Yesterday I met up with Cassie & Princess Poppy and Sophie & Sakurako after work.
We met up outside Hungry Jacks in the mall and if you have ever had to meet up with someone in town in Brisbane then more often than not the agreed meetings spot will be the Hungry Jacks. It is a it of a Brisbane icon of sorts where all the drop-outs, school kids & language students hang out plus it is pretty much dead bang in the middle of town.
I saw Cassie first, didn`t click right away as I had my eyes peeled for a stroller and this lady smiling at me had no stroller- I soon discovered Poppy strapped to her back in a carrier.
Sophie showed up soon after with Sakurako in a stroller! We decided that with the little ones it would be best to grab take-away coffees and drinks and head down into the Botanical Gardens so that the girls could run around on the grass while the mummies & me could chat (& chase after kids of course!)
I met Sakurako`s frog and Poppy`s Lovie dog so we were friends from the start! In fact Sakurako was quite happy for me to hold onto Froggy!
We found a shady spot right near a playground and the girls, while a little shy at first, soon became fast friends.
Who are you??? Checking each other out…
Sakurako fed her snacks to the birds even chasing an ibis to share her sandwich while Poppy picked all of the blueberries out of Cassie`s muffin!
Where are the birds gone?
nom nom nom- Yum!
Us “big” girls chatted while the girls explored the park! We chatted about Japanese bureaucracy we had faced at consulates, airports etc and then poor Sophie got a call from her hub saying he was having issues at Aussie Immigration. Ironic really! I guess the bureaucracy exists everywhere. Seems they got their issues sorted though, shame that Sophie & Sakurako had to leave early though
Sophie & her beautiful daughter Sakurako
After saying goodbye (regretfully!) to Sophie & Sakurako, Cassie, Poppy & I explored the park some more and poppy discovered all the cool equipment the park had but what was even more facinating for her was all the dirty bark that could be picked up and rubbed all over her and the equipment especially the see-saw!
Poppy the poser! Pulling faces
Cassie & Poppy
Such a fun afternoon- Cassie was lovely. Very down to earch and so easy to talk to. She is the kind of mum that I hope to one day become!! We swapped stories about our boys, about our families and more. Such a shame that we don`t live closer together in Japan but I am sure we will meet up again sometime in the future.
Sophie, Sakurako & I (maybe with the boys!) hope to meet up again before they head back to Gunma-ken in April.
Here is one final shot of Poppy & I- I look shocking but ignore that and look at the cute little girl I am holding instead.
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I am just a twenty something Aussie girl living in Chiba, Japan with my Japanese husband trying to make sense of the crazy Japanese world we live in! We welcomed our first son in December 2009 (Noah) and a second son in January 2011, 2 months premature (Shion). I am working hard at raising them to be confident, bilingual, happy kids!
You guys all look great!
Sounds like you had fun. Glad to hear it~~
Lovely to see all the ladies… Can’t wait for you all to come back to Japan!!!! Jealous that you have spring like weather… lol
So cute!!! Sounds like a lot of fun!!
Plenty of time to hold “part 2″ when you are all back in Japan as well
What are you talking about? That’s a great picture of you! It’s so natural with that cheeky grin! The toddlers are adorable! I have asian baby envy! ha ha ha!
God, I have the worst hat-hair in that photo! But I had such a great time hanging out with you in the park and having a good chat. We so have to do it again when you get back to Japan!!!!!!!!!!
The kids look very cute, and it sounds like you all had lots of fun.
I’m jealous about the weather you’re having too! At least it looks like it’s warmer where you are, in the photos. It’s still so chilly in Mie! When will spring get here?