Family Kayaking - Another Adventure

A couple of weeks ago we decided to take our girls on their first kayaking trip and teach them how paddle. It was a perfect fall day and the weather couldn't have been more ideal (blue skies, 72 degrees). I actually planned this activity for Oakleaf's "Adventure Club" but we were the only ones who thought taking our family kayaking would be more fun than shopping in a parking garage (the local bazaar). I've been to the bazaar before and it is interesting to see all the art & furniture but I just can't be inside when it's my favorite time of year and the weather is like San Diego. Most of you also know that I'm not much of a shopper and prefer to be outdoors doing something active. I guess a nice rug would be good to have but when Sean offered to buy one for $3,000 I told him absolutely NOT! That could be a week's vacation to Australia for our whole family! You can't take a rug with you when you die, but you can take the memory of feeding kangaroos with your kids. :) I also want my girls to learn that there's more to life than how many material things you can acquire. (We're still trying to learn that lesson too). I want them to be active, healthy, adventurous, and bold women who aren't afraid to try new things and do whatever they set their minds to accomplishing rather than being focused on their appearance and being the average American female consumer who's influenced by marketing ads and Paris Hilton trends. OK, I'll get off my soapbox now... We had such a great time showing our girls around Tokyo Bay (but most of the time we stayed near the base & marina). We did paddle over to Japan's historic "Mikasa" ship and Sean told our family about why that ship was so important in Japanese history (it helped them defeat the Russians). As we kayaked past Mikasa park the onlookers were waving at our girls and saying "kawaii" (cute). They did look adorable in their yellow life vests trying to paddle and splashing each other. Sean had our 2 toddlers with him (in his 2 man kayak) and I had Marissa with me in mine. Kelea kept wanting to catch the seagulls so we kept paddling near them to share some of our picnic lunch but then they'd quickly fly off when we got too close. She also kept saying, "Mommy look at the pretty sparkles on the water!" She loved watching the sunshine reflecting all around her. It was such a perfect day and another wonderful memory made with our precious little ones. I love experiencing life through their eyes. It's priceless!