hokkaido

Did we mention butter corn is a thing in Hokkaido? I'll never eat ramen the same way again.

What a historic looking background, huh? It was actually right outside of the train station. LOL!

Bryson spots Chloe everywhere! This became a centerpiece in our hotel room during our trip.

Dad and Bryson watched this lady build this gigantic snowman - funnier part is she built another one by the temple and we took a group shot with it. How did we know? Her signature scarf and hat she puts on the snowman, plus a pail with twinkling lights.

Jax had a great idea and busted open his Eden umbrella to protect Char from the falling snow.

At midnight, there are no fireworks or cheers. The big celebration comes the next day during the first sunrise. It's a special moment to watch the first sunrise of the year with your family.

Two words: corn butter.

New Years Eve in Japan means everything is closed except for Yoshinoya. So we waited in line, even during a blustery snowstorm!

Eden on the Go Japan Town totes were part of our daily uniform.

Ramen spots in Ramen Alley can fit parties of 4-6 MAX. So we split! Girls had ramen at a random spot.

See our bright matchy scarves? Naomi suggested we do this so we’re super visible when we’re separated and wearing heavy black coats. Genius tip!

This was in Otaru right before Phillip slipped crossing the street! Tip 1: Get cleats! Tip 2: Get cleats that fit your foot size.

Otaru is known for the music boxes and glass figurines. Obviously, we didn't let the kids walk into these stores. 😐

We found Brug in Hokkiado and OMG, we even ran into Miho, the Brug owner from Hawaii there. What a HO-HO-HO NAHHHH surprise.

"Where's LIV?" - she actually fell in the snow behind this "n" and no one could see her!

Hokkaido soft serve is a must, even if you’re lactose intolerant.

The boys somehow always find themselves at a cigar bar. This time it was a coffee lounge, too!

Japanese food for the win.

Bryson, always eating something delicious. Tanna, always shooting something delicious.

At the "yatai", you can sit and eat only if you purchase food from the vendor. Then you need to squeeze all the way in and eat super fast. Check!

Our signature family photo on day one in the snow.

Whiskey shots wherever we went kept us toasty.

While Charlise made snowmen, Roy preferred to eat them!

These Hokkaido Snow Birds inspired our design, "Sakura Snow Fairies".

Charlise's room had a choice view of the TV Tower. Swoon!

Ugh even the donuts are kawaii.

The whole gang made it to Hokkaido!

Isn’t Tanna freezing you ask??! Nope! Read her article on how she stayed warm and stylish in the snow in our blog.

We did a mini food crawl in Otaru - do you know how impossible it is to eat with gloves, inner gloves and heat packs on your hands?

See that drink? It's hot mulled wine. in Germany, they call it gluhwein. So happy it made it's way to Japan.

Hokkaido is also the home of Sapporo Beer. Kampai!

Omakase dinner for Christmas, that’s the Chef!

Papa Steve loved watching the kids play from this outdoor balcony at our awesome hotel. It's right across from Sapporo TV Tower.

AYCE Shabu literally gave the kids kanak attack!

Brys took Alys, Phillip and Isaac to 'the best ramen' in the new ramen alley. It was so good!

Traveling with Juju always guarantees a fun time. Right after this photo, she got stuck in the single stall bathroom. See? Always a fun time.

We stayed at the Royal Park, which was right across from the famous TV Tower.

Train ride to Otaru, the home of the music box museum.

The kids loved seeing snow fall for the first time.

The Joshuas before they went sledding in Furano.

Paw prints on a coffee truck in Furano? Hi, Chloe!

Bread, but make it cute. Only in Japan! This actually inspired our Boo Bear design.

The fruit in Japan is daijobu!

Walking in snow? Get cleats. All of us fell except for three people, can you guess who?

Not sure what the temperature is but we were COLD.

The gang made it to Sapporo just in time for the new year.

This was so magical! Little did you know this was shot in a parking lot jam packed with cars. HO HO HOKKAIDO!

Train rides to somewhere magical... anyone else scared the gates will slap their knees when tapping into Japan stations? Same.

While half the crew was playing in the snow, half were watching from our lobby balcony and spotted a FOX running across the park. How can??

Brys took himself snowboarding one day.

Soft serve has never tasted the same since this trip.

A traditional Christmas meal - KFC!

Eden on the go, snow version.

Spotted: 1/2 of the original BRUGs in Hokkaido. This one's near Sapporo Station.

The Dangs and Kawajis were in Hokkaido during Christmas so they went to the Christmas Markets, which were replicas of the ones in Germany. SNOW COOL!

A great Japanese meal for a great Japanese couple. LOL!

The Hans in Han-kkaido.

Roy and Karen came up a few days earlier so we had some serious and crazy adult time in Otaru and around the city during Christmas.