Counting Down

One week from today I am leaving for Japan. I'll be gone for two weeks. That's two weeks where I don't have to pay bills, I don't have to take my kids to baseball practice, I won't have a meeting with the principal, I won't have to drive anywhere.

We are going to visit my husband's family. We're going with them to the beach for a few days while we're there. My inlaws also wanted to take the grandkids to Disneyland. So the last 3 days of the trip will be spent at Tokyo Disneyland.

I'm very excited and also a little stressed. The day after we return is my son's birthday. The day after that is his birthday party at Chuck. E. Cheese. And the day after that is Easter. Then I'm going to need another vacation!

Happy New Year!

Today is the last day of the year. I don't have any major plans. We'll go over to a our neighbor's house after dinner. They have kids the same age as ours so the kids can play and the grown-ups can drink play.

New Year's day was never anything special, until I got married. My husband is from Japan. In Japan New Year's a major holiday. And not just for drinking! Companies close down for up to 2 weeks. People travel to visit their relatives. Families gather and spend a few days together. Yes, you read that right, a few days. They prepare special New Year's dishes the day before so that they don't have to do much cooking during those days of celebration.

Since we're not in Japan, my husband's company doesn't close down for a few weeks. And it's not possible for us to spend every New Year's with his family. But we can still enjoy those traditional New Year's dishes. So today my husband is cooking. He will be cooking most of the day. And tomorrow we will be eating. We will be eating most of the day.

Happy New Year!