Mama observations…
Probably going to be ranty in places and a lot to do with Japan…
- People I don`t know think it is okay to touch my child- when it isn`t.
- People feel like they can push around me just because I have a pram- sure if you are lined up before me I don`t expect you to give up your place in line BUT if I am lined up in front of you that means I should go first. In particular when lining up to get on the train- if I lined up first that means when the train doors open you should WAIT for me to get on, even if I have a pram.
- In the last week I have had at least 10 people tell me that Noah is so “white” and also that his eyes are so “wide/bright”…
- Noah likes being sung to- even if it is just about me washing the plates or hanging out the washing so that he will sit and watch me without wanting to be held. I just sing what I am doing to a kiddy tune…
- Little Einstein movies are odd- plus I am not quite sure why people thought they made babies into genius`s because in one of them a puppet puts glitter into a bowl and then drinks it…Oh and there is also a kid in one of them with the worst haircut I have ever seen. A cross between a bowl cut (with a triangle cut out of his fringe) and a crewcut…
- No matter how much coffee I drink it seems to make no difference to Noah`s sleep. Although I have not had more than 3 in one day since he was born…but still.
- Noah seems much happier at home and a lot more smiley when he is in his own comfort zone.
- Unless I tell Shun to actually change Noah`s nappy he won`t think to do it himself.
- Noah likes to pull off while feeding and smile at me as if to say “Mama, arn`t boobies great?”
- Noah is not laughing yet but he squeals with delight sometime…
- People actually stop in the street as I walk towards them when they see me coming with the pram (and Noah is facing me) and turn around as I pass to get a look at him. Sometimes they say “Ahh, netteiru” (“Ahh, he`s sleeping”) as if that is the most disappointing thing to happen to them all day. It is starting to freak me out a little…
- Noah can not decide what thumb/hand he likes to suck on yet but he seems to suck his left thumb more. Sometimes he can`t get it in his mouth though and ends up sucking the sides of his hands.
What have been some of your mama observations?
Oh and because he is cute- I will leave you with a photo.
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LOVE the pic!! And a great post! I have some similar observations to you and a few of my own.
- Not only touching but people just except me to give Sakura them to hold.. they do the two hands held out thing and are like “dako dako” I HATE it…. (but I usually let them do it just because I hate the confrontation)
- I don’t get shiroi much but I do get a lot of “aiso ga ii” which means “friendly” i guess since Sakura is a huge flirt and loves attention from people esp. older ladies which drives them crazy
Hahaha I think its funny they are disappointed when Noah is sleeping… if its one thing I’ve noticed people here LOVE babies.. esp. when the mom is foreign. I really don’t see a lot of the random going up touching and talking to full Japanese babies… I wonder if people would do similar things to Sakura if Ryohei was the only one with her. I think me being there is like a beacon of “THIS BABY IS GOING TO BE DIFFRENT!”
Cute that Noah loves singing and I can’t wait to see him smile!! Gosh he is going to be soooo different than when I saw him 2 months ago.
OK,Noah gets the attention beacuse he is gorgeous:) Wait till you are back in AU and you will find the same kind of things happening…mark my words…but it seems so much easier to deal with in our home countries for some reason!
I sometimes think we all do better in our comfort zones of home.
Men and nappy changes….it will improve.Took me a second baby to prove that fact tho’;)
Had any of the “Does he speak English and Japanese?” questions yet??! That will start pretty soon;)
He is so cute!
It is tough dealing with unsolicited comments about / touching of your baby… it happens here too. I remember freaking out in the supermarket when some old lady with filthy fingernails touched Ali one of the first times I took him out when he was a newborn. And everyone used to comment on how big he was.
And Ali seemed immune to caffeine too… no matter how much or little coffee I drank he slept the same.
It is great you are making note of these things, it will be lovely to look back on when Noah is a bit bigger.
I hate random people taking pictures of my kids, sometimes they ask and sometimes they don’t. It freaks me out because I don’t know what kind of person they are or what they will do with the photos. There are too many straaaaaange people out there.
Mr Mischief also gets the big eyes comments because they’re huge, but even more people comment on his long long eyelashes.
We’re all white too, always! In summer the comments are more often because Japanese tan really easy and we don’t.
Noah is finally filling out, looking cuter and cuter every new photo
Sara- so far people I don`t know haven`t tried to hold him….I would really freak out by that. The touching thing only bothers me because I want to wash their hands first. LOL- yes I am one of THOSE people.
We get asked who Noah`s father is or where he is EVEN WHEN SHUN IS WITH US. I feel bad for Shun but I think Noah is starting to look a little more Asian now so maybe that will stop.
Marianne- I have had no “Does he speak English/Japanese?” questions yet BUT I speak to Noah in English and on the train I say stuff like ” Next stop” or “This is where Baba & Jiji live” and a lady the other day asked me why I was talking to him….That seemed strange to me but i just kind of ignored her.
Oh and thanks for saying he is cute! I think so too
hehe
Suzy- I am glad Noah is not the only one immune to caffine! How long did you bf Ali for? I forget!
Glad to know that the touching doesn`t just happen in Japan. Or should I be disappointed?
Achan- Mr Mischief sounds so cute! Noah`s eyes are not really that big but people seem to think for a baby they are…I think what they mean when they say that though is that he seems very “awake” for a two month old…
Shun is VERY tanned. And stays that way pretty much all year round so will be interesting to see if Noah tans up in the summer. I on the other hand am white all year round!
Oh & Achan- I would be pissy if people took photos of Noah too- ESPECIALLY if they didn`t ask.
This maybe a really naive comment on Japanese culture, but maybe a lot of Japanese people have not actually seen a “white” baby in real life? So when they see Noah they are surprised by how he looks as a “mixed” baby compared to an all Japanese baby? The touching of babies or pregnant women is VERY common in the states.
I’m not sure if it applies to Aussie or not, but in America all Baby Einstein videos have been recalled. The company that makes them was sued because it was found that watching the videos did not make babies smarter. People who bought the movies can return up to four DVDs and get their money back.
Yeah, the touching thing bothers me sometimes, but it depends on the person. I find it happens LOTS more whenever I’m in Tokyo. Maybe because we travel everywhere by train when we go? It’s usually the smelly, crazies too. It happened all the time when we went to America too, and I actually found that more freaky.
We get the white/big eyes comment all the time too, but frankly Sara’s skin is quite white compared to most of the other babies we know, and her eyes are bigger. I would never notice unless someone else commented on it though, but that’s not something I pay much attention to. Those are the kinds of thing I just let roll off my back.
I do get annoyed with people trying to feed her things all the time. I don’t consider myself a food nazi, but I would prefer my child was not introduced to junk food just yet. It also drives me crazy when people say “yappari hafu wa chigau”. I know they mean it in a “good way”, but to my ears it just sounds like they are reaffirming my fear that my child will never truly fit in.
Sorry for being so long-winded here! The picture of Noah is absolutely adorable! The first time he laughs your heart is going to melt! Baby laughter is the most beautiful sound in the world, especially when it’s your own.
Cute photo!
I laughed at some of your observations. I agree about the Einstein videos. I watched one, thought it was idiotic and never watched them again. Someone told me that there are different series and some are good and some are not good. We obviously saw the “not good” ones.
I think people are trying to get a glimpse of your baby so they can try to figure out how much, if any, Japanese blood he has. I get that all the time too. It doesn’t bother me anymore, but what annoyed me was when they would say, “naite iru yo!” (“your baby is crying.”) Uh, yeah, did you really have to tell me that?
Personal observations about about Luka are that he is so very different from his older sister. He is much quieter, NOT moody at all, and has a very charming smile. I remember saying to someone, when my daughter was only 6 months old, “I can already tell that she is going to be very bitchy, just like her mother,” and unfortunately, I was SO RIGHT.
LOL! My sister’s kids watch Baby Einstein! My impression was that they would be great to watch if you were stoned! ha ha! Funny remarks people make at you now that you have, Noah you are just a magnet for them!
Laura….its coming on spring, so a sun shade should do the trick! (If you don’t want the touching) I think australia/ NZ has a brand called “protect a bub” or you can get them from dadway.com if you are interested….That’s what we did for Nana, because “lots of sun is bad for babies” and it kept the ba-chans at a fair distance. I get the shiroi comment ALL the time, and I think you remember how I feel about that. I think after about 18 months the interest seems to fade, and going out is so much easier (on so many different levels) And my goodness, I love that photo! See you in just two days!!
Love to Noah!
Hi Lulu..It`s Helen from TNE.
Have you been given anything yet? Kiki has been given an loads of stuff by strangers on the train, in the park or at family restaurants. Seems Japanese obachan / ojichans love kiddies so much they just carry stuff aroung to give them!! Though the stuff she`s given is usually in a tattered state so I think it really is just their personal belongings. An obachan gave her a charm on the train, then an ojisan gave her a Donald Duck toy in the park and an obachan in a family restaurant actually took off her necklace and pendant and insisted Kiki take it. Very embarrassing as I never know if I should accept or am expected to do that ten minute standard “no really no I can`t but thank you” routine that old ladies do when someone offers to pay for them. And the worst is boiled sweets..I`ve had about 5 different people come up and dig a scabby, fuzzy boiled sweet out of the bottom of their jacket pocket and hand it to Kiki. It is a sweet gestrue BUT so annoying for me as 1. there is no way I`m going to let me kid eat a sweet given by a (possible weird arse poisoner) stranger and 2. Kiki is 2…she can`t eat boiled sweets…choking hazard and 3. when I take it off her she quite rightly has a paddy as it was given to her and I have to deal with a melt-down on the train with Isla strapped to me…not fun at all…
Wow, I don’t reckon he looks “white” at all, he’s very, very obviously part Shun as well
You know my strong bias about Asian babies, and your munchkin is more than Japanese enough for me, so don’t listen to other peeps.
I reckon I’d be a nutty mother, I’d carry anti bac wipes to give him a wipe over if someone had been touching him. I carry anti bac gel for myself, so I don’t think I could help but to santize my baby too!
He’s absolutely gorgeous, Lulu. Very good work
Hi Lulu,
I fed Ali for 14 months – I planned to wean him around 12 months but he had other ideas so it took a while. I had to stop when he started trying to dive down my top when he was in the supermarket trolley child seat!
I meant to say before… I watched a Baby Einstein video with Ali when he was little and found it so disturbing. It was the Mozart one and it had all these weird toys and flashing lights. He didn’t really watch any TV til he was almost two, but now he loves Play School and is completely obsessed with Ponyo.
I definitely think you can see both Japanese and Australian in Noah – he is such a beautiful baby.
xx
“Because he is cute” !? Please!!! He’s fucking gorgeous! One picture is NOT enough. Ehehehehehehe I can’t wait to meet him on Monday! (Is it weird that I think he is the exact male version of Missha? They have such similar features but you can tell ones a boy and one a girl *shrugs*?)
Anyways, I get the white, and huge eyes comments all the time..but no ones ever tried to touch her… guess I’ve been Lucky so far. To be honest though, 90% of “half” babies ARE cuter than Japanese babies.. they just are! They all seem so much more alert too.. I’m not surprised they get so much attention… and judging by the media and all those “half” models around, most people agree. I don’t see what’s so bad =)
If it’s any consolation, Tetsu did nothing with Missha (change, feed, hold, put to sleep) until she was… 4 months. From 5 months though he plays with her and is constantly asking “think her diaper is full? I should change it!” while I’m busy cooking etc. He even puts her to sleep. It must be a “she’s too small I don’t want to break her, she prolly only wants mommy anyways” faze they start out with. =D
Isn’t it great that coffee doesn’t affect them! I dunno what I’d do if it did! (Prolly drink it anyways and deal with the consequences XD)
I let my kids watch some of the baby einstein stuff because that was the only way I ever got to shower when the were really little. Never thought for one minute watching them would in any way make them smarter. Kind if always shocked to discover parents who actually believed they would. Butvthe constantly changing images and music kept them disracted for 10 minutes or so.
I got to the point where I would actually tell people not to touch my daughter. And not particularly nicely either. Had fewer problem with strangers when my son was born. People were probably scared to come near me what with all the yelling at my older one and all the other crazy that my son brought out in me!
I just wanted to make a note about coffee since everyone loves the stuff!!! It affects everyone differently so it will affect babies in different ways too. If you find your baby starts to get a lot of wind and is hard to settle coffee maybe the cause. It doesn’t neccessarily play any part in staying awake but with such sensitive little stomachs coffee can cause lots of gas build up and one very unhappy baby.
The first thing that popped into my head when I read your observations was, “oh dear, look what I have to look forward to in a month or two”… LOL! I have to admit I don’t really like the idea of strangers coming up and touching my baby either but I doubt I would be able to say anything to them
I have heard so much about the baby einstein DVDS but have yet to see one in real life. Can I have a look at yours on the weekend? I still can’t believe that there were people out there that REALLY believed a DVD could make a kid smart… sounds kind of ridiculous to me, lol!!
And I agree with Khea btw, one photo is definitely not enough!! He is just too cute for words!
Wow, I think a lot of my observations have been covered! Apart from the killer, “bonyu?” For some reason, I got that A LOT here. I found that really rude and judgmental. Especially for Hannah, because she was bottlefed and I always got disapproving looks when I said no..so much so that in the end I usually just said, “yes” and they would go away.
I hate the touching thing too! You are not anal for not wanting smelly old ladies to put their grubby hands all over your little baby either. I once told one old lady “don’t touch my baby, please.” It sounds harsh, but she literally FOLLOWED us around the supermarket. I think it is probably just her, because I have since seen her again doing the same thing to other unsuspecting tots.
I had one woman tell me Luka waved bye bye like a foreigner once…
Touching of the kids by strangers use to annoy me as well!!!! Wait til Noah has a trantrum in a shopping mall or supermarket. Old grannies use to come up to and offer to help…. aahhhh!!! Cute babies also bring attention.
The pram thing happens anywhere in the world. People think you are going to walk really slowly when you push a pram so they want to get in front of you so they don’t get held up….. stupid rude people!
Steve didn’t change a nappy untill I went back to work and he had no choice!!!! Even then I think he only did it 5 minutes before I was due home. One day I came home and he had to bath Kieran because he was really messy. I made a comment about how oddly he had dressed him ie clothes on back to front, jersey under the stretch and grow that Kieran couldn’t bend his arms. It was really funny!!!!
I have a good laugh every day at something the kids say or do!!!!
Noah is so adorable! Reading and seeing your posts just gives me the fever all over again.
You know, I love Japan soooo much. But I saw a whole other side of it after becoming a parent here. It was bad enough that people snapped pictures of me, but they are all over the baby. They touch his face!!! For God’s sakes, don’t touch him at all, but please not his face! I’ve gotten more used to it now though. I don’t like it still, but I accept it. And the whole stroller issue… ugh. People here do shove right on past you. Then they stand near the stroller looking down on him out of the corner of their eyes. I just try to take it all in stride.
16 months later, I still have to remind my darling husband that the kid freaking stinks. Gotta love our guys!
Jackie- I never actually thought the baby einstein videos would make him smarter but I did buy them before they recalled them in the states. The classical music is good in them so I don`t mind having it on in the background while Noah has mat time etc although some of the puppets/people etc are more than a little freaky.
You are probably right about Japanese people not having seen many Western babies BUT i guess to me is that they are pointing out that he is DIFFERENT from most which I guess can be a little insulting at times- this might not be a problem in Australia but here I hear a lot of stories about other mixed children who struggle when they enter school because of teasing etc.
Thanks for the comment by the way.
Brenda- It is funny I had an old lady in the bakery today when I lunched with a friend who CONSTANTLY talked to us about the baby- saying how he knew it was me, and how he smiled when I spoke and how he was cute- the first 5 times she made comments I smiled and was polite but after that she was just annoying as she kept interupting our convesation!!!
I get the “yappari haafu ga chigau” comment too…I guess they probably do mean it in a nice way but like you I find it annoying. Plus he is only 2 and a bit months old and I will be getting it for years to come. hehe
Oh and Noah squeals in delight sometimes but no laughter yet- I am waiting!
Mande- Funny the observations you have had about Luka compared to Ailin. Personality wise I am really not sure yet if Noah is like me or like Shun…will have to wait and see!
Katie- I think I would rather Noah watched seasame street or the wiggles over Einstein!
Cassie- Well you were with me that other day when the old lady at the next table spoke English at us and touched his cheeks- I wanted to snatch him away. HAHA
Looking forward to Saturday (and Monday!) – I can pull the entire part of the pram down over Noah and I do that when he is sleeping especially on the train but he doesn`t like it down when he is awake as he starts to cry! I do love your sunshade on your pram though!
Helen- Is “paddy” a word for tantrum? So far nobody has tried to give me something for Noah- not sure what I would do in that circumstance. What person in their right mind tries to give boiled candy to toddlers?
Jen- I carry anti bacterial gel in my purse. haha. So I guess I am one of those mothers too!
Suzy- I think if we were in Australia I would not want Noah watching TV til he was a little bit older but in our case I want to expose him to as much English as possible.
We will be in Australia when Noah turns 12 months and I am thinking that is about when I will want to wean him as well- I figure I will have plenty of helping hands to try and feed him!!!
I wonder if playschool does dvds? Will have to check the ABC shop next time I am in Australia
Oh & I love Ponyo!
Khea-Oh Shun will change diapers no problem, he just doesn`t think to do it himself really. Unless he is watching him and he is crying…although Noah never cries because of a wet diaper- it is ALWAYS something else.
Shun will offer to do it if he sees me getting up to do it- unless it is a poo one! HAha, then he is happy to let me do it.
I agree half babies are super cute
Sometimes the attention, especially when it is unwanted is just a bit much!
Sherry- I can`t wait to meet these kids of yours!! hehe
I like the music in baby einstein- it is really just the puppets that are weird. And some of the kids haircuts. haha. I will let Noah watch tv as he grows up if he wants- especially if it menas I can get dinner ready or have a shower- at the moment if I take a shower while Noah is awake and Shun ahs already left for work then Noah just sits in a bouncer outside the door! lol
Achan- Noah does have some gas issues sometimes but I tried cutting coffee a couple days and it made no difference. I am aware that his tummy is sensitive though- so try to limit my intake though. Glad it doesn`t keep him awake though- then I would really be in trouble! hehe!
Nay- you can watch baby einstein this weekend if you want! hehe
Laura A- I have not been asked about “bonyu” yet- I feed in public though. I mean sometimes I go to the babies rooms but othertimes I just use a cover in a cafe or wherever I am at the time- I am not shy
hehe
Personally though I dont think it is anyone elses business if bub is bottle fed or breast fed and that would certainly annoy me too!
“waved bye bye like a foreigner” THAT IS CLASSIC!!
Allanah- That is funny! I can just see Kieran as a baby unable to move his arms because of his clothes. CLASSIC!
Karen- How have you found it because peanut is full american? Do you get asked about his dad when it is just you and baby?
Shun copies my english and tells Noah all the time ” You`re stinky- yes, stinky stinky” HAHA