The past four weeks have been busy! Here is what we have been up to this Fall in Japan....
We had a neighborhood block party to carve pumpkins before Halloween. Hayden did this one all by himself.
Eric outdid himself with this Japanese happy cat pumpkin. Unfortunately it rotted before Halloween.
The boys trick or treating at the hospital
Family of ninjas
Eric also carved a Mt. Fuji and Kokeshi doll pumpkin.
Oh happy day! Our household goods arrived on November 7th. It took us about 2 weeks to feel completely unpacked.
I am part of a Japanese culture group. We take turns hosting each other and doing things related to each of our cultures. We hosted the Japanese women in November and decided to do a service project making Operation Christmas Child boxes.
Eric and I did an ITT trip to a Japanese winery. Here we are wine tasting at 9am.
We were also able to visit Shoshenkyo Gourge. There were many beautiful views on the hike up.
Fall in Japan is absolutely beautiful
We rode this cable car up the mountain where we had lunch and enjoyed many beautiful Mt. Fuji views. They packed us in like sardines. Luckily it was a short trip.
This view made the ride worth it!
Hayden was off school so daddy took the day off and we rented bikes at Showa Park. Lincoln was at school so it was nice to have a day with just our Bo.
Hayden enjoyed it too!!
About a week before his birthday Lincoln got to ride one of the ponies at his school. He had been talking about this since starting school. Each child gets a pony ride during their birth month. The school sent home pictures.
He also made the newsletter for having a birthday in November. Here he is with his Senseis.
We were going to have an outdoor party for Lincoln's 4th birthday but the weather did not cooperate. We moved the party to the bowling alley. We had fun celebrating with friends.
Lincoln ready to bowl. The bowling excitement did not last long.
He was too excited about the awesome ninja turtle cake in the party room!
Happy Birthday my sweet boy!
Thanksgiving Day it snowed! We got about 3 inches and the boys spent most of the day outside playing in it.
Snow fight with the neighborhood crew.
Eric pulling Lincoln on the sled. No hills on base.
We had our neighbors over for Thanksgiving dinner. We shared in cooking the meal and everything turned out great! Hayden ate a whole turkey leg.
One Christmas item that did make it to Japan is our elf on the shelf. Here is Hayden reading the book to us this year.
I was so excited our tree was not damaged in the move. We got the tree up Thanksgiving weekend and Boo started off in the tree. Funny how a silly tradition can make it feel more like home.
It feels like we are on a routine in Japan now with work, school, and activities. The last piece of the puzzle has just been receiving our household goods...the good news is it is scheduled to arrive tomorrow, November 7th! It's been about four months since we moved out of our townhouse in MD so we are all excited to finally have our furniture (especially beds), clothes, toys, etc. Here is what we have been up to since my last post!
We visited Showa Park which is a huge park with lots of different area's of outdoor fun for the kids.
The boys loved these huge bouncy pillows.
And the conveyor belt slides were pretty awesome too
Hayden participated in an after school event for Hispanic Heritage Month. He broke it down in a Chilean dance.
We took a day trip to Shiraito Falls. Eric took this Panoramic photo. Beautiful!
Family Photo!
Brothers. Check out the rainbow at the bottom of the falls!
After the falls we had brunch at the Fuji View hotel. After eating we walked around the grounds and took some photos by the water.
Our next stop was the 5th station on Mt. Fuji. This is a good spot to see Mt. Fuji up close and see many beautiful views.
Vaillant Fam with Mt. Fuji
The boys have been doing swim lessons twice a week for the last 5 weeks. Lincoln is in pre-school level 1. The Japanese instructors are awesome.
Hayden started in school age Level 2 but has already moved up to level 3.
We are starting to see Mt. Fuji on base more often with the season change. Eric snapped this photo on the flight line.
The boys have been attending Awana on Wednesday nights with our church. Eric and I do a bible study while the boys go to their own classrooms. After 7 weeks of attending class they both earned their Awana vests this week. They were super excited!
Lincoln was off school 3 days this week so we met up with a friend who showed us a play place off base. There was tons of fun stuff but his favorite thing was riding the monster 4-wheeler.
Hayden was off school Friday so we went with a friend to a place called Round 1. They had indoor sports, slides, and games. Here he is trying to roller skate. The best part is there is a relaxation room for the parents. I enjoyed a chair massage while he played.
Hayden is playing flag football this season and he had his first game on Saturday.
Lincoln started school on October 12th here in Japan. We quickly started looking into schools when we arrived and toured two schools before deciding on Fuji Youchien (Kindergarten). They recommended we wait to start until after their big sports day on October 9th since the kids had been preparing for it and they didn't want Lincoln to be too overwhelmed. It is an all Japanese speaking school so we knew it it could be a hard adjustment for him at first. He rides a bus to and from school that picks up and drops off at the gate closest to our house. On his first day we drove him in and he rode the bus home. He has done great with the bus and did not even cry getting on the bus his 2nd day. The school is very unique and we think it will be an awesome experience for Linc. The school is in the shape of a circle with open air classrooms on the bottom and a large play area on top. There are multiple areas to play outside around the circle and the school has animals including two ponies (he gets to ride one on his birthday!). The school has a farm that the kids get to harvest vegetables from and bring them home. Within his first week, Lincoln had a field trip to harvest sweet potatoes and brought home 5 large one's. Eric made a yummy soup with them. They also have school chefs that prepare fresh meals daily and most days we have let him try school lunch. The food is very different than what he is used to and some days I think he only eats the fruit but the teachers tell us he is getting better at trying the fish, chicken, rice, noodle, and soup dishes. Also within his first two weeks we were invited to a family lunch for his class. Eric and I were able to attend and try some of the food he is offered. It was tough for Lincoln having us there and we were all a bit overwhelmed. The food was served by the kids and they sang songs in Japanese as the teacher played the piano. Lincoln has 2 kids from base in his class and the teachers say they are making great friends with each other. He wears a uniform to school and the kids change themselves into play clothes upon arrival. One of the school's motto's is I can do it myself and we can already see Lincoln becoming more independent since starting school. When were were registering for the school they gave us so much info it was a little overwhelming for me. There is a certain way to wear their clothes, pack their lunch sack and book bag, and don't forget to put a handkerchief in their left pocket daily. :) Two of my neighbors have kids that attend the school so they were very helpful in answering any questions I had as we got started. It also helped that he had friends on the bus! The school has been great with letting us know how he is doing. We have one main contact that translates any information from the teacher to us. They say he plays well throughout the grounds, is trying new foods and is very observant and tries to dance and sing with the class! Here are some photos from his 1st day, field trip, and family lunch. I also included a link to a Ted Talk that shows the school in more detail and the philosophy behind it.
Ready for my 1st day!
Rocking his uniform!
In front of his classroom. They take their shoes and socks off before entering the classroom. He gave me a hug and was off with his teacher to change his clothes.
Getting off the bus his first day. I see you buddy!
So proud of my big boy! When all the kids are off the bus we bow and say Sayonara (Goodbye in Japanese).
The school sent home this picture of Lincoln harvesting sweet potatoes. They meant dug of course. His class wears a light pink hat with their training wear shorts daily. He can wear tights under on cooler days.
Home with my dirty sweet potatoes. He came off the bus with dirt all over his face.
He got to ride at the front of the bus one day last week. Before getting on the bus we bow and say Ohio Gozaimas (Good Morning in Japanese).
With Linc at family lunch. He only smiled because it was time to go home!
We made the school newsletter. Linc wasn't having any other photo opps this day.
Two weekends ago Eric and I planned a day trip through ITT to see the Great Buddha and Shrines. We decided to do the trip as a way to celebrate the news that Eric passed his medical boards. After 9 weeks of waiting he finally got an e-mail in late September....not that I was worried but I think it was a huge relief for him. We found a great sitter for the boys so we were off for the day to sight see, shop, and relax. Here are some pics from our date day! Eric took over the camera for the day and took a photo of every area we saw so I included a slideshow at the end for anyone interested in seeing more detailed photos of the shrines. :)
The Great Buddha of Kamakura
Big Buddha is 38ft tall, almost 44ft with the base, and is the second tallest bronze Buddha statue in Japan.
Entrance to the Buddha Shrine - it rained most of the morning but at least it was not cold
My little tourist at the base of the Hase Temple
The gardens and ponds were beautiful
Touring Tsurugaoka Sachimangu Shrine
These little foxes wore red aprons
The shrine in the distance - this shrine was close to the shopping and restaurants
It stopped raining for shopping!! I definitely want to go back for more.
