The FINAL Post...Better late than never

I know, we should have made this post months ago, but what can I say? Things got away from us and this blog got put on the back burner. It's been so long that I'm sure most all of our followers are no longer tracking this blog, but I feel that I need to do this to officially close out this chapter of our life. What a chapter it was.

We arrived back after a wonderful vacation in Hawaii and stayed with Deana's folks while we waited on our shipments to arrive. Seeing our house was a great excitement, until we saw our front yard...

Apparently, our tenant decided to move out at the end of a week that saw about 10 inches of rain. They backed the U-haul truck INTO OUR FRONT YARD! Needless to say, they got stuck. Not to worry though, they went ahead and loaded the truck ANYWAY. After it was loaded, they called a tow truck to pull them out. It left the front yard in a mess (see below). I have such a good account of what happened because nearly everyone on our street told us about it. They said it was lots of fun to watch (I can imagine). Anyway, they came back 3 different times filling the ruts and seeding the mess and I think we'll be able to get it back to normal come spring time. The picture really does not do it justice as this was taken after they had already attempted to fill the 8 inch deep ruts in the yard...

Next on the agenda - going inside. The house was in wonderful shape - no holes in the walls or tears in the carpet, so we were pleased with that. Unfortunately, the tenant had smoked in the house while we were gone (though it plainly stated no smoking in the lease). ARRRGGGHHHH!! Anyway, Deana and I had agreed to use the money we collected in rent while we were gone and put it back into the house in the form of new floors when we returned anyway, so I flopped on the floor and foamed at the mouth a little, but in the end, it wasn't a huge deal since we were planning on pulling up the floors anyway.

I spent every waking minute on the weekends and after work at the house for about 3.5 weeks working on the floors. We removed all of our carpet and linoleum in the house and replaced it with hardwood and tile. I did all the work myself, but with the exception of 2 or 3 days, I had someone helping me almost all the time. Neighbors (uninvited) would just pop over and grab a tool and get to work. I love our neighborhood. My dad took a couple of days and came down to help too. I could not have completed the project in this amount of time without the great help from family and friends. When it was all done, we put in 1300 square feet of hardwood, 250 square feet of tile, installed new kitchen counter tops, sink, and faucet, and repainted 4 rooms. It was a lot of work, but well worth it. Before and after photos are below.

This photo was taken before we left for Japan.

Another view of the living room from a different angle. Carpet and padding is gone.

Angle from the living room into the kitchen.

We put tile in the laundry room and both bathrooms.

Deana's favorite part... New deep sink.

So, after all the dust settled, we had our Japan shipments and permanent storage items delivered and we moved back into the house. Overall, everything went very well. We did have some minor items damaged from storage, but they have been taken care of now and all is well. It took a good month to get everything back into it's proper place and feel "at home" again.

We have only been back in the states for 4 months as I write this, but it feels like forever ago. I find myself looking at photos from Japan and and it feels so distant, even though it really isn't. We had a wonderful time and made so many fabulous memories - if I could do it over again, I would without hesitation. Deana and Avery feel the same. I am so glad that all of you followed us on this blog - our ability to share the adventures and your comments did more for us than anyone realizes.

We are so grateful to have had the opportunity to experience this great year as it has done so much for all of us. The first part of the trip taught all of us to rely more on each other. As a result, our little three person group is a much tighter unit now. Deana and I have without question a stronger marriage. Avery is much more confident and independent than she used to be and Deana is without question more outgoing than she was one year ago.

Unfortunately, as they say, "All good things must come to an end", so this chapter of our life closes. However, (today must be cliche day), "When one door closes, another opens". As this adventure ends, we are now faced with a whole new life changing adventure... About 6 weeks after our return, we learned that Deana and I are expecting our second child! Something that would have scared us to death in Japan, but timing could not be better now that we are back home. Avery has been praying for a new little brother or sister, and God has been listening. So, I have challenged Deana to close out this blog and create another so we can document our memories and fun in this new and upcoming chapter in our life.

Thanks again for walking with us through this wonderful year of our life!

The Brewers

Hawaii - Pearl Harbor

Okay, so we do have time for one more non-Tennessee post. We went to Pearl Harbor today and wanted to blog about it.

I’ll start by saying that Pearl Harbor took all day – in vacation terms that is. We left the hotel at 9:30 and got back around 5:30. We thought it would only take a few hours and we would be on the beach again this afternoon, but there is much more there than we anticipated.

They have three paid attractions – U.S.S. Bowfin (submarine), U.S.S. Missouri (Battleship), and the Pacific Aviation Museum. In addition to these three, they also give out tickets (free) to the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial. By the time we arrived there, we received tickets for one of the last group of tickets that were being given out. Whew, barely made it.

We started the day at the U.S.S Bowfin, which was a submarine launched about one year after the Pearl Harbor attack and was nicknamed “The Pearl Harbor Avenger”. During the course of WWII, the sub sank dozens of ships. It was retired and used as a museum some time after the war. We were able to go on board and explore, which was really neat. These subs were so cramped. Here are a few photos…

Our next stop was the U.S.S. Missouri, which was a battleship used in WWII. The historical significance with this ship is the fact that the surrender treaty was signed on the deck of this ship while it was anchored in Tokyo Bay. The ship was massive and we got turned around a couple times while inside (the tour was self-guided). We took lots of photos though – especially on the “Surrender Deck” – what an awesome place to have been able to see. Here are some photos from the U.S.S. Missouri.

(This is the spot the surrender treaty was signed)

After the Missouri, we had to ride the shuttle back to the U.S.S. Arizona memorial boarding area (we took a ferry out to the location). The memorial is a small structure erected over the sunken remains of the U.S.S. Arizona battleship. The ship sank in the upright position and was never removed from the water. The sailors that died in the ship still remain there and the Memorial was a very somber place to be. Due to the clear water, you can still see most of the ship below. There are a couple places where the height of the ship is still above the water line. Pictures are below…

(Names of all the soldiers lost on the U.S.S. Arizona)

The last stop for the day was the Pacific Aviation Museum. This is the latest addition to the Pearl Harbor attractions and was intended to showcase the airplanes of the War era. Not much story to tell, just photos mainly. Enjoy.

Overall, it was a very enlightening trip. It was also very interesting to be able to see Hiroshima and Pearl Harbor within the same year. Two similar stories from two VERY different perspectives. In both cases, the view point seemed to be from the victim standpoint. Hiroshima was all about the devastation caused by the A-Bomb. There was no mention (or VERY little) of Pearl Harbor, which is what started it all. At Pearl Harbor, it was focused on the devastation caused by the Japanese in the attack. There was no mention of how we ended the war or gloating that we got “revenge”. Both views were very different and both very humble.

On a different note, we will be heading to beach one last time tomorrow morning before heading to the airport tomorrow afternoon. We will be in Nashville sometime Wednesday morning! We are looking forward to seeing everyone, but will be super busy getting ready to move back into our home at the same time. We are hoping the dust will have settled and we will be back to normal sometime before Thanksgiving (the sooner the better).

See you all in a few days!!

Curtis

Hawaii - North Shore and Waikiki

Okay, so this Japan blog has turned into a Hawaii Vacation play by play, but since the Hawaii trip is really the final step in our "journey", we are including it. Internet access has been spotty to say the least, so we have to group several days together. That will make for long posts with lots of pictures - please bear with us...

Our last post covered through Hilo (the big island) which is where the active volcanoes are located. On Friday afternoon we boarded a plane bound for Oahu. We are staying in a hotel overlooking Waikiki Beach in Honolulu - it is an older Hotel, but not a dive by any means. It's a great place to stay and the location is great.

This is the view from our balcony.

Saturday we got up and went to the Dole Plantation. Dole started in Hawaii as a pineapple processing outfit. We spent a couple hours learning about pineapples and stuff - we got to ride a train, so Avery liked it. It was an Opryland type train - not Japan by the way... Anyway, it was cool, but not what I came to Hawaii to see.

After Dole, we went a few miles up the road the the famous North Shore - now THAT is what I came to see. The waves were not as good on Saturday as they were on Friday, but that's okay. It was still awesome. The waves were about 6 feet tall and being the moron that I am, I had to go and challenge one. Avery was scared and didn't want me to go out and Deana said "let him go get knocked over by one wave and he'll be right back (yeah right - I'm tougher than that). So, I swam out in the water to wait for the waves. In about 2 minutes, I had all I could handle. For the record, I lasted TWICE as long as my wife predicted...

Okay, If you can see me in the picture (I'm the little speck about to get pounded by the wave), I'll just say that getting out to where the waves actually break was a little harder than I thought.

Here it is! My 0.5 seconds of glory - I was riding the wave! I was then promptly tossed onto my head and reminded of who was in control. Oh well, I still have my half second!

After a LOT of sweet talk and promises, I managed to get Avery out into the water. Turns out we had a blast fighting the waves when they came ashore. We were standing on dry land most of the time, but when the waves would crash in, i would have to lift her up and hang on to keep her from getting carried away. Deana said she had a lot of fun just watching.

Today (Sunday), we went to Sea Life Park. This place is located on the Beach and resembles a Sea World, except MUCH smaller. We came here so Avery and Deana could swim with the Dolphins. Deana had this booked several weeks ago and has been looking forward to it for SOOO long. She and Avery were so excited. I did not participate because I wanted to be able to take pictures - this place actually allowed you to take your own photos - cool huh? Well, as luck would have it, the "professional" photographer got to stand in the water and take pictures while us common folk had to stand in the "observation area" (which was not in the water by the way). The trainer must not have seen us in the observation area either, because she kept getting between us and the action. As luck would have it, she didn't get in the way of the "professional". I keep referring to him as the professional because he must have been using a million dollar camera. We agreed to make the next two payments on his equipment as trade for the photos that he made of Deana and Avery...

Since we don't have a scanner with us, I laid the 4 best photos out and took a picture of them so I could post them on the blog (is that illegal?) Any way, the pics from the park are below and they really do NOT do the day justice. The girls had so much fun and I'm sure Avery will be talking about this for quite some time. They were truly happy. Avery was NEVER nervous or scared of the dolphin - she was in 3 and a half feet of water (she is only 3 feet tall) and she kept telling Deana to "let go and let me do it" - such a big girl.

After Sea Life Park, we drove along the coast for a while and stopped to take in some amazing views. The pics below are just a few. I think we took nearly 200 photos just today, so these few pics that I am posting do not do Hawaii justice by any means...

We ended the day in the much calmer waters of Waikiki Beach. Avery and I again played in the waves (but we stayed in the water most of the time here), and Deana soaked in the sun and took photos.

Here is a great photo Deana took as we were getting ready to head back to the hotel to clean up for the evening.

Tomorrow we plan to go to Pearl Harbor and then hit the beach again in the afternoon. Tuesday we will be wrapping things up and getting ready to head to the airport (we leave Tuesday afternoon and arrive Wednesday morning in Nashville). This will probably be the last post before our trip is officially "over", but look for one more that reflects on the entire year.

Until next time - Curtis

We're in Hawaii

We left Tokyo on Thursday September 24th at 9:00pm and arrived at Honolulu airport at 8:30am on Thursday September 24th. Whew...what a LONG day! Once we were in Honolulu, we hopped on another plane heading to The Big Island.

This is Avery at Narita Tokyo airport...waiting for boarding call.

Once we got to Hilo on the Big Island, we went to get our rental car and, of course, they were out of economy cars, mid-sized cars, and luxury cars....so what did we get stuck with you might ask? Well, check it out....

You got it! A red Mustang convertible! It's just ashamed that Avery hates the top down.

The above picture is the view from our room...oh but don't be fooled...the hotel itself leaves a little something to be desired. but we are only here for one night and...really...who cares! We are in Hawaii! We only need a place to sleep right.

We then went to Mt.Kilauea, or as Avery says "Mt Killerwhale"...she is toooo funny.

Curtis and I really enjoyed site seeing on Mt Kilauea, but Avery was afraid that the volcano was going to erupt...but she finally loosened up and started having fun.

The above picture is of a lava tube. This is a tunnel underground that the lava used to run through. It is located in a rainforest's and was really cool. The picture below is of Avery in the rainforest.

This is a picture of the main crater of Mt Kilauea and as you can see, it is still smoldering and active.

This is a steam vent from the volcano and MAN it is hot. What a facial!!!

We went to a lava viewing spot that is open from 5:00pm to 9:00pm. This is a spot by the ocean that you can view lava flowing into the ocean. We had to hike over lava rock to view it, and can you believe that some people actually live out there?!? This was our favorite part. Check out the pictures.

Tomorrow we are back on a plane and heading back to Oahu for the remainder of our trip. Stay tuned for more adventures!

We're Moving!!!!

We are finally packing up to move back home to the USA! But first, I want to fill you in on some of the activities that have gone on in the past few days.

Last Friday, Avery and I went to a park with some friends (Irina & Polina) as a good-bye play date. This park was HUGE! It had everything from playgrounds (multiple playgrounds...that wasn't a typo), to a petting zoo, to a dairy farm, to an amusement park, to.....you name it and it had it. We made a picnic lunch and just spent the day having fun.

"Miss Hollywood" striking a pose on the zip line.

This slide was at least a quarter mile long and in place of being a solid slide, you sat on rollers and rolled down. Hmmmm, then is it really a "slide"?

Avery LOVED the petting zoo. I couldn't hardly get her out to go see other things. This is her and a guinea pig. One of MANY that she HAD to hold....not to mention all the rabbits!

Of course, you can't NOT do the pony ride! She absolutely LOVED this. She now wants a horse.

I can't pass up the donkey! He really liked having his ears scratched. I guess they have a hard time reaching those.

Who would have thought that donkeys really like ice cream cones!

This is "Bessie" from the dairy farm. She was lined up with all the other cows getting ready to get milked.

This was an ice cream sundae, compliments of "Bessie", that Avery and I got to enjoy at the end of the day. This ice cream is made on site from the cows....Thank you "Bessie"!

MMMMMMmmmmmmmm!!!! GOOOOOOOOD!!!!!!

On Thursday this week, a couple of my Japanese friends made me and Avery Japanese curry and rice and gyoza as a going away lunch. It was VERY good!

Thank you Mayumi and Naomi! You are so sweet!

Doesn't that look wonderful! Oh...don't worry....I have learned how to make this meal!

This is a BEAUTIFUL bouquet of flowers that were given to us by some of Curtis's co-workers on Friday...too bad I couldn't enjoy them longer.

This is Avery sporting the Hello Kitty watch that Curtis's co-workers gave to her. They were so generous in giving us many gifts. I couldn't even post them all.

I am now blogging from our hotel room in the Royal Park Hotel which is in the famous Landmark Tower, the tallest building in Japan. The building is 70 floors tall and our room is on the 64th floor. We have a FANTASTIC view. Below are some pictures...which doesn't do it justice.

The famous Landmark Tower pictured above.

Our room..... The comforters on the beds are goose down comforters that serve as the blankets.

The bathroom pictured above and below. They even have speakers in the bathroom that plays what ever is on TV. They have a channel with relaxing music and sounds that I took full advantage of during my peaceful shower on the first day. Maybe I can install one of those in my bathroom....hmmmmm.

This is the view from our room at night (above) and our view in the morning (below). Can you see Mt Fuji sitting pretty as you please in the background?

Then this morning, the chaos really began! At first I was pretty stressed out trying to get everyone on the right track. But then something amazing happened....I got to sit back, relax, and read the news paper while the workers took care of everything. It helped that the same crew that moved us in is also moving us out.

A friend of ours, Aurora, came and got Avery...took her to church, fed her lunch, and tended to her until 5:00 this evening while the movers were there. Thank you Aurora....you are a gift from God. Avery had already started getting bored when she showed up...so Avery was MORE than happy to leave us.

Avery's room almost complete in this picture....but it is now empty.

This is one of the movers CREATING a "box" for our couch.

Can you recognize the shape of these boxes? They are the Rubbermaid storage containers that they again "created" a box for.

And yes, this is our bike...again....crated a box for. Gotta love the Japanese for the care they give your stuff. Our guys in the US didn't do any of these things. Our shoes....dumped in a box in the US. In Japan, each shoe is wrapped individually in paper, then placed in a box. LOVE IT!!!

Stay tuned for more adventures.....