Emergency Boy!

Michael, Jr. has finally been given his Super Hero name! I know you were all waiting. With a father like Michael Monster and a mother known to criminals everywhere as Death Ray it was a sure thing that he would emerge as a powerful force for . . . something. And now we know what his power is. It is to get hurt, alot.

He has now been to the hospital four times in the month or so we have been here. He went first when a spider bite turned into a draining pus blister on his hand that migrated to his neck. That's how we learned not to play in any sand on Okinawa that is not near a beach. Then he woke me up one night to ask for a drink of water, only to present me with the dilemma of a 106 fever. Fun ride to the hospital at 2am. That lasted til 4am and ended with security pulling me over and asking why I was out so late. This is when we considered 'Alibi Boy' as his name. But we waited. Then twice in the last two weeks we have had to have Xrays on Michael's left foot because disastrous attempts to climb the piano and slide down the hall in his socks left him without the ability to walk to the pooper on his own. Emergency!

So, with no broken bones, but an unbroken record of beating his brother to the hospital with a case of the dumbs, we now present to you. Emergency Boy, defeater of sleep for his parents, champion of worry and defender of the mid-list novel. That last one was for 'You've Got Mail' fans.

Love you all, see you later. Mike, Sr.

Happy Days

My car broke down. This happens. To me. Alot. It is a Honda Civic two-door hatchback. Let me tell you. It's an alright car, or was before this. Interesting fact though . . . I have told a few Japanese Nationals that I work with that I bought a Honda. They all say it was a bad decision. Funny, huh? Okinawans will not buy a Honda if they have a choice. They prefer Toyotas. Let that be a flea in your ear. Japanese hate Hondas. Who knew?
Anyway. Fun.
Other than that we are settling in nicely. Heidi wanted to know what Habus are, referring to Desiree's Gastro-post. They are a very fast, deadly poisonous snake. They are faster than a mongoose and so far the only predator that can get them besides the wheels of a Patrol Unit on base is the Akamata . . . Snake. Anyway, we could have any number of them in our backyard and we hope that the monster snails will give them encephalitis before they give us the bite!
Hope you are all well. Love ya bunches.
Mike, Sr.

The Attack of the Gastropods

Well yesterday, we went outside to play. In our backyard there is a large spot of land that was recently barren, but it is turning green with weeds and baby treesprouts. The kids and I planted some sunflowers, beans, and pumpkin on that spot of land. We check it everyday, and it gets stepped on more everyday. But today was different. Usually there are no living snails in the area, just tiny dead ones. I got to tell you I was freaked out. These large mammoth sized snails are freaky. They carry encephalitis. You know I don't want my kids touching them. So I told Jr to stay away, and I ran and got the salt. Jr helped me find them so I could properly cover them. There were like twenty of them. Zach touched one, so I quickly took care of that. Then he got his hoe and took care of them. Later when Michael Sr. came home I told him that the snails were moving closer to our house. So, he went and tossed them back in the forest. He said as he tossed them they squealed. This was pretty scary for me. Sr has gotten all the weird shots, but we haven't. I'm glad I haven't seen a habu yet.

Anyways, today we went to an Earth Day Fair. The boys had a lot of fun on the bouncy houses. There was a lot of recycled items there. So free stuff. We got recycled rulers, balloons, pens, pencils, and golf tees. They even showed how they make fuel out of oil, biodiesel. Anyways, remember to recycle.

Spouse vs Spouse Tagback

How did you meet your spouse? Desiree moved into our ward when she was a Junior at Salem and I was a Senior at Kempsville. We danced at a dance or two and ended up in seminary together. The rest is not that historic. Although, the kissing is.
Where did you go on your first date? We went on a group date to see the movie 'Maverick' with Mel Gibson. We held hands and liked it! Rachel was there and she kept leaning over to see what we were doing and report it to the other people with us : )
How long have you been together? We dated off and on from Spring of 1994 'til we got engaged after my mission in Fall 1998 and then married in Spring of 1999.
Who eats more? I eat more all around, Desiree worries me sometimes. I have to remind her to drink sometimes.
Who said I love you first? I'm pretty sure I did. Desiree kept those cards close to the vest.
Who sings better? I sing more often, but I love it when Desiree sings. Her voice is beautiful, but she is shy. I on the other hand sing anywhere and don't care.
Who is smarter? Desiree is Sudoku, I am the crossword puzzle. There is no comparison.
Who does the laundry? Desiree.
Who does the dishes? Desiree does them most. Thank goodness for dishwashers.
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Desiree
Who pays the bills? Mike.
Who mows the lawn? I mow it, but we both attack the dandelions! They are the devils favorite flower.
Who cooks dinner? Desiree prepares meals in the home, but when it's time to hunt and gather . . . Wendy's here I come!
Who drives when you are together? Desiree, she thinks I corner too fast.
Who is more stubborn? I refuse to answer that.
Who is the first to admit when they’re wrong? Desiree won't admit she's wrong first, but she is usually the first to try and end any argument. When she starts smiling it's hard to stay angry. I manage it sometimes. : )
Whose parents do you see the most? It's been pretty much half and half. Aside from the few months Desiree stayed with her parents while I was in Basic and A school.
Who kissed who first? I kissed Desiree first, in Rodney Lambourne's car, then on the porch. Rodney asked me "Did you kiss her?" I replied, "A gentleman doesn't kiss and tell. And yes, I did."
Who proposed? I did, in the Kid's Cove at Mount Trashmore. Having 'trash' involved in our engagement story is not nearly as bad, though, as the fact that the only lighted area was near the restrooms . . . well, I was nervous and not very smart to begin with.
Who has more friends? Desiree always has more friends. I only have work acquaintances, and family.
Who has more siblings? I have 7 and Desiree has 3.
Who wears the pants in the family? When it comes to finances, it is Desiree. When it comes to raising the kids, also Desiree. I get to decide what songs to sing to the boys at night. Most of the time.
This was fun. Hope to see others doing the same. Mike, Sr.

Blogging on!

I am glad to finally get this blog going. I hope that I can get across to all of you what we are doing and who we are. Of the nine years Desiree and I have been married we have only lived about six months of that in Virginia around the Monteith Clan. We have been fortunate to have Shane and Naomi close, and for a while Dave and Adam also. But what we really want is a 100 person dinner table and a good game of scattergories. We miss you all even more now that we are in Japan.
That being said, we are very grateful for all the support we have had from family and friends and hope that this blog will help us get even closer. We are all growing, all the time. Sharing ideas, thoughts and hopes will help us know each other again. And if we all find out we can't stand each other then I will just extend my time in Japan! Probably not.
Still, Okinawa is great so far and we have plans for several trips and tours. When we know more we will let people know what we are doing and when, and if you can tag along on some excursion, we will open our home to some would-be world travelers. The Great Wall is on our agenda for next spring, Mainland Japan this fall, and one or two more times after that. Thailand, Australia, Korea. We hope to have some great stories and pictures. More than that we hope to be able to post our love to you all each time. Thanks again for all you have done for us over the years.
Further blogs, at least by me, will not be quite this mushy. Desiree may be a different story.
Love and all that, Mike, Sr.