First Day of Work

Yes... Josiah has worked before, but today felt a little special. He was a little nurvous last night and this morning. This is it. Its the REAL JOB. It is not the others in the past weren't, but thinking that this is what he will do and where he will work for many many years made Josiah a little more nurvous than before. After a few years of staying home to do school work, it is kind of weird that he is not here during the day!!

2011 pictures -Spring and Summer-

I take waaay too many pictures... we are running out of space on the computer. Josiah told me to organize the file and it has been taking me forever to look through all the pictures I have taken over the years! I should do the digital story book thing that lots of my friends are doing!!

here are some from last year ;0)

New Year, New Beginning! #2

So, today was a big day for our family. It took a long long time, but my husband Josiah is finally done with his school!! He will be graduating with a master's degree in Electrical Engineering with the high voltage power emphasis.
I met him in 2002. We were both going to Weber State University. He was going there even before I met him. Since then he studied and studied and never gave up on achieving his goal. Studying back then and last 5 years are totally different. Back then, Josiah had no wife, kids, dog, house, rental property, demanding church callings, and all the bills to pay.... I just want to say that it took enormous level of determination and endurance for him to get here. I am amazed how strong Josiah is. I am very grateful for all these years of work he did. Thank our friends and family for their friendship and support throughout this journey!!

WE MADE IT!!!!!!! YAAAAAAAAY!!!

So this is how our anxious day went.
My kids and I decided to decorate outside to surprise daddy, so as soon as we finished our breakfast, we went to Zurchers to get balloons and butcher paper for a banner! We got home and start working on decorating, then Josiah came out asking what I am making for lunch!

Shoot.... he saw the streamers and balloons....

He pretended that he didn't see it (to kids, he didn't see nothing at all and had no idea what we are doing outside) He decided to spend some time in the office till we are all done decorating. Little after noon, we were finally done with decorating, and kids were so excited to get Josiah! I spend all the time decorating and not preparing the lunch. So we decided to take daddy out for lunch to Wing Nutz ;)

He told us he would have till 3 pm to look over his assignments then he will be done FOREVER!!!!

So when we came home, I decided I should take a power nap on the couch till the time came. hee hee. I was so anxious I wanted the hour to pass sooner, so crocheting and nap were perfect.

Then I heard the office door opened a little after 3!!! and Josey said, "I just sent my last assignments!"

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!!!!!!

We had fire crackers and gave big hugs to Josiah!!!

Kids' request for the evening was to spend some time with mom and dad together.

We had a great time at the pool swimming!

What a good day.... From now on, we all have a little bit more time to be with each other ;0)

New Year, New Beginning!

I won't even say that I will do better job updating this year! Thank you for visiting our blog! Here is a letter that I sent to friends and family for holiday grettings! I am sorry I missed some of you! Josiah and I will do better with cards and hopefully they will be all sent by Christmas!!!

Dear family and friends

2011 was another exciting year for the Halverson’s. We thank many of you for the kind words and prayers as we were figuring out where Josiah would get his job. We are very excited that we get to stay in Utah and stay close to our family and friends. We can’t wait for this New Year to come and all the adventures that await us. We can’t thank you enough for all of your friendship, love and support throughout us trying to get through school. We must admit that it was not easy for us especially for Josiah, but we are glad that he did it. We hope that we may be a support to others as much as you have been to us.

Here are 2011 happenings at Halverson family

Josiah- It was another year of staying in his office all day to do his school work. Even though he was at home everyday doing schooling, I didn’t get to see him out of the dungeon playing with us till late evening. He worked very hard all throughout the year. His “stick-to–it-ness” to reach his goal, his mom calls, is truly amazing. With wife and two kids and all the responsibility he has, I am sure he had a lot on his shoulders for all these years as he tried to get through school. We are very thankful for his strength and his love for this family. We are very proud of him for his accomplishment. He also enjoyed being a scoutmaster as his dad had been for years while Josiah was growing up. He is getting a whole bunch of new scouts next year and excited to work and play with all those great boys in our ward!

Yuki- as I reflect my days, I don’t have big accomplishments or new excitements to share. But I have learned what it is like to be a mom of kids in school! And I enjoyed seeing kids learning and growing each day! With Kai starting preschool and both kids in Japanese school trying to get my schedule straight for driving, house work, homework with kids and playtime was not easy. I am sure many moms can agree that some days there was no “rest on the couch” till kids are ready to bed! I know it will just get busier as the kids get older, and I am bracing myself for the New Year!!! I also love being a primary chorister. Trying to figure out how to get those older group to be interested in songs, to sing them, and trying to help the younger ones remember the words were challenging. Yet it is my favorite part!!!

Kai-He had a great summer starting with spending fun time with grandparents and cousins in Utah! He loved every chance he had to be with cousins!! He also got to visit Japan to spend some time with his family there! There he acquired the taste for raw salmon and that is his favorite ever since. This fall, he started his preschool and he absolutely loved everything about school! He has started Karate class because of the influence of the power rangers we watched everyday in Japan!! I must say he has pretty strong kicks! He still has his high energy moments, but I can tell that he has matured a lot and is turning into a very good big brother!!!

Lily-She also had a great summer with family! She just loves everything Kai and their cousins are doing and tries so hard to be a big girl, and she really has been growing like crazy! Kai and Lily went to a Japanese preschool for a month while they were visiting Japan. She learned the language so well that we could tell she had a hard time switching to English when she came back here. Kai and Lily have been closer this year. She is getting older and is able to play with him better, they play together all the time! They call themselves “best friends”, and I am touched how much she loves and care for him. It was a hard day for her when Kai had to start his school. She also did a good job with tumbling class this fall, but she decided she likes dancing better!
Oh, she now wants people to call her “sprinkles” ;) She says it’s her new nickname!

and here is Japanese letter to friends and family!

にっぽんの大切な家族やお友達へ
今年の1年も我が家は色々とありました。こうしてまた1年健康で幸せに過ごせられたのもいつも支えてくれている両親、家族、友人たちのおかげです。本当にありがとうございました。日本での震災の時は、皆さんや友人達の家族の安否がとても心配でした。これからも、被災された方たちの1日も早い復興と皆さんの安全な毎日を私たち家族は心からお祈りしています。カイやリリーが、夜寝る前に家族でお祈りする時に、いつも日本にいる家族や友人たちが安全で守られるようにとお祈りしています。子供の素直な神様への祈りが皆さんにも届きますように。皆さんの来年がより良い１年となります様にお祈りしています。
では、今年のHalverson家の出来事をさらっとまとめました！！
★ジョサイア★今年も去年と変わらず、毎日勉強勉強の日々でした。その甲斐もあり、今年いっぱいで大学院も卒業です。(今ちょうどラストスパート中です)　長かった学生生活でした。でも一生懸命がんばったダディに私たちはとっても感謝です。子供たちはお父さんの宿題をしてるところを見て育ってきました。いつも勉強で忙しくて、なかなか遊んでもらえなかったけど、カイの父への尊敬している姿を見て、勉強も、教会の責任も一生懸命がんばってる父の姿を子供はしっかり見ていたんだと思いました。今まで応援してくださった皆さんありがとうございました！教会ではボーイスカウトの指導者に召されて、大雪の中キャンプに行ったり、サバイバルスキルのクラスなど、アウトドア大好きなジョシーにぴったり。でもスカウトの知識があるのと子供に教えるのは全く違って大変といつも色々調べながら良いスカウトマスターになれるようにがんばってるところです。
★ゆき★今年は特に新しいことや達成したことが無いような気がしますが、でも今年は子供たちの学校が始まったり、習い事があったりと今まで以上に忙しい毎日でした。子供たちが何かを学んで帰ってきて、それを楽しそうに話す時に“あぁがんばって連れて行った甲斐があったぁ”って思います。子供たちが大きくなればなるほどもっと私も忙しくなるんだろうなぁ。母の仕事って地味なことや達成感があまりないような事毎日ですが、でもこうして家族が笑ってるのを見ると、私の役目もとっても大切なんだなぁなんて思うこのごろです。私も今年から教会の子供たちの音楽の指導者になって、最初はどうやったらいいのか悪戦苦闘でしたが、最近はどうやったら小さい子が歌詞を覚えてくれるか、高学年の男の子たちが歌ってくれるか考えるのも一つの楽しみになってきました。
★カイ★今年のカイを始めと今とで比べると、心も体もかなり成長した気がします！ズボンも靴も何回買い換えたことか。沢山ご飯も食べるからいつも元気だし、やっぱり伸びるんですね！今年の夏はアメリカでも日本でも沢山家族との時間をすごしました。いとこたちとのお泊りや、山登り、パレード、キャンプ。日本では幼稚園やいとこ達とのお祭り、新しいお友達と言葉が通じなくても遊んで沢山の楽しい思い出を作りました。おじいちゃんと夜中に起きて市場に行ったり、おばあちゃんにゴーカイジャーショーにつれてってもらったり、おなかいっぱいサーモンも食べて、とっても楽しい夏でした。秋からはプリスクールも始まって、学校に行くのが楽しみでならない毎日です。日本語の学校にも通い始め、少しずつ日本語が話せることの楽しさを覚えてきてくれているようです！帰国してから戦隊ものの影響で、空手も始め、来年はイエローベルトでがんばります。
★リリー★リリーもビックリするくらい大きくなって、言葉もお兄ちゃんに負けないくらい！まだ小さいベビーと思ってたらもう３歳になってしまいました。やることなすことお兄ちゃんの真似で、小さいのに近所の男の子たちが遊ぶのに一生懸命くっついていってます。リリーも日本の幼稚園に泣きながらも毎日行って、カイと同じクラスでがんばりました！お歌も沢山覚えて、まったくだった日本語も会話が出来るくらいになり、帰ってきてからはちょっと英語と日本語で混乱してたみたい。ジュースの自動販売機とお店のおもちゃの販売機が大好きで、見つけるたびにそこから動かず何回おじいちゃんおばあちゃんのがおれたことか。(笑)　秋から体操のクラスに挑戦しましたが、やっぱりダンスがいいみたい。来年はバレエを始めてみようかと言っているところです。いつもひょうきんで、家族みんなを笑わせてくれるかわいいリリーです。

catching up

I am so not good at doing this. I won't say I will do better this year... but I should be doing a lot better than last year!!
Well, here are some fun pics from Jan and Feb. Do you all agree that Feb went so fast?? I can't believe its almost over!! Shoot I have only a few days to do my visiting teaching... I am so sorry ladies!!!

Happy New Year!!! We stayed at Mike and Rachel's over night! We had Sushi for New Year's Eve Party, and on the new year's day we all went to a park for some sledding!

Lily cried the whole time we were there. Lack of sleep for sure!

My little dancer




Nice and Warm Day At Farm
We have early church this year. We got home and the weather was so perfect for a walk at our favorite farm!





Happy Valentine's Day
so I told Josey that I can't ever curl my hair... It takes too long to do it and I am just not good at it to make it look good. Josey has been telling me to cut my hair short and do something different, but I really want to keep growing it. I had to do something that I can tell him I won't look the same everyday with mid awkward length hair. I watched Youtube like crazy and tried it. It was pretty fun to have my hair different!

Merry Christmas

This free digital ecard personalized with Smilebox

海, がんばったね

アメリカに帰る何日か前に, 海の幼稚園の参観日がありました.
この日に思った事はしっかり残さなきゃと思い, ここにもかきました.

A few days before we left Japan, we had parents day at his preschool.
I really felt that I need to write down what I felt that day.

いつも帰って来ると私にベタベタで, 疲れてるはずなのにまだあそぼうよの毎日....
私はもう!!暑いんだからとかのっかるなぁ!!! とか, まだ遊びたいの??
少しやすみなよ!!とか何度も冷たい態度をとってしまったりしてて, あの子の頭の中の事を考えてあげてなかったなぁとかなり反省しました.

Whenever he came home from school, he wouldn't let me go. He always wanted to play with me and wanted my FULL attention. I wasn't always nice to him. Now I think of it, I was pretty cold to him. I didn't try hard enough to care his needs every time he asked me to do something with him.

年長さんと一緒の1ヵ月間, 先生からも何度も海が友達に手をあげてしまったと言う電話があり, 幼稚園早かったかなとか.... 私の育て方悪いのか.... とか色々悩んだりもしました. そんな時, おばさんに今海は社会勉強してるんだから, ここでちゃんといいこと悪いこと教えて, 勉強させてあげなよ! と励まされ, 海も
慣れない環境でがんばりました.

He was put into the oldest class there. I often got a call from his teacher saying Kai hit his friends... Kai pinched his friends... She explained me that it looked like he was just so excited to be there that he doesn't know how to express his excitement. But still it was not good to be physical like that. Whenever I got phone calls I regretted putting Kai in the school. I thought him being physical might not be him showing excitement and it could be his frustration not knowing the language and not being able to communicate.
I really thought about pulling him out of school, but my aunt told me that if I did so I would take Kai's social learning opportunities away. That is true. I wanted him to learn. Me and Kai often had talks about respect and care for others. He seemed to understand what we talked about little by little as days went by.



私を見ながらニコニコして, 手をふって, すごくうれしそうにしてる海. とってもかわいかった. ちゃんと先生の指示にもしたがって, まわりのお友達のしてる事を見ながらちゃんと椅子に座って, お絵書きしてて. もっとお歌とか手遊びとかあるのかなぁと思ってたのが, さすが年長組! やることや本の内容とかがけっこう海の年には高度で, この中で頑張ってたんだぁと思うと胸があつくなって, ぎゅうっと抱きしめてあげたくなりました. 全く日本語が出なかった海. きっと彼も戸惑ってた毎日だったんだろうな... 友達になろうっ, 皆と同じくなろうって頑張ってたんだろうな.... 3才の子供には結構過酷な事をさせてしまったかもと反省したのと同時に毎朝笑顔でバスにのって楽しんでやりとげた海がとてもたくましく見えました.

During my visit, he was so excited to see me. He was waving at me and looked so happy to have me. He was so cute. He was listening to his teacher pretty well, and followed his friends to get his project done. He stayed seated the whole time I was there. I imagined that his age level will be doing a lot of singing, dancing, playing, drawing and stuff, but the oldest class is getting ready to be in the 1st grade. Kai had a little bit of taste of being in the kindergarten. It must have been tough for him. Thinking about that almost made me cry. I bet he was trying so hard to understand what was going on, trying to fit in, trying to speak their language.... It wasn't easy for a 3 year old. It sure wasn't easy for me to go to foreign county when I was 15. Kai, I am so proud of you.



すごいなぁ海. 頑張ったんだね. 沢山ほめてあげなきゃね.

パパとママの産まれ育った国が違う. 自分はアメリカ人であって, 日本人でもある...

これからいいことも辛い事もいっぱいあると思うけど2つの文化に誇りを持って育っ
てほしいなと思います.

I bet it is not easy having parents from different counties, cultures... Especially when he is in Japan. He will be always different from others. I hope that the difference will be a positive thing for him and Lily. And I need to teach and raise my kids in a way that they will be proud to be half Japanese and American.