I want our Japanese exchange student, Noriko, to feel as welcome as possible when she comes to the USA. I am in the process of organizing her room so she is comfortable in our home. I am also putting together a Welcome Basket with items that hopefully will make her feel special. (Maybe that will be a future blog post once I finish it!)
We have been communicating with Noriko by email on almost a daily basis but I wanted to also send her a small package in the mail. It isn’t much but hopefully it will help her feel more connected to us and the USA before she comes.
Noriko’s will celebrate her 17th birthday this month before she arrives to the US. So I included a birthday card with a short message and a couple of family photos.
I also wrote a letter to Noriko’s parents in an effort to hopefully make them more comfortable with having their daughter spending the year with us.
I found and printed out several pages and made a little book for her.
2. Map of USA with New Mexico, Iowa, and Delaware outlined.
3. Map of New Mexico with town where we live circled.
4. Maps and state information of New Mexico, Iowa, and Delaware. I have included Iowa and Delaware because I am praying that we will have the finances available to go see our families while Noriko is with us. It would be a good experience for her to see other parts of our beautiful country. And if we visit Delaware, we may be able to take road trips to Washington DC and New York City!
Overall, I hope that this will give Noriko and her family a better idea of where she will be staying and possibly visiting. I truly want her to be happy while she is with our family!
Categories: Life, Parenting, Photography
Heart Treasures 
Wow Alysa, you created a wonderful package! Love that idea of the different maps eventually zooming in on where you live. And the letter to her parents is very thoughtful. No doubt she’ll feel very welcome 🙂
I just hope it arrives to her before she leaves! I should have sent it sooner…
I’d guess it should be there within 7 days… And you made pictures, so even if she misses it, you’ll be able to show her. She’ll appreciate it either way!
What a nice idea! My second exchange student just arrived yesterday and I haven’t sent a package ahead of time but am inspired by yours. I’m looking forward to following your year!
I looked at your blog briefly and will go back and read more as soon as I have a chance! I like your idea of doing a question/answer post. I may copy some of your questions and do the same if that is okay with you. You are in Michigan? I was born near Detroit and have extended family there. Grew up in Delaware though. Thanks for stopping by!