The Stevenson Ohana

Sunday, June 30, 2019

Goodbye June

June has come and gone. I can't believe summer is in full swing! We all got a nasty summer sickness that seemed to linger forrrrreverrrr. We also battled some home-sickness for America, more than I ever have living in Japan! Probably contributed to being sick, and so rainy! It kinda kills me we aren't going home for summer this year but doing lots better and hoping for some more sunshine in days to come and actually just booked a trip for end of Sept-Oct tooo!! :) :)

We found THE BEST burger shop in Tokyo that happens to be in the same building as Riley's work so have gone way too many times this past month (to help satisfy some America cravings). I played and caught up with my good friend Amy Rodenberg who visited with her daughter Heidi. Luke really mastered his shapes and colors and is doing so good with his ABCs and learning to sing some songs and is seriously so fun. We found a new community play area that's FREE and have been going to some toddler japanese singing/activity classes too.

The most exciting news: Avery is officially engaged to Meg!! He proposed this weekend and we got to Facetime after and officially meet Meg! We are so excited for them :) :)

Catching crawdads, already can't wait to do this with Luke

A little summer romance. Riley hates this picture :)

Fun memory with Luke: He got wet and insisted to take off his clothes and I didn't care because nobody else was a park. Later a Japanese friend and her son came to the park and he insisted on taking off his clothes too like Luke! So we had two little boys running around with diapers playing so hard together. I didn't take a picture of them, because I thought it might be weird for the other mom but was SO FUNNY and cute!

A kinda long video of Luke showing off his skills. Got to get better at 'home-videos.'

Rainy Day(s)

It is officially the rainy season in June, we have had a lot of rainy weekends and days. A few weekends ago we went to the park to let Luke run around and splash around in his boots. Riley left back to the house and came running back with his swimsuit on and next thing I know they are rolling in the puddles.

Saturday, June 22, 2019

Musashikosugi Indoor Playground

It's been a rainy June. A few weekends ago we got an all day pass at a big indoor play area and spent a few hours playing hard with Luke. I only ended up with a lot of pictures in the ballpit, but was a really good day as a family. Luke got a little injury, and couldn't put weight on his leg but magically the next day was back running full speed ahead.

Being a Dad looks good on you Riley <3

Sunday, June 9, 2019

Sweet Reminder

I had a special moment with Luke this week that made me so proud and happy and wanted to document it. So backstory first, when I visited home and stayed with Kaylee a bit this summer, one thing that I admired and noticed was they always prayed in the car before leaving home. She would buckle up the three kids and we would pray each time we left. I thought it was such a good idea, and wanted to get into the habit myself and teach Luke to pray before entering the world and leaving the house. I honestly have been so bad at remembering though and probably do it 60% of the time. This week. we were on our way to the park and I had opened the door of the house and asked Luke if he was ready to go, he then shut the door and said, "no, mom pray!" in his sweet voice. It was just the reminder I needed and was a tender moment this week.

Saturday, June 1, 2019

Four Years: 5/23

"Before I got married, I was surprised at how often I heard some form of the sentiment, "Get ready, marriage is HARD!" It seemed that everyone was eager to prepare me for the mountains ahead and ensure that I wasn't entering naively. . .

THE TRUTH IS. . . life is hard. Marriage is what you make it. If you can find a teammate who wants to succeed and you're both willing to work for it, nothing can stop you."

I read the quote above on ' The Small Seed' instagram post and it really resinated. So grateful to have Riley as my teammate and how dedicated he is to our little family. This past month we celebrated four years of marriage (with sushi dinner obviously). We have officially spent most of our marriage living abroad (and before in Hawaii, so kinda funny that we have never lived in the mainland). It has been so bonding and unifying being on our own and away though as we've had to be so reliant on each other and the Lord.

Four years seems like such short amount of time, when I consider the adventures and experiences we have had together. I feel like I've known Riley for so long and hard to imagine what life was like before him. Grateful for these past four years, the good and the bad and having each other through both.

"We cover each other's weaknesses, we amplify each other's strengths and together we win as a team"- Riley's marriage advice from Steph Curry.

Sunday, May 26, 2019

Enoshima Island

"Enoshima" Artist: Hokusai

This past weekend we ventured out to Enoshima, a little offshore island just under an hour and half from home. We explored the Iwaya caves which were a place that Buddhist monks train. The caves were lined with cool stone carvings and fun to walk through (the last couple times we have been here they were closed from Hurricane damage). We also took a little boat ride and just enjoy the views and just being next to the ocean. We caught a little baby crab in a tide pool and Luke and Riley loved watching the waves crash against the rocks over and over.

You can make out Mt. Fuji on the horizon

We passed an ice cream store with pretty crazy flavors: jelly fish, seaweed, white bait fish. ..

Rainy Day

Last Tuesday, it rained from sunrise to sunset. We had plans to meet a new friend but canceled because of the heavy downpour. However, Luke had no plans to stay indoors despite the rain. He got a pair of rain boots for his birthday and has been wearing them almost everyday since (rain or shine) and loves the fact he can put them on himself. So, he put them on and then got my shoes and took my hand insistently and we spent a few hours at the park among the puddles. It was so fun we ended up coming back after lunch for more. It was such an unexpected good day together I had to document it.