Jake you are 17 months old today! This will be my last update from
Japan which seems quite unbelievable. I've been a bit slack with
updating, but am making an effort to write down my memories tonight
because I want to remember them forever.
So 15 months didn't
start off too well for you and your father actually. You were both very
sick with the stomach flu on the very same day. I can only imagine how
bad you felt - at its peak you and I sat on the red couch ALL DAY LONG
watching Baby Einstein, Sesame Street and many other tv shows over and
over again with short intervals for puking and napping. Anyone that
knows you will understand that you never really just sit around. I felt
so bad for both of you.
A common theme over the past couple of months has been climbing into boxes and buckets. It's quite adorable unless you get stuck or fall out of the said container and unfortunately those things happen a little bit too often. You are getting braver and more and more adventurous which means more and more near heart attacks for your mama and papa.
Other adorable new developments include you walking around with your eyes shut! Not sure what this is about, but it is cute. There is also a lot of spinning around and around until you fall over. You now kiss on demand (when you feel like it) and nothing warms my heart more than your wet wide open mouth planting one on my lips when I leave for work in the morning.
Just like when you got your first six teeth all at once, when you turned 15 months old your next six teeth - two bottom front teeth and four molars all came in at once and this played havoc with your sleep but to be honest my sweet, your night sleep has never been that awesome. You still wake up quite a bit but since I work I secretly enjoy those nightly cuddles (as long as I don't have to wake up too much).
One really exciting adventure was your discovery of snow for the first time. You weren't totally stoked at first. You were very wary of that white cold stuff, but after some time playing in the snow and feeling it in your bare hands and riding on a sled you seemed to be having a lot more fun. Your first snow experience was in Hirosaki while we were visiting my host family.
We spent a lot of mornings at Starbucks and the park and lucky for us it is always full of great doggies. This is Maria and you loved her. Over the past couple of months your animal sounds have increased - my personal favourite is your cat and your dad taught you the gorilla which is pretty amazing.
We have also been hesitant to let you play with balloons up until now because let's just say you've got a bit of a heavy hand. We relented one day.....and you ended up going through four balloons in one day. Everytime one bust you looked around completely perplexed for about 20 secs and then burst into tears. The 'be gentle' lesson is still continuing.
The absolute biggest change this month is the end of daddy daycare. Your daddy scored a great job in Melbourne Australia and had to move there a few weeks ahead of us. We are so proud of him and I am amazed at the fantastic job he has done over the past year with you. As your daddy always says 'I stand by the product' and you Jake, are an amazing product of you and your father.
So Jake we are moving to Melbourne Australia and even though you may not remember anything from this time, I hope that one day you can read this and understand just how special this time was for our family. Your mother and father met in Japan, got married in Japan, and you came into our lives here in Japan. We will bring you back to this special place in the future so you can eat sukiyaki, soak in outdoor hotsprings and wander around Harajuku, but for now we are saying goodbye to Japan and hello to our new life in Australia. Both your father and I are very excited to share this special new adventure with you - our little vigilante!!
