on the right hand side.
Tomoyuki thinking he is going to take a bite of "Salad".
Okuma is really spelt, RELAX. We love going there to get caught up on REST.

I will keep trying to catch up on the past few months in pictures and activities that we have enjoyed. All the Smith's for now are well and enjoying life.

Catching up!!

Introducing Thomas Yuki Smith aka Tomoyuki

Today we gave our final signature and then we were issued Tomoyuki's Adoption Decree "Shimpan". We are so thrilled. I think he is too, according to this picture anyway!!

Go to www.boxofloveokinawa.blogspot.com

Go to www.boxofloveokinawa.blogspot.com to see how 600 children on Okinawa were blessed by receiving a "Box of Love" from Ai no Kesshin and those who supported this ministry for the 2007 Christmas Season. The boxes were given by many generous hearts and hands............................

They were placed in our home, hallways, bedrooms, every space available........................

Then loaded back up to go to the children..................................

Then given to every child that we could find that needed a "Box of LOVE".