Playing in the Snow :)

BEST Club just returned from it's annual snowboarding trip!!! We traveled to Nagano and spent 3 days playing in the snow. It was a lot of fun hanging out with students. Four freshmen joined the trip and their quirky personalities kept us laughing the whole time!

Getting ready to hit the slopes

This is Masashi and Kyle on the over night bus on the way to Nagano!

The men enjoying one of many traditional Japanese meals at the resort!

Saying good-bye! BEST Club goes to the same resort every year so we have a good relationship with the woman who runs it (the woman left of Mark). This year she even made a few arrangement for us to come although she was already booked. We hope she can see God's light through us!

sweet time in Hakone!

Two weeks ago, some BEST club girls decided to take a trip to Hakone, a nearby onsen (hot springs) town, to have fun, relax in the public baths and enjoy our last days with Mary. Yes, that’s right, Mary’s time in Japan has come to a close. She returned to Nebraska to study pharmacy. We miss you a ton, Mary.

everyone at dinner at our hotel: Left: Sae, Mary, Ayano, Chisato. Right, Fuyu, Asako, Jo, me, Na

i love japanese food! this is what each person's place setting looked like! wow!

a close up of the food: on the large plate to the left is broccoli in some sauce with octopus legs. I believe the orange things are carrots wrapped around bamboo. next to that is some pickles with a spicy sauce and some ham on the side. at the top is raw salmon over lettuce. yum!

hanging out and drinking green tea in our room

we stayed in a japanese style hotel. they provided our yukata (basically a long cotton robe/dress) and the over coats (since we had to walk outside to get to the public bath) for us to wear during our stay. we decided to take a formal shot. lookin' snazzy don't you think?



with jo and mary



Hakone is in a rural area, yay for scenery!

here's to yuri!

meet yuri, one of our good friends in BEST club. he is quite possibly the most 'japanese' students we know, in terms of adhering to and teaching (yes, often to us!) cultural norms of his country. sounds serious right? :D you should also know that yuri has an amazing sense of humor and loves learning to tell jokes in english. in one week yuri will be boarding a plane bound for australia where he will study abroad for 10 months. we're going to miss him!!! here's some shots with him and of our last BEST club meeting of the semester.

a fun picture from a game we played.

in other news, BEST club members have done a great job taking care of Whiskey, the Rood's hamster. he really seemed to enjoy hanging out in Mamo's pocket! :D

we can't wait to see you Friday, Roods!!!

a bit of home...

this past weekend we got together with some friends from iowa!!! they all attended U of I (some for just a year long English program and some to get their degree) and they will soon join the workforce in japan! :D hanging out with them brought back so many memories of our home in iowa city and the bible study we did with them, these friends are a huge reason we decided to come to japan to work with BEST club... yay for Japanese international students!!!

erina, jen and sachie

kyle, erina, yuichi, tamami and sachie. we made kimchi nabe, a spicy soup with cabbage, tofu, mushrooms, pork, onions and bean sprouts that you cook at the table (on the burner) and serve with rice. its one of our favorites, especially during the winter!

memories....

hanging out with sachie and akiko (we missed you this weekend!) in iowa city

a christmas party at our house in '06 with the gang

Christmas at it's BEST

the annual BEST club christmas party took place a few weeks ago. everyone pitched in and made it a fun and memorable event.Sae, Fuyu and Ayumi helping out in the kitchen Jo, Jen and Mary looking festive Joanna and Mikey soaking up their time together :) we miss you Mikey!

Tomoko and (that's right!) Tomoko. same name, totally different but equally fun freshmen girls!

Mikey played O Holy Night for all of us!

Saaya and Sae, two more freshmen gals

the guys tying their ties

a little enthusiasm goes a long way in cutting a turkey, huh Keigo? :D

Fuyu and Asako led everyone in a quiz game about Jesus birth and life.

Mary gave a speech (in Japanese!) about the believability of the Gospel

the whole group!

Sae, Asako and Megumi relaxing at the after party

Ayano, Tomoko, Sae in the background and Ayumi

What a party! Thanks for stopping by!

we'll be home for christmas....

if only in our dreams!

here a little peek at our christmas day. it was wonderful to spend the day together, reading, exchanging gifts, going for a walk and enjoying the goods our families sent us! they are way to good to us!

jennifer's first shot at homemade cinnamon rolls - thanks for all the help dorothy!!!

all the things we missed from home!

happy to be together :D

holiday happenings

we hope you all had a merry christmas! it was hard being away from family for the first time on christmas, but we are so thankful that no matter where we are, we can celebrate the gift of Christ! here's some shots of things we've been up to lately.

jennifer with her English class girls and their moms having a Christmas party

jen's japanese teacher is on the right

lots of card playing happening at our upperclassmen christmas party

jennifer's japanese teacher invited us over for a sushi dinner last week with her family. it was AMAZING!

here's her daughter, mayuko, and husband during dinner

her son, keisuke

christmas time is here!

okay, i just have to let me holiday spirit bust out!

i am thrilled that it's chrismas time! i love the sights, sounds, smells and meaning of this holiday. i am also thrilled that Japan celebrates christmas, well in some cultural way, i guess... check out these lights from a shopping area that is just a few minutes from our house!

it is surprising to have the familiar "feelings" of christmas around us. but also weird to realize that this holiday is just as commercialized here as it is in america. we truly desire to embrace the gift and truth of this time of year and to share the love with those around us! i love it!

and i had to throw this one in as an added bonus! the roods recently left for america for two months. here's a shot of the kids (josiah, abbie, and kayla) on the way to the bus station the day they left. too cute! we miss them a ton!

giving thanks

last week, kyle and i were able to celebrate thanksgiving with our team... we are starting to miss family more in the midst of the holiday season but we are increasingly thankful for the "family" we have here and especially for families back home who love us and support us being here. we miss you all!

the goedken family tradition: a veggie tray! what mother wouldn't be proud? :) everyone worked hard to provide a true american thanksgiving... mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, stuffing, pumpkin and of course:

the bird!

the women on our team plus mary's sister who was visiting!

the whole gang

kayla anxiously awaiting cheesecake for dessert :D

we are indeed blessed! thank you for being a part of our lives across many miles!