First day of exploration

Greg and I had great plans for today! The problem was that Brady had his own plans for today! We forgot to consult with him before we set out and that was a mistake. It all started just fine. We went to the ruins of Katsuren-gusku Castle. It had beautiful trees, flowers, and a spectacular view of the crystal blue ocean. It was very much in ruins so there was not much there as far as the castle was concerned. The weather today was extremely windy and it felt very cold. I think the temperature was in the mid 60's, but the wind made it feel colder and it was out of control! We did not stay very long. On the way back to the car we found a camera that someone had forgotten. We took it to the ticket counter and Greg tried to explain to the lady that we found the camera and wanted to leave it with her in case the person came back to get it. She did not speak English very well and we certainly don't speak any Japanese, so she looked very confused at what he was trying to tell her. He finally tried to use gestures to help her understand and she smiled and nodded like she understood, but I think she just wanted this crazy American to get away from her! From there we went to the "American Village." It is a section of town that has all kinds of shops and restaurants. It also has the largest ferris wheel I have ever seen! We decided to go to the mall and shop until we were hungry. Brady didn't really want to go to the mall. He should have told us before we got there, but he waited until we were inside to start complaining. He didn't want to sit in his stroller, he didn't want to walk with us, he didn't want food or drink. He did however want to pull things off the shelves, climb into the fountain, climb on the counters and put his face and hands all over the glass. We finally tried to make him sit in the stroller which was a very bad idea. He started screaming and kicking like we were trying to kill him. I don't even want to know what those poor people in the mall thought of the situation! Brady was not in any kind of mood to sit through a meal, so we decided to come home to eat lunch and he could take a nap. The problem was that once again we did not check our plans with him and he decided that a nap was not in his schedule. We tried to get him to sleep for almost 3 hours! He was having nothing of it. That meant at least 1 of us was not going to get a nap either. That would be me. After Greg slept for a little while we decided to check out the exchange to pick up a few things. Once again Brady was more interested in climbing on the furniture and pulling things off the shelf instead of shopping like a normal person! So once again the shopping was cut short. It is a good thing we are going to be here for a while because apparently it is going to take several very short shopping trips to buy all of the things we want! Greg had heard from several people about this really good steak house at the Four Season's Hotel. We decided that we would go eat there for dinner. By this point we should have known better! We pulled into the parking space, turned around to tell Brady we were going to get out and he was ASLEEP!!! All we could do was look at each other and shake our heads. On the way home we stopped at a take out place and Greg ordered a few things from a menu written only in Japanese. It was a great surprise to see what we were going to get! Once home Brady was put in his crib and we proceeded to eat a fantastic meal of some sort of ramon noodles, steamed dumplings, and chicken and rice with lettuce, tomatoes, and a white sauce mixed all together. Being a parent is a life filled with all kinds of sacrifice! Cold meals, sleepless nights, changed plans, but yet it is all worth it when he lays his head on your shoulder or dances to the sound of the fire alarm. That's right, I said FIRE ALARM! How were we supposed to know that the best part of our day was yet to come? Greg had just gone to bed and I had settled in to write this blog. All of a sudden the power goes off and a very loud alarm starts to sound with a voice saying "Attention, there is a fire on the second floor. Please wait for further instruction." There were 2 problems with this announcement. First, we are on the second floor, second, if there is a fire why am I waiting? I stick my head out in the hallway and all I hear is some poor kid crying that she doesn't want to die. The next thing I know another announcement comes confirming there is a fire on the second floor and the building needs to evacuate. Another announcement comes from the front desk restating that there is a fire and everyone needs to evacuate. I went to get Brady and just started to grab anything I could hold. I was nervous, but Greg was very cool. He took his time getting dressed and outside. When we walked into the hallway it just smelled like chicken terryaki and Brady began to wave his arms to the sound of the alarm. We sat in our car and I realized that the batteries in the camera were dead and I didn't have any more with me. So, Greg went back into the burning building to fetch me some batteries! He is such a hero! I had to document this perfect ending to the perfect day with pictures. The fire truck came and went. We were allowed back inside and not 2 minutes later there was an announcement stating that there was a fire in the office building! I haven't heard anything else about the office, so I hope it is o.k. Thankfully Brady went back to bed with no problem! I am excited to see what tomorrow holds! I better get to bed because Brady likes to wake up in the wee hours of the morning. The only good thing about that is I have been awake to work out every morning!