Squadron Photos

This summer I finally had an opportunity to take some family photos out in front of a jet. We wanted to make sure we got a good group photo before people left again for various locations. The weather has been awful all summer so it was a bit of a gamble scheduling an outdoor photo shoot, as we soon discovered to our dismay... Thankfully, the rain held off long enough for the big group shot. But many families unfortunately walked away with photos of them getting soaked in front of the plane. Ah well... a portrait is supposed to capture the reality of our lives, and what we got were some beautiful, accurate representations of our life this summer.

There was another photographer on hand to take photos that I wanted to be in, which was SO nice. So below are some very special photos of us!

Here are a few of my favorite shots of other people. I really didn't have time due to the incliment weather to do anything super creative with the jet, but these still turned out very cute.

CAGE's Country Birthday Party

The weekend after 4th of July, our friend Bryan 'CAGE' Zumbro turned 30, so he and his wife hosted a huge country party. We all love costume parties so it was fun dressing up in cowboy boots and hats, plaid shirts, over-alls, etc. We played games, took pictures, sang along with some of our favorite songs, and ate SO MUCH DELICIOUS FOOD!

Our Squadron Commander and his wife Marlie in their best Redneck Garb

Sara with a portion of their delicious spread of food!

Seriously - Sara outdid herself preparing enough southern food to feed 30 people. There was pulled pork, brisket, BBQ chicken, corn bread, a variety of potato and pasta salads, a mountain of watermelon, chips and homemade salsa, decadent cupcakes... But the two dishes that really had people talking were Sara's sinfully decadent and surprisingly spicy baked macaroni and cheese, and Bryan's maple bacon homemade ice cream. UN-real.

Lately, our squadron has been so fractured that it was nice having so many people all together at this party. I can honestly say I love each and every person in the pictures below. We are so blessed to be a part of this community!

4th of July Camp Out on Japan's West Coast

Since this is most likely our last summer in Japan, James and I are committed to getting out the gate and seeing as much of the local area as possible. So when our friends invited us to join them on an excursion to the West Coast of Japan, to explore the area on the Sea of Japan and camp out for the 4th of July, we jumped on that opportunity. Normally we're not campers, but they had some cabins that we could stay in instead so we were willing to challenge ourselves.

The morning of the 4th, we packed up four cars full of food, supplies, fireworks and puppies and caravanned out to the Takayami Inari Shrine on the west coast. I had been there before during the wintertime with Lisa, but James had not. So I was excited to share that with him.

Us at the entrance to the shrine

This shrine is a popular destination because of the hundreds of orange torii gates that wind their way up the hill to a beautiful overlook. There are also a few iconic red Japanese bridges crowning some beautiful lilly ponds. We had fun wandering around and taking photos, and generally enjoying the warmer summer weather the region on the Sea of Japan has to offer. After weeks of rain and clouds, that sun felt SO good!



Family portrait of our group. Haha. We were especially excited to hang out with our friend Greg Balzhiser and his wife Monessa who had recently returned from their wedding in Switzerland.

After we were finished at the Shrine, we drove to our campground at the base of Mt. Iwaki. James and I were glad to see that our cabin was pretty gucci - with all the amenities of a nice Japanese hotel room, plus a kitchenette and three times the space. haha. Our friends kind of gave us a hard time for not being willing to rough it. They would not be laughing in the morning... But I'm getting ahead of myself. ;^)

When I say that James and I are not campers, what I mean is that we don't like sleeping outside. But we enjoy all the fun parts of camping as much as the next person - sitting outide around a camp fire, grilling burgers and hot dogs, etc. This was a very relaxing camping trip. Once all the tents were pitched, we at around in a circle, watching the dogs play and enjoying some delicious food.

One of the unique features of this campground was a large roller slide. You climb up onto a two story platform with a foam board to sit on, then zoom down a long, twisting slide lined with rollers that propell you along. I'm pretty sure it was built with children in mind, but we found some unique ways to utilize the slide that - I'm sure - would traumatize its Japanese owners. haha. Hardly neat and orderly.

That night we played some fun card games, roasted marshmallows and reminisced about past Independence Day celebration around a roaring campfire. Thankfully, fireworks are not illegal in Japan so we were able to put on our own glittering show and celebrate our freedom in a truly American style. I hadn't lit a sparkler since I was a little girl so I had a lot of fun getting into the spirit while dancing around tracing light patterns in the sky.

Roman candles + long camera exposures = Harry Potter-like special effects.

Around midnight, we were tired and lethargic and decided to hit the sack. James and I hopped in our car and returned to our forest chalet where we had a comfortable bed set up in the loft. I was so thankful for a quiet, bug-free environment and a shower before drifting off to sleep beneath a ceiling fan. I slept pretty soundly, and didn't wake up until around 6:30 when a loud "woosh" and a crack of thunder signalled the start of a powerful downpour. Pretty soon, we heard a knock on our door as our friends who had mocked our cabin came knocking in search of shelter. We were all to happy to let them in and utilize our kitchenette to cook breakfast since an open flame was out of the question.

Thankfully, the storm passed quickly and we were able to continue exploring. We took a circuitous route through the lush, green, rural Japanese countryside out to the rocky coast of the sea of Japan. The area where we stopped and got out to explore reminded me a lot of the Falls of the Ohio in Louisville, KY. There was a flat bed of rock jutting out into the water that we could walk around on. From there, we could look down into the clear salt water and see the beautiful water plants growing below. We found a shallow area where the dogs were able to get in and play. It was gorgeous!

On the way back we stopped for a late lunch as Mos Burger in Aomori (a new restaurant for both of us). I think as we drove eastward, we caught up with the storm that dumped on us earlier. The force of the water falling from the sky was ridiculous! It literally felt and sounded like there was a firehose above our car, aimed straight down at the windshield. Even with my sturdy all-weather wipers, we could barely see Sara's car in front of us. I was so thankful to have James there driving because I would not have been able to keep a level head if I was alone. Eventually, we pulled ahead of the storm and were able to make it home safely.

The whole trip was a memorable one - definitely an experience I will treasure from our time here in Japan. The days when I get to explore this beautiful country with my husband are so rare. So this was a special occasion for many, many reasons.

Cupcake Battle!

One of the things I love most about our spouses group is all of the fun and creative events we host. Recently, my friend Starlyn hosted a cupcake battle at her house. Everyone made a dozen of their best cupcakes, and we had some very special judges critique them on presentation and taste. The winners received a gift certificate! We felt like we were on an episode of the Food Netwark - but we got to eat the spoils of our labor. =^)

Lately I've been on a health food kick so I decided to go for points based on how good my cupcakes tasted considering how few calories they had. I made celebrity chef Curtis Stone's 60 calorie vanila cupcakes with a raspberry puree and fresh berries on top. They were OK - but definitely not as tasty as the sinful creations the other girls whipped up.


There were all kinds of flavors - sweet Georgia peach, tiramisu, coconut, strawberry, lemon blueberry, etc. We set them all out on Starlyn's dining room table and munched on veggies while we waited for the arrival of the judges.

Our judges were some young girls from around the neighborhood who were very excited to taste all of our creations. They took their job very seriously. They scrutinized the decorations then had a pow-wow to decide the winner for presentation. The clear winner was our squadron commander's wife Marlie who made some Finding Nemo inspired cupcakes using sour candy to make turtles on top of her vanilla cupcakes.

When it came to the taste test, they took notes and then took swigs of water between each one to cleanse their palate before tasting the next one so they would experience the full impact of the flavor. In the end, they chose the tiramisu cupcakes my friend Becky had made.

Taste testing

They were so cute in their aprons and caps!

After that came the best part, when we got to sample all of the cupcakes. They were all SO delicious! After our first few bites we all realized that we probably should have had a salad battle instead... But that's OK. You've got to indulge from time to time.

Waldo Canyon Fire

One of the most significant and memorable things that happened this summer took place back in Colorado as opposed to here in Japan. I remember seeing photos that my friends were posting of a wildfire that had sprung up in western Colorado Springs. Colorado is prone to wildfires, but this was the first time there has been a major fire so close to a major city. It was definitely the first time a wildfire had threatened my home. The plume of smoke was formidable, but I took comfort in the fact that there was a large foothill between the fire and their neighborhood. I thought: this is bad, but surely it won't make it all the way down into the city...
However, as the week went on, I found that every morning I woke up to bad news. It kept growing, kept on burning... A deadly combination of draught and high winds was making it impossible for firefighters to contain the fire. But still, the flames stayed behind that ridge.

But then I woke up the morning of June 27 and could immediately tell something had gone terribly wrong. My facebook news feed was completely filled with panicked posts and horrific pictures of the flames racing down Blodgett Peak and into the city. My parent's neighborhood was evacuating and it looked as if they would lose their house if things continued progressing as they had.

It was terrifying and stressful for my brother and I, as well as all of our military friends with ties to the city, who had to watch helplessly from a distance as our beloved hometown was burning. I now understand how our families and friends felt as we were enduring the earthquake and tsunami. It's a terrible feeling, knowing loved ones are in danger and there is nothing you can do but pray. I was glued to the Gazette page, tracking the fire as it ravaged the Mountain Shadows subdivision and drew ever closer to the neighborhood where I grew up.

This photo was taken at the Papa Murphy's near my parent's house. Unreal!

That afternoon we had to welcome our guys back from their TDY to Las Vegas, and I had a hard time putting on a smile when I greeted him at the jet. It was right as I was leaving for the squadron to pick him up that things really took a turn for the worst. They issued an evacuation order for my parent's neighborhood but I was unable to get a hold of my parents to verify that they were OK. Thankfully, I was able to get my brother on the phone and he assured me that they got out OK and were staying at a hotel across town. Even after that good news, I was still a wreck. Reportedly, my parents had a great attitude and had taken everything with them that they could. But my mom's piano was still in that house, and I couldn't believe that we might lose it. So my friends had to comfort me while I broke down in the middle of the squadron bar. Thankfully, James was home and able to walk through the emotions with me.

Homes in a near by neighborhood burning

Families evacuating from my neighborhood

As a military member, I was proud to see how the Air Force stepped up to help protect people. Below is a photo of some C-130's from Peterson dropping fire retardant. I am SO thankful for all of the men and women - especially our firefighters - who worked so tirelessly to protect our homes.

Scariest photo I saw. Intersection of Centennial and Vindicator, about one mile from my parent's house.

Map of the burn area in relation to my parent's house.

Thankfully, the LORD answered our prayers and were able to stop the flames from spreading after that dreadful day. Several homes burned, but I am SO thankful that only two lives were lost in the blaze. That is an amazing testiment to the effectiveness of the Colorado emergency responders. It was a devastating tragedy, and was very emotionally draining. But those stats really helped put things into perspective for me. The crisis was more personal than 9/11 or the earthquake and tsunami, but unlike lives, homes can be replaced and new trees can be planted. God has proved Himself faithful time and again, and I am so thankful.

Some of the cheery flowers the ladies in the squadron got me to help me feel better. They are the best!