Kokochi

An experience

Situation: Walking to the bus stop from work on Brannan street. A young dude passes me. Then ahead I notice a man lying across the sidewalk. I notice a bicycle upright next to him. Was there an accident? Is he dead? Is this a situation I want to avoid because it might give me nightmares for a long time? The young dude stops in front of the man...clearly wondering if this is serious too. Thank god he's there. I can follow his lead. I catch up but stop from afar. I ask, "is he OK?" The young dude looks to me and says, "I was looking and he's breathing." I am relieved. I walk up finally. If the person was dead, I'd probably jump across the city out of a deep fear/aversion of dead beings (I have a few stories about this and realize that my aversion is not the common kind...ever since a kid when my pet birds died...'nother story) We hesitate. The man is breathing, but what do we do? 911? The young dude has an English accent and asks me. I'm not sure because I'm also hesitant to call 911 if the guy is OK. [see 2nd bullet]. I see many people looking like they might need help on the street but have learned that it's not something I can worry about for every person. We bend over and ask loudly, "sir, are you alright?" He opens his eyes, lifts his head, and nods. Then closes his eyes again. No idea what his real state of mind is, but he assures us. So we slowly, unconfidently, walk on. We discuss what happened. We did stop to inquire. But with his nod, we essentially left a man lying on the sidewalk. Is that really OK? In many other countries, that would even be ignored. But in the richest country of the world? Yet there are so many like this...and like I said, I've learned to pass it by. Seriously, when I first came from Tokyo and lived with my brother in Berkeley for a summer before heading to college, it was a HUGE adjustment to not be worried about every street person who asked for help. I learned to not respond... So sad and bizarre.

Finger food - a mess

Oh my. We're giving Miss Trouble food that she can shove in her own mouth...or shove bits in while the majority falls to the floor (covered by a sheet I put down at each meal = more laundry...) or gets smashed on the table so it can only be scraped off. She enjoys it, but I really have to let go about the mess. I smile with her and act like it's just as exciting for mommy. Not!! Yes, she tipped over the whole bowl. Luckily most of the stuff stuck to the bowl (avocado, baked corn squash, tofu) p.s. I can't believe this is the baby who was inside me less than 11 months ago. SO weird!!

The brunch...then at J & M's for Bloddy Marys

Been busy enjoying and doing what must be done in life. This is from Mother's Day. We had a gorgeous brunch here with the mommies of the Callaghan family. I "hosted" but they brought food, cards and flowers for me. Marie, Tesla's granny, made French Toast with coconut milk to die for. I offered some flowers on the table and eggs. I need more training... Although I'm not a big "holiday" person, I've always sorta liked Mother's Day. It's a great occasion to make my mom know how much I love her. I sent earrings this year and called. Wish she were here. For the first time being a mom, I still rather liked this day (I usually don't like days where the attention is supposed to be on me). It's low key in the sense that the "tradition" seems to be brunch with mimosas. Pretty easy to pull off. And I think a big key - for me - about motherhood is simple appreciation. I love caring for Tesla no matter how tired I am. It's a privilege I don't forget. But having my loved ones pat me on the back is necessary. Gigantic kudos to dear Dav...he was sweet as ever and my gosh, I got a hefty gift card for Osmosis. Dav treated me to this before, and it's amazing. I'm gonna relish this gift for a while before deciding when to go. Thank you, bunny. You ROCK!!

Appropriately dressed

Tesla actually has tons of dresses, but I rarely get her into them. Seriously, some mornings I try to dig out new stuff for her to wear, but end up combining the strangest sets so she sometimes looks like a mix-matched clown. Today, though I found a very traditional baby dress...which I think granny and great-granny will appreciate. I try to dress her up when hanging with them. She does look cute, no?

Flora Grubb Gardens

Later we stopped by the opening of a new Ritual Roasters coffee shop at the Flora Grubb Gardens. Beautiful and I'm glad we went as I wouldn't have discovered it otherwise. Gorgeous stuff...I particularly loved the large plant containers although they were pretty pricey. I also loved their hats. Huge shade and perfect for the playa. I got the brown one (or rather Dav gave me his credit card and I signed the receipt; weird they didn't notice I'm not Dav). Yipee. Can't wait to wear it. Today is Sunday. My first mama's day "on the other side of the fence" so to speak. Called my mom, but wish she were here. However, Tesla's granny, great granny, Dav's sister and brother, Shauna (cousin?) will all be over for french toast and mimosas. That'll be 5 mommies in the house!

Baby Loves Disco

Yesterday Dav, Tesla, and I finally got to go to Baby Loves Disco. When we first heard about it, Tesla was still too young, then things got too busy. But Patrick, who takes kids pictures there, got us on the guest list. Wohoo! Starting at 2pm, it's Ruby Skye turned into a kid-friendly giant party with a DJ, healthy snacks, lots of pillows and sofas, hoola hoops, face painting...and a bar (I didn't expect that). Everyone - kids and parents - all seemed to enjoy themselves (apart from parents having to run after their totally excited kids), and I loved seeing all these young families dancing together. It was hilarious to walk into Ruby Skye and see a whole line of strollers. Tesla was still too young in my opinion since we had to hold her or let her crawl around among the children. I definitely want to go back when she can walk and dance...and wear cute skirts : )

Sunday with the Regenbogens

These photos are actually all from Michelle. Dav in turn took quite a few of them : ) They are the cutest family...and we love having them as neighbors, buddies, and babysitting-sharing parents! These are from last Sunday. We did Thai Brunch in Berkeley, then the steam choo choo trains in Tilden Park. Total fun for ALL of us!

Naked Baby!

I'm definitely behind in documenting cute Miss Tesla. The weather has been so beautiful that we're out all day enjoying it, meeting up with friends, eating out as much as possible. Hopefully I'll backtrack, but this is for my mom who loves Tesla's chubbiness. On Sunday, the boys of the house went to the Bayside UCSF area to play bocce ball. Tesla was sleeping so I joined after her nap. The grass was so lush (a bit scratchy, but still beautiful). I couldn't help but let Miss T get butt naked and crawl around. Clearly, she loved being naked. She got scratched up a bit by the grass but didn't seem to mind. Several times she crawled quite far away on her own, looking back to make sure I was still there, but still on her own adventure. I'm sure it felt like pure freedom: naked and no limits to where she could go. p.s. my goodness. I think her new nickname-of-the-moment will be Miss Eyebrows.

wohoo!

We knew about a party tonight...but let it go. Then last minute, we decided, "You know what? It'd be total fun to go." However, since it's a late party, we'd really need someone to spend the night here. And what parent calls around late afternoon of the party night...Friday no less? Amazing...she is my sis. Lovely Rachel is coming over to watch over Tesla who I hope will just sleep the whole time through. It will be a special night indeed not just cuz it's another date night out with Dav, but because I know someone very special is helping us have it. Thank you, sis.

About that date night...

Details, including an incredible close-up shot of Kinky's lead singer Gilberto singing into my phone cam!!, are over at Kokochiino. It was a fantastic night out, and I danced, laughed, and got Dav all to myself! Date nights are so important, and although it was a Wed. night and I also would have been happy hanging with Tesla at home, I was incredibly refreshed after our date. It's like I forgot how special it is to go out like we used to, just the two of us. Usually we are so tired by the end of the day, we just cuddle up on the sofa and watch the Daily Show once Tes is asleep ... and I usually fall asleep within 15 minutes. But after being out and about with Dav, I just could not take for granted how fun and hot my husband is [grin]