Sushi-Go-Round

A few weeks ago, we finally ventured out to the Sushi-Go-Round in American Village. We sat in a booth and checked out all the different items going by on the little conveyor belt, grabbing whatever looked yummy. There was a menu so we could special order items that we didn't see going around, which we did several times. Plus, you never can quite tell how long something has been sitting out. I'm not quite sure how they monitor that.

Spencer (as usual) was much more daring than me. I pretty much held back and let him choose the plates he thought looked good, then if he liked it I would taste it too. Not being much of a fisher eater, I have to say that I really like raw tuna. The texture is so incredible... just melts in your mouth. Who knew? But there were some things he chose that I just couldn't bring myself to try.

Like this one (insert heaving noises here).

While we packed down the sushi, Shawn enjoyed eating peas in his car seat.

Sydney has yet to try sushi. That night she stuck to some plain old chicken and rice.

At the end of the meal, we stacked up our plates and our waitress came over and scanned them to total everything up.

Overall I'd say the whole sushi-go-round thing was fun to try, but I don't think we'll be going back any time soon.

Chocolate Mustache

The other day, Sydney and I made banana bread then started throwing together a treat I found on Pinterest just as Shawn was waking up from his nap. One ingredient of the treat was chocolate chips, and I gave Sydney a few in a little bowl right before I went up to get the baby. As I was changing his bum, I heard Sydney coming upstairs and yelling something about getting chocolate on her dress (which was really a shirt). When she came to his bedroom doorway, I started cracking up. The "chocolate" on her shirt was a stain of mac 'n cheese she'd dropped on herself at lunch, but she had no idea that she really did have chocolate on her... it was just on her face.

She had pretty much the best chocolate Hitler mustache ever.

It kept me laughing for quite a while.

Shawn thought it was pretty funny too!

Okinawa Zoo

Last week my friend Megan invited us to go to the zoo. She home schools her kids, and they were doing a week of field trips. I'd heard from a lot of neighbors that the zoo here was very '70s with its display of animals... like their cages were just concrete and bars, with no attempt to make them look like their natural habitats. Needless to say, our expectations were pretty low, but neither of us had been and we thought it would still be fun for the kids.

I was surprised to find that it was such a quick drive to get there. It was also kind of awesome that Sydney and Shawn were both free, so it only cost 500 yen to get in. There were lots of cute animal mosaics all along the walls where we entered in, and tons of beautiful flowers on the walls and in cool arrangements lining the walking paths.

My favorite was this giraffe.

Audra liked these squares.

The kiddos: Shawn, Sydney, Audra, Taylor, Landon, Myka

One of the first things we came to on the path was a carousel, which the kids of course wanted to ride. Megan and I were happy to humor them, and laughed that the 1 minute ride cost me almost as much as our entry fee into the zoo- and more than the admission price for her family! Oh well, it's fun to spoil your kids with this kind of thing every now and then :)

Syd chose the swan.

Megan, Myka, & Taylor

Audra opted for a unicorn.

A little post-ride siblings photo op.

It took us a while to actually find the animals. When we rode down the elevator, it brought us right to the lions and tigers. Just like we heard, the cages were pretty ghetto. I didn't take many animal pictures, but I couldn't help but document the very informative signs they posted next to their cages warning you to not get too close.

No translation needed. Ha!

The only actual animal I caught on camera was this peacock. It's not the first one I've seen with it's feathers out, but we caught him right when he was trying to woo a lady peacock. It was pretty cool to see him take steps toward her, then shake his feathers. She pretty much ignored him and pecked at her neck. Maybe just playing hard to get?

Cutie pies.

We also saw lions, tigers, hippos, raccoons, giraffes, ostriches, pigs, cows, horses, bats, birds, crocodiles, snakes, and an elephant. It was quite the random mix of zoo and farm animals. Sydney sure had a great time running around with the kids. We were there almost all day and still didn't see everything.

In fact, Syd was pretty disappointed when we found this little park area after we had left the zoo. I thought the Japanese-y dragon mosaics were pretty darn cute. We're excited to take Spencer with us next time to enjoy another cheap visit to the zoo!

The Big 2-9

My actual birthday ended up being kind of uneventful. During Shawn's nap and Sydney's quiet time, I made myself my usual birthday treat: a carrot cake. With Spencer's delayed flight, he was on a plane for a majority of the 12th. My friend's husband was supposed to be on his evening flight into Okinawa, so she was going to just pick them both up from the airport. Her husband's flight into Tokyo ended up being delayed, so my neighbor Louise held down the fort while my kids slept so I could go get Spencer. It was actually kind of exciting to be the one to get him, I'm glad I got to go. That was probably my best birthday present, although I also had fun getting lots of presents he bought for me in California. Some were legit birthday presents, others were just items on a list I gave him of things I wanted from the states- like jeans, picture mats, a big pack of white cardstock... things you take for granted when there's a mall or a Jo-Ann's just down the street!

Anyway, we ended up celebrating my birthday on the 13th. I woke up that morning to Sydney coming in to our room while Spencer was getting ready for work. In my half asleep state, I heard her tell him, "Daddy, I'm really glad your home." It was pretty sweet. Then he gave her beads and stickers and instantly reclaimed his spot as her favorite person in the world.

That evening we had dinner at the ticket restaurant, then came home to sing and enjoy (a very lamely decorated) cake and ice cream.

29 candles.

Notice the orange necklace she made that morning with her new beads?

Shawn had carrots for dinner, they left him with a bit of an orange beard.

Sydney enjoyed helping me put the candles in, but she was more excited to help me blow them out!

Carrot cake and mint chocolate chip ice cream aren't exactly complimentary flavors, but that's what I've requested for every birthday for as long as I can remember. Now it's just more of a tradition for me, looks like Sydney approves!

When Daddy's Away...

Every year the military sponsors a trip for Spencer to go back to the states for a continuing education course. He decided to go to San Diego for a pediatric dentistry class, and he took a week of leave before the class so he could visit his family. On February 25, I took him to the airport and said goodbye for the next two weeks. I was a little nervous to have both kids by myself for that long, as I'm usually eyeing the clock at 4:30pm everyday waiting for him to come home. How spoiled is that?

It took Sydney a few days to wrap her head around the fact that Daddy wasn't coming home for a while. We made a paper chain to count down the days until he got back, and she had fun tearing a link every morning. We got to talk to him on Skype several times a day while he was at his parent's house- thank goodness for modern technology! I tried to make sure we had somewhere to go or something fun to do everyday so the time would pass more quickly. I didn't really take many pictures of the things we did since my hands were always too full to carry the camera around, plus the camera battery was dead for a while and I just didn't bother charging it. But I did document a few things we did around the house, like Sydney and her friend Audra making CTR pretzels at our weekly play date.

Sydney & Audra with their masterpieces.

Sydney played with water in the kitchen sink after helping me bake.

Shawn played with "toys" in his bouncer, which he's almost outgrown. Regular toys are starting to bore him after a while- he's become more interested in gnawing on things like wooden spoons and sippy cups.

Sydney built lots of super tall towers with her blocks.

I think the record heights was 25 blocks! She was entertained with this for a loooooooong time.

While Spencer was gone, Shawn got a lot better at rolling from his belly to his back. He used to get stuck on his stomach, which made him pretty mad... especially at night in his crib. Now he's just a rolling machine. Sydney's toys across the room are no longer "safe," as he can make his way from one end of the rug to the other if he sees something he really wants (especially if it's something he shouldn't have).

He also cut two more teeth, his upper lateral incisors, taking the total count to 6!

Overall, the days were pretty much the same, it was bedtime that was the real challenge. I made it work by bathing my kids less and majorly simplifying Sydney's bedtime routine. The first week was a little tougher for me because there were a few nights where I didn't feel so great. One night I had a fever of almost 102 and went to bed at 8pm. Week two went pretty smoothly, with lots of nice days where we could play outside with neighbors.

I was so excited for him to come home on March 11. He had specifically set up his trip so he would be home in time for my birthday, but when I came home from church I had an email from him saying the plane out of LA had an issue with its braking system (after they were already on the runway and almost to take off), so they got everyone off the plane and cancelled the flight! Major bummer. That made this trip a total of 16 days, the longest we've ever been apart since we've had kids. Having him gone certainly made me appreciate everything he does for our family! Thankfully he made it home the next night :)

Going to the Dentist

February 22 has been on our calendar for several weeks, marking Sydney's first dentist appointment. We talked about it almost every day, discussing how daddy would wear his scrubs, a mask, and gloves to clean her teeth. It seemed like she was getting really excited about it, right up until the night before. When I put her to bed she told me, "I don't want Daddy to clean my teeth. I just want him to scale." He scales her teeth on a fairly regular basis, so I assured her that that would probably be ok.

After checking in and heading back to Spencer's chair, she suddenly decided she wanted nothing to do with the dentist. It took a little while, but I was finally able to talk her into laying on the dental chair to go for a little ride. For the next 10 minutes or so, there was lots of nervous laughter.

Spencer and his assistant Miss Uehara were getting a kick out of Sydney's nervous laughs.

She didn't want to wear the sunglasses, so I think her eyes were watering from the brightness of the light.

Not only did she do great while Spencer scaled her teeth, she also let him brush her teeth with a hand piece, paint on a banana flavored flouride treatment, and was a champ when Miss Uehara suctioned.

She did awesome, I was so impressed!

And here's my big girl showing off her sparkly teeth.

Katsuren Castle

Having learned about Gosamaru and Nakagusuku Castle, my interest was peaked in checking out Lord Amawari's former residence, Katsuren Castle. Conveniently, Spencer had just passed it on his 40 mile bike ride last Saturday so he knew right where it was.

Spencer making that memorial look good.

Our turn- Syd was hiding from the camera.

After walking further up the hill, the Pacific Ocean came into view. There were also lots of people around the grounds painting the ruins.

See those little black and pink specks half way up the stairs? That's Spencer and Sydney.

A closer shot.

After taking pictures, it was my and Shawn's turn to conquer the steps!

Spencer & Sydney were waiting for us at the top.

Enjoying the view from higher up.

The original stone foundation of the palace (not sure if that's the right word) where Amarawi lived.

It was super windy at the highest level!

You could actually see the Pacific Ocean from both sides of the castle, it was really pretty. It was a cloudy day, I can only imagine how spectacular it would be when it's clear. As for the history, Lord Amawari fostered international trading, which brought great prosperity to the area. After defeating Gosamaru at Nakagusuku Castle (not sure if it's fact or legend that he had deceived the king into thinking that Gosamaru was planning a revolt, so Amawari had help from Shuri castle to defeat him), the deceitful Amawari took forces to Shuri to overthrow the king. However he was defeated; Katsuren Castle was destroyed in 1458 and was never rebuilt.