Party like a 4 year old

He was so excited to wake up to cinnamon rolls & Mario cookies! 

A birthday craft while we waited for Dad and Sam to wake up!

Bowling fun with friends

He wore that Mario hat the entire day! 

The incredible looking and tasty Mario cookies from MKJ Cookies!!
The mushrooms were my favorite while Coop adored the Donkey Kong ones!

A Sweet Cakes by J creation - chocolate cake w/ cookies and cream buttercream! Mmmmm!

On a total sugar high! 

Perhaps he didn't want to accidentally spit on to the cake?!

He really wanted to run free. 

Kanazawa Zoo and Slides

We have been seriously missing the San Diego Zoo, and while we enjoyed Ueno Zoo in Tokyo, it is way too far away for a quick trip. We ended up checking out a really small zoo close to Yokosuka called Kanazawa Zoo. Coop always loves to see giraffes (I still remember when he was obsessed with penguins!), and Sam is mainly just concerned with running free.

Almost time to slide! 

Coming back up for more sliding! 

Time to head home! 

Happy Easter 2013

One of our American friends invited us to an Easter egg hunt at the neighborhood park.  It was a really fun, laid back event for the kids and parents. Sam didn't really understand the concept of putting eggs in his basket, and preferred instead to throw them. Cooper took a few minutes to warm up, but once he got into it, he had an absolute blast!

Eggsellent find for Sam!

Cherry Blossoms everywhere

Enjoying the spoils

The Boys

Kyoto & Nara

Justin had a few days off during Cooper's spring break so we decided to take a trip to Kyoto and visit Nara while we were there. Kyoto was the capital of Japan for over 1,000 years and Nara was the capital before Kyoto. It was a little bit rainy, but not too cold. We weren't there long enough to really see a lot of old Kyoto, but Nara was incredibly beautiful and the kiddies really enjoyed interacting with the deer.

Coop being silly while Sam tries to make a run for it. 

"Brother Friends" (according to Cooper)

Imperial Palace

Getting ready to take the bus to Nara

Two mamas with their babies! :) 

 Nara Daibutsu - High five for being so old (752)

Tōdai-ji

There were two huge samurai warrior statues like the one in the background....Well, I'm not sure if they were samurai, but they were definitely warriors of some sort! 

Another torii gate in Nara

I did not know that Sam was putting his fingers in the deer's mouth! Yuck!

Hmm... I'm thinking that I wouldn't want to be here after dark.....

Shinkansen "Bullet Train"

Mother Farm

After taking a short ferry ride (with amazing views!) across Tokyo Bay to Chiba, we made our way to Mother Farm. It's only the second time that I've been on a ferry that actually takes your car along and I was super excited about that (It's the little things!). We got a bit lost trying to follow the signs for the farm, but after many small, winding roads, we eventually made it there. The kids were starving so we immediately followed the enticing smell of roasted meats and veggies to the yakiniku restaurant. They also had a curry restaurant and an outdoor hotdog stand (They sold some kind of sausage on a stick w/o bread or anything which smelled amazing, but looked totally sketch!). 

After eating, the kids wanted to head straight to the horses and then see the sheep. It was such a perfect almost-Spring day and I can only imagine how beautiful the farm is once the flowers bloom! There are so many things to do here. We fed animals, rode the ponies, went on the go karts a few times, watched our friend bungee jump and rode the ferris wheel. The next time we're here, we have to pick strawberries, see some of the shows and maybe milk cows! We ended the day with fresh milk ice cream and then headed home. Can't wait to go back!  

Love my sheep!!

Yummy lamb chops, beef and veggies! 

He LOVED feeding the horses! 

He said that he was just like Woody!

C and I

Sliding together

Happy to take home a cow balloon

First trip to Kannonzaki Park...and first post!

 Hannita went off to Kamakura to shop with some friends, so I decided to take the kids somewhere. The goal was really just anywhere out of the house, but not too far away.  We ended up driving south on the 16 for about ten minutes and stopping here--Kannonzaki Park. Encompassing a very large area along the water, there was a small beach area, caves, tunnels, a lighthouse and apparently an amazing park (We didn't make it there this time). 

A map of the park on a fish-shaped stone.  

My finger is our starting point.  To the north is Tokyo bay

And we're off! Well, Coop is off.  Sam and I were just trying to catch up with him.  I think it was low tide so there were many exposed rocks along the shoreline along with great views of Tokyo Bay. Followed the path, we worked our way north (See my shadowy finger above!) and then to the east.   There were many distractions for the boys along the path.

Samuel was tired but hanging in there.

Coop was pretty fired up to lead the way.

Sam collecting sticks like Cooper.

When we returned to our starting point, the kids took their socks off and were able to get their toes in the sand.  Basically, Sam would sprint off towards the water and Coop would mosey toward it really slowly.  Soon Samuel will learn this effective method to not alarm the parent (me) while being able to soak his feet.

  

Our next trip there we will be to check out the lighthouse and park!!

A very "Chili" New Year's Day

Coop snapped this pic! 

Justin had to work on New Year's Eve and Day, but was able to get away for a little bit to have lunch with us (on base, of course).
Coop wanted to go to Chili's (even though he never eats it!) and I can never resist their buffalo chicken salad, so here we are enjoying a little taste of America as we celebrate the new year missing our friends and family from back home.

Sam's first Christmas