Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Noa's newest tricks

Noa is now 16 1/2 months old! wow, how time flies!
He is growing and learning everyday.....
His newest accomplishments and tricks include:

*being able to say: fishy, waffle, feet, phone, ball, bouncing...

*going down the stairs facing forward (scary at times, but he's getting better)

*Peace!*
...and the best part is he says "peeeeeeee" while he does it :D
oh, he is so Japanese!

I am also VERY proud to announce that our little man is really bilingual!
here is the proof:
 
A little background - we never actually taught him English body parts....only Japanese.
"anyo" (or Noa's "aniii") means foot/feet in Japanese baby language
"otete" (or "titi") means hand(s)

I am one proud mama


Love you Noa!!

Saturday, November 27, 2010

Happy Turkey Day!

Thanksgiving is such a wonderful holiday. A day of celebration. A day of eating and good food. A day of football??...and of course, A day of giving thanks and remembering all of the many blessings you have in your life to be thankful for.

This year we were able to spend this special day with great friends!
We got together, decorated, cooked, and brought together a fabulous Thanksgiving feast!!

Christal was the mastermind behind the table settings....I took pictures, and helped with these adorable napkin holders:
 Everything looked so put together.....
...and so much like Thanksgiving...

The food was, of course, AMAZING and DELICIOUS!!!
(I brought mashed potatoes, drinks, and veggies...)
We had turkey, rolls, mashed potatoes, creamed carrots, string beans, candied yams, stuffing, cranberry sauce, gravy, egg nog, ginger ale, and ..........

Dessert!!! 
(banana cream pie, pumpkin pie/cookies/cheesecake!) YUM!
And our entertainment for the night - this little monkey...
...and his table-dance??  ;)

For being as far away from home as I have ever been for the holidays, it sure didn't feel like it!

I am grateful for wonderful friends - and our home away from home!
Happy Thanksgiving Everybody!!

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Noa's Quarterly Report (videos!)

Noa is now 15-months old!!!
...I can't believe it!


How he's grown in the last 3 months:
☆he is SO TALKATIVE!! - his vocabulary has been expanding day by day - and he mumbles to himself a lot!
☆he can now say (mostly Japanese, but some English): Hi!, foot (あんよ), hand (お手て), pineapple, apple, pasta ("pa-pa"), baby, keys (かぎ), 着いた, ouch (いたい・たい),  no, bread (パン), belly button, milk (牛乳), やだ, eyes (おめめ), drink (飲む), doggy (わんわん), oatmeal, cheerio, cereal, banana, アンパンマン, cookie, what (なに?)・・・I know there's more!・・・ 
☆he loves to listen to (and try to gesture to) Itsy Bitsy Spider, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and Popcorn Popping
☆he eats 2 whole packets of oatmeal for breakfast! (one apple/cinnamon mixed with one plain)...then wants more cereal afterwards...how is he so small?!?!
☆he loves smoothies and fruit - grapes, bananas, apples, pears, watermelon, strawberries, pineapple...
he sleeps through the night! (Hallelujah!)
☆he has been falling asleep on his own for 2 months now! 
he's starting to like vegetables...(raw) cucumber, tomato, (cooked) potatoes, carrots, celery, corn, green peppers...
he plays well on his own...plays with other kids even better!
☆he's showing signs of understanding both Japanese and English 
☆he says "uh-vyu" when you say, "Love you!"
☆still gives the best kisses, and blow-kisses, ever!   
☆he says "uh-oh" when he drops something
☆he loves throwing things
☆his favorite snack: a tie between banana and cheerios (the plain kind)....but when he can have it, its definitely smoothies!
☆his favorite thing to play with...my cell phone or keys
☆his favorite song: Itsy Bitsy
his favorite toy: mega blocks




Here are some great videos of how Noa has been growing!
(sorry my phone camera video quality isnt that great...)

Noa saying "pineapple" :)


Noa got a hold of my phone...and recorded a video...


This is how Noa has fun, while daddy is studying in the library!
 


translation: "gyu-nyu" = milk and "pan" = bread... "oishii" = YUMMY!

I'll be back to post his 15-month stats after his doctor's appointment soon!

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

24 weeks...and counting....

...counting DOWN for a very exciting event happening in our lives very soon!


You may be asking...so, what's the event??


I will tell you....


*

*

*


the event involves


*Noa becoming a big brother...
*Me, becoming a mother of TWO...
*Our family total = 4!  (wow)
*2 sets of diapers!! (ahh...)
*us = # of kids (not outnumbered yet!)
*2 car seats...*sigh*

so on, and so forth...



but we are SUPER excited!!!


cuz look how cute :D
 
 



BOY or GIRL...any guesses??
(we will find out in just a couple of weeks!!!)

I am about 16 weeks into my pregnancy [I can't believe how long I've gone without blogging about it!] and I am feeling great! - no morning sickness like last time (yipee!!), but feeling a lot more tired and fatigued ALL the time...which could have something to do with having a very active 1-year-old...haha
I am showing a lot more than last time...[some of you may have thought I was just getting fat...totally understandable! :D]  and this pregnancy has gone a lot FASTER! I am almost half way through already! It feels like just yesterday I found out that I was having another baby.

I am NOT nervous about the pregnancy...but VERY anxious about after giving birth...Not really sure how I feel about becoming a mommy to TWO little ones yet...I feel like I have my hands full with Noa already - how am I going to juggle a toddler and a newborn?!? [help! any advice??]
We wanted our kids to be around 2 years apart so its (almost) perfect!  The due date is April 30th 2011...so Noa and the baby will be at least 20 months apart


I am very grateful for the blessing of motherhood. I am thankful that we are being entrusted with another precious child of God, and look forward to the wonderful experiences and adventures of our growing family!!!

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Rockin' the curly tail...

Happy Halloween, everyone!!!!
Halloween is such a fun holiday, and this year, Noa is going to be........

I ADORE his little costume! - especially the curly tail and the plump tummy/bum. :D
Thank you, Grandma Betty!

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Bucket List

Although not MY complete bucket list, I found this list on my friend's blog, and thought it would be fun to see how many of the things on it I have accomplished. ENJOY :D

(X) Gone on a blind date
(X) Skipped school
( ) Watched someone die
(X) Been to Canada
(X) Been to Mexico
(X) Been to Florida
(X) Been to Hawaii - yes! I can finally say that I have!! This one's been on my list for a LONG time!
(X) Been on a plane
( ) Been on a helicopter
(X) Been lost
(X) Gone to Washington, DC
(X) Swam in the ocean
(X) Cried yourself to sleep
(X) Played cops and robbers
(X) Recently colored with crayons
(X) Sang Karaoke
(X) Paid for a meal with coins only
( ) Been to the top of the St. Louis Arch
(X) Done something you told yourself you wouldn't.
(X) Made prank phone calls
( ) Been down Bourbon Street in New Orleans
(X) Caught a snowflake on your tongue
(X) Written a letter to Santa Claus
(X) Been kissed under the mistletoe
(X) Watched the sunrise with someone
(X) Blown bubbles
(X) Gone ice-skating
(X) Gone to the movies
( ) Been deep sea fishing
(X) Driven across the United States (does the 30-hour drive from Michigan to Utah count?)
( ) Been in a hot air balloon
( ) Been sky diving {who doesn't have this on their bucket list???}
(X) Gone snowmobiling
(X) Gone jetskiing
(X) Lived in more than one country
(X) Lay down outside at night and admired the stars while listening to the crickets
(X) Seen a falling star and made a wish
( ) Enjoyed the beauty of Old Faithful Geyser
( ) Seen the Statue of Liberty
( ) Gone to the top of Seattle Space Needle
(X) Been on a cruise
(X) Traveled by train
(X) Traveled by motorcycle
(X) Been horse back riding
(  ) Ridden on a San Francisco CABLE CAR
(X) Been to Disneyland
(X) Been to Disney World
(X) Truly believe in the power of prayer
( ) Been in a rain forest
( ) Seen whales in the ocean
(X) Been to Niagara Falls
(X) Ridden on an elephant
( ) Swam with dolphins
( ) Been to the Olympics
( ) Walked on the Great Wall of China - I REALLY want to do this!
(X) Walked on fire -more like "jumped" over the fire...?
( ) Saw and heard a glacier calf
(X) Been water-skiing/wakeboarding
(X) Been snow-skiing
(X) Been to the Louvre - I totally have!!!
( ) Swam in the Mediterranean
( ) Been to a Major League Baseball game
( ) Been to a National Football League game
( ) Been to a National Soccer (football) game

I think I will need to add to this list in the future!

I have been...

a slacker!... and I'm sorry....
I promise, our family hasn't dropped off the face of the earth...
we just went off to a little island in the Pacific Ocean called...Oahu!

and Life is better than EVER!

 regardless of...
the ~300 sq ft studio that we call our home, with no stove/oven, diswasher, laudry, or couch...
the hubby being a full-time student AND having a full-time JOB {NEVER being home}
living 10+ minutes away from campus and all of our friends [leaving me with no social life...]
 having a teething child waking us up all hours of the night...


I REALLY LOVE MY LIFE...

BECAUSE I HAVE...
a place to call HOME, a roof over our heads that shelters us from the rain
a hubby that loves us, that works SO hard to make us happy, and chooses to spend what little time he has, with us.
a car that takes us from point A to point B > and into the city when I need some civilized ppl interactions...
AND a healthy, HAPPY baby that brightens up my cloudy days with a simple smile/giggle


I have been
busy,
tired,
stressed,
and sometimes even a little sad...

but mostly, I have been...truly. truly.  BLESSED!


Aloha and Mahalo, from the bottom of my heart!!