Go jump in a lake!

Maiya and I just got back a few hours ago from a quick 2-day trip to Lake N. Our first little vacation together. We drove up Tuesday morning with my mom and dad. My sister Gayle (her two kids), and her sister in law Heidi (and her 2 kids) are staying there for 3 weeks. We mostly hung out lazing on the dock, went for a few boat rides, ate junk food (me, not Maiya), watched the kids play. I got to watch my 4 year old nephew Kieth water ski from the back of the boat. Very fun--and a little crazed with 5 kiddies ranging from 5 1/2 months to 4 years old.


It was hot hot hot! When it got too hot, we jumped in the lake. We put Maiya in a life jacket and she was very relaxed and happy in the water. She even fell asleep floating on the lake. It was so cute.


I thought Tony was going to be working on the mural, but he was only able to pick up a few panels. Instead, Tony was "home relaxing," he says, and I'll quote him verbatim, "with no responsibilities, living the celibate bachelor life, sleeping in, cooking what I wanted, staying up late, leaving the toilet seat up, getting in the car without putting the baby seat in, watching the DVDs I wanted, ebaying and craig's listing." He said he was kind of scared being alone. After watching "Dawn of the Dead," he was kind of jumpy. Hahahaha.

More pictures of our vacation to follow on the main website, once I get them sorted out.

Double Dare

Tony dared me to do a blog a day for 5 days. Doesn't have to be long. And then if I do, he'll blog on the 6th day. Hmm. I'll take that dare, but I will double it! I'm going to do 2 blogs a day for the next 5 days.

Join J-town Voice!

Location:  The Garden Room @ the JACCC
244 S. San Pedro St., Los Angeles, CA
When:  Sunday, July 17, 2:00pm to 5:00pm

Join J-Town Voice for an afternoon of food and drinks, and learn about the history of J-Town and how the neighborhood is changing today.

** Did you know that the population of J-Town is set to triple in the next few years?
** Or that the average income of new residents around J-Town is $90,000?
** And that over 1,000 affordable units of housing have been destroyed since 1950?

J-town Voice! brings together different generations of Asian Pacific Islanders interested in building a Little Tokyo where workers, residents, small business owners, youth and other community stakeholders all participate in this community's decision-making and planning.

Obon Season starts at Senshin!

Kuida-Osumi at the Senshin Obon

We took Maiya to her first Obon at Senshin on July 2nd. When we got there, Tony made a beeline for the chili rice booth, said hi to Tad and then stopped off for a shave ice (snow cone).

He was carrying Maiya in the New Native Carrier.

We visited with many friends, took a lot of pictures. With Sam (4 weeks older) and Nobuko.

Happy dancing girl
Tony and I danced with Maiya a bit. I followed along, taking pictures. Maiya loved it. She was laughing and giggling as we danced. She was mesmerized by the lights and the lanterns with the strips of papers in honor of those who have passed away. Even if her parents don't know the dances, I have a vision of my girl dancing in her yukata or hapi coat. But first, she has to learn to roll over, sit, crawl, walk. And then, she will dance!

Maiya Blogs!

Maiya's Toothy Grin
Yes! Maiya has a blog! I put up June's First Fotos and Maiya's 4th Month Blog. I added a few other things like the Cute-Cuter-Cutest Series and the Bonding with Daddy section for Father's Day. Please check out the pictures and leave her a comment there. It will make her day!

Ten Years with TonyO!

Jenni & Tony at Higashi Obon, our first photo together, July 1995

Just wanted to wish my honey a happy 10 year anniversary. Last night, Tony and I celebrated the eve of our anniversary by having dinner at Koraku in Little Tokyo. I had the curry fried rice, the same dish we shared that first night, which we've shared on other anniversaries as it is "our place." The main difference with our anniversary dinner this year, is that we had Baby Maiya with us. Koraku is loud, chaotic, greasy and has lousy ambience. The booths are too small for a wriggling infant--definitely not kid-friendly. We must have passed her back and forth between us about 5 or 6 times, taking turns eating our dinners, me nursing her, pushing water cups out of the way, Maiya kicking her foot into Tony's plate, knocking over things, etc. I wouldn't have had it any other way.

*******
Here is an excerpt from my journal, the night after our "first" and "last" date, and then 2 additional entries from those first weeks of our relationship!

7/2/95:
Tony Osumi, where do I start? I don't even know where I first met him, I recall about 3 years ago, seeing him at an APAN (JACL) meeting and asking my friend Gary Mayeda about him. I remember seeing him at the Wakako Yamauchi play, "12-1-A," at UCLA. We were both with other people. I remember reading things in the Rafu Shimpo and admiring this man, this activist, from afar.

Then there was a series of events where I started to see him at meetings where he talked about A3M (Asians for Miracle Marrow Matches) where he was the Japanese Task Force Coordinator, and the New Otani Workers’ Support Committee. Then I saw him at NCRR’s Day of Remembrance in February. I saw him at the JACCC Spring Festival in May. I ran into him again a few weeks later at the Visual Communications Asian Film Festival where we chatted at the reception. The next day I saw him at the CSUN Nikkei Student Assn banquet. My friends all knew of my developing crush on him and were teasing me. I was so embarrassed when he sat at our table, I couldn’t speak.

Fast forward to a few weeks ago, I read about this event in the Rafu - Home Movies of this Okinawan American activist, Dick Kobashigawa. I ripped the article out of the paper. The bottom said, “For more info, call Tony Osumi at ...” So I thought about it and tried to get up my nerve to call him.

I called and we chatted for 15 minutes or so about stuff. Pause. I took a shot and asked him if he was still a SHAM, I AM. ("SAM, I AM" was a play I had seen at East West Players for Single Asian Male, I Am. He had a poem in the Valentine’s issue of the Rafu and at the bottom, he had written SHAM, I AM, Single Hapa Asian Male, I Am.) He said he was and asked “What about you?” I thought it was a pretty clever opening.

What I didn’t know at the time was that my friend Lisa Sugino, who knew Tony from work, had been e-mailing him about a mystery woman that she wanted to set him up with. He figured out who it was and e-mailed back to her, “It’s a go.”

Last night we ate curry fried rice at Koraku, wandered around Little Tokyo, passing through JVP, reminiscing about the Far East Cafe, walking to my grandma’s church at Koyasan. Then on a lark, we drove out to the West Covina Obon. A perfect first date. He’s a muralist, artist, poet, writer, activist. He is committed, dedicated, articulate, attractive, and something that seems right.

7/24/95: I have serious feelings that I have met my soul mate for life. I am on a cloud.

8/21/95: How wonderful life is when Tony Osumi is in it. It’s hard to tell who’s more in love, but it really doesn’t matter. What I do know is that he is it.
*******
The things I wrote about him being committed, dedicated, articulate and attractive, are all still as true today as they were back in 1995. Tomorrow, we will go to the Senshin Obon together. We will bring our beautiful, grinning daughter, Maiya, who also celebrates her 5-month birthday today. Now we are three. I think it's so cool, that of the places I ran into Tony at in 1995 (Day of Remembrance, the JACCC Spring Festival and the VC Asian Film Festival) are places that we have taken Maiya to in her first few months. Our life together continues and grows... I am still on a cloud.

1000 Women for Peace

Congrats to the phenomenal Yuri Kochiyama and Holly Near! Today, 1000 women were announced as nominees of the Nobel Peace Prize for 2005. The announcement is part of a project to nominate, recognize and document the work of 1000 amazing women in peace building and social justice for the Nobel Peace Prize. I am lucky to have met two of the nominees.

Yuri Kochiyama is one of the most well-known and respected Japanese American activists today. At over 80, she is a tireless advocate for political prisoners, and is known for her friendship with Malcolm X, and was there cradling his head when he was killed. Tony & I were fortunate to meet and have dinner with Grace Lee Boggs (Maiya Grace's namesake--another phenomenal woman!!) and Yuri during the UCLA Serve the People conference in 1998. More recently, Tony, Maiya and I went to see her in April for a talk and book signing of her biography written by our friend Diane Fujino, Heartbeat of Struggle: The Revolutionary Life of Yuri Kochiyama. She also signed her book for us, Passing It On: A Memoir.

Holly Near, is my all-time favorite singer/writer/performer/activist. I own maybe 15 of her albums, tapes and CD compilations and have seen her in concert maybe 7 times. I was so fortunate to meet Holly several years ago at McCabe's Guitar Shop through Nobuko (my Great Leap partner and boss) and Derek, who worked with her back in the day. My friend Maria took me to see her in Pasadena when I was pregnant to celebrate my 40th birthday.

Anyways, here is the link to the http://www.1000peacewomen.org website. Here is an article about the 12 women from the Bay Area.

The 1000 women reminds me of one of Holly's songs, "1000 Grandmothers." She tells a story of how wars would be prevented if women, the grandmothers, were sent in to negotiate world peace. Definitely something to think about since Bush, Cheney and the rest just don't seem to get it.

1000 Grandmothers
Words and music by Holly Near

Send in a thousand grandmothers
They will surely volunteer
With their ancient wisdom flowing
They will lend a loving ear

First they'll form a loving circle
Around the wounded wing
Then contain the brutal beasts of war
Sweet freedom songs they'll sing

A lullaby much stronger
Than bombs and threats to kill
A force unlike we've ever seen
Will break the murder's will

To the prisons we'll invite them
The most violent men will weep
When a 1000 women hold them strong
And pray their souls to keep

Let them rock the few who steal the most
And rule with youthful charms
So they'll see the damage that they do
And will fall into grandma's arms
2000 loving arms

If you think these women are too soft
To face the world at hand
Then you've never known the power of love
And you fail to understand

An old woman holds a powerful force
When she no longer needs to please
She can cut your shallow life to bits
And bring you to your knees
We best get down on our knees

And pray for a thousand grandmothers
Will you please come volunteer
No longer tucked deep out of sight
Will you bring your power here
Will you bring your power here

Peace. Out.

Baby Stats

Ain't she a cutie?

20 weeks (Approx 4 3/4 months)
15 lbs, 2 oz (total weight gain since Feb. 1st is 6 lbs 7 oz)
26 1/2 inches (total growth since Feb. 1st is 6 inches)

Just updated KuidaOsumi.com
* Updated Maiya's Home First Fotos for May
* Updated Newest Column Progressive Mama: Got Milk?

Midwife Hannah's legacy

Jenni, Maiya and Bubbe Fran at birth
When Maiya was born on her due date February 1, we were so lucky that Tony's mom was able to be at the birth. Fran flew down from Idaho on the morning of January 31st, not knowing until we called her frantically at the airport, that my water had broken that morning. She timed her arrival perfectly, I'm sure it was based on her many years of experience as a certified nurse midwife.

She came with us to the hospital, helped us get settled in, monitoring my contractions, walking with us for 3 1/2 hours, keeping me comfortable, reading mantras over and over, and generally keeping everyone calm. Whenever the hospital staff would come in and tell us something, or tell us nothing, we would look to her to confirm or give better explanations in helping us decide how to proceed. She knew that we wanted to have a natural childbirth. She promised me (or maybe she was just estimating to make me feel better) that I would have the baby on February 1st (as opposed to February 2nd), which was a relief to me, as I was in labor for what was seeming like an eternity (37 hours in total, about 20 hours of hard labor). We couldn't have been in more capable hands.



Maiya with Bubbe Fran, 1 day old
When Maiya gets a little older, we will tell her about what a special gift it was that her Grandma Fran was there to help bring her into the world. She will learn about her Japanese American heritage, and she will also learn that not only is her Grandma Fran a midwife, but her great, great, great, great aunt Hannah Sandusky was also a midwife.

Hannah was born in Lithuania in 1827 and came to Pittsburgh in 1861. She delivered 3,571 registered births before passing away in 1913. She was Maiya's Grandma Fran's Grandpa Leon's aunt, and was the birth attendant for her great-grandmother Fannie (AKA Freya) Davis (AKA Davison or bed David) when Fran's Grandfather Benjamin Davis was born in 1874. (I think I got that right).

Here is a link to the Jewish Women's Archive which documents Great great great great aunt Hannah's story.

Procrastinatin'

Arghh. I have another column due this weekend. I've been one of the Thru The Fire columnists for the Rafu Shimpo for an unbelievable ten years now! If you know me, you know that I often write my piece after the deadline has passed and barely squeak them in before press time. Each time as I agonize over a column, I will promise to start earlier the next quarter.

And then I had a baby... Anyways, Maiya woke up at 5:30 am this morning and as I was nursing her, I started mulling over my next column because I realized it was due today. I thought I would just write about loving and being a new mama at 40, my new role as a lactivist, about Attachment Parenting, and why I do it. And then, as I started to think about angles for the column, I hopped onto the computer, opened up Word, stared at the blank page, and then decided to check my email, and surf around a bit. Four hours later, and I want to share some cool new websites I found this morning.

The Cow Goddess
Nurse Your Baby at Starbucks

And now, it's 10am and I reallllly have to start my column. But, Maiya has just woken up and is calling for milk! Oh well! Gotta run!

Two teeth... too fast!

Photo taken in Grandma & Grandpa's backyard, 5/19/05

Can't believe it, but at 4 1/2 months, Maiya now has two teeth! Last week, I put my finger in Maiya's mouth and felt the beginnings of a tooth!! Whaaaa? Oh, my gosh, I was so excited. I said excitedly, "Maiya, your tooth is coming in!" She beamed at me like a crazy girl, and started flapping her arms at me. The lower left tooth is now about 1/8th of an inch, and the lower right tooth is starting to pop out what's called a tooth bud, or a tooth cap, which "erupted" yesterday.

Poor little Maiya has had some serious bouts of crankiness as a result. She has been waking up earlier in the morning hours the last week or so. She has been mouthing everything in sight, and we can't hand her things to teethe on fast enough. She is nursing every 1 1/2 - 2 hours these days. I have been calling her "Droolie Andrews" for the past month (a name that I heard from my friend Mike describing his son Amani) as she has been like a drippy faucet. She's also been spitting up quite a bit, and I'm changing my t-shirt at least once a day, if not twice (I am finally wearing all those political and community t-shirts that I have been collecting for the past 10 years).

After the initial excitement of the first tooth wore down, I got a bit scared. What? Too fast! Gulp? Next will be the introduction of solid foods, then she'll be crawling, then walking and talking, graduating from high school, etc. Ai yah, she's growing up so fast! Wah! The good thing is that it's all gradual. Just in the last two days, Maiya has started sticking out her tongue and babbling. She makes sounds that sound like "Hey You!" when she is happy and "Ma ma ma ma ma" when she is crying her eyes out.

Today, we're off to the health food store to get some of the Hyland's homeopathic teething tablets, which I think have camomile in them. What I'm realizing is that the coming in of teeth, as with most things in life, is a process.

PS. Big congrats to Jim & Julie on their baby girl born Sunday!!

'Lactivists' Taking Their Cause, and Their Babies, to the Streets

New York Times
By Amy Harmon
Published: June 7, 2005

The protest, inspired by similar events organized by a growing group of unlikely activists nationwide in the last year, brought about 200 women to ABC's headquarters yesterday. They stood nursing their babies in the unmistakably public venue of Columbus Avenue and West 67th Street. They held signs reading, "Shame on View," and "Babies are born to be breastfed." Ms. Walters, who remarked a few weeks ago on the show that the sight of a woman breast-feeding on an airplane next to her had made her uncomfortable, said through a spokesman that "it was a particular circumstance and we are surprised that it warrants a protest."

But the rally at ABC is only the most visible example of a recent wave of "lactivism." Prodded by mothers who say they are tired of being asked to adjourn to the bathroom while nursing in a public space, six states have recently passed laws giving a woman the right to breast-feed wherever she "is otherwise authorized to be."

An Ohio bill saying a woman is "entitled to breast-feed her baby in any place of public accommodation" passed last month over the objection of one representative who wanted to exempt businesses from liability for accidents caused by "spillage."

"I really don't know any women who 'spill,' " said Lisa Wilson, the mother of a 4-month-old in Fairview Park, Ohio, who helped organize a nurse-in at a local deli to support the bill.

Representative Carolyn B. Maloney, Democrat of New York, held a nurse-in on the Capitol's Cannon Terrace last month as she reintroduced federal legislation to amend the Civil Rights Act to protect women from employment discrimination for using a breast pump or feeding their babies during breaks.

Nursing mothers are pressuring businesses, too. Burger King has declared that mothers are welcome to nurse. Starbucks - the target of a letter-writing campaign that asked "What's more natural than coffee and milk?" - has, too.

The moves come as the number of American mothers who choose to breast-feed has climbed to about 70 percent in 2003, the last year for which information was available, from about 50 percent in 1990. Many otherwise apolitical women say they found themselves unexpectedly transformed into lactivists after fielding a nasty comment or being asked to stop nursing in public.

"We're all told that breast-feeding is the best, healthiest thing you can do for your child," said Lorig Charkoudian, 32, who started the Web site www.nurseatstarbucks.com after being asked to use the bathroom to nurse at her local Starbucks. "And then we're made to feel ashamed to do it without being locked in our homes."

But Ms. Walters is not the only one who might prefer not to be confronted with breast-feeding at close quarters. Legislators, business owners and family members are debating how to reconcile the health benefits of nursing with the prevailing cultural squeamishness toward nursing in public.

In interviews and Internet discussions, hundreds of women recount being asked to stop nursing in public spots, including the Children's Museum in Huntsville, Ala.; a knitting store in the East Village; a Radisson Hotel lobby in Virginia; a public bus in Los Angeles; and a city commission meeting in Miami Beach.

"It's nothing against breast-feeding, it's about exposing yourself for people who don't want to see it," said Scotty Stroup, the owner of a restaurant in Round Rock, Tex., where a nursing mother was refused service last fall.

But the new generation of lactivists compare discomfort with seeing breast-feeding in public to discomfort with seeing interracial couples or gays holding hands.

"It's like any other prejudice. They have to get used to it," said Rebecca Odes, co-founder of "The New Mom" blog, who attended the ABC protest. "People don't want to see it because they feel uncomfortable with it, and they feel uncomfortable with it because they don't see it."

Whether to breast-feed in public, many nursing mothers say, is not simply a matter of being respectful of another person's sensibilities. They cite research by the Food and Drug Administration showing that the degree of embarrassment a mother feels about breast-feeding plays a bigger role in determining whether she is likely to do so than household income, length of maternity leave or employment status.

Plug for Tony in J-town tonight!

Tony's going to be reading some poetry and other fun stuff at a FREE community celebration tonight, June 9th at Centenary Church. Me & Maiya will be there for Part II (see below) and would love to see you there!

Part I -- puppet show 7:30pm
Part II -- Free community celebration 8:45pm

Part I -- Thursday, June 9th, 7:30 pm

It's World War II, and in camp everyone is treated as if they were the same, Tsuki, a young girl from Los Angeles, decides to prove she is not "an ant," but an individual. The Pink Dress Community Show @ Japanese American National Museum, 369 East First Street LA 90012 [To call for directions (213) 625-0414]

Based on an actual episode from the Maruyama family's history in a Colorado Japanese American Internment camp.
A puppet theater production. Presented by Triumvirate Pi Theatre in Association with the Japanese American National Museum. The 45-minute show is suitable for families with children in grades three and up. Made possible by the generous support of the Minnesota Arts Council and the City of Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department.

Fees are $4 for children and special community members, please contact eeesoo@yahoo.com; AT THE DOOR AND THROUGH JANM TICKETS ARE $8.

Part II -- Puppet Power! A community celebration

@ Centenary United Methodist Church
300 S. Central Avenue, LA, 90013
(cross street 3rd and central)

PERFORMING ARTISTS --
TONY OSUMI, muralist and writer
SKIM, MC, Korean Drummer & poet
JADE, spoken word artist

And More...

Speaking -
Rev. Mark Nakagawa of the Centenary United Methodist Church
Maggie Vascassenno of the International Action Center

Celebrating the self-determination and
courage of youth during times
of adversity and oppression

Producing Organization TRI -PI Theatre For More
Information -- email eeesoo@yahoo.com

Maiya's first visit to the OC

On Thursday, Maiya and I went down to Orange County to meet new friends and visit some old friends.

(1) After several years of following PegPower's life through her online journal, I finally met Peg in person! We went to lunch, walked around at the mall with our kids in strollers, and then went back and hung out at their house for a bit. I have to say, she is the sweetest blogger I know, and she is even sweeter in person. So genuine. Her girls, Ashlyn and Summer are just adorable. Peg really is a role model for me as she is a natural and awesome mom. I was paying attention to how lovingly and patiently she talked with her girls. I fell so in love with 3 year old Ashlyn when I complimented her on her cute hairpiece and she said to me, "It's not a hairpiece, it's a headband." And Summer, a one year old squealing with delight at just about everything.



(2) After leaving Peg's house, I went to go visit my childhood friend Kathy (we were best friends in elementary school until she moved away and we became pen pals), who lives about 3 miles from Peg. She wasn't home, so I left a little note in their mailbox. I wasn't looking forward to driving home in rush hour traffic, so I called my ex-boyfriend George, who it turns out lives about a mile from Peg. Maiya and I went over to George's condo for about an hour, and I visited with him and his mom, who I hadn't seen in over ten years. It was so nice to catch up with them.

(3) Then, as I was heading home, I decided to try calling my friend from college Lani, who also lives down the street from Peg & George. Lani was home, and so we dropped in on her as well. We were going to go to dinner, but by that time, it was quite late and Lani had eaten, so Lani heated me up some Progresso minestrone soup and we visited for a few hours.



So, that was Maiya's first trip to the OC, quite a full day, meeting new friends, and seeing old friends.

Happy Four Month Birth Day!

Four. Months. Old. Already. Seems like just yesterday I was giving birth to Maiya Grace. I just want to hug and kiss her when I see this picture which was taken a few weeks ago.

Milestones? Hmm. Maiya continues to grow and thrive. She lifts her head better and for longer stretches of time. She has found her voice. When she drops a toy, she will let us know. When you walk away and/or she wants to be carried, she will let us know. She is not shy about communicating her needs, especially when she is hungry, which is about every 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours during the daytime. She lets us sleep all night almost every night, but makes up for it by being very active during the day. She is showing more interest in what we are eating and what we are doing. She is not particularly fond of the car seat, although on Sunday, when we drove up to Grandpa Larry's house near Big Bear, she slept the entire way there. Coming home was another story. She loves going for walks in the afternoons with her mama. She smiles every time we pass a mirror, so I make sure to stop at mirrors all the time.

I am working on Maiya's photos for May. I have put up a new page of photos belatedly--new">April's First Fotos. You gotta check them out. They're just so cute.

Spitting Image

Maiya, 3 months


Jenni, 3 months (taken 40 years minus 1 day before Maiya's birth)


Tony, approximately 3-6 months is our guess

The picture of Maiya with the giraffe is my current favorite photo (top image). I think because she is just so darn cute when her head is up and she's all looking around. People keep telling me that Maiya looks like me. I thought I saw a resemblance, but actually, I think she looks like my brother Darin did when he was a baby. But when I saw this photo of myself at 3 months (middle image), the same age Maiya is in the photo with the giraffe, I was amazed! She really does look like me. As she gets older, I think she starts to look a little more like Tony (bottom image), especially in the eyes. What do you think?

P.S. To Bubbe Fran: Do you recall how old Tony was in his baby picture?
P.P.S. Maiya now has her own webpage which includes her photo album, Maiya's Home.

Totally shocked!

I demand a recount... If I wasn't going to get Anwar, I really wanted the rocker dude. And while I rarely saw the show, I've been following what's been happening each week and really thought it was Bo's show to win. Me and Maiya fell asleep on the couch watching it tonight and woke up for the last 5 minutes. I can't believe the result. Boring. Safe.

The Kitchen is Open

I think I set a record. I cooked two nights in a row. Last night, I made capellini with homemade basil pesto in the blender from a cookbook that I bought in the mid-80s and don't remember ever using. It was the first time I ever made pesto and I have to say, it was delicious!!

Pesto sauce:
2 cups sliced basil leaves
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup romano cheese
3 TBS pine nuts
1 tsp fresh parsley
1 clove garlic sliced in half
1/4 tsp salt
dash pepper
1 cup olive oil

Blend all the above in the blender and drizzle in the olive oil. Used hashi (chopsticks) to get the stuff off the sides and bottom.

Tonight was Taco Bar night. I made tacos old-style like my mom used to make when we were growing up with some adjustments to 2005 in parenthesis. My mom was over today watching Maiya while I went to the spa. I did the fake meat and grated the cheese, while mom chopped onions, tomatoes and lettuce.

Make-Your-Own-Tacos 2005:
Ground beef with McCormick's Taco Seasoning Packet (Veggie Soy-fake meat and low sodium taco seasoning)
Grated cheese (organic sharp cheddar)
Chopped tomatoes (vine-ripened from the Farmer's Market)
Sliced iceberg lettuce (old-style)
Diced Onion (Farmer's Market organic)
Guacamole (Mom said she never used guacamole in tacos. It came in a bag from Trader Joe's cause I couldn't find any ripe avocados at the Farmer's Market)
Black Olives (Kalamata from Farmer's Market)
Sour Cream
Corn and Flour tortillas (back in the day mom used to fry the corn tortillas in oil and stuff it with the meat. I just put them on the burner)

We're going to try to plan the week's dinners in advance. I'm thinking it will help us shop better and more frequently when we know what we're going to be eating, and it will avoid the what-are-we-having-tonight-for-dinner dilemma. I'll keep you posted.

Tricks are for Kids

Maiya's learning new tricks every day.

Lately, Maiya likes to kick off. On your lap, wherever she can be propped up with her legs dancing around on a solid surface. She likes to be upright and she likes to be entertained. Put her down and you will hear from her immediately.

She has also learned (or maybe it's just innate) how to drool over every thing and every one. When she's "flying" on our legs or knees, she can drool in your face or in your mouth if you're not careful.

Yesterday morning, she was on the bed, face up, kind of propped up on a pillow. I was next to her and was reading a book. I saw her lift her head off the pillow, while lifting her legs about 5 inches off the bed. The girl is a yoga baby. A few seconds later, I looked at her, and she had flipped around, moved her body 90 degrees to the right and was face down on the bed. Ackk! But no worries, although she was face down, I watched her lift her head up and push up with her arms and look around. So cute!

Maiya's new sounds this week are "en-gah," and "heh-heh-haaaaa!" Just now, she sighed and said, "egggh, ahhh." Also new this week are smacking her lips together and making sucking noises. With or without her hand in her mouth. With or without my arm in sucking range.

So goes life at the Kuida-Osumi household. Besides that, what else matters? You don't want to hear about my eye infection or my wrist pain, right? Or about the 6 loads of laundry since Thursday. Stay tuned for more about Maiya next time!!

P.S. Actually, on a more serious note, I can think of something else that matters. How about signing the NO STARBUCKS IN THE SAN FRANCISCO JAPANTOWN petition? A Starbucks in the SF Japantown will compete with long-standing neighborhood businesses that sell coffee such as Benkyodo (100 years), May's Coffee Shop (33 years old), and Café Hana (17 years). According to the Starbucks website there are already 55 Starbucks within a two-mile radius of the proposed site in one of the three remaining Japantowns left in the entire United States.

Jenni's Movie Reviews

Somehow I've been watching more DVDs lately. Because of the whole Netflix and internet downloading of movies off the internet, business at our local mom and pop video store has declined. As a result, you can now get 2 movies for the price of 1. For the new releases, it's $1.50 per movie for new releases, including tax. Can't beat that. Here are some of the movies we've seen in the last few weeks. And I will go with my same star rating from January where 1* is worst, and 4**** is best.

Wicker Park **** - This one I loved. It was confusing, but it was the kind of edge of your seat, what the heck is going on, i'm totally into it. If you watch the special features, you learn that the director wanted it to be confusing. You have to really focus to get the story. Really good movie!! It was the first movie I've seen with Josh Hartnett, and I have to say, I really liked him.

A Day Without a Mexican ** - It was ok. I was hoping to like it more. Really good message politically, but kind of slow. Pace was a bit off. I liked that 2 people I know were in the movie. Shishir is a Great Leap artist, and the other is the husband/actor of my friend Cynthia, who is the Executive Director of The HeArt Project, who runs a great arts education nonprofit for continuation school teens.

Napoleon Dynamite * - Really coudn't get into it. Tony loved it, laughing throughout. But I just didn't get it, the geek factor was high. I was more interested in my dumb People magazine and folding laundry.

Shall We Dance?*** - I knew it would be corny, but I cried! Since the 70s, Richard Gere has always had it going on. J-Lo is hot. I always like her in movies so much more than I do when she's being herself. All of the dancing is real. Impressive. I know I loved the Japanese version, and I know people say this wasn't as good, but I liked it.

Supersize Me**** - Loved it. Great documentary. Funny. I loved watching the diary moments from the guy who ate a high fat diet of McDonalds for 30 days, and almost caused irreversable liver damage to himself. Got a little slow in some places when it wasn't about him. But the stuff about the corporatization of school lunches, the high-stakes testing which causes schools to abandon PE, and the amount of advertising dollars that goes into the fast-food industry was awesome.

I Heart Huckabees* - What. The. Heck? I so did not get this one. Tuned out. Left the room. And I love Dustin Hoffman but pul-eeze. I am not a Jude Law or Naomi Watts fan. At all.

Moonlight Mile*** - Another movie with Susan Sarandon as the wife. She's great in this movie, as is Dustin Hoffman. I enjoyed this movie about a guy whose fiancee is killed. He is living with secrets and with his future-in-laws-to-be-but-not-to-be.

Garden State*** - I liked this one a lot. As with most DVDs, I watced it twice to get the director's comments, which I love to do. It was sweet and I loved Natalie Portman's character. Very spunky and goofy. I like how it seemed slow, but then you get all sucked into it. Kind of like Moonlight Mile. ADDED LATER AFTER REALIZING I FORGOT IT!!

Collective Purpose

"If my mother were here tonight, she'd say, 'Antonio, don't declare victory, declare your purpose,'" Villaraigosa said to roars of approval from his supporters.

"So let's declare our purpose here and now," he said. "Our purpose is to bring this great city together. Our purpose is to draw fully and equally on the rich diversity of all of our communities and neighborhoods. Our purpose is to believe in our young people. Our purpose is to make a difference."

Social Butterflies

Me & My Gal

Gosh, whatever happened to the days of posting to the main website every 2-3 days? Been busy, I suppose. I've been meaning to put up April's Foto Firsts--but just haven't gotten around to them.

Maiya and I have been out and about, going walking just about every day in the neighborhood. Sometimes we go to lunch just the two of us, and run errands in the stroller, or in the Baby Bjorn carrier. Sometimes we have lunch with people like Auntie Keiko, Lisa with Kai & Miya, Laura with Amani, Gayle with Kaylee & Kieth. The other day, we walked over to Lianne's house about 6 blocks away. We've gone to 3 meetings at Great Leap in the last 3 weeks. We had dinner with Lily on Friday night at CPK, and I'm having dinner with Maria this week for her birthday. Me & Maiya went to two parties, one for Kieth & Kaylee's birthdays, and another for the Ayala's 40th wedding anniversary.

In the meantime, I did 9 loads of laundry in 9 days. I've been trying to do the dishes every day. Now that my hair is falling out in big clumps, I am sweeping our hardwood floors every day.

The good news for today, is that it looks like we have a new mayor in town. Yea for Villaraigosa!!

Aloha to Motherhood!

Mom & Dad with their 5 grandkids yesterday at Kieth and Kaylee's birthday party. From left to right is Kieth (4 yrs), Kaylee (1 yr), Maiya (3 mos), Kevin (4 mos) & Kyle (2 1/2 yrs)


Me & Maiya celebrating our first Mother's Day

Last year, I remember crying on Mother's Day because I didn't know if I would ever be a mother. I had had two miscarriages and had been trying to get pregnant for over two years. I was in the process of fertility treatments and was feeling very discouraged. Fast forward to Mother's Day 2005. My baby is exactly 3 months and 1 week old today. I am so completely happy to be Maiya's mama. It feels right and I am savoring and enjoying every precious moment.

Today, me, Tony & Maiya celebrated by going to the Hawaiian Mother's Day/Children's Day Arts & Crafts Festival in Little Tokyo, then went to The Talpa for mexican food afterwards (the restaurant we went to the night before I went into labor with Maiya). Aren't we cute in our matching red hibiscus aloha shirts that my cousin Jackie sent us from Hawai'i? Hey, I couldn't think of a better day for us to be "twins"!

Happy Mother's Day to all the mamas! And especially my best wishes and "baby dust" to all the women who are trying to conceive and want to be mamas. Aloha with Love!!!

May Day Seder

Beth & Valerie at Passover Seder - photo by 7 year old Erin


Jenni, Maiya & I with Elijah's Cup at Passover Seder - photo by Erin

Last Sunday, May 1st, was Maiya's first, oops, second Passover Seder. Her first Passover was at my godsister Beth's house in Torrance on April 23. We had a great time seeing my godmom, Valerie; Beth's husband Brian and their daughter Erin along with about 8 of their friends. There was matzoh ball soup, four types of kharoses and delicious chicken and brisket. Oh, and the chocolate covered macaroons were righteous. I'm glad we were invited because with Mom and Don now living in Idaho, we didn't have a place to go this year. This could have been a bummer now that we have Maiya. I want to make sure she gets culture and history from both sides of the family. Like New Year's Oshogatsu, we may need to start taking the responsibility to host Passover ourselves.


Me & Maiya (3 months old) at the Workmen's Circle for the May Day Seder

So back to May 1st--we went to the Workmen's Circle May Day Seder over on Robertson Blvd. It was the first time I'd been to a community seder. I've had my eye on the Workmen's Circle since I first heard of them because of their secular emphasis on Jewishness and social justice. In this year's Hagode, they describe the organization as: "a progressive Jewish cultural and social action organization, advancing democratic frontiers, strengthening civil rights, promoting universal health care, and opposing bigotry and tyranny, working to preserve the unique legacy and beauty of Jewish and Yiddish culture." I'm down for that.

Throughout the meal their very own Mit Gezang Yiddish Chorus and Voices of Conscience Social Action Chorus led us through a variety of English and Yiddish songs like one dedicated to the courageous resistance in the Warsaw Ghetto in 1943. One very cool part was when they sang Earl Robinson's "May Day Song" and showed an old photo of Paul Robeson singing with the Earl Robinson Singers. One of the singers in the photo is now in the Workmen's Circle choir and it was touching to see him still doing his thing on stage. I guess the historical connection was also meaningful because Jenni and I thought about naming our child Robeson if we had a boy.

Approximately 80 people were there and all of us shared in the reading the Hagode. They said it was their largest turnout in a while. The food was tasty (the choice between brisket, chicken, salmon or veggie plates) and the more common list of 10 plagues that visited Egypt, was replaced with plagues on hunger, homelessness, hatred, ignorance, totalitarianism, greed, war, disease, poisoned air, water and earth, and the nuclear shadow over our lives. At the end we sang the Anthem of the Workmens' Circle and The Internationale with updated words by Billy Bragg and revised by Workmen's Circle Executive Directer, Eric Gordon. Great stuff.

For more info check out the Workmen's Circle website for interesting programing like upcoming Cuban films, art shows and a Jewish take on animal treatment and vegetarianism. http://www.circlesocal.org/300.html

Motherhood @ 40

People have been asking how I feel about being a mama. I've only been at it for 3 months & 3 days, but I have to say simply and clearly, I LOVE IT. I LOVE IT. I LOVE IT.

For much of my life, I really wasn't sure I wanted kids. I was dating my first boyfriend for close for 9 years--a guy I met in my first year of college. Long story short (and to be nice about it), we just weren't compatible. In my 20s, I was building a career in management/human resources for a 100-person law firm, and had some crazy visions of being a career woman and a single mom--I secretly thought about having a girl, and naming her Danielle Setsuko (after Danielle Steel--pre-activist days).

In my 30s, I became very active in the JA community, volunteering my time and money to many grassroots and activist organizations, sitting on several boards, editing books, doing programming for organizations, your all-around organizer and fundraiser. Along the way, Tony & I got married. At the same time, in my career, I was running a mid-sized nonprofit arts organization. I was keeping up 5 websites, a backyard organic garden, as well as spending a lot of time for some projects in
Detroit (living in CA). I started taking taiko lessons and joined Bombu Taiko. I was trying to keep up a daily (or every other day) yoga practice. I was trying to live an organic, healthy and balanced life, but I was running around chasing my tail.

Tony was just as busy, working as an artist and a teacher, and volunteering for additional organizations. So we really didn't have the time. I had inklings that my 30's were getting away from me, and that my clock was ticking, but I really wasn't convinced I wanted to have kids. Our life was very full!

But then, 4 years ago, my sister Gayle had a baby boy named Kieth. My nephew Kieth changed my mind completely. When I held him in my arms, when he first smiled at me (I remember the exact moment), I was in love, and baby fever hit me off guard, and with a passion. I was almost 37 and having made up my mind, I almost waited too long. It took a few months of discussions with Tony before we decided to go for it. After trying to conceive for a year, we sought medical intervention from the fertility dept at my HMO. I had two miscarriagess, several invasive procedures (tests to rule out infertility) and was in my 2nd round of clomid, hormone injections, and intrauterine inseminations when I finally got pregnant last year, and Maiya was born 3 months ago.


I think that despite my fears and misgivings, that I am glad that we waited until we were sure we wanted Maiya. Yes, it is a lot of work, and little sleep, but in many ways, it is easier than my crazy life was, because it is instinctive and natural, and I know what I need to do. I think that it has calmed me down and given me focus. Maiya needs me now, and it's important is that I be there for her when she needs me, and be conscious enough to give her space when she needs it in the future.

I Love Daddy

Let me tell you, Maiya loves her daddy. When he smiles at her, she giggles. When he says, "wha, wha, wha," like Chachi, or maybe it's "whoa, whoa, whoa," like Joey Lawrence, she goes wild, laughing crazily. Every day, she makes a new sound. Today, she squealed when I was about to feed her. In the photo above, it looks like Maiya can sit up on her own, but she was really propped up against the back of the couch like a little stuffed animal.

Tony really is an awesome daddy. He plays with her, changes her, talks and sings to her, holds and rocks her at night. Speaking of the night, Maiya is sleeping more, she has been sleeping 7-9 hours, which began this week. She doesn't go to sleep till 1:30 or 2:30 am, but still, she's slept in until 10am at least 3 times this week. Even though I'm still waking up cause I need to pump, it's making life easier these days. We're not trying to get her to "sleep through the night" as everyone asks us, because we're feeding on demand and going by her schedule, but it is nice that she's setting a generous schedule for mommy and daddy.

Anyways, Maiya loves her Daddy, and I love him too.

PS. Happy 42nd wedding anniversary to my mom & dad.

Blah, blah, blah

The picture above is from over a month ago, but I was going through organizing the hundreds of pictures we've taken, and thought it was so cute. Don't have much to say today. I feel kind of blah. I'm wondering if I should go back to my regular website and quit updating here on blogger. Anyone have a preference? My manual main website is more work, but I miss it! I also fear what would happen if I ever lost the blogger stuff and there's no backup.

The dishes are done. The house is fairly clean. I took a shower. Maiya is sleeping and has slept a lot today, so much so that I have barely changed or fed her today. I had planned to go to the Tuesday Farmer's Market and Trader Joe's about an hour ago, but I didn't want to wake her, which I often do. But then if I wait till she wakes up, then I need to feed and change her first, which means that by the time I get her bundled into the car seat, I will hit the traffic. Ahh, always trying to figure out the timing when taking Maiya to public places. Then figuring out if we're going to do stroller, car seat, Baby Bjorn, Maya Wrap, or go alone and leave Maiya with Tony, or take Tony with me. The last two require me waiting for Tony to get home from work.

I feel somewhat annoyed with myself that there's so many things lingering on my To Do List, but here I sit, reading blogs and wasting time. Which reminds me, I still want to write up Maiya's birth story and how she got her name. Blah, blah, blah.

This week with Maiya G.

Maiya with Mama

Today, Maiya is 2 1/2 months old. At her 2 month appointment last week, she was 12 lbs, 3 oz, and 24 1/4 inches long. We have settled into somewhat of a groove. She nurses about every 3 hours during the day, give or take an hour. This week, she has started sleeping a little bit longer, going from an average of 3 hours of sleep a night to maybe 5-7 hours. We think it's because we started swaddling her again at night. I'm still waking up every 3 hours, but last night, she slept from 3am till almost 9am, skipping the 6:30 feeding.

Some days, we are out and about, and other days, we stay home all day. When we're home, we do baths, have tummy time, and air time (no diaper).

--Monday night, Tony had a J-townvoice meeting, so Maiya & I went to have Thai food with Monica and the very adorable 2 1/2 year old Dyami.
--Tuesday night, we went to The Talpa for dinner, then went to visit Grandpa Larry and Uncle Bill.
--On Wednesday morning, we went to visit my cousins, Cherie & Roxane. Cherie is visiting with her husband Didier and two boys from France, so it was great to see them. Then, we went from there to Great Leap, where we visited phloe, Luke & Harry. Lily stopped by too.
--Yesterday, we stayed home all day, and I went grocery shopping after Tony came home from work, then we had a visit from Arvin last night.
--Today, after her bath and filing the tax extension, we're going to go run some errands.

When Maiya's awake, she's much more alert now. She "talks" with Max the Monkey, when you put him up on the mobile above her pack n' play. When you put her to the mirror, she will flirt with herself and laughs at herself. She smiles widely and will follow a picture of Bert & Ernie when you move it from side-to-side. Last night, Tony put "Lamb-y," a soft fuzzy white lamb rattle in her right hand, and she brought her left hand up to hold it in both hands. Tony said that she's a genius. I think he's right.

BIG LA

Los Angeles County:  10,179,716 (July 1, 2004 estimate)
City of Los Angeles:    3,912,200 (January 1, 2004 estimate)

Did You Know? If Los Angeles County were an independent nation, it would have the 14th largest economy in the world, larger than that of either Australia, Netherlands, Russia, Taiwan, or Switzerland.

Source: California Dept. of Finance; Demographic Research Unit

Ma(i)ya Wrap

Maiya Hanging with Daddy, 2 months old

I am reading a great book about Attachment Parenting, a nurturing style that encourages parents to trust and follow their instincts for child-rearing based on the baby's needs that responds attentively to baby's cries, minimizes the parent-child separation, avoids "sleep training" (scheduled feedings), etc. We have found that it supports and validates a lot of the things we are doing to bond with Maiya such as breastfeeding on demand, co-sleeping, cloth diapering, no pacifiers, etc. They also encourage "wearing" your baby as much as possible in cloth carriers, and limiting use of plastic infant carrier buckets, strollers, swings and bouncers.

So, yesterday morning, Maiya was fussing and just inconsolable. So, I put her in the Baby Bjorn. No sooner had I strapped her in, she fell asleep. I "wore" her on my chest for 2 hours, going for a walk, working on the computer, folding laundry, while she slept happily snuggled close to me. In the evening, she was crying, actually I would say she was screaming. I told Tony about what I had done earlier in the day, and we decided to put her in the Maya Wrap Sling, or what we call the Ma(i)ya Wrap (haha). Tony put on the sling, we adjusted it for him, and put her in it (photo above), and went for a leisurely walk in the neighborhood. She stopped crying, fell asleep, and was calm the rest of the evening. It was a beautiful thing.

(Source: Attachment Parenting: Instinctive Care for Your Baby and Young Child by Katie Allison Granju)