Family Pictures

Due to the complicated birth with the J Man, I could not get baby pictures right after he was born. So, we opted to have family photos done two weeks ago at a park outside of the city. The leaves and colors were beautiful and our photographer did a fabulous job capturing some great scenes of our family. I love all of them and cannot wait to see them in the final book. We have built a great relationship with our photographer, and I highly recommend her if you are in the Tokyo area. I thought I would put a few of my favorites on the blog. Sure do love these people God has blessed me with...such a joy to journey through life with them.

M 7 y.o. stats; J Man 9 month stats

Yesterday I ventured on the train with all three kids for a day out for fun - doctor visits and flu shots, a stop at two of our favorite parks, and melon pan at a favorite bakery in Roppongi Hills. The kids were troopers walking everywhere and after a few tears shed at the doctor, they were fine. It was a great day, one I will always remember...just having fun in the city. 

M's 7 year old stats are the following: 23.1 kg (50.9 pounds/75th percentile) in weight and 116.8 cm tall (45.98 inches/25th percentile).

J Man at nine months has the following stats: 7565 grams (16.68 pounds/5th percentile) in weight and 70 cm tall (27.55 inches/25th percentile). His chest circumference is 42.6 cm (16.7 inches) and his head circumference is 44.1 cm (17.32 inches). He dropped significantly in weight from the 25th percentile to the 5th percentile. The doctor was a bit concerned and suggested I supplement with formula in case my milk supply is low. One of my friends back home, who is a nurse, said he is probably fine and her kids did the same thing. 

It is so interesting how each of our children have such different physiques. The K Man is on the large size and is simply a big boy. We joke that our retirement is in his professional football earnings. Miss M is just average for the most part. And the J Man is our runt. I think he definitely got his obachan's traits as she is quite tiny and petite. 

Sadly the J Man had a cough and could not get his flu shot, so I will be taking him back another time for those 9 month shots. It will also allow me to weigh him a few times this  month and see if he puts on a bit of weight. 

It was such a beautiful fall day and we had fun enjoying some favorite things in Tokyo.

Nikko November 2015

A few weeks ago we had the chance to go to Nikko again and stay in log cabins with some friends. This is always a highlight of our fall calendar. The kids love being in the cabins and it is such a nice respite from the city life. This year did not disappoint us. We stayed in a new to us cabin and it was very cozy. We played by the creek, skipped rocks, learned about how rocks are made from daddy, roasted marshmellows, had a BBQ with some dear friends, and simply enjoyed the fresh air and being outside. We even saw a deer as we drove in late Friday night, which was a first for the kids. I was the token camera woman as the day before we left I threw out my back and could not carry J Man in the carrier. Thankfully I survived the car ride and did okay on the trip as we really did not want to cancel. Enjoy the pictures.

Kyoto

This past weekend we went to Kyoto to visit Mommy-chan and Oji-chan. Daddy grew up in a very old house that was connected to his dad's hospital. We showed the kids around and they had a ball exploring and playing. They loved getting lost in all of the secret hallways and closets. We were reminded how great it is to have space! We barely had to break up any fights and we hardly saw them because they were having so much fun together. We had a nice weekend visiting and showing the kids the city and home where daddy grew up. As you can see below, trying to get a group picture was next to impossible with the kids!

Scrapbook Day 11/15/2015

This month scrapbook day fell on a Sunday. Typically on Sundays we relax in the morning at home after a busy Saturday, skype with family back home, leisurely drink coffee, plan our homeschool week, and head to church in the afternoons. On this particular Sunday the husband was translating so he spent the morning preparing for the sermon. I tried to occupy the kids so they would not bother him. :) After church, daddy brought the three kids home, fed them dinner and put them to bed while I went to hot yoga. I could not do all the moves because of my back still being a bit sore, but it was nice to go since it had been a month since my last class, and I think the hot room helped loosen up the back muscles. We ended the day with Chinese take out and Black List, our current new TV binge, after the kids went to bed. Not a bad Sunday at all!

Here are some recent pics of the day.