日曜日の日本語 (Sunday Japanese)

In January, I created a series called ''日曜日の日本語'' (Nichiyoubi no Nihongo) - Sunday Japanese.

I've had a lot of interest in people wanting to learn a little bit of Japanese.  I wasn't sure where to start...but I've decided to dive in and start somewhere.  The first three lessons are up:  Greetings, Self-Introductions, and the Alphabets (Hiragana and Katakana).  Maybe each lesson will be different - the style, content, and level of difficulty.  I hope you give them all a view, or just pick the ones you find interesting.

I'm keeping a list of things suggested by viewers for future content.  Here are a few:

Please/Thank you.  You're Welcome.
Ordering at a Restaurant
Going to Starbucks
Going to a restaurant
Going to the market
Easy conversations

Greetings for Morning, Afternoon, Evening, and Nighttime

Giving a self-introduction - Saying your name and 

nationality, where you live, your job, and family

Hiragana and Katakana Alphabets - 

practicing you basic sounds in Japanese 

and learning fun vocabulary

Thanks for dropping by and hope to see you next Sunday,

Sherri

Happy 2015!! **2014 IN PICTURES**

After a long hiatus, I am back with a post for the new year!  Where did that time go?

Sadly, I was unable to keep up with blogging in 2014, in addition to uploading to my Youtube channel for much of the year.  Although I did my best to make up for it by vlogging everyday till Christmas (see my Vlogmas 2014 playlist).

I am not making any New Year's resolutions that I may or may not be able to fulfill, other than a general one - to stick more to a schedule.  I am doing my best to vlog more regularly with a set schedule.  So far, I've done a whole series on my Lucky Bags from New Year's day (福袋).  And I am managing to upload Tuesdays, Fridays, and Sundays (daily vlogging, feature, and Japanese, respectively).  I will do my best to get them out on time for your viewing pleasure.  I appreciate all the feedback from everyone - it really motivates me to keep going (despite that one person who likes to give me a thumbs down on every single one of my videos - I refuse to mention this at all on camera because I feel it will give them the attention they are looking for).

For now, here is a look of my 2014 in pictures.

January - Asagiri Kogen

February - It snowed and made me so happy!

 

Seriously, look at all the white stuff!

 

March - Went to Ikea for the first time. 

The mini cupcakes were super cute

(but the frosting was meh).

April - Fujizakura Matsuri



Double Fuji! (Can you see it?)

 

May - Frozen finally showed in Japan

(and was called Anna and the Snow Queen).

 

Did you notice I turned blond?

Yes, I was in love with Frozen (and kinda still am...).



June - We went to Kamakura, my fav place!



July - The Star Festival decorations at the station

(the Japanese version of Xmas trees) 

 

I decided I liked to wear dresses!!

 

Hideki bought me the Frozen DVD

(and we watched it together for his first time).



 

 August - I tried to go darker...

but it ended going back to blond.



September - Met Friends in Ginza and had the

cutest mame-zushi ever!

October - I bought a baby pumpkin from Costco to carve!

 

 Krispy Kreme spooky doughnuts from a student.

(More cute than tasty, though.)



 

I made Sanma (Pacific saury) for the first

- I took out the insides and everything!

 

 I got two costumes for Halloween.

 Hideki had a birthday and I made a pumpkin tart!

 We had a my first BBQ here with friends.

Of course, we had marshmallows! :)

 

 Fell in love with green smoothies!



 I did all my nails in minions for the Halloween party!

 And I carved my pumpkin!

 

 November - I was ready for fall! 

Bought my first Ugg look-alikes.

Yay, DECEMBER - VLOGMAS (vlogging everyday till XMAS)

The first day of December marked a trip

to Starbucks to have a long awaited gingerbread

latte (bought this tumbler for myself too).

We went to Disneyland (and I vlogged)!

Mom came and we had a blast (twinsies-style)!

 

 Christmas Bento!!

(I think this is my best bento creation ever!!)

 

It was my birthday on the 20th.

(I made a good wish.)

 

May 2015 be even better!!    Luck is definitely in my court.  But it is my drive that will take me places.  (^_~)v

Sherri

Herbal Teas

Hi!
It's cold and rainy here in Kanagawa, Japan. So I know that when I get home I'll be having a big cup of herbal tea. I love drinking herbal tea, especially in the wintertime when I do feel like drinking water. It's important to drink water to stay hydrated, cleanse, and feel good. Instead of loading up on sugary drinks that you dont need (empty calories).  Try some herbal teas with natural flavouring and zero sugar. I ran out recently (I seriously have drank over five boxes tis winter already).  I like having variety so I dont get bored. Lately I am a big fan of Celestial Seasoning's Fruit Variety pack. I love the Black Cherry Berry and Country Peach the most. And it's eco-friendly with no steings, tags, or staples. My newest favourite is a tea called Hot Love - a blend of raspberry and vanilla. What's your fav herbal tea? Oh, and my next most commonly drank choice is plain hot water. Try it as a chaser after your next cup. It ain't bad!

3-4 Days!

Overdue package full of goodies for family members!!  I forgot to send my xmas presents home with my mom for my cousins, so I wanted to make up a special box filled with yummy, fun things from Japan.  My one cousin also has two young children, so I wanted to include things for them to enjoy, especially colouring books and stickers.  There's also a fun kirigami (origami means paper-folding and this means paper-cutting) activities.  They requested some matcha kit-kat and was able to find a ton of matcha chocolate along with many others. The best part is that it only takes about 3-4 days to get there!  Japan has a really cool mail service.  And since I sent it on Wednesday morning, it should be there by the weekend (with the time difference working in my favour). 

 

Click here or this picture below to watch my video on YouTube: 

 

I know they will enjoy trying everything!! 

Love you tons!

xoxo

Sherri

Mellow Monday

So as Monday winds down, I find myself extremely thankful for having received yet another three-day weekend due to the snow.  (Last week I ended up having a four-day weekend from the first snowstorm.)  In Kanagawa area, it rarely snows, as I mentioned.  We were very lucky to have snow last year that lasted till the next day.  So you can imagine how surprised we were to have not one, but two big snowfalls in less than a week! 

 

What did I do then?  Well, I did some housework, as per usual.  I went to the store for some groceries.  I made pumpkin stew, grilled chicken salad, ground chicken pizazz (my word...was reminiscent of Sloppy Joes...), and ate my sakura icecream - which was delicious!  (Btw, I usually share pics of stuff on instagram.  Click my new social button on the right hand side of this page.)  I filmed a Body shop and Drugstore Haul video for myjapanlifestyle (click the YouTube button on the right).  I did some crafty things too (can be found here).  Yesterday, I watched Camp Takota and loved it!  All the girls were such good actors.  It was really funny!  (Big recommend.)  I chatted with my Mom and with my brother (very lucky to have gotten on separate times too...usually someone will go to bed).  Oh, and I added those little social buttons thanks to a lovely tutorial I found of YouTube.  (Couldn't have done it otherwise.)

 

Oh, and as per Monday night usual, I watched 失恋のショコラティエ(The Heart-Broken Chocolatier).  Does anyone else in Japan watch it?  I really enjoy it.  It only slightly makes me want to eat chocolate.  Click on the picture below to be taken to the show's website on Fuji TV.

 

What do you normally do on your day off?  

Cheers, Sherri

   

Happy Valentine's Day!

It's supposed to snow today and I've never used my oven before, so I decided to make a cake for my boyfriend last night.  This cake involved beating the egg with a mixer until it was fluffy and adding real chocolate that you melted first.  I made cocoa whipped cream for the topping and added strawberries and powdered sugar (you couldn't see it much, but it was visible on the strawberries and the plate).  It was so delicious.  I was happy with one piece.  It was so rich.  I asked Hideki how much he wanted to eat and he said half...the cake.  But it was a small cake ;) .  So after two pieces, I said he could have the third piece too.  Because I made it for him and he loved it so much. 

I made a card for him before I went to bed.  I left it out with a box of chocolates.   Because I know if he woke up and saw them, he couldn't go to work without eating at least one.  So when I woke up and saw he had opened them, I was surprised.  I was however surprised that the lady at the store gave me the wrong box!  :(  It was supposed to be a lovely assorted box of bears.  Instead it was more traditional squares etc.  How disappointing!  I am tempted to go back to the store, but since he ate one (which was totally fine)...I am teetering between blowing it off and buying another box, like the original I intended to purchase.  I was very clear at the store.  Just goes to show, always confirm your purchases! 

Wishing you all a lovely day with whoever you spend it with! 

Camp Takota Fan!

Hi, everyone!  Today I wanted to write a post about an upcoming movie - Camp Takota.  The film is independent and stars three awesome YouTubers (YT channel name in brackets):  Grace Helbig (itsgrace), Hanna Hart (harto), and Mamrie Hart (youdeserveadrink).  The movie is available on February 14th, but you can make a pre-sale in support of the movie (go to camptakota.com).  It's only $9.99.  Plus they have really awesome care packages available at the Camp Takota canteen.  I, myself, have ordered a green and white ringer tee, which I will wear proudly.  I have seen the extended trailer and couldn't tell the difference from that and a Hollywood movie.  And it was super funny!  If you didn't know about this before, go watch it for yourself! 

What more would you want to do then watch a comedy about new-found singledom on Valentine's Day? 

Sherri