The Haire Family

Corey visits the kids in VA

2009-01-19T09:51:00.000-08:00

Over the holiday weekend, I had a chance to fly to Norfolk to spend the weekend with the kids. Boy were they surprised to see me get off the plane. We had a great afternoon at the Nautilus on Sunday. I really enjoyed getting to spend time with the kids since I hadn't seen them in 2 weeks.

The kids are keeping busy with school during the week, but I think the weekends gives the kids a chance to think about both Michael and I being gone. They are adjusting to being back in the states and their new schools.

I can't wait to see them again 6 FEB 09.

-corey

Beautiful Lighthouses of FL

2009-01-11T08:42:00.000-08:00

Since I am in Jacksonville, I decided to take a tour of the lighthouses in FL. The first lighthouse I visited was the Mayport lighthouse that sits on the US Naval Base. This lighthouse is not accessible to the general public, but can be viewed from the outside of the base.

I also had an opportunity to visit St. Augustine, FL and it's lighthouse. This lighthouse is truly remarkable and very similar to the lighthouses of NC. The lighthouse is open to the public and for a fee (free for military) you can tour the lighthouse and the grounds including the lighthouse keepers house.

As the tour of FL lighthouses continues, I will post more pics. You can get more info on FL lighthouses at www.floridalighthouses.org

-corey

Our Family is on both coasts.

2009-01-11T08:25:00.000-08:00

Michael and Corey have both made their way to school. Michael is in San Diego, CA and Corey is in Jacksonville, FL. The kids are in Suffolk, VA with Me-maw. The wonderful thing about technology is that even though we are spread all over the states we can constantly be in touch. Please keep us in your prayers.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T07:57:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas from the Haire family!

We had a wonderful Christmas in Virginia. We spent Christmas Eve with Corey's family at Pete & Jean's. Christmas day we had a fabulous dinner with Michael's brother, John and his family. After being in Japan for 3 years and missing all of those Christmas' with family it was so nice to have an opportunity to spend this Christmas with both of our families.

We are glad to be home!

2008-12-20T08:51:00.000-08:00

We left Okinawa on 11 DEC 08 and headed to Jacksonville, FL. We landed in Jacksonville and then drove to Spring Hill, FL. We spent the night with Corey's mom, Barbara, picked up our new car, did some errands and then took off for Powder Springs, GA to see Michael's parents. We spent Saturday & Sunday with Michael's parents. Michael made his parents proud when he gave the word on Sunday at his parents church.

From GA we drove to Suffolk, VA to do the walk thru on the house and go to closing. The walk thru went well with very few items that needed to be corrected. We are so excited about the new house.

While waiting for settlement we went to Cape Charles to spend some time with Corey's dad and Majoy. Cape Charles is such a peaceful little town and it was nice to recover from jet lag.

The kids were in heaven with all the attention from all the grandparents. It was great to see everybody and the spirit of Christmas was everywhere.

Good-bye Okinawa!

2008-12-10T07:24:00.000-08:00

We will greatly miss our church family and friends. Being in Okinawa has left a lasting impression on our family. Even though we were ready to go, Okinawa will always have a place in our hearts and all of our friends will continue to be in our prayers. We love you guys!

For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.

-Deuteronomy 30:16

Our friends say good-bye.

2008-12-08T20:36:00.000-08:00

As our time in Okinawa is coming to a close and it's time to say good-bye to our friends. We had a really nice thai dinner with the Davatelis' & the Schweers'.

Corey's friend Liz threw her a fabulous going away party at one of her favorite Okinawa restaurants. We had a great time and a wonderful dinner.

Its so hard to say good-bye to such wonderful friends.

Corey turns 17!

2008-12-07T08:27:00.000-08:00

Corey celebrated his 17th birthday in our last days in Okinawa. Corey spent his birthday with his two buds, Dwight and Kentrell at the Ryukyu Kings basketball game. The Kings are a Japanese team that equates to a "AA" college team. They have 4 Americans that play on the team. You have to love the Japanese players because they really give it their all. We all had a great time and finished out the night at the Garlic House, one of our favorite restaurants.

32 more Days

2008-11-08T02:20:00.001-08:00

We leave Okinawa on 11 Dec and are looking forward to seeing family and being back HOME. We are thankful to God for taking care of everything.
It looks like we will be closing on 17 Dec.
Although we will miss Okinawa, God has new plans for us and we are anxious to continue to humbly serve.
Have a blessed day in HIS service.

Michael, Corey and the kids :)

A Day of Firsts

2008-10-25T20:10:00.000-07:00

Our little man finally turned 1 on 25 OCT 08. For Isaiah it was a day of firsts. He got his first haircut which included a few tears. James was a good sport with the amount of screaming and movement that was involved in Isaiah's first haircut. Isaiah also enjoyed his first birthday party at Jedidiah's Cafe. Our family & friends were on hand to celebrate the big day. We had received a traditional Okinawan outfit when Isaiah was born and Isaiah finally got to wear it for his big day. Isaiah made it quite clear that cupcakes would definitely become a new part of his diet.

The House is almost done!

2008-10-21T05:49:00.000-07:00

The real estate guy sent us new pics of the house and it is pretty much done on the outside and they are just finishing up the inside. Our big shipment of household goods was packed up last friday, 17 OCT 08. This included our vonage phone, sorry no phone calls. Our little stuff will be sent the first week of NOV. We are anxiously awaiting Isaiah's first birthday this Saturday. He is celebrating his birthday at the cafe we have at church with a few friends. The church daycare he attends is also having a party for him on friday. We will post pics of the party after Saturday.

Our House is getting closer to being finished!

2008-10-08T22:48:00.000-07:00

As our counter states we have 64 more days on island. We are putting things in place to get our household goods packed and shipped to America. We should be packed out by the 17th and using temporary furniture until we check into temporary lodging on 1 DEC 08. We have a tentative fly out date of 11 DEC 08. We will be flying to Jacksonville, FL and picking up our new car in Spring Hill and then heading to Norfolk with a brief stop in Atlanta to see Jack & Sharon. Until we go to closing and are settled in our new home we will be staying with Bill & Mandi. We will be living out of suitcases for quite some time : (

In the midst of all of this, Corey had foot surgery on the 3rd and is recovering nicely. She will be in a cast for 6 weeks and on crutches. Its a nice break for Corey from work, but a not so nice break for Michael with all of the moving responsibilities. He's a super trooper! Michael and the kids are very supportive and taking good care of her.

Our house is getting dry walled and should be complete by 30 NOV 08, if not sooner. Our fabulous real estate team onsite sends us up to date pics on a regular basis.

Corey Michael goes to the Kadena High School Homecoming.

2008-10-04T22:38:00.000-07:00

Our oldest son, Corey Michael, attended his 1st homecoming dance. The dance was at The Palms on Camp Hansen in Okinawa. Our son has grown into a handsome young man that we are very proud of. He will also be attending the Kubasaki homecoming dance the weekend of the 11th with some friends from church.

Who is that handsome man in khakis???

2008-09-20T22:33:00.000-07:00

It is rare that we get to see Michael in his khakis, so I had to post this pic.

Welcome FY-09 Chiefs!

2008-09-20T22:14:00.000-07:00

Michael was very involved with the induction process for the fiscal year 2009 Chief selectees. It was just a year ago that Michael made Chief and went through this same process. The first weekend after the pinning ceremony (when the new Chiefs get their anchors) there is a Khaki Ball and this is really the first time that the new Chiefs wear their khakis and are part of the Chiefs mess. A dear friend of ours Tonya Hall, was one of the selectees for FY-09 and it was so nice to see her in her khakis. Congrats to the FY-09 Chiefs and welcome to the mess!

Alexxis turns 8!

2008-09-15T22:05:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe, but our baby girl turned 8 on 3 September 2008. She wanted a bowling party so a bowling party it was. The SpongeBob cake was delicious! She received her very own bowling ball and bag for her birthday. We celebrated about 10 days after her birthday, due to a typhoon that never came and Corey's work schedule. Alexxis didn't mind as long as she had her party! Our church members were out in full force as well as a few of our close friends. We would like to thank everyone for making Alexxis' day so special!

Welcome to our blog!

2008-09-08T23:41:00.000-07:00

Our time in Okinawa Japan is coming to an end. As you can see from our PCS counter we are almost down to 3 months. The kids are busy with school and Isaiah is constantly on the move. Also, I-man is getting his first teeth, it only took 10 1/2 months. Michael & I are starting to get things ready to PCS. We have a busy weekend coming up. Alexxis is celebrating her 8th birthday at the Foster Bowling Alley, plus we have lots of work functions. Our new home in VA is coming along.