Skiing Hakkoda Ropeway

On the 4th, I got to finally experience the Japan ski scene. While Sarah was at work, I went out with the guys and hit up the Hakkoda Ropeway for some skiing. For more info, this site is pretty good: http://www.boardtheworld.com/Home/Resorts/Japan/Hakkoda?desID=124&cCode=JP

The skiing was pretty awesome. I had some borrowed skis that were designed for Giant Slalom type skiing...and this skiing was a mixture of 6-9 inches of fresh powder in places and solid ice in others. Not to mention that none of it is groomed, so it is a bit bumpy...and steep! This made the skiing very difficult...and it was the first time in 2 years or so that I had hit the slopes. The weather there was absolutely perfect, which apparently is a VERY rare thing. People say that you normally can't see more than 50 feet in front of you, so it gets a little sporty at times. The food at the bottom of the mountain was incredible. I had some pork cutlet curry that definitely hit the spot. I've since ordered new skis, boots, and bindings...so hopefully I will get those in soon and be able to enjoy some spring skiing.

Ryan's Desert Return

On March 1st, I got back with a group of roughly 300 happy people after 5+ months in Balad, Iraq. We were chartered on Omni Air International, a DC-10 that took us on a worldwide tour on the way home. Rather than traveling East, which was about a 18-hour flight, our flight was routed West. We flew from Qatar to Cypress (Greece) to Shannon (Ireland) to Anchorage (Alaska) to Misawa. All told, the trip was 36 hours (about 26 of those were in the air). Once we were on the ground, though, nothing else really mattered. It was a great time seeing Sarah and Micah in person rather than in pictures. So much had changed in those 5 months...Sarah has lost her baby weight and is fitting into all of her old clothes again, and Micah sits up on his own, laughs, plays, and eats real food! Micah even seemed to recognize me...mustache and all. Micah had a DVD of me reading a couple of books that he watched almost every day. We think that was a huge factor and led to a much easier transition to having an extra body around the house. Some friends of ours snapped some great photos for the homecoming with our camera so you guys could see it too. If you would like to read the Public Affairs news release from the event, just click on the title of this post. Enjoy the pics!

The photo below was taken by the base photographer. The full size version is available at: http://www.misawa.af.mil/shared/media/photodb/photos/090301-F-0168M-093.jpg

The Samurai return

Hey everyone, it's Ryan and I've finally made it back. We have started to get some things around the house back in order but right now things are quite hectic. We're still unpacking boxes from Sarah's return from the states and I'm still sorting through stacks of paperwork that have been eagerly awaiting my return. Although there is PLENTY of work for us over the next week and a half before I return to work, we have made plenty of room for fun. Hopefully I can get our blog back up to speed over the course of this week.

Anyways, here are some of the photos from the Squadron's return. The return took place over several days and I think everyone is back now. The first batch of photos is from the 27th of February when the jets flew in. Enjoy!

Samurai Return Part Deux

Mom's lap

There is no better place to sit than on my mom's lap. It seems Halle and Hannah seem to think so too. I don't like to share.... but mom says I have too.

sitting like a big boy

Ok, so I can't walk, I can't crawl, but I can sit like the big boys do. However, I do sometimes take some pretty nasty dives into the carpet, but they are beginning to be less often. Here are some pics of me "sittin pretty".

~Micah

swimming, swimming....in a swimming pool

Micah got to sport his swim trunk for the first time when we stayed in Denver at the Holiday Inn. He didn't really like the big pool. He said it was a little cold. He did however like dipping in and out of the hot tub. Over all it was a fun experience, but next time he wants his daddy to take him swimming.