School break already!?!?

Been a while since we provided update. Been a long few months. The family moved to our long term housing, started school a new school year, and getting settled, truly settled in the new norm.

The priority is to get the boys get settled and comfortable in school. Unlike other times, pre-pandemic, families get to visit the host country for a house hunting trip, for a school visits, and get to evaluate options that fits their need. Type of house the family prefer, the location of all the conveniences, location of school, type of school. We did not get any of that. We relied on people on site to give us some feedback. We relied on internet reviews, google maps, and closed our eyes and took the giant leap. Making decisions that could impact all of us is daunting. And once you make that decision, there’s no turning back.

We are now on a fall break already! which means we had been in school for almost 2 months. I am happy to say that we all have found our groove. The morning rituals of school bus ride is now down to the T, the after school agenda and bus ride, is not our favorite. But most importantly, we appreciate the new friends and new world we are in. We have had playdates. We have had school field trips. We are now learning conversational Japanese and recognize Hiragana. And soon, we will be having school performances. The boys are enrolled in ASIJ (American School In Japan). We chose the school that will allow us to integrate rather seamlessly with respect to curriculum and calendar. We had toured the school after enrollment, 2 days before school starts. No turning back. We are very much impressed with the school grounds, the faculty that welcomed us with open arms, and the values they believe in.

I am so proud of the boys on their first day of school. They were cool, they played it cool. We lived 10min away from their school since kindergarten, they can walk if they want to. This bus ride is an hour away, they are new. They did it. They still don’t like it, but they are doing it 🙂

After we have furnished the house, thanks to IKEA and Amazon.JP! It’s time to care for our own. We braved our neighborhood 🙂 We have found our mall which was a mile away. This mall has everything, it even has a rooftop garden! I have found a hair salon, we might not understand each other, women to women know what a good bangs look like ha-ha! We have found the canal a few blocks away to walk and breathe after a long day. Filled with cherry blossom trees and wild berries. Found a dentist, and how lucky are we to see the Tokyo tower every time we go 🙂

Now, we can start building a home.