Last Hurrah

It's been a very busy and fun winter break and we had to get one last trip in before the kids go back to school... We made a quick trip to San Francisco and in less than 24 hours we saw Uncle Gregg, Uncle Bill, Tantie, Grandma and Grandpa, Uncle Ross and Bachan and Jichan...

On Saturday, we visited the California Academy of  Sciences... and later that evening Sho and I went to see The Book of Mormon.

And thanks to an advertisement we saw on a bus driving by, we found out there was a Star Wars exhibit in San Jose and we decided we had to stop on our way home.

It has definitely been a fun-filled, action-packed winter break... who's ready to go back to school?  As Jason would say, "Me, I do, I do!"

Racing into the New Year

It seems like these last weeks have just flown by...

It was the Hawaii trip, then we headed straight into Christmas, and then it was prep for the Rose Parade and New Year's!

I had a few days of scheduled craziness in Pasadena, and then Sho brought Kara and Ben to Bakersfield, where did a parking lot exchange and then the older kids came back with me to Pasadena for a few days of fun.

They got to see the floats up close and learn about what makes these floats to special and beautiful...

They got to see "mommy's work" and read some of the dedications on the roses...  and Kara received many compliments on her tiara, which has now replaced her silver headband that she used to wear almost daily.

We visited the Natural History Museum, since the kids have been asking to go back for two years.  We saw the dinosaur bones, the gem stones, the gardens and spent time in the science lab...

And then we decided to see "Frozen" since Ben didn't get a chance to see it as part of Kara's birthday gathering with her friends. 

On New Year's Day, with beautiful southern California weather, we watched the parade with all the other Donate Life supporters and cheered for our float!

And then we hopped in the car and headed back to Kingsburg so we could celebrate New Year's with the rest of the family.  I can't believe there is just one day left of Kara's winter vacation!!  If you think I look tired.... I am.  Pictures do not lie.  I finally got to come home and sleep in and I awoke to a good morning kiss from Jason... Life is good.

Here's to a wonderful new year!

Merry Christmas and a Happy, Happy New Year!

Happy Holidays from Jason!!

The kids were super excited this morning and only because of their jet lag did they end up waking up a decent hour.

Jason was happy that Santa brought him a Mickey Mouse robe, some bling and some sugar... He wanted to sit and watch garbage truck videos and it took some coaxing to get him to open his presents, but he got the hang of it.

Ben was excited about all of his gifts... Star Wars figures, Skylanders, a skateboard... he wasn't sure what to play with first.  I think he has lots to keep him busy and happy for quite awhile.

My favorite Christmas moment was when Kara saw the tiara from Santa... Kara was given a tiara from her ballet teacher last spring for her recital.  She wore it around the house and somehow, the tiara broke and we had to throw it away.  Almost in tears, Kara asked, "how can we throw away diamonds?"  Since Santa knows all, Kara found the tiara in her stocking and when she placed it on her head this morning she said, "I'm back."  She literally wore it all day.

The kids got to play with their cousins on the Kozuki and Hiyama sides of the family during the Christmas Eve and Christmas gatherings.  They had a great time... With the vacationing, traveling and then immediately going into Christmas, I think we all wish we could just enjoy a mid-afternoon nap.

Merry Christmas to all... and to all a good night's sleep.

Family fun in Hawaii

What better way to start off winter break than with a trip to Hawaii!!  Thanks to Pampa and Grandma, the entire Kozuki family took a vacation in Kauai.  We enjoyed perfect weather, which meant there was plenty of beach time for our little ones.  Kara enjoyed snorkeling for the first time, while Ben loved boogie boarding and Jason just liked being in the water.

Of course there was lots of food to enjoy... trying the different shave ice places, comparing poke from all the local fish markets and grocery stores, searching on Yelp for the hole in the wall winners.  We definitely ate well.

On our last two trips to Kauai, we stayed at a house in Poipu, which happened to be booked already... so we stayed in a new house right near Baby Beach and one of the big pluses was the outdoor heated shower!

We had a wonderful trip and there is so much to be grateful for... watching the kids have so much fun with their auntie and uncles, not having to take my walking boot to Hawaii, Sho and John's love for 80s music, mini iPads to make the time on the plane bearable, our first giant-turtle-on-the-beach sighting, that Jason loves being with BF (a.k.a. Grandma, Jason's Best Friend) and is happy to be without us for a period of time, and mostly, the luxury of time together.

On the drive home, as we were approaching our exit back in Kingsburg, I asked the kids what their favorite part of the trip was... Kara loved snorkeling, Ben liked boogie boarding and having family fun and Jason replied "I dunno."  But when I told Jason that we were almost home, he replied, "No, Hawaii house."  Smart cookie.

Mochi

Before Kara's birthday party started, we began our day at the Parlier Church making mochi... Kara watched closely and followed the directions to make her nice, round mochi.

Ben stacked his mochi and declared that his snowman was complete...

Jason, usually eager to get his hands dirty and get into the action, was quick to give up his apron and opted for alone time with his friend, Alyssa.  Ben watched them and said, "I think this is their first date."
 

Happy Birthday, Kara!

Now that Kara is 7 years old, there are no more Barbie or princess cakes.... not when you can get a Chocolate Raspberry Torte from Masse's!  Thanks to Auntie Anna, we now know about this treasure and could not pass up the opportunity to upgrade.

On Kara's birthday, she invited a few of her close friends from school for pizza, a movie and ice cream.  

After a really fun (and tiring) Thanksgiving week vacation (where we saw the Woodson, Hsiao, Gordon, Itagaki, Ishimatsu and Morita Dea families in addition to our immediate families for Thanksgiving), having a small, intimate birthday gathering was the perfect celebration for our little princess.

Happy Birthday, Ben!

After spending Thanksgiving in Los Gatos, we celebrated Ben's 5th birthday by going to the Children's Discovery Museum in San Jose.  The kids all had a great time and they probably would have been happy to just stay in the bubble area all day if we let them...

And Jason found an ambulance and fire truck that he really liked... good thing they didn't have a real garbage truck there, or we would never have been able to leave.

Our little gyoza eating machine ordered two plates of gyoza for lunch...

And we ended the day with a strawberry sundae and a room full of people singing happy birthday to our little Ben.