Bits and pieces...

I have lightly mentioned about Noboru having to leave for training for his job, but I haven't really had the time to elaborate much more. So here is the post where, I can hopefully fill you in, as much as I can. Noboru was asked to go, in November for this February. So we have known for a long time. He was offered to leave in January or February. He chose to leave in February. I left that choice to him completely. They are being sent in sets of 2 men. 2 were sent in January, my bil Jun being one of them. Yes very unusual to have 2 professionals who are brothers who have the same career. Really unusual, I know. : ) The training period is for 30 days. So not forever. Not for years. Not for months and months on end. However, not for a short little 3 day trip either though. And so to be gone for 30 days, when we have school aged children, is a long time. If we had zero kids it wouldn't be too bad. Or too hard. But with kids, it is going to be a juggle. If you are a parent, no matter what age your kids are...I am sure you can understand what I mean. However he needs to do this because it keeps him current. And then in December more information came out, that they were now sending  2 different sets from Delta Narita in January and 2 different sets in February. However the other sets of guys... were going to be gone only for 2 weeks. Where as our sets are being sent for a full 30 days. So, the sets that are going for 737 training will be gone for 2 weeks. And the sets that will be gone a full month are going for updating...to be current... for the triple 7 training, updating training for the 777. Noboru is going for the 777 updates. And again since it is an American airline, the training is obviously in the states. You need to be FAA certified and current every single year. You do remember when Noboru had to go to Honolulu for training last year. So, yes, while I am used to this every year, it had never been for this long before. The January to February guys all came back. And now it is almost time for the February to March guys to leave. Will, I miss my husband? Duh, obviously. : ) Not to sound too lame but...he's my best friend. He cracks me up daily. I crack him up daily. He also helps me out, here at home a ton. He always takes out the trash. When he's home, he'll not hesitate to pickup the boys from school or take them to school in the mornings, just whenever he's home he helps. He's no slacker husband at all. He's a helpful husband. So yes...his presence will.. totally be felt. He's awesome. He's amazing. But again...he has to go. He *needs* to go. The 737 guys are going to spend 2 weeks on the west coast. And the triple 7 guys...I can't say where they're going, but my honey won't be on the west coast.  My dad knows where they're staying, I know where too, the kids know too and my bil Jun knows but other then that, nobody else knows, I think my mil knows too. But for their safety, I can't really say which state. Because it is training... everything is paid for, meals too, rental car and the hotel they're staying at is a crew hotel obviously, lol, and their choice was the Hilton or Hyatt, since those are our airline's 2 crew hotels. They each will have a super nice room, their own room, a suite with a living room and bedroom type room. So their stay will be nice. Noboru leaves Feb 20th and will be back in Japan March 20th. Bills are on auto pay, so him being gone will be okay, everything will get paid.  

If I were living in America and Noboru had to go away for a month, I would be just fine. There would be no language barrier. If anything happened, I could call a friend or family member. But being in a foreign country alone without my husband...I'd be lying... if I didn't say, I didn't feel even the slightest twinge of nerves. Or some slight fear. Yes, I drive and I am a little cruiser here in Japan, but honestly... there is always at the back of my mind....if I were to get into a car accident...or if something happened, my husband is here, he's got my back. And I got his. He will be here for me...no matter what. And now...for the next 30 days, after this Saturday...he won't be anymore. And honestly that's a teeny tiny bit scary, for me. So...what have we been busy doing? Just getting ready. Just buying things that we will need for the next 4 weeks. 8 frozen Costco pizzas are now sitting in my freezer. Again...you all know I cook dinner here at home, every single night. But you know...I am not a robot and I do get tired like anyone else would. And perhaps for a Saturday night, we can have 2 frozen Costco pizzas and a salad. Again...just nice knowing they are in the freezer, if we need them. A huge bag of mozzarella sticks. Again...to get a couple meals out of these and to dunk in the pasta sauce also in this picture. Again just peace of mind having it. Fresh  handmade pasta in the picture, mozzarella cheese, shredded orange cheese, sliced cheese for turkey sandwiches. 4 boxes of laundry soap, so a months worth. Toilet cleaning supplies. Just some things...that will help make our month an easy one. 

Cheese for turkey sandwiches. Again...just trying really hard to plan ahead. And hopefully be a bit ahead of the game here. So while Noboru is gone...I can make sure. Yes, meals are not a problem. Because I planned ahead. 

Again if we can get 2 or 3 easy meals with the mozzarella sticks. So be it. : ) Why make things harder on myself. Why not make them as easy as possible. : )

Chips for nacho night. We will have a couple nights of those too. And 3kg of flour. Flour, I need for karaage, cutlet, etc. Cookies. And it was just cheaper buying at Costco. 

An extra pack of shampoo and conditioner and 2 extra packs of body wash. Again...just want to make sure, we are indeed covered while he's in America. The toothpaste is for his trip. : )

I also bought some lean 100% ground beef from Costco and separated it. We will be having cheeseburger night here at home, 3 times while Noboru is away. 4 burgers each pack. And that's because Bran needs 2 burgers, where as Noah and myself only need 1. Bran is just a growing boy. 

Meatballs for spaghetti night. Some for chili beans. The 3 burgers amount, I think I'll use that for taco meat for the nachos we make or maybe for a lasagna. 

I will season everything as it defrosts and as we use it. But I feel separating it this way, just makes things easier. And I know exactly how many meals I got out of 1 package of ground beef. But for now this is all in the freezer. Again, we just want to make sure things run smoothly while he's away. Meals are pretty much semi planned out. And of course, I will still be doing my regular weekly store shopping and bakery run. But, the major stuff or heavy stuff. We got out of the way. 

The kids go through 1 box of mugicha every week. And again to save me the heavy lifting. Noboru went and we both went and picked a months worth up and he loaded it up in my car and carried it into the house for me. And so...the main stuff is bought. Will, I still go and get a random bottle of juice or milk or soda every week? You betcha. But the main stuff is here. And we have been quietly gearing up for his departure. Sad for his departure?  Yes. But sad doesn't really solve much, if you know what I mean. It's the preparing for his departure, that is the smartest thing we can do. 

This picture makes me smile. And shows exactly the kind of dad he is. He said...he went and bought every single notebook, Noah could possibly need...for every subject! In America we just buy simple notebook paper and that pretty much covers any subject in the U.S. Not the case here each subject has it's own special notebook, how many squares or lines do you need. See the orange one says 12 and the green one with flower says 14. That stuff you need to know. So much harder then buying simple notebook paper. You need to know...clearly which subject and how many squares or lines. See how the kanji is different for each notebook. Hahaha! That way...if he runs out of something. And doesn't tell me until the last second. @_@ Yep it has happened before, both kids have done that to me before. Again though...sure I could have driven the boys to the store to buy and pick out their own notebooks, that's just how I roll here! However Noboru just is always and consistently thoughtful and thinking... how he can alleviate or ease any stress while he is away, which is why... he went and bought an extra of every notebook Noah has now and just bought a back up of each...he's just that type of guy! An extraordinary dad and husband really! An extra tube of kids toothpaste for Noah, since kids have to brush their teeth after lunch at school every day. And some red and blue pencils since Noah corrects his own work and homework (Bran uses pens for that now). : ) Preparing is the key. Being in denial that he is leaving...won't solve sh*t. Because he's leaving this Saturday, whether we like it or not. But doing something about it will help! Therefore, we're gearing up for it.

Noboru gets new clothes...what? every 100 years? Hahaha. He just doesn't like new clothes. He's not into fashion at all. Our kids need new clothes every Spring/Summer and fall/Winter because obviously... they are not adults and growing every season. Makes sense right? Noboru isn't growing so he seriously doesn't see the need. I saw this cool flannel men's shirt that was patchwork at Uniqlo. And I showed Noboru. I showed him all excited like and said...pick this.  He looked at it. And said...I would *never* wear that. Hahaha. So fair enough. However he needed some basics before he leaves. I suggested buying in America. That's what I'd do. He was like @_@...I don't want to waste my time there... shopping for clothes for myself. @_@ Hahaha. So..again fair enough. Basics at Uniqlo this last weekend. 

We showed Noboru all these fun print tops. Nope, he wasn't having any of it. He picked a plain navy blue long sleeve top... a plain gray long sleeve and this zip up sweatshirt. He said he liked the longways zipper.  : ) Hahaha. I thought it was cute too. Keep in mind he will have this same zip up for probably 10 years, you guys. : ) Bless his heart. : ) Again he's just not into clothes. Clearly you guys are not reading this blog for Noboru's fashion tips! Or his thoughts on fashion. : ) I'm kidding, I'm kidding. : ) 

Then he picked these 3 plain short sleeve tees, plain black, plain navy and plain gray. 

He picked a new pair of sweatpants. This surprised me... because his 1 lone pair of sweatpants he's only had for 2-3 years. Which is like brand new for Noboru's standards for his clothes. I was thrilled. Yay new sweatpants. Again he will be keeping these for 10 years...you watch! : )  So very happy for Noboru. Boy did he need some new clothes. : ) But you know...small steps...baby steps. : ) 

You all know Noah's fave colors for clothes are yellow and also orange is another favorite color of his. So anyways, as I stood in the men's section at Uniqlo for what felt like.. hours...only because it takes Noboru such a long time to decide..if he likes it or not...and if he needs it? And do they have his size. Another important question. So, just getting those 3 things to line up. Can take a while. And something he even decided he wanted and 20 minutes later...he then decided he no longer liked. @_@ So anyways..a *long* time for me to stand there. Anyways...I saw a whole bunch of sales stuff at one of the aisles in the men's department. all these orange hats were super cheap. Probably because... most adult Japanese men don't love orange. : ) But...strange enough...my 10 year old does. So, I threw one on Noah's head and it was a tad big... but not freakishly big or anything. 

So 1 orange hat for Noah. 

And then...again since I was there for eons at this post...I went browsing the kids section. Tropical orange shorts. I was so happy, I nearly shrieked...but didn't want to be dorky so, I didn't. So, I just quietly gasped...Noah! And he saw them and then said..."I love these." And I was like..."me too." We're beach people...so the palm trees and surfboards etc, were awesome and perfect for Noah. 

I grabbed a size 140cm and a size 150cm. And had Noah try on both. Noboru went with us and helped. For the record we went with Noboru to the changing room twice for him... beforehand so it was kind to go with us too. 

If you have a super skinny child...you will appreciate when you see a waist band and also a tie. Because Noah always has to cinch his waist in pants even more so. So seeing this...I was like...right on!

We picked the size 150cm. Waist wise he could have gone with a size 130cm. But they'd be outrageously short, length wise. So we tried the 140cm first. And they were way too short in length..*too* short in length for Noah. and I would have guessed that would have been his size for sure. Then he tried the 150cm size and length wise... it was best and given he has that cinch tie...to tighten the waist and tie it up...the 150cm is perfect. And the price...see the price on here. 990 yen about $9 US. So...super cheap. 

What a surprise find at Uniqlo. : )

I'm getting Noboru a little over night kit ready. A new toothbrush, some toothpaste, a mini face wash. I know his hotel will have amenities but...just want to do everything I can for him, before he leaves. Just like he is trying to do everything for us before he leaves too.: )

Every Monday through Friday, while I'm at the plaza waiting to pick up the boys from school. I read online news, online entertainment news. What's up news wise or TV wise, or Hollywood wise... for the day in the US. It's the perfect time for me to catch up. And so last Friday afternoon, while at the plaza, the main entertainments TV talk for that day, Thursday evening for those of you in the US. Was all about the latest Grey's episode. That had just aired. Which I knew, I'd be getting that evening/Friday evening for me. Again like I said last week, I don't mind spoilers because they are already.... out there... 100 times over..yes they're there. So, again I personally don't mind. And if you do mind about spoilers, please stop reading this now because again...I wanna talk about it. Most of you in the US who are up to date anyway... caught it before me anyways...but anyone who is more behind than me...who somehow thinks I am the only one saying what happened, which duh...I am not. Look away now. No worries. Anyway...back to me in my car...I read the little blurb while waiting. The gist of what I read was that...it was a powerful episode. It said...could Meredith possibly endure anymore pain and heartache? I was shocked...I was like...say what? What happened? It sounded major. I wanted to know, so I kept reading. Then Friday night, I caught it for myself. She/Meredith was in one of the ER rooms and had a patient who had been hit in the head. He was normal and talking and told Meredith about his 2 school aged kids/2 daughters. However he had a head injury so they order a CAT scan and he suddenly had a seizure we're talking foam came out of his mouth, the whole spiel. Anyway..he was asleep.. unconscious or whatever. And everyone went to do something leaving Meredith in the room with the patient. Alone. So just them 2. He woke up and was totally discombobulated and he beat Meredith.We're talking beaten to a freaking pulp. We're talking temporarily deaf! Jaw wired shut. Broken ribs. We're talking beaten to a pulp...beaten to smithereens and left lying on the floor in a fetal position... whimpering. Alex Karev, and everyone was now trying to fix Meredith and Karev just started crying, besides Dr. Yang (who is her true BFF on the show, but she obviously wasn't there), but Karev, he's been one of her best friends too since the very start, they essentially became doctors together, former roommates etc, ykwim. When they are shooting from Meredith's perspective..you hear nothing...absolutely silence for about 7 minutes on her end... because...she is deaf. And then it shoots to everyone else's perspective and you hear sound. And it was just a very emotional episode. And I am so glad I read that blurb Friday afternoon... while picking up the kids..because it prepared me and got me ready to watch Grey's, that night, a few hours later. Also, if it wasn't for that blurb I might have forgotten it was on that night and missed that episode and reading that blurb made me make sure to check my TV guide and find out which channel and what time etc. Because sometimes with kids and a lot going on and dinner to make, I do forget at times... wait a minute...which night is that show on? I'm human, it happens. Hahaha.  If you love Grey's and you love Meredith...just like I do. It's one of my favorite American TV shows. Your heart will *break* for her.  Mine did, last Friday. : (

Immediately after Grey's I changed the channel to The Big Bang Theory. I don't need a TV guide to know Friday night Japan time is the Big Bang Theory night for us. : ) I remembered the biggest secret revealed and I wanted to know what it was. It had nothing to do with Amy or Sheldon. Do not read below, if you don't wanna know. 

Howard and Bernadette were about to share Valentine's evening in their hot tub, but they found a rabbit in there alive and they saved it. First they thought it was a dead rat. Then Howard got bit by the rabbit and he wanted to go to the hospital to make sure he didn't have rabies, lol. Although Bernadette said it was unlikely. The biggest secret revealed belonged to Bernadette.

Meanwhile Penny and Leonard had a reservation for Valentine's Day and they were waiting for over an hour...even though they had a reservation. Penny went up there to see if she could sweet talk the man and he said..."sorry mam, I can't help you" And she was offended hence her face here. She said..."please do not call me mam...we are clearly the same age" 

He scoffed and said...I just turned 21. Or 22. And he then asked Penny how old she was. Clearly Penny is in her 30's. Which for anyone in their 20's 30's is super old. So Penny was super mad and said they were leaving. And no, she didn't give him her age. Hahaha. 

They ended up having burgers in their car. She then told Leonard he was nearly 40 and even older, than her! Haha. : ) Oh and if you want to know Bernadette's secret...and I wasn't going to say...but I also know... some of you would like to know so yep..she's pregnant. And nobody knows yet...but they'll know next week. She was going to tell Howard, but he left to the hospital to check for rabies. 

As soon as The Big Bang Theory was over, I switched to the Blacklist. Love the Blacklist. Man it's getting so good. And goodness is TV night fun here at my house on Friday's!

The Blacklist's agent Keen.

Other shows I enjoy watching are Tiny House Nation. But, I also really enjoy watching Unplugged Nation, pictured here. Where city folks... who think and feel that they're sick of being plugged in all the time. Whole families addicted to the internet in different ways and who don't spend time together. Who are now considering living off the grid and unplugged. So they go and look at 3 different properties and then stay in one of the houses for 3 days and see if the unplugged lifestyle is really for them. For some, it is and for some they hate it and go back to city life plugged in. 

One of the 3 houses on this last episode.

These houses are totally off the grid. Therefore unplugged. They have solar panels. Wind generators. Back up batteries. Water filtration systems. It's so interesting this show. 

The mom of this last episode...hated all 3 of the houses. She was straight up so picky. Disgustingly nit picky. First house was so gorgeous...I had never seen a house that nice on the show before and she HATED it. The 2nd house...she said it was not clean enough for her liking @_@...and while she liked the land she told the TV host...she'd have to bulldoze the house. @_@ Like super offensive stuff. And then the 3rd house was this Japanese lodge. Knowing how absolutely critical she is of everything. I knew she would HATE the Japanese lodge. And yep, she hated it! She thought the stairs were unsafe. The floor plan was all wrong in her eyes. The diva was just not having any of it. Branden and Noah and I watch this show together on the weekend and the kids were like..."I don't like her" I said..."I don't like her either"...I bet the kids...she isn't going to pick a slow unplugged life...you watch! She's far too high strung, I said! And sure enough...she didn't pick any house and they went right back to their regular plugged in life. Yep...we figured that would be the end result. And sure enough we were right. But the show also shows... some very cool people who do end up going off the grid. Like the husband and wife young couple...on the epiosde before that diva episode. The young couple actually bought one of the unplugged houses and were really excited to have a slower pace of life. : ) A fun little show...that we look forward to watching every weekend. : )  

Anyway that's enough for now you guys. Tonight, right now.. we are taking the boys for a hair cut. A fresh hair cut, right before Noboru leaves in a few days. And I have my hair appointment this Friday morning, for a hair color, cut and Japanese thermal hair straightening. We also went back to Costco today too, but that's a post I'll get up later. Also today Bran had his huge big last test for this semester as an 8th grader. The delayed test is a Chiba wide exam and they'll take that in March. But the school test was today and Bran has been studying like crazy for weeks and right now he's just happy it's done and he can rest his brain for a while. Kids study so hard in JHS. Anyway...to the barber for the kids haircuts we go. : ) 

Bits from last week, miso chicken, lunch date with the hubster and a few other good bits mixed in there for good measure. Plus, we just won the Super Bowl just now, you guys! The Denver Broncos win Super Bowl 50!

Good morning! 10:07am here and Super Bowl 50 is happening live for us right now! It's Monday morning for us in Japan. But, I know it's always Super Bowl Sunday for those of you in the US. Hope you all, are enjoying the game. I know, I am. I have a quick little post to get up right now and I am doing it on commercials only so how long will this short post take me? We'll see. All of these pics happened last week. Noboru and I did go on our once a week, lunch date while the boys were both at school. We went to Saizeriya. Saizeriya is just a super cheap Italian chain here in Japan. I had the rigatoni and a side of petite foccacia.

570 calories. I am just always extremely conscious of my calories of my breakfasts daily and my lunches. I love those Knorr pasta soups in the cup also, that are like 180 or so calories too. But on this day we went out. And dinner, I don't really count my calories, but it's usually something really sensible. And on weekends we usually will have something fun like maybe... I'll make some cheeseburgers or taco night for the fam. Something fun. Anyways...moving along...

I made miso chicken for dinner last week. I also made an extra chicken breast and sliced it in half width wise...so the boys could take that for lunch the next day. In fact, every chicken breast was sliced in half width wise. Why? So that it could soak up all the flavor all the way. Also not sure if you could tell in this picture, but I also made slices on each piece, not all the way through cuts... but enough so sauce could marinate all the way. Just wanted it to be very flavorful. And by the way...I have *the* best recipe for miso chicken or pork. Tastes better then the ones you can buy at the store that are already pre-sauced/already marinated. Like bomb dot com recipe. 

Put plastic wrap on this that morning and put in the fridge. This soaked in flavor all day long. And the ones the kids had the next day, were even more so. They soaked for almost 24 hours, so really flavorful miso chicken. 

A super simple meal, but we had some... made from scratch miso chicken, rice and veggies we also had a simple salad on the side. Noah was so happy, all through dinner he said..."I made this miso, you guys" Awww...Bran was so kind and said.."it is very good Noah!" He was thrilled. : ) 

This was even more marinated, the next day. On a bed of rice, they took miso chicken some veggies and both had some sliced apple. And yes, Noah mentioned...that he told his teacher..."this was from the miso our class made." Aww, he was just very proud you guys. So yes, even the American mama of the class is finding ways and delicious uses for the miso we got too and now the teacher knows, we are using ours! How much miso is left you guys? A ton. We will be eating miso chicken at the end of this week, as well. Hahaha. : ) I imagine we will be eating it once a week until we use it up. : ) It's very delicious though, so we really don't mind a bit. : ) 

Bran needed 2 extra school dress shirts. The price is perfect. Very affordable. Bought at Sanki. He has 4 new ones total now, in his new size. Again...we're just getting ready and making sure the kids will be okay and won't be running out of anything when Noboru leaves for training. Don't laugh but....preparation is key! It really is. : ) 

The tins are very thin. Like paper thin, way thinner then one you'd buy in America... so we bought 3 of them. Because I will be roasting that turkey after Noboru leaves, and the disposable roasters come in handy. Also bought some Valentine-y napkins for Bran and Noah's lunches Monday-Friday. And also some liners for their lunches as well. 

Last Friday, I made tostadas. We ate meat every day last week. And frankly I was a bit meat-ed out. So I thought last Friday would be a perfect time to make some tostadas. The lettuce was like 98 yen, the cheese is what was leftover. The salsa is from Besia for like 117 yen and the beans cost what...$1 in Guam but beans are also available at Amazon.jp too. So, a pretty cheap dinner and we all loved it, here. The corn tortillas came from Kaldi.

Friday was awesome because we had just gotten Branden's Eiken pre1 results. It was the weekend. We could just relax and unwind and recharge. Dinner was made super early. I boiled the beans Friday morning. Mashed the beans right before I went to get the boys after school. And also fried up the corn tortillas in the day time too, in the morning while the beans were boiling. So dinner was done and in the bag so to speak, by the time the boys came home. We ate. We talked. And just enjoyed. Also a good Big Bang Theory was coming on that night too. Comes on Thursdays in the mainland US. But for me, it comes on Friday evening. I had already read the little blurb online what was going to happen. And I didn't mind the spoiler at all, in fact I saw it more as a positive and it got me excited to watch it myself. So we got dinner dishes and the kitchen cleaned up super quickly and we went and watched the Big Bang Theory on the couch in the living room. Pics and spoilers down below. So, if you haven't seen it. Perhaps stop reading this post right here. But as.... it is my blog and I am sure most of you in the US have already seen it...even before I did. I'm not going to stop talking about it. Just because somebody is more behind, than I am. Besides all this information is already/readily available online and it's not like... I am saying something that isn't already available on the internet already. So...I'm just saying. It's something I greatly enjoyed and therefore I am going to talk about it. 

Sheldon has been speaking highly about his meemaw (grandmother) for years, since the show/series first began. However we have never seen her before. Well last Friday for me, last Thursday for you in the US. Meemaw was going to make her first appearance. This is Sheldon and Leonard waiting at the airport for meemaw! 

Yay, finally we get to see Shelly's meemaw! 

Notice Sheldon gave meemaw his favorite spot on the couch! Given he won't let *anyone* sit there. This was adorable to see! 

Last season Sheldon and his longtime girlfriend Amy broke up (she broke up with him) when Sheldon was about to propose. This season has been eye opening for instance Sheldon finally lost his virginity to her. Anyway...back to last weeks episode...Meemaw hated Amy. And she had certainly no qualms in hiding it. Everyone left the apartment but Amy and Meemaw. They all hid at Penny's. Anyway...Meemaw said... she doesn't like Amy because....when she broke up with Sheldon she broke his heart... so badly and anyone who would hurt him like that. She is not going to support that. Before they went to hide at Penny's, she also told Sheldon, she will never get my wedding ring! They finally had a break through, when Meemaw said her late husband Pop-pop was very similar to Sheldon in that, he was stubborn and set in his ways too. So they sort of bonded and she forgave Amy. Sheldon came in the apartment. So did Penny and Leonard. And everything was all better. But was this a fantastic episode? Yes! Was it so cool to finally see Shelly's meemaw? Yes! : ) This Thursday...well Friday for me. The previews say...The Big Bang Theory will tell the *biggest* secret ever! I keep seeing the commercials for it.... and I can't wait! : ) 

Saturday morning, I made use of the leftover refried beans from scratch. And I rolled and froze 7 bean and cheese burritos. Considering you can buy 6 frozen bean and cheese burritos at Costco in Japan for what...2700 yen? $26 US, super expensive. And I just used whatever was left of our leftover 99cent pack of beans. And I got 7 burritos out of them. I wrapped them up... each in some plastic wrap individually and then put them all in a big freezer bag. That way...if anyone gets hungry after school and dinners not yet ready...although I am usually right on time, if not early dinner wise. Or for a Saturday afternoon lunch or snack. These will be in the freezer, anyone can just take one out and nuke it. They are so good and so cheesy and delicious and homemade. A perfect little snack. And btw, we are loving these new tortillas that Costco sells. So fluffy and good. Soft and the flavor is on point. 

Branden took and passed the Eiken pre1 last Friday. And I had it up and posted the very next day. And while that is good that I do that. And believe me..yes I should. Considering my son has never gone to an American or English speaking school and has always went to Japanese school and so for him to have done that...amazing! So yes, should be totally proud. However...I am also angry with myself because... Noah doesn't get highlighted nearly as much as he should on my blog! I feel a lot of times, I will spotlight Branden's achievements and often...won't Noah's as much. And for that...I am so super sorry Noah! And I will try to do better! Case in point? Noah had that amazing swim meet over a year ago. He was actually asked by the swimming school he swims for... to compete against other swimming schools. This was a Chiba wide swimming event. And Noah swam amazing in it! I did blog and post pics from that day. However the following week when Noah's medals came in for winning the events he swam in. I failed at putting his medals on here or sharing his great...fantastic success. And again for that...I was wrong! And seeing that Eiken pre1 thing on my blog...I kept thinking about Noah's medals that never went up. And I said...no...I can NOT do that! So delayed in posting these pics? Yes. But the important thing is...I put them up! The paper is Noah's award but it has the name of the swim school and his last name etc...so I just flipped that paper over. And Noah won 2 Mizuno (Japanese sports brand) pens with 4 or 5 different colors. These are quite cool and the fact he earned those pens. Just really cool. Two Mizuno file folders, kids in Japan use these quite a bit. The bear thing is a drink holder, almost looks like 1 lone sock, right? But, it goes around a 500ml drink. And the stitch thing is a cup holder. And then Noah's 2 medals. A silver and a bronze. 

Yes, you are a good swimmer Noah! And we are proud of you my gorgeous *gorgeous* boy! Gee, you have so many medals kid! Medals from swimming...medals from running. : ) I am saving these all for you...for when you grow up! : ) 

And finally this morning...for me it started at 8:30am, Guam time 9:30am. Lady Gaga sang the American National Anthem just beautifully! And with a huge American flag behind her. Loved it!

A sincere thank you for your service...

Yay Broncos! Hope you win! But will be proud either way!

As of right now...I have taken ages to write this post..again because I am watching the Superbowl and only typing this on the commercials. The Super Bowl is now almost over. We are in the last quarter...the 4th quarter and we have 6 minutes left. We are winning as of now. But not by much. It was Broncos 16...Panthers 10. This is too close to tell. I may post this after the game. Now...  3 minutes left. Same score, the Panthers just took a time out. And this game is so close. I'm about to have myself a heart attack! Crap! Go Broncos! Now only 2 minutes left. And we are still ahead. I am so full of excitement and anticipation! OMG...we won you guys 24-10 was the score! Amazing and am so proud. The Denver Broncos won Super Bowl 50, just now! : )