Fuan zo.

Today I bring Juan in the bathtub.

Fuan zo= Juan the elephant

Last time Juan took a bath, I tore his eye off. I turn him to one side, "Juan sleeping now." Then I turn him to the other side, "Look, he awake. Sleeping, awake, sleeping, awake." I am so funny.

"Poo poo! I poo poo. Bath time, now? Diaper off. Poo poo bath! Here, I get a bag. Cupboard open, oh I get it. Bag and wipes. I ready. Poo poo bath!"

"Swimming bath or just the water running this time?"
"Just water on."
"K, make sure to use the soap."
"Soap on hands. I wash feet. THEN I wash soap off. No soap in eyes."
"Good idea, soap in your eyes hurts a lot. No soap in your eyes."
"Look, up there. Elephant! Juan the elephant in my bath with me?"
"I'll get him for you. Here."

Juan the elephant joins me the bath. He can make the water come out of his nose! I still can't get anything but boogers to come out of mine.

Fill him up and dump him out over and over and over. Mama asks if I am done in the bathtub and I almost always reply, "In a minute. Be right back." After I say it, I want her to go do a couple things and come back to check on me. She reminds me to wash my bottom. 
"Poo poo from anus," I correct her.
"Yes, you are right. You need to wash with soap, please. I'll help you when I come back."
"No, I do it now. I do it myself. Look, getting soap, now."
"Ok, I'll come back and check on you in a minute."
"Wash Juan's head. I wash Juan's tail. Ok, he is clean."

Juan gets water on the bathroom floor. Mama decides we are done in the bath. I try to bring Juan to have a snack with me, but he is still wet. Juan is contained until he is done drying.

I remember Juan just in time for bed. Mama says elephants don't sleep in a bed. They sleep in a cage. We have a box from peaches. Now, Juan lives in a peach box or in the bathtub until the next shower or bath. 

Giseigo.

Today is the day Mama and I play the animal game, play chase, stack cans, eat soup, take care of my baby, and go to the park.

Giseigo= Onomatopoeia. Particularly, the sounds humans and animals make.

In the morning I help Mama cook and clean. I open the cupboard and attempt to take out ALL the cans before Mama sees me. Usually, I succeed in getting eight out before she requests that I put away the ones I'm not using. Herding them into my arms, I try to convince her they are all being used. She has yet to believe me. Today, I am left with four out at a time. I have them stacked when she returns to the room. "Up high, Mama, look! Tower of peaches. One two three four five six five six seven eight ten eleven. Eleven peaches!" I point to them over and over while I count. The numbers come easily so my hand keeps moving. The artichokes get counted seven times. Oops.

After my nap, I carry the kindle down the hall. With the biggest smile I ask Mama if I can play. "I awake! Animal game now. Doggie woof woof. Mouse EEEEE EEE! I sit by you, Mama. Oh kisses too. Turn on animals now. Please."

I can do them all! The hippo, panda, mouse, and dog are my favorite on this game. Elephant comes up, Mama tries to make the noise. My head shakes in disappointment. "No ephant noise, Mama. Daddy do it. Daddy home soon. All done with animals."

Animal noises are different in Japan. Japanese dogs say wan, wan. The cats say nyan nyan. Mice say chuu chuu. I laugh when Mama tries to teach me different animal sounds. I correct her with American sounds when she does the Japanese ones. I shake my head, "Mama..."

Time to sing! I sing "Call Your Girlfriend" a cover by Lennon and Maisy Stella very LOUDLY. "But chu met somoney new. Say I ever met to hurt nomon. Only way uheart'll men is when yulertolove again. But it wot make seense night now cause you sill a frien...."

 Baby needs milk. No time for singing, now. "Shh, shh, shh," I bounce.

"Diaper! New diaper please." I drop my wrap and run. When Mama gets to the bedroom, I am nowhere to be found. She opens the bathroom door. "Boo," I say. Then, I run again. "Chase, chase. EEE eee. All done." Chase is a scary game sometimes. I can only handle it for a minute. Mama scoops we up to change my diaper and then we get to wrestle on the bed. "Wrassle."

Lunch time!

Mama says we can go to the park after we eat! I need to get baby ready. "Diaper. Baby diaper. I'll get it. You help baby diaper? Diaper too big. My diaper, baby's diaper. Baby pee pee uretha. Baby wipe uretha. No, baby wipe for vulva. Uretha here. Baby wipe, here." I hold my dress up with my chin, so I can see my task clearly. It doesn't work well.

Dominic finds me a big stick! Yes! "Friends. Mama friend is a boy." I make friends with Jordan too. We live close to an off base military housing complex, so there are Japanese friends and friends who speak English. I play with whoever will follow me where I want to go.

The Japanese kids are just getting out of school. The crossing guard is always playing games with them. This game looks like roshambo and there is lots of giggling done by the little boys. Mama likes to stop and watch.

Shibuya.

Today is the day we go to Tokyo!

Shibuya Station= One of Japan's busiest railway stations. Shibuya also refers to the HUGE shopping district surrounding the station. We want to go there to see the big intersection that appears in many movies when Tokyo is pictured. It is the busiest pedestrian intersections in the world.

Mama borrows a stroller I can ride all the way to Tokyo. At first, I think Emi or Beau is coming with us because they are the ones that have strollers. It is the first time I have been in my own stroller in months! I am so excited! This is the goal I have been working toward for a week now! 

"I ready. Where your shoes, Daddy? My shoes here. Stroller! I push it. I in it. Stroller to TOKO! Ready Mama? Ready Daddy?" I take their face in my hands to make sure they are listening! I'm SO EXCITED! Stroller and Tokyo all in the same day!

We get on the train and as usual, I have to check everyone out. There is boy with his Daddy, two little girls with their Mommy, lots of old people with books, some younger people with phones, and one old man with a purple sequin bag. Finally, my eyes stop on a lady with lots of cool luggage. "I out. I see a zipper. Z for zipper. Lots of zippers. Look, a boy. I out please."

The train is not full at this point, but it sure fills up quickly. It is packed by the time we are in Yokohama. Daddy is squished with me on one side and Mama is up against a rail on the other side of the train car. We look like sardines. Mama can't even raise her camera up to take a picture. That would be weird anyway. I sleep for a while.

We switch trains and the next one is just as packed. Where do all these people come from??? It's like Kitsap county all jammed into one 20 car railway train. Finally, we get off at the station. Mama and Daddy run for air outside. There is air outside, but more people than on the inside! Here we go.....

It's SHIBUYA!

The day is not going how we planned. I am cranky. This stroller is not as great as I envisioned it. Mama decides to pack me for a while. We are starting to get lost. Look, there are English speaking people who will give us directions! They are headed the same direction we need to go and insist we follow. We follow them back to the exact same place we started. We WERE really lost. Now, we know which direction to head, but it may not be worth it.

While following them, I decide I need a diaper change, some snacks, a place to get down and run, and everything else under the sun. Mama says we can't stop until we get there, but she can't tell me exactly how many minutes it will take. There is not much else that could go wrong. I am beside myself. I start crying. Mama cries a little too.

The train home is the most logical choice at this point. 

Mama wants to redeem this terrible day just a little. There is a little park right near the Chuo station. I run until the sun disappears behind the skyscrapers. We stop for a burger and jojos on the way home. This is good. Deep fried potatoes have a way of making things better.

"Oink, oink." I can wink now. I practice lots. 

This day is less terrible now.

Burabura.

Today is the day Mama and I just hang out. Today we have no agenda.

Burabura=hanging out in Japanese

Nap time is long today and I wake up very serious. Mama loves taking pictures when I'm calm and still. My smile comes out soon enough. I love the camera :)

I find Mama's hat and glasses on the table. They are not put away like usual. Before she sees what I'm doing, I have the hat on and glasses in my hand. Surprisingly, she asks if I want to wear them for a minute. "Hat on. Glasses here. Glasses in sun outside. No sun, here. I using them for a minute, you wait."

 Mama says we can go to the park. "PARK! Park! I walking? Okey dokey. Ready to go! I ready! Push the evador button maseff." We walk to the park with the short swings. I can do those myself. Japanese girls taught me to stand while I swing. "Push you, please?" Currently, I am sorting out the correct pronouns to choose in my sentences. My success rate is about 70%.

Daddy will be home soon, so it's time to go back home. "Daddy's coming on bus! Bus! I on it? Daddy on it! " Tacos for dinner. Mmm!

After dinner I want to get naked. "Naked! Shirt off, pants off, socks off. No, socks on. Diaper off! Naked!!! I running! Ride on leg? Daddy's leg. Hold on. Again?!" Down the hall I run full blast, I then jump on Daddy's leg. Leg rides!

"Up, please," I request. Mama lifts me up to snuggle. 
I say "Hi punkin Lu." 
"No, you say hi Mama," She corrects me. "I say hi pumpkin to you."
"Hi punkin!" I snuggle in her ear.
She laughs and plays along with my game until I'm done. 
Putting me down she asks me to pick up the laundry I left on the floor. I pick up my shirt and pants, then beg a cracker off Daddy. "Snack for bedtime. Cracker, no cheese, please." Daddy laughs as my requests get more particular. 

I run naked until we put pajamas on. "I naked. Pee on toilet. Use toilet paper? No pee pee this time. Big toilet, no pee pee. Oma pee pees, Daddy pee pees, Mama pee pees. No pee pee this time. Time for lotion? Lotion, here. I help you. Lotion on feet, please. Jama's on. Elephant jamas! Lights off. I help you! I do it. Help, please. Nigh-night Daddy. Love you." I wave bye bye as I snuggle into Mama. Sleep comes soon.

Sunahama.

Today is the day Mama says we will hang out with Emmi at the beach.

Sunahama=beach and sand

"We go walk. I ready now." 

"Lulu, you are not dressed and you need some shoes. We will leave in a little while."

"I cook for you. Then, we go. Here, pan in the closet. I get it. Be ready in a while."

"K, ready to go. Okey dokey. Shoes on. Emmi's coming." We walk to Kitakurihama station and ride south, just like we did with Daddy. The beach from the Miurakaigan station is only a few blocks. Emmi and I want to walk. We were so still in the train, so our Mamas agree to it even though they know it will take four times as long to get there.

We find a spot on the beach and settle in. We look back and horses have appeared out of nowhere. They are waving, but I just watch from a distance. "Horses, big horses. Look, over there. I see horses with people! Ride them?"

The sand is readily available, but I choose to play with some garbage, the stroller, and a weird bouncy toy I found on the beach. The toy washed up in the water and Mama is concerned it is actually for adults, male adults. Miss Carlyn and Mama are laughing really heard. Adults are confusing. I laugh anyway.

Emmi and I play together for while. She buries my foot in the sand using her shoe and I think it's the funniest thing that happened all day! I like Emmi!

We wander down to the water and scope out the best spot to fill up our buckets. We forget what we are doing so we wander back up to our Mama's on the blanket. We do this a few times, until Emmi finally brings the buckets. 

Time to go home! "Stroller, STROLLER, I in it!!" Luckily, Emmi is good at sharing. We both ride in the stroller together. Maybe we should go to Washington, so I can have a stroller too. Maybe we should just hang out with Emmi and her stroller every day. New plan. I will ask about strollers every day until Mama understands my love of them. I will climb in every one I see and refuse to get out. In addition, I will be "helpful" and push the full strollers from behind. With hard work and determination, this should only take a week at most to get me my own stroller. My plan is foolproof.

"Bye Emmi! Stroller with us?"

"No, Kami Lou the stroller stays at Emmi's house."

"Bye stroller. Go to Emmi's house later. We go see it later?"

"Yes, Lou, let's go push the button on the elevator and go home."

"Buttons!! Button five! I running. I get buttons. I do it. Bye stroller."