Spoiled rotten

Hiromi and Toshi took the boys again this weekend and they're spending the night. Jan had an evening in with Esme while I went out for dinner with some of the moms in Jolon's class. Soon after they picked the boys up, Hiromi called and told me to come down to the street and look. Imagine my surprise when Kellan and Toshi rolled around the corner in the new Mercedes convertible. Kellan (and Toshi) could not stop beaming.

roller

Esme rolled over! Here are the stats:

Stomach to back:

Jolon-14 weeks

Kellan-17 weeks

Esme-16 weeks



Back to stomach:

Jolon-19 weeks

Kellan- 16 weeks

Esme: 16 weeks and a couple of days

esme on the sofa

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Happy Halloween

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Sports Day 2009 (Jolon)

Jolon's class was divided into two teams: red and blue. Ibuki said she timed the kids running around the track and tried to make it come out even, but for the past few weeks the blue team had been winning the relay race as well as the other two competitions. Jolon had told us this but didn't seem to mind. He'd been chosen by his classmates to be the second in command on his team, and he was the "anchor," in the relay. This meant he always ran last because he was the fastest. It also meant that he nearly always ran by himself. The 3 events were the nobori bou (climbing pole), the box game (the team has to work together to set up all of the boxes, jump back in line, get an ok from the referee, and then do it again, as many times as possible within one minute), and the baton relay. It was a beautiful day and all of the kids performed well. Some of them had only just recently become strong enough to climb the pole to the top, so the fact that everyone could do it was a big deal. This is just a short clip of his 3 events, starting with a bit of the traditional dance they've been practicing for weeks.

Sports Day 2009-(Kellan)

Kellan is wearing a pink shirt, and in the first race he comes in second. The next thing his class does is a play with each small group performing a part of a book they've been reading. As Kellan is climbing up the ladder, the principal says his name and that he's Esme's big brother and that he loves to do things for her (clean his plate, carry his chair back, share with his friends, etc.). Then he crosses the bridge, hops across the pond, and gets on the train at the end.

Before and after

Jolon really needed a haircut and by chance when I got mine cut last week, the hair stylist asked me if I'd mind bringing Jolon in so a trainee could use him as a model. They'd take some before and after pictures and we'd get a free hair cut. Although we have had some bad experiences before with Jolon's hair (the unforgettable bowl cut and then the shaggy, thinned out, razor cut), it was free and he did need one. Anyway, we're happy with the results, and the experience is worth writing about...First the consultation with the trainee, which took nearly 10 minutes: I explained that his hair was very fine and asked her not to use a razor, and then she pulled out a magazine and we finally agreed on a picture. And then she started cutting, and cutting and cutting. She worked on his hair (no shampoo-he was in the chair the whole time) for over an hour! Her boss kept coming to check and they kept making adjustments and the boss would cut and and then the trainee would cut. We got there at 6:00 and by 7:00 I was starving and Jolon was about to jump out of the chair. Actually he was amazing. They brought him a chocolate milk and some cakes to keep him going, and somehow he really did sit without squirming for most of the time (lots of funny faces in the mirror). We've taken him there before and it took awhile, but I was totally unprepared for over an hour. About 7:15 I told them he was getting tired and they sped up. Prior to that though they were completely absorbed in what they were doing and Jolon had been so good, that I think they just forgot about the time. Anyway, it's a cute cut.

Welcome, Baby Nate!

We are so excited now that Baby Nate is (finally) here. I knew that Allie was going to make a fantastic big sister, and the pictures of her holding Nate prove it. So sweet to see how pleased she is to be holding him. Congratulations Allison and Nicky! We couldn't be any happier for you.

Latest

Jolon and Kellan are gearing up for their Sports Festival on Saturday. Hiromi showed up at the practice last week and I guess seeing her made Kellan think of me, and apparently he cried....apparently very loudly and for a very long time, as in the whole time he was in the park. So much so that some of the others started to cry and they had to have a big class meeting about being strong and not crying even when the parents show up on the real day. Tomorrow is another rehearsal, and I'm anxious to see how he does. All anyone says about Jolon these days is "hayai!" "ashi ga hayai," (He's fast. His legs are fast.) He's the second in command on his team and he is really enjoying all of the attention he's been getting due to his running.

Esme's big news is that she's a thumb sucker. She can get it in her mouth very accurately and has put herself to sleep a lot in the past week. It's really cute, and new to me because the boys never did. She is also just starting to grab my hair which is a whole new stage. I guess next it will be dishes on the table. She can really push her body up when she's on her stomach and look around. Her neck is quite strong, has been for a few weeks. She hasn't progressed much past the ah-goos, but she is blowing some big bubbles and making funny noises.

Esme's 100 day old pictures

In Japan it's common to have a blessing at a temple when the baby is around 100 days old. We didn't go to the temple, but Hiromi did dress up her up in a kimono and Toshi took the pictures.

Things tend to happen when Jan is gone and I'm nursing Esme

Esme needs a new baby bed

Kellan and Esme