Changer of the World?

I was standing in front of the elementary school waiting to pick Jun up when the music teacher came up to me.  She immediately began to apologize to me.  I was a bit confused at first, but smiled and gave the correct replies.

When Jun and I got in the car, I got the Rest of the Story.  The week before, the teacher had introduced a Halloween song.  Well, we aren't really into Halloween in our family.  Especially when it comes to drinking blood and eating brains.  Even more especially when drinking blood and eating brains comes in the form of a scary song that the kids get to sing every week for a month.  Songs DO NOT leave Jun's memory.  And what doesn't leave her memory wakes her up at night.  AND, I could only think, "with all the violence in schools these days, why would ANYONE teach a kid that drinking blood and eating brains is cute or funny?" 

When Jun had told us about the song and told us she thought it was inappropriate and didn't we think so too? we had answered, "yes!"  Apparently Jun went to the teacher and told her that she thought the song was inappropriate and that her MOTHER thought so too.  Ahhh, the courage of a 6 year old!  More courage than her mother.  But I am learning!

Anyway, the teacher hadn't really felt good about playing the song, but it was part of the curriculum.  However, she pulled it immediately and has told the other teachers that she will not be doing Halloween songs, but harvest songs instead!

I was so impressed with Jun for making her convictions known (even borrowing a bit of perceived power from her Mom), and being instrumental in making a change in her school!  Too bad she wasn't born in the USA!  SHE could be president someday!

Birthday Clothes

One of my students, Mr. Y. had a birthday. He turned 71. When I told Jun about his birthday, she peered into the web cam and told him "Happy Birthday." Then she said, "On your birthday did your clothes feel kind of weird?" He looked rather puzzled. So she continued, "When I had a birthday and turned five, my clothes started to feel kind of tight and strange." Mr. Y. didn't notice any particular change in his clothing fit! Too funny!

100 Days!

Monday Jun came home from Kindergarten eager to tell me about her day. This is a very rare occurrence, so I sat right down to listen. Monday was the day the class celebrated the 100th day of school! They did games and made crowns and strung a cereal necklace with 10 groups of 10 pieces of cereal, and OF COURSE THEY DIDN'T have 100 SNACKS! And it was a great day!

The first thing she did was put the 100 Day Necklace around my neck. Yes, it was scratchy. Yes, I wondered how fast the cereal would get sticky. Yes, the dividers between the groups of 10 were rather awkward. But, I patted myself on the back and felt very proud that I had managed to get my child up, fed, dressed and out the door to Kindergarten 100 DAYS! And we only forgot to pick her up twice! LOL! Two days in a row!!! Now I want to know how many MORE days we have to get up before dawn and START the day! Summer, I'm a waiting for you!!!

Jun's Search for a Sibling

I've told Jun we are really too old to consider adopting another child. She has apparently been thinking about this for some time. Today's conversation went like this:

Jun: Mom, you really aren't very old. Why don't we find someone who has lots of children anyway and who is going to have a baby and you can talk to me and we can get the baby and I'll have a brother or sister.

Mom: (What could I say? I laughed!)

A few minutes later Jun asked: Mama, are you in the "three numbers?" Are you over 100 yet?

Mom: (I laughed again!)

Thanksgiving

Jun came home from Kindergarten Friday. I remembered to ask her if she had any homework. Yes. Kids in Kindergarten have homework. I SOOOOOO wanted homework when I was in Kindergarten. Really! But I had to wait for YEARS before I had homework. Jun? She has a bit of homework most days. And I hate it. But, that's another story.

So, I remembered to ask if she had any homework. She said 'yes' she had to color a decoration for Thanksgiving. Pollyanna that I am, I once again was thankful that I put her in public school - as I am NOT a crafts person, but enjoyed doing them in school as a kid. I wondered fleetingly if it was a turkey she'd be coloring or a Pilgrim. Maybe an Indian? Jun pulled out her paper. And I started laughing. It was a picture of a rocket ship!!!!! They were going to color them and hang them from the ceiling in the classroom where they would swing around! I laughed and laughed and laughed!

Surely Jun was a little confused? Unless they will use time travel to go back in time to the first Thanksgiving? LOL!

Fair Hair

Jun is so eager to let her hair grow LONG like a princess. Thanks a lot "Tangled!" The beautiful little girls from next door that also have long hair has contributed to this deep desire. I put her off all summer with my standard, "We'll see." She really responds well to this answer. She has HOPE and I have time to think about the issue or see if it just fades away. And, as summer is hot and her beautiful thick black hair is HOT, I didn't want to commit myself to anything yet. One day we were sitting at the dining room table and Jun turned to me indignantly, "Mama, you HAVE to let Daddy grow his hair long too!" Friends and family and strangers...it has been many a year since Daddy has had enough active hair follicles to make growing hair a beneficial endeavour. So we use the razor! LOL Unfair Mama strikes again!

Bend

We were telling Jun that her Grandpa and cousin were going to be in Bend next week right about the same time for Dr. appointments. She looked at me sternly and said, "Mama! Don't say 'Bend!'" I innocently asked, "Why not?" "Because, Mama, Bend and HELL are the SAME!" I really tried to keep a straight face as she was so serious. I tried to question her logic calmly, but finally I just gave up and laughed and laughed. Then I asked about the connection. "Mama, 'Bend' and 'hell' BOTH have an 'e' in them!" Well, now you know why Bend and HELL are the same! For anyone reading who lives in or loves Bend, OR...sorry!

Pour Me Another Cuppa!

Our next door neighbor made the most delicious cinnamon rolls yesterday and gave us some HOT out of the oven!!! I made some tea - decaf for myself and caf for Ryu. After explaining what decaf and caf were to Jun, she turned to Daddy and said in a very stern warning voice, "Daddy! If you don't stop drinking caffeine you are going to stop having BIRTHDAYS!" Ryu and I looked at each other - both a little startled. Of course I tell Jun that caffeine will stump her growth, but we've never said it would KILL you! I decided that a little more information was needed before I could respond, so I asked her what she meant about "stop having birthdays." She looked at me with that teenaged look she is so good at though she is only five, and said, "Maaaaama! He'll ALWAYS stay the same age that he is NOW!"

Ahhh, the end of the world to a five year old makes her Mama and Daddy pour another cup of straight up caffeine! Let's STAY the same age we are for a bit!

Unbelievable!

I was teaching at the local community college yesterday when my cell phone rang. With Jun in Kindergarten, I always keep my phone handy in case the school calls. I didn't recognize the phone number, but took the call. Yep. The school. "Jun said that her Mom and Dad were going to pick her up today." I looked at the clock and yelped! Jun's Mom and Dad were a good 13 minutes late. I hung up and called Ryu. His cell answered on about the fifth ring. Where is he? He was on top of the roof fixing the tiles and had totally forgotten about his one and only sweet sweet little girl! I couldn't believe it. And, to his credit, neither could HE! He jumped down off the roof and ran all the way to school. Got there in three minutes. I was quite impressed. Jun looked at him. Put her hand on her hip. Pointed a finger and said, "You. Are. Late!" She got a piece of candy AND a piece of gum after lunch from a guilt ridden father. And I got a phone call assuring me that Jun was home safely. Unbelievable!

I have so many memories of waiting for my Mom to pick me up from High School. Standing out in front of the school all by myself. The loneliest sound in the world, to me, is the rope and metal on the school flag pole clanging in the wind. So, being on time to pick up Jun is very very important to me. Today I was on pick-up duty. Ryu was outside putting the storm windows up before the storm hits this weekend. Suddenly I screamed. Grabbed my keys. Grabbed my purse. Jumped into my shoes and ran for the car. I pealed out of the driveway and got to school...about the same time Ryu did yesterday! Jun was, once again, sitting in the office...waiting for her parents! Unbelievable!!!

I'm Not Going to Stress About It!

When Ryu and I decided that we would move back to the States, I made a serious demand of him. One that, having lived in a foreign country for 15 or so years, I felt qualified to demand. That demand (don't I sound bossy?) was that he never walk around moping because he felt people were being prejudiced towards him. "You know," I said, "It's probably going to happen. You can live above it or under it. And you had BETTER live above it!" I have no desire to live with two people with a "victim" mentality towards their racial heritage.

Ryu has been called a "Jap" since coming to the US. He lets it go in one ear and out the other. He has a Mexican classmate in his ESOL class that is truly prejudiced against in his work situation. Being called "Jap" is nothing, let me tell you.

Today Jun came home from school a bit sad. "Mama, K---- doesn't want to be my best friend because I'm Japanese and her skin is darker than mine."

(Jun freely introduces herself saying, "I'm Jun. I'm Japanese." No, I didn't teach her to do this, but have proudly stated myself that she is Japanese. )

So, we talked about God making children with skin all different colors because he is a creative God and he loves each and every one of those kids. And he would like those kids to be friends too.

We will hope and pray that K---- will move past this stage in her young life, and that Jun will be able to encourage other kids who are not pearly white, that God made them just the way He wanted them to be!

Halloween?

Jun and I were walking yesterday when she suddenly began to tell me about her PE class at school that day.

Jun: Mr. M's eyeball fell out in PE today.
Me: ??????????? His EYEBALL???
Jun: Yes. He picked it up off the floor, put in his mouth and put it back in his eye.
Me: ??????????? His EYEBALL??? (Thinking HALLOWEEN prank?!?!)
Jun: Yes. His eyeball!
Me: Perhaps it was his contact lens?
Jun: It was his eyeball.
Me: (To myself...SURELY NOT!?!?!)

I was volunteering at the school today and ran into Mr. Moore, whom I've never spoken to. I asked him right out if he wore contacts (after examining his eyes very carefully. They looked quite real, a little bloodshot maybe, but real.) He said yes. Our next Google is to look up contacts, as Jun has obviously never seen one! LOL!

First Grade Reading

Jun's Kindergarten teacher called me, rather excited, a month or more ago. She told me that Jun could read really well. Yep! She can! Anyway, she wanted Jun to be put in First Grade Reading. To be honest, I didn't expect Jun to be all that academically challenged this year in Kindergarten, as we did Kindergarten homeschooling last year. But, I DID want Jun to be with her peers, to have another adult she respected, to get our family up and at 'em every morning, and to make some friends in town. So, we were satisfied before the phone call, but decided to give First Grade Reading a shot.

Well, I am very impressed with the topics that Jun is reading about in First Grade Reading. The first story was about Harriet Tubman - whom we happened to "study" about last year - thanks to YouTube! The next story was about Martin Luther King. Jun and I talked about slavery and black people and the fact that African Americans are no longer slaves, etc.

Then, at the end of the story, the kids were to write a paper entitled, "I Have A Dream." Again, I thought - WOW! I was looking forward to reading what her dream was. I looked below the title. "I have a dream to have a sleepover." I laughed. She is truly five! And I'm glad.

Jun'd Again!

On the way home from church today,

Jun piped up, Mama, your name was Kim Renae B____, right?

Me: Yes.

Jun: Now it's Kim Renae I___________, right?

Me: Yes, it changed when I got married to Daddy.

Jun: I'm never going to change MY name from I_______________.

Me: Oh, Really? (My heart was so warm. She loves her Daddy so much, she always wants to keep his name, I thought. )

Jun: (Throwing a cup of ice water on my warm heart...) Yes! I can SPELL I_____________.

I'm still shaking my head laughing!

Picture Day

Well, another first as a parent. Ordering school pictures! Choices upon choices! Well, perhaps it won't be as overwhelming next year as this, but, I was taken by surprise. I must say that the only professional photos we've had of Jun (other than her 3 year kimono pics taken by a friend) were passport pictures! LOL! So, we were clueless!

First we had to choose a background! Any color, design, etc. WOW! We chose purple as it looks like it will go nicely with her hair and pink dress. We'll see. Then we needed to choose a border. We chose one with 2011 in the corner as Jun's parents are aging rapidly and can't remember ANYTHING! So, Jun will always know when her pic was taken! LOL! As an added precaution against absentmindedness, we also got her name printed on the corner of the wallet sized pictures.

Speaking of picture sizes, they now have "exchange" pictures. I realize that parents in the US know all about this sort of thing - I guess, but perhaps expat moms will NEED TO KNOW! Anyway, my brother said that these are even smaller than wallets and are for kids to give to each other! The package we got that had enough pics for relatives had a ton of exchange pictures in it. I guess I'll let her give them to all the people at church that always make over her! LOL!

And Jun's picture day experience? The highlight? "MAMA! THEY GAVE ME A LITTLE BLACK COMB! THEY SAID I COULD TAKE IT HOME AND COMB MY DOLL'S HAIR WITH IT!!!" Truly a satisfied customer! LOL!

Now we just have to wait to see if she smiled and...allowed her GUMS to show!

The Help

I hope that I will be able to help out in Jun's Kindergarten class one morning a week this year. I have heard that her teacher doesn't use many helpers, though, and so am anxiously waiting to see if I will be CHOSEN! HAHAHA!

Well, about a week after school started, Jun came home from school and announced that there were 19 kids in her class. I said, "Wow! That's a lot of kids. Was there a helper in your class?"

Jun answered rather offendedly, "Mama, WE are Mrs. Halliburton's HELPERS! She has nineTEEN helpers!"

And there you have it! (Each student does have a job that they choose each day to help Mrs. Halliburton out."

Gotta Read THIS! Jun again!

We had dinner out last night at Subway's in the truck stop near our house. Jun was sitting next to me at the table and suddenly said, "God is L-I-G-H-T." "Hmmm," I thought. "We went to church today, but not Sunday School, so... accurate as it is, where did this insight come from?" Then I thought, "She's a good reader, but where and when did she learn to spell a word like LIGHT? At kindergarten, they are still working on 'a says aaa, ant on an apple.'" Then Jun pipes up, "God is a bud." "God is a bud?" I asked, thinking she'd gotten a letter or sound mixed up and ended up with 'bud.' "Yes," Jun said,"God is the vine and we are the leaves." "Well, we DID talk about SOMETHING close to that the other day, and I guess leaves do bud out too." Then I looked at the wall in front of Jun, and all Godly thoughts fled. Next to the drink cooler was a floor to ceiling sign of a bottle of...Bud Light. I'm still laughing inside!

Key got Nuked

Sorry for my cryptic title and terrible play on Japanese and even worse romanization of a Japanese phrase. But, my head hurts terribly again, so...and it is HOT!!! And there have been mosquitoes eating me up every night since we got back from our wonderful COOL vacation.

Not only that, the event that we have been gearing up for happened this morning. Jun started Kindergarten at the public school up the hill. Her teacher's name is as long as my Kindergarten teacher's name was. I can never remember it. She forgot it too and called her teacher "teacher." The teacher asked if Jun wanted to be called "student." Jun said, "no," so is working to remember the teacher's name. I realize this sounds a little harsh, but I remember being asked the same thing in Kindergarten. Especially harsh as in Japan, it is respectful to call a teacher..."teacher." Oh well. We don't live in Kansas anymore!

Back to Keys being Nuked. I've been looking forward to a guilt free, responsibility free, interruption free (from kiddo and hubby) three-hour stretch for a week or two. This was the morning. We woke up on time, got to school on time, came home and Ryu and I both crashed. We can't seem to wake up. We've both taken two naps each today. My headache doesn't help, but...what a waste of a highly anticipated day. Plus it's HOT and it will be HOT for another WEEK! YUCK!

Back to Kindergarten. I told Jun that the RULE was that if she wanted to go to Kindergarten at a public school, then she HAD to tell me everything that she did when she came home. Jun likes Rules. So, I heard all about snack time and "art." Then she told me that ALL of the kids in her class were her friends and then she asked if she could go back in the afternoon for Afternoon Kindergarten. So, I think she liked her first day just fine.

On the other hand, I just realized we have committed ourselves to getting up early in the morning and getting said child to and from school for the next 9 months or so. That alone makes me want to get back into bed. That and my HEADACHE! I know, go to the Dr. and get it checked. However, the level of medical care that we can afford does not afford me any peace of mind in getting my headache checked, so I will take a few more Tylenol and another decongestant and ice the old head again!

Oh, ki ga nuita (key got nuked), means let down one's guard after a busy time or ... relaxing! Dangerous activity! Don't try this at home!

Imodessying Police

We took a VACATION! And our hotel had a POOL! And I was going to swim for the first time this summer. I took out my swimming suit:

Jun: Mama, is that swimming suit going to fit you? It looks awfully small.
Me: Yes, Jun. Swimming suits stretch to fit you and I HAVEN'T gained any weight! It will be fine!
Jun: Mama, that swimming suit is a little imodessying.
Me: Immodest? The neckline is as high as a swimming suit can go!
Jun: Mama, it shows your back ALL THE WAY down to your BOTTOM!
Me: Jun, that's the way swimming suits are MADE!
Jun: MY swimming suit doesn't show MY BACK!

Well, after swimming, I looked in the mirror. Most of the elastic seems to have deteriorated and the fabric in the front...it's on its way to being imodessying! LOL!

So, since we were in a CITY that has no SALE'S TAX, I went shopping for a swim suit. I took the Imodessying Police with me. Much to my surprise, there was a suit she approved of! LOL! Of course we were too busy to swim after that! Hope I stay the same size for next summer!!!

Give 'Em a Break! And their Mama's too!

I took Jun to get the remaining shots she needs to start kindergarten in TWO WEEKS!

Now, Jun has had many many vaccinations while living in Japan. I say "many" because each and every vaccination seems to come at a different time in Japan and from a different needle. None of those MMR cocktails or combination vaccinations in Japan. And she has always been a jewel, much to the shock and delight of the nurses and doctors and her proud Mama.

Well, last summer, when she had a terrible cold, here in the US, they said she needed vaccinations and could give them to her right there and then, as she had a cold but no fever! NO JAPANESE DOCTOR would EVER do that. There was a whole list of shots that they wanted to give her. I said, "Ummmm, how about we just do half now and half later?" So we did. And Jun was as good as gold.

Then, one month later we had to go in again...for the other half. And we had to wait forever. Jun had to use the restroom and took forever, and then we waited forever in the exam room too. By the time "shot time" arrived, Jun was over and done and all of my "brain washing" had washed away. Jun was NOT getting a SHOT this day! I have never seen my little girl so upset, out of control, screaming, crying and struggling. Needless to say, though she did get her shots that day, her arms hurt for some time afterwards - sticking needles into concrete muscle will do that.

So, that was my next line of preparation. If you DON'T scream and holler and tighten your muscles and struggle, your arms won't hurt so badly afterwards, etc. Well, we were to go back after Christmas. An appointment that Jun remembered for months, but which the clinic did not. So, as we were homeschooling (or not) by then, I skipped the non-appointment.

But, we have decided to put Jun into public kindergarten (again) this year. More on that later. She needed TWO MORE SHOTS to be accepted. So I took her to the clinic. And we waited in the waiting room. Before we went I reinforced how WE DON'T KICK AND SCREAM AT THE DR'S. And how good ice cream would taste afterwards. And how proud Daddy would be of her, etc.

And we waited in the exam room. And we played hand clapping games. We played word games. We read magazines. And we waited. FINALLY oh FINALLY the nurse came in and confirmed which shots we needed. The ones I'd figured out HOURS earlier. And we waited again. Finally oh Finally oh FINALLY, she came back with needles full of vaccinations. She had Jun sit on my lap and repeat her favorite color many many times so it wouldn't hurt so much. Jun, the trooper that she is, said "purple" a million times and hung in there for shot number 1. Then, when the nurse brought out the foot long needle for number 2, the nurse realized she had the WRONG NEEDLE?!?!?!?!?! So, she left a kid that was playing really really close to the edge of loosing it, sitting on her mother's lap while she went to find the CORRECT NEEDLE?!?!?! And we waited. Jun was ready to go home NOW! I talked and told her, correctly, I hope, that this will be her last shot till Jr. High! I hope I'm right! Finally, Jun said her favorite animal, "cat????!?!" (when did that become her favorite animal?) a thousand times and we were done. The nurse had stickers ready which helped combat the sadness that lack of kid-type bandaids may have brought on if we hadn't discussed this possibility on the way to the clinic. LOL!

Clinics - kids DON'T like shots! Get them in and out as FAST AS YOU CAN!!! It will make YOUR LIFE a whole lot easier as well! I sure hope I am right about the Jr. High thing!!!

Where Lions Fear to Tread

We were at the Dept. of Motor Vehicles on Wednesday...for hours...trying to change our driver's licenses and car titles over to Idaho. Jun brought a bag and a basket of books, crayons, markers, and who knows what all else.

While we were waiting for our number to be called...and waiting and waiting, Jun noticed A LITTLE GIRL sitting across the way from us. "Mama, can I give her this picture I wrote (a hang over from Japanese where you write rather than draw pictures)?" "Sure." Jun gave her the pic and came back. The little girl looked at the pic rather uninterestedly. Said to her Dad that it looked like a lighthouse, and had a rather unpleasant look on her face. Jun said, "Mama, can I go tell her what it is?" "Sure." Jun went over and told her it was a picture of a girl in a wedding dress. The little girl's face didn't change. She looked crabby and grumpy and very unfriendly. Jun said, "Mama, can I go and ask her if she'd like to play with me." "Jun, look at that little girl's face! She does not look friendly at all. She looks crabby and grumpy!" "No she doesn't, Mama. She just looks bored." "Well...OK. But if she says "no," don't be sad, just come back and I'll color with you, OK?" "OK." Jun went over to the little girl a third time. "Would you like to color with me?" "SURE!" And they became best of friends.

So, sometime someone WILL reject my Jun and, rather than do something terrible to the person that does reject her, I am trying to prepare her to deal with the inevitable. But, I seem to be learning more from her than she from me.