About

Hello! Welcome to our family's blog. Check here for photos, videos, and stories of Papa, Mama, Luke, and Max. You can also follow us on various social networking services by clicking one of the links below, or subscribe to our video podcast by searching for "Talandis Family in Japan" on iTunes. Thanks for stopping by and staying in touch!
We had to shovel snow off the roof again in the winter of 2012. Of all the photos I took during this two-day task, this one is my favorite. I caught Shinobu flinging some snow… but where do you think she was flinging it? Right! At me! Turns out this was one photo too many! :-)
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If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

We had to shovel snow off the roof again in the winter of 2012. Of all the photos I took during this two-day task, this one is my favorite. I caught Shinobu flinging some snow… but where do you think she was flinging it? Right! At me! Turns out this was one photo too many! :-)

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If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Kids in a net
This photo was taken in early summer of 2011 at a new park playground near Toyama Station. They have this cool super jungle-gym thing that has nets and rope ladders for kids to play on. Here Luke and Max share a fun moment inside one of the nets. I took them there during one of my “carpe diem” weekends during work periods when I’d be away from home all week. I tried my best to make the most of my time with the kids, so I’d often be taking them to parks and stuff to play. 
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If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Kids in a net

This photo was taken in early summer of 2011 at a new park playground near Toyama Station. They have this cool super jungle-gym thing that has nets and rope ladders for kids to play on. Here Luke and Max share a fun moment inside one of the nets. I took them there during one of my “carpe diem” weekends during work periods when I’d be away from home all week. I tried my best to make the most of my time with the kids, so I’d often be taking them to parks and stuff to play. 

__________

If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Kids riding bikes
Max learned to ride a bicycle during the summer of 2011. We got here this little bike with training wheels, and she rode it with enthusiasm. Here’s a shot of her riding on the street in front of our home with her older brother. I really like this photo because it captures the kids’ smiles very well. Luke’s hand on his little sister’s shoulder is also a beautiful thing for me, signifying his love and support for her. Sure they squabble a lot, but in the end they are really close, something which shines through in this photo. I like this one so much that I’ve been using it as the wallpaper for my laptop and iPad.
Note: Color effects done with Colorsplash on my iPad.
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If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Kids riding bikes

Max learned to ride a bicycle during the summer of 2011. We got here this little bike with training wheels, and she rode it with enthusiasm. Here’s a shot of her riding on the street in front of our home with her older brother. I really like this photo because it captures the kids’ smiles very well. Luke’s hand on his little sister’s shoulder is also a beautiful thing for me, signifying his love and support for her. Sure they squabble a lot, but in the end they are really close, something which shines through in this photo. I like this one so much that I’ve been using it as the wallpaper for my laptop and iPad.

Note: Color effects done with Colorsplash on my iPad.

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If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Max under a cherry tree
Max’s grandfather took this one of her in the spring of 2011, as the cherry blossoms were blooming in our neighborhood. It came out really well and brings up one of the things I love best about our neighborhood- the plentiful presence of cherry trees. There are a bunch right in front of our house and hundreds more that line a bike path around the park in front of our home. They usually bloom in the first week of April. That is a really really beautiful time of the year. 
Note: Color effects done with Colorsplash on my iPad.
__________

If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Max under a cherry tree

Max’s grandfather took this one of her in the spring of 2011, as the cherry blossoms were blooming in our neighborhood. It came out really well and brings up one of the things I love best about our neighborhood- the plentiful presence of cherry trees. There are a bunch right in front of our house and hundreds more that line a bike path around the park in front of our home. They usually bloom in the first week of April. That is a really really beautiful time of the year. 

Note: Color effects done with Colorsplash on my iPad.

__________

If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Our home in winter
This is my favorite shot of our home during my favorite part of the year: on a sunny day after huge snowstorm. We had way more snow in the winter of 2010-11 than usual, which created a lot of trouble in our western-Japan region (Hokuriku). But it also created a beautiful winter-wonderland atmosphere, one that I really really love. 
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If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Our home in winter

This is my favorite shot of our home during my favorite part of the year: on a sunny day after huge snowstorm. We had way more snow in the winter of 2010-11 than usual, which created a lot of trouble in our western-Japan region (Hokuriku). But it also created a beautiful winter-wonderland atmosphere, one that I really really love. 

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If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Max playing in the snow
Max loves playing in the snow during the winter. Here’s a lovely shot of her outside our house during the  winter-for-the-ages 2010-11. She especially loved sledding on a little hill of snow I piled up and making snowmen. It took a lot of prep to get her ready to go outside, so we only did this a few times, when the conditions and weather permitted. Still, those were fun times!

Note: Color effects done with Colorsplash on my iPad.

__________

If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Max playing in the snow

Max loves playing in the snow during the winter. Here’s a lovely shot of her outside our house during the  winter-for-the-ages 2010-11. She especially loved sledding on a little hill of snow I piled up and making snowmen. It took a lot of prep to get her ready to go outside, so we only did this a few times, when the conditions and weather permitted. Still, those were fun times!

Note: Color effects done with Colorsplash on my iPad.

__________

If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Luke relaxes in the snow
In the epic winter of 2010-11, I had fun playing with the kids outside. We made snowmen, snow angels, did some sledding, and had snowball fights. Here’s a nice shot of Luke as he relaxed in the snow before making a snow angel. I really like how this came out- Luke looks natural and un-posed, a big plus in my book. 

Note: Color effects done with Colorsplash on my iPad.

__________

If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Luke relaxes in the snow

In the epic winter of 2010-11, I had fun playing with the kids outside. We made snowmen, snow angels, did some sledding, and had snowball fights. Here’s a nice shot of Luke as he relaxed in the snow before making a snow angel. I really like how this came out- Luke looks natural and un-posed, a big plus in my book. 

Note: Color effects done with Colorsplash on my iPad.

__________

If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Max’s 1st time sledding
Here’s a favorite shot from the winter of 2010-11: our daughter Max sledding for the first time. The snow was so high that it reached nearly over her head. I piled it up to make a mini-slope and then dug out a pit for her to slide into. It was a total blast. Max had a great time, as you can see from this video. I grew up in upstate NY, and I have memories of playing in snow above my head. I hope Max will remember this experience as fondly as I remember my days of playing in the snow as a kid. 
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If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Max’s 1st time sledding

Here’s a favorite shot from the winter of 2010-11: our daughter Max sledding for the first time. The snow was so high that it reached nearly over her head. I piled it up to make a mini-slope and then dug out a pit for her to slide into. It was a total blast. Max had a great time, as you can see from this video. I grew up in upstate NY, and I have memories of playing in snow above my head. I hope Max will remember this experience as fondly as I remember my days of playing in the snow as a kid. 

__________

If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Snowboarding 2011
This photo was taken in February 2011 while snowboarding at Raicho Valley in Toyama Prefecture. It’s rare that a shot taken by me with me in it actually comes out, but this one did. I really like it. Brings back a very good memory! Snowboarding on sunny days with tons of fresh powder snow is one of my biggest joys in life. The perfect confluence of conditions and weather is very rare, and to be savored. By this time, Luke was getting really good and could keep up and sometimes go faster than mama or papa. This made for unforgettable moments where the three of us would zoom and zig-zag down a slope together. Talk about perfect exhilaration!
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If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Snowboarding 2011

This photo was taken in February 2011 while snowboarding at Raicho Valley in Toyama Prefecture. It’s rare that a shot taken by me with me in it actually comes out, but this one did. I really like it. Brings back a very good memory! Snowboarding on sunny days with tons of fresh powder snow is one of my biggest joys in life. The perfect confluence of conditions and weather is very rare, and to be savored. By this time, Luke was getting really good and could keep up and sometimes go faster than mama or papa. This made for unforgettable moments where the three of us would zoom and zig-zag down a slope together. Talk about perfect exhilaration!

__________

If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Yuki Oroshi
The winter of 2010-2011 was one for the record books. It snowed so heavily that we had to spend a week shoveling snow off of our roof, lest the heaviness of all that snow damage our house. It was a huge job that my wife and I managed. Here’s a favorite shot of me on the roof during a sunny moment. It was my first time up there, and the view was great! Felt like I was climbing a mountain, however.

I created a video of this effort, which you can see here.

__________

If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.

Favorite Family Photos: Yuki Oroshi

The winter of 2010-2011 was one for the record books. It snowed so heavily that we had to spend a week shoveling snow off of our roof, lest the heaviness of all that snow damage our house. It was a huge job that my wife and I managed. Here’s a favorite shot of me on the roof during a sunny moment. It was my first time up there, and the view was great! Felt like I was climbing a mountain, however.

I created a video of this effort, which you can see here.

__________

If something bad happened and you could only save a handful of your photo collection, which ones would choose? That’s the question guiding this series of blog posts I’m dubbing “Favorite Family Photos”. It’s a chance to look back at the past 10 years and revisit special moments in our family’s history. These are our best and most precious memories.