Next stop: Japan

Cherry blossom path in Iwakuni.

Documents provided by the military to prepare us for a move overseas, as well as Rosetta Stone for Japanese.

I realize it has been two weeks since I last posted. I have no excuse other than the fact that the Guthrie's have been busy - even busier than usual. The kids started back to school after the holiday break on January 2. Rodney started back to work January 3. My classes and instructing started up January 9.

But the biggest news for the four of us is the fact that Rodney received orders - to MCAS Iwakuni in Japan! Click on the link the some info about it. We report in July. This base is the only Marine Corps base located on mainland Japan. The rest are all located on the island of Okinawa, which is where Rodney was stationed in 2003-2004 while Will and I lived with Rodney's parents in Illinois.

Iwakuni Castle

Map of Japan - note how close we are to Gina's homeland of Korea!

Kintai Bridge in Iwakuni

Arial version of MCAS Iwakuni in 2004. That sandbar-looking area in the bottom left corner is now a new runway.

Rodney is absolutely thrilled to be going back, he loved it there and can't wait to share it with the rest of us. The kids are more excited than I thought they would be. Will wants to see the Pokemon museum in Tokyo and Xan just wanted to make sure that he didn't have to learn Japanese before he went to school there. I am sure we will all have moments of sadness when we leave, but I think we all have the mindset that this will be an adventure! We have gotten Rosetta Stone for Japanese, levels 1-3, so, hopefully, we will have picked up enough Japanese to get ourselves from America to base. As we get more info, we'll let you know. Right now we are busy trying to figure out what to do with our house (sell or rent?) and our cars (must sell, but how and when?).

Also, on a sadder note, Rodney's Dad, Paul has been diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor, which has affected his mobility and some memory. He has undergone surgery to remove a large portion of the tumor and is now going through daily rounds of radiation. Rodney has been going home for about a week each month since November to help out and his family could use your thoughts and prayers.

The kids are busy with school. Will has been studying the moonrise, and, despite the fact he is not fond of reading, has finally caught up on his Accelerated Reader (AR) points. He is also working on his writing for the Florida standardized test given to 4th graders in the spring. Xan has taken to reading like a fish to water, already reading on a mid-year first-grade level. He's gotten through all of his sight words and is now working hard to earn a place on the Kindergarten Wall of Fame for AR. Both boys will be registered for baseball later this month, and Xan is especially excited. He wears  the baseball pants he got from Grandma Peggy and Grandpa Paul for Christmas as often as we let him. Will also got a new bat for Christmas and he's excited to try it out.

Rodney is working on getting in to better shape, running a lot, working out with a friend of his who is a bodybuilder and playing basketball in the weekends. He tweaked his knee playing yesterday, but seems to be on the mend. He is now in charge of Block 3 at work, which means he's responsible for the management of all of the Marines and sailors who teach students about air traffic control radar.He plans to assistant coach the boys' baseball teams this spring.

I am still working part time for the credit union's marketing department, Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and we are launching a new campaign for 2012: The Pen Air Patrol. Click the link to see what my CU life has revolved around fro the past 5 months. On Tuesdays and Thursdays I am still teaching two sections of speech, or Basic Communication Skills for the University of West Florida. I am a lot less nervous this semester and have adjusted the class slightly to better ensure the students actually read the assigned chapters ahead of time. It seems to be working so far. I am also scheduled to graduate with my master's degree in Strategic Communication and Leadership May 5, provided I finish the three classes I am registered for now. One is a traditional class, meeting in Thursday nights, and we are studying how the media portrays alternative medicine. Since I know very little about this subject, I should learn quite a bit. The second class is new for the school. It is a sort of advertising agency for the different schools and departments within the university, to help them promote the speakers and events they host on campus. I am not sure what I will be doing with that yet, but will hopefully find out next week. And, finally, I will have a capstone project, something I work on individually as the all-encompassing final project. I am not sure what I am going to be doing, but I have some ideas. Hopefully one of them will be approved by the department.