Saki

Meet Saki, our darling Japanese exchange student. She spent three weeks with us this Summer and she was such a joy to have in our home!

Bryson and all of the neighborhood kids absolutely adored her and spent every moment they could with her.

She taught me how to make a Japanese noodle soup that was so yummy.

We took her to see the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Pioneer Day Concert and it was fabulous!

Bryson took her on many wild bike rides.

We took her to my niece Zyan's soccer game.



And of course had to initiate her into the family with a traditional dance party...



We played a plethora of games.

And she spent hours on end playing with Bryson in the play room. He literally loved every second of having her stay with us.

We took her to a Bee's baseball game.


And she got to meet Mr. Bee himself.

Her stay ended with a goodbye party where all of the students dressed in their beautiful kimono's.

Saki was asked to prepare a speech and did such a great job.

I seriously grew to totally love this girl.


A photo of all of the students and their host families.

Saki truly felt like a daughter to us. She was the perfect fit for our family.

When we got home from the party, all of the neighbors were outside waiting so they could say goodbye to Saki one last time before she went home.

This is how most evenings look in our cul-de-sac--with everyone outside enjoying each others company. We seriously have the best neighbors.

 Saki with our neighbor Madi (Bryson is starting to take after his dad when it comes to taking pictures...ha!).

Saki with our next door neighbors Asia and Kieva.

Bryson created this on our front porch with Saki. It says, "Foodtastic - Bryson - Saki."

Saying goodnight to Saki that night was really hard. Nobody wanted to see her go.

This is pretty much how we all felt that night.

Saki and I both shed some tears as we drove to the airport and said goodbye the next morning. She is the most amazing girl and we feel so beyond blessed to have had the chance to get to know her. We miss her like crazy!

When Bryson got home from school the day Saki left, he walked in, went straight to his room and shut the door without saying a word to me. I went in a few minutes later thinking I'd find him working on his homework and instead found him under his covers in his bed crying. Now, if you know Bryson, you know he is not a crier (the only other time I've seen him cry is when my parents dog died). He falls and gets hurt all the time but never sheds a tear--however, when it comes to sad stuff he has such a tender heart. I knew he had really grown fond of Saki, but I didn't realize how much he loved her until I found him in his room crying after she left. It was so cute!

Saki left us the cutest thank you card and also left us her beautiful yellow kimono for us to give to Lilly when she's old enough, which was so sweet of her.

This is our second time hosting a Japanese student (last year we hosted Rina) and both experiences have been amazing. We look forward to hosting students for many years to come.

Favorite quote this week:

"See the light in others, and treat them as if that is all you see."

-Dr. Wayne Dyer

Life rules.