"Goonies never say die!"

We went on another adventure this weekend. And if you are a Goonies fan, you would LOVE this place. There wasn't a big ship full of gold at the end of the tunnel, but it was still an amazing adventure. The name of the place was Mikawa Mu Valley, and it was about an hour away. They give you a map and clues as to what you are suppose to find with solar powered flashlights to help you on your search. I am not sure that we actually did the treasure hunt correctly, but the kids had fun none the less. :)

The "goonies" found the crystal skulls..a guide to where the first clue was located.

Rob is being a good sport about carrying around Coop!

A face in the wall.

Bella taking pictures.

Cute group of kiddos!

Old mining tunnel...if you look close, you can see the tracks.

This is actually water. It is so clear, you can't even tell.

A very pretty waterfall...may have been my favorite part.

See the cutie peeking thru the hole?

They finished the hunt and completed their cards.

I just love all the running water around here, and with the snow, it is even prettier!

 

Hi Ho Hi Ho, It's Off to The Mountains We Go

We decided to take a trip to the mountains to take the kids sledding. Let me tell you, this takes a lot of preparation when none of us had cold weather gear...we came from Texas where we didn't need it! So, our family and another family loaded up with the gear, sleds, and  kids and took off. We were using google maps on our phone to get there, and that turned out not to be a very good idea. We traveled on roads that were barely big enough for one car and were actually two lane roads. There were major drop offs and no guard rails. I was seriously scared for our lives! Then, we found the tunnel that would lead us to the sledding place, and it was closed. We tried another route, and it was closed! We were stopped in the middle of this town where they had fake people sitting everywhere reenacting real life events. It was so creepy! These older Japanese people came up to us to try and help, but we had no idea what they were saying. We loaded back up in our cars and took off again. We finally found it, and the kids were so excited. It was a lot of fun, and I'm glad we went. In fact, we are headed back there now as I write this....only we are going a different way this time! :)

This was on the way up the mountains. There is so much running water here, and it is beautiful! 

These are just a couple of the creepy people. At one point, I looked over and Parker was punching one in the face. Lord, help me! 

My handsome little man!

My only girl! She is beautiful! 

My other little cutie!

My amazing hubby and I with a little photo bomber in the corner! :)

My most favorite picture of the day!!! I love how Parker is concentrating on stopping with his tongue out and everything, and Bella is just screaming! Haha! 

A Visit to the Children's Museum

We were off on another adventure....as it always is when we leave the comforts of the base. This turned out to be a good one. We drove to Hiroshima, parked in the first parking garage we could find with space, and took off walking. Thank goodness for google maps to get us where we want to go. We had quite a walk ahead of us, but there is always so much to see. We happened upon a festival. I have no idea what it was for, but there was a lot of food that smelled really good. I do believe we stood out like a sore thumb there, but that's ok...we enjoy the sights, and we don't know if they are talking about us anyway. :) We finally found the museum, and the kids LOVED it. There is a planetarium on the 4th floor that I thought the kids would really enjoy...even if it was in Japanese. Looking at the stars and the planets is always fun, right?! We bought our tickets and found a seat. A lady came up to tell me that we couldn't leave once the show started (well, she didn't quite say it like that, but I got what she was trying to tell me.) The show started, and it was off to a good start. There were lots of stars and constellations. Parker was digging it, and then all of a sudden it turned to a cartoon of a little boy in his bed and this rabbit talking to him. From then on, it was all down hill. We didn't see anymore stars...only pictures of these cartoon characters and photographs that looked like they were from the 70's. Everyone had lost interest. Did I mention it was 40 minutes long, and we couldn't leave? Rob, Parker, Bella, and myself could have enjoyed a paid, 40 minute nap, but Cooper wouldn't allow it. It was a VERY long 40 minutes. As soon as we heard music that sounded like the end, Rob was standing up and putting his coat on. I am sure glad that it was really over, because it would have been embarrassing otherwise. We left the museum and went on the search for food. Parker won't anything in Japan, so we stopped at a McDonalds and got his and Cooper's food. Then we found a restaurant everyone raves about...Molly Malones. It is a pub, and the food IS good. Our waitress spoke English also...such a  nice change not having to try and struggle with communication. We left there, grabbed a Starbucks, and started our trek back to the car. On the way home, it started snowing and all 3 kids fell asleep...perfect ending to a perfect day....

This is in front of an outdoor shopping mall that we ran across on our walk to the museum.

Parker wanted to have his picture taken with this cat, but he didn't want to get too close.

This was part of the festival that we happened upon.

This smelled so good...like a good ole' west Texas BBQ!

Parker spotted this train from far away!

All aboard!

Inside the train.

I thought that this little girl was so adorable. The Japanese sure do have their own sense of style.

We found the museum!

Cooper thought he knew what he was doing up there!

How a hologram works!

Boys and trains...

and passage ways...

I am not real sure what this was describing, but Bella enjoyed it.

Soooo...many Parkers! I love them all!

A good dinner with my beautiful family. I am missing two in this picture!

Short and Sweet

We went to a store here today called You Me Town to get some fruits and vegetables. My friend brought me some strawberries from there last week, and they are seriously the best I have ever tasted. They make your mouth water bc they are that good! I had to share these flowers with you that we saw in the store...sooooo pretty! They also have fresh breads you can choose from. The garlic bread is pretty delicious. I'll post more later...promise. 

Aren't they amazing!?! I want one but not sure I could keep it alive, and the big ones are around 98.00.