T. I. L. T.

• Summer vacation is finally here!!!
• All the prep my mom has done for our visit (THANKS MOM!!!)
• Cool nights instead of the 24 hour mugginess of Japan
• Family
• Good friends
• DS finishing his final exams
• DS becoming a teenager and so far not being too much trouble (knock on wood)

T. I. L. T.

Well, not much going on here but I thought I would at least try to do a Things I Love Thursday so here it is…
• Nice weather even though it's officially rainy season
• Old friends coming to Japan on business and getting a chance to catch up!
• Only about a month until we head out for summer in Idaho
• DS still enjoying school so much that he doesn't complain about having to get up at 5:15 every morning
• A wonderful DH even though he does make me mad sometimes (I'm sure I make him mad a lot as well)
• World Cup Soccer (go Japan and US)
• My mom who is always helpful and tries to be understanding
• Tacos for dinner
• Amazon Japan so I can get almost any book in English at a reasonable price
• My old dog still being healthy and hanging in there

T.I.L.T.

• Helpful teachers at DS's school when he is struggling with English
• Beautiful weather for now
• Costco (love we can get US products here at a reasonable price!)
• Only about 80 days until we head to the US for summer!
• Good friends
• Good family

Things I Love Thursday

I haven't had much of a blogging groove lately so I'm going to join the crowd and to TILT...

• AFWJ women selflessly rallying around members that are in need
• DS enjoying school so much that he was complaining he wanted to go to school when home sick with a fever
• Beautiful spring weather
• Lunch with friends
• My Slingbox so I can watch American TV in Japan

Junior High

Well, H started junior high school on Tuesday. He was soooo nervous he didn't sleep a wink Monday night but we made it through the entrance ceremony without any mishaps. DS loves his new school and we all feel that going there is going to be one of the best things that will ever happen to shape his life. It is so difficult to raise children bilingually and so the opportunity this school's international class program gives us is incredible. The kids are taught in English but are still part of the Japanese society there and as it is taught on the International Baccalaureate curriculum it will prepare him for higher learning anywhere in the world. What a relief that everything is settling down now. It has been a long road but definitely worth it so far. Yay!

Yatttaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, H got into our first-choice school on the first day of tests. We are all extremely happy and relieved that we got through this all with the results we had hoped for. I am really excited about this because he will be in the international class at the school which is taught in English. This will prepare him to go to university in whichever country he chooses and open up lots of opportunities for him. Also, as it is a Japanese school accredited by the government here it will keep him at native level in Japanese. S is happy about the whole situation too so we definitely got the best results we could have ever asked for. Now we just have to move on to the preparations for attending the school such as getting his uniform ready and all will be good.
What a great way to start the year!

The Dreaded Exams Approach...

We are now down to 4 days until H's entrance exams. This is such a stressful time and I really can't wait until it is all over and my son can start junior high school and settle in there. He is working very hard going over past exam questions with DH trying to figure out what kind of problems are possibly going to be on the exams and also going over areas he is weak in.
I think the worst is going to be waiting Monday evening until 10PM when the results are posted. I guess that since this is the system here we just have to deal with it and get through it all with a smile. I know that many kids go through this process every year and parents successfully guide their children through it. I am so glad that I have only one child so I only have to do this once!
Anyhow, please check back here later next week to see the results. I am hoping there will be no major dramas and H gets through the exams without too much stress and pressure.
Anyone have any good advice for right before the exams for how to get him to relax and focus? Anything would be much appreciated.
Here's to getting this all over with and surviving it!