The First Day....

Well today is the (sniff) first day (sniff) of Kinder (sniff) garten for my (sniff sniff) baby boy.  In some moments it's happy tears and most are sad tears.  I just can't believe that my baby Grady is so old.  It is also the first day without Daishi here.  He left yesterday morning and is on a plane as I type.  I came to one conclusion yesterday and today.  Boys and goodbyes are non existent.  At the 4-H building yesterday where all the families met one last time to send off their Japanese student, all the boys were in a group talking, laughing and carrying on.  The girls on the other hand were hanging out with their host sister and most were tearful or sad looking.  It's just cool that it doesn't make a difference from what country you are from but all of our bodies are the same (hormones/emotions).  It's one more piece of evidence that God is the creator of all things and made us in the image of Him. 
Here are a few pics to reflect the last few days: 
(as I'm eating peanut butter M&M's for breakfast to make me feel better)




This morning before school.....gee Grady doesn't look excited for his first bus ride does he?  :)




Down at the corner where we get on the bus.  Colton 8th gr. Levi 6th gr. Wylie 4th gr and Grady Kindergarten.  Boo hoo .  Does anyone have a tissue??




My baby Grady around 9 mo.  I'm really not for sure (4th child syndrome) but he has a summer outfit on so it had to be before his 1st birthday (November bday)   :)




A family photo before Daishi left for Japan.  I'm not sure if he'll miss us.  We might have been a little much for him.




All the delegates before they drove away to Rock Springs for the night.




Just a little fun.  They looked like they were ready for dinner.  Little do they know they might BE dinner soon! lol




This is all I have left to occupy me during the day......crowing roosters.  (insert pout here)  I think I'll go eat more peanut butter M M's for breakfast.  No one here can tell me that I shouldn't eat M M's for breakfast because the house is (sniff) empty.  (sniff sniff)



The Last Several Hundred Hours......

I've become a little lazy on the posting of the blog lately....Sorry Daishi's family!  He really is doing well and has met several Japanese boys that he might try to stay in contact with!  This home stay has really OPENED my eyes to several behaviors of my family.  WOW.  I've come to realize that just because you are five years old and starting Kindergarten in a few days it doesn't mean you can rule the roost.  Or the fact that you don't need naps when you're five.  You just don't WANT them.  And five year olds have really loud voices.  Really loud.  Guess there might be a reason I quit my elementary teacher education and became a nurse.  For when you are a nurse and take care of five year olds, they usually have something to cry or be loud about.  Just sayin'!!!  Don't get me wrong here.  Five year olds still snuggle and have adorable little looks and kissable cheeks and the best bear hugs.....sigh.  Ok.  Here are a few pics from the last several hundred hours of our lives:

Well the creek is good for something isn't it?  Daishi did not want to participate in this dirty fun!

They had a ball.  Mud ball that is ;)

The beautiful dirty waterfall.

Another host family's family hosted a pool party for all of the delegates!  Look at the view, it's amazing!

Some of the host mom's visiting about their new memories.

Seeing all of these Japanese boys in the pool having fun made me realize boys are all alike no matter what country you live in! 

Junya staying out of the splashing fun.

See they are all alike!  It must be on that Y chromosome.

We watched several storms move in but most were at night.

Junya and Daishi eating hot dogs that they cooked over the fire pit!

Heating up marshmallows to make smores'

Cooking their cold dogs over the hot fire.

Playing pool in my parents basement.  Junya was amazed to find there was a room below the main level of their house.

Daishi giving his 'shot' at pool.

We've had an interesting and fun time.  We can't believe that 23 days has gone by and Daishi goes back to Japan in a few days.  Daishi has had an education on tired 5 year old boys!  Poor boy probably feels we're the most dysfunctional family alive.  Oh well.  It was a true picture of how we live day to day.  Nothing more.  Nothing less!

More photos



Junya. 



Here are a few more photos from this week.  Daishi cooked for us one day and it was REALLY good.  The sauce that you dipped your noodles in tasted like beef jerky!  And, we had to use chop sticks.  Did you know that five year olds can't use chopsticks?  Apparently not mine anyway.  One is of the tent we put at at dusk.  They slept in it for 3 nights.  It was soooo hot too.  I thought they were nuts.  And swimming again.  What else do you do when it's so hot?  :)