Annual Camping Trip to Crescent Lake

Each Memorial Day weekend, the Olson and Blume clan get together for the annual Crescent Lake camp out. In the past couple years, we have been pretty lucky with the weather but this year it was one of the coldest years yet. We drove down late Thursday night after work, arriving after dark (thank you Kim and Loren for setting up of tent in advance!). It rained all night the first night but by 3 am the rain turned into snow. Despite the weather, the boys got up Friday and went fishing first thing in the morning. Chelsea on the other hand, didn't leave the fire pit all day...she huddled up where she could keep warm. Good thing Cody brought his chain saw because we needed all the firewood we could get!

On Saturday afternoon, Cody, Chelsea and Jeff went to check out Davis Lake so Cody could do a little fly fishing.

Due to the weather, we mostly did a lot of hanging out at camp. We got in some cowboy golf, board games, ate lots of great food, and sat around the fire talking about how Cody is going to make our future children file a W2 for their allowance(haha..don't ask him about it unless you have about 30 minutes of your time to spare!!)




Roxy had lots of friends including cousin Sabby, and Tylers dogs Orion and Molly to keep her plenty of company. The dogs spend all day playing hard with each other. Roxy played a little too hard and Sabby had too much of what Kim would call "fun". We have the photos for evidence!

This is Sabby having a little taste of "fun"...:

...and this is how the night ended for him:

Roxy played fetch, chase, keep away, went swimming with Aunt Courtney, and on a couple walks. Apparently, she isn't the young pup she used to be, because we found her sitting outside our tent at 7:30pm, wanting to go to bed. We let her in the tent and she tucked herself into bed for the night.


We had such a great time and felt so lucky that many of our friends and family were able to make it! It meant a lot to us both that so many of our friends drove hours to spend the weekend with us. A special thank you to Jeff, Kramer, Rachael, and Tyler for making the long trip to Crescent Lake. Since Cody has been working long hours since we returned home from our Japan trip, it was really good for him to have a chance to kick back and relax with great friends and family.

Japan Favorites

Just a few notes about Japan that may not have been mentioned in our previous post:

1. Chelsea's best investments in preparation for this vacation:
a) New shoes! Cute but comfortable shoes were much needed during our Tokyo adventure! We navigated the streets and trains of Tokyo like no other! Thankfully, we had Brandon and Ashley as personal guides!
b) Travel pillow. This made the long flight much more comfortable. Once in awhile, she would let Cody use it and use his shoulder as a pillow instead :o)

2. Our most favorite thing about Japan is the fact that Mari is there, but beyond that, we also fell in love with the country for additional reason:
a) They have HEATED toilet seats!! Why is this not the norm in America is beyond us (okay, mostly Chelsea!).
b) It's such a clean country, even downtown Tokyo. It's hard to believe that the largest city in the world may be one of the cleanest. You don't see garbage, graffiti, transients, etc.
c) The train system is so efficient! We all know how engineers view the importance of efficiency so Cody was pretty impressed.

3. Chelsea found a new favorite drink...Chu-Hi! She first had it from a can, purchased at the local grocery store, then had it at as a mixed drink at a restaurant (both were excellent!). When Cody saw it being served from a carton at the baseball game and later that night when she tried to order it at an upscale bar in Fukuoka City but couldn't because they didn't carry it...Cody put two and two together...its a poor mans drink! Thats okay though, she still likes it!

4. The level of respect and courtesy people in Japan have for each other is something the rest of the world should note.
a. A perfect example is when we went to Moe's school for her graduation, we were so impressed with the behavior of all the children (5th and 6th graders). They were so mature, there weren't any class clowns or any kids that acted up during graduation. After the graduation ceremony, we followed the students back to their classroom. All the parents stood in the back of the classroom while the teacher had the students full attention for their last lecture. Even with all the excitedment of the day, not a single student looked over their shoulder at the group of parents in the back. Oh, only if American children were that well behaved...
b. The other thing we noticed about Japanese people is how well thay take care of things..it doesn't matter if it's their own or public property. Everything is well kept and cared for, with much respect!

Japan is such a great country...we just can't wait to go back!

P.S. Each time we travel, we purchase a souvenir for our home. On this vacation, we bought a Maneki Neko (literally translated as "Beckoning Cat" but also known as Lucky Cat or Fortune Cat). It's a common Japanese sculpture that is believed to bring good luck and financial prosperity to the owner...right up Cody's alley, eh?! So, lets hope this kitty does good work!

Japan Trip- March 2011

On our last day in Aruba back in August of 2009, We talked about wanting to travel more. We decided we would make an effort to plan a vacation once a year but travel out of the country every other year. Cody asked Chelsea where she would like to travel abroad next time and without even having to think about it she said "JAPAN!". So, that night on the beautiful Aruban beach, we decided to plan a trip to visit Mari in Japan in 2011. For those of you who do not know who Mari is, Chelsea has known her since she was 2 years old. Mari stayed with Chelsea's family as a Japanese exchange student and instantly became part of the family. She comes back to the U.S to visit the Stuebing's ever 4 years or so. She even came back to be a bridesmaid in Cody and Chelsea's Wedding! Months later, we came to find out that our good friends Brandon and Ashley would be in Japan for work from January 2011-May 2011. So, over drinks one night in Eugene, we discussed planning our vacation during their stay in Japan and staying with them for a couple days before heading south to Mari's.

In January 2011, with much excitement, we bought our plane tickets to Japan. Knowing Japan is located in one of the most seismic active zones in the world, we joked about experiencing an earthquake or Chelsea's greatest fear, a tsunami, while on vacation. We all remember Cody, Chelsea and the Draper's experience with Hurricane Hanna while visiting the Young's in North Carolina in 2008...we somehow tend to attract natural disasters!

Well, our bags were packed and we were ready to go when March 10th rolled around. Our first hiccup at the PDX Airport was Cody's check in bag was 17 lbs overweight! From Portland, we flew down to San Francisco first and then boarded a Japan Airline Flight to Tokyo, Japan! On the long flight, we ate dinner, watched 2 movies, read, did crossword puzzles, ate breakfast and then got the news 20 minutes before landing. First in Japanese, then in broken English, the pilot announced there was an earthquake in Japan and public transportation was not running. At this point we weren't too worried because not a single person on the flight reacted to the announcement. Chelsea flagged down a flight attendant that spoke pretty good English and the flight attendent told us that there was a MAJOR earthquake at 2pm (Japan time), the largest Japan had ever had before, and that the airport was shut down for several hours but is up and running now. Then she told us that the trains were not operating and traffic was "not so good" so cabs are not available. Once we made it through customs and into the main airport at 10pm, we realized how bad things were. We saw thousands of people sitting, laying down, sleeping, etc all over the airport. At that point we realized we weren't going anywhere but just didn't know how long we would be stranded.

The pictures below were taken at 3:30 am. People were laying on newspapers, cardboard boxes, blankets, anything they could find. There was no carpet in the airport, just cold tile floors:


This is where we "set up shop" for the night in Haneda Airport in Tokyo:


With nothing translated into English, the phone lines all jammed up, we didn't really know what was going on. We saw images of the tsunami but didn't know when/where it was and felt several aftershocks (and continued to for the following days in Tokyo). So, along with eveyone else, we just patiently waited. The next morning, trains were up and running again! Originally, Brandon was going to meet us at the airport but since the trains were not running he was not able to meet up with us. So, we hopped on the first train we could squeeze our way on and headed towards his apartment. Long story short: We got off at the wrong stop, got lost and our phone was not working, all while Brandon was waiting patiently for us at the correct train stop! A 45 min commute ended up taking 3.5 hours but we finally made it to The Draper's apartment by cab.

We spent 3 days in Tokyo and Yokosuka (Yokosuka is just south of Yokohama if you are referring to the map above). Brandon and Ashley were so nice to show us around. Unfortunately, a lot of things were closed due to the earthquake (ie: the big buddha, the imperial gardens, the observatory, and the Sumo Wrestling Museum were sadly all closed). We did get to eat some great food, visit well known shopping areas, temples, shrines, parks and the fish market, stay one night at the Navy Hotel and of course spend time with our wonderful friends.

Visiting our first Temple:

One large tuna at the Fish Market:

Ashley and Chelsea's breakfast at the fish market....eel, miso soup and egg sushi rolls:

Brandon and Cody's breakfast...lots of sushi:


Even though the earthquake and tsunami in Sendai (North of Tokyo) didn't really effect the Tokyo are, the crash of the nuclear power plant did. The rolling blackouts and the trains not running were our biggest challenge. We almost didn't make it out of Tokyo on Monday evening. By chance, we caught the last train running south but it stopped running 10 miles north of Yokosuka. So, we started walking, the boys carrying our overnight luggage. After a 6 mile walk, traffic started to lighten up, so a desperate Ashley flagged down a cab who drove us the rest of the way. I think Ashley was pretty happy to get home to Andrew and Ava! The next morning we needed to catch the train back to Tokyo for our flight to Fukuoka. The only problem was, we didn't know when or if the trains would be running. Since nothing regarding the blackouts and the trains were translated to English, we had to email Mari for help. Not sure what we would have done without her! The next morning, we had no power and the trains in Yokosuka were not operating. So, we took an expensive cab ride to the nearest operating train and made it back to the airport! We were so happy to be getting out of Tokyo and far away from all the problems.

Mari picked us up at the Fukuoka Airport on Tuesday. We were so happy to see her!!!! The first night in Fukuoka, we met Mari's family (her father, mother, sister, niece and nephew) and her Mother made a wonderful dinner!

Wednesday morning, we got up early and headed to Kumamoto where we visited a famous castle. Mari hired a guide that spoke English to show us around. The 400 year old Castle was very impressive!




Then we headed to what may have been our favorite part of our vacation...A Japanese Hot Spring Resort! At Kiyashiki Onsen, we changed into our yukata, ate a traditional Japanese dinner, took 2 baths in the Hot Spring and relaxed for the evening. The following morning, they fed us a traditional breakfast, we took a morning bath and headed off to Mt. Aso.

In our room before changing into our yukata's:


Wearing our traditional japanese yukatas. We wore the yukata's the whole time we were at the onsen...to dinner, breakfast, to the baths, and even to bed:



Enjoying Dinner:



After a quick, cold and windy visit to Mt. Aso(an active volcano), we made the 3 hour drive back to Fukuoka. Mt Aso sure was quite a view though!



On Friday, we attended Mari's niece, Moe's graduation. She graduated from 6th grade and will be entering Jr. High School next year. This was on of those experience we felt very lucky to be apart of.

Mari, Mari's sister Yoshko, Moe, and Moe's best friend, Ryoko:


Later that day, we visited the largest reclining buddha in the world and went to dinner with the whole family to celebrate Moe's graduation and her 12th birthday!



We even took Nanna to the big buddha! Nanna's Best Biscotti is Chelsea's co-worker's company that she started in November 2010. For some of the BEST BISCOTTI out there, and for only $6/bag, contact Joanne at nbbiscotti@aol.com. Nanna has traveled all over the world and Cody and Chelsea were happy to take her to Japan:



We had a busy day on Saturday! It included riding the bullet train, going to a Fukuoka Hawks baseball game, shopping (including an underground shopping center) and dinner at a food stall downtown!

The bullet train:

At the Fukuoka Dome for the baseball game:



Dinner at the Food Stalls downtown:


On Sunday after breakfast, Mrs. Katagami decided to play dress up with Chelsea and dress her in a kimono. It was so beautiful and we had lots of fun with it!





We later, visited a nearby Shrine with Mari and Moe, had lunch and did a little souvenir shopping. They happened to be having some kind of festival for Men turning 40 years old. So, there were many drunk men passing out mochi (pounded rice cakes) and sake. We took home lots of mochi and Cody had a cup of sake. This was the first day it rained on our whole vacation, but we had a great time despite the wet weather.

Cody drinking Sake:


For our last dinner in Japan, Mari and her family took us to a Sushi Train restaurant. We ate many new things, including raw horse meat!!! We also got to meet Mari's cousin, Chika at dinner as well.

Chika, Chelsea and Cody at dinner:

Chelsea, Cody and Mari:

We tried different sushi from squid, octopus, tuna, eel, and many more but the most wild one we tried was the horse meat:

Like any sushi train restaurant, you choose your sushi off the train, but special orders came via bullet train to your table:


After dinner, we went to karaoke. Cody was really excited to go out to karaoke. Instead of sigining infront of the whole bar, you rent a room and sing just for your group. You order your drinks from your room phone and they bring them up to you. Kids are allowed too. After Karaoke, we went back to the house. Mari put on a home video Chelsea's parents sent her back in 1990 while Chika, a nail technician, did Chelsea's nails. Cody really enjoyed the home video. It was the first one he had ever seen of Chelsea growing up.

Cody taking a break from singing to have a drink:

Mari, Moe, Yoshko, and Mrs. Katagami:

Chelsea's nails:


Monday morning brough tears to our eyes when it was time to leave. We had such an amazing experience in Japan and are so thankful for everyone who helped make it such a great vacation. Thank you to Brandon and Ashley Draper for the great memories and showing us around Tokyo and Thank you to Mari and her family for welcoming us into their home and being so kind to us.

Our Japanese Family:


One last good-bye at the airport:

Snow Day

This year winter brought us late snow in Portland. We woke up this morning to a little bit of snow but enough for all the schools and Chelsea's work to close for the day.

A Guest on Olson Territory

Roxy and Maxi were both very upset by an unexpected guest on their soil. They both sat by the back door, starring down a neighborhood kitty sitting on our fence for over an hour! It was pretty funny. Miss Maxi has made it very clear that she is the only kitty allowed in this home!

Christmas in February!

As previoulsy mentioned, Cody bought Chelsea tickets to her 1st game at the Matthew Knight Arena. We went to the game early so we could tour it before the game. The company Cody works for built the arena, the parking garage and the alumni center. So, Chelsea pretty much had a personal tour guide and learned all the inside details of the project! The arena is beautiful and it was fun for Chelsea to see some of Cody's hard work.

The game was awesome. It was a close, both teams played well, but the Ducks finished ahead!!! Plus, Chelsea was happy to see The Pit Crew is still going strong. Chants like "NO MEANS NO" to Huskies Venoy Overton made it seem just like her old Pit days!