MOVING TO JAPAN UPDATE | OCONUS Move Part 1
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- Опубликовано: 17 ноя 2021
- We've been busy getting things checked off our moving list. It's been a little hectic, but we're making good progress. Have you ever lived in Japan or moved OCONUS?
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“And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” Galatians 6:9
“Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.” Psalm 55:22
“I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever; With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations.” Psalm 89:1
“And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:9-10
Another thing I remembered to tell you...MAC flights! Me and my children were able to fly home for a visit! There are 4 categories (I think) first is active duty on orders, second is active duty on leave, then active dependents, and finally retired members. It was pretty crazy as you won’t know if you have a spot until an hour prior! There was a small fee for the lunch ($12 I believe) but that was it!! We flew from Yokota, Hawaii, to Kansas and my family drove to bring us “home” to Arkansas.
Returning was much easier as there weren’t many stateside trying to fly to Japan.
Another thing is mail....you can mail stuff for very cheap at the base post office if you send it SAM (space available mail) you have to write SAM on it and they send it when there’s room on the plane. This works both ways, my mom mailed stuff SAM from the US.
Those are great tips! Thank you! 🤗
We were able to utilize loaner furniture until our unaccompanied got there. So helpful! Our base housing had washer/dryer, so ours went in non temp. It was tricky figuring out what to put in non temp! 17 years and MANY moves we didn’t lose anything and only minimal damage.
There are bazaars on bases there that you can buy GORGEOUS rosewood furniture. We moved there with hand-me-down and yard sale furniture, and came home with beautiful furniture that we can pass down to our kids one day.
Thanks for sharing Caroline! We’ll be doing the same things you mentioned. 🤗 We’re trying to sell as much as possible before our move and buy some items once we get into our new housing there. There’s also an ikea Japan not too far from base and several secondhand stores. 😉👍🏻
I'm new to your channel. I loved your 10 commandments video. I'm teaching my kids Bible Club the 10 commandments with it. I'm retired military. I was in for 27 years. I spent 18 years overseas. I know it may seem scary now, but I absolutely loved being stationed overseas. There are so many awesome experiences awaiting you. Most locations overseas will have a few churches ran by missionaries right off base you can join. Those churches were my favorite. Your church family becomes so much more close than most churches in the states. It's a very tight nit community. Most of those churches also have opportunities to reach out to the local community, in your case, the Japanese community. If you take advantage of it and serve the Lord there, it's almost like being a missionary. I'm sure God has great plans for your family there, so just trust God and hold on for the wonderful blessings the Lord has for your family in Japan.
Thank you so much for this encouragement and for your service! That is definitely our prayer, to be used by God wherever He sends us. I’ve already started connecting online with other spouses that live there through a base homeschool group and a women’s bible study group. I know there will be challenges ahead, but I also know God will see us through them. Best wishes to you and your Bible Club kids!
Im a Christian homeschool mom and we might be moving to Japan too and this video was very helpful!!!
Thank you for sharing!
What a nice place to move to, Japan is a good place to live the acknowledge freedom/less corruption than there is in States right now. Hope all goes great!
Thanks; we are excited to experience a different culture. 🤗👍🏻
This was interesting to learn about. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks Jessica! 🤗
Many people don't know how much paperwork is involved in overseas life! I'm sure that being connected to the military means even more paperwork is involved. One piece of paper at a time--you'll get there! :) Yes, you're not to the "fun" part of the big adventure yet. That will come, though!
Thanks Rachel! 💕 I hope this series will give people a better look into military life and encourage other families going through this process. 🤗
Cool! I know a couple military wives/moms in Japan also.
I was surprised how many US military bases are in Japan! It’ll be nice to have the support of other spouses for sure. 🤗👍🏻
You explained everything very well. It’s a big bunch of planning but it sounds like you have it well organized. As you know, we are just 2 weeks from going the other direction. In some ways it’s feeling easier than coming here - no medical screening, only two pack outs (UAB and HHG, being done by the same crew, simultaneously) and no quarantine once we arrive in the US. Praying for you all.
Thanks Becky! Will be praying your move goes smoothly. 🤗👍🏻
born raised and now live in Jpn again with my sailor✋😀
That’s awesome! 🤗💕
I'm sure this will be helpful to many who are moving anywhere.
Thanks Nikki 💕💕
God bless you! You have quite a task ahead but the spouses who are already there will be more than happy to share knowledge. I have lived (non-military) in Thailand and Macau. The first piece of advice that comes to mind is to not be surprised if your housing does not come with a stove. Ovens are not used in most types of Asian cooking. I was always able to find larger “toaster ovens”. I use quotes here because they are larger than our idea of toaster ovens in the US. You can bake and cook in these although they require smaller cookie sheets and casserole dishes. A 9x11 would be too long. I know things are very expensive in Japan so if you could find something like that here you might be glad that you did. It’s been 10 years since I’ve lived abroad so things might have changed. It would be invaluable if you had another mother that you could contact to get advice on the differences you are going to experience in your everyday life. They end up being very BIG things when dealing with the stress so being an expat. The more mentally prepared you are ahead of time the better. Another example is in both countries, apartments came with 1 washing machine that washes and dries. IT DOES NOT DRY so expect to hang all of your clothes. I’m excited to follow along with you on your journey!
Thanks Kelley! I appreciate you sharing your experiences. I have been so thankful to join several private Facebook groups that are specific to the base where we’ll be living. It is totally true what you mentioned about ovens. 😂 Thankfully all the housing on base is “Americanized”. We do plan on buying some items here in the states to bring overseas, like large area rugs and some American style furniture. I know the foods that are available there will be different as well; not as much fresh inexpensive fruit for one. Like you said, I’m trying my best to educate myself on what life may be like and hopefully adjust my expectations now. 😉🙏🏻
Im glad being an Aussie citizen we do r have to do a health screening but we are changing our doctors to Aussie doctors and dentists. We are hoping 2 be in Sydney this summer so before end of March.
That’s nice. 🤗 I’m not sure if we’ll see the base doctors once we move there or if we’ll try to find somewhere off base where someone speaks English. 😂 We’ll see!
This is so interesting! Thanks for sharing!
I thought it might be a neat look into military life. 💁🏼♀️👍🏻
Hi Deanna. What an adventure :). Thank you for sharing. I pray all the preparations and the move will go fluently. Blessings
Thanks Stefanie, that means a lot! 🤗
Ahhh! I can't believe it still. I'll be praying for a smooth transition. You are doing a great job with prepping the whole familymfor the move it sounds like 🥰
Thanks Kang! Sometimes I laugh and think that God intended for me to be a military wife all along. 🤣🤣 He definitely is using all my skills/abilities as I’m getting us as organized as possible for this big move. The one thing you can’t plan for is the unexpected, except to just remember to stay flexible and roll with it! 😉 I know in the end, it will all come together.
@@CalledtoCultivate haha! God knew exactly what he was doing with you and your giftings 🤭🥰😊 & yes! It'll all work out whether it happens just like you planned or not. God is sovereign over it all. 🥰
Hope you love Japan 🙂 We just moved back to the states from Okinawa, Japan it was an amazing experience!
That’s awesome! I have a cousin about to leave Oki as well. 🤗 Glad to hear you all enjoyed your time there. Everyone I’ve talked to so far has liked being stationed there, which is encouraging!
i might the only korean subscriber. i'm glad that i can blessing your moving. Japan is so different nation by Korea.
i think you are strong and wisdom. So You will be able to adapt well.
My English is poor, but if you have a chance to come to Korea, I would like to invite your family my home. I have lovely two daughters : )
That’s so kind of you! We as very excited to experience a different culture and see all the neat sights as well. 🤗💕
Oconus moves are so much work! Good luck on your pcs!
They sure are 😉 Thanks so much 🤗
Japan is very unreached by the gospel :) maybe this is your time to let your light shine.
Very true! Less than 2% identify as Christian, which is pretty staggering. I’m eager to see what opportunities will arise! 🤗💕
What does Oconus mean? I had no idea there was so much involved in moving overseas with the military. It sounds like you are doing great with planning things though! I’ve never been out of the country before. It will be interesting to see what it is like for you living in another country. I hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving! 🍁🦃🍽
Thanks so much! Yes, it’ll be our kids first time being outside the country as well. OCONUS means “outside the continental United States”. So basically anytime you move outside of the 48 states within mainland US. Hawaii and Alaska are considered OCONUS moves since your items have to be sent via ship to get there. All other moves within the 48 states are considered “CONUS”. 😉👍🏻 The military is FULL of terminology and I’m still learning even after 13 years of being married to an active duty service member. 🤣
We were stationed in Yokosuka, Japan for three years. Absolutely LOVED IT! The people are so kind and thoughtful. No crime! We had Awana on base and used the school building to have club. Many Japanese children came to Awana and learned about Jesus!
That’s amazing! 👏🏻👏🏻 I’m definitely looking forward to meeting the homeschool families and PWOC wives that I’ve been talking with online.
@@carolinemiller7774 That is so wonderful! My kids are in AWANA here in the US. I grew up in AWANA too. How wonderful that Japanese children were able to learn about Jesus that way!
Moving in less than a month and just found out yesterday 🤦🏽♀️🤦🏽♀️🤦🏽♀️
Are you familiar with the YT channel 7inall? They live overseas and document their travel to and from the US!
Yes! Rachel and I are Instagram friends. 🤗👍🏻 I’ve already picked her brain on a few things. She’s definitely a great resource and just an overall sweet Mama!
So you can homeschool as a foreigner in Japan? I was really curious about asking this but waited to see if you mentioned it!
Thanks for asking! Yes, we will be able to continue with homeschooling while living there. While Japan doesn’t widely endorse homeschooling, it isn’t illegal. The military doesn’t force dependents to attend their government funded schools and acknowledges homeschooling as a viable alternative and a right. So thankfully we’ll just continue on and have the added bonus of taking some really cool field trips! 😎
@@CalledtoCultivate Praise God! That is amazing. I also thought perhaps the language would be a barrier if they expected foreigners to come into the country and be forced into the schools but maybe that is just my lack of understanding about the country and maybe English learning is available in schools too but that is something I thought about lol
@@CalledtoCultivate And yes I'm sure you'll have amazing experiences, what a cool adventure for you all. Can't wait to hear more about your journey once you all settle! I have always loved watching vlogs of people living in foreign countries!
There is the option for your child to attend a Japanese preschool if you want to. Other than that most military kids attend “DOD” (department of defense) schools that are on or near the base that are taught by English speaking teachers. They are funded by the us government specifically for military kids. Often times it’s a great place for a spouse to find a job too. 😉 The military base is like it’s own little town complete with schools, grocery store, department store, movie theater, bowling alley, American restaurants, library, pools, golf course, and more!
@@CalledtoCultivate That is really cool!!