Summer Movie & Bible Fun Day

It's a lame title. Sorry.

This summer on Tuesdays I had planned to take the church kids/teens to the movies (they have special family friendly movies for $1 on Tuesday mornings), then come back to the church for lunch, Bible story, games, crafts.  It's a really great plan for two weeks. But then most of the kids will be in summer school, so I may have to change the plan.

Today, we had 10 kids come along! (Plus Perry, of course.)

We watched Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.  We were able to tie this to our Bible story time in two ways:

1) Puss was fearful of death throughout the movie since he had used up eight lives and was on his last. But we shared the Easter story of how Jesus died for us and as believers, we don't have to fear death.  

2) Kitty Softpaws just wanted someone she could trust. We shared how we always have Someone we can trust--Jesus! 

Since we shared the Easter story, our game just had to be an Easter egg hunt.  (Who doesn't like searching for free candy!?)

For our craft, the kids had a list of verses reminding them not to fear.  We decorated this and had Team Jesus foam stickers (a play off of Team Friendship in the move).

Lunch was chicken salad sandwiches, chips, and ice keki for dessert. (Ice keki is like an ice pop/otter pop, but way better. When I lived in Guam, the teachers at school would send me money when I came to Saipan so I could bring back a case.)  

When I asked if people had fun, they all cheered with an overwhelming yes! :)

Cafe Chocolat

 By day three, it was time to get to work.  Our ladies retreat theme was Cafe Chocolat: Where Women Delight in God's Grace. We worked Friday night as well as early Saturday morning to get everything just right...and to make sure we had plenty of chocolate!

 It was a wonderful time studying various miracles in the New Testament.   We had six sessions where we played games, sang songs, studied scripture, and made wraps for the women's prison here in Saipan. 

It was a small group, but it was an amazing time!  I'm sad several were off island and couldn't join us. Hopefully next year!

Home

 Oh, how Perry and I love when we touchdown in Saipan.  You can see Mt Tapochau as you come in for that final approach.  Then the airport says "Welcome to Saipan."  Not a lot has changed over the last 21 years of Saipan landings.   

Helen Ann picked us up.  When I bid the island farewell in 2023, I never thought I would see Helen Ann again on the island. (I see her in Oklahoma.)  But she is here for a visit, so it's just like old times.  Our day was full of unexpected adventures.  We joined up with her daughter ('Our' Laura) and went exploring.

You see, Saipan has a new road.  Everyone is talking about it. It's not finished, but they opened a good size stretch of it.  Because of this road, new beaches were discovered!

We had a to do a tad bit of off-roading since the road isn't totally finished.  But 'Our' Laura was driving, so I didn't worry about it.  We also stopped in a Kalabera Cave for a quick view...

And of course, I needed a picture by the Saipan sign now that it's painted orange..

Finally, we made it back to the other side of the island where I needed to start decorating for the ladies retreat.  

I have to say, jet lag isn't even an option as everyone has kept me so busy touring.  (I don't think I have ever just toured on my first days. I kind of like it.)

Just Gotta Stay Awake: Part 2

(If the next sentence means nothing to you, go back and read the previous blog.) 

Before our beautiful Oka Point adventure, we had stopped by the new Don Don Donki built in Guam.  Apparently, it's a Japanese retail giant with stores throughout Asia. (It has a great jingle. I plan to go spend an hour inside the store some day so I can learn the song.) Basically, it is the coolest grocery story ever...with a food court...and an Olive Garden...and a drug store...and a dollar store...and SAMPLES!  

Next stop was Slowalk Coffee shop.  It is a three-story coffee shop, that is also the coolest coffee shop I have ever been in.  It was like a coffee museum, built in an old bank with a great ocean view. 

Check out the TV...you might see someone you recognize!

Next stop was Emerald Valley, a beautiful waterway. (It's also next to the Power Plant, so you would probably grow a third ear if you swim here.)

Last stop before getting back to the Roach Room was the new hotel built next to Nikko. I was bitter when this hotel went up as it was taking some of my Nikko view away, but it does have a fantastic view of Tumon Bay. (And a fountain show that I hope to catch one night!)

Just Gotta Stay Awake: Troungs & Oka Point

I have one day in Guam to unpack then repack and stay awake!  (The unpack part was getting rid of VBS stuff and Guam ladies retreat things that were in my suitcase. The repack part is from the things I stored in my dresser here from last year that need to go to Saipan.)  

The unpacking/repacking happened relatively quickly. (It's amazing what you get accomplished when you get up at 5:45am. Ugh).  Then came the difficult part: staying awake until bed time.

I had made lunch plans with my friend Ezekiel. He and I needed to plan Guam Catch the Wave (the youth retreat).  I figured I could get him to plan with me if I bribed him with lunch. (Selfishly, I just wanted Troungs).  I probably post a picture of this every single year, but it's so good.

Guam restaurant win today:  I am frequently recognized in some of my favorite places in Saipan. However, Guam is big.  Lots of people come through here.  But today when I walked in to Troungs, the lady said, "I haven't seen you in a long time."  I was remembered! 

After some time planning the youth retreat and answer some other ministry questions from Zeek, he made it his mission to keep me awake.  At first, he was just showing me the new location of his family's bakery (yes, I bought a coconut turnover...and an apple one...).  After he heard I had never been to Oka Point in all my Guam years, he took me on a beautiful adventure!

 Then we went to another section of the Oka Point view.  Apparently, this used to be a grand place for weddings! He pulled up a picture from the 80s.  Wow.  How could they let this go? 

And then....the hike to the bottom...

But totally worth it....

Are We There Yet?

Here we go again!  You know it's getting close when you start finding Perry in your suitcase while you're packing to travel so he doesn't get left behind.

I had a record late flight out of Tulsa...9am!  I was super stoked knowing my aunt would cook me breakfast, whatever I wanted because she's great like that.  However, my uncle's cataract surgery was schedule for crazy early, so they left before I even needed out of bed.  It's okay though. Mom and I enjoyed the donut shop down the street.  

As you can see, Perry is ready to go! 

I would like to say my travels were uneventful, but a few hours in I was starting to have band trip deja vu. I was frustrated when I landed in Denver because I had a United Club pass (actually two) that would expire in a week. But we got to sit on the plane for a good thirty minutes before getting to our gate.  When I do get off, it's another good twenty plus minutes to switch terminals.  I had decided to give up on the club, but much to my surprise my gate was right beside the club entrance, so I could go in and eat 45 minutes worth of free gummy bears (well, I had lunch too).  

It was time to be on my merry way to Japan, so Perry and I made our way to the good ole Boeing 787.  After we were fully loaded, the captain comes on and says there is a mechanical error and we had to deboard so they could power down the airplane and restart it.  (Funny. They treat it like a phone or computer.  Just turn it off and restart to see if that fixes the problem. I don't know how I feel about that.)  At this point, we knew we were a minimum of two hours waiting, so guess where I went? Back to the United Club for more gummy bears.  (I chose the best of all possible days to use that free pass! Waiting in a Club with free gummy bears is better than a Loves in Tennessee.)  As you can see, Perry is enjoying his spacious seat with windows overlooking our gate so we won't miss our flight. 

We were eventually let back on the plane, taking off about 2.5 hours later than originally planned.  (This meant I would miss my connecting flight to Guam once I got to Japan.  However, there was still one more plane to Guam, so I wasn't overly concerned. Plus, I kind of wanted an overnight in Japan because after twenty-one years of doing this, I have yet to spend the night in Japan.)  

I had a really good seat on my flight.  Not the amazing seats in the very front that I can occasionally swing when I fly on a pass, but what is now called "Premium Plus."  They are similar to the old first-class seats....a little more room, a little nicer food presentation, a bigger tv, the good headphones, a nice pillow and blanket, and a goodie bag.  

However, the bread was still cold and that disappointed me.  I just knew I would get better bread like the good seats. 😂 I did get a lot of food. Three meals in fact.  

The most exciting part of the trip was when the captain came on mid-flight.  I was a little concerned because 1) the captains never talk in the middle of these flights--they want to keep the passengers asleep and 2) he had a strange tone when he started talking. I just knew we were going to have to go land somewhere because the plane reboot didn't actually fix the problem. Nope, someone was smoking in the lavatory.  That's been illegal folks since 1988.  Oh, the captain was hot.  I guess there's a smoke alarm that signals in the cockpit (??--I will double check this with my brother later).  He said if they were caught they would be detained in Japan.  Nothing like a Locked Up Abroad case to ruin a vacation.

I was rebooked to the later Guam flight, and upon arrival they held the plane for several us who needed to travel on to the islands.  But I got bumped up to business class on that flight, so another nicer meal...and this time HOT bread! (I took the picture before they came around with the bread basket.)

My upgraded seat also came with a sunset view leaving out of Japan.  

And then I broke a tooth.  (Can I really be in the islands without some kind of dental emergency? Sigh.)

Even with mechanical issues, cold bread, and smoking in the lavatory, I was only one hour later arriving to Guam and all my luggage arrived!  I call that a travel win!  (Unless you include the tooth part. Then I lost.)