Visit to Japan

     This past month I was lucky enough to travel to Japan to meet Doug at one of their port calls on deployment.  It was an amazing week!  We had a wonderful time together and loved exploring Japan.  Since my first trip to Japan as a teenager I have always wanted to go back.  I love the country and the culture and have always said it was one of my favorite places I have gone.  I would say that my second trip to Japan was even better than the first because I was able to spend it with my husband and I was able to see a new part of the country.

     Here are some of the highlights of my adventure:

     I hopped on a flight, full of excitement, with a group of five wives and two babies.  We flew for 11 hours to Fukuoka, Japan where we caught a bus to Sasebo.  We all had arranged to stay in hotels on the Naval Base and I am not sure I have ever been so excited to sleep in a soft, clean bed!  Following a great night of sleep I woke up excited and ready to go down to the pier to meet the boat.  It was so wonderful to get my first glimpse of Doug and it really was like something out of a movie!  Everything else seemed to go away and I am sure I had the biggest smile on my face!  (Keep in mind, we hadn't seen each other in 3.5 months or even talked in over 2 months!)  Luckily Doug was able to leave the boat pretty quickly and we got to spend the day together talking and sharing everything that had been happening since we had talked last. 
     The rest of the week was just as amazing.  We spent so much time together talking and just being near each other.  We were able to explore Sasebo and we ate several delicious meals!  We even made a day trip to Nagasaki to see the memorials, museum, and peace park in remembrance of the bombing. 

Here are some pictures from our trip:

Paper Cranes at the Nagasaki Memorials



Nagasaki Peace Park Memorial

Chinese Temple in Nagasaki

Together with my love!

Exploring Sasebo

Student Teaching

     The past few months my blog has been pushed to the side and ignored quite a bit.  I have been busy with my semester of student teaching.  Since January I have been teaching full-time in a fourth grade classroom at Ka'ala Elementary School in Wahiawa.  The experience has been great!  I am working with my mentor teacher, Shauna Abiva, to get experience in a classroom.  I spend my time observing Shauna, teaching, and taking on "classroom business" such as attendance and morning business.  Over the past several weeks I have gotten to know my students very well and established relationships with them.  I am learning a lot from the experience and have gained a lot of confidence in my teaching abilities.  It has been nice to practice different strategies and to develop lessons to teach my students.  I am loving my time at Ka'ala and am surprised to see the semester quickly coming to an end.  I have eight days left in the classroom before finishing up my student teaching experience. 
     So, you might be wondering, what's next?  I will be finished with all of my requirements for my teaching license in the state of Hawaii.  The only thing that I have left is my thesis and then I will graduate with a Master's Degree in Elementary Education.  My plan is to write my thesis over the summer and hopefully graduate come August.  It will be a busy summer, following a busy spring, but I am excited for the challenge and looking forward to this next step in my educational journey.

Student Teaching

Wow!  Life is busy!  On January 23rd I started my full-time student teaching in a 4th grade classroom at Ka'ala Elementary School in Wahiawa, Hawaii.  I am in the classroom (with a teacher) Monday through Friday from about 7:00 in the morning until around 3:00 in the afternoon.  I spend my time teaching the students, helping out around the class, and observing "best practices."  I have been building relationships with the students and getting to know them.  They are very well-behaved and my mentor teacher runs a very effective classroom.  It is nice to step-in to a well-run classroom where student learning is the focus.  These students are kind-hearted and very sweet to each other.  Many of them come from backgrounds of poverty or at-risk homes but they come to school eager to learn.  Last week we went on a field trip to the Bishop Museum in downtown Honolulu.  Some of the students have never even left this town, let alone been to such a great museum.  I loved seeing their excitement over the museum and enjoyment of hands-on activities.  Although I am only three weeks into the semester I can safely say this will be a wonderful experience for me and I am already learning a lot.
     In addition to my time in the classroom I have several large projects and homework for my evening class.  Our class is seminar style and we have guest speakers come present about important topics in the field of education such as licensure, Hawaii state highering policies (we are the only state with a single school district so you apply to the state), and equal rights for students.  We also discuss "Practices of Highly Effect Teachers" which I am working on implementing in the classroom. 
    Yesterday I had my first formal observation of the semester.  My professor gave great comments and was very encouraging. 
   My fears of a very busy semester have come true but things are wonderful.  I am doing very well and staying positive.  My time is flying by which I love because before I know it Doug will be home from deployment.

Happy Birthday

Doug and Presents

I just found this picture of Doug on his birthday last year and figured it is perfect to share today :).

Happy Birthday Doug!

Happy 27th birthday to my handsome husband!  Sadly I didn't get to spend the day pampering Doug, baking him his favorite cake, or taking him out to dinner.  However, I did get to email with him a little bit and found out that he really appreciated the cards and gifts that I sent on deployment with him to open for his birthday.  So, thank you to all of the family who sent gifts/cards along for him.  The one real surprise of the day was opening my door to find the florist with a bouquet of birthday flowers - for me?  My mom always says how Doug spoils me and I guess she must be right because I don't many people who get flowers on their husband's birthday.  Thank you to my loving husband!

Mail

One of my favorite things is to get mail.  I love opening up the box and even if I just find advertisements or magazines I get a little happy inside.  When I open the box and find this

I get really excited! Oh, what movie came today?! I guess I am pretty easy to please when it comes to mail.

So, you can online imagine my excitment level when I opened up my mail box this afternoon and found all this!  Oooh cards!  Closer look at the return label and they are cards and postcards from Doug!  I think I hit the proverbial jackpot this afternoon!  I have learned that the little things in life can mean so much and when I go weeks without hearing from my husband this means everything to me!

and... In with the New! Happy New Year!

   As I said in my last blog post, 2011 brought Doug and I so many blessings.  We spent much of the year apart but the time we had together we cherished.  God has really moved in our lives and blessed us over and over.  We are enjoying a wonderful home on the water in Hawaii, we have gotten to explore Oahu through hikes, snorkeling, and swimming adventures, we had a great visit together in San Diego, CA complete with a trip up to Disneyland, became a first time aunt and uncle to our adorable niece Eloine Marie Jaspers, became members at First Presbyterian Church of Honolulu, we took a weekend get-away to Kauai, we celebrated our holidays together early, and we have grown together as a couple.  Although spending time apart is not optimal, I am so proud to say that Doug and I are embracing the adventure life is taking us on.
   I believe that 2012 has so many great things in store for us.  The one I am most excited for is Doug's return from deployment.  Although that is still a ways off I can't wait for the day we are together again.  Also to come in 2012: Doug's promotion to LT, our third wedding anniversary, my graduation from HPU with a master's degree in education, and Doug's rotation from sea duty on to shore duty which will likely move us across the country (again). 
    Along with all of the knowns there are so many unknowns.  I am excited to see what adventures we have in store for us over the year to come.  For now,  I want to wish everyone a very Happy New Year!