On an Even Keel

From January 2014 - 

Well - it's been six months since we moved to Japan and we've finally completely settled in and it's feeling like home. It took about four months for us to get to the point where we could start getting out and exploring Okayama. Everyday wasn't exhausting and we were able to enjoy exploring our city. We have found so many cool places now, and every weekend we find somewhere new.

In December we got C signed up for piano lessons and I've just figured out how to rent a piano for him to practice. You can go online to the Yamaha website and rent any sort of instrument. It has to be done online, and through the wonders of Google Translate you can fill out the rental agreement form and have them deliver an instrument right to your house. I'll let you know if I experience any hiccups in the process, but so far, other than the time spent translating the form, it's been a pretty easy process. 

C just had his 6th birthday which was fun, but pretty low-key. It was on a weekday, so we both had school. I gave him a scooter - but what he really wanted was a bicycle. Kids bikes are just so expensive in Japan! They are 1.5 to 2 times the price of an adults bike, it just doesn't make sense! I made him a strawberry cake - his request - and it was really delicious! It was nice to find a recipe that used real ingredients instead of strawberry Jello or anything like that. I put some pokemon figures on top of the cake and he loved it.

Even though Okayama is the sunniest prefecture in Japan, the winter is getting me down a bit. The cold is getting to me. There just isn't any escaping it. It's cold outside, biking to school and work...and it's cold inside the apartment until I have the heater on for a bit...and even then, it just takes the chill away, it's never truly central-air kind of warm. I also can't believe how much I've been eating! Just keeping warm my body has been burning through calories so quickly! There are days when I just want to crawl under the kotatsu and stay there. Laundry takes a day or 2 to dry which makes me have to plan out when to do laundry even more. I was only semi-joking with my mom the other day when I said that my first thought on waking up on Saturday morning is 'I have to get the laundry out to dry!' ... otherwise it isn't dry by Monday.

Pre-Christmas was a bit rough for everyone. It's probably always tough for foreigners living in a country that doesn't really celebrate Christmas, I was homesick for all the activities of Christmas preparations, and really - just the 'magic' of the season was missing. However we were lucky enough to be able to go home for Christmas for a long visit, and it was great. Completely refreshed me, and I felt so relieved and relaxed upon coming back to Japan. When we returned, it also felt like we were really coming home for the first time, which was a nice feeling as well.