Mimi's New Doll

It's been only 3 weeks or so since Kuri joined our family.

The changes, as I suppose we expected, have been tremendous. Particularly for Mimi. Granted, Sumie and I are on completely different schedules now, and our routines are thrown completely out of whack, but we both knew this would happen. We saw it coming. Mimi, on the other hand, had only a vague impression that a baby was one the way. What this would really mean she couldn't begin to fathom. Thankfully, she's adapting to our addition remarkably well.

Over the weekend we had a visit from Great Grandma and Aunt Marilyn.

Kuri was passed around a lot.

Mimi didn't let all the attention Kuri was getting get to her. She jumped right in and shared in the visit.

She also bided her time. I think she's learning that even though Kuri is often the center of attention, he can't take that much of it. Before long, he needs to eat, sleep, or be changed. As such, Mimi's now beginning to wait for these "openings" and then pounce. Here she is with Great Grandma when Kuri finally went into nap mode.

Another change we've seen is that Mimi now really loves pretending to be a mom.  She always enjoyed this - dressing up her dolls and bringing them food from time to time - but now it's almost like a part-time occupation. Several times a day we'll find some kind of doll or stuffed animal tucked into bed, dressed in one of Kuri's outfits, or sitting in front of a plate of plastic food.

Nyan-nyan, Mimi's favorite stuffed animal, got the full treatment the other day.

Just as Mimi is now treating her favorite toys as real babies, she has also taken to treating her little brother as a favorite toy.  She likes to dress him up as an older man from time to time.

She really likes to cuddle with him - just like Mama does.

The cuddles generally turn to hugs...

 ...but that can only hold her interest for so long. Kuri is also a bit of a test lab for Mimi. As soon as we see her index finger come out, we know she's thinking, "Hmm. I wonder what he'll do if I do this?"

9 times out of 10, it's the same response.

Despite the poking and prodding, Kuri is definitely fascinated by Mimi. He'll look up at his Mama and me when we're holding him, but the person who really holds his attention, who really captivates him, is Mimi. Even at 3 weeks we can tell he adores her. As for standing up for himself, that will come in time. Right now, he simply doesn't have the backbone for it. Figuratively and literally.

In the quiet times, when Mama and Papa are cooking and reading and Kuri's feeding or sleeping, Mimi loses herself in coloring and drawing. We recently made an Ikea run and picked up some counter stools so Mimi could keep us company when we're in the kitchen.

And sometimes, with Kuri's sleep schedule, the "original three" still get together to celebrate some very special events. Mimi sang Happy Birthday to her Mama all by herself the other night. She also shared Mama's cake.

What has amazed us more than anything else over the past few weeks is how our family is now genuinely coming together. We were always close (never really thought we could be closer), but already I can't imagine life with less than this group of four. I hope the other three all feel the same way.

Not So Humble Bumble Bee

Mimi had a decision to make. Halloween was coming, as was her baby brother, so she needed to secure a costume right away. This was the first Halloween she has cared about (though doubtfully the first she'll remember), so it wasn't much of a surprise when Mimi began peppering me for a costume in September. 

"What about this?"

"I want that one!"

"Papa. I don't have this. I need this."

"Papa, I wanna be a princess!"

It was this last one that had me most concerned. Like all proud Papas, I see my little girl as a princess, but I emphatically do not want her thinking she actually is one. There's enough of that trend in her as it is. The last thing I need is to give her a crown and a scepter and make delusion a reality. So it was with great relief that, after failing to secure a princess outfit, Mimi suddenly decided she wanted to be a bumble bee. That's definitely more my style!

Mimi practiced "flying" by jumping off the couch over and over and over and over and over and over and over (once again I was thankful to finally have no one living underneath me).

She liked to celebrate each flight as well. Or sometimes she'd just run over and sting Papa.

On the Friday before Halloween we attended a big pary at Mimi's preschool. All the teachers dressed up and they turned the entire school into a spooky, trick-or-treat maze. Mimi had a blast. Here she is with her teacher, Kai-sensei.

And here she is with Sumie. Little did either know that in less than 24 hours there'd would be a new addition to the family.

And here's that same, slightly-early addition after his first bath at home. Christopher (Kuri) wasn't all that enamored of his first time in the tub. He actually objected to it rather strenuously, but Sumie saw him through and got him clean. And yes, being a boy, he did manage to pee in the bath his very first time out.

After bath, he chilled with Mama for a bit. Thinking about what he'd just endured. He soon drifted off to sleep in Mama's arms, his favorite nap-time spot.

A day or two after the bath, Halloween finally rolled around. Mimi was ready. She had her antennae, flashlight, pumpkin, and glow-in-the-dark necklace. 

Mimi hit the streets with Grandpa Randy, showing him the best houses for candy. "Let's go to this one. I think this one will have candy. Do you think they have candy? I think they have candy. Let's go, Grandpa!"

She didn't get a huge amount of candy (walking with a pumpkin is still a bit of a challenge for a 3 year old bee), but she did have a great time.

Back at home we decorated one of the non-carved pumpkins with felt noses, eyes, and mouths that Grandma had sent (there's actually a bit of a resemblance here, no?).

And of course, Mimi tucked right into her candy. It wouldn't be Halloween without a little sugar splurging.  

We've spent the last few days settling into a routine with our new family member. Right now, he pretty much sticks to Mama, with an occasional cuddle with Papa or a kiss from big sister. Perhaps Sumie and Kuri are spending too much time together. They're even beginning to dress the same.

Mimi, happily, is really coming to love her baby brother. She still doesn't fully comprehend how life will change thanks to this new addition (to be honest, none of us really do), but she already loves him like the great big sister we know she'll be.

New Baby Addition Edition

He's here. And ahead of schedule.

Friday night, around 11:00pm, Sumie and I were planning out our last weekend without baby. We'd head up to the cute downtown in Novato for some Indian food, perhaps look at some antiques, and then take Mimi to the park. Sunday would be spent in quiet anticipation and luxurious relaxation, both of us knowing that we didn't have to wake up early for work on Monday.

Plans have a way of being just that - plans. By 12:15am Saturday morning, Sumie and I were in the car, with a very groggy Mimi in the backseat, heading for San Francisco and the Labor and Delivery ward. Someone wanted to take part in our weekend.

But he wasn't going to join us right away. By 2:00am it was apparent that our little man was going to take his time, so Mimi and I trudged back to the car to finish the night's sleep up in Marin while Sumie stayed behind to sleep between the occasional contraction (she's hard core). By 7:00am Grandma had arrived and I was on my way back down the hill to the hospital.

Reunited at the hospital, Sumie and I began the waiting game. We watched our son's heartbeat on the monitor, as well as the progress of other mothers and their soon-to-be sons and daughters. We'd see them come in, we'd see them come out. Our boy, however, was methodical. He'd planned a late afternoon arrival and he'd be damned if he'd see it any other way.

Things really took off around 3:30 or so and by 4:00, on the dot, Christopher Yoshinobu Kemp made his appearance. At 6lbs 9ozs he was light, but also a lanky 21inches.  He immediately took to his Mama, who, somehow, looked as fresh and bright as ever despite being up for nearly 36 hours and undergoing labor.

I, however, despite a shower that morning, was not nearly so photogenic.  Kuri (our nickname for Christopher) thankfully didn't mind.

Later that evening I headed back up to Marin (my third trip that Saturday) to fetch Mimi and Grandma. Mimi had been an amazing girl for Grandma all day. We were all so proud of her. And we were even more proud when she smiled at her little brother for the first time.

We were both a little worried about how Mimi would respond, but on the whole, she's really taken to him.

Grandma also got some time in with Kuri. From what I've heard of my own behavior as an infant, he was a welcome change to hold.

By the end of the evening, Mimi was beginning to have a few second thoughts about this new addition to the family. As someone who is used to being the absolute center of attention, regardless of the venue, I think Mimi handled it pretty well. She's still adjusting here at home (that's a future post, for sure), but she always has a smile for her little brother. It's Mama and Papa she's a little annoyed with, I think.

Unlike his big sister, Kuri has so far been a quiet crier and a consistent sleeper. 9 times out of 10, if you look for Kuri, you'll find him like this.

During the day, he really loves his rocker.

But at night, he's attached to Mama. We're still working on our sleep schedules (Kuri's not a big fan of sleeping away from Mama, particularly at night), but we're getting there.

We don't know what the future will hold for this new addition to our family, but we are certain that we're glad he's finally here.

From the Headlands to Headers and Hemis

Every four or five weeks my wife takes call at the hospital on Saturday and Sunday. These "call weekends," for Mimi and Papa at least, are really our "adventure weekends," with most of the adventuring occurring on Saturday (Sunday is for recovery). We don't generally have a plan, but most outings begin with a seed of some kind, be it running an errand for Mama, going to a new park for Mimi, or seeking out a pinball for Papa.

Two weekends ago Mimi had a request: find tampopo (dandelions). I decided to take the challenge, little knowing where the next 4 to 6 hours would take us.

On her way to work, Mama had called us to say that there were several good garage sales that she'd passed on her way to the freeway. Never wanting to pass up a chance at a good deal, we jumped in the car around 8:45 and drove the neighborhoods of northern San Rafael, looking for bargains as I considered where to seek out tampopo.

The last time I'd seen anything like dandelions was up in the Marin Headlands. Sure, we probably could've found some in our neighborhood - at the park or perhaps even along the street - but had we simply gone for a walk, we would've missed the view!

I've been up to the headlands countless times, but I never tire of the view. Mimi, however, being a three year old, simply looked out through the railings, yelled out, "Golden Gate Bridge!", and then went back sifting gravel from the dirt walkway to throw over the picturesque headlands.

We walked through the abandoned batteries of cliffs: the remnants of the pacific defenses fully manned following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. It still astounds me that today I can now walk these empty corridors, their massive cannon removed, with my half Japanese-half American daughter looking for dandelions. With all the contention in the world today, it's a nice reminder just how short-lived conflict with current enemies can be.

On the back side of the installation we failed to find dandelions proper, but did come across some plants that produced cotton-like puffs perfect for setting free on the bay breeze.

Mimi had been talking about finding dandelions almost constantly for the past 3 or 4 days, but she spent only a few minutes with the tampopo we found before she was ready to head back to the car. As is the case most of the time with toddlers, the thought of something can hold their attention for hours, even days, but once they have it, the magic quickly fades.

Back in the car, we headed further west toward the Point Bonita lighthouse. I have been wanting to take Mimi out here since we moved to the Bay Area but, once again, I realized that she's still a bit young for the walk, especially given that I had forgotten the stroller. Putting off the hike to the lighthouse once again, we headed back to San Rafael. En route, we stopped off at a furniture store, a thrift shop, and a recycled computer shop (Papa would like a new [to me] monitor for his home office). Mimi was a trooper, at least until the last stop. By then she was chanting "Koen! Koen! Koen!" That's Japanese for "park."

We headed over to the park and community center in Marinwood. We had a spot of lunch that we'd picked up earlier (that's right, we'd also gone shopping that morning) and then Mimi hit the slides.

In a stroke of luck for Papa, there just happened to be a neighborhood car show at the park that day! That stroke of luck was tremendously short-lived. By the time we reached the star of the show, a pristine 1963 Split-Window Corvette Stingray, it was 2:00pm and Mimi was ready to head for home. She tolerated the first picture...

made her displeasure known for the second...

and just completely rejected Papa on the third. Yeah, it was time to go home.

Call weekends can be challenging - it's sometimes hard to find the energy to keep up with a toddler, by yourself, all weekend after a full work-week - but I think I'm pretty lucky to have them. Once a month or so I have a built-in Daddy-Daughter weekend: a weekend filled with tiny discoveries, small adventures, big fun, and, occasionally, even bigger tantrums when nap time comes too late. Mimi may not remember these outings in the years to come. But I certainly will.

A Portrait 3 Years in the Making

It is hard to document memories when you're busy making them. That has been the reality of the past several months. Family gatherings, family departures (Sumie's brother's family sadly returning to Japan after two years in the states), friends, preschool, work, and the occasional tantrum have kept us on our toes and away from our keyboards.

Mimi, of course, has been the busiest of all. She, along with her aunts, uncles, grandparents, and friends, helped Sumie celebrate the impeding addition to our family at a cute tea room in downtown SF.

And she spent a special night away in Bodega Bay with Mama and Papa in a lodge overlooking the sea.  

 At Bodega Bay, Mimi had but one use for the sea... it was a  place Papa could secure water to make muddy sand. She was busy making Onigiri Pasta (Rice Ball Pasta). We're still not entirely sure what this is, but I do hope to make it for her some day.

 Despite the frantic making of fusion cuisine, Mimi still took a moment or two to take in the sights.

Most of our days have been sent settling into the busy routine of work, commute, dinner, study, and sleep. Two or three times a week we'll stop by the grocery store. Mimi has decided that she wants to be a professional shopper. Today, on the way home, she cried for 10 minutes because her cruel parents had denied her shopping request. Yes, we are tough, but if we went shopping every day, she obviously wouldn't enjoy it as much!

 Mimi has also taken a shine to drawing each evening, and at school. This has taken Sumie and I - both aggressively horrible artists - by surprise. We enjoy art, but never had the aptitude, or even the innate interest to routinely put crayon to paper. Mimi, however, can't get enough it seems. Today, she came home with the following self-portrait.

She also penned this masterpiece:

 I asked her what was going on in the picture above. Apparently, this is also a self-portrait (despite the square jaw, I suppose this is Mimi). The potato croquette looking object (I'm always thinking with my stomach) is a bracelet. The line above Mimi's eyes? That's her forehead. Yes, she's become obsessed with foreheads. I don't recall this stage in my child development textbooks.

Lastly, she came up with the picture below. This is the first one that depicts an actual story. At preschool Mimi learned the following song:

Coo-coo bird sitting in an old gum tree

Eating all the gumdrops he can see.

Stop, coo-coo bird, stop!

Please save some for me!

She loves to sing this song around the house. It's also one of our favorites to hear. So although we were pretty shocked when she showed us this drawing, we had a good idea what it was about.

In voice and on paper, Mimi's beginning to share her own story. Sumie and I are looking forward to hearing the next chapter.