屋根の上でジャンプ

愛理が目を覚ますと、外はもう明るくなっていました。カーテンを通して太陽が暑くなっているのがわかります。こんなお天気のいい日は、それだけでうれしくなります。

朝ご飯の時、アッパが「今日は何をしようか。」と言いました。愛理は「屋根の上で飛び跳ねよう！」と提案しました。食器を片付けて、愛理とアッパは倉庫から長いはしごを出してきて壁に立てました。そして、まずはアッパが登りました。次に、愛理、真綾、お母さんの順番で上に上がりました。
上から外を眺めると、近くの公園の森や遠くの川や空を飛ぶ飛行機が見えました。みんなで屋根に寝転んで、しばらく空を眺めていました。水色の空にはたくさんの雲が浮かんでいました。愛理はイチゴソフトクリームの雲を見つけました。お母さんはキリンの雲を見つけました。真綾は魚の雲を見つけました。そして、アッパはグラノラの雲を見つけました。雲は風が吹くと形を変えたり、方向を変えたりして、どんどん遠くへ行ってしまいました。なんだか楽しくなってきて、愛理はすっと立って屋根の上で飛び跳ねました。「ジャンプ、ジャンプ、ジャンプ！」アッパもお母さんも真綾も飛び跳ねて、誰が１番高く飛べるか競争しました。愛理は負けないように頑張って高く高く飛びました。すると、屋根に大きな穴が開いて、みんなドシーンと下の寝室に落ちてしまいました。布団の上に寝そべって穴から空を見上げると、丸く開いた穴から雲や鳥や飛行機が見えました。このままでも楽しいけれど、雨が降ると大変なので、アッパと愛理はもう１度はしごを昇って屋根を修理しました。これで、もう安心。

夕方、空は茜色に輝いて、赤とんぼも飛んでいました。愛理はこの橙色の空をあの丸い穴から見たかったな、もったいないことしたな、と、ちょっと残念に思いました。その夜、みんなは今日見た空の話をしながら、いい気持ちでぐっすり寝ました。

お空の散歩

寝る前に、日本語の勉強のためにも愛理とお話を作るようにしました。

秋晴れの空を見ていると、みんな、空が飛びたくなりました。そこで、愛理は泉にコインを投げて「みんなで空が飛べますように」と、お願いをしました。
次の朝、目を覚ますと、みんなの背中にきれいな羽が生えていました。アッパとお母さんの背中は真っ白、愛理と真綾の背中には虹色の羽が生えていました。
まず、アッパが本当に飛べるか試してみました。バサッ、バサッと羽を動かすとビューンと空高く飛びました。愛理と真綾とお母さんは手をつないでパタパタとゆっくりアッパのところまで飛びました。
アッパが「どこへ行こうか。」と尋ねました。愛理が「海に行きたいな！」と言ったので、みんなで空をお散歩しながら浜を探しました。しばらくすると、遠くの方に小さな島が見えました。ちょうどいい浜辺もあります。みんなはそこへ降りました。
砂遊びの大好きな愛理は砂のお城を作りました。アッパがたくさん砂を運んでくれたので大きなお城ができました。真綾とお母さんはお城を固めるのを手伝ってくれました。一生懸命お城を作っていたら少し暑くなったので、みんなで泳ぐことにしました。新しい羽も海につかっていい気持ちでした。そこにイルカが近づいてきたので、真綾は大喜びで一緒に跳ねたり飛んだりしました。
みんなが泳いでる間にお母さんが森で果物を集めてきていたので、それをおやつに食べました。風が吹いてきて、いい気持ちになったので、持ってきたハンモックでお昼寝をしました。

目を覚ますと、愛理は自分の布団の中でした。とってもわくわくする夢でした。

Airi talks

One day Airi told me that Pooh is saying that he wants a glass of milk. I gave it to her for him. Then I heard that she was saying "Oishi (this is good)." I wondered if it was for him or her.


I wash sheets and hang out our Futons outside because they are wet every morning. I can't tell if it's her sweat or pee. Fortunately it's been nice weather for a while, so we can sleep on cleaned Futons everyday.

Anyway, that's why I try not to give many bottles of water to Airi at night. The other night, I ignored that she said that she needs water. Then she woke up and said, "Wait a moment. Please wait. I will get it for you." It really sounded like me. She was going to the kitchen. But it was dark there, so she gave up and came back to sleep. She learns my words very well.

While I was cooking in the kitchen, Airi came and pulled my pants off. Then she put her face to my butt. I was surprised! Why can she smile there? How can she learn it? I guess that children can learn something from the other parent,too.


Airi and I had dinner. Then she said, "Time to clean." She brought a broom and cleaned under her table and chair. She said, "Let me clean under yours, too." She follows me with this part:D

The next day, I let her dry her butt after I cleaned. She was not wearing diaper. I heard "Huh!" quietly. I found a small puddle and brown thing on the floor.


I like her talk though she is quiet to strangers. It seems she doesn't realize that she speaks two languages. Both are just one language for her.


Airi cuts bananas for snack by herself. Then I was counting cherries for her. She counted with me from one to six in English.


She knows many English words, but conversations in Japanese.


She likes to do many things by herself such as putting on a shirt, a pair of pants, and so on. She enjoys practicing them everyday.


Airi also likes to do same things with her parents. She brings each of us our hats for a walk. She wears sandals just like us. When she takes off her pants, she helps her father to do it,too. I call them "a naked tribe."


Finally she calls me "oka-san." Before she didn't have any words for mother. Now I hear "oka-san" from far away to look for me. I like it very much:)


I sometimes give raisin bread to Airi. She is a miner like me. She gives me back a raisin bread without raisins.


The other day, she found an ant was carrying one raisin which she dropped off. She cheered him up with saying "Oy vey, oy vey."

Now Avram is in Australia. I enjoy my Japanese breakfast. Airi usually has Avram's breakfast, homemade granola. But she knew that J-breakfast is also good. Even fermented soybeans and sour plums. She finished mine all. I had just white rice.


After the breakfast, I had to give her a shower because of the slimy body from the soybeans. It looked like she was in a cobweb.


She made some friends at school. She likes to go there. I like that she learns many words there,too.


Every teacher says Airi talks well and enjoys music and dances.


It's very interesting to watch her growing up everyday. I will let you know more later.

19 months

Airi enjoys her school three times a week. She doesn't cry when I drop her off anymore. She smiles and says "see you" to me.

She plays with her pooh bear and Avram at home for a long time now. It gives me some time for house work and rest.

She is curious for many things. Especially words. The school helps to improve her speaking.

She has more motivation to talk and learns a lot of words in her life. Her teachers are surprised that Airi knows and says many words in English and Japanese.

We don't teach anything at home. We see many things with her or watch what she's interested in now. We enjoy talking with her and taking her out to show the world. When we say words, she follows them and learns very quickly. It's fun to see that she enjoys words and the world.

Airi wakes up at 6:30 with some farts (sometimes). She says hello to family pics and her pooh.

She eats her homemade granola with yogurt and lots of fruits. She is getting better with using a spoon these days. Then I chase with her to make her brush her teeth and to change her diaper. She enjoys running away from me. Every time she goes out, she chooses her shoes to wear. I leave her at the school around 9:00. She puts things away where they are supposed to be and washes and dries her hands by herself. She says "see you" to me and joins her friends.

She likes working such as cleaning or getting something that someone mentions better than playing with toys. It seems like that she enjoys the conversations. She enjoys understanding what people say. She likes to talk to people and makes more friends now.

She doesn't like that her hands get dirty. She cries when they play with glue or paint colors even though she can eat sticky things by hand. It doesn't make sense to me, but seems like that she thinks it's painful when her hands get those colors. She gets shocked from them.

She likes slides, seesaws, and rocking animals, but doesn't like swings in parks. She likes finding ants, riding Avram's bike, and wearing a rain coat and boots in a rainy day.

When we come home, she sometimes cuts bananas and has it for her snack. She helps me to wash dishes and get stuff from the fridge for cooking.

While I am cooking, she takes care of her pooh bear like her little brother, sister, or friend. She talks to him and shares things with him. I like it. We try to let her meet many people, especially children her age. She is happy with them.

After meals, she calls Appa Avram because she knows who lets her wash her hands, plays with her, gives a bath to her, reads books for her. The pooh joins them, too.

I am very happy that she enjoys being with other people. Now I don't have to carry her all the time everyday.

Airi and her Appa went to bed at 8:30. Time to rest for me. Party time!

Sento = Japanese Bathhouse

Last week was a little chilly and rainy. I came home from work and after an early dinner, I suggested we take Airi for her first trip to a local public bathhouse. We went to hot spring resorts last year, but have never had a chance to check out our local offerings.

We went down the hill and visited a little place on the side of the road. In typical local bathhouse style, the women went in one door and I went in the other. Once inside, we were separated by about 3 feet. Between us was the woman who worked there and who keeps an eye on everything. I paid for us and then found a locker. The woman working there has a great view of both sides of the sento and the wall separating the men and women was only about 7 feet tall. The roof of the place was high and allowed for lots of echos.

I found a locker and put my clothes in there, all the while answering "yes" as Airi shouted "Appa" from the other side. I went into the bath and washing area on the men's side and Airi and Rie went into the women's side. Airi kept calling me and I kept answering her, but it was hard to make out words because of all the tile that made the sounds bounce around.

I washed up and had a good soak, but the water was hot and I could hear Airi being cautious from the other side. After a nice soak, Rie and I shouted back and forth and agreed to head out.

I dried off and changed back into my clothes before meeting Rie and Airi outside for the short drive home in the rain.

We had a good time and I am looking forward to checking out the two other local Sentos in the area.

Grandpa Al

When I met Grandpa Al for the first time about five years ago, I was surprised that he was tall and big because many Japanese Grand parents are shorter or smaller than their children and Grand children. I was almost saying "Wow!" to him.
I heard that Grandpa corrected people's English, so I tried not to say "yeah" and tried to say "yes." He sometimes asked us to make sure what we meant "correct?" I like it. I would use it to Avram and Airi.
Avram and I skypped with Grandpa and Grandma Lillian on weekends, especially after his favorite teams' football games. We could imagine how he was like in front of the TV.
Grandpa sometimes read our blogs. His favorite one is this one. It's about that I farted in front of Avram and a bird got crushed by the gas. Avram liked that Grandpa picked the story.

Airi met Grandpa on January 24th, Monday. First she was nervous with him. But Grandpa talked to her and came down from a chair to Airi and sat on the floor with her. He showed sharing food with other people to Airi. Airi didn't get it at first, but after a while she gave her favorite fruits to Grandpa. I can imagine that he was a good teacher.

Avram, Airi, and I visited Lake Worth. We all wanted to spend time with Grandpa and Grandma as much as we can in this trip. It was for Avram and me, but more for Airi.
Airi was getting used to Fox family. She talked to Grandpa. Grandpa sometimes missed her communications to him, but Grandma said, "Al, Airi is talking to you" to Grandpa. Then Airi got his smiles.

At our last visit to Lake Worth for this winter, Airi was very comfortable with Grandpa and Grandma. She went to sleeping Grandpa and talked to him even though he didn't answer.
Airi liked Grandpa's toes. She touched his toes when she walked by him and tried to put his slippers on his feet, but always failed it. Then she made me do it.

On February 16th, Tuesday, Airi and Grandpa were talking and smiling to each other even though they didn't understand each other. They were sitting on rocking chairs next to each other and enjoying the time.

Next morning, Grandpa Al was very sick. Airi knew that Grandpa is not right. She was standing and watching him. I kept calling him "Grandpa, Grandpa!" Airi learned the word then. She also called him "Grandpa" a few times very clearly. It was her first time to say the word. Airi looked scared to see what's going on. She couldn't walk to him on the day.
Even if Airi is a 15 month old baby, she has sense with people's feeling. After a few days, she looked for Grandpa at their house when we visited Lake Worth. She went to Grandpa and Grandma's room, but couldn't find him.

We got nice pictures and videos from this winter. They were very good memories for us.
In Japan, we have pictures of our families on the wall. Airi has looked at them and waved her hand to them every morning since she is one year old.
The pictures and videos will remind us of Grandpa very well. Then Airi will never forget that she had a great time with him.

We Japanese say the person who passed away is alive in our minds. I am sure that he is in Airi's.
I will remember him everyday when Airi eats a lot of food. She follows him with that part very well.

Airi says ... ,

Airi says some English and Japanese words.

English : open, milk, pooh, apple,banana, shoe, and bird.

She learned some things for the U.S. such as blowing a kiss, high five, and sometimes hugging.

Japanese : まんま、じいじ、きれい、もう１回、行こう、靴下（くっ）

Bowing for before and after eating, bowing for greetings, bowing for please and thank you, opening her palms to ask open, showing her pointer finger to say one more time, cuddling to show she likes it, and so on.