Ninja Mom

I started to label this post “Giving Birth in Japan, part 1”, but then that gives the idea that there will be a part two, etc. And I’m not making any guarantees.  I do want to document it though as much for myself as for anyone else who might be interested or who might give… Continue reading “The food is really good there…” 

Yesterday [at the time of my writing] was our Christmas party.  It was an incredible amount of fun, planning and coordination (think 40 people, different types of activities and rearranging tables in a Japanese sized space).  There were moments of chaos and afterward I wanted to collapse on the ground.  Fortunately, I waited until I… Continue reading Indigenize

This year Christmas falls on a Sunday (so does New Years, for that matter).  I love the idea of going to church on Christmas morning, and I also really enjoy when I get to go to church on my birthday (not for the congrats, I’m not that vain). This year though, contrary to every American… Continue reading Oh the Holidays

Imagine yourself in the middle of a beautiful field full of flowers (your preference), a lovely partly cloudy day with a gentle breeze and whispering trees in the distance.  Your tour guide leads you down an unmarked path and as you go conversing, you realize that you’re slowly making a giant circle.  Soon, you will… Continue reading The Mountain

With this pregnancy, I’ve gone pretty much according to the books.  Or the pregnancy apps. For example, the update for the day I turned 16 weeks alerted me that I could start feeling the baby move anytime from 16-21 weeks usually.  That day, I felt the baby move. I turned 28 weeks and it seems… Continue reading Big in Japan

Did you know…. There are 12 different classifications of income in Japan. My source: A Japanese accountant whose goal it was to determine what type of income we have since it’s US based (and I’m using the American definition of that term, no the Japanese idea of what that means). Guess what’s right around the… Continue reading A Little Trivia for You…

During the marathon that was November, we decided it was finally time to get my husband a new phone.  Our contract was coming to an end and his phone was already at its end. It froze, it typed its own words, it opened its own apps 5 minutes later… you get the idea. So, our… Continue reading All About Communication

Yesterday, we went to the zoo with some families from the church here.  As I am preggers and large, I had the great privilege of sitting in the front seat and chatting with the pastor/missionary’s wife- who speaks English. We were talking about her daughter and different testing stuff in school.  Somehow the conversation turned… Continue reading New things to think about….

Today I met for “donuts” with one of ladies and her two toddlers from our church here. In two minute segments, between kids squealing for more, trying to keep coffee out of their reach and otherwise keeping them from stealing each other’s toys or crawling under the table, we had the opportunity to discuss some… Continue reading Squeaky Pelvis Belts and Baby Baths

When I get home on Wednesday afternoons, I’m usually not good for much but to put my toddler down for a nap and climb in bed myself for an hour. This nap time is the deepest I sleep all week long.  So, what is it I do on Wednesday mornings?  A simple two-hour discussion group… Continue reading Wednesday Mush