June Flower Arrangement: Diamond shape

This month's flower arrangement class is the most difficult so far for me. Diamond shaped arrangement.

View from above:

It's getting hotter here in Tokyo. Those flowers could only last for few days :(

Wednesday Bento: Shinkenja

I got flu, but I promised Iki last week that I would make this shinkenja obento. So here it is...

He was happy!! =))

Inside:

Green shinkenja: seaweed furikake onigiri, sliced cheese and nori

Red shinkenja: onigiri covered with crab skin, sliced cheese and nori

Yellow shinkenja: yellow egg onigiri, sliced cheese and nori

Rolled okra and bacon

Broccoli and crab salad

Watermelon

First beach visit

Last Sunday Hiro brought us to Morito Beach, near Kamakura. It was our first visit to the beach (in Japan) this year. A bit too early. It was still cold, and the cafes are still being built. The beach season will start on July 1st this year. Hiro, who hates crowd, prefers to go there either too early or when it almost finishes.

We had picnic lunch there. No, I didn't prepare anything. We just brought some food from the convenience store. Iki and Hiro played with the sand and the cold sticky water, and explored around excitedly, while I sat alone waiting. Ah.....this always happen lately. That Iki loves playing with Hiro, and that I have to kill the time alone (_ _!)

We also visited a shrine nearby where Hiro and Iki prayed a bit.

We didn't stay long. I felt the wind was too cold and was afraid to catch a cold (which actually really happened!) But it was a good relaxing one. I think it was a good change from our regular camping trip.

Lego necklaces

This is my latest interest. Making accessories from nanoblock, the micro size building block!

Small red robot necklace

Colorful nanoblock necklace

Simple red nanoblock necklace and earrings set

Blue robot necklace and earrings set

Little nanoblock robot mobile phone strap

I made these cute things for bazaar in Iki's school next month (^____^)

Kitty-chan: Mt. Fuji and Yokohama

These two kitty-chan were from last weekend camping to Saiko Lake!

This one is Kitty-chan in Fuji Mountain, drinking a cup of green tea -which is famous in Mt. Fuji area-

We went back to Tokyo through the highway that passes Yokohama area, so I bought this Kitty-chan bringing chinese' wrapped sticky rice (hmm....bakcang?). Yokohama has big China town. Though we didn't go there this time, I went there several times and loved the place!

And they joined the other kitty-chan on my fridge door ;-)

Wednesday Bento: Pokemon

Iki-chan is now crazy about Pokemon characters so these two weeks he requested Pokemon obento for his Wednesday lunch at school.

This was last week one: Naetoru (Turtwig) Obento

Inside:

Monster ball: quail egg with tomato skin and nori

Grilled tomato and asparagus salad

American cherries

Naetoru: wakame (seaweed) rice balls with cheese, ham, and nori as decorations

Rolled ham and spinach

And this one is today's bento: Nyoromo (Poliwag) Bento

Inside:

Nyoromo: Rice balls filled with pork ginger. With nori and sliced cheese as decoration

Soramame

Mini tomatoes

Grapes

Rolled bacon and carrot

He was happy!!! :p

Saiko Lake

We are out camping again. This time nearby the Saiko lake in mount Fuji area.

It's hot hot hot, didn't expect it at all. We were still wearing long
sleeves yesterday in Tokyo !

New class

This is my third class. Smaller than the previous two, but has 6 boys!
All are 4 years old!!

The most exhausting class so far, but they all are really eager to
learn. And it matters the most ;-).

I've got new request to teach another class of five 4 years old girls.
I think this would be the last class i would accept or I won't have
any free time left.

My house is like a small English school now!! :p

Gotochi Kitty

I recognized that there is always local's specialty Hello Kitty's souvenir wherever I went around Japan. Well, not only Hello Kitty actually. Doraemon, Kewpie and other character have too; but I think Hello Kitty one is the cutest.

So I started to collect Kitty-chan when we visited Shirakawa-go, during our golden week holiday early May. I regretted I didn't start earlier, we've been to many places that I doubt we would visit again in the future. But better late than never, this is my first Gotochi Kitty: from Shirakawa-Go

From Hida perfecture, where we had camp at the Takasu campground for three nights

From Kamikochi, where we had 3.5 hours hiking with Iki's walking speed.

From Yamanashi, an area where peach is the specialty

They are now hanging on my fridge's door, waiting for more Kitty-chan(s)!

6 Years!

So it's been 6 years! I can't believe it's been 6 years. I feel like I really lost track of time!

It's almost like an ordinary day for us. With SLOPPY me served the still floury pancake for breakfast; burnt baguette and still too hard veggies for dinner's side dish, and tasteless and uncooked roasted chicken for our supposed to be main anniversary dinner :p. A lot of eeww and yuck - as always, but they (hiro and Iki) understood anyway. After all these 6 years, things are still the same and I'm afraid will remain the same for the next hmmm 20 years? :p

It's been 6 years. 6 Years of ups and downs; and burnt or tasteless or too salty food. But it was our day today and we are glad that we've been together these 6 whole years.....

May flower arrangement: Roses

My favorite flowers!!!!

Wednesday Bento: Kamen Rider Oz

SO! It's wednesday bento again, after lo o o ong golden week holiday. I planned to make something really simple today because I was very very busy with houseworks and teaching after we got back from camping, but last night Iki begged me to make him his favorite Kamen Rider Bento.

Kamen Rider!! (>.<)

So this is it.....the first thing he said this morning when he woke up and saw it was: " hmm? what's this? ....kamen rider Oz...? why is it orange?!...why..." - and he stopped asking once he saw my very sharp look :D

Well, I should have used red paprika, but I didn't have it and didn't want to go out to buy it last night. Better than nothing, you have your orange face Kamen Rider Oz, honey!!

Inside:

Umeboshi onigiri, wrapped with Nori.

Kamen rider's face: Boiled carrot, nori and green pepper

Potato croquettes

Boiled quail eggs

Celery sticks with mayonnaise

Orange and Haruka

April's Flower Arrangement

An almost forgotten one!!

Iki got fever at that day so I didn't join the class, but it can't be cancelled so I had to take all the flowers home and arranged them myself based on the photos I took from the class...

Very difficult....I almost cried helplessly!

But anyway...here it is (^__^). I gave it to my mother in law for her 81st birthday present

Emergency lunch

We are on the way back to tokyo from shirahone onsen (gifu ken) and
felt very hungry! So when we found this beautiful view on the side of
the road, we decided to have an emergency lunch: cup noodle!! Yummy!

Ouch!!

This happened yesterday morning in takasu campfround. He went downhill
way too fast that he couldn't control the bicycle!! Well iki....this
was a very good lesson not to ride bike that fast anymore, right?!

The blood was almost all over his face, but now he is fine and could
even hike around kamikochi yesterday

Crafting

There are lots of activities for kids in this NAO campground and this
morning iki chose to do crafting. He's making a small church with
ponyo music box inside (^_−)−☆

NAO campground in Takasu area

We actually didn't plan to come to this area, but land sliding near
kamikochi, where we actually planned to camp till the end of golden
week closed the electricity line in the campground. It would be still
way too cold there that we need to use electric mat inside the tent
during sleeping so we had to change our plan.,.

But I kind of like this campground except that it's far more
expensive! I like the woods and the spacey ground and that our tent
location is not far from toilet!! :p

Tateyama camping ground

We will spend four nights, half part of our golden week holiday
sleeping in this tent in Tateyama area. It took us 9 hours driving
from Tokyo yesterday because of heavy traffic jam!

Too bad it's raining today...we have to give up our plan for Tateyama
alpine route (~_~;). But well, we are off to Kanazawa city in ishikawa
now! (^O^)／

Wednesday Bento: Ohanami picnic

Iki just started his school again after spring holiday. He is tsukigumi (highest grade in his kindergarten) now and this year will be my last year making bento for him!!

This is last Wednesday's Bento, for his Ohanami (cherry blossoms) picnic (^_^)

Inside:

The kids: small onigiri (rice balls)

Sakura: pink kamaboko

Tree: croquette

Soramame (big beans, spring specialty)

Red and yellow rolled paprika

Spring holiday

We actually didn't plan any overseas trip because we wanted to drive around Japan this year, but my brother got married last March so we ended up spending the spring holiday in Indonesia. Iki unexpectedly agreed to help bringing the bride's gown! He did a very good job! I knew my very shy boy was so nervous that he almost cried after he did it :p. It was a huuuuuge thing for him walking in front of hundreds of people haha

Hiro lost his Iphone in Surabaya so we kind of lost of holiday mood. He put a lot of important data there and it was really scary to imagine if someone could manage to open his password vault inside the iphone!! But Iki had to enjoy it so Hiro spent time with him in the swimming pool :). It was surprising to see Iki's swimming progress now

We had dinner at Iki restaurant on Hiro's last night in Surabaya. Well, we really had to go there this time. Surprisingly one waitress still remembered Hiro and me! Iki can read now and he was very excited to read the restaurant name LOL

Too bad I didn't have good appetite during my trip in Surabaya. I couldn't eat a lot but I was happy to be able to eat my fave soto banjar and baksowith Enyo. Also this bebek Sinjay for breakfast one day!! Boy it was soooo goood!!! and it was the biggest meal I had during my whole trip in Indonesia! -Thanks, Vi!

Then we went to Manado. I realized that I really don't have any single friend in Manado that I spent my whole time with my family. We (me and Iki) really had quality time with families, which I'm not sure could happen again anytime soon.....Iki had so much fun!!

I just can't believe that I lost 1.5 kgs during my holiday in Indonesia!!! usually i gained at least 4 kgs during holiday. Blame it to the "good quality" family time....?? hahaha