Our Japanese Family :)

A couple of months ago I convinced my family (it took lots of convincing) to go and have Japanese pictures taken. They were not very excited, but I think they ended up having fun!

I'm going to warn you....I LOOK VERY STRANGE! Don't feel bad if you think that...I thought the same thing when I saw all of my friend's pictures. I don't EVER smile with my mouth closed, but you HAVE to or else your teeth will look YELLOW next to the white face they paint on you. You'd be surprised to see how different you look with your facial features painted WHITE...I sure was!

Jayden & Tia's Shichigosan pictures:

Shichi-go-san literally means seven, five, three; in most regions around the country, boys and girls aged three, boys aged five, and girls aged seven visit a Shinto shrine with their parents. Most girls wear kimonos when making their Shichi-go-san visit, while boys don haori jackets and hakama trousers. Shichi-go-san, is a day of prayer for the healthy growth of young children(found this definition here).

3 years old

5 years old

Our Family Pictures:

I didn't count exactly how many, but I think they tied about 20 different things around my waist...it was crazy! I was 3 1/2 months pregnant in this picture so they really could have left off all of the extra layers. It took about 1 hour for them to do my makeup and dress me...lots of makeup and lots of kimono layers. Shane and the kids were all finished within a half hour.

Shane and I thought it was interesting how they painted the back of my neck. We thought they just forgot to finish it, but apparently it is "more attractive" when painted with this pattern. Shane said it worked...he was much more attracted to me after this..he he..just kidding!