190 Years Young

This afternoon, Maiya & I went to a birthday party for Nobuko, Tarabu & Mike, to celebrate their combined 190th birthday party. But first, we went to the Farmer's Market to get some things for the potluck. I'm not usually very good with potlucks, often picking something up at the last minute, pitching in money, or asking Tony to make me something. But I think I have hit upon a great new recipe. I've eaten this a few times, but I didn't even know what the name was, but when you google "broccoli salad," you might find it, like I did. I pretty much followed the recipe, but made a few alterations.Broccoli (dunked in hot water for a few seconds), sunflower seeds, raisins (added some mixed pepitos from the farmer's market), onions, celery, bacon (soy bacon bits), mixed together with a dressing made of 3/4 cup mayo, 1/4 cup sugar and 2 TBS vinegar, and you get a pretty yummy and healthy salad.
Every party at Senshin has to start with music...
It was a beautiful and fun celebration for Nobuko, Tarabu & Mike. Everyone in the room got to get up and say a little something for the birthday kids. It was great (leap) to see so many friends. I hope when I am 190, that I can look like them too!NaBloPoMo#11 (Behind by 4 days)

Rockclimbing fun for Kyle's Bday

For Kyle's 7th Birthday, we went to a rockclimbing place. It was Maiya's first time rockclimbing. I was amazed how agile some of the kids were... Maiya did pretty good for a first time. She didn't seem scared as much as it was strenuous climbing and going up bit by bit. She was pretty proud of herself.

Learning the "ropes" or the rules of rockclimbing

Kyle, fast as a monkey, to the top!

Maiya bravely attempting to climb step by step

Coming down fast

"Pretending to climb" while standing on the floor

Ice Cream Cake Time... Happy Birthday dear Kyle....
Only child to accept and eat the fruit :)

Afterwards, we went to Darin & Sao's house to celebrate me, Darin and Grandpa Hiroshi's birthdays. But really, it's not about the adults, all about the kids. NaBloPoMo #10 (I know, kind of missed a week there. Well, I never promised to do it all.)

Grace's trip to LA

Grace Lee Boggs, our dear friend and mentor from Detroit, came to LA in April 2009. At 94 years old, she spoke at a couple of events at USC, and we attended an evening with Grace for young Asian American activists set up by John Delloro. It was great to see her and spend a little time with Grace. I think it was her first trip to Los Angeles since Maiya was 1 years old.

Playing elephant with Shea

Beautiful women

John, Nobuko and Corazon talk with Grace

Maiya bonding with Traci

I am late in sharing these photos... FB gets the news up so much quicker than I can. NaBloPoMo#9 is a chance for me to share these old pics.

R & Z's Bday

Another bday party last weekend. Cute Rockett (4) & Zoe (3) blow out their bday candles. Fun to run around the house after eating Park's Finest. Maiya says that Rockett likes to kiss, but no kissing at school. NaBloPoMo#8

Walking the HomeWalk

So this was me and Maiya's 2nd year doing the United Way HomeWalk, a 5K to raise money and awareness about homelessness in LA County. About 4,000 people participated in the walk, including Team LTSC. We got out of the house by 8:15 in the morning. It was pretty cold compared to last year, temperature maybe in the low 60s when we started.

Larry, Julie & Bill

Carried Maiya for the first block

This was an important statistic for me to share with Maiya

and explaining that 40% represents 4 out of 10

Also walked with Maria's family,

and hey look there's Grant on the left!

Maiya wanted to take a picture

with the guy who looks like daddy

And she wanted a picture with this lady

Signing our names at the end of the walk

So Maiya understands about homelessness from a 4 year old perspective. Her concern is that people who don't have a house might get dirty because they don't have a blanket and they have to sleep on the ground. But because we drive past hundreds of homeless people each morning on our way to her preschool and my work (Skid Row adjacent), she sees them everyday. But lately, she has observed that the homeless people that she sees are mostly all African American, and then also made a comment that she thought that the singer on her "Family Time" CD cover was also homeless (Ziggy Marley). So I have acknowledged that although most of the people we see in the mornings are African American, I have also tried to explain that 4 out of 10 of the homeless in LA are women and children, like me and her. I also pointed out a big poster on a truck during the walk about a man (who happened to be white) who got sick, spent all his savings, and became homeless. These are big concepts for a 4 year old, to be sure, but I think it's important that she learn that she has the ability to use her feet to walk to help the homeless.

Anyways, about the walk. It was fun. Maiya is always happy to see Larry, who she calls "Funny Guy." I was a little nervous about walking with Maiya because last year she rode in the stroller the entire way, and this year, we were going to be without a stroller. But, she did really well, I was actually impressed that she did so well. We found my friend Maria's family in the crowd, and walked with them a bit, and we were walking at a fairly quick pace. Then we'd catch up to the LTSC group, or she would run in between the two groups. Along the way, we also ran into our friend Grant and then towards the end we found Mike (both people we should/could have carpooled with). In the last 1K or so, she started losing it, wandering a bit and slowing down, playing with sticks in the ground, picking up rocks and leaves and acorns and things. So in the end, it was just the two of us.

After the walk, we hung around a bit, and then went to Tokyo 77 for a late breakfast. She ordered her usual, pancakes, bacon and syrup, no butter, and I had a Hawaiian Royal. Went home and I took a little nap in my comfortable bed, and then got up and took a nice, warm, and luxurious bubble bath jacuzzi with Maiya to soothe my tired feet. Grateful to have a nice home to come home to.

NaBloPoMo#7

Gasa Mama starts the day with Family Literacy

NaBloPoMo#6: This morning in the car as I rushed to drop off Maiya before going out to Downey for a training, I was telling Maiya what gasa gasa meant (it means busy). She said I was a gasa mama. My "day off" yesterday was a gasa gasa kind of day. First, Maiya & I went to our local library to celebrate First 5 LA's National Family Literacy Month with our Angelina Preschool Family Literacy program from work. It was part of the kickoff for the Read Early, Read Aloud program, and was an event which included readings by celebrities, including Constance Marie from the George Lopez show.

Maiya enjoying storytime for the first hour

LTSC Family Literacy program on the red carpet

My silly girl wearing her boa on her head

After the Family Literacy event, which seemed like a long morning, we went to drop off some dry cleaning next to the haircut place, first time in about a year, to find out that the dry cleaner is long gone, then went 2 doors down to CVS to look for sale item Halloween stuff but didn't find anything, quick poop stop at CVS. Still early for the haircut place, so we went next door to the little Hello Kitty type store and Maiya got to pick out some stickers. Then, finally at 12:30, got a much needed haircut--first time at a real haircut place (not Fantastic Sams or Supercuts) in years, then took Maiya to lunch at Mitsuwa. She ate an entire huge bowl of soba by herself. We were a little early for my haircut appointment, so we walked around the Japanese bookstore and Mitsuwa for awhile. Then off to my eye doctor appointment, during which time Maiya was getting a little punchy from all the errands. After that, we walked next door to the cake supply store, didn't buy anything, and then had to go back to the eye doctor for a 3rd potty stop, then had to go back to the cake store to look for Maiya's boa, which she had dropped, then went to the get gas, then went to a new dry cleaner by our house, then went next door to share a root beer float (Maiya's first root beer float). She didn't like the bubbles, but did eat all the ice cream.

Was kind of tired by the time we got home, mostly because we both needed a nap. Tony made some frozen ravioli for us with boiled arugula. Spent the rest of the night doing laundry, dishes, cleaning up the kitchen counters and wiping away all the dead and alive ants in our kitchen, quick shower, put Maiya to sleep (she fell asleep after only 1 book-no wonder), setting a new Bejeweled record of 170,000 and stayed up till 2am on the addictive FB. And there, in a nutshell, was my gasa gasa day off.

More Halloween Fun

Ready for Trick-or-Treat with Mommy!

Dinosaur on the prowl for some candy

Ran into Katie & Maddy a few blocks away

Dinosaur's loot

Be scary! Now give me a growl!

Even a dinosaur has to eat some dinner before candy

NaBloPoMo#5

Local Election Results

NaBloPoMo#4: One of the big reasons we moved to this city was for the schools, so I am encouraged by the results of Tuesday's election. I am excited that the Measure to directly support the schools that I voted for passed with 75% of the vote, and the 3 School Board members I voted for were the top 3 vote-getters. I think it was an all white and male school board previously, and now there are 2 women, including one woman of color with endorsements from people I know, two have a green agenda with a strong background of social justice.

Click for School Board results
Click for Measure EE results

And in other political news, last night I heard State Assemblymember John Perez speak in Little Tokyo. He was very impressive. I went to visit his office on Early Learning Advocacy Day in Sacramento a few months ago to get his support on early childhood education, but this was the first time I heard him speak.

Election Day & Nishi Halloween

NaBloPoMo#3: Don't forget to vote! My first Culver City election (Tony still registered in LA I think). Learning about very local politics is pretty interesting. It wasn't hard to figure out the people I support. I thought I would miss LA more, but actually I don't.

And here are some pix from Maiya's preschool Halloween. Again this year, of the girls' costumes, only 3 were non-princessy/girlish (Maiya-Dinah the Dinosaur), a lion and a Silver Surfer (comic character?). I'm pleased that my girl really wanted to be a dinosaur... yet another year that I dodged the princess bullet. So to the many who have told me that the princess phase is inevitable, it isn't. Not that Maiya doesn't like pinkish girly things, jewelry and dresses, but it's all a part of who she is, which includes the girl who turns maracas into numchucks (no thanks to all of Daddy's Bruce Lee YouTube sessions). But I am glad that I haven't yet heard, "Mommy, I want to be a princess."

Hikaru (Batman) and Rockett (Picachu)

LTSC/Nishi kids line up!

Dinah the Dino and Snow White

Teachers dress up too!

45

How the heck did 45 come so quick? Man, it is hump year... halfway between 40 and 50! and there is NaBloPoMo#2!

Halloween Prep 09 - Part 1

NaBloPoMo#1: Well, maybe I "might" do NaBloPoMo09, but more likely I won't. I sure have plenty of photos to share. We took 116 photos this Halloween. So, I'll share a few of them here. If I post 4 photos a day, that would give me 30 entries over the next month.

This is the first year I bought Halloween decorations. Actually I bought some last year after Halloween. And since it was our first year in our new house, I spent a lot of time looking at Halloween decorations this year. Last Saturday, Maiya & I spent about 3 hours decorating our front yard. Alas, only 1 group of teenagers came to our house last night. I was pretty bummed about that. But, I will still do it next year because me & Maiya had a lot of fun, and we enjoyed putting on the lights every night the last week. Funny because I'm used to not being into stuff like Halloween. Nothing like living with a preschooler to bring back the fun.

NoBloPoMo

Regarding NaBloPoMo for 2009, I'm thinking NoBloPoMo.

That's National Blog Posting Month, where you blog an entry every day in the month of November, I just don't think I can do it this year. Too much going on. I'm on FB, if you really need to hear from me. Or, here is a link so you can re-read NaBloPoMo 2007 or NaBloPoMo 2008.

But, never too busy to share another Maiya photo. After almost 3 years, I finally got my girl to wear pants, and jeans too! She said she's getting tired of always wearing dresses (but not skirts). I was so thrilled. So if you see her wearing pants, give her some positive feedback.

Paper Maiya says "Save the Earth"

You've heard of Flat Stanley, right? Well, here's Paper Maiya. It is the backside of some paper that had been hanging in our old house with me & Maiya's outlines last year. A few months ago, we decided to draw Maiya's outline, then color it in together. I did the shirt with the "Save the Earth" shirt that Maiya was wearing and she did the rest.So far Paper Maiya has only been in our house and our backyard to take pictures. For a long time she was waiting on the door to Maiya's bedroom for Maiya to come home from school. She has recently moved into the hallway. Soon, she may head out the front door. Maybe for Halloween... or maybe Earth Day.

Pose-U (That's Japanese for Be-Cutesy-Its-Picture-Time)

Visiting the Aloha Market Mural

Maiya in front of the "Aloha to the Neighborhood" Mural

Maiya & I went to LA Vegan for lunch yesterday on my furlough day after running errands in our old hood. We parked in front of the old Aloha Market mural. When we drive by, she knows it's "daddy's mural," but she's never seen it up close. It was a community mural project "Aloha to the Neighborhood" that Tony, my partner Ayako & I organized oh about 10-11 years ago. As I touched the wall, to see how dirty it was (not too bad), memories came flooding back to me. I remembered some of the areas I had painted. I remembered the more than 100 volunteers who came out to paint, all the community meetings and design team meetings, and how many of those kids are now in college. I remembered Ethel, the lady who painted the red tomato with a toothpick to get the paint into those stucco crevices. I remembered Tony & Sergio walking across the street to Mago's at the end of each painting day to get a milkshake or teriyaki avocado taco or burrito, and to get a big picture look at the progress. I remembered the great Unveiling party we had... with performances by our friends, such a long time ago. I remember those who said that it would be hit with graffiti--we've been lucky, a few taggings over the years, but nothing that the city couldn't remove with an email request here or a phone call there.

I'm a little embarrassed to share because it's so antiquated, but anyways, there's a lot of content, and it's still out there on the www for probably not much longer since the Great Leap website is undergoing a long overdue redo... one of the first websites I designed 9 years ago:

http://www.greatleap.org/aloha/

I took a quick picture of Maiya with my cell phone and we got back in the car to finish our errands. Oh, it's on Centinela between Washington & Culver.

(Newer) Biker Babe in Training

Goodbye $5 thrift store bike, Maiya has moved up to a newish bike Tony found on Craigslist this summer. Since she still primarily only wears skirts with very few exceptions, we use the you-don't-want-to-hurt-your-knee-excuses to get her to wear pants or legggings every once and awhile. Here she is with leg warmers instead of pants.

New training wheels

Staycation: More Unschooling Fun

I had blogged about the list of fun things to do at home last month when we were on vacation.

Making Playdoh food and pretending to eat it. Check.

Maiya's really into making things from construction paper. Tony & Maiya went to the library and brought home the coolest book by one of Maiya's two favorite authors, Leo Lionni, "Let's Make Rabbits." So we made rabbits out of construction paper and origami paper, kind of copying the rabbits in the book. Maiya made the white one, which we drew together. Check.

Playing with blocks. Check. She got out the blocks and the Asian American doll family that I got at Lakeshore when she was a baby. I figured if the girl is going to have dolls, then at least they will be dolls of color.

Dinner with Tony's Aunt Liz, Eddie, Jacob & Rebecca visiting from Idaho. Not on the list, but check!
And finally, not on Maiya's list, but definitely falls under cultural and family ritual. On Friday night, we lit our Grandpa Larry memory candle, talked a little about Grandpa, and had Challah bread for the sabbath. Bubbe & Zeyde would be proud. I'm sure the peanut butter and jelly were kosher.
And, that's the last you'll hear of my summer vacation.

Remember Easter?

This afternoon on our way to swim class, Maiya said, "Mama, remember Easter?" I actually didn't. But I remembered that I had some pictures from Easter that I just saw recently in our unblogged photo collection. Now that we have a new computer, I just downloaded over 2,000 photos from our little photo card, and have been categorizing them.

Other fun things we're doing with Photo Booth on our new computer. And don't even get me started on the apps on our iTouch. I wrote a Haiku on it this afternoon watching Maiya's swim class. Lily wants to give me 1,200 games. I got enough games. Between FB, Bejeweled Blitz and YoVille, and playing on the new computer, I am barely getting any sleep. And to prove how bad it is, I was telling a story to Tony & Maiya at dinner the other night, how I greenly used the same boiling pot of water 3 times, to boil edamame, broccoli & pasta, Tony said, "You should blog about it." Then 4 year old Maiya said, "You should Facebook it!" So of course I had to do both. On another note, I donated blood today for the first time, so at least I'm doing something useful with my time.

Let's do "Surprised!"

Staycation: Doing Origami

Maiya loves origami. She has decorated her bedroom windows with paper cranes and ribbons. We've been doing a lot of origami at home lately, including 3 times during our recent stay-at-home vacation.

Over the years, we have collected quite a few books and instructions on origami making. There are some complex ones with impossible photos, where you can create all kinds of animals with googly eyes. We have one for Jewish Origami that we've had for years. We recently got a vintage (old but brand new) origami kit and book from Auntie Keiko that is very kid friendly. I am still searching for a detailed and easy set of instructions for the crane, because after all these years, I still have trouble with the cranes.

Jewish horn, dreidel and Jewish star of David necklace

Since I'm on the subject of origami, I'd like to give a quick plug for the book 1001 Cranes, written by our friend Naomi Hirahara. It's written for the young girls, but darn it if I didn't just love it for its cultural references and sweet coming-of-age story. I read it cover to cover really quickly, tears reserved for the end of the book. I know, I know. Anyways, highly recommended for all ages, and a great gift for the tween.

Staycation: Making Playdoh

The top things on Maiya's vacation list of fun things to do at home was Playdoh, Green Playdoh and Clay. So, we made baker's clay (recipe in a previous blog post here). It was fun, we made a half batch and split it in half, making one pinkish and another blue green earth.

Snow Cone with Mochi Bits

After playing with the clay for almost 2 hours, we decided to make snow cones. I have a great hand cranking snow cone machine that I got back in college that is fantastic. Yummy delicious.

Want some?

Staycation 2009: Unschooling

If I wasn't working full time and then some, I'd be an unschooling mama. Unschooling is like homeschooling, except that sometimes homeschooling implies duplicating a teacher or parent-led formal classroom, with curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, assignments, etc.

The concept of unschooling--as I understand--is following your child's interests, and allowing them to play, create and learn about the world through experiences rather than through memorizing facts and figures. So if a child wants to make brownies, then then by finding and following a recipe, measuring the ingredients, would foster reading, math and science... and it is something they chose to do so they are more motivated learners.

To me, unschooling is a natural progression to attachment parenting, natural parenting and connection parenting, all of which I've embraced in my parenting journey. It also aligns with the developmental approach, that I've learned in my child development and early childhood education classes, and that we do in our childcare program at work.

So, a few weeks ago, I had a week of vacation, but we stayed home. So on the first day of the vacation, or staycation, I asked Maiya to make a list of things we could do at home that were fun. Here is the list she came up with (when I remembered, I marked the days we did each one):

Things We Can Do At Home That Are Fun This Week

• make playdoh (Tues/Fri)
• green playdoh (Tues)
• clay (Tues)
• play games (Thurs/Fri-Memory Game/Candyland)
• a little bit of TV (Wed- actually it was a lot that day)
• origami (Tues/Thurs/Fri-she wanted to do it every day)
• construction paper (Fri)
• water painting
• coloring
• play in my room a little (daily)
• play outside a little (Fri)
• ride my bike a little
• play in my little house
• drawing
• build some stuff with blocks (Wed)
• do some magnet toys (Wed)
• cook some pretend food (Thurs/Sat)
• make snowcones (Tues)
• read books (Fri, a few mornings & nightly)

Other things we did:

• Nisei Week Ondo (Sun)
• swim class (Tues/Thurs)
• climb the steps/Baldwin Overlook (Tues)
• Aunt Liz & Family for dinner (Wed)
• Culver City outdoor concert (Thurs)
• Jewish Shabbat Dinner (Fri)
• Ballona Festival (Sat)

By the end of each day, I was exhausted. The first day, Monday, I had a nice day of pampering, going to lunch, a movie and the spa with Lily. I also read a few books, did some work on the house, and worked out a few times. I did enjoy kind of floating through our days without much agenda, and letting Maiya choose our activities from her list. I also took the Monday off of the next week, but we sent Maiya to preschool that day--I needed a day off from my "vacation." Pictures on many of these events to follow over the next several days.