Um, yeah, so again I crossed nothing off my 101 things in 1001 days list in October. I have just over a month to go and it is unlikely I will cross anything else off (except the monthly updates)- but I am determined to complete the 1001 days and also donate money to charity for the unfinished items. I will likely have 8 or 9 uncompleted items (One of the items is to perfect a piano piece- I haven`t played in a couple of years but there is a piano at mum`s so maybe I can work on some Christmas music or a classical piece from one of my old music books- after all I did study piano for 15 years) and I have already decided what charity and how I will donate- in fact I am combining it as a Christmas gift for my dad (is this cheating- I don`t think so!)
I figure if I complete 93 or 94 of the items on my list then I did pretty well, no? Of course ideally 101 would of been better but I am still happy with my efforts even if in recent months not much got done. It is true that my goals changed in the last 3 years since I made the list and perhaps if I had changed some more things around then I would of completed more but as I said I am still happy with my efforts.
*************************************************************************
I have asked before but can`t find the comments on the subject and now we are almost heading to Australia- what are some good toys for 1 year olds? I like wooden toys (and hope to buy some in Australia even though they will be heavy to bring back!) and toys with some educational value as well as the usual type stuff.
Any brands you can recommend? I was thinking in Australia I want to get blocks, another wooden train or car, puzzles, some more books, a shape sorting toy (hopefully wooden) and some other things as it will be Christmas and his birthday while we are there.
I have also been looking on Lakeshore Learning although not much available in Australia it seems- I figure some of the stuff for older kids I could buy now and use with Noah and Edamame-kun as they get older too. In the meantime I could use them in some of my kids teaching classes.
Also does anyone know where I can get bigger sized flashcards in Australia or other educational products? Is it best just to go online? Anyone work in early childhood in Australia know of some good places/online shops? I know there is a lot online in America as well but sometimes the shipping is a bit too expensive to make it worthwhile.
**************************************************************************
Yesterday we celebrated Misora`s 1st birthday near Tamagawa River (Mel`s daughter)….Lots of fun and also great to catch up with some friend`s especially before we head to Australia on Wednesday.
Lots of photos: More on my flickr and facebook as well but here are a couple of my favourites.
Seriously was loads of fun- made me even MORE excited for Noah`s first birthday party in January (with Alex) and Melanie did such a fantastic job with the food. It was a “Around the World/It`s A Small World” theme with food from all over and lovely little party hats for the kids with icons from their heritage.
**********************************************************************
Am almost up to date with my scrapbooking! Have done til end of September and have October`s photos ready to scrapbook but I might not end up getting to them before I go to Australia (but they are in order and ready to go)
Oh and my other recent crafty project was a scarf for Noah
******************************************************************
Just two sleeps til we leave for Australia now!
Popularity: 12% [?]
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!
Love all the cute pictures! Straining my brain to think back to what the girls liked at 1. I was really big on puzzles, especially the ones with knobs on as they’re great for fine motor skill training. we had a chain of elephants graduated sizes that you fit together and then could pull along with a string. They loved toys you could pull along. Those pre-lego magnetic blocks were a great hit too. Bonus is that if you step on them you don’t teach your kids a new swear word!
HTH!
just came across your blog. the pictures were so cute.
Wow but the scrapbooking is progressing beautifully! Rather impressed that you have the scarf made already in time for the Winter chill. I, on the other hand, usually have to have the Winter wind to remind me it’s time to get knitting! This season I think a blanket might be in order
Happy trip home! Xx
K&K Creative Toys sells quality wooden toys but their stores are at Indooroopilly and Enoggera, both a little far away from you. http://www.kandkcreativetoys.com.au/ You should check out any craft markets in your area, they often have stallholders who sell wooden toys. I can’t believe how organised you are with your scrapbooking! I don’t know how you manage it! The combined charity donation and christmas gift to your dad sound like good idea!
Wow you guys have been busy! I think you’ve done well to complete over 90 of your 101 things to do – I’m not sure if I could have done that well!
I’m not sure about Australia, but there is a quite good online store that sells great wooden toys. You would have to get it delivered to you but I do believe you have some family in New Zealand(?) so maybe they could help with this? The website is http://www.woodentoystore.co.nz/ if you’re interested.
The birthday party looks like great fun! I like the picture of you and Noah-kun walking together. And fabulous scrapbooking pages and scarf – I love making things too!
Hope you have fun in OZ, we’re actually going to NZ this Saturday for 6 weeks! So exciting!!
Love the peek-a-boo pics! He looks pleased with his scarf too, adorable!
Enjoy your trip home – may you have an easy flight and not too much trouble bringing all your loot back!
I love your blog, I lived in Japan as a kid and spent half of my adult life working for Japanese companies so it’s interesting to read snippets about your life over there.
In relation to finding wooden toys, one place you might want to try is Bunyip Toys: http://www.bunyiptoys.com.au/
Misora’s party looks awesome!
I am a huge fan of Plan Toys and Melissa&Doug toys. Meg’s current fave toy is:
http://item.rakuten.co.jp/auc-tokugawa-jyo/2403/
You can get Plan Toys in Japan so if I were you I would look for Melissa&Doug in Aus. None here.
Both kids love Thomas train stuff, we have all wood which is hella expensive but lasts and you can switch between Thomas, Imaginarium (at toysRUs Japan) and Plan Toys.
I’ve ordered gifts from https://www.onlinetoys.com.au and have never been disappointed.
93-94 complete from the 101 list is very impressive! I thought I did well to get over half