Getting out of Narita

It is 4pm here and I've been at the airport for a while. When I checked in they said the flight may be delayed because they were waiting for the arrival of the airplane. It looks now that it was only pushed back 25 minutes and hopefully we'll make up the time in flight.
The best news so far is that I got an isle seat! I am really happy. Now I don't have to climb over a sleeping person next to me and I won't be squished between two people. It was so easy, all I had to do was ask at the counter and it took less than two seconds to print out. Fantastic! I'm prepared with extra water and a movie on my iPod. I didn't ask them if I could load with parents with children 'cause the less time I can be on the plane the better. I hope things work this well on the way back to Japan, but I'm trying not to worry about that right now.
Well, I love you all and I'll see you soon.

Getting Ready

Things are getting done around the house and I'll be ready to leave tomorrow morning. Nothing exciting there, just wanted to let you know that things are going as planned and I shouldn't have any problems tomorrow. I'm gonna grab the bus around 11:30 tomorrow morning. Gotta give myself enough time to get to the airport.

Be aware :)

Before I arrive in Bremerton, I wanted everyone to know that I am a fruit fanatic. Or at least I am going through a phase right now. Last night I ate a whole (yet very small) cantaloupe. Tonight I've finished off almost a whole bag of cherries. I've ate a banana almost every morning for the past month or two. Things here are very seasonal. I tried to find strawberries a few weeks ago... no luck.
So anyway, just know that if you offer good fruit to me, I will eat it! (Guess thats a lot better than being addicted to ice cream, right? Not that I would turn that down either. hehe)

A little funny something

Start your weekend with a laugh.

Old Love Poem

If you love something
Set it free.
If it comes back, it was and
Always will be yours.
If it never returns, it was
Never yours to begin with.
If it just sits in your living room
Messes up your stuff,
Eats your food,
Uses your telephone,
Takes your money, and
Never appears that
You actually set it free in
The first place
You either married it
Or gave it birth!

Flight information

Here is the latest on my flight. I got it all paid for and scheduled today. Here is a link to my itinerary. http://yourtripandmore.jp/JP/main.asp?LName=KOHLBECK&Locator=NBJZFZ&div_type=IT
Oh, and I'm not bringing Mocha. They wanted to charge me an extra $130 each way. I love her, but her adoption fee wasn't even that much and I'll pay a lot less with my cat sitter. Sorry kitty.
It's late and I'm tired, but if there was anything I forgot you want to know, just say so.

Latest flight update

I found a flight for the 26th of June. I was almost able to leave on the 20th, but it got booked while I was on the phone with the travel agent. Bummer. So I go down to Yokosuka today to pay for it. Once I get the final details I'll pass them on to everyone. I'll be leaving Seattle on the 22nd of July. Just wanted to make sure I was back here well before my 35th week in the terrible case that our girly wants to make an early appearance. Hopefully not. I am constantly telling her to stay in there. :) Especially with as high as my stress levels have been; I don't want to force myself into early labor. Of course, you all know how much I hate flying.
So, update likely to come sometime tonight.

Waiting...

I am here at the passenger terminal in Yokota. I've marked myself as available and I'll know if I get on the flight in about 10 minutes. When I know I'll write and I'll be calling the Snyder place. :)
I'm gonna pull my hair out. It's been a long day...

UPDATE: No more available for now. Still waiting with the small amount of hope I have left. There were 17 seats available and about 40 people on the list. I'm probably at the bottom.

UPDATE #2: Didn't get on the flight. Trying for the soonest possible flight. Looks like I got one for June 20th to July 22nd.

Flight to Seattle

Nearly everything is ready for me to leave tomorrow. Most things are straightened out here. I just need to finish packing my bag. Since I don't intent on bringing too many things it is the least of my worries. I'll be at the terminal by noon tomorrow and should know around one or 1:30 if I get on. I will be making lots of calls to let people know if I make it on or not. I'll have to call my house and cat sitters and other people to make sure everything is okay. I have very little hope I'll make it, but I clearly have to try.
I went to the travel agency today and they quoted a round trip flight for me at $890. I'd rather not pay that if I don't have to. It's more than I want to pay, but still considerably cheaper than anything else I'd find.
Alright, did I forget anything else?

To Danny

I am taking advantage of my chance on the blog to say Happy 2nd Anniversary to Danny!
We had a wonderful dinner on friday and exchanged cards and gifts. He was really sweet and made Tonkatsu (a Japanese food - the only thing he knows how to make) and I made angelfood cake, which I know is one of his favorite.

So, I just wanna say my husband is a sweetie and I love and miss him very, very much.

Tuesday

Today is going to be a really busy day for me. I have so much to do before I go!
I'm going to a friends house to buy her awesome stroller for $45 and look at her maternity jeans. I only have one pair that fit and I love jeans. I also have to talk to this college student who lives her and see if she is interested in taking care of Mocha. Yes, I know it's last minute. There is more to do here too.
When I go to Yokosuka I have a doctor's appointment and tons of things to do there. I have to pay my phone and internet bill as well as get the service suspended until I return. Also, I'm gonna go to IACE, the Japanese travel agency on base. I've seen some really good prices online and want to talk to them about that. If I don't get on the flight from Yokota (and I don't have much hope) then that may be the way I go. I am also considering taking Mocha with me if this girl can't catsit. If so, I will take Mocha as a carry on.
Back at home I have to finish laundry, pick up the house and make sure I have everything to go to Yokota tomorrow morning.
Yikes, sounds like a busy day, but I have a list. Hopefully I won't forget anything
As you all know, Danny is in Virginia. It is very lonely and quiet around here but he has been in contact with me. With all that is going on and my stress level it has been really nice just to hear his voice. Kana came to Yokohama yesterday so I had company and a chance to get out of the house. We didn't do anything exciting, just had lunch at the house and drove to Yokohama and walked around a shopping mall. Also sat and enjoyed coffee and conversation. Thank you for coming to visit me Kana! I hope I get to see you again in August.
In terms of the baby... We didn't tell you, but we agreed on a first name. No, we won't tell you and I won't slip when I'm in the states. She is very active and I can feel her rolling around, usually in the morning and evening. I was hoping Kana would be able to feel her, but she didn't start moving like crazy until I went to bed. Danny got to feel her and commented that she kicked really hard. Just wait until when he feels her in August!
Of course I will update you all after my appointment. As always I have many questions to ask her. I am hoping to beg for an ultrasound too. :)

Well crap...

I just called Yokota to verify that my name was on the space available list. Of course it was not. Why am I not surprised? They said that my chances of getting on the flight are slim to none. Great. What now?

Don't know...

I am not sure if this will all work out, but I wanted to let you know that things are getting complicated around here. I am on the list to fly space available (and I am on the very bottom of that list) from Yokota to Seattle on June 18th. Obviously there are no guarantees with that. I just have to wait and see if there is a seat available for me.
I just read an article from Stars and Stripes yesterday that said in July and August, the flights back to Japan will only be leaving once every two weeks instead of once a week. This means that everybody from two flights will be condensed down into one and there will be less space available seats.
My midwife said I need to be home by 35 weeks as that is the cutoff date for pregnant women and international flights. That means I need to be home before Aug. 1. If I don't get on the plane back to Japan, the baby will have to be born in the states, which is not what I want.
On top of all this, my potential cat sitter is going back to the states early and my neighbors (who usually watch Mocha) are preparing to move back to Washington D.C. this summer. I don't know how much longer they'll be around or if they'll be willing to watch her. This really is a minor thing though.
Basically what this means is that I don't know whether or not I'll make it back. I certainly don't have the money to fly back, especially because Danny and I are buying me a bigger car. Its only $1800, but that just leaves me with less than I had before.
Anyway, I just wanted to give a heads up. I know that everyone has been planning for me to come back, but this whole space available, can't make definite plans thing is really starting to stress me out. Danny and I still have to talk about and he is suggesting that I get a refundable ticket, but I am just not seeing right now how it will work out.

Hey, I know its been quiet around here. I'm surprised that no one has harassed me to update. I am not sure how much there has been to say.
Most of the reason it has been quiet is because Danny has been home. The ship flew him from Thailand and I went to Narita to pick him up on the 25th. He has been working half days and is almost always home when I get off work. That is distracting and doesn't leave me much time to do anything else, like write on the blog.
I've been working at the school for the last 6 weeks or so. The nurse moved back to the states (Bremerton actually) and I was working while they hired a replacement. She was hired last Monday, but the principal has wanted me there to help her out. I am starting to get tired of it and need a day off!
The third trimester starts for me on Sunday. I can tell that my energy level is decreasing again. I was really enjoying the second trimester, but all good things have to come to an end. The baby is still growing well. She has found lots of fun, uncomfortable places to kick me. My next appointment isn't until the 17th (our second anniversary) and I am going to ask my midwife to do an ultrasound. I haven't seen her for a long time.
Yesterday I went down to Yokosuka to do my glucose test. I was there at 8:30 and they gave me a really sweet drink. It tasted like concentrated Hi-C. :P An hour later they took three little viles of blood. I wasn't allowed to eat during that hour although I was allowed to eat breakfast in the morning. I got terrible heartburn while I was waiting, but couldn't take anything because I didn't want to mess up my test results. If I fail this one, I have to go back for a 3-hour test. I am really hopeful I don't have to do that. I will probably find out my results at my appointment.
There may be more updates later, but I'll make another post sometime.