Today is July 4th, and as always we are planning to do the usual Independence Day thing in the evening — flag, food, sparklers, etc. But this afternoon, Anri and I went to see how samurai swords are made. And she made a knife of her own!
In the neighboring town of Sakaki, which is home [...]
Anri Makes a Knife
Our soon-to-be home
Well, our loan was approved and we are well on our way to finally getting a house of our own! We have been renting all these years, which has always been big on convenience yet small on size. Now, we will have a home of our own, and one with a lot of great features!
The [...]
Noah turns 2
Continuing with my trend of posting weeks after the fact, Noah turned two years old on March 17. He had a little birthday party with family, cake and presents to celebrate the day.
From his Japanese grandparents, he got some nice clothes. From Grandma, he got a wooden Thomas train add-on kit, A Quarry Mine track [...]
Hawaii 2010, Part 2: Kauai
After a day and a night on Oahu, we headed off to Honolulu Airport before dawn to catch our flight to Lihue, Kauai. The kids were very excited, because they knew that Grandma was also visiting the Garden Isle, waiting for us to arrive.
The Hawaiian Airlines flight to Kauai is short, only 30 minutes or [...]
Finally, Our Trip to Hawaii: Part 1, Oahu
Though it has been ever a month since we got back, I have only now been able to sit down and write about the wonderful time we had on our trip to Hawaii in February for our tenth wedding anniversary. Why did it take so long? Read.
Our original plan was to fly to Honolulu and [...]
Happy New Year 2010!
The New Year holiday in Japan always means the same thing: Kohaku, road races, tempura, temple visits and cold weather. I never liked it so much but this year is different!
I actually enjoyed the holiday this year! Probably it had something to do with the fact that I was not in front of the TV for [...]
Anri’s Sixth Birthday
Anri turned six on December 30th, and we had a party for her, with all the food she likes. Lots of family came over to join the party!
And what does Anri like to eat? She called all the shots on the food, so we had fried chicken, potato salad, ikura (salmon eggs — yes, she [...]
Christmas in Nagano 2009
As always, we had a great Christmas here in Nagano, with the house decorated, presents from Santa, and lots of friends and family over for dinner!
Because of a bout with the flu back in November, we decided then to cancel our annual Thanksgiving dinner and saved the turkey for Christmas instead. But here, the 25th [...]
Sara Turns Three (and gets the flu)
Sara turned three years old on Sunday, and we had a nice little birthday party for her marking the event. She had a strawberry cake and presents, but the next day, she caught the flu from her big sister Anri.
Culture Day 2009
It was a very busy day for all of us today! Every year, on November 3rd, Anri’s kindergarten holds their annual Kindergarten Festival and after that, this afternoon Anri went to the local concert hall to do a piano recital.
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