Ten Unique Things to Do For Valentines Day!

Hello, everybody!

Valentines is upon us! The holiday known for love, let's take the time this Valentines Day to show some love to other people. This list is directed more towards single girls still at home, but I'm sure it can be adapted to married folks or guys as well. ;) Here are ten unique ways to spread some love, kindness, and joy this holiday. (And a few ideas for yourself, too!)

Simply Sisters News Flash! :D

Hello everybody! It's time for another Simply Sisters update, because where on earth have we been? I truly am sorry for the lack of posts recently, but I have some exciting news to tell you, too!

Pictures Post: Picnics and Fireworks

I can hardly believe how the days have slipped by since our last post on here-- and it's even more awful realizing how long it's been since the last picture post. :( 

But here is a fresh post all about picnics and fireworks and summery things, so even though it's rather short, maybe it will make it up a little. 

Sneak Peeks of Summer

Everybody likes sneak peeks, right? So today I'm going to give you a sneak peek into the life of an MK in Japan around this time of year, a couple sneak peeks of things to come in blog posts soon, and a who knows what else? lol!

Week of Pictures: Chocolate Factory and Volcanic Lake

Howdy!
Hope you all are having a wonderful Father's day with your dad. :)
A couple weeks ago we took a family trip one Friday down to Sapporo where we explored a chocolate factory. It was a lot of fun, especially since the buildings and grounds were so whimsical and old fashioned! :)

Pictures: Spring Sunday Drive

Howdy!

Did you notice the change in the "Pictures" banner up at top? Yep, I thought I had better be truthful about it... because let's face it, the pictures are not getting put up every week, lol!
I already have pictures on my computer and on my camera for the next two picture posts, which is a good reminder to get this one up! 

Taking for Granted

I am working on getting the next picture post up, but I wanted to share some thoughts I had. :) 

Last Friday, we traveled to the big city on our island, about four hours south, to enjoy exploring a famous chocolate factory. 

Week of Pictures Six-- And then Spring Came

Howdy! I'm here with my long overdo week of pictures. :) 

I'm feeling pretty excited with summer coming on! We actually broke records here in Shibetsu for hottest April-- it got to 77F here this week, which is crazy! Our summers are always mild compared to many places, so it came as a surprise to us all. :P 

Josiah's 10th Birthday!

Hello! :)

Another birthday has passed...this time it was Josiah's! He turned ten years old! 

Week of Pictures, Five-- Us and Life

Hi! How are you all doing? Sorry it has taken so long to get another installment of these posts up!

Zebulun's Birthday, Daddy's Return, etc

Hello! I hope you are having a beautiful day! :)

First off, I want to thank everybody who wished me a happy birthday. It made me really happy and was very special. Thank you! :)

Last Sunday was Zebulun's birthday. He could not wait to open his presents. :D Victoria made him a vanilla cake.

Month full of Birthdays

You may know by now that our family has three birthdays in March-- Abigail's was on the 6th, Malachi's the 17th, and tomorrow, the 22nd, is Zebulun's. 

As for me, I'm having a blast, because it means I get to make three cakes almost all at once! :) I really enjoy making cakes so it's a lot of fun for me! :) 

Week of Pictures, 3

Howdy, you all! Sorry it took me so long to get this up! First it was my computer acting up, then my camera decided to be a bit cranky and not load onto my computer. Sometimes, I wish everything wasn't so technological, but then after pondering that a minute or so, I change my mind. I am thankful for technology and how we can use it to keep in touch with friends, and (hopefully) be a blessing to others, through blogs, emails, etc! 

Days of January, Abigail style :)

Konnichiwa!
I hope you are having a wonderful Sunday and beautiful one as well. :) The sun is starting to stay out a little longer now....



A couple mornings ago, it was all misty outside and looked quite cold. So, I opened up the window to snap a few pictures.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

We just wanted to take a moment to wish a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS to all of our readers! We hope you have the best of days celebrating the birth of our sweet Saviour and enjoying time with family. 

"Thankful"--Brother's handiwork

By request from various readers, we will be showcasing our brothers "Thankful" projects. :) I think they all did a great job, and were very creative! 

Campfire, missionary style!

The day before my birthday, Daddy got this rather spur of the moment idea to have a cookout. He took the legs off our little grill and the boys put rocks around it so we could have a quick "fire pit" type thing. It made the grill look a lot more campfire ish that's for sure!
Our neighbors probably wondered why we didn't get out more than a couple times this summer and now that it could snow any time we're out there all evening in coats cooking marshmallows, lol!

Days of Summer, 2

Here are some snippets of our Days of Summer!

Windy at the beach--our visit to Teshio

When most people think of going to the beach, they picture a cloudless blue sky, bright sand, and lots of sun. So it's rather funny that most of the times I've been to beaches in my life the day has been beautifully gray, to match the water, and the sand is black. And the water is frothy and cold.

Happy birthday Gideon!

Hello!!
First off I want to say I am so sorry for our inconsistent posting. We will try to do better. ;)
Now that I have that off my chest, I would like to say Happy Birthday (belated) to my brother Gideon who turned 11! :)
Take a deep breath....



Blow it all out!!



And no, even though it looks like his brothers are trying to strangle him, they really aren't. :) Daddy had classes to teach in the public school the morning of Gideon's birthday, so we had German apple cake and BLTs at lunch, when we also gave Gideon his presents and things.

---Side note....the German Apple cake was VERY good. I'm curious if anyone would like a post about it, with the recipe? Comment below letting us know, if you want the recipe, and we will be glad to do a post on it! ----

After lunch, we drove an hour south to Asahikawa, where we took Gideon to an indoor playground. We all enjoyed it! :D
You can't tell just by looking at it, but that entire area is like five levels of tunnel mazes. I won't lie...although I've been in it before, I always get a little claustrophobic-panic at the beginning, until I get used to it. Once you do, though, its a ton of fun!



Gideon is one of our quiet ones. He likes anything to do with sports, he always has his nose in a book, and he has always enjoyed drawing and writing stories. ;)

Then... Father's Day was yesterday! I don't remember if we did a post on Mother's Day or not... ( :^ ) But because we have some traditions in connection with Father's Day I thought I'd share them.
To start with, we always make a big meal. :P I made an apple pie, my dad's favorite, for dessert.



Also we have for quite a few years now decorated him a coffee mug. Here is a 360 view of this year's. ;)

This view you can see Zebulun, Josiah, and Gideon's art. :)


Malachi and Abigail's... (I just cracked up when I saw how big us girls made our stick figures compared to the boys... big sisters.... lol!)


Me, and my mom! P.S. I drew cowboy boots on my person. :P


Anyways, we have been enjoying this past weekend as a family! ;) It has been raining a lot here, and it has gotten pretty cool on some days...
Hope you are all having a LOVELY day!
Love in Christ,
Victoria
....leaving with a hope for posts to arrive soon......