Well, all in all our sledding trip was a success. We spent the first half hour pulling/pushing/dragging kids down the hill because the snow wasn't packed down yet. I pretty much drug myself and a sled full of three girls down the hill with my hands and heels. It was a workout! After it packed down though, we really got going. The only near tragedy was when we accidentally kind of sort of almost ran over one of my girls. Sarah and I got a huge group of our kids together on this massive sled. We were going pretty good, and then we stopped. There were kids in front of me, so I couldn't really see the ground all that well. Apparently Marilyn, who was in the front, somehow managed to fall off and we kind of went over her leg. Thank goodness the snow wasn't packed down very well! She was fine. We re-situated and made our way down the rest of the hill. It could have been bad, but..it was all good! I had a blast sledding with my kids.
This past weekend I headed to the cabin by the ocean. One of my friends birthdays is coming up so we went to celebrate it a bit early. It was nice just relaxing, playing games, reading, and spending time with people.
The school year is quickly coming to an end. We switch levels next week and then we only have one more level after that. Crazy. We are on our 8th level of the year out of 10 right now. I can't believe how fast time has gone. It seems like Japan time goes by so much quicker! Sarah and I are headed to Thailand at the end of March. I should be coming home in June for a wedding. I will have a vacation (not sure where yet) in August. Then it's just a few months until Christmas. So many big trips in the next 12 months. At least 4 out of the country, and hopefully a few around Japan on weekends as well. Should be a busy year!
About Me
- Kim
- I'm currently teaching English in Japan and traveling when I can. I don't want to forget anything. So, I try to blog. This is my life.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
She's back!
Umm..whoops. Sorry I neglected this for so long! I don't even know where to start or what to say. We made it through the Christmas season here at school. It was a hectic one to say the least. This kids did an amazing job singing their Christmas songs and doing their Christmas dance. I was so proud!
I also went home for Christmas. It was so nice to be home. It had been almost 11 months since I had been there. I got to see a lot of people, but definitely did not have enough time. It went by so fast. I didn't get to see quite everyone that I wished I had. But, spending time with my family was amazing. It was the first time that my dad's side of the family had all been together in years.
I had such a blast with my nephew. I can't believe how big he is or how much he talks! It's like he is finally a real person. Not just a baby anymore..he has his own thoughts and stubborn ways. I don't think I could love someone more than I love that little man. It kills me to be away from him now. He is only going to keep getting bigger and I will just keep missing it all. Thank God for web cam. It's nowhere near as good as actually being there, but it does help.
I also got to spend some time with my friends. Wow, I can't even tell you how much I have missed having friends around like that. I mean, I have friends here. But, it's different than hanging out with friends who you've known for 10 years, or 22 years, or even 25! There is a different level of friendship there, for sure. Most of my friends here are work friends..so the most we have in common is usually work related. Going home this Christmas just made me appreciate and cherish the friendships that I have back in the States. One goal for the year is keeping in better contact with some of them, for sure.
I have been back at work for about 2 weeks now. This week has been so busy. Tuesday we took our kids on a field trip to the Traffic Park. It was such a cool place. The place was set up like streets. Different lanes, traffic lights, stop signs, railroad tracks, crosswalks. The kids got to ride bikes and such around the place. They loved it! Our current level is about transportation and community helpers, so it fit right in!
Field trips are always a bit stressful for me though. I usually don't really know exactly what is going on because I've never been there before. This trip was no different. As part of our "fun-filled" day, we rode the bus to the subway. We then got off of the bus and headed into the subway. Halfway down the long hallway one of my kids starts yelling, "No partner, Ms. Kim!" She had lost her partner. I had a small moment of panic seeing as I only had 15 kids instead of 16. Apparently one had an issue with his shoe and our Japanese teacher stopped to help him. Phew, safe. The kids then got to put their tickets in the ticket booth and we headed onto the subway. Japanese subways are most often silent. People rarely ever talk while riding it. So, trying to keep 16 kids quiet every time we took off and they all almost fell over was a bit of a challenge. :)
After we got downtown, we got all of the kids off of the subway and waited our turn to put our tickets back through the machine. The other two classes were in front of mine and didn't really wait for us to finish. We had to walk through a really long hallway and my class was walking incredibly slow for some reason. I was watching the classes in front of mine, but also turning to watch my class. At one point when I was turning to check on my class, the classes in front of us disappeared. I had no idea which way they went. Straight, left, or right? I had no clue. I guessed straight and checked it out, but no sign of them! So, there I was..16 kids, two mothers who don't speak English, and no clue where I was supposed to be. Luckily, I had my cell phone so I quickly called my boss and she sent someone to find us! Haha.
The rest of the day went pretty smoothly. I didn't lose any kids, nobody got seriously injured, and we made it back to school safely.
Tomorrow, I am hoping for an even smoother day. We are taking all of our kids sledding up on the mountain. I am excited but a little bit nervous! It should be such a blast getting to hang out with my kids like that all day!
In travel news- Sarah and I are headed to Thailand the end of March. I can't wait!
I also went home for Christmas. It was so nice to be home. It had been almost 11 months since I had been there. I got to see a lot of people, but definitely did not have enough time. It went by so fast. I didn't get to see quite everyone that I wished I had. But, spending time with my family was amazing. It was the first time that my dad's side of the family had all been together in years.
I had such a blast with my nephew. I can't believe how big he is or how much he talks! It's like he is finally a real person. Not just a baby anymore..he has his own thoughts and stubborn ways. I don't think I could love someone more than I love that little man. It kills me to be away from him now. He is only going to keep getting bigger and I will just keep missing it all. Thank God for web cam. It's nowhere near as good as actually being there, but it does help.
I also got to spend some time with my friends. Wow, I can't even tell you how much I have missed having friends around like that. I mean, I have friends here. But, it's different than hanging out with friends who you've known for 10 years, or 22 years, or even 25! There is a different level of friendship there, for sure. Most of my friends here are work friends..so the most we have in common is usually work related. Going home this Christmas just made me appreciate and cherish the friendships that I have back in the States. One goal for the year is keeping in better contact with some of them, for sure.
I have been back at work for about 2 weeks now. This week has been so busy. Tuesday we took our kids on a field trip to the Traffic Park. It was such a cool place. The place was set up like streets. Different lanes, traffic lights, stop signs, railroad tracks, crosswalks. The kids got to ride bikes and such around the place. They loved it! Our current level is about transportation and community helpers, so it fit right in!
Field trips are always a bit stressful for me though. I usually don't really know exactly what is going on because I've never been there before. This trip was no different. As part of our "fun-filled" day, we rode the bus to the subway. We then got off of the bus and headed into the subway. Halfway down the long hallway one of my kids starts yelling, "No partner, Ms. Kim!" She had lost her partner. I had a small moment of panic seeing as I only had 15 kids instead of 16. Apparently one had an issue with his shoe and our Japanese teacher stopped to help him. Phew, safe. The kids then got to put their tickets in the ticket booth and we headed onto the subway. Japanese subways are most often silent. People rarely ever talk while riding it. So, trying to keep 16 kids quiet every time we took off and they all almost fell over was a bit of a challenge. :)
After we got downtown, we got all of the kids off of the subway and waited our turn to put our tickets back through the machine. The other two classes were in front of mine and didn't really wait for us to finish. We had to walk through a really long hallway and my class was walking incredibly slow for some reason. I was watching the classes in front of mine, but also turning to watch my class. At one point when I was turning to check on my class, the classes in front of us disappeared. I had no idea which way they went. Straight, left, or right? I had no clue. I guessed straight and checked it out, but no sign of them! So, there I was..16 kids, two mothers who don't speak English, and no clue where I was supposed to be. Luckily, I had my cell phone so I quickly called my boss and she sent someone to find us! Haha.
The rest of the day went pretty smoothly. I didn't lose any kids, nobody got seriously injured, and we made it back to school safely.
Tomorrow, I am hoping for an even smoother day. We are taking all of our kids sledding up on the mountain. I am excited but a little bit nervous! It should be such a blast getting to hang out with my kids like that all day!
In travel news- Sarah and I are headed to Thailand the end of March. I can't wait!
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