It's a girl!

Just a quick note to say Hiromi finally had the baby! Welcome little Fuuka, born Saturday, Nov. 1, weighing 2576 grams (about 5.6 pounds). They will be home from the hospital on Friday. As Midori (Lisa-chan's mom) wrote in an email last night: ''It is a thing with vigour...It might be relieved because it is safely born though Hiromi might also have become tired. Being able to meet the baby is the enjoyment.''

Just a trim

It's been more than eight weeks since the kids had a haircut... so we went in search of that today. Hiromi (of course) told me of a place that charged 1,000 yen just down the street (about $10, although the way the market has been changing and the Canadian dollar slipping and yen gaining strength, that formula isn't quite right any more. My apologies to currency purists. Apparently 1,000 yen is now about $12.50 Canadian).

Anyway... we found it. John asked if he could cut all three kids' hair and he said yes. Jack got an AWESOME cut -- one of the best ever. The girls' cuts are just OK... I think he was probably more barber than beautician, and probably was more familiar cutting short cuts (which is a polite way of saying I might have to clean it up a bit...) (EDITED TO ADD ON SUNDAY MORNING: after showering the girls, I actually had to spend quite a bit of time tidying it up, which means it is much shorter than intended. Oh well!). Anyway, the hair guy was very kind and enthusiastic and knew a few words in English... including "pretty", "handsome", and (sadly), "sexy". Which he kept saying, again and again, as he cut Katie and Livie's hair... an experience that felt very creepy, without (we hope) meaning to be.

Still -- any day when we accomplish something like a haircut in a foreign country and no one ends up with a buzz cut or perm is a good day in my book!

Oh, and I had wanted to add this photo showing a Japanese bridal shop -- with both traditional kimono and a more western look. Apparently brides wear both during the wedding celebration.

Photos from the Lake Toya trip

At last -- I have uploaded the pictures from our Lake Toya weekend.

Here is a glimpse of some of our favorites. You can see us in our yukata, the bathrobes you wear to the traditional Japanese baths, and checking out an active volcano that shot up out of a corn field during World War II (they knew it was a sign of something... just what, no one was sure...), and our ride to the top of another mountain in a gondola.

You can also see lots of sleepy girls -- we spent a lot of time hiking with girls in arms or on backs (and are VERY happy with a sling/child-carrier I found here early on. There are a ton of great babywearing carriers here! A lot of parents use them instead of strollers when out and about -- easier than a stroller on a subway, I'd guess.)

In the Shutterfly pictures, you can see Richard, the very kind HGU faculty member who accompanied us, and our hotel (which included "Viking style", or buffet, breakfast and lunch). If you want to know who is who in a photo, just email me and I'll add it.