Are you feeling the pinch?

Okay, so I used to be commended on how little money I could feed my family with, but I am now slipping and slipping fast!! Maybe, it's because we live overseas and we either get our food locally or it ships from CA, but I can't believe how much money I've been spending on food!!! I think I've tripled what I used to spend in NC. Yes, my kids are older and now that they are home for summer break they eat more, but really triple what I used to spend. Are you ladies in the states feeling the same pinch? Does anyone else pay $3-5/lb for apples, $4/lb for red peppers, or $3/lb for fresh mushrooms?! I sure hope not! The price for produce has always been a bit higher, but it is now going through the roof!! Remember that food storage thing, I'm beginning to think it may be because food will become too expensive and not because it won't be there. We really need to get crackin' on our storage.

Night Out on the Town

Duane and I had planned a double date with some friends, but they had to cancel at the last minute. So, it was just the two of us and we were in the mood to try a new restaurant. We drove over to the seawall, which is a wall that runs along the ocean, and walked up and down to see what kind of restaurants we could find. The ones that caught our eyes were those that had patios where you could eat staring out at the beautiful ocean. We ended up eating at a curry house, which was above a store called Island Break. They had a small buffet that included Japanese, Indian and Thai curry. The food was great and the view was amazing!!! We do take the beauty of this island for granted and commented how this may be something someone does on vacation, but we can do it any time we want. Watching the sunset and a few scuba divers was fabulous and we can't wait to bring the kids next time. After dinner we took some time to walk along the seawall and just enjoy each other and the beauty of the ocean.
In Okinawa it doesn't take long to eat dinner and get back home. Most of the time you are in a restaurant and out within an hour, so you end finding things to do to fill time away from the kids. We ended up driving around and looking at all the great restaurants we would love to go to. We found quite a few spots we would love to visit. As we drove around we spotted the Turkish restaurant I saw on another blog (if she reads this, thanks for the tip) and decided to stop. Duane ended up ordering hummus and we both had some Turkish ice cream, which was great. It is made from pure milk and you mix it up and it will pull like taffy. There is usually always room for ice cream because it will just fill in all of those holes and cracks that exist in the stomach. Surprisingly, this ice cream is very filling and just settles on the top of your already bursting tummy. Boy, it's a good thing I ran this morning!!
All in all, we had a great time and got to taste food from four parts of the world in one night! Our next plan is to do a progressive dinner and hop from one restaurant to another for each course. Well, I'll be off to the gym tomorrow to work off tonight's meal!!

Our Trip to Kyoto

After a few days in Tokyo we got up early and took the Shinkansen, more commonly know as the bullet train, to Kyoto. After the 2.5 hour trip, which took us through Nagoya where Duane served his mission, we arrived at Kyoto Station and walked across the street to our hotel. After arriving we went to a ramen house for lunch, checked into our hotel and got ready for our first tour. We took an afternoon tour to Nara, which is an old city about an hour outside of Kyoto. We got to see the Todaiji Temple, Nara park and the Kasuaga Shrine. There were deer that roamed the park looking for tourists to feed them. I've never been so close to any deer, usually they have bullseyes on their back and run at the sight of humans. Ryan and Olivia loved getting so close to the deer. At the Todaiji Temple, there were many groups of Japanese school children, where their assignment was to find english speaking foreigners and practice their english. We got to sign many notebooks and many of these children were from a town where Duane served during his mission. Miranda even got to practice some of her japanese speaking skills.

Our next day in Kyoto was filled with a lot of touring. I booked a full day tour to see all the important sites of Kyoto. The kids did really well and the older two really enjoyed seeing all of the sites. Olivia was quite the attraction for the Japanese people on our entire trip, so by the end she would just wave and flash her fabulous smile. She couldn't get enough of the attention. We were able to see Nijo Castle, the Kinkakuji Temple, the Kyoto Imperial Palace, Kyoto handicraft center, Heian Shrine, Sanjusangendo (sorry no pics in our album because they were not allowed, but it was filled with 1001 statues of Kannon, Bodhisttva, dating back to the 13th century), and the Kiyomizu Temple. It was definitely a long day, but we had a great time.

We are so glad that we took the time to go to Kyoto and highly recommend it to anyone who is looking to see ancient Japan. It is also the home of the Samaria, so Ryan was very excited about that. We are looking forward to our next trip to Tokyo!

Todaiji Shrine

Heian Shrine Kiyomizu Temple
The Golden Pavilion

Link to our Kyoto Web Album http://picasaweb.google.com/defootefamilyfun/Kyoto2008

Trip to Tokyo

We just got back from a fabulous trip to Tokyo and Kyoto. The kids really enjoyed Tokyo Disneyland and Disney Sea. I think we were all surprised at how much it looks like Disney World and the only reason we knew we were in Japan was because of all the Japanese people around us. Olivia couldn't wait to meet Cinderella, since we've been talking about it for a few months, but she was nowhere to be found. We caught a glimpse of her in the parade, but they had no opportunities to meet the characters and there was not one princess item in any of the stores. After asking someone, evidentally they do not carry any princess items, so Tokyo is not the place to go if you child is obsessed with the princesses. Needless to say, Olivia was very disappointed, but I promised her that her Grandma and Grandpa Coleman would gladly take her to meet Cinderella the next time we came to visit them in Florida. This seemed to tide her over, although we all knew she was heartbroken.

I think we all observed some interesting things while we were in Tokyo. It is a lot more modern than it is here in Okinawa and rather than go to Japanese restaurants, we went to the American restaurants that we haven't been to in ages, such as TGI Fridays. The Japanese also are obsessed with their cell phones. While riding on the subway, individuals of all ages spent their entire ride on their phones. They are not allowed to talk on the phone while riding the subway, but they were either texting or playing games, we're not really sure. Japanese women also do not seem to know how they should dress when going to an amusement park. Some of you may remember our hike on Memorial Day, where we saw women hiking in heels, well they also go to amusement parks in a dress and heels. It is just amazing how they would put pain over comfort, we just shook our heads at the sight! I must have looked rediculous with my shorts and sneakers.

Our original plan was to spend our first two days at Disneyland and Disney Sea and an entire day exploring the rest of Tokyo, but we had to make an unexpected trip to Camp Zama. Do you remember Duane's teeth? Well, while we were at Disney Sea, his teeth came loose and he spent all afternoon trying to get a hold of the dentist to schedule him an appointment at the nearest Army installation, Camp Zama. We woke up early the next morning and took the subway to Camp Zama, which took about 1.5 hrs. We almost moved to Camp Zama and know wish we had because there is so much to do up there. Anyway, Duane was able to get his teeth fixed and we made it back to Tokyo and managed to visit one site before going back to the hotel because we had an early departure at the train station the next morning. We had such a great time that we've scheduled a return trip for Labor Day weekend and hope to see all the sites we didn't get to see.

Tokyo Disneyland

Tokyo Disney Sea


Tokyo's Imperial Palace


Link to our Tokyo 2008 Web Album http://picasaweb.google.com/defootefamilyfun/Tokyo2008

Miranda and Ryan had their second piano recital, which went very well. They may not be the next Mozart or Bach, but they have improved tremendously since their last recital. The theme for the recital was TV theme songs. Ryan played Popeye the Sailor man, while Miranda played The Brady Bunch. I'm looking forward to the next recital in December, which will have a classical music theme. The kids are already thinking about what composer they would like to play.


Poor Ryan was very shy at the recital because he was the only boy who performed in the recital. I couldn't even get him to scoot closer to his piano teacher for this picture.

A Day at the Zoo

I had the opportunity to be a chaperon for Ryan's field trip to the zoo. I have to say that I took the kids to the zoo last year and we went through it and rode the train in less than an hour, so it is not the best place. Ryan was very excited and woke up bright and early and said a prayer that the rain would stay away for the day. Well, it is the rainy season here so I told Ryan that his prayer may not be answered because Heavenly Father knew the land needed the rain. I said this so if it did rain, his faith wouldn't be destroyed. It is a good thing that I did because as we left the school it was drizzling, but when we arrived it was pouring. The zoo does have a small Children's Museum, which we went to first and it kept the kids occupied for a couple of hours, so that we could wait out the rain. Unfortunately, the rain continued and we ended up eating lunch and then the kids got bused back to school. Despite the shortened field trip, Ryan and his friend Brian had a great time.

Did you know?!

Did you know that Duane had false teeth?! Yes, I told the kids it was because he wasn't very good at brushing his teeth as a kid, but it is really a result of being the typical adventurous boy. Anyway, he's had a bridge for a long time and the Army decided it was time for a replacement. The only problem is the temporary set has fallen out four times in the last two weeks! We actually had to take a day out of our vacation and go to Camp Zama to visit the dentist because they were beginning to fall out again! He is still waiting for the final set to come in, so until then we expect the teeth to last three to four days before they will fall out and then it is a trip to the dentist to get them cemented in again. Poor Duane, but I couldn't help but snap a few pictures of him without his teeth in! The kids and I really did get a kick out of seeing him without his teeth!!

This one just makes me what to pucker up!

Bridging to Juniors

Miranda is no longer a Brownie Girl Scout and bridged to Juniors a couple of weeks ago. I can hardly believe that she will be turning nine next month and entering the fourth grade!

Here is our new Junior Girl Scout!

To Go or Not to Go

Duane wanted to ride the jet ski while we were at Okuma and somehow convinced Miranda to join him. Ryan had refused to go.
Even though she prefers the banana boat ride, she decided to take a chance with the jet ski and seemed excited about it.


Then, she started to watch the others on the jet ski and I think she started rethinking her decision.

As they continued to wait their turn, she seemed to be getting more nervous about what was to come.

She got more nervous the longer they waited and the more she watched the others on the jet skis.

She made it on the jet ski, but I think she was terrified and Duane promised to go slow.
Well, there was no turning back and she did last about five minutes. If you know our Miranda, she is one who does not do things that could be potentially dangerous. We do have to give her credit, she was willing to try, did get on and last five minutes. Duane had a great time on the jet ski and turned so sharply that he fell off. I told him I would try it next time we went.

An Afternoon at the Beach

After our hike we went to Okuma, which is the military's resort beach here on the island. We were afraid that it was going to be packed with people, but we must have missed the crowd. There weren't very many people there and we had a great time enjoying the beach!

The only thing Olivia wanted to do was build a sandcastle, so we did them best we could, but every time we built something she would knock it down and we started over.

Ryan ended up digging a great big hole and I told him that since we were so close to China he could end up digging his way there!

Miranda tried to help her sister with her sand castle, but became easily frustrated and gave up.