The other day when I went to Tsurumi ward office I finally thought I would take Pi to the jidokan (play-space) they have there. Well, I thought it was a jidokan, but it was actually an ichijihoiku (temporary daycare). Before anyone gets too excited it is just for visiting the office ( you can't really drop your kids off and leave the building). However, anyone who has been to city hall and waited in line for hours with a screaming toddler will appreciate how valuable the service is.
I was nervous at first that Pi wouldn't want to go, or would freak out, but they had an insane amount of toys there that he didn't want to leave.
The ladies that worked there were very nice too.
So, if you live in Tsurumi I highly recommend it, and if you don't then hopefully your city office will have one too.
Certainly takes the stress out of going.
Wednesday, 15 March 2017
Tuesday, 14 March 2017
Busy work
Looking to keep your little one entertained :
Daiso pipecleaners + colander = a cheap way to entertain for 10 mins.
Don't forget to save the pipecleaners for next time too.
Daiso pipecleaners + colander = a cheap way to entertain for 10 mins.
Don't forget to save the pipecleaners for next time too.
Look at the concentration face
Monday, 20 February 2017
Sandpits
Once of the best things I ever bought for Pi was a planter box and some sand.
Our house has the worlds tiniest yard. It would be lucky to be a meter squared in size- just big enough for us to sit, but that is about it. I did have a nice little (very little) flower garden out here, but seeing how much my boy loves the sandpit, I ended up buying some more planter boxes and a big bag of sand and made a tiny series of sandpits. Actually, it is a grit and sand pit (the word "suna" 砂 is used for both sand and grit). And though it is gritty and crap, compared to aussie sandpits, it still gives hours of fun.
I bought little astroturf mats from Seria- the dollar store. They are really nice plush mats, and each is about 20cm x 20cms. I bought about 20 of the them to cover the small area and the path leading up to the door. In hindsight, I would have been better off spending the same amount of money for one BIG sheet of astroturf- which can be bought from the big hardware stores like Beaver Tozan (about 2000yen for 1m2. The problem with the lots of little mats is they get separated and let rocks underneath though.
I also bought the planters and sand from the big hardware store too. I think it was about 300yen for the large planter, and about 180yen for the long thinner ones. A giant bag of sand was about 400yen.
The sand toys are mainly bought from dollar stores. I am actually typing this as he plays (aka, makes a HUGE sandy mess). Even on cold days like today, if the sun is shining then it is still mildly pleasant out be outside. Sometimes we even put out picnic blanket out there and have an impromptu picnic.
The sand and sunshine provide some great sensory play for him (if he is really lucky he can make oceans with the hose), and gives us a much needed time out of the house.
Our house has the worlds tiniest yard. It would be lucky to be a meter squared in size- just big enough for us to sit, but that is about it. I did have a nice little (very little) flower garden out here, but seeing how much my boy loves the sandpit, I ended up buying some more planter boxes and a big bag of sand and made a tiny series of sandpits. Actually, it is a grit and sand pit (the word "suna" 砂 is used for both sand and grit). And though it is gritty and crap, compared to aussie sandpits, it still gives hours of fun.
I bought little astroturf mats from Seria- the dollar store. They are really nice plush mats, and each is about 20cm x 20cms. I bought about 20 of the them to cover the small area and the path leading up to the door. In hindsight, I would have been better off spending the same amount of money for one BIG sheet of astroturf- which can be bought from the big hardware stores like Beaver Tozan (about 2000yen for 1m2. The problem with the lots of little mats is they get separated and let rocks underneath though.
I also bought the planters and sand from the big hardware store too. I think it was about 300yen for the large planter, and about 180yen for the long thinner ones. A giant bag of sand was about 400yen.
The sand toys are mainly bought from dollar stores. I am actually typing this as he plays (aka, makes a HUGE sandy mess). Even on cold days like today, if the sun is shining then it is still mildly pleasant out be outside. Sometimes we even put out picnic blanket out there and have an impromptu picnic.
The sand and sunshine provide some great sensory play for him (if he is really lucky he can make oceans with the hose), and gives us a much needed time out of the house.
Tuesday, 31 January 2017
Still alive- and napping
I am still alive, just very, very exhausted these days. Why? Pi stopped napping which meant that it was a full day of entertaining, and then teaching at night and on the weekends- which left little time for me to scratch myself most days, let along blog.
Pi stopped napping in December, or was it November? It took a long while to get used to it, but once I did, it was actually ok. Sure, I was frazzled by the time 5pm rolled around, but the no nap meant that he was going to bed at 6pm on an organised day, which meant more time at night for me to watch a movie or have a cup of tea.
The biggest downside (besides lack of a sit down in the day) was that Husband didn't get to spend much time with him anymore- getting home at 6pm most nights.
Over the weekend, we went to Enoshima to see the lights and stayed over night. And from then on Pi has needed a nap. He has been sick,too and a total crankypants the last two weeks (along with myself), but being so utterly exhausted- even from the moment he wakes has been really surprising. He would sleep at least 12 hours over night (which is nice) so he should be bareable- but nope! The last few days have been super tough, so I tried giving him a nap and after a bit of protest screaming, he has been napping again. Sweet bliss.
The other good thing about him napping is it is cheaper. Because we have to pay for parking for most things, it means that even going to the park is super expensive. And we are less inclined to have lunch at home if we are out. So lately it has been about 2000yen per day on activities and food.
I have been doing some research and apparently it is quite common to go back to napping after shunning it for several months. In many ways, I will be quite happy if he continues. Even if it is every second day. If it keeps the cranks away, even better!
Pi stopped napping in December, or was it November? It took a long while to get used to it, but once I did, it was actually ok. Sure, I was frazzled by the time 5pm rolled around, but the no nap meant that he was going to bed at 6pm on an organised day, which meant more time at night for me to watch a movie or have a cup of tea.
The biggest downside (besides lack of a sit down in the day) was that Husband didn't get to spend much time with him anymore- getting home at 6pm most nights.
Over the weekend, we went to Enoshima to see the lights and stayed over night. And from then on Pi has needed a nap. He has been sick,too and a total crankypants the last two weeks (along with myself), but being so utterly exhausted- even from the moment he wakes has been really surprising. He would sleep at least 12 hours over night (which is nice) so he should be bareable- but nope! The last few days have been super tough, so I tried giving him a nap and after a bit of protest screaming, he has been napping again. Sweet bliss.
The other good thing about him napping is it is cheaper. Because we have to pay for parking for most things, it means that even going to the park is super expensive. And we are less inclined to have lunch at home if we are out. So lately it has been about 2000yen per day on activities and food.
I have been doing some research and apparently it is quite common to go back to napping after shunning it for several months. In many ways, I will be quite happy if he continues. Even if it is every second day. If it keeps the cranks away, even better!
Sunday, 1 January 2017
Happy New Year
Happy New Year, everyone. I hope you all had a great new year. I've been kind of quiet on the blog front lately, because, dun dun dun- Pi has stopped napping! :'(
It kind of came out of nowhere. For a little while he was skipping a nap or two here or there, but about four weeks ago he stopped napping completely. He skipped day, and then the next day I didn't get him down until late, and then the following day we put him down, but only for an hour (and he didn't fall asleep in that time) and then that was it. In the last four weeks he had a nap only once, and it really messed up his bed time.
When I think about it though- His bedtime had been getting later and later recently. This sucked because I work on Tuesday and Wednesday nights so we didn't have the luxury of putting him in bed past 8.
In someways the lack of naps is bad because I don't get time to sit down in the day, and Pi doesn't get to spend much time with Daddy (he is well and truly ready for bed by the time Daddy gets home). However the earlier nights for Pi means that Husband and I can watch a movie and have more time to ourselves, and if he is not napping anyway then we have been able to leave the house all day and not be worried about him being too tired.
I have been putting him down for an hour for a bit of quiet time for both of us, which is better than nothing. Enough time for me to clean up/eat lunch and answer a few emails, and give him the opportunity to have some quiet downtime and fall asleep if he wants.
Dropping the naps was bound to happen eventually, so getting 2 years and 7 months is not too bad.
It kind of came out of nowhere. For a little while he was skipping a nap or two here or there, but about four weeks ago he stopped napping completely. He skipped day, and then the next day I didn't get him down until late, and then the following day we put him down, but only for an hour (and he didn't fall asleep in that time) and then that was it. In the last four weeks he had a nap only once, and it really messed up his bed time.
When I think about it though- His bedtime had been getting later and later recently. This sucked because I work on Tuesday and Wednesday nights so we didn't have the luxury of putting him in bed past 8.
In someways the lack of naps is bad because I don't get time to sit down in the day, and Pi doesn't get to spend much time with Daddy (he is well and truly ready for bed by the time Daddy gets home). However the earlier nights for Pi means that Husband and I can watch a movie and have more time to ourselves, and if he is not napping anyway then we have been able to leave the house all day and not be worried about him being too tired.
I have been putting him down for an hour for a bit of quiet time for both of us, which is better than nothing. Enough time for me to clean up/eat lunch and answer a few emails, and give him the opportunity to have some quiet downtime and fall asleep if he wants.
Dropping the naps was bound to happen eventually, so getting 2 years and 7 months is not too bad.
Monday, 21 November 2016
Room thermometer
With winter coming and the sleep-sack juggle, it has been really hard to know what to dress him in at night. I always check the hour by hour forecast to see the lows, but inside and outside temperatures are very different. Enter the room thermometer.
We bought ours from Nishimatsuya. I have seen them at baby stores (like Nishi and Akachan Honpo), as well as online and at electronic stores like Bic Camera, Yamada Denki and Nojima Denki. Amazon have the same one for less than 1000yen. Just look up: デジタル温湿度計 (Dejitaru onshitsudokei)
Ours was super cheap, about 1300yen, and does the job fine.
At first, I had no idea what the min/max buttons were. I was hoping I could set it so that the smiley face would change to my settings. When I learned I couldn't change the min and max, I wondered what the point of displaying that was; then I realised that it is helpful to check what temperature his room gets without me monitoring it. For example, maybe the temperature was 20degrees at 7pm, then got up to 23 at midnight and then down to 19 degrees at 6am. By being able to check the minimum and maximum settings, it means I could see if he was dressed appropriately to sleep.
Now that I have bought one, a room thermometer with a backlight button would also be handy to tell what temperature it is when it is dark in his room. Luckily, there is enough light in his room for me to see when I go to check on him- but it would still be a useful function.
For the cheap price, I really recommend getting one.
We bought ours from Nishimatsuya. I have seen them at baby stores (like Nishi and Akachan Honpo), as well as online and at electronic stores like Bic Camera, Yamada Denki and Nojima Denki. Amazon have the same one for less than 1000yen. Just look up: デジタル温湿度計 (Dejitaru onshitsudokei)
Ours was super cheap, about 1300yen, and does the job fine.
At first, I had no idea what the min/max buttons were. I was hoping I could set it so that the smiley face would change to my settings. When I learned I couldn't change the min and max, I wondered what the point of displaying that was; then I realised that it is helpful to check what temperature his room gets without me monitoring it. For example, maybe the temperature was 20degrees at 7pm, then got up to 23 at midnight and then down to 19 degrees at 6am. By being able to check the minimum and maximum settings, it means I could see if he was dressed appropriately to sleep.
Now that I have bought one, a room thermometer with a backlight button would also be handy to tell what temperature it is when it is dark in his room. Luckily, there is enough light in his room for me to see when I go to check on him- but it would still be a useful function.
For the cheap price, I really recommend getting one.
Thursday, 17 November 2016
Onigiri snacks
Buying convenience store onigiri is my go to when I am in a rush driving home and Little Pi is hungry. The biggest problem with it though, it that it breaks apart and his car seat and surrounding areas get covered in rice and salmon.
The other day, I saw a mum with tiny little rice balls, which are just perfect for small hands.
Turns out, you can get a cute little device for making these tiny balls at 100yen shops. I bought mine at Seria (108yen including tax).
I didn't mind paying the 100yen though as the end result is cute, and Pi can shake it to help. I did try to make some little fried rice balls, but the oily wetness of the fried rice meant that they didn't stay in little ball shape for long. The little balls are not just great for a snack, but if the rice is in bite-sized ball when serving up with dinner at night, Pi is less likely to turn into the rice Yeti that he usually does.
The other day, I saw a mum with tiny little rice balls, which are just perfect for small hands.
Turns out, you can get a cute little device for making these tiny balls at 100yen shops. I bought mine at Seria (108yen including tax).
Its a cute little holder that makes cute little bite sized balls.
Just snap the top of, put some rice in and shake!
The bottom picture, with the more oval shaped ball was done over-filling the hole. The other, more rounded balls were done by just filling it up to the top of the green container.
Then, all that is left to do is add a little 'furikake' (savory sprinkles). Pi loves the dried plum one on the left. There is also an Anpanman vegetable one, sesame one, and a salmon one pictured; but they come in a range of flavours that can be bought at any supermarket.
If you are looking for a cheaper option though, you can put a little bit of rice in a small container like the one pictured below, and shake. They don't turn out in perfect little balls, but almost as good.
I didn't mind paying the 100yen though as the end result is cute, and Pi can shake it to help. I did try to make some little fried rice balls, but the oily wetness of the fried rice meant that they didn't stay in little ball shape for long. The little balls are not just great for a snack, but if the rice is in bite-sized ball when serving up with dinner at night, Pi is less likely to turn into the rice Yeti that he usually does.
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