Flying to California

Since on of the main reasons for our trip this spring was to attend my niece's wedding in California, and because Leiya was one of the bride's-maids, we all had to get from the Indiana house to California and that meant 5 of us and a lot of luggage.  

Leiya ended up driving Tetsu and me to Evansville the evening before our flight out and we stayed at an AirBnB that she recommended (she and Tony had stayed there when they first were thinking of moving to Indiana and they'd stayed in touch with the owners.)  It was a new experience for Tetsu and me to stay in a shared space AirBnB but it was quite homey and I learned a lot about AirBnB's from chatting with the owners.

The next morning (early!) Leiya dropped off Tony and Luka at the airport and then came and got us at the AirBnB and we were off on our next adventure!

There was a wonderful playroom at the Evansville Airport!

Luka's first airplane trip.  No sleeping again!

We arrived in California (layover in Dallas), and after a wait, Takumi came to pick us up at the airport and Leiya's family rented a car.  

And we made it to Takumi's house!

This was the first time for Tetsu and me to see Takumi and Julieta's new house too and we were interested in how different our children's homes are.  Leiya's is woodsy and cozy, Takumi's is modern and light!

Though Luka was a bit intimidated by Takumi's rambunctious two doggies, he still took advantage of a doggie bed for a few minutes which made me laugh!

That night Leiya's family and Tetsu and I headed up to the mountain town of Idyllwild that is a favorite spot of Takumi and Julieta's and we stayed in another AirBnB.  More tomorrow!

Final days in Indiana

Okay.  Let's see if we can move along here...

Tetsu had bought some brooms and rakes so that he could do some yard cleaning while we were in Indiana and Luka thought it was great fun to help out.

I guess Tetsu is happiest when he is outdoors working.

Maybe Luka will grow up to be the same?

Leiya had to take Luka to a wellness baby check-up and we were amazed at how much time the doctor spent talking with Leiya and asking about Luka's development and taking measurments etc.  I think the doctor alone spent 30 minutes with us and two nurses spent more time and gave shots etc.  I said to Leiya, "When you were a child I think the doctor spent only about three minutes with us each time we went." and Tetsu piped up, "I'm pretty sure the doctors only spend about a minute at each check-up."

(As an aside, the time at the hospital and when in airports were the only time anyone wore masks while we were in the States.  Japan is still full on masks at all times, even when someone is visiting your home or going for a walk!)

Alas, our happy days were interrupted here when in the evening Tetsu came down with a stomach flu.

Leiya had let us know about a week before we arrived in Indiana that Luka had had a stomach flu and then she got it the next day and finally Tony succumbed to it also.  She had had the house wiped-sanitized professionally hoping that we would be protected from it but four days into our stay, Tetsu was laid low first and the next day it hit me also.  So we lost one day of our stay in Indiana but we both bounced back quickly.  

At least we didn't give it back to Luka again!

A couple of pictures of Leiya's rooms.  Luka's big play pen where we adults often joined him to play.

Luka's bedroom with a mural that Leiya painted on the wall.  I was so surprised that each day she could just plop him in his crib with a pacifier and some background whooshing noise and he'd go to sleep by himself and wake up happy.  Easy baby!

Leiya as Mommy's girl...

...and Daddy's girl.

And the next day we spent getting ready to fly to California!!!  

It was wonderful to spend time in Indiana and at Leiya and Tony's house!

Day 3 in Indiana

The week we spent with Tony and Leiya and Luka was lovely and rather slow paced as our time revolved around Luka's napping and eating schedule.  

In the mornings and evenings Tetsu and I took turns walking around the neighborhood pointing out dogs and squirrels and flowers to Luka.  

He was very happy to bond with me and Leiya seemed to enjoy the freedom that she had and she made use of it by running errands without fear that Luka would get into a crying jag. 

I was extremely flattered to be accepted so easily!

On one of our many walks.

On our first full day in Indiana, Tetsu requested donuts for breakfast.  One of the highlights of any trip to America for Tetsu is to have breakfast out.

And we went shopping for brooms and yard equipment for Tetsu to use while we stayed at Leiya's house.

Two of the nicest features of Leiya's house are two long windows that look out on their front yard and are screened by low bushes.  Ever since Luka was a baby, he's been able to sit or stand next to the windows and he can look out on the world and he points out birds and cars that drive by.  

Leiya has installed a small table next to the window and behind the bush and the neighborhood animals and birds know that there will always be an abundance of seeds there.  The birds are a bit skitterish but the animals are not and I was as delighted as Luka to see cardinals and squirrels up close.

At night, even a racoon came by!

And occasionally from the forest families of deer would step into the yard and look in on the humans.

As for things we'd brought to Indiana as gifts...  Well, I picked up a Boy's Day Carp flag at the dollar store for Luka as Boy's Day is coming up soon.

I'd also brought along a wool quilt that I'd hoped Leiya could find someone to give it too, but she liked it so much I guess it is staying at her house.  It looks nice on her sofa!

And of course, I was so happy to be able to give Luka his special dinosaur quilt which he really seemed to like and he spent time pointing out colors and figures.  

It is really quite large so though he still sleeps in a crib now, someday it will be colorful on a regular little boy's bed!

Arriving in Indiana!

We arrived in Indianapolis Airport after an uneventful flight from LAX.  But we got there at 6:00 am and it was a two and a half hour drive for Leiya to come and pick us up and as she was driving with Luka, in the rain, she opted to wait until daylight before starting her trek to come and collect us.  

Indianapolis Airport was a wonderful relaxing place though and we quietly enjoyed a Chick-Fil-A breakfast sandwich and coffee while we waited.  

Stores were open even at that early hour and Tetsu bought himself an Indiana cap.

A cute photo op.

And then Leiya and Luka arrive!!!

Our first view of Luka in person!

He weathered the two hour trip in his car seat to Indianapolis and within minutes we were headed back to home!

You would think that being stuck in the back seat of a car with a "stranger" (me) sitting next to him for two hours or so, would mean a lot of crying and tears from Luka but actually he was very patient, looking curiously at me, accepting a bottle or snacks or the handing back and forth of toys and pacifier.  Luka never once slept and though he got tired the last 15 minutes, basically I went through my repertoire of finger plays and English songs that I've taught in kindergarten and pre-school and Luka laughed and pointed out "cars" to me.  (His favorite word.)

Leiya's pretty little house in Indiana.

Tony got back home from work not long after we arrived and Luka got fed and I spilled out the contents of our suitcases which were mostly filled with quilts and photo albums.  We have taken this opportunity to hand over most of Leiya's baby albums and yearbooks and she can do with them as she wishes.

Pointing out baby pictures to Luka.

I had brought this wooden block puzzle for Luka but we quickly determined that even the adults had trouble figuring out how to put it back together!  Tony working on the puzzle before handing it over to Leiya and then to me...  (The quilt there in the back is a signature quilt that I made after collecting the signed quilt blocks at their wedding three years ago.)

So now I can say I've held and loved up my grandson!!

Tetsu was in seventh heaven!

And this is only day 1!

Leaving Japan and Arriving in the States!

I have returned from America!  We had close to a three week trip and we had lots of wonderful times and a few trials, but we've made it home and I feel like I can finally relax!  Though I had said I wasn't going to take my computer along with me this trip, I ended up taking it but alas, only opened it up two or three times...  It just took up space in my carry on bag.  I took my bullet journal and a large pencil case and some colored pencils but they too just languised in my carry on bag the whole trip.  My good intentions were as for naught.  And I carried my camera along with me everywhere but would you believe, I maybe only took 5 pictures the whole three weeks!!!  

HOWEVER!  Tetsu made up for my lack of photography by taking nearly 3000 photos on HIS camera and that's not counting what got photographed on our iPhones, so I am not lacking for photos!!!

Okay....  So we had to get our travels started with a required PCR test 24 hours before leaving Japan (as opposed to 72 hours ahead for returning to Japan).  We made the error of booking a flight out on Monday which meant that there were only one or two options in the city and nearby cities for us to get a PCR test on Sunday morning.  (And at a fee of $250 per person!)  It was very easy however.  Park, someone came to the car and gave us a vial and instructions, we spit in our respective vials and sealed them up and handed them in and went on our way.  Three hours later we'd gotten our results back on our iPhones.  Easy!

Then it was home to pack (4 large bags and two carry ons) and tidy the house for our cat carer who would be coming in twice a day.  John got taken to the vet the day before.  

This was Tetsu's way of securing our dish cupboard to prevent it from opening in case of an earthquake while we were gone...  He boarded up the place!

We set off before noon and drove four hours for a 9 1/2 hour night flight to Los Angeles.  Narita airport was like a ghostown with hardly anyone there and no stores or services open.  A sad change from the exciting airport of past years...  Of course Japan is still only allowing Japanese citizens and permanent residents (me) and recently, foreign students and people on business are allowed into the country.  The country still isn't open to tourists and for pleasure traveling.  

When we left Japan it was raining...

...but it was sunny and dry in California!

Let me just say...  Although it was easy enough to get through customs and immigration at LAX, Los Angeles Airport is really not well equipped to handle the volume of people who pass through it daily.  We were shocked that after all our effort to get our PCR documents and vaccinations requirements in order for travel, no one at LAX checked any of them (they were thoroughly checked in Japan before leaving), we were just waved on through!

Alas, our final destination wasn't LAX however, it was Indianapolis, and for that flight we had a 6 hour wait at LAX.  Again, the airport didn't have any seating or waiting area and we couldn't go to our boarding gate because we'd arranged to have Takumi and Julieta come to the airport after work and pick up two of our suitcases!!!

This was an act of love because from their house to the airport it takes over two hours...  just to give us a welcome hug and collect two of our suitcases so that we could travel light to Indiana.  And so we waited...  Sitting on the floor like we were camping out!!!  Pretty soon our phones were running out of battery yet there was no place to recharge them.  I finally found an outlet in the ladies bathroom and stayed in there for 20 minutes and later found another outlet on the floor for vacumms and no one seemed to care that I sat hunched in a corner charging my phone...

We later moved to a Starbucks and finally many hours later...

Takumi and Julieta!  Bearing a pizza!!!

It was "Hello", "Good-bye" and then Tetsu and I were off to Indianapolis!