Japan Pictures - Day 1: Kamakura

I'm having a hard time coming up with the hours needed to post all my pictures from our fabulous trip to Japan.  I'm going to attempt to do pictures one vacation day at a time.

Day 1:  Wednesday, July 25th

• We arrived in Haneda Airport before 5am.
• Transferred trains a few times trying to get our Japan rail pass ASAP.  We didn't find the right ticket station and were keeping my Dad's cousins late so gave up and got on the train to meet them in Totsuka.
• After waiting at the wrong place for too long we finally found our meet up place and found my dad's cousin Sachiko.  Her husband Kanemi picked us all up in his car and drove us to their home where Sachiko had a HUGE breakfast already prepared for us.  Sachiko can speak some English - enough to communicate.  Kanemi has done a lot of business in English and lived in the Philippines for several years so his English is quite good.

Egg & ham, nimono with veggies & fish cakes, tofu with small fish & sauce, various homemade pickles from her garden, miso soup, and juice just for the Americans.  Blake even ate natto (fermented soybeans) on his rice.  I politely declined - I've tried that stuff and know I don't like it already.

This turtle kept my little brother company when he stayed with Sachiko & Kanemi about 10 years ago.

Sachiko had a tiny backyard (the size of an apartment patio) but it was filled with vegetables and ornamental plants.

Kanemi & Sachiko Sasaki's house: small footprint, steep stairs, tight garage & next to no space between neighboring houses, yet very well kept and beautiful potted plants wherever possible.

Sights around town: different body styles on vehicles, a lot more scooters, and tiled rooftops.

We aren't sure what the "Silicon Valley Express" was, but it was funny to see our home town on a store sign in Japan.

• Afterward, we first went to visit my dad's uncle Hideo (90 yrs old) and his wife Teruko (85 yrs old) who live in Zushi.  Their daughter Atsuko and her son (in his early 20's) were also there.  Kanemi translated for us the whole time.  Again they gave us a lot to eat and I must have drank about 15 cups of mugicha (a cold barley drink) because of the heat.  We showed them pictures. Teruko brought out pictures from when I was a baby and showed us what we all looked like back then.  She, of course, was much younger with thick, dark hair and I was a chubby-cheeked baby.  She told me she used to carry me on her back around the gardens.  Teruko kept telling me that I was so beautiful now and that she was so old.  In my mind, I hope I look as good and happy as she and her husband are at 85 and 90 years old!   
• Family history bit:  Hideo is the uncle that worked in the Japanese garden at Hachimangu in Kamakura and brought my dad in to work with him.  (My dad still constructs Japanese gardens for homes here in California.)  Hideo started working there after he retired about age 65 and worked there for about 20 years.
• When it was time to leave they all came outside and waved to us until they couldn't see the car anymore.  My mom always does that still.  She must have picked it up in Japan.

We prepared a photo album on the iPad to show relatives pictures of my immediate family.  Left to right: Kanemi, Hideo, (Cousin), Atsuko, Janet, Sachiko and Teruko.

Left to right: Blake, Hideo, (Cousin), Atsuko, Janet, Teruko, and Sachiko.

•  We then went to visit Kamakura's famous Daibutsu - a giant bronze Buddha that has survived hundreds of years (cast in 1252 a.d.).  For a small fee tourists can also go inside.  Inside it is interesting to see the individual pieces fit together and secured.  On the way back to the car we had purple sweet potato flavored soft serve ice-cream, which the area is famous for.

Sachiko taught us how to wash before entering holy ground: each hand, then cup water into your mouth using your hand and spit the water onto the ground = clean hands and clean mouth

This photo shows the inside of the body looking up through the neck to the head/hair.

Sweet potato ice-cream was really yummy!

•  By this time we were feeling the effects of having little sleep.  We had left from the Salt Lake City airpirt at 9:45 PM on Monday, had a layover to catch the red-eye out of LAX, and flew all day/night (crossing the date international line) for total flight time of 16+ hours to arrive at 4:55 am in Tokyo.  By the afternoon Sachiko & Kanemi kindly offered to take us to the hotel to have a nap before going to to the firework show that night.
• Our hotel was small but we were excited to have a Japanese style room with tatami floors, sliding doors, and futons to sleep on.  The blinds on the windows and the paper on the doors made the light just right for a much needed afternoon nap!

Our room.  The doors are slid open here.

Towels, toothbrushes with mini toothpaste, pajama robes & ties

In true Japanese form, our bed was waiting in the closet, along with blankets & pillows.

I've always heard about how these tables in the winter keep your legs warm underneath.  We clearly didn't need it in the hot & humid summer weather, but I wanted to take a pic of the mechanics of the table.

Close up of the floor: tatami mats are laid close to each other throughout the whole room.

The paper panels act like curtains and are connected to each door.  Each door can slide along the floor to any position on the track.

Room decor was subtle but effective in such a small space.

• Sometime around 6pm Sachiko & Kanemi came back to walk us to the beach for the firework ("hanabi" or fire flower) show.  We walked through the streets with the entire town down to the beach.  Several people, especially young adults, were in a traditional yukata (similar to a kimono but light weight for summer time).  The sidewalks were lined with street vendors selling food, bottled beverages, and light-up toys for the kids.

• The crowded beach was orderly and the crowds were patient as the sun set and the sky darkened enough for the fireworks.  There were food vendors along the main strip.  I wanted to taste every one, but Sachiko had brought a picnic dinner already (sushi rolls, inari sushi, yakitori, and grilled beef tongue).  There was a speaker system throughout the beach along the little bay with an announcer explaining the upcoming portion of the firework program.  One portion had fireworks with music.  Another portion was individually sponsored bursts.  Before each of these dedicated bursts the announcer would explain the sponsor of the single firework and the message that went along.  I didn't understand most of the messages, but I did catch a couple:  "Thank you, Mom & Dad."  or "[insert name], I love you.  Let's get married!".  The crowd would respond to each message with an "ooh/ah", a laugh, or various chit-chat.  The most spectacular portions were the ones where there were fireworks in the sky and on the water.  Most of the fireworks were launched from two barges in the bay.  Every so often a smaller, faster boat would cut along the middle of the bay lighting charges and throwing the charges out behind it to float on the water and burst.  The combination of the sky bursts, water bursts, and the reflections on the water resulted in the best firework show I've ever seen.

On our walk to the beach.

Sachiko & Kanemi brought food for all of us and even mats to sit on.  By the end of the night, all that sand behind us was filled with fellow spectators.

Traditional festival attire is still alive in this modern age.  I love it.

We also had a spectacular sunset to start off the night.  As a side note, Sachiko and Kanemi seem to smile a lot.

• After the show was over the masses on the beach had to fit through walking tunnels that crossed under the road between the beach and the town.  It was a human traffic jam literally.  We stood practically still, shoulder to shoulder, shuffling our feet just a little to move.  Blake and I were amazed at how patiently, quietly, and orderly the masses "evacuated" from the end of the firework show.  (If we were in the US, I'm certain there would be pushing and complaining and people pick-pocketing and drunk people being loud and making a scene.)
• We walked back to through town with the rest of the town, shops closed but streets still lit up, and made it back to the hotel to say goodbye to Sachiko and Kanemi who would take the train home instead of driving because of the masses.  We could see (and hear) the crowds at the station from our hotel room balcony.  That station was just as crowded as the beach.  For a long while.

Red & white festival lanterns were hung on the street gates around town.

The train station stayed this full for a long time even though trains picked up car-fulls of passengers.  Also, you can see the bike racks below for people to ride their bikes from their homes to the station.  The bike rack was probably three times the length of what's shown in the photo and had two levels. 

A Language Lesson: Anson-ese

Anson is in a really fun stage of toddler-hood.  He is learning how to talk.  He has a lot of great words down and can express himself most of the time.  He even offers commentary about what is going on or what he sees around him.  For example, there is not a single public bus that can pass our view when we're driving around town without Anson shouting, "City Bus!" as clear as day.

BUT, there are other words that are not so clear.  In preparation for leaving our kids with Grammy & Papa for two weeks while we go to JAPAN, (Yes!!!!  I'm SO excited to finally be in Japan again!!!!) I started a vocab list for Anson's "words" that may be a little hard for a new-comer to understand.  This list has actually come in handy for babysitters lately, too.  :)  Here's the list - just in case I forget to pack it in our luggage...

(In no particular order)

Sounds Like = The Real Word or Phrase

ear go = here you go (when handing something over)

go mon = garbage man or garbage truck

beeeg = big

nilk = milk

ice / wice = rice

I see, I see = I want to see

Bup / Dop = Stop!
Dop it = Stop it

dadday = that way

ott = out

bow = bowl

deet / seet = sit

boon = spoon

buck / pork / poke = fork

ouse / ows = ouch

dahpuhz = pastas

otter / ahter = water

yeow = cat ("meow")

moan = more

hone = phone

kowce = couch

nunnuh = another

nana = banana or string cheese (usually string cheese)

nana = sometimes is for Jiichan

Care = Claire

dit-ter = sister (Claire)

mammy = Grammy

bassss = bath

soxs an soos = socks and shoes

owsigh = outside
koko = uncle
ko cheese = macaroni & cheese
saks = snacks
kadow = avocado
foodt = food (he's hungry)
soos me = excuse me (to have you move over; also after he burps or farts - very polite!)
beep beep = move over please

sonks = songs (If you are in the car, that means he wants Claire's preschool CD so he can shout along)
guy = sky
socky ball = basket ball
dare is = there it is
Dog go go = the book Go, Dog. Go 
beauful = beautiful
sank you much = thank you very much
Q-me = excuse me 

In other great toddler-hood milestones, he has most of his colors down.  (He still mixes up pink with purple.)  He loves to point to things and say their color.  :)

Favorite books:  Green Eggs & Ham by Dr. Seuss, and Go, Dog. Go by P.D. Eastman

Favorite movies:  Kiki's Delivery Service and Totoro, both films by Miyazaki

Favorite songs:  "Popcorn Popping", "5 Little Monkeys Swinging from a Tree", "Wheels on the Bus"

Favorite snacks:  frozen peas (still frozen), raisin bran cold cereal, hot dogs

Ultimate trick to winning him over: ice-cream

Snuggling is good for the soul.

Teriyaki Grilled Tofu

Here's one of my go-to meals when I'm short on time or creativity for ingredients.  I serve it with rice and any salad and/or vegetable I have on hand (even if it's frozen petite peas).

One block of tofu feeds 2.5 people instead of the suggested 4.  Maybe this is because I use it as a main course instead of a side dish.  My kids eat just as much as we adults do, so now I have to double the recipe if I want one serving leftover for lunch the next day.  Here's the recipe.

So here is the beauty of it.  I don't always have teriyaki sauce on hand.  I often use a teriyaki baste-and-glaze.  Other times I've mixed my own teriyaki sauce concoction (soy sauce, sugar, ginger, garlic).  The last time all I had was hoisin sauce in the fridge.  But no matter what subsitute I use it ends up being great.  I mean, how can you go wrong with a soy sauce base and honey?!

I also don't have a BBQ or grill pan.  Instead, I cook the tofu "steaks" on medium-high heat for 3 minutes per side.  Then I heat the leftover sauce in the same pan to thicken it.  Pour that sauce over the tofu, rice and veggies.  Sometimes I quickly remove most of the sauce and then sauté the vegetables (broccoli, zucchini or green bean do well) in the pan that still has some sauce sticking inside.

Also, toss those green onions and red pepper flakes into the marinade itself first.

Finally, a recipe post: Tofu Tacos

It's time to share one of my favorite summer recipes.  Tofu tacos.  Don't run away if you think you don't like tofu.  Also don't run away if you think you don't like tacos.  This dish is really like neither.  And if you're not vegetarian, try it for just one meal every once in a while.

The original recipe is from my favorite magazine, but I've tweaked it.  It's a vegetarian recipe we both like - it's tasty and you walk away from the table satisfied but not heavy.  It's easy to cook, easy on the budget, and easily adaptable.  My kids even love it, especially my 2-yr-old.  In the picture below I didn't have salsa so I just added my own tomatoes and I had kale instead of spinach.  The last time I made it I added black beans and I'll be doing that from now on!

Tofu Tacos

Serves 4 | Hands-On Time: 20m | Total Time: 20m

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 14-ounce package extra-firm tofu, drained, patted dry, and crumbled
• 3 teaspoons chili powder
• salt and black pepper
• 2 cups frozen corn, thawed
• 1 5-ounce package baby spinach (about 6 loosely packed cups)
• 8 small flour tortillas, warmed
• 1 can black beans, rinsed & drained
• 3/4 cup store-bought refrigerated salsa
• shredded jack and/or cheddar cheese (optional) 
• 1 avocado, diced (optional)

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Add the tofu, chili powder, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Cook, tossing occasionally, until golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes.
3. Add the corn and beans. Cook, tossing, until heated through, about 2 minutes.
4. Add the spinach and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper. Toss until wilted.
5. Fill the tortillas with the tofu mixture, cheese, salsa & avocado.

 Here are some additional notes:

• Blake likes to add tabasco sauce.
• The rest of the family likes to add shredded cheese to their tacos.  I personally think the cheese kills the flavor, but to each his own.
• The filling rewarms wonderfully for leftovers
• People most often complain about tofu because of it's texture.  The extra firm tofu is not slippery and almost crumbles instead.  The other great thing about tofu is that its own flavor is very mild and it soaks up the flavor from the dish so well.  The key to tofu is seasoning it well.

Sleepy Boy

Blake sent this out to our family yesterday:

Anson turned 2 today and we found our ways to celebrate. Janet updated her blog. We went bowling yesterday. and today Anson decided to start nodding off during his dinner and we decided to capture it on film. It's a fun five minute clip. We hope you enjoy it. We obviously enjoyed it as you can hear from our laughter in the video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_E9NkmwCKg

Have a great week!

Anson's 2nd Birthday

Happy 2nd birthday to my Anson boy! 

Today is Anson's birthday but we celebrated yesterday by bowling with the family.  I don't think we've taken him bowling before but thought he would love it. 

After getting over the fact that he had to wear shoes, and after crying over the first few turns (not sure if he was sad the pins were knocked over or if he was sad to loose the bowling balls) he loved the rest of it.  Every throw ended with clapping and high fives.

This is my Anson.  He's my buddy.  He basically wants to be at my side always.  Even though his separation anxiety drives me crazy when I'm trying to get a sitter or leave him somewhere I appreciate feeling so loved and that I'm important to him.  I do hope I get to leave him in Nursery without him crying but I hope we always love being around each other for the rest of our lives.  He's a happy kid and loves being a part of everything.  He often says, "I see.  I see." or "Me do" or "Me, too".  He also tries to get things done himself, which can be a blessing and a curse, but I'm sure this will be a great personality trait for future success.

Gramma, Uncle Sam ("Koko" for "uncle"), and Amanda joined us.  We all had a great time.

And for his birthday cake, my amazing cousin Amanda helped me make a Totoro cake.  Right now Totoro is his obsession.  He asks to watch it all day long every day.  He shouts along with the characters and sings along to the music every time.

Happy Birthday, little buddy!

The Last Few Months via Instagram (Sorry these are out of order...)

My dad brought some flower clippings from one of his gardens to show Claire.  This is where they ended up.

We were talking about how mom has a mom, and dad has a dad, grandparents have grandparents, etc. To keep people straight we made stick figures with pictures representing something about them.  Both kids still like looking at the pages.  This was one of those teaching moments that came out of the blue based on a question C asked.  The Spirit of Elijah is at work with these little guys. :)

And we got a brand new minivan.  Two strange things for us: new and minivan.

A Sunday afternoon "puppet show" with an audience.

Claire gave a 3 minute talk in Primary all by herself!  Primary is the Sunday School class for kids ages 3-11.  The topic assigned was, "Living prophets teach me to choose the right."  We talked about things the living prophet and apostles teach us,  Claire picked some topics and drew pictures for them.  We wrote the simple sentances on the back so she could remember when she held up the picture for the other kids.  She did a great job!  And super bonus is that Grammy & Papa happened to be in town so they got to hear, too. :D

Even though we were in Utah for only about 48 hours, we had to stop and walk around the place where Grammy & Papa's new super house is going to be.

It wasn't raining that day, but they found the umbrellas.  Just before moving away they started playing out on the balcony more.

We've been saving boxes for a long time in preparation for moving.  Claire adopted one of them.  She and Becki (babysitter) turned it into a magical castle.  Not only did this box survive the move, it's also survived unpacking.  It currently lives on the back patio and still gets played with every day.

Claire was very excited to be taking a plane to Utah for her Kunzler cousin's sealing.  She sat like this for probably half the flights two and from.

While Claire was pretending to pack herself into the luggage, Anson was pretending that he was an engine and the luggage were his train cars.  I'm sure the neighbors did not appreciate the back and forth down the hallway as much as I did.

Being half-Japanese we ate a lot of rice growing up.  And since I do the cooking around here we all eat a lot of rice.  Some people say rice doesn't have a flavor.  It's not true.  Fresh rice out of the rice-cooker is one of my soul foods.  My kids must have inherited this or acquired this.  I caught Anson eating (and loving) a chunk of plain, cold, brown rice before I had a chance to warm it up with leftovers.

I think this photo sums up both musical nature and nurture.  Anson's not even 2 years old yet and he still can hold his own in a "jam session".  It makes me happy.

We sometimes make our goal of going to our temple in Oakland once a month.  This is especially hard during busy season for me, but one Saturday in the depth of busy season we made the commitment to go early in the morning.  It was hard getting up before the sun but by the time we came out the spires and the tulips were encouragingly looking upward.

In case you can't tell, this bear (dressed in doll clothes) is at a picnic.  And this is a common site around the house.   Not this exact set up, but this type of resourcefulness and creativity.  There is no shortage for imagination around here.

We can't break in new luggage without buckling ourselves in for the trip and zipping ourselves inside.

Anson is getting big enough to make things happen on his own!  He found his binky (only allowed for sleep time) and snuggled into the chair where we sing his lullabye.  Every time we snuggle, he also hooks his fingers into the afghan behind us.  My (late) Japanese grandmother made the blanket.  It makes me feel like the generations are somehow connected.

Every Monday night we have family home evening (FHE) as encouraged by modern apostles and prophets.  FHE ideally has a song, prayer, mini-lesson, mini-activity, song and prayer to close, and a family treat.  Every week it looks and feels different, but we always have a good time.  How can eating ice?! 

Anson loved looking at the planes from the ground.  He cried and asked to get off for absolutely the whole flight to Utah.  It's really too bad there isn't a direct flight from SJC to SLC.  On our layover Anson and I bolted to be the first ones off the plane to let him calm down a bit.  Poor kid.

I walked into the room one afternoon and saw this sight which warmed my heart. :)

From behind I couldn't tell what these two were doing sitting perfectly still and silent.  Not sure who started it, but they sat for a while listening to songs together.  I'm pretty sure it was classical music because Claire asked for a song change when a "cool" song came on.

At Chuck E. Cheese my kids are really the only ones who stop and listen to the animatronic band.  The first trip both kids were mesmerized.  I showed tugged at their hands, I shook the cup of tokens in their faces, and they just wanted to stay and watch.  Claire's reply was, "But Mom, they're great!"

Little boy.  Steering wheel.  By himself.  Enough said.

We've been storing up boxes for a long time in preparation for the move.  The kids have played with the big ones in a million ways.

Claire is starting kindergarten this fall!  She was a champ and got a kick out of all the pre-K tests at the doctor's office and the first three shots.  The last two shots didn't go so well...

Before the Utah trip Claire talked and talked about all the things she was going to do in the snow, including catch a snowflake on her tongue.  There was hardly any snow on the ground even though it was February and only briefly snowed flakes a few times.  But she caught one!  Mission accomplished.

Papa and Grammy came out in March for almost a week.  They literally walked in the door, got hugs from everyone, and an invite (kind demand) from Claire to sit down on the couch so she could read them a story.  The preschool reading program has been amazing.  I think I didn't read like that until I was in first grade.  Kids these days!

Driving in the car Claire says, "Mom!  Look!  Those clouds look like birthday streams!"  I had to agree.  It really did look like crepe paper streamers in the sky.

This was my first stack of packed moving boxes.  I tried to do a box every few days.  I consider it an accomplishment during busy season and all!  I'd get a stack like this, then we'd take it to the new house, and then start over.