Showa Park Part 2

After taking Mallory on my own and showing Brett the pictures, we decided to take a family trip to the park a few weeks later. So...we loaded up the stroller and a picnic and the camera and off we went.

Mallory sitting in the stroller, all loaded down with "picnic gear".

Waving hello

Mally and Daddy

The Japanese are crazy about their pets. This woman has a CAT on her back, complete with a shirt, hat and backpack!

Beautiful cherry blossom trees

It's a longhaired Maverick dog in a suitcase!

pretty flower patterns

grape hyacinths- these are the "fake bluebonnets" as I like to call them.

getting a ride from daddy

cherry trees in full bloom

hangin out on the blanket

our family :)

cherry blossom petals stick to your nose!

silly family picture

mommy and mal in the cherry tree

cell phones are delicious

cherry blossom tree in full bloom. they are so pretty. they don't las long (about 2 weeks max) but are gorgeous about mid-april every year. one of my favorite things about japan!

Showa Park Part 1

I went to Showa Park with Mallory and took some pictures of her in the flowers. The Japanese are very good about making room for beautiful parks and gorgeous flowers in the spring. I lvoe cherry blossom season around here, and this year the flowers were just gorgeous. Here are a few of my favorites from the day:

They don't have bluebonnets here in Japan, which is hard being from Texas, where bluebonnets are a part of every spring. I think every kid who has grown up in Texas has a picture their mother made them take in a field of bluebonnets. I was a little bummed this spring when I realized it was my first spring as a mommy, and I wouldn't be able to take my little girl to a bluebonnet field. So...I improvised, and stuck her in a patch of grape hyacinths at Showa Park. It was about as close as I could get, and I think it's a pretty close second.

Mallory and Mommy at the front of Showa Park

The gorgeous cherry blossom trees at the gate, driving back onto base

The cherry trees line the main street on the east side of base and are gorgeous

One of my favorite little things about Japan are the manhole covers. They are so decorative, in many different patterns, and the cherry blossom ones are quite cute I think.

My Kindermusik Kid

From January-May, I enrolled Mallory in Kindermusik classes on base. We went one day a week for an hour. It was a really fun class where the kids listened to all sorts of new music and played games, danced, rolled balls, played with scarves, bounced on parachutes, rocked in our arms, "swung" in beach towels....all sorts of things. It was a chance for the kids to use touch, sight, sound and activities to grow and experience new things. She started out at 5 months and ended at 9 months. She changed so much along the way and I could really see her learning new things in class. She learned to bang on a drum to a beat, clap, and loves to listen to the CD's and read the books from class. I loved spending that time with her (and it was a bit of exercise for me too- carrying her around, dancing, picking her up and down, etc for an hour is work!). It was a great class and we are going to sign up again in the spring. Here are a few pictures from one of the classes towards the end of the semester.

The lady in the green shirt is the teacher.

Crinkling paper bags is fun!

Tapping my toes.

Hats off to a great class :)

Shrine Sale with Culture Club

My Culture Club took us across town to s shrine sale. Shrine sales are quite popular around here. I guess they are like the Japanese equivalent to an American garage sale. They are usually on the grounds of a shrine, and people lay out all sorts of items they have for sale. Things range from very old to very new, very authentic to not-so-much, and very traditional Japanese to well, junk. It was fun to walk around and see all the items for sale.

The tori gate at the front of the shrine,and the entrance to the sale.

In front of soem bonsai trees that were for sale. They were $$$$!!!

This is a totally goofy picture, but I am trying on a coat that goes on over a kimono. Lots of ladies wear kimonos as their wedding dress, and then wear one of these over it at some point in the ceremony. I'm sure it looks better on the bride...

I ended up leaving the sale with 3 kokeshi dolls to add to my (and M's) collection and an obi hanger. For Christmas, the culture club gave us all obi's (the "belt" to a kimono). I wanted to display mine somehow, and found a neat hanger that the obi fits into and then hangs on the wall. It's now in our living room!

After the sale, they took us to TGI Friday's to eat. It was the perfect blend of Japanese and American culture for the day!

Mal passed out in TGI Friday's.

Eating and enjoying each other's company