Day Six - A beautiful, rainy, quiet Sunday

Sorry, no pictures today! We were very lazy with the camera today. It was mostly a nice quiet day. We made a big breakfast, and then went to church. Poor Kanta had to listen to a lot of boring things in English, but the boys at church really liked him.

When we came home, we started getting ready for scout camp. We packed the backpacks, got all of the equipment together, and loaded plenty of snacks for them to eat. All of the boys in the scout troop are very excited to have Kanta come along this year. It rained today and we hope that it won't rain anymore on them this week!

Tonight we sat on the patio and watched the rain and the lightning. It was a big storm, lots and lots of rain. At one point, the wind started blowing really hard and blew the rain right on Kanta - so I think that's when he decided he had watched the storm long enough! Before the storm started Kendall and Kanta were running outside with the dogs, throwing rocks for the dogs to chase, and bouncing on the trampoline having fun. They also watched a television show called "Wipeout". It is a lot like the game shows I saw on television when I was in Japan - people doing crazy things as they run through obstacles. Looks like fun!

Well, tomorrow we drop them off to go to scout camp. Julie promises to take pictures as they leave, and then I'm going up Tuesday evening to stay with them for the rest of the week. Big adventures!

Day Five - Fun with Bees...and a Movie!

So this will be mostly pictures and little writing - we decided to have a more quiet day since yesterday was kind of busy. We started with breakfast, mmmmm pancakes!

Then Kanta shared some more presents with us! Too nice to us :) We love the shirts and the other beautiful presents. We put the Samurai warriors up on our mantle so that everyone can see. The kids especially loved the beautiful gifts from Japan, and I loved the delicious food!

Next Gabby, Kanta, and I went out to work with the bees. We all put on our bee suits - I think Kanta was a little nervous because he didn't know what to expect, but once he got used to the bees he was just fine. The bees have been busy this summer, so we had to put on some extra boxes - which means we should get lots of good honey this year. Kanta helped us with the smoke (the smoke calms the bees, and he helped us check the hive frames to see how the bees are doing inside the hive. Then he helped as we cleaned the hives and put the extra boxes on, and he even held a bee on his hand - with a glove of course!

They spent the afternoon playing games, and then this evening we went to see a movie. We saw Harry Potter - in 3D! I don't know that Kanta understood much of the dialog in the movie, but it had plenty of action so I think he really enjoyed it. He and Kendall wore their very cool shirts together. What a fun day!

Day Four - Into the Wilderness

Today was the day of adventure! And lots of driving, probably more than anyone wanted. The morning started by leaving the house at 8:00. First of all we stopped by Aubrey's apartment in Logan to meet Aubrey and Jordan.

After that began the long drive to Bloomington Lake in Idaho. It is a beautiful drive through Logan canyon, and then past Bear Lake which is always very scenic. The trip took a little longer because we had to buy fishing licenses in Idaho. Then we had to drive up a very long dirt road to get to the trail head to hike to Bloomington Lake.

Once we got to the lake, it was so amazing! And the water was so cold! First was fishing, which wasn't very successful - Julie caught two little fish that they put back in the lake.

After the very unsuccessful fishing, it was time to jump in the frigid icy waters and prove how tough we all are. Brrrrrrr! As you can see from the glacier in the pictures, the water is not tropical. But at least there weren't any sharks!


Gabby was the first to jump in, because she felt like she had to be tougher than the boys. Kendall and Kanta didn't really want to jump in, but after a GIRL did it, they really didn't have a choice.

Bloomington Lake was fun, but after that it was time to go to Bear Lake, the BIG lake. Bear Lake is a lot warmer than Bloomington, but still pretty cold. We stayed and played at Bear Lake for about two hours, and then it was time to start for home.

Of course you can't go to Bear Lake and not eat in Garden City, so we stopped and got lots of burgers and raspberry shakes. Mmmmmm!

Then it was time for the long but beautiful drive back through Logan Canyon. By this time the kids were exhausted, and instead of enjoying the scenery they enjoyed the sleep.

Tomorrow should be quieter...I'm sure we will all enjoy that!

Day Three - Summer Fun!

Today Kendall and Kanta went to Levi's house to play (Kendall's friend), and ended up going to Newton Lake to play in the water - perfect for a hot summer's day like today! They said that they tried to ride logs in the water, and just swam and splashed around.

When I got home from work, I found the two boys watching a movie and looking tired. But soon Levi came over to our house and they were outside again. Kendall and Kanta played in the sprinklers and on the trampoline.

Then Gabby made dinner because Julie had to go to EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) training, and she did a really good job!



By the end of the day, Kanta was really tired - but Julie promised that she would have him send an email home to Japan, so they worked on it together while he tried to keep his eyes open. Tomorrow they are going fishing...and I am going to work. Not fair!

Day Two!

Well, no pictures today because I wasn't home and I guess I'm the only one who takes pictures. Hopefully tomorrow.

Kanta was able to see what a "normal" day is like around our house...once he woke up! Gabby said that he slept until about 11. As soon as he had breakfast (Gabby made rice for him), they went to the park and played with Kendall and his friends. They played and tried to teach him the words for all of the things at the park. Then in the afternoon when Julie came home from work they went to swim team practice, and Julie took Gabby and Kanta shopping. At the store she was teaching him all the words for food, like apple and banana. Then she noticed that he had new-word overload and gave him a break from learning. She said he took a picture of all the milk!

After they came home around 6:30, we had dinner and then Kendall and Kanta went downstairs to watch a movie - where Kanta fell fast asleep. I can't say anything though, because that's what I do during movies too :)

Day one - We love Kanta!

So we picked up Kanta today in Clearfield. What an afternoon! There were about 100 students from Japan, and we were about the last family to meet our new family member. It was funny - there weren't very many people left; he was sitting on the front row, and we were on the back...he turned around and we waved to him...and I'm sure he must have thought "oh no! Not THAT family!" Anyway, we really got really lucky - he is such a fun, happy, tired boy.

Kendall and Kanta used the universal language called "Wii games" to get to know each other. Then when virtual reality wasn't enough, they tried real reality on the trampoline.

Of course today was the last "legal" day to do fireworks, so we finished off all the fireworks that we had left - and now we are all blind and deaf. I'm sure that as I type this he is sound asleep, and he'll need to get a good night for all the fun tomorrow :)