rugratsIII

Rugrats III - The Vacation

We started out in and around Tokyo. (Actually, Mom and Dad visited with us, and then took a jaunt down to Kyoto while I dispatched my last few days of work.)

To the right, the Ueno Park Carousel. We had intended to visit the zoo, but it was closed - a pattern that repeated itself several times during the vacation.

And below is a group shot from our our New Year's Day stroll down to a local shrine.

Here, Dad does baby carriage duty for a tired Lauren later the same day.

An attempt to visit the NHK television studios, with its variety of kid-friendly displays and play areas, yeilded the same result as the Ueno Zoo - closed. Lauren used the resulting stroll to blow off energy, and didn't seem to mind a bit. Below, Mom braces for impact.

Both kids really enjoyed visiting Mom and Dad's hotel room. On the right, Katie tells all about it

And here, the Lauren and Andrew Mutual Admiration Society is in session.

Lauren models her New Year's Day outfit. Are those boots a fashion statement, or what?

Meanwhile, Katie works on alternative uses for one of my old carabiners....

After some time it Tokyo, we headed up to Karuizawa, a resort area near Kaori's mom's house. Below are various snaps from there.

The weather graced us with a good dump of snow, making for quite a pretty scene...

....And of course, snow means snowmen - much to Lauren's delight

Quite the handsome devil, ain't he? Not to mention Masashi. He and Kaori's mom stayed at the resort with us for one day.

It'll likely be his final respite, since his new baby daughter was due home from an initial couple of months at the in-laws shortly after his return to Osaka. He'll never again look as rested as he does in the pic below...