Life with the Lokeys

The best Tortilla Soup ever!

It was cold and rainy today in Okinawa and the commissary {military base grocery store} finally had cilantro after being out of stock for about a month so I decided to make our favorite tortilla soup.  It’s the perfect recipe for a cold day, and I thought I would share because it looks like my friends in the northeast are getting snow!  We experienced our first blizzard last year about this time when we lived in Virginia so I thought I would share some of those pictures!  It was so cold that I promised Brandon I would never complain about the heat in Okinawa after this blizzard.  We even lost our heat for a few hours which was not a lot of fun.  This tortilla soup is my mother-in-law, Nece’s, recipe.  I have tried a lot of tortilla soups and this one is hands down the very best I have ever had.  I can’t wait until it cools down every year so I can make this recipe for my family.  

 

 

Nece’s Chicken Tortilla Soup

1 whole chicken
2 or 3 cans chicken broth
1 large can Pace picante Sauce
1 onion
cilantro
Salt
Mission tortilla chips (the tortilla strips are the best)
avocados
shredded cheese
Tortillas

Put the whole chicken in a pot with the onion and sprinkle in the salt.  Bring the whole chicken to a boil in a large pot.  Then reduce to a gentle boil for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.  Remove the chicken from the pot to cool.  Then add the can of Pace picante sauce and the chicken broth to the broth left in the pot.  Next add a handful of the cilantro and bring the broth back to a boil.  Then let it simmer for about 20 minutes.  After the chicken has cooled, pick the chicken and place into a medium bowl. Strain the broth so that you have a smooth liquid.  Next add the chicken to the broth and you are ready to serve.  Place the tortilla strips , shredded cheese, and avocados in a bowl and ladle the soup on top.  Serve with warm tortillas and enjoy!!









Sakura {Cherry Blossom} Festival at Nakijin Castle Ruins

Last weekend we headed up north to the Nakijin Castle Ruins to see the Cherry Blossoms that were just starting to bloom.  The castle was once the residence of the Ryukyuan Kingdom governor. It was built in the late 13th century, and it was strategically placed on this hill that was well defended by natural features.  

The boys had the most fun climbing up and down the steep hills around the castle ruins!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Japan, the cherry blossom represents the fragility and beauty of life!!

We ended this beautiful day with Cherry ice cream!  It was so good! 

 

Love Grows Best in Little Houses…

If you had to sell your house, sell your car, move half away across the world and you can only bring a few of your belongings..would you do it for the one you love…if you’re a military wife the answer is always yes!  You do it because you love your spouse and you love this country.  Moving to Okinawa is not easy and the whole process can be very overwhelming.  You have to leave everything behind including your friends and family.  You just show up with your suitcases and thats about it..you don’t even have a driver’s license.  I always try to make the best of any situation.  I believe you are as happy as you make up your mind to be, and that is exactly what I decided to do.  Trust me there are those days when I get frustrated with little things about living in a foreign country..but I can usually look back on those days and laugh.  Like the time my baby was screaming and my other boys were all starving and I just wanted to order through a drive thru.  There are not many to choose from in Okinawa…{oh how I miss chick fil A, Dairy Queen, and Sonic}..we ended up at McDonalds.  I tried to order and we all ended up with fish sandwiches instead of chicken.  Now at the time it wasn’t that funny but now my boys laugh about the time mom ordered everyone fish sandwiches!! And how I scared everyone to death when I drove on the left side of the road for the first time..I have never heard my boys so quiet!

One of the things I was most nervous about was the house we would move into.  We are a family of 6 and the houses here are a little over 1000 sq. ft.  and they are all concrete.  Okinawa is known for getting some of the strongest typhoons every year so your house has to be able to withstand the winds.  Last fall we almost had a direct hit from a category 5 typhoon so I was glad to live in my little concrete house that day!

 

It’s like that song…

Love grows best in little houses,
with fewer walls to separate.
Where you eat and sleep so close together,
you can’t help but communicate.
And if we had more room between us,
think of all we’d miss.
Love grows best in houses just like this.

As all military wives we make any house a home.  I know a lot of military wives coming to Okinawa are most interested in what the houses look like here so I will be posting pictures of my house to help.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Katsuren Castle Ruins

Last weekend the boys and I hiked up to see the Katsuren Castle Ruins. It was so beautiful overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It was built in the 13th century and came under attack in 1458 by the Ryukyuan Army. Just last year, ancient Roman coins believed to date back to the third or fourth century were discovered in the ruins. The boys loved exploring the Castle and learning about the history. We went right before sunset and it was absolutely beautiful!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Beautiful Cosmos Blooming

Brandon left for Korea yesterday so the boys and I decided to go see the Cosmos that just started blooming here in Okinawa!  They were absolutely beautiful!  It reminded me of the Indian Blankets that use to fill our pasture back home on our farm in Texas!  I couldn’t wait for them to start blooming every year..now I have new flowers to look forward to while we are here on this beautiful island.

The Japanese ladies just loved the boys!  They thought Colt was so cute!  They loved watching them run through the flowers!

Every year around this time, farmers plant these beautiful Cosmos in the rice fields of Igei Village.  It is believed that Cosmos nurture and rejuvenate the soil just prior to the rice fields being planted.