So worth the 2 bucks

Jusco is one of the Japanese shopping centers close by our house. It has a big arcade section and a bunch of tiny stores. One of them is the Hello Kitty store. Luckily, Mary hasn't quite found the appeal of Hello Kitty (it's pretty expensive stuff even though it's from Japan), but she LOVES popcorn and they have a pretty cool popcorn machine. It only costs 200 yen (approx $2). She used to be satisfied just looking at the machine. However, at our last trip, she saw a kid actually GET popcorn and she realized that it works. Ever since then, all she could talk about was getting popcorn from Jusco. Today, we went. I will say, it was worth the $ just to see how happy it made her.

There were 3 flavor choices: mortar saltiness, blank, and caramel taste. I crossed my fingers and hoped that mortar saltiness was plain with salt. It was. Yea!

Surprisingly, it was quite delicious. She shared a small handful with me and then proceeded to gobble up the rest. Good thing it was a small bag.

Now I've seen it all

Let me give you a brief background before delving into my current story. The Japanese are extremely clean. I don't think I have ever visited a cleaner country (and we've visited lots of countries). Heck, I'd use a public Japanese toilet any day over one on base. Whenever we have a maintenance call for our house, the Japanese workers remove their shoes upon entering and they always clean up after themselves. They even take their trash!

Currently, the homes in our neighborhood are getting their roofs re-painted. I thought it was amazing the amount of work it takes before they can even start. The Japanese workers set up an elaborate ladder and railing system on the roof. Shoot, we had our roof replaced in Hawaii and the grade was much steeper and they didn't do anything like this. These guys are super safety conscious. After they get the rail up, they sweep and vacuum the roof. Yep, I said vacuum. I wish I had a shot of that. Then they paint it and take everything down. It takes a couple of days or weeks, depending on how fast they want to work. This is what our house looked like when they did our roof.

Well, today we were walking in the neighborhood and I heard a vacuum cleaner. This is what I saw. I took the picture on the sly, so it's a bit fuzzy. Now, I can say, I've seen it all. And I bet those people will never know just how clean their yard really is.

Chopsticks

One good thing about living in the land of chopsticks, is that there's a plethora of learning chopsticks for kiddies. I bought one pair, but they weren't connected together, just had finger holes to help guide you into proper finger placement. Mary wasn't so good with those and resorted to trying to stab the food with a single stick. Hmmm, I think I'll save those for when she's a bit older. In the meantime, I found another pair. They have a nice rubber thing that sits between your thumb and pointer and helps place the chopsticks in your hand properly. Mary enjoyed using hers with dinner and feeling grown up like Mommy and Daddy. She was actually pretty good, until she got tired. She's starting to look more grown up everyday.

humidity

Living in a tropical environment, we have learned to adapt to the constant humidity. It all started with our tour in Hawaii. We noticed how our hair got bigger, our skin a little more oily (extra breakouts, but it sure does help keep wrinkles at bay), the air feels a bit stickier at times. We also noticed how it could really do a number on shoes. Well, Doug's shoes to be exact. His dress shoes for work, his sandals, the soles would start to deteriorate. Crazy. We spent a quick year in non-tropical Kansas then moved back to the humidity when we came here to Okinawa. His golf shoes fell apart, his nice casual shoes needed to be re-soled and the company wouldn't/couldn't do it, so he had to buy new ones. Today, we went to church and I couldn't figure out what the black dirt was on the kneeler and the floor. I brushed it away and ignored it. As we were walking back into the house, my left heel totally disintegrated. I was shocked and amazed. I looked at the bottom of my shoes and there were rocks embedded in the sole. I was able to peel apart chunks with my hands. Good thing they survived church. Into the trash they went. So now, I can finally say I've lost a pair of shoes due to the humidity. The good news is that I get a new pair of shoes now, right Doug?

Oh boy!

Our pediatrician said we're going to have our hands full when Adam starts crawling. If this is any indication of what's to come, I think she's right. Oh boy!

PS, he's wearing mittens because he keeps scratching up his head. He's really good at pulling them off and I watched him do it the other day. I was trying to get a video of that when I captured this one today.

a day at the kazoo

There are many words that Mary says that we correct her for...movie, not oovie; milk, not milky; babba ganoush (just kidding, she says that one pretty much perfectly); But we haven't fixed zoo. We love how she calls the zoo, the Kazoo. It's pretty cute. We go about once a week now since I bought the season pass and today, we took Daddy. It was packed, but didn't feel too crowed. One of the nice things about going on the weekend is that the petting zoo is open. We got over our squeamishness (once we spied the hand washing station with lots of soap) and let Mary pet some animals. She loved feeding the goats and kept talking about it on the way home. She even got to hold a baby chick. The carousel was also open and she had her first ride. I was amazed that she wanted to go on it when I told her she had to pick the carousel OR the train, she couldn't do both. Since she was extra good today (and daddy was here) she was allowed to do one of the motorized cars too. What a great morning!

getting ready

We're so excited about our trip back to the States in May. Last year we bought Mary a DVD player so she could watch movies on the plane when we went back for Grandpa's funeral. Unfortunately, we forgot about headphones and the ones that came with the player were way to big for her so she wouldn't wear them. She was stuck watching movies with no sound. At least she was content. This time, I found some kid phones that are created to take a beating and keep on playing and they're sized perfectly for a 3 yr old. We practiced with them yesterday with Daddy's ipod and she had a blast. I think this is a good sign for the trip. She feels so grown-up now.

Our morning routine

Every morning we have pretty much the same routine. I stumble out of bed in the morning when I hear one of the kids either crying, getting ready to cry or just plain saying she's "done", I groan when I look at my watch because it's almost always too early (before 6am) and I give thanks that I had the foresight to pre-load the coffee pot the night before. I will never understand how a kid can wake up and immediately be ready to play. Luckily, I can put Adam on his blanket or under his tunnel toy, give Mary her milk and I can zone out for a few minutes with my coffee. Mary loves to stand at the door and say good bye to Doug. It's so cute. I keep trying to get it on video, but she instinctively knows I'm taping, so she doesn't give it her 100% like usual. Oh well, this is one of the better ones, so enjoy. (Yes, she's saying Merry Christmas). Oh and sorry for the movement. I'm holding Adam.

Really?

I know it's all a matter of fashion, but...really? Have you ever noticed the little tiny details on baby clothes? Why do babies need pockets? What do they put in them? I can't count the number of times I've caught Adam trying to stuff his toy keys in his pocket. Mary's almost 3 and she's only now figured out that they can store things, but still chooses to give everything to me to carry. Do I look like a pack mule? Oh wait, diaper back pack (stuffed to the max), double stroller and 2 kids...yep, pack mule, but man am I getting strong. I was looking at Adam's outfit today and it made me realize all the cute, but totally crazy things on baby outfits. Thought I would share.

I love a good pair of non-skid socks. Keeps the kiddos from slipping all over these fake hard wood floors. Heck, I sometimes wish they made them in adult versions (Doug wishes I had some too). What I don't understand is why they make them for newborn/infant sizes. Helllllooooo? Whose baby is walking at 0-6 months? I would certainly like to meet that kid and then take a good look at the parents to see how wild and crazed they must be. Sock companies should make baby socks with the non-skid on the TOP of the foot. They crawl first...hmmm, maybe non-skid knee pads...oops, better not go there since that topic will lead to the inflatable helmet discussion and we can't go there again. And who ever thought buttons at the crotch would be a good idea? Cute? Maybe. Practical? Absolutely not. All I can say is, thank goodness this was not a "blow out your diaper" kind of day.

And last, but not least, the pen slot. Really? How many kids have you seen drooling on themselves at the park and suddenly, they realized they needed to write something down? I had to take this picture quick, since Adam thought I gave him a new toy to chew on. Good thing I put the pointy end facing down. I can't wait to get him his first pocket protector. Really?

A beach day

Saturday afternoon, we took the kids to the beach. It was an absolutely gorgeous day. Mary had a great time exploring the shipwreck (big playground for the kids) and playing in the sand and water. I didn't even pack bathing suits, since the water's still too cold for our taste and Mary's never a big fan of going deeper than her feet. I should have thought ahead to bring extra shorts and panties because of course, she did fall down and get her her butt all wet. Oh well, that's what happens when you hop like a frog.

A breathtakingly beautiful sky, fluffy white clouds and one really happy kid. Now, that's what I'm talking about.

This is the day that we realized Adam is in need of a sun hat. His little bald head doesn't have much hair to protect it from the sun...oh yeah, and his head isn't so little. The 0-3 mo hat was too little and the other hat (no size listed) was too big...and too girly (according to Doug). So now I have a mission, look for a manly hat that fits Adam's big noggin. Off to the store we go!

After all the sun and fun we were heading back to the car when we stumbled upon Sea Side Jet City burgers, a hamburger joint, and decided to give it a try. I don't know if it was the laid back outdoor "porchy" feel, the beach time or the loud Jack Johnson blaring from the speakers, but for once, Adam was perfectly content and let us eat a whole meal without fussing. Yea! The atmosphere was pretty cool (felt more like Hawaii than Japan) and it seemed like they catered more to the young hip crowd than families, but they did have one kid chair that Mary was happy to sit in. The burgers came with fries and... a french toast stick? Kinda strange, but delicious. Mary really loved hers. Reminded us of the chain Tim Hortons in Canada where you get a donut with all your meals. The burgers were just ok, so we probably won't be back, but it was a fun experience and a nice ending to a nice day.

Reading

Every morning Mary stands at the door and says goodbye to Doug. It's so cute. I tried to get it on video this morning, but somehow didn't press the button long enough. Oh well, maybe tomorrow. To tide you over, I took a video of Mary reading me a book tonight. She ended up doing a lot of counting.

Happy Easter 2010!

Oh a rainy, dreary day. At least it wasn't too cold, but it sure did put a damper on the Easter egg hunt sponsored by the church. They ended up just handing out bags of candy and treat filled eggs to all the kids after church. I think Mary ended up with way more eggs this way. Unfortunately, we're still trying to finish our Easter candy from last year. Hmm, Doug suggested we leave it where we see it so we eat more. I suggest that we throw some of it away. I have a feeling we'll end up doing a little bit of both. Happy Easter everyone. We love and miss you!

Dye time, rhyme time!

It looks dirty. What should we do? "I can clean it!", volunteered the child, age 2. She dried it and wiped it. She cleaned it and swiped it. With grit and determination and heart and soul. Oh no! A tiny crack, a line, a fissure, a HOLE! So rest in peace little egg, little egg. "I'm so glad the others are clean", the 2 yr old said.

We chose to dye the Easter eggs this morning so hopefully any dye that stained Mary's hands would be worn off by tomorrow. She had a great time decorating them. I had to take a deep breath and let go of my need to make them all pretty and perfect. We ended up having a great time.

Oops! Wardrobe malfunction!

A perpetual state of wink

Well, she may look like me, but she definitely has her father's allergies. We went over to a friend's house this afternoon and they happen to have 2 little dogs. After being there for about 20 min, Mary started rubbing her left eye. A few min later, I noticed it was starting to swell. How do you get a 2 yr old to stop rubbing her eye, stop touching her mouth and wash her hands? Umm, I just ended up carrying her to the bathroom kicking and screaming and did it for her. Of course, taking water and trying to wash her eye in case there was any stray doggie dander on her face wasn't a big hit. Luckily, she had no respiratory distress and didn't have to go to the doctor. She just looks like she's in a perpetual state of wink.

Yes, her lower lip swelled too.

Don't worry, it was already looking so much better by bed time.

How often in my life will I ever get a chance to meet a celebrity? OK, maybe not a true celebrity, according to Doug, but someone I at least watch on TV. Tyler Florence had a meet and greet book signing at Kadena Air Force base today. Luckily I went to the BX last week and saw the advertisement for it or I would never have known about it. I was unsure if I would go, since it was scheduled from 1600-1700 (4pm-5pm). The base is about a good 20 minutes away, I'd have to stand in line with 2 kids and we usually eat dinner at 5:30. However, I did enjoy watching Food 911 when we were in Hawaii and The Food Network is one of my favorite channels. Too bad we don't get it here. I have to settle for 2 cooking shows at 6 and 6:30 am and I'm usually vetoed for Sesame Street by the rug rat. So, leftover potato soup pulled out of the freezer, kids packed in the car and off we went. I figured if we got there and the line was too long, I could be satisfied that I at least tried.

Can I admit that I actually got butterflies in my stomach when I saw him walk in the building? I was buying a cookbook for him to sign when I looked over and there he was plugging in his laptop. I guess he can't go long without e-mail. Thought I'd snap some pictures in case we couldn't get any closer later. His trip was sponsored by the US Navy, so he was wearing a USS George Washington hat.

We waited in line for about an hour and 15 minutes. I will say I got nervous. There was a rumor that he was leaving right at 5pm even if there were people in line. We had been standing there since 4pm on the dot and I knew we'd never meet him before the deadline. Lucky for us, he stayed longer and didn't look like he would deny anyone. Mary was awesome. I know it must have been hard for her to be so patient, esp. since my being in a hurry, I left the diaper bag in the car which had all her snacks. She only had a cup of water on the stroller. I thanked her for her good behavior with a chocolate chip cookie from the coffee shop on our way home and an episode of Bob the Builder on DVD.

Doug told me to ask Tyler when they're sending over Giada. Ha! He'd probably be the first in line for her signature. But today, it was all about me. Thanks Tyler for coming all this way.