Brandon left last week for Korea.  He will be gone for about 2 months for training.  We are hoping the time flies until he gets back home. I’m going to try and keep the boys as busy as possible.  We decided to explore the Okinawa Zoo this weekend.  Colt was so excited it’s all he talked about!  All the boys loved it.  It was a beautiful Spring day and the flowers at the zoo were amazing!

The minute Colt got to the zoo all he wanted to do was see the elephants.  It’s all he talked about and we had to hurry and find them for him.  He then found out that he could ride one and he wasn’t leaving the zoo until I let him.  It brought back memories of my grandmother who rode elephants when she was little in my grandfather’s circus.  I will tell you that I was a little nervous getting on the elephant!

Finally we ended our first week of Brandon being gone with a trip to the beach after dinner to look for shells and sea glass.  The tide was really low so we found lots of treasures! 

We ended the day standing as evening Colors played on base!

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!!

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!

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.