We arrived in WVA safely on Monday night where Joe picked us up and we drove to his home in Ranson.  Then Tuesday morning we headed out to Chattanooga to talk to folks at our mission board and get paperwork started.   Henry preached at Lakewood Baptist Church on Sunday. We started driving to TX on Monday.  

We stayed at a hotel the first night which broke up the long drive.  We drove three days to Katy, TX, to meet our daughters.  Henry preached at their church on the 20th and had a good meeting.  We then drove back to WVA with Sara and Teresa in a second car following us.  We stayed one night somewhere along the way and got back to Joe's on Friday the 22nd.

Matthew and Peter came in on Monday.   Stephen arrived Friday night, just in time for Christmas.   Sunday we went to First Baptist of Ranson for Christmas services and saw their cantata that evening.  We are all together celebrating the birth of our Savior and enjoying family, especially the grandkids!   Photos to follow.  

2023 is Ending

We are headed to the States on the 11th for two months.  We need to take care of some things because we turn 70 next year.   We first fly from Kobe to San Francisco over 15 hours of flight time.  Then we fly to DC, another 8 hours' flight.  I need some reading materials   :-).   We will stay at Joe and Christin's place and go to Chattanooga to do the paperwork on the 12th.  Then we wll be traveling to several churches for meetings and return to Joe's just before Christmas.   This Christmas all of our six children and all six grandchildren will be there--time for a group photo!   We get to meet little Ben, our first grandson!     January and February we are back on the road to various churches in the northeast and midwest--long hours of driving.  

Henry planted lots of veggies in the garden and we have feasted on broccoli, cabbage, spinach, daikon, carrots and such.  Beans and onions are in the ground to be harvested next year.  

Sara is at 18% support to raise money to come back to Japan as a missionary.  She, too, has long hours of driving, so keep us all in your prayers.  

 Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 

 

Large Japanese bird

While driving to Kato I went through this large area of  harvested rice fields.  Five large white birds with back tail feathers and long beak were foraging in one field.  I have not seen this bird in Japan before.  I think it is an ibis or a crane, but am not sure.  They were walking slowly and pecking.   In the last photo, one bird started to cross the road to another field and the others followed.   I thought of driving down that road, but decided against it.  Maybe if I see them again, I will try to get a closer photo.     

 

Recent Grandbaby photos

                Little Man Benjamin Ward at four months

Peter with Elorie, Jewel holding Benjamin and Arianna in front.

On a nostalgic note here is a photo from 2013 when we were in California visiting a supporting church.  Patch the Pirate, aka Ron Hamilton, and family were part of the program.  We were able to get a photo with him.  Ron went to heaven earlier this year and is sorely missed.  We had a bunch of the Patch Adventures when the kids were younger.  I told Ron that some of the songs sung on the CDs became part of our family vernacular  like:  "If you make a mess, clean it up, if you wear it, be sure to put it away, if you get it out, put it back or you will turn your home into a messy shack."  Character-building songs that have stuck in the brain all these years.  

 

Wood Carving Company

There is a wood company near us in Ono City.  They have these carved animals on display.  .The work is fantastic.  Kitten, Owl, Rabbit and Monkey holding a chain saw 

                                                     The bear and other critter are at the end.   

Our next door neighbors started remodeling their house and I've been taking photos since it was started in July.  They gutted the interior and made one big room which will be divided by short walls into kitchen, dining, and living rooms.  There is a pantry also.  They added a new master bedroom with a huge closet, private toilet and makeup area to the backside of the house.  The workers expect to be done in a couple of weeks.  

                                This is the foundation for the master bedroom and the next three are that room from the outside.   The third picture is the open area in the main part. 

This is the new compact kitchen area.  It is looking good.  

 

 In August, we took Sara to the Kyoto Yuzen-en place where you can paint your own Japanese design on cloth.  Sara wanted gifts for friends Stateside so she chose handkerchiefs.  Henry and I each did one for her. The way it works is this:   The design has several stencils that the artisan puts on the cloth, then hands you a brush with colored paint on it.  You then use circles and paint over the open stencils.  When that's done he changes stencils and gives you another color to paint.  This is done several times.  The last color added is white which brings out the highlights of the overall design.  He then irons the finished piece and you are done.  

I have made several T-shirts using this method, two are of blue butterflies and another is a floral print.  I also have a medium sized bag with a kimono print on it.  I love doing this as I "made it myself."  

Sara is painting her design. 

Henry is doing the same.

Finished painted design

White being added 

Final product

Benjamin Ward

          Little Benjamin Foster Ward in his suit on the way to his first Sunday at church.  

Here he is resting on the Word of God  

His T-shirt says  "I have the best uncle."  Who it was from, I don't know as there are six Uncles in the family.  :-)  

Grandpa and Grandma Reeves with their three grandchildren: Elorie, Arianna and Benjamin with their mom, Jewel in the back. 

Happy siblings in their back yard. 

 

Jewel took these photos of each child when they were first taken to church, shortly after they were born.  

We will be visiting the States in December/January this year and can't wait to see all the family.  :-)   

First Grandson, Benjamin Foster Ward, has arrived!

  

Proud parents Peter and Jewel and big sisters Arianna and Elorie, plus Jewel's entire family welcomed little Benjamin on  July 7th at 4:45 pm Central Time (Nebraska, USA) weighing 7 pounds 14 ounces and 19.5" long.  We got to talk to them within a couple of hours of his birth, so that was exciting to greet our  f i r s t   grandson.  

                             

                      Happy parents a few hours after birth

Grandma and Grandpa Reeves, Sisters Elorie in front and Arianna in back

For the first time, Little Ben and his family at church on Sunday, July 9th--two days old.  

We are planning to go to the USA in December/January, so we will get to meet this little guy soon.  God is good!  :-)    

Visit to Okinawa May/June 2023

We have been in Okinawa for two weeks (our second time here) filling in for a fellow missionary on furlough.   On May 30 a typhoon was coming up from the Philippines.  On Friday, June 2 we woke to the aftermath of strong winds and rain sweeping through the Nago area (northern part of the island of Okinawa).  The above is the canal across from the church at nearly flood stage.  

This is across the street from the church just above the river. 

The shed was standing at the back of the church building.   The padlocked door was busted open and the contents spilled out.  Henry and I managed to take all the stuff out and righted the plastic shed and put things back in.   It was an experience not to forget. 

When I took out the trash at the back of the building from the street side, I saw the shed was blown over and around the corner of the building.  

 

 

Family Update

These are Peter and Jewel's family Easter photos.  Jewel is expecting their first son in July.  Arianna is next to her and Elorie is next to Peter

Sitting on the platform in front of the church pulpit

Here are the "egg heads"    :-)

Elorie and her balloon friend

Arianna in kimono 

Picnic day

Arianna invited her friends to ride the bus to Sunday School.  

 

Bridge Building in Ono and Kato across the Kako River

Work on the new bridge about 3 km from here continues.  Here are some recent photos of putting the steel structures in place.  It is supposed to be done next summer and the other bridge will be taken down sometime.  It has been interesting to watch the work over the last 1 1/2 years.

Approaching the bridge from the Ono side, we cross on the left side of the crane.  The crane lifts the steel structures and puts them in place.

The steel structure is in front of that traffic cone.  The white cement on the right is where the bridge will end.  

This is from the Kato side across the river.

These steel bars are for workers to get in place .  Here two of them are holding the crane that has the steel structure to anchor it in place.   

More later as things progress. 

First Snow of 2023

January 25, 2023, we woke up to snow on the ground, about an inch of thick and sticky snow, very rare here in Ono City.   These are photos taken around the house.

                                          Looking right out the front door

                         Our heater/AC unit with lots of little ceramic figures.

   Looking left out the front door.

                                          Driveway and our two vehicles 

                                                 

                                       This is the garden gate of our 

                                    neighbor across the street

                                      The corner of the house next 

                                    to the cars

                                            Sunrise after the snow stopped

                                                    Behind the house

                               Our neighbor put old used carpets 

                                on the ground to prevent weeds 

                                  This garden is in front of the

                                   house next to ours.  A huge 

                                   evergreen bush was cut down

                                   last week next to the snow-covered

                                     plate over the ditch

                                                From the 2nd floor window