What a week!

What a week it has been!  This was the first of two weeks for the summer session of Medaka no Gakko.  For the first time, we are all a part of Gakko.

Jason is in a preschool class at Gakko with three little friends.  He's had a great time doing all of the activities, playing with his friends and today, they had a tofu party!

Ben is enjoying his first year in Class A (the kids spend two years in each class).  He's soaking up the Japanese folk stories, learning new songs and new Japanese words and generally having a good time.  For Show & Share, he wanted to take a bottle of Ramune (Japanese soft drink) to show his class.  But then he said, to really share, he wanted to bring one for everyone to try during snack.  All of the other classes were so bummed to know that only Class A got this special treat.

Kara has moved up to Class B and is happy to spend time with her friends and cousins at Gakko.  She's learned to tell time in Japanese, which she is also teaching me, while we drive places together and have time in the car.  

The first few days, Jason's favorite part of his day, as he reported before going to sleep, was camouflaging into this little tree in the courtyard.  He has worn camouflage colored shorts and a brown or green shirt four days this week, I think.  One night I did an extra load of laundry, just so that he could be in his "gear" the next morning.  But to hear his laugh (or squeal), as people are "looking" for him and cannot find him is worth the extra washing and drying.

Gakko has always been a family affair... Grandma started Gakko way back in 1980 when we were all kids.  So it's great to see Grandma back, whether it's helping in the kitchen or just stopping by to say hello.

Sho agreed to be at Gakko for the two weeks and so I made him snack coordinator.  There is no one better to be in charge of food!!  Everyone has commented on how good all of the snacks are... which is not surprising.  But we were surprised the day that only one of the three people assigned to bring snack remembered to bring in their yakisoba!  No worries... In true Top Chef style, Sho pulled off the Quickfire Challenge of shopping for ingredients and making yakisoba to feed about 40 people in less than an hour.  He will not be eliminated from the show :)

Uncle Ross (who lives in Los Gatos... nowhere near Parlier!!) has done an amazing job as our language instructor and has found fun and interesting ways to teach Japanese to kindergarten through 7th graders. 

And then, after Uncle Ross (aka Sensei Ross earlier that morning) does his real work in the afternoon, he manages to have enough patience and energy to play with the kids and go for night swims!

And... we cannot leave out another important highlight of the week... The Warriors are NBA Champions!!  The evening of Game 6, Grandma invited us over for dinner.  So we are getting ready to sit down at the table and for the first time ever, Grandpa turns the television off.  I asked, "what are you doing?" and he replied, "I didn't think you wanted your kids to watch TV during dinner."  Ben responds, "whose kids do you think we are?" and implied "of course we're watching the game during dinner!"

I can remember when we were living in LA and Sho and I were still just dating (so about 13 or 14 years ago), people kept asking him why he wasn't a Lakers fan...and he always said his team was the Warriors.  Even when they were terrible, he was a fan.  So it was a great night when the Warriors became NBA champions and all of the kids were watching with us, pointing out Stephen Curry (Jason), clapping for every made shot (Ben) and calling the "and ones" (Kara).

It's been a great week.  And I'm glad tomorrow is Saturday :)

Water Day

Today was the annual Water Day at school.  Since siblings are invited to join, Jason has been looking forward to this all week!

Kara had a great time running around and having fun with all of her friends...

Jason had a bit of a rough start and then was hesitant to go and play.  But then in comes Ben to save Water Day.  Ben was such a good big brother, staying with Jason to make sure he was comfortable and having fun.

Fortunately Ben had a chance to hang out with some of his friends too.

Jason was excited to pack a lunch and be able sit and eat with all of the big kindergarten boys.  And since they are both slow eaters, they were around long enough to be joined by a bunch of 2nd grade girls!

I cannot believe this school year is already over. Ben had a great kindergarten year and wishes he could stay in kindergarten forever... Who can blame him?

Kara, Ben and I went to Clay's graduation this evening because they have "friends" in 8th grade and they wanted to see their friends graduate.  There was a slide show that featured all of the graduates throughout their 9 years together and we saw the same field trips and activities that our kids have have enjoyed... and when we were walking back to the car, Kara says, "That will be me up on that stage in six years" and in that  moment it felt like life just zipped by.

So we will continue to soak up all that we can from Water Days and every other ordinary day :)

Children's Day? Boys' Day? Happy Day!

I have always associated May 5th with Boys' Day, but I guess it's actually Children's Day.  I decided to look it up on the internet and Wikipedia says it is "a day set aside to respect children's personalities and to celebrate their happiness".

Well, our boys being boys went outside after dinner and used their water squirters to see whose would shoot farther.

And then everyone wanted to pose for the camera.  Celebrate those personalities!

And if today is about celebrating children's happiness, then we definitely have a lot to celebrate.

Before the kids go to sleep, we often ask them about the best part of their day... and tonight, instead of asking, I told Jason that my best part of the day was this morning when, without prompting, Jason told us that his two best hobbies are snuggling and touching ears (he has a fascination with earlobes).  He then proceeded to ask everyone about their two best hobbies... Happy Children's Day indeed.

Get Your Swim On

With warmer temperatures, we decided to take the plunge (literally) and go for the first real swim of the season!

Jason was apprehensive at first to put his face in the water...

Ben was happy to swim across the pool with strong strokes and straight leg kicks.

Kara was the first to jump in, but she also enjoyed the warmth of sunbathing on the side of the pool...

And by the end of our swim, Jason was happy to put his face in, kick and swim to the steps.  He was also the one who did not want to get out of the pool and said he wanted to swim more!

Sho brought the shave ice machine out of the garage and started making syrups today... we're gearing up for summer!

Go Big!

Ben has been preparing for his Suzuki Book 1 piano recital for a few weeks and today was the big day.

Since the Run/Walk, I've been sleeping in a shirt that a donor family gave me at the event and the front reads "Go Big or Go Home" and so I have explained to the kids what this phrase means.  This morning, Ben woke up, came into our room and said, "today I'm gonna go big!"

Ben did a great job playing his 18 songs from memory and his 3 duets with his teacher.  Even when he had a little "bump", Ben remained calm and well composed and was able to recover on his own.  Sho and I told him we could not be more proud.

We are so grateful to have found such a wonderful piano teacher.  Mrs. Snyder has been amazing with Kara and Ben.  While at lunch today, someone asked about Jason's birthday and when he might start piano... hopefully Mrs. Snyder can work her magic with one more!

Parlier Picnic

Everyone looks forward to the Parlier Picnic... I remember loving the picnic as a kid and our kids always enjoy it.  I credit the Parlier Picnic with being one of the reasons why Sho was willing to move!

When Kara was little, we would practice her Parlier Picnic run in the backyard... she still smiles when she's running her races.

Ben got strategic with his running and by the last race, instead of running in a totally straight line, he admittedly ran in his friend's "lane" to stay in front.  Who knew he was such a competitor?

Even though the chopstick game was for the adults, Jason was interested in practicing so he can keep the family streak going... (Sho and I both won our respective rounds for the under 55 group!) 

For the first time, Sho and Kara entered the bocce ball tournament.  Kara was the youngest participant and though she was reluctant at first because she didn't know how to play, she was a quick study and they came in second.

Before Ben went to bed last night, he kept saying how he couldn't wait for the picnic and to play BINGO.  Fortunately, he sat by Uncle Gary, who offered to switch cards mid-game, which allowed Ben to win two prizes.

It has become tradition that the prizes for the last race are some type of water squirter and soon after the last race, a water fight begins using the ice cold water that the drinks have been sitting in... 

The other constant is a great time with family and friends.  It's always good to have things you can count on :)

We love Spring Break!

We could not ask for better weather during spring break... it is that sweet spot that doesn't last long... not too cold and not too hot.

We spent time outside enjoying the simple things... the kids took their sidewalk chalk and created their own masterpieces.  Ben drew all of the dragons from "How to Train Your Dragon".

Jason drew his first family portrait!  Mommy is on the left.... hmm.

Now that we live among acres of grapevines, we got to see the tiny beginnings of the grapes that will soon be flourishing around us.

We were one with nature and found some little friends...

And then there are the oldies-but-goodies that always make for a fun time. 

And after all of the outdoor fun, you top it off with a big, big bubble bath.

Now who doesn't want some of that?!