Welcome to the world, Jensen!

Konnichiwa from Tokyo! Just sitting here in the lounge at Narita airport awaiting our flight to Beijing, and I have some fabulous news to share with you!

Jensen Kate Thornsberry was born today! She's a beauty. Weighs 5 lbs. 11 oz. My brother had his laptop in Holli's birthing suite so he Skyped us in. We got to say hello to everyone before Jensen was born. Then, we had to leave to head to the airport in Nagoya. Once we arrived at the airport, we quickly hooked the computer up to the Internet and called them back to hear the most beautiful cry in the background! And, of course we got to see her precious little face. It was incredible to be a part of such an awesome time for my family. Sad I can't hold her, but I'm so grateful I got to see her when she was only one hour old. Thank goodness for technology these days. It certainly makes living abroad much easier. I am so ecstatic to be an aunt again. I love my nieces and nephew to pieces. And, my brother and Holli are awesome parents. What a great day!

Here we go again

Tomorrow we're leaving for Beijing! So, I most likely won't be blogging for a week or so. Check back soon for pictures from our trip.

Move over, Martha!

Since moving to Japan, we have, of course, missed a few things from home. On the top of that list is biscuits and sausage gravy or should I say, was the top on that list. I am happy to report that we successfully created a delicious Ozarks breakfast yesterday morning.

Thanks to a couple friends here, they passed along a delicious breakfast sausage recipe. We combined some spices and ground pork. The tricky part was the biscuits. Travis bought some buttermilk biscuit Bisquick mix last time we were home knowing full and well we don't have an oven here. It pained me to see the mix every time I opened the cabinet door. Until we decided to give them a shot on our gas stove. I know this isn't the most novel concept, but for us, it was. We successfully cooked the biscuits in a frying pan with a lid. And, alas, we had the most amazing sausage patties, biscuits and sausage gravy. It can be done. No Jimmy Dean and no oven.

After the biscuits and gravy breakfast, I got really crazy. My mom sent me a carrot cake mix with cream cheese frosting for my birthday. She knows we don't have an oven, but she thought I could take it to a friend's house to bake it. 

For a few weeks, I opened the cabinet door to hear the cream cheese frosting mocking me. I often considered ripping off the foiled seal, grabbing a spoon and devouring it, sans cake. But, because I have incredible self-control, I resisted. Until yesterday.

After seeing the success of the biscuits, I decided to try baking the cake on the stovetop in a sauce pan. And, after two rounds of baking, it worked. Only took about 15 minutes for each layer. It's the most delicious cake I have ever tasted. It's extremely moist because of the lid used while baking, I suppose. So, I must say, the Hartman House is a happy place to be this weekend. Take that, oven.

Mission Accomplished

Yesterday I set out on a mission: to open a Japanese bank account. I recently obtained a part-time job, thus having a bank account of my own became necessary. And, I'm happy to report, I was successful. I was able to use the little bit of Japanese I know, and I accomplished the task.

I had to laugh a little, though. I followed an example to fill out the form, written entirely in Japanese,  to begin the process of opening the bank account. I basically copied it for the most part. The gal helping me took notice of one box I had checked. I checked a box to receive just a basic ATM card and bank book. Much to my amusement, she took the time to point out that I could actually receive a Disney-themed bank book and ATM card. Of course I complied! I mean, how could I not? 

Here's my new bank book.

I love many things about Japan. One particular part I enjoy is the lack of separation between what we would classify as "kid items" and those more appropriately reserved for adults. For instance, it's very common to see an adult carrying luggage adorned with Winnie the Pooh or Minnie Mouse. Likewise, many adults opt to decorate their cars with Lilo & Stitch. Travis has mentioned many occasions when seemingly well-respected and somewhat intimidating upper-level management will join a meeting and proceed to sign documents with a Rescue Rangers pen or answer their cell phone decorated with Little Mermaid or Donald Duck. I, personally, think it's great. I mean, who really wants to grow up?

And, she left...on a jet plane

We just returned a while ago from dropping Andrea off at the airport. So sad to see her go, but it was great to spend some awesome time together and to make memories that will last a lifetime. Below are a few more photos of some of the highlights from her visit. 

We spent three days in Tokyo. We saw a ton. It was exhausting. Lots of blisters, but it was worth it.

One morning, we woke up at 4:00 a.m. and headed to Tsukiji Fish Market, the biggest wholesale fish and seafood market in the world. As soon as we arrived, we were invited by a friendly Japanese man to ride on the back of his motorized fish cart. We eagerly agreed without knowing what we were getting into. It was a white-knuckle-kind-of ride, but it was fun for sure. 

This picture is of the famous tuna auction. It starts around 5:00 a.m. and ends around 6:15 a.m. almost every day of the week.

Big expensive tuna.

And some more.

After watching the auction, we headed to breakfast. We consumed what was quite possibly the freshest sushi in the world. It was delightful, even at 6:30 a.m.

And, it's us again in front of the Tokyo Tower. We spent the rest of our time in Tokyo exploring the city's sites, gawking at the fashion and relaxing in Tokyo's parks. After returning to Nagoya, we took a day off to rest and then headed to Kyoto.

Here we are in front of a peony tree outside of Ninnaji Temple. 

And, here we are in front of the five-story pagoda at Ninnaji Temple.

Travis caught a neat picture of the pagoda behind a Japanese maple.

And, here we are again in front of Kinkakuji Temple.

We capped of Andrea's trip with a delicious meal at an okonomiyaki restaurant. It was quite possibly the best meal I've had since moving to Japan. I am pretty sure the waitress had a crush on Travis so we got some extras, like dessert and potato wedges, thrown in. She didn't realize I was his wife until the meal was over. 

Since Andrea arrived, I told her we would have to try some karaoke. She was reluctant and skeptical claiming she hates to sing in front of anyone. After our last dinner together, we convinced her to give it a shot.

And, as you can see, she changed her mind. :)

We rocked out to No Doubt's "I'm Just a Girl." I mean, we really really rocked it. It was amazing. Trust me.

Well, I better scoot. Travis is making a new recipe-Kentucky burgoo. I feel a rumbly in my tummy. Anyway, lots of exciting things happening here. I'll try not to keep you waiting too long for the next post. 

Japandrea

Hi, faithful readers! Sorry for abandoning you lately. I've been busy enjoying Japan with Andrea. We've been running around Nagoya like crazy, took a day trip to Inuyama and spent the weekend at a cabin located at the base of Mt. Fuji. Early tomorrow morning, we're heading to Tokyo for a few days. So, I don't have much time to write now. Here are a few pictures to tide you over. 

Here's Andrea in front of the Osu Kannon Temple. By the way, she timed her trip perfectly at the peak of cherry blossom season, and the weather has been amazing every single day so far. 

Here we are at sunset in front of Mt. Fuji.

Easter morning Fuji looked beautiful. It was certainly a nice little Easter surprise to find it waiting in the crystal clear sky. 

I hope you had a great Easter and took time to remember why we celebrate it.

Hanami

Sakura (cherry blossom) season is in full swing, and we've been taking full advantage of it. It's a huge deal here, and people really know how to enjoy it.

We spent Friday night walking along a river lined with cherry blossoms. It was breathtaking.

Unfortunately, it rained all day on Saturday so we enjoyed the view from the car. 

This is a shot from Kyoto we took the previous weekend.

And this one was taken near Nagoya Castle the previous week.

On Sunday, Travis had a baseball game so I went to cheer him on. 

After Travis' game, we took a picnic to a nearby park to enjoy hanami. Hanami means flower viewing in Japanese (hana=flower and mi=view). It basically consists of friends and family enjoying the cherry blossoms by going to a park, barbecuing, drinking and playing games. After Saturday's rain, Sunday was so beautiful. We spent the rest of the day "park hopping."

The weather here is beautiful, and Andrea will arrive around 6 p.m. this evening. So excited!! Hopefully we'll be able to see sakura for at least another week or so.

Heehee

Goodbye, 24!

I know many of you will be shocked to discover I turned 25 on the last day of March. I know you're  thinking I am wise beyond those years, but it's true, I really am THAT young. 

Birthdays are bittersweet for me. I really love my birthday because I feel like it's a 24-hour hug. Unless, of course, you celebrate it in two time zones like I did. In that case, the hug lasts longer. I am always amazed by how kind people are to me, and it makes me all warm and fuzzy. But, I hate them, too, because it reminds me that I'm not the only one getting older. I suppose that's how the cookie crumbles.

Anyway, I had an amazing birthday, and I think I am still glowing from it. I didn't have many expectations for my birthday this year since we are so far away from home, but I was floored by the amount of cards and gifts I received. Thank you all so much!

My birthday started with an early wake-up. Travis and I had a conference call at 6 a.m. so I had to get up extra early. I awoke to presents from my hubby, a poured bowl of cereal with a note "to add milk," and a fresh pot of coffee. It was a great start to the day, and I committed to spending the rest of it in my P.J.'s reading magazines and watching movies. Contrary to what some of you may believe, I don't do that every day.

Travis came home from work and surprised me with some birthday treats before we headed out for my birthday party.

We met a group of friends at a favorite restaurant. The couple in the bottom right of this picture are my friend, Beth's, parents. They are visiting from the U.S. and had just arrived a couple of hours prior. Now that's devotion! I was so overwhelmed by how many people came and by all the gifts I received. I couldn't believe the generosity and thoughtfulness. I felt so special.

Here I am opening one of the many gifts I received. I must say, though, the gift pictured was one of my favorites. For those of you who don't know, Japanese people often wear surgical masks to prevent spreading or inhaling germs. Not sure how well it works, but I'm now completely numb to how strange this seems to people not living in Japan. I don't even notice it anymore. Anyway, I was talking one day about how manufacturers should create surgical masks with funny expressions and faces. I especially thought there was a need for a "Billy Bob" face mask with the grotesque smile and jumbled teeth. Anyway, much to my surprise, it exists. My friend, Megan, gave it to me for my birthday. It's not quite as exaggerated as I would have created, but it's still pretty funny.  I'll take pictures. Don't you worry.

Travis also insisted on making me dinner the day after my birthday. It was pretty amazing, too.

When he told me he wanted to make dinner for me, I secretly began hoping he would make scallops, and he did! They were huge and so tasty, too!

Now, I have to wait a whole year for the next one.

*P.S. I planned a very malicious April Fool's blog, but I chickened out and decided to make my brother the lone victim.