Friday, October 08, 2010

Goodies brought back from Guam

Here's a post of the stuff we brought back to Japan with us. Small comforts from "home" to get us through the Fall, will totally help. So if you're curious what this American mommy living in Japan, brought back to the land of the rising sun, please enjoy this post. If not, no worries at all, check back tomorrow for a different post. : ) Now on with it : )....before I left Japan, I had asked Noboru "would you prefer Winchell's donuts or Cinnabon? He without a doubt said Cinnabon. So, the morning we left, I ran to the Cinnabon and brought back 2 fresh, as in they were still warm in the box when we bought them. 1 box of the amazing regular cinnamon rolls with cream cheese frosting. And the others were caramel pecan cinnamon rolls (my personal favorite) We carried these on the airplane with us in a Cinnabon bag.
And I did bring back 5 jelly filled donuts anyway. I ordered 4 blueberry filled donuts, and the lady said...I added 1 strawberry donut in there for you for free. I thanked her. And my total came to just $4 bucks. But yeah we brought back 5 donuts with us. As soon as I got home, Noboru started the hot water pot, made himself an instant hot coffee and ate a cinnamon roll right away. : ) Anyway that was Monday night. When we got back. By the time we got home it was nearly 9pm. We showered and went straight to sleep. School the next day you know.
5 suitcases total brought back this trip. And 5 suitcases brought back in September. Think we're doing okay for American goods. ; )
Noboru asked me to bring him back some new jeans. He researched on the Levi's shop online. And found the style he wanted. Baggy and also 1 pair of loose fit. And gave me his size. reminded me he hates the super dark wash and also dislikes the super faded wash (as in nearly sky blue). He wanted a medium color. And so when I went to Macy's. It was so simple. I had told the guy in the Men's department what I wanted and he brought me to the two jeans I was looking for. And I was checking out within 7 minutes.
Branden has 2 new jeans we bought him in September. I was thinking about ordering from Nissen for B at first for jeans because they do have cute kids stuff for good prices. But then Noboru just suggested we get them from Guam since I'd be there anyway. And I found good sales. So smart shopping.
Two pairs of jeans for B. A pair of Polo ones, Branden had a pair of these last year he outgrew that I packed away for Noah for future use. Since they don't make a size 9. And since he'll be 9. And the 8's he outgrew which is understandable. I really had no choice but to get the 10's. And I also got a Guess boys pair of jeans in size 10 too.
Branden has 2 pairs of pj's he can wear from last year still. And he did get 1 new pair from ON. But I think this pair was great and it was 50% off so the price paid was cheap. The lady said the day I was there, was the last day of the sale. What luck. So only 2 new pairs of pj's this year but hey..he can still get usage and fit the 2 pairs from last year. And 4 pairs of pj's is plenty because I do laundry daily. Size 10 Carters pj's.
Soft flannel bottoms and a bright yellow top with waffle knit tee sleeves. I also liked the felt applique on the top. Very cute. And at 50% off, it was a steal really. Yes I am a mom who notices all the details like that and appreciates well made clothes. ; )
I found a really cute table runner for Thanksgiving. $16 US. Something I can use year after year. I was happy to find it. I like the turkeys and pumpkins on it.
Popcorn. Won't be enough to last the whole Winter but my dad will be here next month for Thanksgiving so..... ; ) We like popcorn for family movie night around here. : )
Lemonade. I think lemonade season is sort of over. But heck with it. It's still so good, so we're drinking it.
I loved making rice krispie treats with my mom growing up. I have so many countless fond memories making them with her. And I think Noah's finally at the age where he can help make them too. Branden has been waiting. And so this year is the year for our family making them. I'll wait until the weather gets cooler first though.
Chocolate chips for Fall cookie baking. Needed some new vanilla, the real vanilla, not the essence or imitation stuff. A big bag of pecans, bought the big bag of walnuts in September. Can't wait to start our fall baking, will start this week. Strawberry cake because it's so freaking good, it should be a crime to eat this stuff. : ) And some Halloween baking things. The Halloweeen baking items have an expiration date of a few years, so even if I can't bake everything this year with them, they'll last another Halloween according to their expiration dates with time to spare even.

Nutter butters, Branden loves peanut butter, Noah loves peanut butter, and I do too. The cookies were so cheap at Cost u less. And a bag of Apple jacks basically, the cheaper version but taste the same and saves money to boot.
Noboru loves fajitas. Don't ask me, why but he loves them so much. He even asked me to make them while his mom is here for Noah's undokai. Unfortunately she'll be here for only 1 day/night, and we'll be pretty exhausted since I'll be awake making obento that morning so we'll just go to restaurant after Noah's upcoming undokai/sports day. So no fajitas. But, these packs were 69 cents. Lawry's brand was $1.39 each pack. And heck...I don't mind store brand in the least. And plus we can get nearly double the amount. And chicken gravy for Thanksgiving. I use a cheat when it comes to gravy, sorry. And I find turkey gravy so salty. I don't know what that is about. So, I always buy chicken gravy instead. ; )
Chili beans. Ravioli cans, sorta like Chef Boyardee quick for the kids for a lunch on a Saturday type meal. Italian salad dressing and Miracle Whip. And Frito's for dipping. I bought those big jars of salsa at Cost u less in September and we haven't used them yet. So, hopefully we can use one of the salsa plastic jars soon. ; )
Love Mexican food. Lovelove love it! I come from Denver Colorado and there's Mexican restaurants all over. And I mean good ones...authentic ones. And living in Japan, I used to go all the way to Tokyo to eat some extremely expensive Mexican food at a few restaurants. And it wasn't always so good. So, with help of a cookbook and online recipes. I make my own. Flour tortillas and corn tortillas. 1 bag of beans like 4lbs of beans for 95 cents. A freakishly great deal honestly. And some taco seasoning a huge bottle of it. It's kind of hard having to stock up. But I'm sort of used to it by now. And it doesn't bother me at all anymore. : )
Rice a roni the chicken flavor is our family fave. And garlic salt, I was running low. Cost u less has these seasonings for cheap. The taco seasonings and garlic salt and other seasonings, also like the big bottle of vanilla at Cost u less.
5 boxes of macaroni and cheese. Just enough to enjoy and not like 30 boxes where we'd feel mac and cheesed out. So a small family pack bought at Cost u less. And some Prego heart smart mushroom pasta sauce. On nights when I am so busy and I've run ragged all day long. It's sorta nice to either have a meal cooking in the crock pot. Or be able to fry up some ground beef or make some meatballs and add the sauce and boil up some pasta. A quick meal....really appreciated some nights. : )
Crisco for baking..you know greasing the pan for brownie baking or cake baking type stuff. I make my pie crusts with butter. But for greasing pans, I need this stuff. And pumpkin pie spice. I usually use McCormick pumpkin pie spice but they were out. But they had this organic one. I've never tried this, but with only being there 1 night, I just bought it.
And the Crisco lasts for a very long time. So doubt I'll even finish it before it expires.
2 bottles of shampoo. 1 tube of tooth paste. I have a few bottles of shampoo still and about 3 tubes of toothpaste from last time too. But these few extras should carry us through. Deodorant. Tums/antacids. Advil for cramp time or just plain splitting headache time. Only had about 10 Advil left in my last bottle, so figure it's better to buy a new one. Aspirin. And tampons. I used to buy name brand when I lived in the US. But with having to stock up. And considering they are twice cheaper. Plus, my girly bits can't tell the difference between name brand tampons and store brand ones. They're the generic version of the pearl, so they're comfy. So...And 3 girl toothbrushes. I had a few omiyage type little care packages to pack for a few friends. ; )
UTI/bladder infection meds from the store. I prefer go to my Japanese urologist because he's good. But, if it's ever closed like over New Years holiday etc. These will be a life saver and my saving grace. They are now safely tucked away next to my 2 yeast infection emergency kits in the hall closet upstairs.
We don't do trick or treating in Japan. Though Japan is quite fond of Halloween and it is gaining popularity. So, I buy a great mixture of my boys favorite Halloween treats and they get to enjoy them all October. Gum for hubby and I and cherry passion Tic Tacs... so good. And Ludens kids throat lozenges. If the kids should come down with a cold or sore throat this year, some kids throat drops will come in handy.
This is some of the stuff we carried onto the airplane. Noah carried the gift wrapping paper. And Branden carried the Trick or treat bag with the reverse Oreos inside.
Gift wrapping paper, for Branden and the amount is so much, I'll probably have plenty left over....and save it for Noah next year, there's so much paper on each roll is why.
1 box/pack was for our family. And the rest were gifts. My yochien mama friend. Grandma next door. Etc. These are so good.
Cheese can be so expensive in Japan. My favorite place to buy cheese in Japan is the Joyful Honda, I think they have about the best prices I've seen. But again the drive is a bit far for me. And Costco has super great prices too on cheese, but again I live so far away. If I lived near Costco, I'd buy from there. But since I don't and the drive is just nuts for me. It's smarter for me personally to buy in Guam when I get the chance. 2 lbs of colby jack already shredded cheese for $6.99 was a fantastic deal for me. Too good to pass up honestly. So, I bought 4 bags of it. And 1 bag of 100% mozzarella for the same price. Since we do make pizza quite a bit. Again the price was right for me, I was there. I would have been crazy to pass up the deal and oppurtunity. Plus I live fairly close to the airport so it worked for me. Granted a person living 2-3 hours from the airport could never do this and it wouldn't make sense. But the way it works...it oddly just works out. ; ) And sliced provolone cheese for sandwich making.
It lasts until next Febuary, and so we'll definitely use it by that time.
All the things I ordered online from Gap/ON I brought back. This alone took 1 suitcase worth. But the prices and sales we got and the fact both Branden and Noah are done now for Fall/Winter clothes. It's nice to have gotten it all over with. Not to have to think about clothes now for the kids...until Spring. Man...it's a relief. Phew.
4 fleece for Branden. 3 ON and 1 Gap.
Again, wish they made size 9. But...since no..and size 8 is too small, size 10 had to do.
2 fleece for Noah and 1 drivers cap. I got these ON fleece for each kid when the sale was $10 bucks each. That honestly was quite the deal and savings. it's long over now, but man....a great deal.
3 Gap fleece for Noah.
These were bought on a 2 day only sale. Plus I also am on ther mailing list and had a coupon for 30% off. So, I was able to get these at an even deeper discount.So they were a great deal. If they had better colors for Branden's age....I would have got more then the 1 Gap one. But the other colors were so blah and ho hummm....black? dark gray? How utterly depressing. And why I only bought 1 Gap fleece for B this year...was because of the colors were not great for the bigger boys. The colors for the younger boys like Noah's age were good though. Anyway that's why B got more ON fleece.
These are the 2 of Noah's from above. $10 each was a fair deal I thought. When they were on sale.
Another order.
2 plain basic tees. For Branden. He can wear them under sweatshirts. He also got those stripe ones and stuff, so he's all set.
And 2 long sleeve polo type tops for Branden. From Gap. These I thought were cute from Gap for the older boys. But still wish they had better colors of fleece for the bigger boys this year. : ( Oh well, neither son was left out one bit. I am very careful about that.
I thought they were cute and liked how they had graphics at the back too.
4 basic tees for Noah for under sweatshirt use.
These fleece were on such a super sale for Noah at the time ($7 dollars I think was the sale, it was under 10 dollars that's for sure). So Noah doesn't need any sweatshirts or fleece anymore...he's done, finished finito. : )
Branden's fleece.
Branden's fleece. Plus B also has about 4 sweatshirts from last year that also still fit.
Pj's...last pj's for Noah this year.
Size 5.
Thought these were the cutest pair of pajamas ever.
I'm done for myself basically too. But, I bought this sweater and 1 plain boat neck white tee.

I really like this sweater a lot. And I'm glad I bought it. I'll be wearing this to Disney when we go and a pair of wide leg jeans. And for the shoes, I'm either going to wear low top black converse, black Le Coq or...my Crocs shoes, not the ones with the holes, the kind that sorta look like ballet type shoes but different.
Branden got one. And when my dad found out, the littlest Bronco fan in our family didn't get one. He rec'd me to get one for Noah as well. So, I did. : )
XS, size 5 for Noah. He loves it. ; )
I saw 2 great movies on the airplane to Guam this trip. One was....Date Night (Tina Fey's brilliant anyway and I loved her in this so much that I knew I had to get this dvd) I went to Blockbuster...and I was lucky to get the 3 for $20 deal. I do not mind used dvd's one single bit. Considering new dvd's can cost $20 each!!! 3 dvd's for $20 was right up my alley. Branden read and loved Diary of a Wimpy Kid. And so I was glad to pick this up as part fo the 3 for $20 deal. So, Date Night, Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Greenberg. I have no idea if I'll like the movie Greenberg or not. But the 3rd choice, was..either the Werewolf...or about 10 other movies that I was pretty iffy about. And I do like Ben Stiller, so I hope it's good. Regardless though...it was a deal alone on the Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Date Night. I know Noboru is going to crack up at Date Night. And one we'll watch once a year it's so funny. And the boys have been watching Diary of a Wimpy Kid on their mini dvd player, about 3 times this week so far and are even watching it on the Big TV right now as I type. ; ) So a 4th time so far.
And 3 mags. Elin Woods side of the story. I read this and I must say....I really like her. She showed a whole bunch of pictures from her childhood. She's an identical twin...I never knew that. How her family travelled all over Europe in their car for family vacations. I found her to be really different then what I expected. She spoke about how her own parents divorced and how she never wanted to divorce. Because she knew how that felt. But in the end....2 parents who had no trust. Wasn't fair to her kids etc. Anyway...I really enjoyed her story. I like Tiger too, but this gave me both sides. I also like that she's a very private person and she said she will never speak about it again after this interview in the magazine. I wish her all the best. I also read Michael Douglas talking about his throat cancer. My favorite movie of him was either War of the Roses or Fatal Attraction, (yikes), but I hope he beats this cancer. I hate cancer. : ( That stabbed in the back article was a bit scary. Angelina is pissed that Jen and Brad's mom are still good friends. That was the basics of the story. Meanwhile Brad's mom doesn't want to be told who she can and cannot be friends with apparently. And Brad agrees, so it makes her even angrier. Anyway....sounds like a tough situation. What should they do? Who's right? Who's wrong? I do not know. : ( Hope they can find some resolution soon, hopefully. : (