Family Travels

Saturday, March 13:

One word from each of the boys to sum up the day:

Aaron: Horrible - because of a headache after the boat tour
Kylan: Exciting - because he got to see new things on the bay cruise
Colby: Happy - because he got to see his cousins - Wendy, Albert and Michael

A full day spent in San Francisco with Michael (my nephew), Wendy (my niece) and Albert (Wendy’s husband). It was really nice meeting up and hanging out with family. I can still remember when Michael and Wendy were the same ages as our boys. Hard to believe that they are all grown up and on their own. I am happy to see them both doing so well.

Our day started off at the California Academy of Science where we visited the planetarium, tropical rain forest and oceans exhibits. It took us a while to get there though, and our GPS now has two strikes against it. Instead of taking us to the correct location, we were guided to the Moscone Center - sorry, but the GPS wasn’t even close. We ended up using the iPhone GPS and that got us to the correct location. If you haven’t been to the California Academy of Science and you have young kids, I would highly recommend it. Even if you don’t have young kids, it a neat place to visit.

Stop two was Fisherman’s Wharf to eat lunch. We had lunch at the Fisherman’s Grotto Restaurant. The food was pretty good. Actually, when you eat lunch at 3:00, pretty much anything taste good. After lunch everyone but Michael and Albert went on the Blue and Gold Fleet Boat Tour which took us under the Golden Gate bridge and around Alcatraz Island. I think Aaron and I will be waiting on shore the next time. Neither of us got sick, but Aaron’s head and my stomach would have been much happier if we had stayed on shore. After the boat tour we went to Pier 1 to meet up with Albert and Michael and walk around a bit. We picked up Taco Bell and called it an evening. It was nice coming back to the room fairly early. The boys are relaxing. Our stomaches are full-and happy! Life is good. No bushman. We all decided that it wasn’t necessary to see the bushman in person. YouTube would be good enough. You did all hear about the bushman? I saw him here the last time I was in San Francisco which was 10 years ago. I was thinking, if the bushman is still performing, he must be making pretty good money hiding behind his cardbox box and jumping out and scaring people.

The Jinnohara’s should be arriving shortly and we’ll meet up with them tomorrow back at Homewood Suites in San Jose. Well, I guess I better shower and do some reading before calling it a night. Oh, forgot to mention, good news, Wendy is back to normal!

dean

March 12, 2010 Pt. 2:

We just returned to our hotel room at the Cow Hollow Motor Inn in San Francisco. The room is pretty standard. Nothing fancy. Clean and convenient. That’s all we need since we will probably be in the room only to sleep.

After breakfast this morning, we packed up and drove up to San Francisco. We made one stop (REI) along the way. Our plans were to drop off our bags before heading out to the Jelly Belly Factory in Fairfield, but when we arrived, our room was ready-yeah! The drive to the Jelly Belly Factory took us over the Golden Gate Bridge. Wow, pretty awesome structure. The drive was pretty long just to see how Jelly Bellys are made, but I must say that the tour was pretty worth it. After the tour, we drove a short distance and ate dinner at Red Lobster - guess who chose the restaurant. The guys would have been happy eating at In and Out Burgers, but the food at Red Lobster was good. Acutally, at 4:00 PM lunch taste good pretty much anywhere.

So the junkest part of the the day was driving back from the Jelly Belly Factory. The GPS, instead of taking us on the same route back, routed us all the way down to San Jose and then back up to San Fran. What should have been about a one hour drive ended up taking us two hours. The whole reason we said that we decided to stay in San Fran for a few days was so that we wouldn’t have to drive back and forth. Well, today we drove up to San Fran two times. Oh well. It’s about 8:30 PM and we’re getting ready to wind down for the evening. Everyone is having a great time. One thing we noticed is that the boys are sleeping less in the car than on previous trips. I guess they really are growing up.

Tomorrow we’ll be meeting Wendy and Albert to go to the Academy of Science and the Japanese Tea Garden. Hopefully, the weather will be a little better. More tomorrow.

dean

March 12, 2010:

Just returned from breakfast - delicious! I would have to say that Homewood Suites has one of the best free breakfasts. Once we get packed, it’s off to San Francisco. Weather report says rain, but we’ll see if we packed some nice Hawaiian weather!

Wendy seems to be pretty much back to normal. I feel like a bit under the weather, but nothing serious. I’m taking Zicam (hope I don’t lose my sense of smell) and Airborne. The boys are fine and having a great time. They love staying at the Homewood Suites because they get to have their own room. We were able to get an upgrade from a one bedroom to a two bedroom unit, wood-burning fireplace in our living room. Too bad we didn’t have anything to light the firewood. Yup, this one burns real firewood.

More from San Francisco.

dean

Getting ready to go…

Greetings,
Thursday, March 11, 2010:
It’s almost 12:30 AM and we’re still trying to get packed for our trip to California. Wendy has been sick since Saturday and is only now getting back to normal. Fortunately, the boys and I have managed to stay well. Please keep us in your prayers. I’m still trying to wrap things up before I leave. Not really a good time to be going on a trip, with things at work being really busy and school in full swing, but oh well. I realize we get to build memories with our boys–and that’s well worth it!

Okay, gotta take care of some last minute things and get to bed. Wendy just got off the phone with someone at the hotel that we’re staying at in San Jose and the person says the temperature is between a low of around 39 degrees and a high of 60. Hmmm…better pack another jacket. Talk to you soon from sunny rainy and cold, California.

Getting Ready for California

Getting ready for another family trip to California. Yup, we just went to Disneyland this past October and hadn’t really planned to go on another trip so soon. This time we’ll be going to San Jose, San Francisco, Yosemite and Monterey. My sister and brother-in-law were originally going to go with us on this trip, but plans changed and they are not able to make it. We’re thrilled that the Jinnohara’s will be joining us again. The boys love Uncle Dennis and Aunty Pam and are happy that we’ll be going to Yosemite and Monterey together. Hopefully, we’ll get to go skiing again or at least play in the snow when we go to Yosemite.

This is probably the worst time for me to travel; however, it’s Spring Break for Wendy and the boys, so it’s the only time we can travel besides summer and Christmas. I’ll be posting as much as possible, hopefully it’ll be everyday, but it all depends on whether or not I have Internet connection.

dean

We’re Home!

Back in Hawaii. We had a great time in California. It’s nice to be home.

It was nice to sleep in a bit on our last day. Wendy and Sandy went out to get coffee at Starbucks and to pick up some goodies for us to bring home. Andy cooked spam, eggs and rice for breakfast - yum! It’s like being at home when you start out the day with spam, eggs and rice. Thanks Andy! After breakfast the guys went to REI and the gals went shopping in LA. Here’s how our day went…We went to REI, came back home, took the kids to the park, and ate lunch. Wendy called to say it would probably be easier if they just met us somewhere between Fullerton and LA. “Okay, but what about all the bags?” I asked. “Am I supposed to pack all the bags?” Nope. She had that all figured out already…she packed all the bags before she left to go shopping. Ha…that was the plan all along…get out of the house to go shopping…leave all the kids at home…and then say it’s too far to come back, and it’s easier to meet close to the airport. Good one! Nah, I’m glad that Wendy and Sandy were able to spend time together shopping and hanging out. That’s great! We had a good time, too, going to REI and just relaxing at the park. What a nice way to cap off our trip to Disneyland. Much thanks to the Fukudomes for their hospitality. It was great spending time with them at their place.

Great memories were created through the experiences we had spending time at Disneyland with great friends. But we know that all good things must end, and tomorrow it’s back to reality. Both Wendy and I return to work. The boys are fortunate to have one more day off because of Teacher’s Institute Day.

Thanks for joining us, virtually, on our Disneyland adventure. Stay tuned for our next adventure.

Some reflections…

• Build memories with your kids. Time is short. Time is precious.
• Spend time doing things as a family.

The next time…

• I was just thinking about our last evening at Disneyland when Colby fell asleep at dinner and I had to carry him back to our room. That was probably the last time I’ll get to do that at Disneyland. The next time we go back, he’ll probably be too old, too heavy - or both. Great memory.
• Our boys will probably not be asking us to ride rides with them anymore or wanting to hang out with us.

Well, enough for now.

dean

Day 8

Today was spent at Wendy’s amusement park - Ontario Mills Shopping Outlet. We checked out of our hotel at 9:00 AM and headed to the Fukudomes to drop off our bags before heading out to Ontario Mills which is about a 35 minute drive from Fullerton. Sandy had some errands to do in the morning and decided to meet us there.  Ontario Mills is a huge indoor shopping outlet and well worth the 35 minute drive. The outlet is divided into 10 neighborhoods - designating sections of the mall as neighborhoods should give you an idea of its size. There were shops for all of us, from the Lego Store to a Spy Shop and all kinds of clothing and shoe stores. We spent about three hours there. By 2:00 PM the boys had enough of Ontario Mills and decided to go back home with Sandy. Wendy and I checked out a few other shops before heading back to the Fukudomes.

We enjoyed an awesome steak and shrimp dinner with home cooked sticky white rice - the “real kine.” Thanks to Sandy and Andy for opening up their home to us and for treating us to such a great dinner. Both Sandy and I share the same birthday -  October 10, and we celebrated our birthday’s with a delicious chocolate layerd cake that must have been at least 8 inches tall. What a treat! After dinner, Wendy and Sandy went shopping at the mall down the street while Andy and I chatted and the kids played Wii. It’s about 1:00 AM and the boys are still awake.

We feel so fortunate to have such wonderful friends and are glad that we are able to see and spend time with them while we’re here.

It’s been a long but productive (shopping) day. We came to California with 3 bags. We’re going home with 5. Go figure.

Again, I can’t believe our trip is almost over.

A couple more highlights from our trip:

• A person staying in the room next to us at the Desert Inn blew their nose just like Wendy - Loud! When I heard her blowing her nose I told Wendy to answer her call by blowing a response back.
• Shopping at Ontario Mills
• Spending time at the Fukudomes - Dinner, dessert, and most of all the company
• Shopping at Harbor Freight Tools - highlight for Dean at least

That’s it for now. Good night!

dean

Day 7

It was fun. It was magical. It came. It went. It’s over.

Hard to believe that the Disneyland part of our trip is over. We had a blast and feel so fortunate to have had the opportunity to spend our Disneyland vacation with the Serika was. What a great last day at Disneyland and California Adventure Park. The Tings joined us again today and that was fun. We rode quite a bit of rides today including The Tower of Terror, Space Mountain, and the Grizzly Raft Ride???  We used our early entry pass and started our day at 8:00 AM and stayed to watch the fireworks at 8:00 PM, and then had one final ride on Astro Blaster Buzz Lightyear before saying goodbye to Disneyland for now. The Fukudomes met us for the fireworks show and I was amazed that they were even able to find us in the sea of people. Thank god for the blinking necklaces that Alan bought for the boys. We used it as a signal. Anyway, if you haven’t seen the Halloween fireworks show from in front of the castle, you have to make it a point to do so the next time you’re at Disneyland. It was spectacular!

After Disneyland, we had dinner at the Storyteller’s Cafe located in the Grand Californian Hotel. I thought the food was just OK. After dinner, it was time to say goodbye. Colby was already asleep and had to be carried, but the rest of us said our goodbyes in the Disney Store in Downtown Disneyland.

I must say that although I didn’t get to do crossfit for the last week, I definitely got a good workout walking around the park.

Some highlights of Disneyland…

• Spending time with the Serikawas
• Seeing and spending time with Mike, Sharon, Trisha, JR, Cole and Haley on Saturday
• Spending time with the Tings
• Meeting and spending time with Gayle’s cousin Chris, her husband Seiju, and their two sons, Tyler and Gregory.
• Attending Mitchell Young’s church - Montebello Plymouth Community Church
• Finding out that we know people who attend Mitchell’s church
• Finding out that Dean’s mom’s is good friends with Ann Nomura whose husband was the pastor at Montebello Plymouth Community Church back in the 1950’s.
• Hearing Aaron scream when riding The Tower of Terror and Space Mountain. Talk a scream filled with shear terror.
• Dinner at Joe’s Crab Shack.
• Dinner at Coco’s.
• Stale danish pastries and toast for breakfast.
• Shopping with Gayle and Chris on our first day in California
• Seeing the boys growing up and experiencing the rides and Disneyland in a different way.
• Fastpasses.

There are many other fond memories that we will remember from these last 7 days. These times are so precious and we know that all too soon our boys will be all grown up. We’ll be able to smile when we think back on all the cherished memories we were able to create through the times we spent on family trips together. Our hope is that our boys will all be able to create these same experiences with their families someday.

Okay, enough for now. We still have a day and a half left in California. Tomorrow we check out of our hotel and will spend the night at the Fukudomes. We started the trip by going shopping and we’ll end it the same way. Need to teach the kids balance - fun and shopping. If we had girls, that wouldn’t be an accurate statement, but with three boys, fun and shopping don’t necessarily go together. Consider tomorrow training for them. I’m the trainer for this part. I’ll teach them how any flat surface can become a chair, how to occupy themselves for hours, how to find food, etc. You get the point.

Well, better get to bed, because tomorrow is another long day at the outlets.

dean

Day 6

Just got back from dinner at Olive Garden with the Serikawas and the Fukudomes. On the way home we made a stop at Fry’s Electronics. Not fun when you only have 15 minutes before the store closes. It kinda felt like one of those shopping sprees where you only have a few minutes to fill up your shopping cart. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to fill up a shopping cart of free items - oh well.

Today was a non-Disneyland day. We went to the Discovery Science Museum and spent a couple of hours there with the Tings (Wendy’s friends) and the Serikawas. The kids and the adults enjoyed the visit.  The boys loved playing with the silica sand troft and made various dams and waterways. We capped off our visit there by lying on a bed of nails. Only a few of us required medical attention after…just joking.

Our next stop…IKEA. One of our favorite dining places. Yes, it’s a furniture store, but the Sweedish meatballs are delicious, and so are the desserts. After walking through the store and wishing they would either open a store in Hawaii or at least ship their products to Hawaii, we stood in line and purchased whatever small items we could fit into our suitcases. After IKEA we decided to split up, the boys and dads to miniature golf at Camelot Golf and the moms to the shopping center for more shopping. Alan and I took on the boys in miniature golf and got our butts whooped.

The day was fun. It was nice to get away from the crowds for a day and have some food other than burgers, pizza or chicken strips. Ky is spending another night with Brad at the Grand Californian. That means we’ll have peace at our hotel for another night. It’s amazing how much of a difference it makes when there’s only two boys at home. It really doesn’t matter which two either. Go figure. Anyway, we hope to get to bed early so we can have energy for a full day at the park tomorrow. It’s our last day at Disneyland, so our plan is to use our early entry pass which means an 8:00 AM start. We also want to see the fireworks show from the castle and that starts at 8:00 PM, so it looks like a 12 hour day for us. I’m really going to need a vacation when I get back from this vacation.

One thing I realized while driving on this trip, and I don’t know if I mentioned it before, but I’m becoming more and more dependent on my GPS and losing my sense of direction. Before, I would always try and establish reference points and would always have a sense for which direction I was headed. Now, with my GPS, I find that I am constantly looking at the screen and not really paying attention to my surroundings. Don’t think I would ever go back to just maps, but it does cause me to think how technology is affecting us in both good and bad ways.

Just thinking…what if my GPS could talk…

Me: Stupid GPS
GPS: Stupid human
Me: If I miss one more turn I’ll be tempted to throw you out the window
GPS: Don’t go there, or I’ll drive you in one big circle - again and again and again.

Okay, enough for now. Time to go to sleep.

dean

Day 5

Getting ready to wind down for the evening and it’s only 10:20 PM. We had another full day at Disneyland. The day started out with a ride on Splash Mountain. It was great because everyone went on the ride - including Aaron who doesn’t really like to ride those types of rides. The whole group, except Aaron and me, went on the ride a second time. After that we all went to Pirate’s Island where the kids were able to run around and explore. After spending time on the island we took the raft back and had lunch at Pizza Port. Alan and I made a stop off at the kiosk and bought two smoked turkey drumsticks each. It’s HUGE and tastes great! After lunch the group went on Space Mountain while Aarona and I played games in the arcade. Our last ride for the day was Autopia. Kylan definitlely did better today. After Autopia we headed to the Lego store where they had a make and take activity for the kids. I’m amazed how many people there were who were willing to stand in a long line to get a small lego pumpkin. Oh well, I guess that’s Disneyland.

Some highlights of today…Aaron lost his cell phone. Lego make and take activity. Dinner at the Boiling Crab - for Wendy and Gayle. Dinner at McDonalds for the boys (Dean, Alan, Brad, Aaron, Kylan and Colby). Aaron facing some of his fears and riding Splash Mountain. Turkey drumsticks.

iIt’s hard to believe that we’re at the halfway point of our trip already. There’s so much that we didn’t get to do yet, and we only have one more day at the parks. Tomorrow we take a break from Disneyland. We plan to visit a museum, play miniture golf, and eat dinner at Olive Garden.

I’m tired!

dean