Ward Wanderings

Latest Quilting projects

This elephant has its problems, but it got done in 5 days; very colorful.

The label

The scrappy back. It's a large lap size; not quite bed size.

Row by Row from 2015: Quilting Sew Easy in Gaffney, SC; Orchard's Edge Quilt Shop, Bayfield, WI; and Quilter's Alley in Paducah, KY

Quilt and Sew in Katy, TX, the easiest one yet! The houses are a print and the shop quilted their name on the purple fabric--three seams--so easy. Love it.

There were 12 in church on January 29. Mrs. Maeda was new and came with member Mrs. Matsunaga. Mrs. Hirose came again; she's a friend of member Mrs. Tanaka. Baby Ryuri brought his mom 😀. Mrs. Komai and son Ryosei came, as well as Mrs. Akamatsu from the local nursing home.

1st row left: Mrs. Maeda and Mrs. Matsunaga; 2nd row Mrs. Tanaka and Mrs. Hirose; 3rd row Ryosei and Mrs. Komai.

Mrs. Akamatsu in front and Mrs.Yamaguchi standing.

Baby Ryuri now 2 1/2 months.

Henry lead singing and Sara played piano.

Time to break out the chocolate!

The Bible School remodeling is nearly done. Here are the latest photos of the entrance. Really looks much nicer than previously.

Looking from new walkway under the stairs from dining room. Chairs and table for chatting,copy machine corner and a closet.

From the dining room looking at President's office door and music room to right. The right wall has two restrooms.

Just inside the foyer. Plenty of closets now.

The secretary's window and President's office door right inside the entrance.

Parking lot was paved after the exterior was done. The door is completely new.

Henry's Wrist

While shoveling snow on our parking lot for the first time since it was paved, Henry slipped and tried to break his fall, landing on his left hand. He knew something was wrong right away. However, this was 9:00 a.m. Sunday morning and we had church in an hour. So I wrapped up the wrist and he held the left hand at waist height most of the time. Church proceeded as usual. We even had a first-time visitor come! Praise God.

We got to the hospital about 4:00 pm at the emergency room as it was the hospital's day off. They took an x-ray and it was determined he has a distal radius fracture. The ortho doctor was on duty and recommended surgery and to return Monday for a consultation.

You can see the wrist is swollen and out of joint a little. His arm was wrapped in a splint and a sling and we went home.

Monday we returned and saw the same doctor. He ordered some tests to determine the extent of the injury and prep for surgery. First was a blood test, then an EKG of his heart to see if that was OK and an MRI of the hand.

Finally we went back to the ortho doctor and he explained the procedure scheduled for 2:00 pm on Wednesday, Jan 18. He went through a list of things and explained the procedure in detail and what to expect. The options were a local anasthesia to numb the entire arm where Henry would be awake, or sleep. He chose the sleep one as he was told by two other friends that the local is very painful and sometimes does not work. This also means he will have to stay overnight Wednesday. Which also means he asked Hiraoka-sensei to preach on Wednesday evening.

The doctor will put a metal plate over a fractured bone and screw it down. He said Henry would need some rehab, maybe 1-2 visits.

Our insurance will cover most of the expense, so that is a blessing. I am Henry's chauffeur for a few days, although he insists he can drive with one hand--NOT!

Please pray for complete healing.

Snow in Kobe

It has snowed two days in a row here in Kobe! A very rare event. However, it also has melted so we are back to just freezing temps. It was beautiful to see the snow hanging on the trees.

Sunday Morning January 15th.

The shoveled parking lot--for the first time.

New Year moon Near

Near as I can figure the star on the left is actually Mars. This was taken about 6:30 AM January 2nd in Japan. It's rather striking to see it on a clear, cold night. God created so many beautiful things for us to appreciate and glorify Him.

First quilt 2017

The first quilt I finished this year was started in December 2016, but completed January 2.

Quarter-square triangles set in black polka dots--spiffy.

The back is just scrappy.

My Santa bag where I collect fabric scraps all year.

And here is the pile of most of the scraps collected that are too small to use. It was fun making quilts in 2016 and will continue in 2017, Lord willing. I've been trying to reduce the fabric stash I have, but somehow it just keeps multiplying...

Happy New Year lunch

😋 We had sukiyaki for lunch today. This is a Japanese meal cooked at the table and people just serve themselves out of the pan, taking whatever they like. Ingredients include thin sliced marbled beef cut in bite-size pieces, Chinese cabbage, leeks cut in 1 inch pieces, watercress, mushrooms, tofu and sukiyaki sauce. Rice is served on the side. It's tradition to crack an egg into a small bowl and stir it up, then dip the vegetables or meat in it before eating. However, Sara and I opted out of that part. We have added broccoli in the past and that was good, but it's not part of an 'authentic' Japanese sukiyaki dish. Here's some photos:

The meat is fried first in a little oil, then the
veggies are added, and the tofu is last to go in.

Chef Henry

Meat with veggies, tofu and white mushrooms cooking in the sauce.

Soooo delicious and filling!

Coke in Japan

The labels on Coca Cola bottles in Japan can be turned into a Christmas Bow by pulling a tab. Works on 500 ml bottles only. Clever

Ladies' Meeting

Our annual wreath making ladies' meeting was December 9th. There were seven ladies in attendance; four of whom were new to this event. Henry told Jesus' birth story.

We made pine cone wreaths on a wire frame this time. Back in March/April, the city of Kobe was kind enough to cut the trees along the major thoroughfare--a distance of about 2-3 miles. Oodles of beautiful pine cones were left behind, so I collected a huge box of them. They turned out well, though it took longer than anticipated. After that we had a turkey soup lunch.

Please pray the new ladies will come again and hear the gospel.