Summer Fun

 I can't believe the summer is almost finished... as usual, we looked forward to it for so long, and it went by so quickly. :)  Here's a brief recap of some of the fun we've been having this summer...

 Our summer started with a visit from Julie's parents!  This is a picture of the boys after decorating Grandma Jill's room. :)  We spent a lot of time just relaxing at home (always wonderful), but we also did some new things together...

Bingata - Mom and I had so much fun learning about this traditional Okinawan style of painting fabric.

We visited the Tropical Dream Center in the northern part of Okinawa - amazing flowers and gardens!

We also visited "Okinawa World" in the southern part of the island - it has a really cool cave, lots of cultural demonstrations, and a snake show!

As always, it was hard to say goodbye, but we'll see them again in less than a year!

After they left, we started to fill our days with trips to the zoo....

and LOTS of time at the beach. :)

We have also been spending a lot of time at home: reading, playing outside in the sandbox, creating new games, and trying out ideas Mommy finds on pinterest... like painting with cars. :)

 

We have also been planning a family vacation!  This was the first real vacation we've been on since Noah was born, not counting visiting family in the states.  Since we're blessed to be surrounded by beautiful beaches, we decided to head north to the mountains of mainland Japan.  We spent 4 days in Norikura and had a wonderful time of relaxing, hiking, playing, and just enjoying being together. Here are a few pictures, but MANY more can be found on Julie's facebook. :)

One of the highlights of the trip was taking the boys to play putt-putt golf for the first time.  Justin has only seen golf on TV, so he first asked if people were going to watch us and cheer for us... Then after each hole, he picked up his ball, held it high above his head, and turned around for everyone to see... I definitely see a golfer in the making... :)

Before we headed home to Okinawa, we visited Matsumoto Castle, the oldest castle in Japan.

So, in two weeks, we have Vacation Bible School at church, and then Justin will be starting K-4 at Okinawa Christian School International! Enjoy the rest of your summer... we certainly will! :)