Point Defiance Zoo

March happened so fast.  It always does.   Now we are going into the spring season.  Spring is my favorite season, but it is stating again at the odd pace.  Some flowers in the neighborhoods are blooming already and the rain is beating them down.  I hope the they will stay blooming through out the season because it makes the walk around the neighborhood more fun.  "Wow, Mommy this flower is pretty!" girls would comment and I snap their pictures.  It is also the season the furry neighbors, squirrels and bunnies, mate and we can see them chasing one another like nothing else matters.  The animals are busy, too. 

When we visited Tacoma, we decided to stop by at the Point Defiance Zoo there.  It was nearly 3:00 pm when we arrived and the zoo closes at 4:00 (they allowed us to stay until 4:30), so we decided it will be a quick one.  Since we are reading the "One and Only Ivan", we toured the zoo discussing what a good animal enclosure is.  In the book it talks about a "good zoo" and a "bad zoo".  A good zoo it says is a zoo that provides an ample space for the animals and make their enclosures look more like a natural habitat.  They would also be well maintained and has a lot of appropriate setting to provide stimulations and physical activity.  The bad zoo is opposite of that.  It has small, dirty and bare cages with nothing to give stimulations for the animal.  As we looked at each animal, we asked ourselves if it is a good enclosure.  We all agreed that most of them were at Point Defiance Zoo!

It was a cloudy day and at late hour, there weren't too many visitors at the zoo.  It was great because we felt like we had the zoo to ourselves!  The animals looked at us and reacted to our movements, so it was very interesting for children to interact with them.  We saw, elephants, tigers, walruses, otters, polar bear, arctic foxes, reindeer, some kind of buffalo, and some farm animals.  The kids liked watching walruses since they were swimming dynamically back and forth with their massive bodies.  Their faces looks like mustached old men and their expressions were very funny.  The girls could have taken home the arctic foxes if they had a choice to do so.  They were awing as one of them ran around the enclosure like they are doing laps.  They were fluffy snow ball but I am sure their beautiful white fur will be stained bright red when they make a kill.  I wondered if the girls would still want to take them home after their "feeding". 

I was impressed with how well Noah did.  He did not scream nor tried to run away.  He enjoyed looking at the animal just like the other children.  He pronounced each animals correctly and was a happy little guy smiling as the animals walked past us.  There was a kid's play area near the entrance so we played until the closing time.  They all had fun climbing and running around.  It's a great zoo.  I was quite impressed with it.  It's not as big as Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, so it's perfect for a family like us.  We should go to Woodland Park Zoo soon to compare and also visit the gorillas.  There weren't any gorillas at Point Defiance. 

The day in Tacoma was successful and very educational.  It was worth it risking encountering gangs:-).

My baby boy is 10!

We have a new two-digit-aged resident in the house!  Sean turned 10 yesterday and we celebrated his birthday with his friends at home with a Seahawks themed birthday party.  He wanted to make sure his party is the best birthday party ever.  He and I sat down and had a "meeting" to talk about what kind of activities and food he wants. 

Sean's Epic Party Ever Schedule:

3:30 - 4:00  Free Play and Introduction
4:00 - 4:15  Scavenger Hunt - Finding pictures of football Sean hid through out the house for a prize.
4:30 - 5:00  Free Play
5:00 - 5:15  Carnival - Hoola hoop contest, bowling game, football target game etc...
5:20 - 5:30  Piñata
5:30 - 6:00  Pizza and Cake
6:00 -          Parents pick up

We didn't follow the schedule and we skipped Carnival part entirely since the boys were having fun playing football outside.  Mike was home and he jumped in to help with the party.  He used his football coaching skill to show the boys a few trick plays and they had a lot of fun together.  It's nice to hear children's laughter and content noises of good old ball play outside.  I felt happy looking at the boys play and having a good time.  Sean was grinning ear to ear surrounded by friends at home.
I am not sure if it was epic, but I think he and the guests had a pretty good time.

I am no longer a youngish 30 something with a cute baby boy but a middle aged Mom with a tween.  Every year is passing by so fast.  Soon, he will be in junior high and then gets a driver's license and goes off to college.  I have to make sure I enjoy his small frame now before he changes to a bulky tall guy like Daddy, although I am not sure if Sean would ever become a muscle type.  He is quite skinny like how I was and hates it just like I did!   He still calls me Mommy and doesn't mind taking bath with his sisters.  I have to enjoy it while I can.  I feel the change is coming in the next few years...

My Sean at 10:

- He gained about 5 pounds since last summer and he is excited that he is over 60 pounds.
- His best friends are Parker and James. 
- He says he doesn't like girls and he doesn't know what to talk to them about but I think he is starting to take interest in them.
- He is waiting for his growth spurt and complains that many of his friends are taller than him now.
- He is starting to show the desire to be popular and thinks a boy named Luke is popular because he talks a lot.
- He thinks sagging pants are cool and he is considering wearing his pants slightly lower (no bueno).
- He still has to win everything at home or he Will throw a tantrum.
- He is scared of thunder storms and refuses to sleep in his bed when he hears it at night.
- Spiders are not his friends.
- I still make his vegetable "talk" to encourage him to eat them.  e.g.  "Sean, why can't I join the party in your tummy?," says the celery.
- He names everything Dick now.
- He discretely thinks his sisters are cute, but Aly often annoying.
- He likes to make Noah laugh.
- He thinks Aly is beautiful but her voice and appearance don't match.
- He lost his favorite doll, Woody, and quite sad about that.
- He knows so much about planets, stars, constellation and space in general and he learned them by reading his astronomy books.
- He still likes architecture and he builds amazing things with his Lego's.
- He calls Patriots are Patrionts.
- His favorite subject is Social Studies.  He is currently learning about Oregon Trail and he loves learning about it.

B & I Circus Store of One and Only Ivan

The kids had a mid-winter break last week, so we decided to check out a historic site I have been eying on ever since I started reading the novel, "The One and Only Ivan" to kids.  The story is based on a gorilla named Ivan who lived in a mall in Tacoma from the 60s to early 90s.  The mall was called "B&I Circus Store" and the owner put exotic animals on display to attract customers.  Ivan was one of them and lived in a small concrete cage for 27 years.  The story is very thought invoking and makes the reader think twice about the topic of animal treatment by us humans.  I love anything history and in particular a local history which we can still see with our own eyes.  It allows me to make a solid connection with the past, not only by pictures but with my senses.  Sean, Aly and Saya were very eager to see where Ivan lived many years ago and simply excited to get out and visit a new city they are not familiar with.

Tacoma is about 40 minutes away from Bellevue on I-5.  The trip is short and easy since I-5 has at least five lanes.  Come rush hour, all five lanes get jammed with cars moving at snail's speed.  The traffic in Washington can be as bad as in California!  I was a little nervous about the visit to the mall.  While I was researching about the place, I found out that it is a hot spot for some local gang activity.  I know some areas in Tacoma can be a bit shady and it looks like the once popular mall had become a hang out place to do criminal activities.  I was honest with the kids and told them that we will go in, find Ivan's cage, take some photos and leave.  That made the kids super nervous.  They studied the surrounding of the mall and said they don't want to go in.  I convinced them though and they followed me close like little chicks. 

The place was not that bad.  I even saw some families walking around.  It reminded me of an indoor market in Mexico as most of the stores were selling Hispanic merchandise.  Some people did look like gang members and it even had a sign that read "No Flashing of Gang Colors Allowed,"  but I didn't feel threatened at all.  We kind of looked odd one out though since we were walking funny with all children clutching to me and me carrying a giant camera.  The entrance to the mall had murals of circus animals which must be the reminiscent from the back in the day.  There were old black and white photos of the mall and the animals they had displayed on the wall and it was interesting to see how happy everyone looked in those pictures.  I wondered if they exaggerated their expressions in publicity pictures in the 60s.  The owner, Earl Irvin, personally made a trip to Africa and purchased Ivan and his twin sister, Burma, from an animal broker.  Burma died shortly after arriving to America, but Ivan lived with Earl and his family for a few years until he became too large and dangerous to live with humans.  I tried to imagine the elephant, seals, chimpanzees and a gorilla living with household goods in the mall.  The place was filled with bleakness, the fake smiles of people in old photos, colorful piñatas hanging and smell of old and fried food.  I was glad that we felt it in person.

Ivan's area was covered with paper and could not see the inside.  I was hoping to show kids how small it was, but I think they got the idea from the walls.  We didn't spend time looking at it too long since there wasn't much to look at and Sean was concerned about the safety of the mall.  He was coaxing me to go back to the car, so we took some pictures and left, going through the maze of small shops and hallways.  I needed to use the restroom so I had all children come with me to the woman's bathroom, even Sean.  He never ever comes into ladies' room but he didn't hesitate at all.  He must have been really scared!  It was a very educational trip for all of us.  It was exciting to see the proof Ivan really existed and lived in the old mall.  We are about halfway done with the book and it is becoming one of our favorite books of all time.  Ivan was "saved" by animal activists and "freed" to the zoo in Atlanta in 90s.  He died in 2012 which isn't that long ago.  He never formed any friendships with other gorillas at the zoo and preferred to interact with human.  It is a sad story, but he and the author gave us an opportunity to think about zoo in a different angle.  I hope the children learned something out of this trip to the old mall.  I sure did.

Happy 8th Birthday Twins!

It's hard to believe, my miracle babies are 8 years old already!  Eight years ago seems so long and my memory is starting to fade a little.  It almost doesn't seem so real to me any more, those night shifts I had with the squirmy tiny babies.  When I first found out we are pregnant with twins, I was so excited but worried at the same time.  Twin pregnancy is risky.  I swore I would do anything to keep the babies healthy and until the safe gestation.  The twins came five weeks early, I was so worried they might not be ready for the life outside.  Then the hectic schedule with an active 2-year-old and baby twins broke me, a few times, that I cannot keep on going like this anymore.  People told me it will all get better, and it did.  When I found a peace with the schedule, we found out we are having another baby in 9 months.  We were stunned and scared again as it seemed impossible to squeeze in anything else, in particular another human baby.  When the twins were waddling 14 months, little Saya wailed her tiny self out to the world.  As much as I anticipated chaos, I was very calm.  I was surprised at how relaxed I was with caring for a newborn and three toddlers (Sean was 3).  I think that is because the twins made me a toughie and it became a foundation on who I am now. 

We celebrated twins birthday with a cake and a party at Chuck E. Cheese for Alyson.  Noah had a birthday party at school, which I could not attend since it fell on two Valentine's party I was in charge of.  This year, I baked a chocolate cake with chocolate whipped cream and peaches inside.  Alyson requested a Beanie Boo black cat this year for the decoration and she picked it out on the Internet.  I hadn't baked for months so I was actually excited to bake her cake.  It was a busy week with school commitments, but I was able to get everything done (barely on time of course) by the party time.  Most of Aly's girl classmates were able to come and we had a good time.  As I wrote before, I am not a fan of Chuck E. Cheese but must admit it was a great hit!  The girls were at the perfect age to play with games independently and they were having so much fun.  Even, when Chuck E. came out to the party area, Alyson and her guests were still young enough to be excited to hug him and dance with him.  The boys group at next table, maybe about third graders, were completely still when Chuck E. came out and they were not dancing at all.  They were too cool for Chuck E.  I was able to chat with some parents and it was even fun for me, too.  I love meeting other parents and exchanging information about how the year is going. 

We sang Noah the birthday song the next day.  He was so cute with his big cheeks, staring at the candle while we sang to him.  I love that boy so much.  He made the biggest leap this year becoming proficient in using his iPad to communicate.  His thing now is typing in the word he cannot read into the reading app and learning to pronounce the words.  For example, when he sees Sean's thermos, he enters t h e r m o s and plays the sound.  He repeats "thermos" several times to learn it.  I was looking at what he was reading on iPad yesterday and he was practicing the word "Affirm".  That kid is going to be able to spell words like champs.  I am so proud of him for having strong curiosity and interest in words. May need to get serious about college saving for him.

Thank you Noah and Alyson for being born to Daddy and I.  You made Mommy strong and confident which became essential part of who I am.  Alyson, you are so pretty I stare at you all the time when you are not looking.   You made me happy when you said you are going to take care of Noah when you grow up.  You had a matured look on your face and I felt like I saw a glimpse of how you are as a young adult.  Mommy and Daddy are looking forward to seeing you grow every year.  We love you so so much!

Walk in the Forest

Yesterday, we went on a hike to a nearby trail to enjoy the milder weather we are having lately.  Just fifteen minutes away from our house, we can escape to moss covered rain forest with fresh air.  The filtering sunlight let the ground covering shrubs glow like treasures in the ocean bottom.  We visited the same trail about four years ago when Sean was a kindergartner.  Back then we had Saya and Noah in the stroller.  They were chatting and running around yesterday pointing at strange looking trees and mushrooms, making sure someone won't step on horse poop, climbing onto tree stumps etc... They were enjoying being kids in the forest.  It's such a healthy thing to do to go to the mountain as a family.  We ought do it more often!

I have been pretty busy with school activities and work outs in between.  I went to 2nd Grade field trip last week to the zoo as a chaperon and taught a class the next day about Japanese culture.  The field trip was fun, but quite tiring.  The kids were super excited and their priority wasn't being a good listener.  So, I was like a fire fighter extinguishing bad behaviors before they flare up.  It was a bit stressful since the zoo assigned guide person was quite strict and expected children to be interested in what he was talking about.  Well, I had a hard time paying attention to him, so how could the 8 year-olds?!  The 2nd graders in our school for some reasons are a bit of a challenging group to begin with.  All it takes is a few naughty ones and the bad behavior spreads like winter flu.  They are sweet children but when they get together, they can be out of control hyper.  I know they want to be good and their misbehavior sometimes I feel are due to anxiety or something they cannot control.  I hope the school and their parents are able to work together to provide support for those children.  I don't want for them to spend their childhood feeling bad about themselves.  That would be a big shame. 

I was pleasantly surprised that all children in Aly's class were mesmerized by my presentation on Wednesday.  The teacher asked me to teach children about Japanese festival called "Setsubun" and I showed them slides with funny pictures on them, read a folklore about the festivity and led a craft activity making a mask.  The teacher said the kids listened so well and he was very impressed.  It's wonderful to teach something to little people who are so interested in what I have to say.  I smiled and complimented children for being good listeners.  I prepared everything in two days, so I was pretty tired the rest of the week from putting in late nights.  I could literally fall asleep anywhere if I was sitting down.  Either I was very tired or getting old!  I certainly like to attribute it to my fatigue rather than age...

I have another busy week this week with two Valentine's Day parties at school and a birthday party for my Aly girl this Friday.  We are going to celebrate it at the head buzzing, junk rushing, Chuck-E-Cheese!  I honestly despise that place.  It's like a casino for children and I just can't stand that awful echo of game machines and the bright neon lights flashing everywhere.  I do it for the sake of Aly since she requested it, but boy it's going to be the longest two hours yet.  I intend to bake a Beanie Boo cake as requested by the birthday girl.  She has to pick which picture she wants on the cake first and then I will recreate the same image on the cake.  It's like a magic, but it takes me at least two hours just for the drawing and coloring in part.  So, in a nutshell, I won't be sleeping this week, either! 

I dream of some day I can lay in a cozy bed in a bungalow by the beach feeling the warm sea breeze on my face.  Maybe I read, maybe I nap whatever I want to do is ok with the universe.  Perhaps though all I dream in my nap will be my children and their cheeky smiles, so where I am is a good place to be.  Ok, before I become extra cheesy, I am going to stop.  Have a great week everyone!  Sweet dreams :-)

Daddy and Sean's Trip to Japan

At Eigamura, movie village, in Kyoto.  They replicated a town 300 years ago.

Sean's long time dream came true.  He visited Tokyo Skytree, the world's tallest TV tower.

At Asakusa in Tokyo.

Ramen!

With my Dad having fun.

Sean and his grandma at Golden Pavilion in Kyoto.

At Kyushu island with my aunts and uncle.

Sean wearing Japanese robe at a hotel.

Sean became a Japanese warrior.

Mike was a tad jealous that I have been going back to Japan every year with the girls, so he told me one day that he wants to go.  Mike and I met and fell in love because he and I are very much interested in foreign cultures and not only visiting the countries, but enjoy getting to know the culture and meeting people.  That is why we moved to Australia a month after our wedding.  He also spent nearly one year in Hong Kong in college and I lived in Mexico for 10 months as a language teacher.  I guess where I am going with it is being in touch with the adventurous side is very important to him and I.  We don't want to lose that part of us despite having a large family with special need children.  Oh gosh, get to the point already, Kimi!  Ok so in a long story short, I said "yes, you should go and take Sean with you!"

They had a fabulous time with my parents and extended family.   I felt nervous since Mike had to navigate his way around the maze of Tokyo train system on the first day on his own.  The subway map of Tokyo alone is outrageously complex that it almost seems like a joke.  He did fine though and found his way to where he wanted to go and eventually boarded Shinkansen, the bullet train, to Osaka where my parents live.

The duo got a VIP treatment from my family.  My Dad drove them around in his mini wagon to make sure they get to where they want to go easily.  I rarely get a ride from my Dad when I go!  They went to Kyoto, the ancient capital of Japan, Universal Studio Japan, Kyushu island with my extended family etc...  Sean has met my many of my cousins and uncles before, but I am sure he felt his world expanding in front of his eyes knowing those are his relatives and he is very much part of our big clan.  That is what I wanted him to feel anyway, getting to know his roots.  There are many things I cannot explain about myself but he can understand by meeting my family and walking the neighborhood I grew up in.  He doesn't get an opportunity like this often and I was excited, perhaps more than he was, for this chance. 

They spent Oshogatsu, New Year's Day, there and it is a super good time to be in Japan.  It is the biggest holiday in Japan and there are many rituals and traditional customs the duo got to experience.  Sean was a happy boy because he received many Otoshidama, New Year's monetary gift, from my family.  It is a custom to give Otoshidama to children in the New Year's Day and he became like ten times richer than he was instantly.  We will put the money in his bank to supplement his college fees. 

One unfortunate thing that happened in Japan, be it on the first day they arrived, was that Mike fell and hit his shoulder pretty hard in Tokyo.  He and Sean were playing at a park and he ran down the slide probably too excited to be in Japan and lost his balance.  To save himself from utter embarrassment, he decided to play cool by trying to do a roll upon landing but instead slammed his shoulder to the ground.  I can just imagine it happening in slow motion.  It started to hurt a lot several days afterwards and my aunt made a temporary sling for him to keep his arm and shoulder steady.  Poor thing suffered though most of the trip and in a way it spoiled some fun for him.  He did not spoil fun for other people though and was a good sport by participating in all outings and activities.  I wished the fall didn't happen.

I was relieved when they got back to Japan.  I missed them very much and also wanted to hear their travel tales.  By fluke, they were on the same planes round trip with our friend from Boise and her daughter.  It was a nice surprise!  I don't know when they will go back to Japan again, but they had so much fun.  Thank you my family for making their trip extra special!  I can't wait to go to Japan this summer with the girls.

p.s.  Sean got over the jet lag quite easily this time.  I was expecting some early morning rising and sleepiness in the afternoon.  He was quite tired though since he went to school the next day.  The teacher wrote to me and said that he looked extremely tired and was almost in tears since he had to take a math test with the materials he didn't learn since he missed six days of school.  Plus, he ended up with a packet of worksheets from the teacher to finish at home.  He was upset exclaiming, "I am being punished for going on vacation during school!"  He finished all of them though and now caught up with all.  Mike is over his crankiness and thank goodness for that.  Male gender is definitely high maintenance in my opinion!


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Happy New Year!

 

Hello everyone! 
Thank you for being patient with me.  I had a mini vacation from my laptop and I just came back.  For some reason, I didn't touch my laptop over the holidays and although the blog was calling me, it felt good to be away from my computer for a while.  I have been blogging for nearly 8 years now.   How amazing is it that I continue to write our family's story and hopefully share some laughter and food for thought with my readers world-wide.  I rarely stick with doing one thing for a long time, but somehow my little online journal has stuck, thorough good times and bad, helping me take big step forward in many challenges we faced.  So, thank you readers for motivating me to keep writing!  This blog helps me more than you can imagine.

Our Christmas was very jolly, and a little big chaotic.  Ok, very chaotic and that is nothing new.  I sleep less before the Holiday because there are many tasks I must complete every night to be ready for Christmas morning.  The stocking stuffing always comes last and by the time I shove small gifts in the stockings, I am ready to collapse onto the fireplace.  I also shoved the cookies the kids left for Santa Claus in my mouth along with the carrots for reindeer.  I nearly choked on a carrot since I was eating them too fast.  Three plates of cookies and carrots...  where is Mike when I need him (sleeping cozily on the bed, of course). 

The kids usually wake up early on the Christmas day since they are too excited, but this time they woke up at 7:30 am.  That is way better than the usual 6 am.  I always have them get dressed and eat breakfast before they open presents.  I just don't like the idea of them being in their PJ all day long.  Nana came over with coffee in hand to join the present opening ceremony.  I just love looking at children's excited face moments before we give the go sign.  They look purely happy, probably the happiest moment in the whole year for them.  I feel incredibly lucky, too, to be able to see their genuine smile. 

The memorable points this year on Christmas day was that Noah seemed to enjoy opening presents this year.  For many years, we had his siblings or Nana help opening his presents, but this year he could not open fast enough.  I was happy to see him sharing the moment with us.  Mike surprised me with an indoor plant grower, which was totally unexpected on my part since he told me he didn't get anything big for me.  I am growing herbs in my kitchen now and I cannot wait to use them in my cooking.  The girls were very happy to get their favorite stuffed animals and their current obsession, Calico Critters playsets.  Sean's favorite is probably the constellation poster Nana bought him.  He put it on the celling and looks at it every night.  He also got two Lego sets which he put them together by himself.  They were pretty complex sets and I know I would not have the patience to build them myself.  Noah's favorite is the bouncing ball which you can hop on.  He actually uses it to do a handstand by bouncing his tummy on it and he can do it so well that he looks like he might start doing flips!  He is such an active boy and it gives him an appropriate outlet to release his energy indoor.

We had a friend and his son come over for dinner and we feasted on seafood.  We baked salmon and seared tuna.  They were delicious!  I was exhausted by the day ended, but I was happy with a fully belly and house full of happy people.  Mike and Sean had a big trip coming up and my mind was onto the next big thing - preparing for their trip to Japan.  I will write about their trip full of happenings in the next post!

May your new year be filled with happiness and new adventures!

- The Campbells