Kids Training Is Done!

Hello everyone! Just wanted to quickly update you before we head off to work.

Yesterday we finished Kids Training, and it feels so good to be done! We both learned a lot, and we worked really hard every day. Before we left work yesterday, they had individual meetings with each trainee, and Chad and I got tons of great feedback. In fact, during the entire meeting, the only thing they told me I might want to be careful of is being too nice! They told Chad he could use more confidence, but anyone who saw his amazing demos would disagree (you should have seen his impersonation of the crows here!!). Hearing that we consistently did a good job was very rewarding. Not only did we put a lot of effort into our work, but we gained a lot of respect for our trainers. Hearing such positive comments from them meant a great deal to us.

In other news, we found out our housing company is going to provide us with a table and chairs! We already bought a set from a recycle shop, but Chad accidently broke one of the chairs, so we're going to take the new one, too. That way we can also move our old table into the kitchen to use as a shelf/desk.

Also, Chad and I went out to eat with our new Japanese friend on Sunday. She took us to a place where you cook Nabe, a delicious soup-like meal that has lots of veggies and is really spicy. When you come into the restaurant (similar to many restaurants in Japan), you remove your shoes near the door and put them in little wooden boxes. You shut the wooden box and pull out the key, and then walk in. The tables in the restaurant are nearly level with the ground, but there is space underneath for your legs and feet. In the middle of each table is a little grill on which to cook your food. Since we just ordered Nabe, it came in a pot and all we had to do was wait to see steam coming out. Out of a range of 1-10, we chose level 1 for spiciness, and we can't imagine how people can handle a number 10! Yikes! Ours ended up being very delicious, although Chad got a surprise. He held up what looked similar to a chunk of fat, and asked our friend Sayaka what it was. She said, "Oh, Ushi." I replied, "Cow?"

"Well, not exactly," she said. Then she pointed to her stomach.

"Cow stomach? Cow fat??"

Then, Sayaka drew a picture on her notebook to explain more accurately.

"Intestines!?!" (At this point I heard Chad gag a little).

"Are you okay," she asked.

Chad quickly adjusted his facial expression and replied, "Yeah, that's great. I've never had that before."

We are pretty open to trying new things, but you can be pretty sure Chad was thinking he'd do his best to never have it again, either :-)

Miss you, everyone! We'll try and get pictures up later today. Got to go start training for our adult classes, so talk to you soon!

Love, Caitlyn and Chad