Somewhere in between all our Japanese adventures, the Watsons do have a regular life with school, work and chores. This year we’ve been busier than usual…I guess it’s just the fact of life that when kids are getting older, you become busy in a different kind of way than “baby busy”. I don’t nurse, burp, and change diapers (more later about this) in between of cooking and cleaning any more, but I do have to coordinate schedules and events with school and extra activities for all three kids.
Last week started with me deciding to just go ahead and potty train Mark. I am not sure if he was ready in the sense that he doesn’t know how to properly to pull up his pants, but he is learning to understand this whole going on the toilet business. We won’t go into much detail as each of you knows there are some not so pleasant details involved. It’s been over a week of pull ups and no diapers--Mark is doing great. Most days he stays dry. I was thinking the other day how three years ago, in November I was potty training Alex…merely weeks before Mark was born. Alex was very easy as well once he understood what’s going on.
On the other note, all the events that our base throws before the holidays could be overwhelming. We’ve got Med. Group’s Thanksgiving Feast and Dental Squadron Thanksgiving party, Med. Group Christmas party for grown ups only (the fancy kind), Med. Group Christmas party for kids, and Dental Holiday party for kids and grown ups….I am not even mentioning all the celebrations and “feasts” that go on at school. Busy. Which is good busy, but I am hoping it doesn’t overshadow what we are truly celebrating at Christmastime.
In our every day life news there are no big changes. Mark goes to Daichi (Japanese preschool) once a week. He is getting kind of older than a lot of kids there now. Most Japanese kids, once they turn 3, go to a school that is every day from 8:30 till 2 pm or so. Cannot justify that at all yet. Mark loves Daichi, but I am not exactly sure how much he is learning from there now. So I have been trying to find something else for the remaining 6 months that has more of a preschool setting. I am not sure what I will do yet, as the only other option I like is taking him once a week for three hours or so to a daycare at one lady’s house off base. She does lots preschool type activities.
Katya and Alex are immersed in swimming lessons off base. Once a week, they go swimming for an hour. They have to show up 20 minutes before lesson starts. So with driving time, it takes 2 hours total to do the whole swimming thing.
Right fter swimming, we run (well, drive, but drive faster than usual because we are off base) home, eat dinner and then Katya goes to her piano lesson at 6 pm to Ms. Bridget, and Alex goes to his at 6:30 to Mr. Masayuki on base. Those days are exhausted.
If anyone knows a secret how to make your kids respond better to me than to their piano teachers, let me know. You might be reading and wondering why in the world I pay money to someone to teach my kids something that I know how to do already…It just doesn’t work well with me and my kids, unfortunately.
Let’s see…Robert is busy with work and military exercises, but still his job usually allows him to be home around 5 pm, unless they are in exercise. He also completed his “C” to “B” dentist conversion..but please don’t ask me what exactly that means—maybe that he is much better now than he was two years ago?:) He is still enjoying doing all sorts of dental stuff and has not decided yet whether or not he wants to specialize.
We won’t know where we are going until March.
My mom is coming to visit during Christmas and New Year’s and Ukrainian Christmas, so, obviously, we are all very excited. It will be good for her to come celebrate with close people this year. Wish my sister could come, but she is a busy college woman now, and Ukrainian schools don’t take a holiday break until after Dec. 25th.
For the rest of you—you have until May to come visit us. After May our life will become crazy once again…not to mention that we won’t have any furniture starting June. Just thinking ahead:)
Yikes! I have 7 minutes before the big kids come home from school!
Sayonara for now. I’ll write more later…maybe…nah…probably.
Lyana
Last week started with me deciding to just go ahead and potty train Mark. I am not sure if he was ready in the sense that he doesn’t know how to properly to pull up his pants, but he is learning to understand this whole going on the toilet business. We won’t go into much detail as each of you knows there are some not so pleasant details involved. It’s been over a week of pull ups and no diapers--Mark is doing great. Most days he stays dry. I was thinking the other day how three years ago, in November I was potty training Alex…merely weeks before Mark was born. Alex was very easy as well once he understood what’s going on.
On the other note, all the events that our base throws before the holidays could be overwhelming. We’ve got Med. Group’s Thanksgiving Feast and Dental Squadron Thanksgiving party, Med. Group Christmas party for grown ups only (the fancy kind), Med. Group Christmas party for kids, and Dental Holiday party for kids and grown ups….I am not even mentioning all the celebrations and “feasts” that go on at school. Busy. Which is good busy, but I am hoping it doesn’t overshadow what we are truly celebrating at Christmastime.
In our every day life news there are no big changes. Mark goes to Daichi (Japanese preschool) once a week. He is getting kind of older than a lot of kids there now. Most Japanese kids, once they turn 3, go to a school that is every day from 8:30 till 2 pm or so. Cannot justify that at all yet. Mark loves Daichi, but I am not exactly sure how much he is learning from there now. So I have been trying to find something else for the remaining 6 months that has more of a preschool setting. I am not sure what I will do yet, as the only other option I like is taking him once a week for three hours or so to a daycare at one lady’s house off base. She does lots preschool type activities.
Katya and Alex are immersed in swimming lessons off base. Once a week, they go swimming for an hour. They have to show up 20 minutes before lesson starts. So with driving time, it takes 2 hours total to do the whole swimming thing.
Right fter swimming, we run (well, drive, but drive faster than usual because we are off base) home, eat dinner and then Katya goes to her piano lesson at 6 pm to Ms. Bridget, and Alex goes to his at 6:30 to Mr. Masayuki on base. Those days are exhausted.
If anyone knows a secret how to make your kids respond better to me than to their piano teachers, let me know. You might be reading and wondering why in the world I pay money to someone to teach my kids something that I know how to do already…It just doesn’t work well with me and my kids, unfortunately.
Let’s see…Robert is busy with work and military exercises, but still his job usually allows him to be home around 5 pm, unless they are in exercise. He also completed his “C” to “B” dentist conversion..but please don’t ask me what exactly that means—maybe that he is much better now than he was two years ago?:) He is still enjoying doing all sorts of dental stuff and has not decided yet whether or not he wants to specialize.
We won’t know where we are going until March.
My mom is coming to visit during Christmas and New Year’s and Ukrainian Christmas, so, obviously, we are all very excited. It will be good for her to come celebrate with close people this year. Wish my sister could come, but she is a busy college woman now, and Ukrainian schools don’t take a holiday break until after Dec. 25th.
For the rest of you—you have until May to come visit us. After May our life will become crazy once again…not to mention that we won’t have any furniture starting June. Just thinking ahead:)
Yikes! I have 7 minutes before the big kids come home from school!
Sayonara for now. I’ll write more later…maybe…nah…probably.
Lyana
No comments:
Post a Comment