No more mom labels

Today I read a post on another blog site that SUPER annoyed me. I read posts and said blog often (not going to call anyone out here) and I usually really enjoy them. I usually agree with them, find them funny, etc., not today though. This particular post was complaining about "helicopter moms", it talked about how judgmental they are, how they ruin park time for everyone (kids and parents), and so and so on.

The problem I had with this is that while this post was complaining about this "subgroup" of moms being very judgmental, the post was extremely judgmental in tone, so in theory you are just bad as the person you are complaining about.

Why do we even have these labels? Mainly, they are just to lump everyone into a category for us to judge. Helicopter mom, Tiger mom, attachment mom, Free-range mom, Panda mom. Why can't we all just be moms? Especially since there is a lot of grey area on this. Sometimes I act like the "helicopter mom" and hover (especially with Bret, because he always gets himself in crazy situations), sometimes I am more like the "free-range" let them explore on their own type. Sometimes I let my kids have cookies and juice, other times I make them snack on water and carrots. It doesn't really matter.

The only time I will judge you at the park is if you straight up don't pay a lick of attention to your kid (especially if your kid is causing issues), or if you are totally neglecting your kid. I don't use labels to describe my parenting, or other people's parenting (unless it is to say they aren't being a parent). The labels being their just causes us to be more judgmental.

Hey, if you want to play with my kid while I sit in the shade, or help my kid do something that I don't care to help him with, more power to ya. I'm not going to get all pissy and bent out of shape about it. I'm not going to mentally give you the finger for it, and I hope you don't mentally give me the finger for enjoying a little bit of downtime while my kids play.

Cinco de Mayo

Since Cinco de Mayo is coming up, I decided to teach the kids about Mexico and the holiday, and put some Spanish into their learning (I like incorporating upcoming holidays into their learning because it makes crafts/activities super easy). I printed off a few things for them to color. The first was just a Cinco de Mayo coloring page that they colored while I talked to them about Mexico and Cinco de Mayo. The second was a map of North America.

I labeled Canda, United States of America, Mexico, and the oceans. I gave them special instructions for coloring, each country and ocean got a specific color. 

After that I created a spanish words/pictures activity because I have learned that having the picture and the word really helps Sophie. I decided what words to teach, got a clip art picture of it and printed it. I printed each word in English and Spanish.

We went over each word (in English and Spanish) 3-4 times that night, and we will keep working on it.

**I'm thinking about doing the last activity with Japanese words to help her learn a little Japanese while in Japan.
**I do these activities with Bret too, but he never really pays attention, and doesn't really follow directions yet, so it's really just busy work to keep him occupied while I work with his sister.

Spaghetti with pork meatballs

Spaghetti with pork meatballs, yum! We haven't had spaghetti in ages it feels like, so tonight I'm whipping up some spaghetti and meatballs (using ground pork instead of hamburger). As I have said many times, I don't usually measure, especially spices, but I will try.

Meatballs
1 lb ground pork (or burger or turkey if you prefer)
2 eggs
1/2 cup bread crumbs (I use garlic and herb)
2 green onions chopped
basil (about 1 tsp)
oregano (about 1 tsp)
salt and pepper (to taste)

Sauce
29 oz can tomato sauce
garlic(for powdered I use about 1/2 tsp, cloves I use 3 cloves minced)
onion powder (about 1/2 tsp)
basil (about 1 1/2 tsp)
oregano (about 1 1/2 tsp)
parsly (just a sprinkle, about 1/4 tsp)

I use whole grain spaghetti.

1. Mix meatball ingredients in small bowl and mix with hands. Roll into small balls (about 1 tbsp) and place on greased baking sheet.
2. Cook about 45 minutes until golden brown
3. While that is cooking prepare sauce. Heat tomato sauce on low heat and add all ingredients, stirring occasionally, heat about 15-20 minutes on low. I always taste test to see if it needs more of anything.
4. Cook spaghetti according to directions on package.
5. Serve

PIZZA

We love pizza, but I am not a huge fan of Pizza Hut and Dominoes over here was sorely disappointing. So here is my recipe for buffalo chicken pizza (we also use this same thing for bbq chicken pizza).

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast
Frank's hot sauce (or bbq sauce of your choice)
pizza crust
mozzarella cheese
toppings of choice (peppers, olives, mushrooms, etc)
olive oil (only a tbsp or so)
seasonings (to taste, for buffalo chicken pizza we use cayenne, black pepper, and a pinch of Lowry's)

1. Season and grill the chicken.
2. Preheat oven
3. Shred chicken with forks
4. Brush crust with olive oil
5. Brush crust with sauce (either bbq or Franks)
6. Cover with cheese and toppings of choice
7. Toss chicken in sauce (again either bbq or Franks)
8. Add chicken to pizza and bake (the crust we buy needs to bake for 10 minutes)

Schedules/routines for toddlers

The kids and I used to have a very set routine (when I worked it was even more strict), but lately we have completely gotten off of our routine. I have been very tired/exhausted lately and the kids have been extra whiny/irritable lately so tonight I am making a routine (flexible not rigid) for us to stick to on a daily basis. I am hoping Sophie will get into preschool on base for the coming school year (and if she doesn't we will most likely enroll her off base), so I want to get her into the routine of waking up and getting ready at the same time throughout the week, so that when August comes she isn't thrown through a loop. I have also noticed that Bret tends to do much better behavior wise when he has a routine (we are keeping it flexible so that things like errands or daddy's shift change won't completely throw it off balance). I'm going to leave room for adjustment, if needed. Here is what our daily routine looks like for weekdays (weekends are kind of up in the air, it really depends on what is going on and if daddy is off that weekend or not).

As you can see I set aside about 2.5 hours each day for learning and that I split it up. I did this because I attempted to do at home preschool with the kids last year and I learned very quickly that Bret is unable to stay focused for a long period of time and that made everything more difficult and both of us became frustrated very quickly. I also am going to do something different this time around in that I am not making learning time completely structured and planning what we do for each day way in advance, because sometimes days just don't go as we planned and they take a different turn, and that's OK. I will either plan the night before what we do for the next day, or wake up in the morning and decide what to work on while eating breakfast. That way if it is a nice day we can do outside activities or if it is crummy/rainy we can plan for indoor activities. I find the different learning activities we do all over. Here are some great resources for learning activities http://livingmontessorinow.com, http://www.makingtimeformommy.com/, and http://www.readingconfetti.com. If you look at my Mom Stuff board on Pinterest, I have a ton of activities/lessons pinned from these sites. We also have ABC Mouse, and the kids have leappads, we have each of them set to their level with lots of games and songs for learning on them. Sophie's is set to Pre-K and Bret's is set to early preschool. We also do lots of activity bins and sensory play (those keep Bret's attention the best). I'm also hoping that we can add in some learning trips to some of the museums around here (there are so many...the train museum, trick art museum, national museum and so many more), and also hit up some of the local zoos. We have been to 2 but there are a few more.

Advice for new military spouses

 Military life is hard. It is not for the person who isn't willing to work at it. When I met my husband we were both in the military. We met at tech school, and even though I was military before becoming "just" as spouse, it's still hard for me. That being said, I don't buy into the whole "being a spouse is the hardest job in the military" bull. Yes, being a military spouse is hard and it certainly has it's own set of challenges, but it is not a job. If you view your role as a spouse as a "job", then chances are you are doing it wrong. 
One of the main things to remember is to support your spouse. Without supports, no military marriage would work. I'm sure you are hearing a lot of things about the military not being supportive of families. I have found that to be completely untrue. Yes, your spouse may need to work on a birthday or anniversary, but when shit hits the fan, the military can be very supportive. When I got a call from the UC saying they thought my son had cancer (don't worry, he didn't), my husband was off work in the blink of an eye to be at the hospital with me. When money was tight, we received food donations from the squadron.
One thing to be prepared for is for your spouse to miss milestones. It sucks, but it part of military life. They will miss birthdays, anniversaries, possibly holidays. They may even miss pregnancies or childbirth. We can't always plan TDY's or deployments. My husband was gone for a majority of my first pregnancy and our first anniversary. This is why it's important to make friends at every base, find some positive people to have in your life. My first pregnancy I had almost no friends at the base (I worked off base, and my guard base was over an hour away) and it really took it's toll on me. Luckily I have a pretty awesome group of friends for support now. Also, get involved. It seems like there is always some event going on. There are intramural sports, spouses groups, book clubs, block parties, and so much more. Get out there!
Military schedules can be crazy. If you are lucky, your spouse has a 7:30-4:30 5 day a week job. Congrats if that is the case. In other fields some work 24 on 24 off, some work 12's on panamas and work nights or midshift. Some places may be critically manned and they may have to work more than expected. 12 hour shifts may turn into 14 hour shifts. The biggest thing is to learn to roll with the punches (I know, easier said than done). Your spouse may have to take weekend duty or work on Christmas. They may get called back in after just getting home from a 12 hour shift (especially if they are not a nonner). 
Exercises are a main stay on military bases. They happen often and the WILL disrupt your life. Be prepared to show your dependent ID just to get into the post office or bank. Be prepared to not be able to make an appointment at the clinic because of it. If you live off base and need to get on base, you will wait in a never ending line, same goes for trying to leave the base. It's annoying for sure, but complaining won't change it. Exercises are how they stay prepared.
If your spouse works with classified/sensitive intel, they won't be able to talk to you about work. It's not that they don't want to, it's that they just can't. They could get in a lot of trouble if they did. Along those lines, be mindful of what you post online and your privacy settings on social media. Know who can see what you post, a lot of terrorist groups use social media now. Know what things are ok to post and what things aren't. If you are unsure, ask your spouse. 
Try to learn the lingo, it will make things easier on you. The military is all about acronyms and abbreviations, they use them a lot and more than likely your spouse will unknowingly use them when talking to you. Know what an LES is and how to read it (Leave and Earnings Statement). Know what the MPS and DFAC are (Military personnel flight and dining facility). Know what to say when asked what your spouse's AFSC or MOS is (basically, their job title). Know what TDY is (temporary duty assignment) and PCSing is (permanent change of station). Those are some of the most commons to know. 
Make sure you keep all important documents safe and in a central location. That way in the event that you need to leave your home quickly (like a fire) you can easily grab them. Important documents include Power of Attorney, marriage certificate, social security cards, passports, orders, birth certificates, and anything else of that nature. Those are things you don't want lost or damaged. 
Know your spouses chain of command, and how to get a hold of them in case of emergency. These are the people that can quickly locate your spouse if needed. They are also the people to help you with important things while your spouse is deployed. Know who their supervisor is, who their first shirt is, and who their commander (or xo) is. It's also good to have key spouse info. These are the main people that can help you if needed.

I have included a printable below. One is for the fridge, for important names and phone numbers.

The joys of parenting

The joys of parenthood (I say that only half sarcastically because sometimes it actually is a joy). I love my kids, and would do anything for them, but parenting is hard. The good outweighs the bad, but it seems like bad days happen in 3's. I truly believe that saying that babies are cute because otherwise they would get eaten by their parents. 

Parenting is full of awesome moments, like the one pictured above. Those moments are great, those are the first hug kind of moments. They are the rocking your newborn sleeping baby in the morning with a cup of coffee. It's your kids cuddling in the bed together. It's your baby's first steps, or first words, or first crawl. It's that first "I love you Mommy". Parenthood is full of these awesome moments that will make you proud and fill you with overflowing joy. They are awesome and wonderful and they are what being a parent is all about.

These are the moments that make your life worth living. They are what every parents hopes for and more. Without these moments, no one would want to parents, because without them parenting is just the never ending tasks of wiping butts, cleaning up vomit, and being a referee to fights. Without them parenting would be all the bad and none of the good. Luckily these moments do exist, and these moments are better than anything else in the world. 

They make all the other stuff that goes along with being a parent worthwhile.

Those awesome moments are spaced out between these kind of moments. Moments of your child screaming because you dared to snap a photo of them. These are moments that happen multiple times a day, and just when you have had enough and you are ready to throw in the towel, one of those awesome moments will happen, and you will forget all about the bad moment. Your toddler may bounce up and down on the baby's head one minute and then give a slobbery kiss 5 minutes later (yes, I am speaking from experience on that one, it happened in this house). There will be the moments of the baby peeing all over your new clean outfit 5 minutes before you need to leave for work. You will be told by your toddler that you are the meanest mommy in the world because you told her she couldn't have candy for dinner. Your kids will fight over one specific pony, even though there are 3 others right next to them, because they both NEED that one specific pony. 

You will catch them shoving their heads in the toilet because "they wanted to take a shower". You will get screamed at for not letting them play with your iphone. There will tantrums in the grocery store because all the car carts are taken. You will break up about a million fights between children. These moments suck, they usually happen in 3's, when you are exhausted and you will think you are about to lose your mind, and then right in that moment, something great will  happen. That's when your 2 year old son will come up to you in his sister's tutu and do the duck face just to make you laugh. It will make you laugh, and it will take away all that exhaustion and frustration. Those are the moments to look forward to and to live for.

I hope everyone's day is filled with the awesome moments.

Thai basil coconut chicken

Tonight I decided to really change it up and make Thai basil coconut chicken (I learned maybe not make spicy Thai food for the kids, they aren't big fans, but I didn't realize it would be so spicy). I really enjoyed this recipe, but maybe save it for an at home date night with the hubby (if your hubby likes Thai food-mine doesn't).

Ingredients:
1 lb chicken breast
3 tbsp coconut oil
1/2 tsp cayenne
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 can coconut milk (full fat)
2 tbsp honey (I like Wild Mountain 100% raw uncooked honey)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup basil leaves (the store was out, so I sprinkle dried basil on it)
salt to taste
rice (you can use whatever you like, I couldn't jasmine rice, I used minute rice this go around because I had some to get rid of)

1. In meduim skillet heat coconut oil. Cut chicken into small cubes and add to hot skillet. Sear on each side for a few minuytes until golden brown.
2. Add cayenne, garlic, ginger, turmeric and stir into chicken. Pour in coconut milk, honey, and apple cider vinegar and simmer. Stir occasionally and simmer about 5 minutes until sauce starts to thicken. Add basil leaves and salt to taste. Serve over rice.

Here is an easy printable version of this recipe:

Basics that all new moms should know

Everything is scary when you are a new mom. You don't really know what to expect, even if you read the "What to Expect When You're Expecting" a million times. You don't know what to worry about and what is nothing to be worried about. It's definitely a learning curve, and if you don't have close friends that are moms, you might be on your own (I was pretty overwhelmed when Sophie first arrived). So I have decided to compile some helpful tips and such for new moms who may be a bit frazzled. 

First up, breast feeding. This can be easy to grasp for some moms or it can be a nightmare. I had both of those experiences. Sophie had zero breast feeding issues, she latched right away and we were good to go. She did ween herself at 3 months (which was disappointing). Attempting to breast feed Bret was a nightmare. He would latch for 2 minutes, get a tiny bit of milk and then scream bloody murder, this was basically our existence for the first 2 weeks of his life, latch, suck, scream, repeat all day and night. I tried to see a nursing consultant, but I had him over the holidays, so no one was available to me. I was too exhausted to research ways to help, so after seeing his pediatrician and him not gaining any weight we changed to formula (and had the same result, until finally trying soy formula). I really wish I had done the research then, because I now the likely fix was very easy, reduce or eliminate dairy in my diet. If your baby has issues with latching you can try a breast shield, I never needed one, but I have heard they work well if that is an issue you are having. If your nipples start cracking and hurt, try lanolin. I used that the entire time I breast feed Sophia. If you get painful lumps the best advice I can give is to massage it out in a hot shower. If your baby seems to not like your milk, try changing your diet, babies get the taste of the things you eat through your breast milk. There are also ways to boost your supply if that is a problem you are having. Most important make sure you are eating enough calories, breast feeding mothers need to eat on average 300-400 more calories per day than if they weren't breast feeding. There is also Fenugreek and brewers yeast, also in the yeast family, beer can help, just make sure you don't drink too much and pump and dump.

Next up, constipation. First off, every baby has different poop routines. Some poop after every feeding, some poop once day, some go a few days between poops. Know your baby's poop routine. If you are formula feeding, it could be something in the formula that is making baby constipated and you might want to talk to his/her ped about switching brands (just know there is some overlap when changing formulas, so give it 2-3 weeks at least to see if the new brand is better). If your baby isn't crawling yet, you can bicycle his/her legs to help, if they are crawling, try to get them moving. If baby is over 1 month you can try giving a bit of prune juice or apple juice. Just an oz or so though, and don't dilute it, I know that goes against a lot of what people say, but the doc told me diluting it defeats the purpose because it's the sugar in the juice that helps. If your baby is under that age you can try sticking just the tip of the rectal thermometer in the rectum (if they have a super hard poop blocking it, the stimulation can help). Bret had a huge issue with constipation and this was suggested to us by the pediatrician after nothing else worked, and it worked amazingly. Warm baths can help sometimes as well (that always worked when Sophie got constipated).

Fevers, when should you worry? I know with Sophie's first fever I freaked out. She was 2 months old, and seemed fine all day. As we were getting ready to put her down for the night she started vomiting and we took her temp and found she had a fever of 104. I thought I was going to lose my mind, I had my husband speeding to the ER, luckily she just had an ear infection and she was fine after medication, but it was scary stuff.  First thing to know is most doctors won't accept a temp in a baby unless it is taken with a rectal thermometer as they are the most accurate (I know they sell pacifier ones now, but they aren't reliable at all, and most people don't use temporal ones correctly). Just so you are clear, 99 is not a fever, that is considered normal body temperature (can't tell you how many moms I saw when I worked in pediatrics that freaked out about a temp of 99). In a baby under 3 months, anything 100.4 or higher is cause for worry and the baby needs to be evaluated.  If over 3 months, if baby is drinking fluids and acting normal, it's only cause for worry if it lasts longer than 24 hours, gets higher, or doesn't improve with Tylenol or Motrin. A fever of 101 in a baby 3-6 months, you should call your doctor. Over 6 months, a temp of 103 and higher with other symptoms, like loss of appetite, vomiting, diarrhea, fussiness, or sleepiness you need to call the doctor. If your baby/toddler has a fever but is acting normally, call if Tylenol or Motrin don't help, or if lasts longer than 24 hours.  I know fevers can be scary, but if you have a 1 year old who is acting normal and only has a fever of 100.4 there isn't really much cause for concern.

Last topic is teething. Teething can be hell for some babies (and their parents). There are a lot of teething rings out there, but their are other ways to help as well. First I will say, do NOT use Hylands teething tablets or Baby Orajel, they can both be poisonous to babies. I did not know that the first time around and I used Orajel a lot with Sophia (wish I would have known it when she was a baby). You can get teething necklaces, we never used them, but I know a lot of people that swear by the amber ones. For Sophia freezing a wet wash cloth and the mesh feeding were the best things. We put banana or frozen blueberries in it and she went to town.

Bret had an issue with food, he couldn't have anything in his mouth thicker than formula until he was almost a year old, so teething rings and frozen wash cloths were our go to. They also sell molar chompers to help sooth the entire gum line. When Bret was old enough I made him teething biscuits with baby food and rice cereal, those were awesome! Easy for him to naw on and they really helped.

*Most of this information is from first hand experience (or I know because of my medical background). All other information was taken from www.babycenter.com and www.parenting.com.

Movie and game night

So I decided to do something special and fun for the kids this weekend, and have a movie/game night. It was a ton of fun (and we will definitely be doing it at least once a month)!! The kids enjoyed it and I had a ton of fun with it too (poor daddy didn't feel very good, so while he participated, he didn't find it as fun as he would have if he was feeling himself).

We built a blanket fort in the living room to conduct our fun in (apparently I am not that good at building blanket forts, so the hubby did most of it). He did a pretty good job, and the kids were very excited about it. I bought them a new game to play in the fort because I knew they would really enjoy it.

We played My Little Pony chutes and ladders. They loved it, and Bret won every game as Pinky Pie (his favorite pony). After the games we watched Disney movies (because why wouldn't we). The first movie up was Meet The Robinsons (an old favorite of theirs that we hadn't watched in a while). 

The kids thought watching movies in the fort was so much fun. After Meet the Robinsons, Daddy picked Tangled (yes, I am just as surprised as you are, I figured he would pick Lion King or Finding Nemo, not a princess movie).

We had tons of cuddles and it was awesome (Mommy loves her some cuddles). For dinner we had Disney food. First up was Mickey sandwiches.

They had Mickey sandwiches and dipsticks (carrots and celery with ranch) and of course we ate in the fort.

We finished the night with Lion King (my pick) and jello. I wanted to make jello "ice" cubes, but the grocery store didn't have blue jello, so I settled for raspberry.

It was a ton of fun and I think next time we will pick one movie and theme the entire night off of that movie.

Teriyaki meatballs

Last night I made teriyaki meatballs and rice for dinner and it was amazing!!!

These were kid approved, so I will be making them again, and they were pretty easy to make.

Ingredients:
Meatballs
1 lb ground pork
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 clove minced garlic 
1/2 tsp lower sodium soy sauce
2-3 green onions chopped
1/2 tsp of ginger (I didn't measure, just sprinkled. You could also use fresh ginger.)

Sauce
1/2 cup lower sodium soy sauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp corn starch
1/2 tsp ginger (again I didn't measure, and you could use fresh ginger)
sesame seeds

1. Set oven to 400. Start your rice. I use brown rice and it takes 50 minutes to cook. Cook according to directions on package.
2.Place meat into large bowl. Add minced garlic, green onions, soy sauce, bread crumbs, and ginger.

3. Mix with hands until everything is well incorporated.
4. Line a baking sheet with tin foil. Make tbsp sized balls.

Rolls the balls and place on baking sheet. You should get about 30 of them. 

Bake for 35-40 minutes until golden brown.

5. While those are baking start the sauce. Place soy sauce, brown, sugar, and water in small sauce pan and cook on medium heat until sugar is dissolved. 
6. Add rice vinegar, sesame oil, and ginger. Cook on medium a few more minutes.
7. Add corn starch and cook until thickened, then sprinkle sesame seeds into it.

8. Once everything is ready place rice in bowls, top with meatballs, and add sauce.
**What I like the best about this is that it's not to salty.

Japan Bucket List

We have been in Japan 3 years now, and I have barely made a dent in my Japan bucket list. This last year here, I am hoping to get done as much as possible. Here is my list.
1. Sapporo Snow Festival. I am really hoping we can make it next February, as it will be our last chance to go. I didn't sign up soon enough for this year, so we missed out this time around. It looks like so much fun, tons of snow, ice sculptures, and even more Japanese culture! This is definitely my top thing that I want to do in Japan before we leave.
2. Hiroshima is another fairly big one and we have been saving up to do this in the next few months. There are a few things I want to see in that area. The Hiroshima Peace Memorial is one of them, and the tori that stands in the sea is near Hiroshima.
3.Kyoto and Osaka (especially during cherry blossom season). This one is likely to never happen, but it would be so beautiful if we end up staying until next August. Kyoto is also where the bamboo forest and "Japanese Alps" are.
4. Ogasawara Islands. These islands while considered part of the Tokyo prefecture are actually a 25 hour ferry ride south of Tokyo. Amazing beaches, whale watching, starry night skies,  nothing like the metro area we live in and are used to.
5. Nagaski. What some people the Nagaski arch (it is actually called a tori) that stood standing after the bombs dropped is something I would love to see.
6. Tokyo Skytree, we haven't been yet but we are planning a trip when my parents come to visit us.
7. Tokyo Disney. It is the only Disneyland my husband hasn't been to, in the entire world. The kids and I were supposed to go last February but we had a few freak snow storms back to back and the trip was canceled.
8. Climb Mount Fuji. We have done this, and it was awesome. We will be doing it again this summer when my parents are here. There is an amazing ramen shop at the top. It took us 6 hours up and 3 hours back and it's a 2 hour drive to get there, but so worth it.

#Japantravel

5 of the awesome things about Japan

Here are my 5 awesome things about Japan. These are just things that are awesome about Japan in general, I may do a post later on about best things to see and do in Japan.

1. Vending Machines!! They are everywhere and they have them for everything! Seriously, no joke. In some areas in Japan (mostly densely populated areas) you can find some interesting things in vending machines. They have them for flowers, ties, batteries, really almost anything you can think of. In Japan vending machines aren't just for food and drinks. What I find awesome is that the drink vending machines have hot and cold drinks! Seriously, you can get a hot can of coffee from the vending machine (just be careful, the cans are REALLY hot). My favorite is hot milk tea, seriously, Japan has made me a Royal Milk Tea addict, and I didn't even know it existed before moving here! I have even gotten an ice cream cone from a vending machine (heaven right?)!! Another awesome thing about vending machines here is the creativity. Yes, vending machines rock!

2. Authentic Ramen. I thought I liked ramen before moving to Japan, but I was fooled, I will never eat Top Ramen again!!! I could eat Ramen every day (if I was made of money). Personally my favorite is miso ramen, but I will eat most ramen. Everything about it is delicious (aside from the seaweed, which is about the only thing I don't eat from it. The best part is most places that I have been to a bowl of ramen is between 800-1000 yen (which is between about 7-9 American). The bowls are usually huge and I rarely am able to finish and entire bowl, but it is so yummy!! If you ever have the chance to try real ramen, I highly suggest it.

3. Konbinis (convenient stores). You can pretty much find a Konbini on every corner.  The popular ones are 7-11, Lawsons, and Family Mart. Trust me they are nothing like convenient stores in America. The food is delicious. Every time I walk by one I get something. They have everything! The first time my husband told me he ate dinner from 7-11 I thought he was insane, but then he took me there and I ate those words, because the chicken curry was delicious, and the gyoza is amazing sauce!! It's a good thing I can't read Kanji, so I have no idea what fattiness I am putting in my body whenever I eat from there.

That is just a small sampling of food you can find at a Konbini, and that is Bret enjoying some mochi from the Konbini. You can also get some good alcohol from there Chu-hi's are the bomb, added bonus, no open container laws. If you are just out walking around in Tokyo, feel free to grab a Chu-hi from the Konbini to enjoy.

4. Theme Restaurants. There are many theme restaurants in Japan. I have only been to Alice (Alice in Wonderland theme) but there are so many.  Ninja themed restaurants, samurai themed restaurants, and sumo themed ones are just a few. There also many cafes of this sort, Robot Cafe, Vampire Cafe, ghost themes. There is even a prison hospital themed restaurant. There are also animal cafes. There are cat cafes, where you can eat and hang with cats, and an owl cafe where you can eat and hang with owls. While these places offer a fun experience (and we intend to experience a few more before we leave next year) they are pricey. It is more about the experience.

5. The last thing on my list is politeness. I am not looking forward to going to back to the rudeness of America. Young people always get up on the train to let an elderly person, or pregnant woman sit down. The Japanese are always more than willing to help, even if there is a language barrier. When my husband and I got lost looking for the line we were supposed to change over to, an elderly woman who spoke almost no English went out of her way to show us where we needed to go, and that is the norm here. I have seen videos of Japanese passengers pushing a train to help someone that fell on the tracks, if you accidentally forget your change the cashier will chase you down to give it to you, even if it is only a few yen. It is a way different culture and mindset and I love it. If a place isn't stroller friendly I can leave my stroller with diaper bag and everything in it and not worry about anything being taken or stolen.

Honestly, Japan has been an awesome experience and there a lot of things I will miss about Japan when we leave. #Japan

Teaching the Alaphabet

I have been trying to teach Sophia the alphabet for a long time, but for some reason she has been having a really hard time remembering the letters. I learned pretty quickly that the approach of just going through the entire alphabet was just NOT working for her. She never remembered what any of the letters were and would guess "p" for every letter. 

After a very frustrated mommy and Sophie, daddy suggested only doing part of the alphabet at a time. So we tried just going over the first half. Even after a few days of that, she still wasn't remembering anything but "h". So again, it was time for a new approach before the both of us just gave up completely. She knows the song really well, so I had organized the letters in order and as she sang it, she pointed to each letter. We would do this 3-4 times a day, and now she remembers a few more letters, but we are still having more trouble than I ever thought we would.

Today I found a resource that I believe is going to help a ton. http://www.themeasuredmom.com/letter-a-activities/. This is a mom whose 3rd child had issues with learning the alphabet. She has a ton of free printables for each letter on her site. She also does "letter of the week". I started this today with Sophie, and after just 1 day she is remembering "a", one of the letters she never remembered. 

This activity is "A is for apple" the kids color in the circles. (Bret doesn't really follow directions or color well, so his is just all scribbled, but Sophie did awesome.)

This activity she uses in a sensory bin, but Sophie gets easily distracted and I didn't want her attention divided between the activity itself and sensory play. Instead I laid out all the pictures and I asked her what each one was, once she answered I put the word above it (some she didn't know, like acrobat). After that we talked about how each word starts with A. Then I had her point out all the a's to me in each word. She did so well, she didn't miss any of the a's.

This activity is the "A book", it has little tunes/songs about words that begin with A (they all go to the tune of songs we know). I started by singing them once, then had Sophie and Bret join me. I also asked her what the red letter was in each title (hint: it's the A). Sophie loved this activity, she loves to sing. I will keep doing this, introducing a new letter of the week each week. Today we started with our normal singing and pointing at the letter eggs a couple times through, then added the letter of the week activities into it. I am really hoping this is as promising as it seems. Sophie seems to really have trouble with her letters, but she has no problems with her numbers.

** All the printables (aside from the eggs) were printed from http://www.themeasuredmom.com/letter-a-activities/. Go to her website to print off the free activities.