Embassy, shojin ryori

This morning Izumi and Tomo from Baby Life came to our apartment to drop off important paperwork for our US embassy appointment.  Here is a picture of Tomo and Izumi holding Willow:

 Then us and Izumi took a taxi (which Fox LOVES) to the US embassy.  We couldn't take a camera into the embassy, so that meant we were camera-less for most of the day.  We had to go through tons of security to even get to the building, and then some more inside.  We had to provide a ton of paperwork to the embassy worker, and then we had an interview.  We were asked a bunch of questions about our adoption experience, what we knew about the baby's situation, etc.  At the end she was officially declared an orphan, and we were given an appointment at 11:30am on Wednesday to come back for the visa interview.  After the embassy appointment we walked to Akasaka.  We were a bit early for lunch, and Willow needed a bottle, so we went to a donut shop and split some tasty donuts (including a grapefruit and orange jelly donut).  Then we decided to go to the shojin ryori place (called Amane) we've tried twice before to go to--and succeeded!  I was so excited--and upset I didnt have my camera.  It is a tiny place on the third floor of a random building, with only two table and a bright red bar.  We sat at the bar, and the nice grandmotherly Japanese lady who apparently runs the place by herself  brought us tasty foods.  We had a ginger noodle soup which was SUCH a good comfort food--I'm going to crave that the next time I'm sick.  We also had rice with some kind of bean in it, Japanese pickles, a little plate of veggies, and some asian pear slices.  It was all super tasty, and we tried to talk with the grandmother lady--she is SO nice, and really loved Fox and Willow.  It felt like we were in her house, and she was fussing over us.  She even held Willow for awhile :)  It was a great experience, and only cost 800 yen each!!  After the delightful lunch we went back to the apartment for rest time.  In the evening we went out to Togo park (Fox's favorite playground).  He meets new little friends each time we go there.  Here he is on the odd little see-saw (with Chris):

 And here he's on the whale bouncy thing (there is also a boat).

Then on the way home we decided to eat at my favorite burger place--Freshness Burger!  I took some pictures this time.  Here's the outside.  It is a neat little two story building.

We like to sit upstairs--it is so cute, and gives you a good view of the street below.  Great for people watching.

 Here is my favorite burger--the tofu burger.  It is a tofu steak wtih huge hunks of avocado on it, with a slightly spicy sauce.

 Here is the other veggie burger--made of beans.  It has a kind of fruity chutney on it--also very tasty.  My only complaint is that they are both REALLY messy to eat!  I also got a matcha (green tea) latte.  I've been getting matcha drinks at various places and comparing them.  This was tasty, but can't compare to  Excelsior Cafe's one with adzuki beans on top.

 Then we stopped at a few stores on the way home for diapers, wipes, and some snacks for tomorrow (we carry several in the diaper bag for Fox--particularly when we have several appointments).  We have several places to go tomorrow--including a doctor's check-up for Willow!  Speaking of Willow, here is a picture of her right after a diaper change.  Such a cute diaper baby!