Today

God has and is blessing us daily, that said, I just want to take a moment to share the incredible blessings of today.First, I woke up next to my husband (for those of you who aren't married to military this may not seam like a big deal, but one of the special things about being stationed over seas is the simple delight of having your husband home more often).

Second, I woke up listening to the waves crash on the beach outside my door. How blessed are we that we have been given the opportunity to serve our great country and wake up every day on a beach.

Third, I woke up to the sound of an AF airplane flying over my house, sure it may have been loud and disturbed my peaceful slumber but that's the sound of freedom, and its a sound I will never get sick of.

Lastly, I am blessed to be able to say that I fall more deeply and madly in love with my husband every single day.

These things may not seem like much but to me they are a daily reminder that I live an incredible life. Thank you to all of our friends and family who support us, thank you to my amazing husband and most importantly thank you God for blessing us so abundantly.

Best Friend

You know when you were little and you had that one best friend in the whole world? The one you tell all your secrets. The one where all you have to do is look at each other to know what the other is thinking. The one you can sit with for hours without saying a word. The one you know will have your back when things get tough. The one you laugh with, cry with, have serious talks with.

Looking at this list of things I loved about my childhood best friend, I am humbled knowing I have the same incredible list of things I love about my husband. Thanks Hubby for being my grown up best friend, I love you!

Typhoon

Well I conquered my first typhoon. One of the many differences between Japan and home is the weather, and last night I was reminded of that all over again. With winds clocked up to 110 MPH, I learned what it meant to be on lock down. Back home I am used to getting out of school or possibly work due to a snow storm... this usually meant a whole day playing in the snow. Here on the island kids get out of school for a typhoon... that means stay locked up in your house for hours on end and be arrested if you attempt to go outside. Since the Hubby was out of town I was completely blessed when a good friend (Mimi) invited me over to wait out the storm with her. I am so glad I took her up on the offer cause I am not sure I would have known what to do when the winds howled, rains poured and powers went out. Fortunately Mimi knew just what to do and stayed calm through all of it. The major portion of the storm lasted about 6 hours, once it was over and the winds died down I was finally able to get some sleep and woke up to the "all clear" sign from the authorities. The stage means the storm has passed and we are allow back outside. Mimi and I decided to take a walk to see what sort of damages were around her house. The beautiful row of banana trees that used to line her driveway was gone, uprooted. There was debris every where, but the biggest shock came when I headed back to my house. On the short drive home I saw more trees in the street than I actually saw street. There were full AC units that had blown from peoples homes lining the streets. The street lights were bent and for the most part still off. When I finally got home the power was still out at my place, however after hearing the stories of good friends and neighbors, I am pretty lucky I only lost power. full sheds went through peoples living rooms, cars blown into other cars, and unfinished construction work crumbled. As I think about the storm and all that the winds did my first thought is thankfulness that I am safe my second thought... this is the first typhoon of the SEASON!!!

Unfamiliarities

Part of moving to a new country means seeing and learning a lot of things you never expected. I thought it would be neat to post a few of the "unfamiliar" things I have seen since moving to Japan. One of the initial things the hubby and I had to deal with when we first moved here was driving on the left side of the road... we have been here now four months and I still have to whisper "left side" to myself every time I turn a corner. It's an weirder feeling when you go back to the states and have to remind yourself right side!!! In addition to driving on the other side of the road, we have had to learn to drive slower, on smaller roads, and get used to people stopping in the middle of the road to chat on the phone. While these unfamiliar things take some getting used to, I can definitely say every day is a new adventure!!

Leaving My Job

Saying good bye to my friends and family was probably the hardest things for me as we prepared to move, but leaving my job was definitely the second hardest. Prior to meeting my husband my career drove me, I lived and breathed work. I was given an incredible opportunity right out of college and was motivated to do my absolute best through all of it. I loved the long hours, the travel, the knowledge that I was making a difference. For a really long time I thought saying good bye to my job meant saying good bye to a big part of me, but after a lot of ups and downs I have finally come to the realization that I didn't loose any part of me but rather gained a whole new perspective on how to use my business skills in a new way and a new place.

Assignment

I am a proud wife of an incredible military man, and part of being a military wife is understanding that moving a lot is part of the job. As my husband and I planned our wedding last year we knew in the back of our minds that a new "assignment" was in our near future, but never expected the news of our move to come on the day of our rehearsal dinner. JAPAN... as we announced to our families I don't think either of us had really allowed it to sink in yet. With the hustle and bustle of the wedding I don't think we even talked about the move again until we were on our way to our honey moon. We were moving the Japan!!! As I think back about it, my mind whirled with excitement, nervousness, and a lot of unknowing-ness!!!

My Story

A little over 6 months ago I said "I do" to the man of my dreams. Since then, our lives have been flipped upside down. Not only have we fallen more crazy in love with each other each day (as newlyweds ought to), but we packed all our things, quit jobs, left family and friends and moved to another country. This is my story...