14th Deployment Return

The next day, James and I both grabbed a camera and went out to the squadron to welcome home the 8 pilots flying a jet home from the desert. Deployment return photos are some of my favorites to take because they are so emotionally charged! Below are some of my favorite snapshots from a joyful weekend!

Here they come!

Below are photos of my friend Carie welcoming her fiancee back from the desert. They'd been apart for 114 days and are looking forward to their wedding later this year. It was fun being out there with her and capturing this extra special reunion on camera.

Love the matching shoes

Two of the pilots who came back are a married couple. The Lady Samurai were glad to be there to welcome them home. We also had some laughs when Katie (the female pilot) said she wanted a foot-popping deployment return photo too. They are such a fun couple. Glad to have them home.

Watching fathers reunite with their babies is always precious. Roman Widmer (below) has grown a lot since his daddy left so I'm sure this was a bitter sweet moment. So cute!

Who is that, Roman?

The next day my friend Lindsay Denton's husband returned on a military plane that came back through Singapore. She was the one we threw a baby shower for. I know she felt extremely relieved to have him home. Now she is clear to have that baby!

Lindsay spotted him first

The final few people to come home came back commercially to the Misawa airport. James and I missed the folks who came back main body because we were on our way to southern Japan. But soon after we returned, a guy who had been gone on a 6 month MC-12 deployment to Afghanistan returned. He'd been gone FOREVER, so almost the whole squadron came out to welcome him back. This was a very emotional return because his wife Kristen had a baby while he was gone. So we got to watch as he met his little girl for the first time. PRECIOUS!

It feels great to have the whole squadron back together again after months and months of having people deployed or TDY all of the time. Celebrating the holiays as a squadron will be extra sweet this year. We are all so thankful for our spouses' service and for their safe return home!

James Returns Home!!

Before we knew it, October was drawing to a close and it was time to prepare for the squadron to return from their deployment. James was supposed to come back in the main body movement with the maintainers instead of flying a jet back, so I expected him to be one of the last to return. However, due to a fluke in the paperwork, they sent James back on his own via commercial flights and so he was actually the first to return home! Several of our friends from various circles (both squadrons, as well as the chapel) came out to the Misawa Train Station late on a Wednesday night to welcome him. I am so thankful for their support!

Ready to welcome him home!

Made sure all of the details were just right

The gang ready to welcome him home

There he is!!!

So excited!!

So happy to have my skinny hubby home!

Lindsay's Baby Shower

One of my friends named Lindsay Denton is pregnant with her second baby girl. Initially she didn't feel it was right to have a big baby shower since this is her second child and she already has most of what she needs. However, they have no winter newborn baby clothes or gear since their first little girl was born in Texas. This is definitely a neccessity since baby #2 is due in early December and will have to weather a whole Misawa winter. So we were excited to throw her a warm winter & spice themed shower and celebrate this blessing!

My friend Kristin Masopust chose to host the shower and did most of the planning and execution of this beautiful event. She is so creative and loves cooking and craft projects so everything looked and smelled amazing! I helped a little bit with the cooking and (of course) documented everything on camrea for the memory books. SO fun!

In addition to all of the sweet and savory dishes, Kristin set the mood with a fireplace DVD. So cool!

It's not a baby shower without some games, right? First we were shown a basket full of baby items for about 10 seconds, and then we had a minute to write down as many of the items as we could remember. The person with the most correct items won. Of course, the winner had a small child. (Somehow they know what to look for...) Then we did a relay race where we had to put a diaper on a doll correctly while blindfolded. Finally, we saw who could drink apple juice the fastest out of a baby bottle (not as easy as you would think.) There was a lot of giggling going on, especially among those who don't have kids and clearly don't know how to do some of these things... haha.

Our lovely hostess

Lindsay getting ready for the bottle challenge

After the games Lindsay opened her gifts. She received so many cute little winter outfits that I know their baby will be nice and toasty all winter!

Lindsay has been a close friend here since we arrived so it was an honor to be a part of planning her special day. I can't wait to meet their little girl!!

Float Hunting

As I've mentioned, I'm trying to check things off my Japan bucket list. One that I've really been committed to is finding an antique glass fishing float. People collect them around here. What's a float, you ask? Basically it's a glass buoy that fishermen attach to the tops of their deep sea nets. The nets have weights on the bottom which cause them to sink to the ocean floor, and the floats hold the net taught, straight up and down. Then the fishermen drag the nets along the bottom to catch fish. They are really thick and hearty since they have to withstand the pressure at those depths. So the floats that broke off back in the day and floated away often survive and eventually float back up on shore. It's easy to buy them at a bazaar or from an antique vendor, but somehow I felt bad paying for one when so many people find them washed up on the beach. They come in many different sizes and colors, and each has a story. A lot of times they're covered in barnacles and are all goey and gross - but they clean up beautifully.

A guy I work with collects them and claims to always have success along a certain stretch of beach north of us on the Pacific shore. But you have to get up really early to go look so you beat any other float hunters from the base. Winter was approaching and I wasn't sure how much time I had left to go searching for floats, so I decided to commit to an extreme float hunting experience. We got up eeeearly (3:45 am), met up and caravanned up to the beach, and walked for 3 hours up and down the sand combing for treasures. It was cold and raining and I was tired and hungry... But I knew it would be worth it if I could find just one little turquoise glass orb.

sunrise over the Pacific

Since I'd never been float-hunting before, Corey told me to train my brain to look for light bulbs since they're about the same size and both translucent. Turns out that was a cruel joke because the beach is LITTERED with lightbulbs of all different sizes and colors. At first it was funny. But as the morning wore on and we hadn't found any real floats yet, every lightbulb became a frustration. We'd get excited when we spotted them from a distance and then our hearts would sink when we drew nearer and saw the silvery back end signifying its true shape. Ugh. There were also a couple times I got really excited because I was sure I'd spotted one. It was something perfectly round and the right color... But when we got closer, I realized it was just a blue plastic fishing float. So close, and yet not worth picking up.

 I had almost given up and was getting ready to turn back to the car when my friend looked at me pointedly and nodded his head toward the line of debris a little further up the beach. Immediately I took of running and, sure enough, there was one tiny little float sitting on the sand. I was so excited! It may be tiny and I may have had a little help finding it, but it didn't come from a store and I was the one to pick it up so... it counts in my book. Mission: accomplished!

I also came home with some other treasures. I picked up an assortment of bright green glass bottles that I can use as flower vases, as well as some sea shells and sand dollars. Over all, I would say it was a productive trip.

I would have liked to find a big fishing float before we move, but those are harder to find because they are more sought after. I really don't think I'll make any more trips out to Shipwreck Beach during our time here to go look for them. (It gets really cold and miserable up there in the winter.) So my friend gave me one from the dozens that he's collected. It was a mighty gift, since one this size would cost anywhere from $70-85 dollars! I'm not really into collecting knick-nacks but I think my modest grouping of pretty translucent fishing floats is a good memento from our time in Japan.

The Daniel Fast

This fall I was a part of a women's Bible study at church based on the book A Still & Quiet Soul: Embracing Contentment by Cathy Messecar. I figured it would be helpful since I was going through a difficult period of waiting - for my husband to come home from his deployment, for our next assignment, etc. It was a powerful study - not just because of the book, but because of the awesome conversations we had. I hadn't met most of the women before we started, but we really forged some strong bonds and dealt with some tough issues. Instead of just talking about things we were struggling with, we held each other accountable to some change and growth that needed to happen. We also realized we had several people in our families who have not yet been saved and so we committed to fasting and praying intentionally over those relationships every Wednesday morning during the study.

I had never really fasted before - so it was a big challenge. However, I felt that God was calling me to spend some more time listening to Him and work on greater obedience. So I decided to take this challenge seriously and go a little above and beyond in my pursuit of Him. As we were discussing fasting, a friend mentioned The Daniel Fast. It's a partial fast based on Daniel's steps of obedience in the Bible. It's not only a spiritual discipline that drives you to a deeper relationship with Christ, but it's also really good for you. Below is a clip from the Daniel Fast e-book that helps explain what it is:

In Daniel 1:12 we read Daniel's request to the steward, "Prove thy servants, I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink" (KJV). Pulse was food that originated from seed, including vegetables, fruit and legumes (nuts and lentils). Thankfully soy comes from plants and so tofu is ok. This scripture also explains why your only drink is water. Since the diet is completely plant based, no animal products are consumed including meat, fish, shellfish, dairy products or eggs.

In Daniel 10:3 we learn that during a time of great mourning, Daniel also abstained from meat, "pleasant" food, and wine. It's on this basis that we eliminate sweeteners, candy, and desserts from the Daniel Fast, along with alcohol - even in recipes. Sweeteners excluded during the Daniel Fast include sugar, honey, agave nectar, stevia, cane juice and syrups.

 

Because Daniel was a man of God we can assume he also followed Jewish fasting principles. In preparation for Passover, Jewish people removed all leavening products from their homes and didn't include them in recipes. So during the fast, all leavening products are eliminated, including yeast, baking powder, and baking soda.

 

Last, all the food on the Daniel Fast is natural, which eliminates man-made chemicals, artificial flavorings and colorings, food additives and preservatives, and highly processed foods (including white flour and white rice). We also use no stimulants, including caffeine.

 

Basically, it's like being a vegan but with more restrictions... But I found that I could actually eat a lot... Quinoa, brown rice, oatmeal, potatoes, some whole wheat or quinoa pastas, and homemade unleavened bread, crackers and chips add substance. Fruits and veggies can be raw, dried, cooked, juiced, made into soups and stews that are delicious and satisfying. Beans, nuts and natural nut butters, and soy add the protein you need. They recommend you eat 3 meals (with actual, proper proportions which is difficult) and 2 snacks... So I eat at 9:00 am, 12, 3, 6, and 9 pm. I joked with James that it made me eat the way the FDA tells me I should.

 

The Daniel Fast produced great results. First - I had a great week of close intimacy with the LORD. Our group saw God moving in some powerful ways in those relationships with unsaved family members. And I received some quick answeres to some of those big things I'd been waiting on. I expected James to be the last one home from the deployment, but he was the first! We also got our assignement and it was a good answer! (More on that soon...)

 

This is also NOT the point of the fast - but I felt amazing and slimmed down enough to fit into my welcome home dress. =^D If you feel called to a fast or a partial fast in the future, I recommend you check out the Daniel Fast. Very cool.