Driving license?

Got a big box in the house, what could we do with it?

Amazed with grandpa's energy....this little bus driver, won't let grandpa get off the bus at all...

Siblings

The kids are doing fine. Each day goes by so fast, I'm constantly in between breastfeeding, diaper changing, potty training, cooking, playing....but without grandparents here, I definitely can't do these all alone. Forget about even uploading photos here, they are surely the biggest help.

Daytime is a bit easier as Kiharu is mostly in between napping & eating. But once the clock strikes 7p.m., she wants to eat almost all the time. Unlike in the past, once Yoshi went to bed, that's our little relaxing time. But now, it's all about non-stop feeding and trying to put both kids to bed. I can't complaint much as Kiharu lets me sleep at least 3 hrs straight each interval, so it's not that bad.......

Yoshi is doing very well, potty training is in progress, better each week. Maybe I can write about our little adventure someday....surely it's the biggest challenge since his breastfeeding...^_^ well, got to go, it's diaper changing time again.....

Last Sunday was my birthday, thanks to grandparents' babysitting, me and Nori got to go out for lunch by ourselves. It's been more than a year since we went out dinner on our own in Japan. (& it's been more than 3 years since we went to movie theater, the next time maybe we will be watching Disney movie....) It's very refreshing to be on our own once in a while.....

(Where're the car seats & the noise machines?)

Homemade fun

I have been inspired by few other moms on some creative projects (yes, it's you- Amy & Chelsea ^_^, thx). With Kiharu just being born, and Yoshi's potty training, we stayed home a lot more lately. And thanks to grandparents' help, I started to have more energy and time to spend with little Yoshi. Afterall, he's still the one that needs the most attention & love.

Project 1- "Picasa" design Telescope

Project 2- Abstract painting
Project 3- Octopus fishing
(Obaachan, thank you for the book you gave us before, we followed the instruction, it was fun. And thanks for the safety scissors too, Yoshi loves it)

Baby

All babies do are- "daydreaming"....

"Yawning"......

"crying for food"........

& "Sleeping".

Kiharu is doing well. She doesn't cry much, perhaps because I have learnt her cues very quickly after Yoshi's. So I usually feed her before she raises her crying level. Slowly I am working on the sleep routine. These past few nights, I was able to get few 3 hrs stretch of sleep thruout the night, so we are doing pretty good. Yoshi is also being a great brother, wanting to help and hold her, he's very gentle as well. Just glad he's not much into poking her eyes or nose (yet)....^_^

My little sister

The other nights, Yoshi was trying to copy his little sister's facial expression, it was quite funny. Pay attention to Yoshi's eyes blinking & tongue sticking out, just like Kiharu....^_^

Kiharu

Kiharu, a.k.a- "Ki-chan" is almost a week old. Last Saturday, after satisfying my pregnancy craving of McDonald breakbast, we were out shopping & dinning for 10 hrs. (Perhaps I had a feeling she was about to come out, so my body just wouldn't stop moving). We went back home around 9p.m. after the Mexican dinner.

While Nori was giving Yoshi a shower, I started too feel the contraction. Actually, I wasn't quite sure if that's it, so I kept it quiet while keeping track with the clock ticking. Very soon, Nori noticed my quietness, he asked if he should get ready (^_^). But I kept saying give me a little time to figure out first. I even took a shower before calling the doctor. I can tell everyone in the house were just waiting for my signal patiently......After putting Yoshi to bed, sang the Twinkle Twinkle Little Star goodnight song, made a phone call to grandparents in Japan, then we were off to hospital at around 11p.m.

Just like everyone said, 2nd delivery usually went much faster. And sure it was for me. I was 7 cm dilated upon arriving the hospital. After having the epidural injection, all my contraction pain were gone (thank goodness). I was able to take a good nap before the nurse woke me up to get ready. Doctor told me to start pushing for the baby, and literally, after 2 pushes, they brought Kiharu out. No pain, no sweat, and there I was laying on the bed, just like watching a movie, seeing how the following procedures went. Unlike when I had Yoshi, I was about to pass out before and afterwards.......

My recovery went really well. Kiharu is doing great. We had a bit of breastfeeding issues earlier, but I think is more of me needing some time to adjust. Having been thru the first 3 months of exhausting pumping and troubles with Yoshi, I take a much lay back perspective with Kiharu. She is now eating great. Though she was born much lighter weight (6lb 2.4 oz), but she is growing weight steadily and seems very healthy.

Sleeping is always an issues for any newborn and their parents. The first 2 nights back home, oh my....did I forget how baby was?! But last night, I was able to have a 4 hr + two 2 hr stretch of sleep, that's VERY refreshing for sure.

Things are doing great in the house. Thanks to my parents, everything seems so much easier to handle around here, and Nori doesn't have to worry about us that much either. And the best part is having someone to keep playing with Yoshi all the time, so there isn't much a gap of attention to him. We can tell there are moments when Yoshi wants extra hugs and kisses from me and Nori, sure he noticed there is a new family member in the house. He's being a great brother, trying to help in many ways. being very gentle to his little sis. We just can't wait to see both of them interacting more with each other (ignoring the fighting that comes along...).

Anyway, this blog is way too long....Nori is now out shopping with Yoshi, guys' bonding moment. Grandpa is catching up with his brief nap time upstairs (it's been a long week of constant entertaining with Yoshi). Grandma is taking her coffee break after many houseworks. Kiharu is about to wake up from her nap. And me.....of course, trying to catch up with my blog & relaxing at the same time.....

Thanks everyone for all your well wishes. Me and Nori are still absorbing the joy of being newly parents (again) of two little ones.......^_^

Big brother

Past 96 hrs

THANK YOU everyone for all your well wishes!!!!!!!

96 hrs has past, still far from routine. Right now, left arm carrying a sleeping baby who will cry as soon as I put her down. Left arm is typing on the keyyboard in the dark, hurrying before baby discovers or before my brain turns into desperate sleeping mode........ that's all for right now.....Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Thank you again for everything!!!!!

Kiharu is here!

(click the picture to enlarge)
Kiharu is here! Mother and daughter are both doing well.
You can see Yoshi's card here:
http://kambayashifamily.blogspot.com/2007/05/yoshi-is-here.html

Familiar early morning thoughts

It's 7:10a.m. on Saturday morning. Yoshi climbed onto our bed at 5:45a.m., and made himself comfortable in between me and Nori. He usually does that in the weekend, knowing Nori is home and wants more cuddling time perhaps. (not sure how he figures out the day of the week). After 30 mins tossing and turning, he finally fell asleep again. But since then, I am awake. This reminds me of a FAMILIAR morning 2.5 years ago ................

Yes, I still wonder how contraction feel. U would think with the 2nd pregnancy, I should know by now. In some way, I do, but there are many times, just as I thought it might be the night, I ended up sleeping thru it and woke up just like another day of waiting.

Yes, I am not nervous about the birth, just more anxious to meet Kiharu, and seeing the moment especially when Yoshi meets his little sister.....

Besides that, I think this morning my brain is just stuff with many other misc thoughts:
- hm.....what should I eat for breakfast (something that perhaps I won't be able to eat for a while after baby born....greasy hashbrown perhaps?!

- hm....where should we go today since we have been stuck at home for the past 2 days with the snow......

- hm... have we stocked up enough groceries for Yoshi & grandparents during my hospital stay? (I think our freezer actually has no more space)

- hm....when will I have time to copy and paste the past 6 montths of blog posts as back up? (why didn't I make it as a daily habbit instead of dragging the same project every few months?)

- hm...................and why am I having all these thoughts so early in the morning instead of sleeping a bit more?!?! oh well, I think the more I write here, the more I'm awake (+ surround sound of Zzzzzzzzz from my lovely family).

Good morning everyone!! (will today be the day?!)

Bilingual

Me and Nori have been talking to Yoshi in both Cantonese & Japanese since he's little. But not till grandparent's visit that we finally see how much Yoshi can distinguish the language differnce.

If u listen carefully on the below video, when grandpa pointed out the item, Yoshi would response in Cantonese; But he would then switch to Japanese with Nori.... and the other funny thing is, in the daytime, Yoshi would speak Cantonese with us. But as soon as Nori comes home from work, Yoshi would switch COMPLETELY to Japanese only, not only in the words, but also his expression tone....

Snow is here.....

First snow storm was finally here.......

I think grandparents were more excited to be out in the snow than little Yoshi. They were so eager to be out & insisted on experiencing their first snow shuffling while Nori was at work....seriously!!
Yoshi finally got his turn to help as well.
After carrying the heavy snow shovel, let's switched back to the smaller size tools.

Thank you grandparents & little Yoshi helping today. Great job. Hope none of you will have backpain tomorrow morning....

Potty training mission- Part I

So what's grandpa spying on outside the bathroom door?

~~~~~ grandma's potty training session began!! ^_^

This all started right after Yoshi's tea time with orange juice, which usually leads to his "business" afterwards. So grandma took the opportunity to begin her biggest mission of this trip- potty training Yoshi!!

Grandpa joined in the team. Suprisingly, Yoshi had no desire to escape at all. He was actually enjoying the 45 mins entertainment sitting on the potty. Singing, counting numbers, talking with grandparents, playing with the toilet paper roll..... it's a good start.

Well, after 45 mins of first trial, it's time to get some fresh air and watched some backup tutoring material. I pulled out the potty train cartoon video sent by grandparents from Japan. (all 3 of them were watching too....) Obaa-chan & Ojii-chan, arigato!!Though no real "stuff" came out, but it's definitely a great start, thanks to grandparents' patience and entertainment. Fun fun fun......stay tune!!!

"公公, 公公...."

Well, after a long holiday with Nori being home with us, we finally have to let him go back to work.....(we miss u Otousan..). This afternoon at home, I kept hearing Yoshi saying "公公...公公", he certainly has the full attention from grandpa, they kept each other busy for sure. So what kind of requirement is needed to become a full time babysitter?

-Engineering/ technician background

- Pretend play skills
- Art & craft skills

- Entertainment assistant (which would be the best time to catch a breath)