Margarita Night

The last week of March was Badman Week. This is a week spent with all the other squadrons to build camaraderie (although we don't need anymore of that) with parties, sports contests, etc. It was wonderful that Rod and Nancy were in town b/c we were all set with someone to watch the girls (Thanks!!!). Tuesday night was Margarita night at the Club. They ran out of margaritas by 7:15 and the party started at 7:00.


Here are Rod and Nancy riding bikes home to the hotel after watching the girls for us. We were in hysterics watching them get on our bikes and take off.

Grandma and Papa in Tokyo!!!!

Sunday, March 29th, Rod and Nancy flew into Narita Airport direct from Atlanta. Chad drove up to the airport while the girls and I took the train to the New Sanno Hotel in Tokyo. We were going to spend their first night there.



Here we are eating at the Japanese Restaurant, Kikuya that first night they came in. We had delicious tempura, grilled meat and miso soup. Rod was a big fan of the miso soup. They also tried sake for the first time.

The next morning Chad and his Dad woke up very early (4:00 a.m.) to take a taxi to the Tsukiji Fish Market. This is the famous fish market in Tokyo where fish is sold to restaurants all over the world for a TON of money.

After they returned we loaded a Hato Bus for a 1/2 day Tokyo Tour. We went to the Tokyo Tower, Imperial Garden, Asakusa, drove through Ginza and Akihabara, and finally a stop at the Taka Pearl Gallery. It was a whirlwind, but at least we were able to go via bus.



More adventures from Japan to come....stay tuned...

Cherry Blossom Festival - NAF Atsugi

The last weekend of March there was an open gate event held on base called the Cherry Blossom Festival. Thousands of Japanese came on base to see our airplanes, listen to bands and eat American Food. Each squadron had a static display of their plane and sold squadron gear. You would not believe the amount of stuff we sold. Lauren stayed at the table all day. She loved helping to sell everything.

A few of my English students came to meet my family and check out the plane that Chad flies.

Tokyo 10K and Marathon

Right when we moved to Japan and had to make the decision on whether to sign up for the 10K or the Marathon. I signed up for the 10K and then regretted it. I started training for the marathon thinking I would just keep running (really those Japanese would not kick me off the race course would they). I made it through the training until 18 miles when my IT Band started giving me issues. I decided maybe it was best to just do the 10K portion.

My friend Tracy was running the marathon and I ran with her for 11 miles. We had such a great time running through Tokyo and taking in all the sights. It was hard to jump off the course and wish her well. She did awesome though!

Many of us from Atsugi ran both distances. It was a great race and I can't wait to do the full marathon next year.

Quick visit with Uncle Joey

Uncle Joey was able to swing through here on his way to Misawa and from Misawa, Japan. He was here for the reserves. We had a fun time with him and the girls always have a great time when he is around.

What a sport...here he is playing twister after no less than 24 hours of travel time to get here.

We didn't get him for long, but we had a great time seeing him. Thanks Joey for making the effort to come down to Atsugi to see us.

Lauren turns 7!

Can it really be true that we have a seven year old. Her birthday was Saturday, March 21st. She woke up and choose waffles for breakfast. She wanted to open gifts right away. She loved everything that she got, but her favorite is probably the new tennis bag. She will be taking lessons this spring.

After opening gifts we headed out for lunch. Lauren wanted nothing but sushi for lunch. We are starting to wonder if she is part Japanese. There is not much in this country she won't eat. After that we went to a Japanese Bakery and got her a birthday cake. Yummy!

Lauren is on the phone here talking to Nana wishing her a Happy Birthday. Hey Lauren...please stop growing up.

Basketball Highlights

Here is a team picture and footage from a point Lauren scored at this weekend's basketball game.

Party Like the Irish!

The guys were gone for St. Patrick's Day and all the girls decided to throw a bash Irish Style. We had Irish Beef Stew, Soda Bread and lots of green drinks. The kids had such a good time.

Snow in March

Earlier this month we had a light dusting of snow in the evening. This was what was left the next morning on our way to school. The girls were very disappointed when they got out of school and it was all gone.

Many of you have asked to see pictures of our car. Well...here it is. We call it the green machine (after Condra and Joe's van). It is not much, but gets us around. It is refreshing to live in a place that puts such little emphasis in what you drive. The older the better...

In the picture behind the car you can get a hint of what our housing looks like on base. Beautiful huh????

Another Trip to Nagano

Another fabulous weekend skiing in Nagano. This time we went with two other families, The Holmes and The Harts. Betsy and Sybil are dear friends and we all took a lesson together. I was the worst one by far, but we all enjoyed our lesson sans kiddos.
Later each couple took turns going off by themselves skiing while the other couples watched all the kids. It worked out really well. Below Allie is going up the lift for the first time with her ski instructor Ken-san.


And then here goes Lauren...

She was so proud after she came down that run. She couldn't stop talking about it.

Chad is getting better and better at snowboarding. It was so fun to go down with him and see how much he improved since his first try at Yeti.

Here are the girls about to try all of the Shochu (a Japanese liquor distilled from rice) drinks.


We had such a great weekend.