Baby Registry

Well today we had the joy of creating a baby registry at Babies R Us. Taking the scanner around the store was such a blast. If you want to check it out, go to babiesrus.com, click on Baby Registry, and then do a search for Dinkins, Trsih.

No Bushes in Seattle

Our trip to Seattle was very enjoyable, but not very eventful, save our ultrasound. The climax of our visit as tourists came a top the Space Needle on a cloudy, but not overcast day (as seen in the picture). We did a lot of exploring in our Chevy Imaplia and just basked in the missed pleasures of the good ole U.S. of A: street signs in English, Whole Foods, Quizno's, Cheesecake Factory, Mexican food, coffee shops, Old Navy, wide streets, diversity of people, commercials, and understanding strangers. We also noticed things we didn't miss: homeless people begging for money, waves of fear walking through the bad parts, tipping, and being conned (yep, conned out of a dollar). We saw so many Kerry signs as we explored Seattle and only spotted a single Bush sign. I think Seattle is one of the more liberal cities.
My visit to the school, Mars Hill Graduate School, proved to be a confirmation of what I imagined, and that's a good thing. I really connect the mission and emphasis of the school. It is a cutting edge school focused on contextualizing the gospel. If you want to check out their web site, it is www.mhgs.edu.

What should we name her?

If you have any suggestions for First or Middle names, please make a comment to this post.

Boy or Girl?

We still don't know. In two days we're flying to Seattle for three days and while we are there we are getting an ultrasound so hopefully we'll finally know. After Seattle we will be in St. Louis for 6 days and in Florida for 6 days. Trish is showing a little now so she's packing the maternity clothes.

Half Way

With the hopes of finding out the sex, the first day of Trish's 20th week we were finally able to get an ultrasound at a Japanese clinic in a neighboring city. However, to our dismay and frustration the doctor said it was too early to tell. By medical science, we know that it is possible to tell so to my best deduction, they just do things differently here. At the clinic in town, they won't even try till 25 weeks. The on-base hospital cancelled our appointment because of a base exercise. So we are thinking about getting an ultrasound during our trip to the States Oct 23 - Nov 8. Trish's sister is who is due five days later than Trish found out that she is having a boy. Yea, so exciting! So I guess the race is on to have the first Bundy grandchild.

Super Soldier

From an article I wrote for our command magazine (with minor adjustments):

The Super Soldier Challenge is an annual event designed to challenge the physical fitness and basic soldiering skills of soldiers in Misawa. Our Navy command fielded one team of four. Three teams from the Japan Ground Self Defense Force also participated, but competed amongst themselves because they were not allowed to handle the M16.

Since Sailors do not necessarily possess basic soldiering skills, we had to quickly attain the needed skills. The Army graciously instructed us and in two brief sessions of instruction, we learned enough to enable us to compete, and compete we did.

On the morning of September 21st we arose early to a gloomy, rainy day. I guess that was appropriate for the Army who says, “"If it isn'’t raining, we’re not training."” It literally rained the whole day. All of the teams started off at 0630 with a four-mile march hauling a 40-pound rucksack. After that, the teams rotated between six different events: the M16 (assemble/disassemble) Relay; the Hand Grenade Toss in which we had to duck behind bunkers and low crawl through the mud to access our targets; NBC Evaluation of donning MOPP-4 gear; Physical Fitness test of push-ups, pull-ups, and sit-ups for eight minutes; Evaluate/Treat/Evacuate a Casualty; and a Terrain Association in which there were 21 points to locate in 45 minutes in about a 30 acre area. At the end, all the teams ran in a 4X400-meter relay using a rucksack instead of a baton.

The continuous drizzle made for an interesting, slippery, cold, and muddy day. Waiting between events led to shivering so we were eager to start each new event. As the day progressed we realized that we may not win the challenge, but we still made a good showing considering our lack of experience. We finished last in only two of the events and ended up in fifth place.

We all agreed that the day proved to be one of the more physically challenging days of our lives. The soreness for the days to follow testified to our sentiment.

And oh yea, there were only five U.S. teams competing!

Saturday Night HH

Tonight I led my first Bible Study at the Hospitality House since the Weber's left. We talked about confronting people, namely Christians. I have struggled with just what to do when I see my brethren living in sin. My natural reaction is to distance myself from them or ignore the problem, but that doesn't do anybody any good. By not saying something, we are in a sense condoning their actions. Also, sometimes we might feel like we are better than the person, however, we need to realize that we all sin. We need to identify with them in their struggles, realize that we are part of the same body, and confront them in humility and with compassion.

Navy Ball

We attended our second ever Navy Day Ball and it was a blast. We invited along some of our non-Navy friends to join in the fun, and fun was had by all. The ball kicked off with ceremonial bliss. Then came the winded speech by "the Admiral" on base, followed by a delightful dinner and toasts. After that, we watched some Japanese style entertainment consisting of a sword battle scene and and a drum performance. The Ball concluded with a Liberty Call, and we changed into formal attire to end the night with dancing and socializing.

Mt Hakkoda Hike

Mt Hakkoda Hike

Yet another good friend, Kyle, is leaving in two weeks. One very sad aspect of the military life is having to say goodbye to so many friends. On the positive side, it gives us the opportunity to make friends that will some day be spread all over the world.

Kyle is fond of the outdoors and so he has been getting his last fill of Japan's gorgeous mountains. This overcast day, me and Mike Flickinger had the opportunity of accompanying our well-orientated friend on a hike through the Hakkoda mountains.

Is was foggy most of the day, but we didn't mind because it gave the mountains character. As you can see, the leaves are changing and the still green trees provided a beautiful contrast. We hiked about 5 km to the top of the mountain, Iko-date, where there was a 60 meter deep, 200 meter wide crater. It was foggy when we first arrived, but after about 10 minutes the fog subsided enough for us to get a peek at the bottom of the crater. The well-traveled path we took was quite muddy at parts and quite slippery on the planks that lead through the marsh. I believe Kyle managed to stay on his feet, but me and Mike got uncomfortably familiar with the ground.

The hike took five hours and provided a great opportunity for me to bond with my friends, one of my favorite hobbies. Also interesting and random, we crossed paths with a Swedish professional table tennis player, here in Japan for six months of training and playing.

My Turn

Well... I guess I should take a crack at writing something for our "Blog". It's me, Trish, in case you haven't figured it out yet. Today is a typical Sunday, not a whole lot going on here at the Dinkins' house. Paul went hiking with some friends this morning.

This past Friday was the start of my 18th week of pregnancy, which translates to about 4 months. But I still haven't figured out the whole week/month conversion. It's all very mysterious to me still. Anyways, I haven't felt any kicking or movement yet, but the doctor said that will come in the next few weeks. So I am just waiting...

Now that we are going to have a baby I feel like maybe I am starting to become an adult. I almost feel like I am getting old, which I never thought I would be one of those women who are anxious about getting older, but I guess it happens to us all at some time. I went to a Pampered Chef party a few weeks ago and actually had a good time. Then last night I went to a candle party with the same result, I had fun. Next thing you know I will be going to Tupperware and Scrap Booking parties. I feel like 40 is just around the corner.