Japanese Fire Response

I was impressed with the response of the Maebashi Fire Dept. while I was in Japan. While I was touring the station, they were called to a fire and sent 6 apparatus to respond to the call... out of one station! They even left their ladder truck behind, with enough guys to staff it.

Under Construction!

While mom was in the middle of getting a kitchen remodel, they had a problem with the water line. Dad had to tear up the driveway to lay new pipe into the house. Good thing Liam was there to help out!
"Look out! I've got a job to do." -Liam
As you can see, Liam thought driving the track hoe was a pretty cool job. (Click on the image for a close-up.)

Let's go to the Park!

Yea!!! Sam was so excited to go to the park... and then run away from everyone.
"See ya later, Toby. I'm outa here!" -Liam
Thanks to Kari for babysitting and hanging out with all the boys (including myself) at the park.
"Hi Jared!" -Sam
Ok, Liam loves to stick out his tongue. Does anyone remember me doing that when I was a kid? I think he gets it from his mom.
The lil mafia:
Toby is the boss (obviously).
Sam is the muscle.
And from the looks of it, Liam is begging for mercy.
"Who you lookin at, tough guy" -Toby
I think Liam is starting to really like Toby. Just look at that adorable smile!
Hehe... I see you!
Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Crash!
I couldn't help taking the kids to the park today. The weather in Seattle is beautiful!!! It is really an anomaly for February, and those kids need all the Vitamin D they can get. Doesn't he look happy!?

"Thanks dad!" - Liam

Oh Poo!

Oh no! Teresa's basement flooded due to a backed up sewer line. Sorry, sis. That just stinks! Thankfully, we had the means to temporarily fix the plumbing the same day, but it sure was an inconvenience; and they just finished updating the downstairs area with new carpet, paint, etc. that all has to be replaced.
Hey, at least we got to make a trip to the dump. Throwing garbage into that big pit helps take out the aggressions. Kenny is quickly finding out how nice it is to have a good truck!

Japan Day 8 - Komagata to Seattle

We made the trip from Japan to Seattle safe & sound. We were very excited to see Liam!Trying to navigate Tokyo can be difficult if you don't read kanji.
Mmm... Coffee on the train makes the ride a lot more enjoyable.

Japan Day 7 - Gala Yuzawa

73% of Japan is mountainous. How could we resist snowboarding here???
Chris (our host) is snowboarding here for the first time. Carmen is riding for her second time. I'm just trying not to hurt myself.
The bullet train literally dropped us off right at the base of the mountain. You can see the town of Gala Yuzawa to the right of the photo. We stepped off the train and into the lodge, and from the lodge we took the gondola up the mountain.
Check out the new gear!
The face of intensity.

Japan Day 6 - Maebashi

Here they are! The two reasons why I was able to go to Japan! My airline connection (pictured left) & my accommodations (pictured right). Carmen & Chris went to Northwestern together and now Chris is teaching English in on the other side of the world & Carmen is traveling the world, thanks to Alaska. Thanks for all your hard work guys!
Um... What would you do in this situation?
Now that's what I'm talking about! A 5 story fire station with 20 firefighters on duty.I learned that Maebashi Firefighters are incredibly hospitable; as I would expect with any good Fire Department. My buddy here speaks quite a bit of English and showed me around the entire station.

Japan Day 5 - Tokyo

This is Tokyo. If it looks like it goes on forever, it does... in all directions. There are 35 million people living here. This view is looking away from the city. Behind me is the downtown area.
Shibuya crossing is the busiest intersection in the world. Cars in every direction have to stop for the pedestrians. It really makes no sense to have a car here, anyway.
Mmm... Starbucks in Tokyo. If you look closely in the Shibuya photo above, you can see the busiest Starbucks store in the world. (Click on the photo and look in the center.)
The alley's in Tokyo are a little different than most alley's in New York and the rest of the U.S. We found this Levi store down an alley.
Another alley in Tokyo. (The vending machine capital of the world.) They have just about anything you can think of: hot drinks, cold drinks, beer, liquor, cigarette's, ice cream...Allright! A Japanese Mexican bar! You guessed it... down an alley.

Japan Day 4 - Nikko

The Shinkyo is a sacred bridge in Japan. It leads the way to the shinto and buddhist shrines that thousands of Japanese visit every year. No one knows when it was originally built, but it was rebuilt in 1636. I think it's leaning a little but don't worry, Carmen's got it. Some of the buildings here have been standing since the 8th century. They're probably a little tired.
I think this guy is guarding the place, but it's so cold here in the foothills of Mt. Nantai that he's been frozen since about 766.
I don't think I've ever seen 2 happier faces.
There's no taste like home!
Ok, so this is a Japanese menu. Is that supposed to be appetizing?!
Nikko Fire Department! You know how everything is bigger in Texas; well everything is smaller in Japan. I'll bet he'd be pretty good at the firefighter stair climb, though.

Japan Day 3 - Niigata

The train we took to go snowboarding is called the Shinkansen. It holds the world record at 361 miles per hour. Unfortunately, if you miss your stop, you can end up on the west coast of Japan in no time, which is how we ended up in Niigata.
We did make it back to the ski lifts. The wind was terrible, but we still had fun. It was Carmen's second time snowboarding. She has brand new gear thanks to Brian & Christy's Christmas and birthday gifts & thanks to mom & dad's gifts.This is not the bullet train. We took a lot of local trains to get to the large train stations. Can you spot the American tourist in this picture?
Mmm... Sushi! Check out all the fresh raw fish. What is a delicious and healthy meal after a day of snowboarding.
I had fish and Sake. Carmen had an omelet and a drink with Strawberries. We both used chopsticks and we are sitting on the floor with our shoes off. We were happy to experience real Japanese culture.