Yakiniku! Yum!! (Japanese-style BBQ)

It was a cold, rainy day yesterday. It was hot until just a few days ago this year in Tokyo, but it seemed like autumn settled in all of the sudden. Somehow I just did not feel up to doing anything, so I stayed in with Yuuki and literally did nothing. It was one of those days where you can't seem to get out of bed and blame everything on the rain...you feel lazy but it's nice to have a day like this once in a while. Mizuki was able to come home early, so he took us out to Yakiniku to boost my energy. There is a Yakiniku restaurant on Komzawa-dori called Tokyo-en. It is only about a 5 minute walk from our house, and we had been wanting to try it. Oh my...the meat was thick, fresh and juicy, the kimchi and namul had great flavor, and the service and atmosphere of the restaurant was very nice. It was baby friendly, too! Although Yuuki is still too young to eat, they had a baby fork and plate ready for us since I told them we were bringing a baby when I made a reservation. They also gave Yuuki a baby chair to sit on, and he was able to enjoy sitting by himself for a little while.

They buy their meat everyday at the Chuo Meat Market in Shibaura, Tokyo, so the meat is very fresh, most of them just butchered that day. They take pride in the freshness of their meat, so they recommend to eat a lot of the meat raw or cooked very lightly. Their "10-second Loin", which means to cook on the BBQ for 10 seconds, is their specialty and most popular menu. It was delicious, it melted in your mouth. We are sure to go there again soon!

My Chair!

As a present for our new house from Mizuki's colleagues, we got a new chair for Yuuki's room. We requested the molded plastic rocking chair designed by Charles and Ray Eames from Herman Miller. We've always wanted it since we saw it at DWR in Santa Monica, so we are very very happy!! We got the sky blue color, and it is just beautiful. Yuuki has already claimed it is his chair!!! Thank you to all of Mizuki's colleagues!

My Chair!!

Thank you daddy's friends : )

Starting Solids

On his 5th month birthday, I introduced Yuuki to solids! It seems that in the States babies start off with baby rice cereal since rice is least likely to trigger allergic reaction. It is the same here in Japan, but we make soft porridge out of rice, not cereal.

Yuuki is not very good at swallowing yet, but he seems to love to eat. He opens his mouth like a goldfish when he sees other people eating, it is so cute : ) Yuuki already wants to eat on his own, and he takes the spoon away from me and puts it in his own mouth....this is going to get messy....!

Yuuki's first bite...."hmmm"

Yuuki's rice bowl,  a gift from Daddy's friend

I want to eat on my own!!!

Otsukimi (Moon Watching)

Yesterday, September 22nd was this year's Otsukimi day. In Japan, there is a custom to enjoy watching the full moon in autumn. The full moon in autumn is special, and it is celebrated on the 15th of August in the ancient Chinese calendar, so it varies each year. Since autumn is a time for harvest, there is a custom to decorate with Japanese pampas grass and make "Tsukimidango," a kind of mochi ball and enjoy it while gazing at the moon. Ancient Japanese believed that a rabbit lives on the moon since the shadows on the moon resemble a rabbit.

I think it is wonderful how the Japanese enjoy nature and the four seasons so much. I hope to show and teach Yuuki these traditions and customs as much as possible.

It wasn't the traditional "Tsukimidango", but we had Odango and Japanese tea for dessert.

Sitting Up

Today, Yuuki was able to play for about 5 minutes sitting up on his own!! He's only been able to sit with assistance until yesterday, it is so amazing how they become able to do new things all of a sudden. Yuuki seemed very happy about his new view sitting upright, and vigorously attacked some paper ads.

That was fun mommy!!!

Crawling

Yuuki is showing remarkable growth everyday. He started crawling last month, and now he can go anywhere he wants. Once he sets his destination to reach a toy or to come to me or his daddy, he tries very hard. I just want to hold him and hug him when he comes crawling with his all-gum smile.

Here I come Mommy!

I'm almost there!!

I can do it!

Yay! I'm tired...

Lunch at Beacon

On Saturday Yuuki and I went to Aoyama to have lunch with my friend Ryo. She is having a baby girl in another month, so she had such a cute belly, but she hasn't gained weight anywhere else, unlike me....I am still trying to fight off the baby fat I put on during my pregnancy. Anyways, we went to Beacon, a steak house in Aoyama. It has a great atmosphere with a high ceiling, spacious seating, simple but luxurious decor and great American fusion food. I also love their lemonade!! Somehow it's hard to find lemonade in Tokyo, it's not very common. There is an English menu and perfect English speaking staff, so it's really popular among foreign expats. It's ideal for business lunches and dinners on weekdays, but on weekends babies and kids are welcome so it's great for family brunches. It's great to have such an authentic restaurant to bring Yuuki along with.

My sempai from college, Shimpei-san owns the restaurant, and he was able to join us as well : ) We had a great time chatting and catching up. Actually, Ryo and I had some quality girl talk time while Shimpei-san babysat and took Yuuki around the restaurant!! Thank you so much Shimpei-san!! They seemed to click very well, and Yuuki looked really happy in Shimpei-san's arms. Maybe Yuuki's first job will be at Beacon!

Beer!

It seems Yuuki likes beer already, just like his mom and dad!

Yuuki 5 months old

It's hard to believe, but Yuuki has turned 5 months two days ago!! He has grown so big and can do so much now. I look at him with wonder everyday. How was he in my stomach just 5 months ago?? The little baby that slept most of the day can now smile, laugh, roll over in many directions, play with toys, stand up with support, babble, lick and try to eat everything, move towards where he wants to go, and most of all, make people smile all around him. His big black eyes are always very curious, and his hands reach out to everything he sees and puts them in his mouth.

Now we really need to keep a close eye on him, since he can move around anywhere. 2 weeks ago, I put him on our bed while I was taking out a futon for him to sleep on so he wouldn't fall off the bed, but just as I was getting the futon, I heard something fall to the floor and then a big cry...Yuuki had fallen off the bed!!!! We have a hard wooden floor, so I panicked...he cried so loud, it must have hurt very very much...I cried with him. It took me a few minutes to calm myself down and straighten my thoughts to ice him and take him to the hospital. Fortunately, the injury was just a little bruise on his face, but I felt so sorry for him and I promised myself never to put him on a bed or sofa alone. There are going to be so many obstacles around the house I have to be aware of!! I am especially afraid of the stairs, we must get gates and baby-proof our house ASAP!!

Mischief of one kind and another.....

New Life in Tokyo

So our dreamy student life in Santa Monica with sunny weather and long walks along the beach has ended, and now we are back in Tokyo, back to reality. So much has happened over the past two years. Marriage, grad school, moving to the States and coming back to Japan, and welcoming little Yuuki into our family. It has all been so happy and full of blessings and we thank all our family and friends for all their support throughout these two years. We love all of you very much.

I hope this blog will let our friends around the world know how our little Yuuki is growing, and how our life in Tokyo is.

We miss all of you, and please come visit us soon!!!