Grooving on the bass

I'll post a couple multi-part videos soon. I've got a 6 part Christmas pageant and then opening the box of Valentine's stuff and the ensuing fashion show.

Honoring Michael Jackson

Miku didn't know MJ's music so we cranked some up and I pranced around until I ran out of breathe (about 45 seconds).

Cold day at the beach

Miku went with me to rugby practice once on a very hot day (I think I almost got sunstroke, seriously). We practice very near the ocean and went and jumped in after practice. Actually, Miku started out just getting her feet wet, but then that turned into peeling her pants off, then her underwear and soon enough she was frolicking naked in the waves. But it was a lot of fun.

The next weekend she went with me again only the weather wasn't as good. It was still hot enough to seem plausible to go swimming, but as you see from the video, it was less than optimal.

At around the 0:50 mark of the second video you can catch a glimpse of a rather large jellyfish that provided a convenient excuse to end our day.

Miku Rides Her Bike

A series of videos from our most successful session yet. This was our 3rd time at the park without training wheels.







These last two don't show much but are pretty short.

The Return of Phys-Ed at pre-school

Parents are invited to attend this phys-ed day where the kids show off all the work they've been doing. The teacher explains some of the strength and coordination exercises and improvements the kids have made. Great fun.




For reference, here is a clip from last year:

For entertainment uses only.

"I wanna touch your uvula!"

M: *peers into my mouth as I yawn* "I see something, something hanging down in your mouth!"
Me: Yeah, that's my uvula. You have one too.
M: I wanna touch your uvula!!

Warm memories

Some vids of Miku playing in her pool last summer.

Hula Hooping: ur doonit rong

OK, I admit, I do NOT know how to Hula Hoop. In the first video, we are trying to hula hoop with the new hoop, based mostly on WiiFit hula hooping. After the problems, I did a little research and we gave it a second shot (the second video).

What's white and you eat it every day?

Miku and I were reading a "colors" book, learning the words for colors and thinking about other examples of things that are such-and-such color. For example, for things that are purple, she came up with "shirt" and "colored pencils." But the best one was for white. We had snow and carpets and shirts and your eyeball and all that stuff but I hinted to her "it's something you eat every day" and she immediately replied with "MARSHMALLOWS!!"

A broken zipper?

"Cassius broke it"

Rub your belly and pat your head

Ice skating

Miku and I went to Lotte World, Korea's largest indoor amusement park, while Yuzuru was at her conference. They had an ice rink and Miku and I went ice skating for the first time. She was great!

Happy Birthday to us!!

Babba Jo gave Me and Miku a set of remote controlled cars for our birthday.

Time for the parents to step up

Last night Miku informed us that she had a few new rules for us:

• We need to keep the house cleaner
  
• If we take something, we have to put it back when we are finished
  
• If the window is open and she says that she is cold, I have to close it immediately
  

This was all delivered in the bath. I didn't get in in time to hear Yuzuru's list, but it was seven points, I believe.

The best part of it was the tone she delivered it in. She sounded just like a teacher, with this really cute emphasis at the end.

Our house does get pretty messy, especially during the week. She doesn't like it because we don't let her friends play inside when its messy. I would clean more on weekends but she always wants to go play outside immediately, so we go outside. Yuzuru is working on her dissertation still and I'd rather she work on that while we're not distracting her. I suggested that a mutual rule for me and Miku is to get up, get dressed, eat, vacuum, and put out the laundry before we do anything else.

Standing on the swings

Miku cooks!

A few short clips of Miku preparing and cooking dinner. These are a few months old.

Phys-ed day at pre-school

They have phys-ed regularly at pre-school but this day was special because parents were invited to come and watch. This series of videos show you the warm up, the activities, and the final ending.

Wonders of a 5 year old: take 2

So this morning, the first day after Miku turned 5, I come downstairs as Yuzuru is prepping breakfast and Miku is getting dressed. Miku didn't seem to be in a grouchy mood at all and I reminded her to keep getting dressed (she'd stalled out in the process). I walked into the other room and as I sat down, I caught a glimpse of her sticking her tongue out at Yuzuru, and then she turned and stuck her tongue out at me.

Of course, she was a little bit surprised to find me watching her and the switch on her face showed that she knew she was wrong. I immediately remembered the time Mom caught me flipping Dad off when he'd had me carry those big metal tubs from the garage in Cataldo back to the rental property sheds. I didn't beat Miku like I got beat for that, but she did get in pretty big trouble.

She couldn't explain why she did it, so Yuzuru and I explained to her that she was already in trouble for it, but if she didn't know why she did it, she'd be in more trouble. Lately she's had trouble explaining herself when she does something bad or boneheaded and we're trying to get her to think before acting (a character flaw her father still struggles with regularly).

She understood and explained that she was angry that we'd put her new globe up on a shelf, slightly out of reach. We hadn't done it on purpose; Yuzuru had just moved the globe off the coffee table. So we explained to Miku the importance of using words rather than secretly being angry or sticking out our tongue.

It was strange, though, to see that kind of behavior from her. I'd never seen anything like it at all. The only thing even close also happened recently, at the park.

Miku and Hina were swinging on the swings (only 2 seats on the set) before deciding to harvest acorns nearby. A few minutes later and a brother/sister team came running over for the swings. The brother is maybe 6 or 7 and the sister was probably 3, maybe 4. As soon as Miku saw them running, she got up and dashed to the swings and got on them before the little girl could.

As you would expect, I didn't take kindly to that. I made her give it back and tried to get her to apologize but she wouldn't, at least not audibly. So we had to go home, in big trouble. I think the hardest part for her was the associated embarrassment of having Hina there too. We had to walk by the swings on the way home and I gave her another chance to apologize, which she took, which improved her disciplinary status.

Kids don't stay little forever.

The wonders of a 5 year old: take 1

So we had a great birthday for Miku yesterday (pics coming soon, I SWEAR). We went out for sushi (her pick, of course), then came home and opened presents and had cake. She got an AquaBeads set (pictured here).

It was close to bathtime as she was helping me (or was I helping her) put the little bags of beads into the star shaped case, so Yuzuru asked her if she wanted to go get in the bath with her. Miku, politely but very fact-of-the-matter replied with "Momma, if you were working on your dissertation and I asked you to get in the bath, would you like it very much?"

I did eventually stop laughing, but it took some time.