Caring Yuta

This happened one evening some time back.

I left the two of them at home watching their favourite TV program - Anpanman while i went out to buy groceries. When i came back about half an hour later, Yuta was telling me excitedly that Miki has poo-pooed big time. Since i had yet to put down my purchases, , i told Miki to continue sitting on the throne until i went to her. When i was trying to clean her, i was very surprised that the toilet paper came out very clean. So i asked Miki did she clean herself coz she was not able to do it properly yet. Her reply`no, kor kor (meaning elder brother in dialect) cleaned my backside for me`....Wow ... I told Miki to thank Yuta. I too thanked Yuta for taking care of his sister. He looked very pleased with himself.

I must admit i am very touched, very thankful. Yuta is so sweet, so kind, so loving ... i daresay his future wife is one damn lucky woman ...

Fearless Miki

Miki has a set of Bornimago - strong magnetic rods and spheres to create virtually anything one can imagine .... time and again, i have to remind her not to put those nickel-plated balls into her mouth ... she doesnt listen to me & i often caught her red-handed ...

Miki was playing on her own in the tatami room while yuta and i were in the next room around 5 pm today ... suddenly, we heard her cries .... not her usual wailing and i knew straightaway something happened ... when i saw the set of Bornimago, my heart sank ... i asked her if she swallowed anything ... she just kept crying and refused to tell me what happened initially ... for a moment, her eyes were red and her face turned pale ... i tried to make her throw up by sticking my fingers into her throat .. it didnt work .. i pounded her back real hard ... again, it didnt work ... she continued crying after that ... she also admitted that she swallowed a ball ... so i told yuta to stay home while i rushed miki to our usual paediatrician nearby via bicycle ...

on our way there, miki was quite quiet ... when i asked if she was ok, she told me not to look at her ... and when i asked if she swallowed any balls, she told me `i only eat one ball ... one only`!!! .... upon reaching the clinic, she was happily jumping away !!! my goodness ...

we waited a while before our turn ... i supposed the nurses knew she was ok since she was playing happily ... the doctor checked her and concluded that the ball must have gone into her stomach and not her lungs ... i was told that the ball will eventually come out together with her poo poo within the next seven days and therefore i have to check her poo-poo everytime until that ball is out ...

after we reached home, i was busying in the kitchen ... a while later, i thought miki looked like she was eating some sweets ... i didnt give her any and so i asked what was in her mouth, she quickly spat out TWO balls .. she even got the guts to tell me `mama, i only eat one ball` ... my jaws dropped ... it was at the very most an hour after what happened and she was at it again ... this is it ... no more bornimago for the kids ...

perhaps, `fearless` is understated ... cant think of any other appropriate words at this moment .. sigh ...

Angels

Immediately after Spring break in May this year, i received a written notice from Yuta`s school to inform that its principal had passed away during the holiday season. I was rather shocked coz i last saw him just weeks before that. He looked well to me at that time. I didnt know that he was already at the last stage of cancer. Yuta`s school principal used to address the children during assembly every morning. Now, this is the first time that someone Yuta knows passed away. I know i have to at least try to explain to Yuta. I was a little teary after reading the notice and Yuta saw.

Yuta : mama, what happened ?

Me : Yuta, remember your school principal ?

Yuta : (nodded his head)

Me : Your school principal has passed away and he has become an angel

Yuta : (looking puzzled)

Me : He is sleeping now ... he cannot wake up .... coz he is going up to Heaven ... above the clouds ...

Yuta : (thinking for a while) but my school principal doesnt have wings, he cannot fly ... he takes fei ji ?

(fei ji in mandarin means aeroplane)

Me : errrr ...

ahhh ... the innocence of a child ...

kawaii jie jie

While stopping at a traffic light on our way to dinner at Shinagawa tonight, i noticed that there were many people, predominantly females, crossing this particular traffic light.

Me : PaPa, is there a shopping mall nearby ? How come i see so many women crossing this traffic junction ?

before Papa could say anything,

Yuta (who was in the front passenger seat) : PaPa, there are many girls and kawaii jie jie crossing this traffic light ...

(kawaii in japanese means cute & jie jie in mandarin means elder sister)

it took a while to sink into me ..

Me : whoa Yuta, how do you tell which jiejie is kawaii and which jiejie is not ?

Yuta (silent for a moment and then begun to feel embarrassed) ： mama, dont talk to me like that ...

and he proceeded to hide his face

PaPa : Yuta clever boy na ...

wah seh ... my son is not yet five and he already knows ` kawaii jie jie` ... dont know if i should be happy or not ....

Bedtime routine

How old are you ?

If you ask Miki this question, here`s her reply :

Miki`s birthday

27 Sep 2006 (Wed) - Home Alone

Miki was never left alone in the house whenever she was awake. Rainy season started in Sep. Sometimes the rain was quite heavy with strong gusty wind. Yuta`s school bus pick up point is some two, three blocks away.

Yuta comes home for lunch every Wednesday. On this particular Wednesday, it was raining cats and dogs. I was getting lunch ready before going out to fetch Yuta. I was very reluctant to bring Miki along, partly of the weather and partly Miki was sleepy.

When lunch was done, i told Miki that it was raining outside so she was to stay home and eat her lunch while i go out to bring kor kor home. I also told her that `mama will run fast fast and come home fast fast`. She seems to understand me and kept nodding her head. I also switched on the TV for her. I deliberately locked the upper lock and left the lower one unlocked coz i knew she could reach the lower lock. And so off i went.

When we came back some 20 minutes later, i was expecting to hear her wailing at the door. Instead, the lower lock was being locked. The TV was off and it was all silent when we entered the house. I shouted for Miki a few times before i heard her cries once and it went quiet again. We have a small apartment so i panicked when Miki did not reply when i first called out to her. I found her sleeping on her mattress and her lunch hardly any leftover. Boy was i relieved.

I am not proud of what i did but i am of Miki. It seems to me that she is much wiser than her age.

19 Sep 2006 - Yuta`s first day to school

Brushing teeth

water play

14 Aug 2006

15 Aug 2006 - Shinkansen

Perhaps coz Yuta is a boy, he has this profound interest in the different modes of transport.

When we were living in Singapore, he enjoyed taking buses, MRT, taxis and river cruise. His favourite then was DUCKBUS, a former Vietnam war craft that can go on both land and sea.

Then when we moved back to Japan in Jul 2006, he kept asking us when he can take Shinkansen aka bullet train.

On 14 Aug 2006, i brought Yuta and Miki to a local train station, just two stops away from our house, to SEE shinkansen passing by right below us. Needless to say, both Yuta and Miki were ecstatic whenever one passed by. We must have spent at least an hour inside the train station, roasting under the hot humid summer sun. When we were there, Obachan (paternal grandmother) called to ask what were we doing.

The next morning, before 8am, Ojichan (paternal granfather) called to ask if he could bring Yuta to take shinkansen. Wow ... how could i possibly say no? ... so that was Yuta`s first shinkansen ride, courtesy of his doting Ojichan ...

As for Miki, she went for a walk with Obachan while her kor kor was out with Ojichan.

A new beginning

Yuta and Miki, this is for the two of you ...