Bonding in No Time!

This time, friends from university brought their children along.
Watching the two moms and their kids, I thought they had such a wonderful relationship 🥰.
They were so chill, with clear roles established between them, and both kids seemed to be very comfortable with both moms 💖.

Although it was a short stay of two nights and three days, we quickly became close!

The kids were fluent in English, which allowed them to enjoy John's generous English immersion.

The moms were around the same age as my eldest daughter, which may have contributed to the sense of closeness. They called me Yoko Mama or Mommy, and we enjoyed the delicious home-cooked meals from the mom who is great at cooking. The relationship where there was no need for unnecessary reservations, which could happen in Japan, was very heartwarming. (One of the kids casually asked, "Are you gonna play with us, Grandma?" and I was a bit shocked, realizing I was at that age... 😂 Yeah, I guess that's the reality, I am at that age now 😅.)

Two pairs of moms and kids came together, but I heard that one will be moving far away in the near future. So this trip was meant to create memories, and I'm so grateful that they chose our home for such an important occasion!

It was very hot outside during the day, so the kids played indoors  often. The Children's Museum in Tamba Sasayama, which is open only on weekends except during summer vacation, so they visited on the afternoon of the first day. Apparently, there was an event for playing in the muddy rice fields, but it was too hot, so they played indoors instead.
(They left home around 6:00 that morning, and drove 3 hours to come to our place, then went out shortly after arriving. So energetic! Young and full of life! 💪😆) 

The kids followed around John, helping to collect chicken eggs and harvest summer vegetables.
July 7th is Tanabata (←click here for Wikipedia), and traditionally we decorate Bamboo branches in the similar way as Christmas trees. I asked the community in advance to see if anyone had bamboo branches available for that purpose, and the head priest of Kozoji temple kindly brought some over. So, on the second day, we made decorations with origami and wrote wishes on strips of paper to hang on the bamboo. That night, we went outside to stargaze, making it a special Tanabata for us as well. 🎋✨

On the final day, we visited a neighbor's home to see the rhinoceros beetles. (Thank you neighbor friend, as always! 😍) There's a big difference between looking at them in a book and seeing and touching the real thing! It seemed a bit challenging to touch them directly, but gradually the boy got closer, poking with sticks and digging in the dirt to find the beetles and stag beetles. 

These three days flew by, but they were rich and full of meaningful experiences.
Come back anytime to play! 💖

Back to Blog List