In Japan November 15 is Shichi-Go-San.  Its a day of prayer for the healthy growth of young children.  Shichi-Go-San literally means seven, five, three; in most regions around the country, boys and girls aged three, boys aged five, and girls age seven visit a Shinto shrine with their parents.  Most girls wear kimonos when making their Shichi-Go-San visit.  In medieval times, aristocratic and samurai families celebrated the growth of infants into healthy boys and girls in the following ways:  Boys and girls stopped getting their hair shaven and were allowed to grow their hair.  Boys age 5 put on hakama for the first time in public.  Girls age 7 began using obi sash to tie their kimono, instead of cords.  Most families pay their Shichi-Go-san respect on the weekend prior to the 15th or just after.  Following the visit, parents generally buy chitose-ame (longevity candy) for the kids.  The candy is shaped like a stick and comes in a bag that have pictures of cranes and turtles–two animals that are symbols of long life.  The candy and bag is an expression of parents’ wish that their children lead long, prosperous lives.

Well, with all of that said, today we visited the Namino Ue Shrine so Carley could have a long and prosperous life!  We went with several of other kids from her school.  They all got to have their hair and makeup done and they got to wear kimonos in order to visit the shrine.  Then we took the kids to the shrine to be blessed.  Carley was chosen to represent all of the girls in their group while she stood at the alter.  The whole ceremony was done in Japanese.  The culture teacher from the school translated the ceremony for us.  They blessed each child as they said their name in Japenese.  It was awesome to see how special they treat the children here.  The kids seemed to enjoy each minute of being dressed in their kimonos and hakamas.  They all were beautiful!  Carley especially look beautiful beyond words.  She was all smiles the whole day!  She looked like an miniture little lady.

I took a lot of picutures so please take a look at them by clicking on the Picasa LINK http://picasaweb.google.com/rtckcamp/ShichiGoSan