The Day (Oct 1st)

It started with tears at the airport. Damn, I almost made it, I thought to myself right before I cried like a baby on my Mom and Dad's shoulders. What followed was an annoying check-in and a 12hour flight to Tokyo. The flight wasn't as bad as I feared it would be. The girls did great and I probably couldn't have asked for a smoother trip... to Tokyo. Once we got to Tokyo however we were exhausted! We made it through immigration were surprised to learn we had to pick up all of our luggage and take everything- which included 5 checked bags, 4 carry-ons, 2 car seats, 1 stroller and 2 sleeping babies- to a different area to check-in for our connecting flight to Okinawa. But, one hour and a half layover and one hour long delay for airplane maintenance later we were in the air. This flight lasted 2 hours and Sierra and I were out for pretty much all of it. Once that plane landed we made what could best be described as a zombie walk to- you guessed it!- pick up our bags, which btw I had come to despise during our trip.
What happened next was the most pleasant surprise- and if it's any indication of what's to come then we'll do just fine here in Japan. We had an entire welcome committee waiting for us. Well, they weren't an official welcome committee but they might as well have been. There was Dave, John and Ed, affectionately known as the three stooges. There was Will who would be driving us. And there was Chris and Stacy, and their 5yr old twin girls Victoria and Carolina. For those of you not counting that's eight! Eight people, comprised of Marcus' coworkers and one of their families who didn't have to be there. Not only were they there at 10:30pm but they were waiving and smiling and seemed genuinely happy to meet us. The twins held up hand made cards written in that adorable, crooked writing that only kids (and my husband) can master. They even had a stuffed elephant for Sierra and a Spongebob doll for Charlie. They took us to our temp housing and informed us that when we woke up it would be Friday, not Thursday, and to expect them bright and early to show us around. For Marcus, that would mean work stuff with Will. For me it means a day with Stacy and all our girls, which will include a driving lesson- here they drive on the other side of the road & car- and a housing search because Stacy even scouted a few available properties in her neighborhood that she thought we would like.
So far, Japan isn't so bad :).