Ryan & Kristi spent over an hour interviewing Grandma Hansen. I will post a couple of short edits from the entire interview. I was very impressed with the life experiences shared by Grandma Hansen. We had a lot of fun visiting GG (great grandma)! We had a picnic, discussed covered wagons & pioneers, saw pictures from the farm, enjoyed a performance from the Starlight Dancers, ate blue popcorn, walked through the cemetery, golfed, went out for lunch, laughed, cried (mostly Daniel) and picked up pine cones.
The Pacific Ocean is a big place. The northern coast of Honshu Island is very rocky, but there is a spot by Iwaki where there are sandy beaches. This past Wednesday we went with President and Sister Tateoka to visit the missionaries in Iwaki and when we were finished about 5:30 in the afternoon we drove along the coast as we started home.
It was a quiet scenic spot with lots of sand and a few scenic rock formations. We had enjoyed participating in discussions with the Elders and then working on their apartment for about 3 hours. Ruth and Sister Tateoka hemmed curtains, cleaned floors, removed tape, etc. We came home with a load of garbage for disposal. It is very difficult to throw anything away in Japan if it won't fit into a regular garbage bag. Therefore the big items just accumulate and finally we get them and then hire a disposal service to take them away
This home backs up to our apartment and it has been built while we've been here. I'm sure it is a million dollar home, especially the way it has been built. It seems the builders didn't have many blueprints, or perhaps the owners have excess money that they don't need. As each part of the home was finished, if the owners didn't like it they did it over. That was especially true of the front yard. The following pictures represent the culmination of at least three revisions. In the first version, the car was parked sideways in the front yard and took up most of the space. Most of the decoration was a narrow sidewalk, a sign in the corner of the yard, and a few potted plants. In the second version the sidewalk was widened, a concrete fence was added across the front, and the car was parked facing the house.
In the 3rd version the concrete fence has been faced with brick, the marble drive was modified, and the decorative iron gates were added.
When Kristi was here at the beginning of May we thought that maybe they were almost finished and that she could take pictures of it. But, they weren't. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if there are more versions to come.
This is our Japanese tutor, Kayo san, who comes faithfully each Monday afternoon at 4 p.m. to help us with our language skills for almost 2 hours. We are making progress and it really helps to have a tutor. She doesn't speak much English, but enough to really help us. Our understanding is increasing and we wish that we had found her sooner. She is very friendly and patient. We enjoy her a lot.
This is Joey and Daniel's version of "I Love to see the Temple" (a little combination of the 1st and 2nd verses I think)
A Saturday in South Bend with Ashley and Ryan
Christmas morning with family
Spending a week with the grandkids while Janny and Ryan celebrated 10th anniversary
Teaching your family the gospel
A week with our family before leaving for Japan
The twins at preschool 'graduation'. We're certain you would have been there if you were here! They still pray everyday for your safe return.
