Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, Friends and Family!!

We began our celebration around 8 last night.  I tried to get the kids to take long naps in the afternoon so they could last most of the night.  Usually, I have to wake them up after about an hour.  My plan was for them to get about a two hour nap.  Well, at about the 45 minute mark Garytt started yelling, "Mooooooommmmmmmyyyyyyyy....IS IT TIME TO GET UP NNNNOOOOOWWWW?????"  So, he got a short nap and Mackenzie got about an hour.  After nap, we had visitors for a few hours until their babysitter was able to pick them up.  From there our celebrating started....

First up, "How to Train Your Dragon"  3D! We only have two 3D glasses, so the kids were able to watch the show in 3D.  Well, 1/3 of it anyway.  After about 30 minutes or so the kids were tired of shifting the too-big glasses up their faces every three minutes.  Mackenzie turned to us and said, in a stuffy-nose type voice, "It's squooshing my nose".  So, they took their glasses off and we were all able to watch the end of the movie.  We munched on bacon-wrapped 'lil smokies while enjoying the movie.  I actually made several little snacks to enjoy, but turns out, kids aren't too hungry when it starts getting WAY past their bedtime.  So, New Year's day dinner will have some tasty treats!  :)

When the movie ended, we put on shoes, sweatshirts (by the way, Grandma, Garytt loves his black sweatshirt..."It's sooooo soft inside - even in my hood!"), extra socks, gloves, scarves, hats and coats.  We hopped in the car and drove to the parking lot next to main gate so we didn't have to make the kids walk too far that late at night.  We made the ten minute walk to Verny Park and then found a spot to sit and wait until the show started.  The guy sitting next to us at the park said, it's going to get busy in just about fifteen minutes.  He wasn't kidding!

I'm having issues with my camera, so we decided to bring the camcorder (is that the right name...am I dating myself with that term?  ha ha).  Anyway, we used the camcorder and our cell phones to take all the pictures and videos.  My pictures did NOT turn out well.  They are very blurry and I couldn't zoom very well.  So, sorry for that...you'll just have to use your imaginations :)

This is our view.  We were standing in the park looking across the water towards the base.  The "2013" is on a sub.  The purple and green slanted lights in the background are on a Navy ship.  There is also a set of green Christmas lights in the shape of a Christmas tree on the ship.  

This is the view to the left of the park.  I'm not sure what those ships are over there, but they were lit up nicely.

I thought I'd try to get some progressive crowd shots.  The picture below is the shot as soon as we got to our spot.  There are still plenty of spaces open along the water's edge.

Getting busier

The people are getting closer to our spot

Panoramic view from where we sat.  It starts on the left at Yokosuka Station and ends looking back toward the Honch.

We got to the park about 45 minutes before the show, so we had plenty of time to sit.  The weather wasn't too bad, about 40 degrees, but the little bit of wind out made it just chilly enough to want to cuddle with Daddy.  The kids took turns playing games on our phones for a bit.  Then, I took my phone/camera back and Garytt took Daddy's phone.


I tried several times to get a family shot while we waited.  First, I couldn't get all of us in the picture (taking shots with gloves on is kinda awkward).  Then, I couldn't get Garytt to look up from his Minion game.  Finally, Kris said "Just take the shot, who cares if everyone is looking."  So, I took the picture........(see above, left).......just as the city turned off the park lights to signal five minutes left till the show started....OF COURSE!  You can at least see little Garytt in the bottom center lit up from his game.

So, the crowd counted down the last ten seconds till midnight.  Then, everyone cheered as the fireworks were set off and the ships blasted their horns.

The "2013" sub shuts off its lights and the sub next to it lit up with "2014"...very blurry below.

As soon as the show was over there was a mad dash for the train stations.  I suggested we just wait ten minutes for the crowd to thin out and then we could make our way home.  But, Kris said, it's not that bad, let's just go.  WOW!  He was right, the crowd wasn't the worst we've been in here, but as we got to the road where everyone bottlenecked to wait for crosswalks to change, it was insane!  We were body to body moving down the sidewalk.

The sidewalks were soooo crowded!  Below you can see the sea of people from the park entrance to the stairway.  People packed on the stairway and then on the bridge across the road.

Once we got packed into the sardine can, Kris said, "Hey, look!  I think that's a shortcut back there towards the Daiei."  So, we veered off, out of the crowd like super smart people!  Well, it led to a back corner of the bicycle/motorbike parking lot and a chest high fence.  Oh great!  Kris said, let's hop it.  At which point I look at my nice new, non-traction tread, boots and sigh.  "OK."  We pop both kids over, then Kris hops over, and finally, I managed to get myself over without breaking anything.  At which point I say, "wow!  That was fun!"  :)





We walked up the mall steps, then back down the other side and out of the crowd.  Here, though, we ran into a Mikoshi being carried through town.  It was so pretty!  My pictures of it were junk, but I did manage to get a video (while keeping one eye on Garytt, who was being a good boy and keeping an eye on me, I also was trying to avoid the people and keep my other eye on my husband, who was quickly walking away.)  Now that I think about it...I knew my way home, I don't know why I was so intent on keeping him in my sights.  Ha!  Oh well.

The rest of the way home we were free and clear of crowds.  We made it back to the apartment at about 1245.  After a quick, incredibly exhausted-way past our bedtime-crying hysterical change into PJs, we got the kiddos in bed and they were asleep by about 1.  We thought it was actually a very successful first time waaaaayyyyyy late night for the kids!  They walked from the park to the house without complaining about walking or being cold or feet hurting.  So, we thought it went swimmingly.  That is....until the next morning....

So, I figured the kids would sleep in this morning....hahahahahahahahahaaaa....stupid!  I heard the frantic bathroom door-swinging open (Garytt's last minute dash to make it in time) and looked at the clock.....830!!!!  I know, that's not very early, but they had only been in bed for seven  hours compared to their normal 11!  They were both laid back watching tv by the time I got out there.  I fixed an easy breakfast and settled into the chair to cuddle with Garytt.  That lasted three minutes.  By 10 Garytt was chasing Mackenzie around while she was screaming in terror.  Then, they would both calm down, for two minutes, and Garytt would be back in Mackenzie's face.  They decided to set up a "line" across the middle of the room.  One side was G's one side was M's.  NOONE STAYED ON THEIR OWN SIDE!!!  There were a few tackles, a few pushes, LOTS of crying and whining.  Finally, at about 12 we sent the kids back to clean their rooms.  Garytt got to work (shocking...since he's usually the one that flails on the floor in hysterics and M gets so tired of hearing it that she goes in to help him).  Mackenzie, on the other hand, went into her room and melted.  She totally lost it.  Kris finally went back to try to convince her to get to work....she finally said, "I"m tired," she got into bed, curled up in the mass of blankets and stuffed animals on her bed and passed out - FOR THREE HOURS!  Girl was tired.  :)  She woke up an entirely different person.

While Mackenzie was sleeping, Kris and I, well, mostly me, watched Dick Clark's Rockin Eve.  I grabbed Garytt two minutes before the ball dropped.  We counted down and watched the ball drop.  Gotta say....it was cool to watch it drop at a decent hour.  :)


This Havens Fam is wishing you all a Very Happy New Year!!!!

Akemashite omedeto gozaimasu!!!

"Happy New Year" as the ball dropped!
(I apologize for the awesome hood on my unwashed hair)