pinku

FIVE - GOSAI - FIVE - GOSAI

Dearest Jakey, JJ, Bendy,

Three months ago on the 21st of October 2012 you turned FIVE years old - a whole hand of fingers. You got a LOT of Lego and a Maxi Micro scooter for your birthday. Since your birthday fell on a Sunday we had your party on the same day at the Essendon Traffic School. We were VERY lucky because Aunty Neen and Uncle Stephen flew down from Brisbane and Aunty Neen not only made the most amazing cup cakes but she also planned and made all of the party food with Uncle Stephen's help. It was fantastic. There were about 15 of your friends at your party and we also had a pinata, which you cutely called a pinni-yata.

My last update for you was when you were THREE years old - I can't believe two years has passed since then. Today is the 30th of January 2013 and tomorrow is your FIRST day of school - WHaaat??!! I remember when you were a baby and I would imagine you being a big boy and going to school in 2013 (which seemed SO far away) and now that day is here.

I loved reading your three year old update because even though I was saying how much you had changed between two and three (and you had) - the changes we have seen between three and five have been no less significant. 

Not long after your third birthday you became fully potty trained - it certainly took longer than eight hours which one book had professed would be a reasonable amount of time for a kid to become potty trained - luckily for us you succeeded in staying dry both in the day and at night straightaway. I don't miss nappies that is for sure. In 2011 you still attended Gowrie in Docklands close to my work and you moved to the kinder room where all of your friends were. I was happy that you were with your friends Max and Kai, but soon after moving to the kinder room with other bigger kids, you immediately dropped your nap :( I remember your first week in the kinder room you had an excursion to Fed Square to see an aboriginal dance performance - it seemed like such a BIG kid thing to do - we sent you off with a back pack and you rode the tram with your friends and of course had a fantastic time! 

Later in 2011 around September we decided to move you to a kinder closer to home so initially you were going to two different kindies every week between September 2011 and December 2011. It was a bit rough at first for both you and me as we had both grown used to the teachers and the routine at Gowrie. At the beginning of 2012 you went full time at your new kinder and the first few weeks were rough but once you got comfortable and made some new friends all was good.

Before we get further into 2012, other notable events in 2011 were your first camping trip to Daylesford - you totally loved tramping around the woods going bushwalking, and that love for all things to do with nature has really intensified over the past two years. You also went to lots of birthday parties and obtained a liking for lolly bags and cake :) At first you would just lick off the icing but now you eat the cake and the icing - smart boy!! Another big event in 2011 was the closing of the King Chow - your Nanna and Poppy's restaurant in Brisbane - they had run that for nearly 45 years - crazy!!

You turned four in 2011 and your love for dinosaurs, lego, superheroes and nature has been growing in leaps and bounds. For your fourth birthday party we had a superhero party at the house and we had a great time bouncing around on your new trampoline. We use the tramp to have picnics and build cubby houses - it is so much fun and I love spending time with you on the trampoline - we are on there quite a bit - we play games like "Let's swap sides" and I have taught you to do the daffy and now at five you can bounce on your knees and your bottom - a LOT of things seem to be clicking now that you are five and oh so grown up :(

We spent Christmas in QLD in 2011 and 2012 actually and as always we had a fantastic time with your cousins. Your dad went back to visit his brother for xmas 2012, but is back now to experience your first day of school with you :)

So back to 2012 - it was your kinder year at Montgomery Park and after the first month of settling in you had a fantastic time and made some great friends. You went to kinder five days a week and everyone knew you - we would go to local parks and people (old and young) were constantly recognizing you!! You really loved your teachers Maddie, Sharlene, Natalie and Wan Ling. Maddie really encouraged your love of nature and you became well known as the best mini-beaster around!! Your best friend during kinder was Aiden - you were both there five days a week and spent A LOT of time together - we loved hanging out with them until they moved to Perth last November but hopefully we'll get to visit them this year some time.

There were lots of excursions and incursions last year to the museum, scienceworks, the zoo and the aquarium. Apart from kindy you were really into LEGO - Ninjago, Superhero, City, Monster Fighter - actually you love all lego and became an official member of the Lego Club last year. You also love the show Deadly 60 with Steve Backshall - he is the English version of Steve Irwin - Australia's crocodile hunter. 

We went and saw A LOT of movies together this year - I think I've seen every single animated movie that was released in 2012 and that is no joke.

So I mentioned you turning FIVE at the beginnning of this post and to be honest I have been shocked by the amount of changes that I have seen in the past two months. You have started taking showers (you also still take baths) and it is a very convenient option for us. One of my biggest worries during your kinder year was that you refused to draw or do art - WHAAAT - you would always reply that you can't do it - it was shocking to hear those words from the mouth of a four year old. BUT since you turned five you have started drawing again suddenly and both your father and I are over the moon. We also tried to take you to swimming lessons and you HATED it, but I tried again at the beginning of 2013 now that you are five and about to start school and guess what - you loved it!! As I said before you can now bounce on your knees and bottom on the trampoline and we are finally setting up your very own bedroom and you are very excited about that!!! You brush your own teeth completely, dress yourself completely (although we still need to work on tieing shoe laces) and you can even make yourself a jam or a honey sandwich - you leave quite a messy trail but it is a helpful task in the morning if I want to have a little lie in. Oh and before you would never get up and go outside by yourself but while your Uncle Stephen was visiting you started doing this out of the blue. I wonder if it is all this talk of you being a big boy has made you realize that you can do big boy stuff, but the changes have been phenomenal and they have happened quickly.

Just so you know you are still a good eater although today you randomly told me that you don't like dates or sausages anymore!!! I mean dates I can understand but sausages....after you said this though we had sausages for dinner and you ate them no problem :)

So on this the eve of your big new adventure, I sit here wistful about the past five years with you and how far you have come. You have the absolute best laugh of anyone I know on the planet and a great sense of humour (although your potty humour has definitely come to the forefront lately). I love your insatiable appetite for knowledge about nature (we borrow at least 10 to 12 books on dinosaurs, bugs and animals every time we go to the library) and the environment around you but I also love that you love superheroes and watching spiderman and old scooby doo episodes and I recently cracked and bought a Wii U because you have been DESPERATE to play Skylanders after playing it at your friend Stanley's house. We have only had it less than a week but I have enjoyed playing Zelda and Mario as much as you love playing Skylanders (well maybe not quite as much - ha!). We have also discovered working as a team on Pikmin is also a family favourite :)

Jake you really are a rad dude! It is hard to believe that by the end of 2013 you will able to read!!! I can't wait to be there for you on this new adventure at primary school. You are and always will be my best friend, team member and love of my life.

Lots of love,

Mum oooooxxxxx

THREE

Is it true Jake that you will be turning three in three days time??!! I know this fact blows away both your father and I. I really don't know where to start in compiling your latest adventures. I feel that 2 to 3 for you was a BIG year - you went from a few words to a talking machine who talks about gargoyles, feeling frustrated and having best friends!! You went from being completely dependant on us to being able to completely undress yourself - I love the proud and excited look on your face when you finish this task! We haven't quite mastered the potty yet but I know you will get it eventually. You went from being breastfed quite a bit to being fully weaned.....and it all happened completely naturally. I am so happy to watch you grow and master all of these new skills but there is part of me that is sad as from you will only get more and more independent as time goes on.

In a week's time we'll be having your birthday party and you'll have your friends from kindy there and I feel like this is YOUR first real birthday party that you can enjoy with your friends and I am very excited about it. I've even taken a week off work to prepare and then recover :)

We also moved house again and you've adapted really well. It has taken a while to get used to the fact that we have a backyard with grass and a deck! It all may be normal for most people but after so many years in Tokyo we are all still getting used to the greenery - it is awesome.

You are definitely a little more picky when it comes to food but you'll still eat most things including veggies - yay! You are also great at brushing your teeth and you never fight it which is awesome. We have had a bit of an issue with you skipping your nap at kindy, which means you are tired beyond words when we come to pick you up and this has led to you falling asleep on the tram a few times.  Luckily you have a great teacher who has been able to encourage nap time as much as possible so you are back to napping a couple times a week when you are there, but I must say that two hour naps are the norm when you are at home - I figure you must be catching up on all that lost sleep. I know that a lot of kids start naturally dropping their nap around this time but seriously you've never been a kid that can do without sleep!!

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UPDATE: Dear Jake - it is now Jan 30 2013 and I never actually finished the above post or posted what I had written back then but I am so glad that I wrote even the little bit that I did because time passes SO quickly. Tomorrow is your FIRST day of SCHOOL - OMG!!! Both your dad and I are FREAKING out, but I will have my calm happy face on tomorrow....until I get home from dropping you off :( Ok Will post this post and then I am going to write your 3 to 5 year update - it is a BIG one!!!!! Love you more than words can express :) Mum ooxx

 

 

 

 

15 goofy months to 17 goofier months

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!!

another saturday at the zoo

13 months and one week

J,

You turned 13 months old last week. Only a few weeks after you took those first tiny baby steps, you are now walking confidently by yourself. It's kind of amazing because we spent months waiting anxiously and then you walked and after the first couple of weeks, it seems completely normal for you to be upright. Was there ever a time when you didn't walk? That's how it feels.

When trying to compose this post, I visited this site to check 12 month and 13 month milestones - you've pretty much hit them all. It's kind of amazing how you pick this stuff up when we are not actively teaching you all of these skills. We really do need to watch ourselves though because the other day you father slapped me on the bottom in front of you and then you walked over to your father and slapped him on the bottom. We figure that we should focus on hugging in front of you from now on to avoid possibly embarassing public situations!

I posted about your one year old birthday last month but I don't think I posted a photo of you at your party. Unfortunately right before we lit the candles on your cake and Aisha's cake, we put a little hat on you and you pulled the elastic and then let go. Ouch! I mean I would have cried too!

Luckily there were a lot of happier times at the party too. I love this next photo because I can tell from your expression that you are playing peek a boo with the your new hat from martine. cute.

Some of your new favourite activities are throwing and kicking a ball - you are REALLY good at this especially the kicking! I was surprised to see just how good you are but it makes sense since you practice everyday at the park with your dad. You also love to climb the ladder at the park and go down the slide all by yourself in addition to all of the ride on toys.

You have now completely switched to one longer nap a day - it was rough for a while there as it took you some time to get used to the new schedule, but things are much smoother now. I only wish that your dad didn't have to 'wear' you during your ENTIRE nap - you are getting heavy you know and your dad's back can't take much more of this. Food-wise you pretty much eat anything except all of the foods you are still supposed to avoid like honey, nuts and sugary food. Since the weather has gotten colder we share a big bowl of oatmeal with banana and apple in the morning - yum!

Another new morning event is TELEVISION - you know the joys that are waiting for you on the little screen and point and grunt for us to switch it on. Luckily NHK has some great kid's tv on in the morning with no commercials and it is full of really educational and creative stuff. I can't stop singing the songs. We are a bit worried about how you turn into a complete zombie with the tv on, but since you only watch it for a little bit in the morning and in the afternoon we figure it's ok.

I'm really glad that I have been writing these updates mainly because I love to look back and read the old ones and to remember. There is no way I'd remember every little detail since the changes come thick and fast in these first couple of years. We love spending time with you and will do absolutely anything to hear that infectious giggle like throwing you around on the futons with the blankets (you really love that) and of course, eating your tummy. I think our house is pretty fun for you and you definitely make it more fun for us. You've started to give me big sloppy kisses when I ask and my heart pretty much melts when you do and I can never get enough. It's amazing watching you start to understand us and grow into a little person. To be honest though I still can't believe that you are our son and that we made someone as awesome as you - it's so cool!

love mama

Feeling nostalgic

The nostalgia hits every now and again, as does the power of the bond to your own baby - it's kind of amazing!

This time last year Jake was much smaller than he is now.....it kind of looks like J has a mohawk in this photo but that's his father's mustache!!

Park time

Now that J walks, we spend A LOT of time at the park. It's a nice safe area where he can just go, go, go. However he always seems to gravitate towards the concrete paths and steps - are they easier to walk on? I really don't know what the attraction is with all that great grass available. Today was a national holiday in Japan (there are a lot of them actually - at least one a month except for June and August), so I was the lucky one able to take J to the park/zoo this weekend - in three days I think we went to the park about five or six times. The little zoo near us is also a popular destination with lots of little kid rides, animals of course and play equipment. I will be writing more about J's playground adventures in his 13-month update this week.

Legs Eleven!

You are on the verge Jake....on the verge of walking. It hasn't quite clicked to you that you can walk and right now crawling is just so much quicker. I on the other hand am on the verge of tears. Not sad tears mind you, I just feel so nostalgic that there are just over two weeks before you turn ONE YEAR OLD. Over the past few weeks I've found myself pouring over the photos from the early months....it's all going by so quickly. I know I'm completely biased, but you are gorgeous, and I'm not just talking about your handsome good looks, you are an absolute shining light in our house and a complete delight to live with (except for that whining sound you make sometimes....).

So, exciting changes this month include you signing back to us! Yay! We've been using the website Proactive Parenting to get some ideas about how best to raise you and one of the tips for raising toddlers is repetition and patience - that's really true! We've spent months teaching you how to back down the stairs carefully and now you can - really it is quite amazing and your father and I feel so proud. Another one of your cute traits is copying me. If I'm brushing off the futons with my hands, you come and join me and do it too.

photo by martine cotton

You still love your jumper and we use it every single day. It's hard to keep you in one spot when trying to get chores done like cooking, so the jumper and an episode of Baby Einstein, Yo Gabba Gabba or the Muppets buys us 20 to 30 minutes to cook and clean up after you - our little tornado. One thing that you especially love to do now is sit in our genkan (entrance) and pull all of our shoes off the shelf. We discouraged this behaviour for a while and also thought of installing a baby gate, but we find that after about 10 - 15 minutes of destruction you tend to move on to new activities!!

Behind you in the photo on the above right are your pig sisters, Sugar and Loretta. Unfortunately we had to find them new homes this month, and luckily we found great ones. You don't seem to miss them actually but I know you loved them. They made you laugh. Another thing you really enjoyed this summer were the row boats in the park.

You continue to be verbally expressive with your dadas and mamas and babas. I think you even tried to say banana once. You will sit and play by yourself quite happily for long periods of time but eventually you come looking for us or we come looking for you. Your father is addicted to you blowing raspberries on his back - he LOVES that, seriously - you love it too. I really feel like your sense of humour is coming to the forefront and you make yourself laugh by blowing raspberries on my tummy, the floor, on the side of the bathtub - now that's hilarious! Your facial expressions are also priceless!

your smiles and your giggles are also addictive (this was taken on the day you turned 11 months old)

Jake Taiga - you are a real gem - a spirited little boy with boundless energy and you always have a smile for everyone although you are starting to get a little shy with strangers. Your father and I look forward to each and every day (and night) we spend with you. We whisper how much we love you in your ear pretty often and it is so so true.

photo by Martine Cotton

Welcome to double digits JJ!

Jake, you are now 10 months old my boy! That's double digits and only two months shy of the big O.N.E. Where has the time gone? Sounds like a cliche but it's oh so true. I've already found myself looking back nostalgically at photos and videos from your first week in this world - you were so tiny with cross eyes and oh so soft skin (I remember that was the first thing I thought when they placed you on my tummy after you were born).

So last month was all about clapping and all the fun that goes with that, but then just as you turned 9 months old you started waving bye bye too. Well that just about brought your father and I to tears. I am not kidding you. It's so cute. Now when I leave for work in the morning you are always there with a smile waving bye bye. Although it's cute, I much prefer the big, big smile you give me when I come home from work - that's priceless.

I guess there is a big developmental spurt going on right now because you are changing. I really, really feel the interaction now. You really 'look' at me. We had a rough time at the beginning of nine months when you transitioned from 3 or 4 short (30 minute) naps per day to two longer one hour naps per day, but that's all under control now and we much prefer the two nap a day routine. Nine months was also big food-wise - you LOVE finger foods like cheese, banana, chicken patties, potato patties etc. I was hesitant to give you strong tasting things at first, but you didn't bat an eyelid....and just gobbled everything up. Those six teeth are coming in mighty handy.

Both your father and I agree that you have turned into a little boy this month. This makes us happy but also a little sad (because you know we loved our little tiny baby). You've also really started to LOOK at your books. You point and talk to yourself while you turn each page carefully (sort of). Another example of little boy rather than baby behaviour.

Since your fine motor skills have really improved that has also meant greater danger.....you were playing with a seamingly safe dvd cover the other day (actually it was the ergo dvd) and before I knew it you had ripped off part of the plastic and had it in your mouth - I ran really fast to remedy that situation. Plastic really scares me since we had your first choking incident this month - you somehow got hold of a small piece of the senbei (Japanese cracker) packet and started to choke on it.....luckily our friend Cam was there to pull it out of your mouth. Even though your dad and I have taken a short child/baby CPR/emergency medical care course, we plan to get credentials in this area because we envision our future filled with more of these.....incidents. I have a feeling you are a little more 'active' and 'spirited' than most......

this photo was taken just before the choking incident - our friend Cam gifted you with a Richmond Tigers beanie - little did he know those are the high school colours for both me and your father!!

So my dear boy I think that's it for this month's wrap up. You are keeping it real and making us earn our parenting badge - there is no doubt it is tough and tiring work (how did my parents have four??!!), but just watching you grow makes it really rewarding and it also makes my heart burst with love.

Wtih much, much, much love from your mama

Mama crafty

Are you a new mum? Looking for a reassuring place to ask questions and share information with other like-minded mamas?

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My only wish is that this is a safe place where people support others and don't judge. Everyone must find what works for them when it comes to this wonderful world of parenting.

Oh and please pass the link on to any other mama friends you have - the more the merrier!! Hope to see you at Mama Crafty soon!!!