Well, I've officially started to count down the days until summer break. It could have to do with the fact that I'm incredibly envious of my friend Julie who jump-started her summer today...
We've got 14 school days left, and 19 days until summer break truly begins. And we'll be on our way to North America in 25 days.
Both the weather and D's chicken pox cleared up in time for the weekend. Woo hoo! On Saturday, I stole away to Kyoto for some Celia Time. I whiled away a few hours at the botanical gardens, and started a new book that I'm enjoying immensely - The Brother Gardeners: Botany, Empire, and the Birth of an Obsession by Andrea Wulf. It's a historical account of a handful of eighteenth-century naturalists who traded plants and ideas back and forth between Britain and America, eventually giving rise to England's love of gardening (thanks for the recommendation, Mom and Moni!). I'm already looking forward to her new book, Founding Gardeners: The Revolutionary Generation, Nature, and the Shaping of the American Nation, which takes a look at the importance of gardening in the lives of the 'founding fathers' of America.
Today, the three of us went to Kacho-en, a bird and flower park not far from us. D's class went there for a field trip on Friday, and we knew he was going to be heartbroken when he returned to school on Monday and realized that he missed the field trip he'd been talking about for weeks. So, we went today. He got to feed penguins, ducks, and toucans! It was a great outing, and a nice family day. Jon and I have been playing tag-team parenting all week - due to several work and social engagements - so it was good to spend some time together.
It turns out that being cooped up (ha!) with chicken pox over the last few days wasn't such a bad thing. At least for me - I was productive! I finished the Christmas stockings I started back in October (yea!) and taught Denis how to make a banana cream pie (yum!).
I have to say he's taking it all in stride. He was thrilled at bedtime last night when he saw a boy with chicken pox in the story we were reading. Now those red dots make sense!
He's been great about not scratching, but sleeping through the night seems to be a challenge. It was a case of musical beds through the wee hours of the morning. When we all woke up today, Denis was in our bed, Jon was on the couch, and I was in D's bunk!
A friend of ours from Perú (¡gracias, Xime!) brought this to our attention a few days ago. It's a promotional piece for Peruvian tourism and was filmed in Peru, Nebraska - a small town not far from where I'm from. Watch it - it's wonderful! Even if you don't understand Spanish, you'll understand the video. It made me nostalgic for my former home-away-from-home of six years. ¡Viva el Perú!
For some reason, Denis couldn't fall asleep last night. He's usually in bed and sound asleep by 7:30, but last night he was still wide awake at 9:45 - tossing around in his bed, asking for this and that. And that and this. And a bit more of that.
At one point, the conversation between Denis and Jon went something like this:
"You just have to close your eyes and try to go to sleep."
"But I can't sleep."
"Well, what do you want to do about it? You can't get up. It's nighttime."
"But it's not nighttime where all our grandparents live. It's morning there. I could just go there instead."
According to my Mother's Day card, Denis loves me quite a bit. More than 100,000,000 cars, in fact. Take that, Hello Kitty!
As for the horns protecting him against the things that try to eat him...? I'm not sure what that's all about. Self-preservation, I guess. Or perhaps he's been taking me literally: I love you so much, I could eat you up!
Other highlights of Mother's Day included some beautiful flowers and a lovely framed photo:
And a hike up to a pond with some friends.
Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there! Hope your day was as nice as mine.
As much as we love spring and have been enjoying this one, we're definitely starting to look forward to - and dare I say count the days until? - summer. We've got six weeks to go, and a 4-day weekend this weekend to whet our appetites for that long break.
Our favorite book at the moment is Mama, Is It Summer Yet? by Nikki McClure. The illustrations are gorgeous and the child's anticipation of summer is palpable. I've got my eye on two of her other books, as well:
Oh, how I love spring! It's been a beautiful, albeit chilly, spring here in Kobe this year. As busy as we are, we make sure we stop and smell the flowers from time to time.
Here are a few shots from some recent spring outings. I'm trying out a new tool - Animoto - for posting photos and videos. What do you think?
A couple of months ago, after we were coming back from a walk in the afternoon, Denis gave me a big hug and one of those looks that can melt a poor mom's heart. He was overcome with emotion for some reason, and the following conversation ensued:
Since he asked for it (and he only asked for it every. single. day. for two straight months), he was going to get it! A pink Hello Kitty birthday party.
The invitations were drawn up and sent out...
The cookies were made...
And the decorations were hung.
Then the fun really began. The kids came (unfortunately, rain drove us indoors; fortunately, there was a great indoor playground nearby)...
They bellied up to the bar...
And they tuckered themselves out.
They sang Happy Birthday...
They helped open presents...
And they (they being Denis) said, "This was the best birthday ever!"
Earlier in the week, on his actual birthday, Denis shared cupcakes with his classmates, teachers, and parents. Lucky Boy!
