Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Etsy, Taipei and Japan


(Kids and daddy happy to be out of Japan for a little bit, and enjoy Taipei)
So between school, work and supporting my husband as the commander's wife, I finally figured out how to use Etsy, and posted some of my products on the site. Please see here to see our collection on Etsy.

For the holidays, (yes, kids got out for one week) we visited my sister and brother in law in Taipei. It was such a relaxing break for the kids, even though all we really did was eat and window shopped. (Too expensive to buy, but always nice to look!) What I was really surprised was seeing some of my products at the uppity bookstore, Eslite in Taipei.

In the meantime, kids are wrapping up school in mid-March! I can't believe the school year is through, but don't fret, the new year starts up again the first week of April, so I do get a small break. I've been so busy getting them adjusted with the school, that their music, and sport activities have been seriously neglected, and I feel so guilty. Samuel wants to play baseball, but the Japanese school team meets Tuesdays, Sat, and Sundays, and they play for at least 3 hours. I don't know if I can handle that kind of commitment. This is on top of his piano, English schooling and Japanese tutoring. The other sports'schedules are worse: practice every other day, including weekends. As a parent, you seriously have to commit to your entire free time in kids' activities. I don't know if I am up for that challenge after hollering all week to study and practice. As the mother, I feel I need the break. These days, I've been enlisting my husband to administer discipline in kids' organization at home. I admit, I am administratively-challenged.

This past semester, kids have been late couple times, or have forgotten to take their towel, jump rope, etc.. to school (forgetful mother who doesn't read Japanese when all their school papers come in), and the teachers really take it out on the kids. They strongly believe in personal (student's) responsibility, and it actually stresses my laid-back, free-spirited daughter out. As a result, both my kindergarten son and daughter have been better about remembering things and getting everything ready the night before.

Japanese schooling and mothering have been a challenge, but it's fun, and definitely rewarding!