8 April 2010

We woke to blue skies, though the temperature was still disappointingly low at only 10C or so. Emily and I met Jo, Isy and Cooper in Meguro. I was happy to go back there for a second day running as the sakura looked lovely against the azure sky.

The girls played outside the jidokan in the sunshine, which was warm enough to warrant taking coats off.

On the way back along the river we stopped and bought yaki imo (baked sweet potato) from the old chap who cooks them in a brazier on the back of his minivan. Emily thinks it is hilarious if Nick or I do an impression of the mournful call that he plays over tannoy as he drives around selling his wares.

I think they are very slow-baked as they were incredibly sweet and really yummy, especially eaten al fresco from a paper bag.

It took ages to get Emily off to sleep. She got really upset - again - at the idea of having a nap. I think we are close to dropping it now, and I hate the thought but know it may be the right thing for her. Unfortunately it means that we can only ever have morning playdates as I will need to have her home and eating tea around 5.30, which will not fit well with her friends who nap in the afternoon. She keeps asking to go in our bed too, which I am reading as a desire to be in a proper bed, so we may also have to grit our teeth and change from cot to bed soon. I need to buy a duvet first, though she moves around so much in bed that I am sure she will end up uncovered and cold.

7 April 2010

The local hospital runs a paediatric clinic each morning, and Emily and I met Nick there. She seemed quite relaxed about the visit, and wasn't phased by the masked doctor probing her abdomen and peering into her mouth. I was pleased to hear that the problem could be resolved on the spot with a suppository, and Emily was a brave girl and submitted to its application calmly. Within one minute she was on the loo and expelling it all, and boy, was there a lot! I am hoping that it is an isolated episode but will have to work hard to get her to drink more as Nick and I feel that dehydration is the most likely cause, given her healthy diet. However, it is quite a task getting a reluctant child to drink water regularly, so only time will tell.

I had arranged to meet Minako and Haru-kun in the afternoon, for a stroll along the Meguro river, which is famed for its banks lined with cherry trees. Unfortunately the weather let us down as it was dull, wet and cool, so instead, she invited us to play at their house. I planned to go through without Emily taking a nap, so after lunch at home we set off for Meguro, and we walked the mile or more along the avenue of pretty blossom before Minako and Haru came to escort us from outside Naka Meguro station to their place.

They have a lovely little house, with a fresh, modern (un-Japanese) feel. The green-eyed monster flared within me yet again, though Minako assured me that the mortgage was crippling. Better than throwing money away on rent though. Emily and Haru, who will be three next month, played nicely side by side. He is also crazy about Thomas, and had a comprehensive set of tracks and electric trains. Whenever I think that Emily has too many toys I only need to visit someone else's home to change my mind. If we had more space I would love to get her a set of tracks, as I confess that I love putting them together too.

Given Emily's lack of sleep we set off for home at five, and she was just nodding off in the buggy as we got to Ebisu to pick up the bus that goes by the end of our road. She perked up at the prospect of a bus ride and we made it back with her enlivened enough to eat a good tea and get through a short bath without tears. Getting her to bed was another story though, and I had to leave her crying hard after her many attempts to get me to stay in the room. She has been asking to go into our bed the last couple of nights for some reason, and requesting hugs and for me to fetch things for her. I think times are a-changing....

6 April 2010

When I dropped Emily at Ui she got very upset, which is unusual for her, and I hurried away guiltily with her cries ringing in my ears. I prayed that she would produce a poo while she was there, but worryingly she still didn't do one by the end of the day. She did try to poo after tea while watching Peppa Pig but there was nothing in half an hour apart from a few tears. Nick and I were agreed that after 8 days we could wait no longer to get it sorted out professionally and would take her to see a doctor next day.


It was a beautiful day but I had to spend it all indoors, first in the swimming pool and then shopping and cleaning. It felt like the end of an era as I decided it was time to reclaim our living room and dismantle Emily's playpen, where her toys were corralled but she rarely played. It pleased my need for neatness to have a set of drawers in which to put all her toys away each evening, and I later smoothed her obvious fretting about the loss of the playpen by telling her she could decorate the plastic drawers with stickers.

4 April 2010

In the morning we attended a hanami picnic held by the nursery, in Kiba Park, a place we hadn't been to before over on the east side of town. Unfortunately it was really chilly and the sun didn't manage to break through the grey cloud all day. It's a great park, with a good playground, a large splash pool for the summer and a big open space with a mass of cherry blossom, beneath which many of the ubiquitous blue and green mats had been set out.

As we looked back through the bridge in the centre of the park we could see the half-finished Sky Tree,a communications tower that will eventually be about 600 metres high and the tallest structure of its kind. This week it became taller than Tokyo Tower so was on the news a lot.

Isy was also there, which was good as Emily was quite shy and clingy at first. Oli had made some tasty hot cross buns, which reminded me that it was Easter. I had completely forgotten because much as they like chicks and bunnies here, there is little mention of it in Japan. The kids enjoyed a simplified egg hunt: two small plastic eggs with their names on and tooth-rotting goodies inside for them to 'find' in the grass. I blew bubbles for the two girls to chase and our two families did a few rounds of Ring-a-Roses together, and then it was all over. Given the cold I was happy enough to pack up and get into the warmth of the station.

It was a tight schedule, actually, as we then had to go off to meet Nick's friend Mark and his husband Rene, who were holidaying from the UK, and their friend Vince. The latter lives with his partner on the British embassy compound and works at Goldman Sachs (Nick's boss wants to hire him to CS so they had a lot to chat about). None of them knew the Odaiba area, so we took them for the ride across on the boat from Shibaura. It was perishing but Emily and I huddled on deck together so we could look at the many points of interest. We were even rewarded with a sighting of the airship, which has just begun daily flights again after an absence of a few months. Eschewing the horrors of the shopping mall, we strolled along the waterfront park and back to pick up the monorail for home.

I had already decided that we would try to go through without a nap, though Emily was in the stroller for half an hour at one point and showed no sign of dropping off anyway. She was clearly very tired by the time we got home; alternately fizzing with activity then clingy and tetchy. We managed to get her through to bedtime by use of a whole hour-long Peppa Pig DVD. She was very pleased with the chocolate bunnies from Grandma and also a cute duck backpack.

Worryingly, she still showed little sign of doing a poo, though she mentioned it a few times, so that is five full days without one. I would gladly go back to the three day cycle I once fretted about now. We decided that it is time we consulted a doctor this week.

3 April 2010

Nick had a big night out after work on Friday, which he sorely needed, but as he didn't get in until 2.30am and was rather worse for wear I already had an inkling that I would not be able to go to my Japanese class on Saturday morning. I didn't begruge him the outing at all, but am worried about falling too far behind as I have missed four of the last six classes now.

It was a cool but pleasant morning, and Emily and I went up to Kamezuka park while Nick lay in until midday. It was a hive of activity up there, with some ladies doing tai-chi, a man practising on his guitar, some people picnicking under the sakura and many familes playing in the sunshine. A walking group came by who were doing a tour of all the main cherry blossom sights in the ward, and the park certainly had its fair share of the heavenly flowers. Though plum has a much stronger perfume than cherry, with so many open at once there was a gentle waft of the delicate scent in the air.

Later, we all walked up to K-Space for Soraya's 2nd birthday party. We were last to arrive; how come all those other toddlers could be there for 3pm? What happened to their naps? We tried to put her down early but Emily lay awake for ages and we had to wake her after less than an hour as it was, and were still half an hour late. There were about 20 children in total, plus all their parents, so the small playroom was a bit of a squeeze for the songs and actions led by Hadar. Emily was really nervous at first but eventually warmed up and began to enjoy herself and stop being clingy. We still sing all the songs from the year we attended K-Space so they were familiar at least.

Emily looked very sweet in an outfit that Gail and Dave gave her.

Soraya was pretty in pink, with her dark curls tumbling down. She is going to be quite a heart-breaker, I think, with her combination of Persian and Ethiopian features. Upstairs we tucked into a great spread by the caterers,, which was definitely aimed at the adults as it was quite sophisticated buffet fare. The kids put on splash tops so they could mess around with glue and make a monkey puppet each in the craft room, and then the lights were dimmed for the cakes, which were yummy though with far too much sweet icing for my ever-expanding waistline.

Back at home we made the George pirate hat together and Emily put on her fairy princess crown.

In the evening Nick and I watched the Man United v Chelsea game, which the latter won, paving the way for them to take the title; however a win later that day by Arsenal keeps them only 3 points behind Chelsea. It would take slip-ups by the other two to give any serious chance for them to steal the championship now though, especially as Chelsea have a superior goal difference.

2 April 2010

The last couple of times, Emily has got upset and said she doesn't want to go when I tell her in the morning that it is a nursery day. I am not sure what has changed, but she seems happy enough to go once we set off. I think she would prefer to just stay at home and watch endless Peppa Pig stories. I only have myself to blame for buying the boxed set! I rather like it myself though, as the storylines are often amusing, especially where Daddy Pig's monumental ego is concerned.


Recently, if I am cross with her (usually if she won't eat properly) she says 'Mummy happy'. To which I say 'I can't be happy unless you .....'. But I feel guilty when she says it as I don't like showing my displeasure, and I admit that I am prone to overreaction. She has also taken to saying 'I'm not very good at xxx' or 'I'm not very sure about xxx'. I don't know where she has got these phrases from as I don't think I say them much.


Erna is away for a month so I am having to do the ironing and cleaning. Honestly, I can't see how working mums manage at all. And I don't even have to wash and iron Nick's shirts! Exercising takes up the first couple of hours of a nursery day, but the rest is an end-to-end whirl of shopping, cooking, ironing and tidying. I've barely had any time to actually clean anything this week and it is starting to show. I would love to blitz the whole apartment, but the time just down relentlessly.

1 April 2010

Today was warm but there was a really gusty wind from the south. We played with Isy at Hon Shiba for an hour or so, then went straight to Teien art museum garden for Teo's birthday picnic. The cherry blossom was really good there. Emily and I arrived early and ate first, though she was being really picky and didn't have much at all.

The wind blew dry grass around everywhere. I do so miss the green, green grass of home. For large parts of the year any lawns they have here are yellow and in any case it isn't the same type so is a lot coarser than ours. Kara and Teo and a few other mums and kids arrived and we set up picnic mats in the very busy lawn area.

In retrospect, Kara should not have brought the birthday cake out of its box so soon, as after several strong gusts the cream was plastered in a layer of dust and grass.

We didn't stay long as it was already Emily's nap time. Even so, by the time I walked her home she wasn't in bed until 2.30. Consequently, the afternoon was already fading so we just stayed in after she woke, with a quick trip to the supermarket and many episodes of Peppa Pig (she is now watching for a total of about an hour a day, usually some while I shower in the morning and some after tea if she is good and eats fairly well). Pam had kindly sent Emily some Peppa stickers and a kit for making fancy dress hats, which she fell upon with enthusiasm.

She is really funny and copies the various piggy grunts of Peppa's family at the start of each story.