The Bunk Bed Slide

A while ago, I was perusing a magazine and came across an ad that featured a bunk bed with a slide. I thought it was a cool idea, but also thought it went a little too far. I mean, as a kid, who wouldn't want a slide on their bunk bed? I showed the ad to Joseph and he thought along the same lines as me. We had thoughts like, "Oh man! If we ever got one of those for our kids, they'd never go to bed," and stuff like that. We laughed about it, then the subject was quickly dropped and the memory stored in the far reaches of our minds.

Well, last Friday, Akiko came up to me and said, "Mommy, wouldn't it be neat if I had a slide on my bunk bed so that if I needed to go twinkle in the middle of the night I could just slide down and go?" I thought of that ad and started laughing and told her it would be cool (while simultaneously thinking "Yeah, right!"), and the subject was once again dropped.

The next morning as Joseph and I were getting ready for the day I told him about the short conversation I had with Akiko the day before. You know what he said? Something like, "That actually sounds like a good idea. I'll build them one today."

*Wait, what? Today? But you were just telling me about all the work you need to do. How in the world are you going to fit in building a slide for the bunk bed? I'm still not sure that's even a good idea.* These were my thoughts, but I simply, but skeptically said, "Um. Really? Okaaay."

He sensed my skepticism. He proceeded to convince me that it won't be very expensive or take very long, the kids would love it, Akiko had a great point about the urgency to go potty, and Moses, who loves to get on the top bunk but gets stuck up there, would have a way down without yelling "Ayuda me!"

Now, it's important to note that Joseph has a lot of experience with construction and building things. His dad was a general contractor all while Joseph was growing up and he learned quite a few things from his dad. This knowledge has rarely manifest itself since we've been married and I often forget that my husband really does know what he's doing.

I like building things, too, but apparently I get really carried away when I start to plan and engineer the project and it quickly becomes really complex. Hence, the big source of my skepticism. I simply could not figure out how Joseph was going to build and attach a slide in a sturdy and inexpensive way.

Well, Joseph made his quick trip to the big orange store and came back just in time for me to take Akiko to a birthday party that she'd been invited to. I didn't see what he'd brought home. Besides, he wanted it to be a surprise for us anyway. I was in too much of a hurry to ask.

Akiko and I were only gone for two hours. We came home to a big, no HUGE, surprise! Not only had the kids room been cleaned by my fabulous husband, but he had rearranged the bedroom so that the slide that was now complete and attached to the bunk bed would fit properly.

Akiko was elated, to say the least. Her exact words were, "Now that I have a slide on my bed, we don't need to go play at the park anymore!"

Joseph is a genius. His design was so simple. All he did was get a really sturdy, very smooth board and attach matching trim on the edges. I'm not exactly sure how he attached it to the bed, but it is certainly very sturdy, and I'm sure it was also extremely simple. My design would have been much more complex, not to mention expensive.

So, there you have it! The kids have a slide on their bunk bed. It's made them so happy. Akiko looks forward to waking up every morning. She has told anybody who will listen about it. She even dragged the home teachers into her bedroom to show them when they came to visit. And if my kids are happy, I'm happy, too.

PS: Joseph wanted me to note that this was part of the "nesting instinct" that I'm apparently rubbing off on him in order to prepare for the baby. I, of course, haven't been able to "nest" much myself because of the back pain. My husband is so awesome!

Summer Camp/Playgroup

I had all sorts of grandiose plans for summer, especially since it's Akiko's last summer before she embarks on her career in education for the next 13 years. Then I got pregnant and realized the baby is due smack in the middle of summer. I mean, I really wanted to put the kids in swim lessons, take them on all sorts of outings like the zoo or museum, etc. However, as any woman who's been with child could tell you, after the first trimester, the last month is the worst. Then, after the baby is born... well, it's hard to make plans that involve newborns. So, I had a hard time coming to terms with what to do with the summer.

Fortunately, in our ward there is a huge population of young mothers whose young children are the same age as mine. Last year, a bunch of them got together and did a summer camp where one mother would host a group of kids and do a bunch of themed activities, like luau, cowboys, space, etc. They decided to do it again this year since it ended up being a success and we got to be a part of it. I'm so glad because not only does it give my kids something to do, but I'll also get a break from them for a couple hours every week.

In my group, it was quickly decided that I would host the kids first since my due date is drawing uncomfortably close. I had the privilege to host the older kids twice this week. They included my wonderful Akiko, Sami, Haley and Gavin. I did a Noah's Ark/Animal theme and it ended up being a lot of fun.

I wasn't able to get any pictures of Monday's activities, unfortunately. As stated before, our camera is broken and we haven't yet been able to replace it. I actually traded phones with Joseph on Monday because his Android camera has better resolution than my phone and I would be able to email the pictures to myself immediately. For some reason though, I couldn't get the camera to work while we were doing our activities (even though it had been working fine for me the evening before when I was playing with it) and of course it started working fine after the kids left. So I don't have any pictures from Monday, which is okay, really, because all the fun stuff happened today anyway. Today, I took pictures with my phone and sent them via picture message to my email. They're kind of blurry and not very high resolution, but I think you'll get the idea.

So, on Monday, I started things out by telling the kids the story of Noah and the ark. I didn't really have to elaborate on anything since the kids pretty much knew it anyway, I really just wanted to throw in a quick Gospel lesson with the activities and give it a theme. After that, I had prepared some poster boards that featured animals that were endemic to each continent of the world.

We talked about flying squirrels from North America,

boa constrictors from South America,

hedgehogs from Europe,

African elephants (betcha can't guess where they're from),

giant pandas from Asia,

red kangaroos from Australia,

emperor penguins from Antarctica,

and blue whales from the oceans.

I learned a lot of cool features of each animal while putting things together and discussed them with the kids. They seemed pretty into it so I hope they learned something cool.

After the animal presentation, we played a couple games that involved animals. We played Animal Charades and Elephant Soccer (more on this one later). Since we only had a few minutes left before it was time to go, I taught (or attempted to teach) the Noah verse of "Follow the Prophet" and led them in a round of "Noah's Song" (if anyone went to Oakcrest Girls' Camp, you know which one it is: "Rise and shine and give God His glory, glory!")

So, Monday was a lot of fun, but I saved the really fun stuff for today's activities. Today we:

Decorated small paper bags with arks and foam animals.

Then we colored Noah's Ark themed sugar cookies with food coloring pens to fill said bags.

The kids really enjoyed this activity and couldn't wait to go home and show their moms and then eat their cookies.

After the craft project was over, we played a couple rounds of Animal Bingo (sorry, no pictures; wasn't thinking) then proceeded to play some Elephant Soccer, where the players push a ball around with just their noses. Yes, we did this on Monday, but the kids had so much fun that I decided we'd play it again today. I paired the kids into teams and had them do a relay race this time. We did it three times so that each kid was paired with everyone once. It was a blast!
Then we headed outside and played Animal Tag for a while (when "it" tags someone, they say an animal and the tagged person has to act like that animal until one of the free kids runs under their legs; more or less a variation of Freeze Tag).
Alas, the kids got hot and worn out pretty quickly (they were pretty worn out from Elephant Soccer in the first place), so we headed back inside, got a drink and tried to decide what to do for the next fifteen minutes until it was time to go home. The kids ended up making up a game called "Jaguars and Butterflies." It went like this: there were three girls and they just wanted to flit around the house like butterflies. Gavin wasn't really into that. He wanted to be a jaguar. Can you blame him? The girls decided that he was supposed to chase them. So, in a way it ended up still being kind of like Animal Tag.

Then Akiko switched sides and became and jaguar, too.

So, I think it was a pretty successful activity. The kids seemed to enjoy themselves and I enjoyed teaching and watching them.

While we were doing our thing today, Moses had the opportunity to go over to Haley's house with the other little kids where they got to go on a pirate treasure hunt, make a pirate flag and other pirate and princess activities. Because I was not the host of that activity, I cannot elaborate what went on, partly due to Moses' limited vocabulary and ability to tell me all that happened, but he did have fun, which really is what our summer camp/playgroup is all about.

I was going to host the little ones next week, with the same animal theme, but because my due date draws ever nearer and my back has been killing me lately, my day with the little ones has been traded until the end of July, at which time I will post those activities. Stay tuned....

Mokiko the Sandwich

I'd like to introduce to you a dear member of our little family. His name is Mokiko and he is a talking sandwich. I'm not sure how long Mokiko has been part of our family, but it's been about a year at least. He is the spawn of Joseph's imagination.


Here's the background story: Joseph is in charge of the bedtime routine these days and he always makes up silly stories that involve the kids going on some sort of adventure with an imaginary companion. Mokiko is often (ok, always) one of those companions. His inspiration may or may not be from the scene from "Muppets From Space" where Gonzo communicates with his alien kin via a sandwich. (Either way, the kids get really excited that Mokiko is in a movie whenever they watch it).

Ever since Mokiko came to be, Joseph has just used his hand to illustrate Mokiko talking. When the story was over and it was time to say goodnight, Akiko would often want to cuddle with Mokiko (aka. Joseph's arm) to sleep with. Of course, with her being on the top bunk and Joseph needing to sleep in his own bed with me, this was not possible and eventually he'd have to pull away from a disappointed Akiko.

I had known for a long time that Mokiko needed to be made into a puppet; something physical that could be left with Akiko to cuddle with at night. I kept my eye out for craft ideas that would help me bring him to pass.

Well, one day, after my finals were over, I was getting a hankering to crochet something because it had been a really long time and thought that maybe I should try to find some patterns for amigurumi food that I could add to the kids kitchen playset (I've done strawberries for them and made cupcakes and cookies for my niece). I Googled for ideas and came across some cute sandwiches. It finally dawned on me (seriously, it never occurred to me until then) that Mokiko needed to be crocheted into a puppet. I couldn't find any patterns that fit my needs so I decided that he was going to have to be improvised.

Now, it's important to note that while I consider myself a really good knitter and crocheter and I often get compliments for my work, I never improvise. And this is after being a fairly avid yarn worker for well over ten years. All my work is always from a pattern. I have always known, however, that I could improvise if the need be. Mokiko served that need.

I based my idea for his pattern off of a cartoon that Joseph had drawn of Mokiko a long, long time ago when he made a small comic for the kids. I also consulted heavily with Joseph about how Mokiko ought to look. Everything about Mokiko is improvised. I did not buy any yarn, but used what I already had on hand (in fact, his eyes are stuffed with extra yarn because I was too lazy to dig for my fiber fill).


So, Mokiko turned out to be a bologna sandwich, with swiss cheese, pickle, tomato and lettuce, between two conjoined slices of bread. Cute, huh? I'm really proud of him. Akiko is excited that she gets to sleep with him. Everything is sewn in with invisible thread except for the spear pickle tongue. "Why," you ask? Because in the stories, Mokiko often spits out his pickles at the bad guys in order to make them laugh and apologize. Of course this means that the pickle often gets misplaced in real life, but if it actually gets lost, it really won't be that big a deal for me to make a new one.

Mokiko was really fun to make and it only took about three days. I have a happy daughter and husband because of him. To top it off, I know now that I have some awesome improv crochet skills. Oh, and if it wasn't obvious, Mokiko's name is a cross between Akiko and Moses.

Amazing Akiko

So, those of you who have actually had the pleasure of meeting my daughter already know how truly amazing she actually is, but in case you don't, let me share a couple stories about her and let you decide. I'm going to start out with what happened just yesterday and then tell another story from a couple years ago.
Yesterday was supposed to be a simple relaxing day. All I had on my agenda was laundry, pay a couple bills and research activities and games for our playgroup/summer camp (more on that next week after it happens). Unfortunately, I've been getting sciatic nerve pain in my lower back because of the pregnancy and yesterday's pain was particularly bad, in fact, the worst pain I've experienced so far. Despite the pain, I still had to do laundry because I'd fallen behind.

Akiko and Moses had been playing with each other really well all day, making each other giggle and chasing each other around and playing with their toys. It's worth mentioning that they didn't want to turn the tv on once during the course of the day and I could not be more happy or proud of them for that. These kids get along amazingly well and just absolutely adore each other.

Well, despite being busy having fun with her brother, Akiko apparently noticed me grimacing a lot with the pain and offered to help me with the laundry. Now, the kids really love helping me with the laundry anyway. They love to help load the washer and transfer to the dryer (we get an assembly line going with that one) and I let them climb up so they can push the buttons to start the appliances. They also love nearly climbing into the dryer to get all the clothes out and into the basket, which has been really handy since it's getting really hard for me to bend over to do it myself.

Well, we got the dry clothes into the basket and Akiko actually told me not to lift the basket and that she was going to carry the basket into my bedroom so we could sort the clothes and put them away. Obviously, it was too heavy for her to lift, so what I had her do instead, was simply push it along the floor to the bedroom (we live in a single story ranch, so we don't have to contend with any stairs). That was no hard feat for her since she pushes Moses around in the basket like that all the time anyway.

That's not the amazing part though. After I sorted the laundry I needed to sit down and rest for a bit before folding and putting away. So there I sat, catching my breath and without me saying a word, Akiko started folding her own clothes (as perfectly as any five year old could) and organizing them into the piles that would be transferred to her drawers. When I mentioned it to her and thanked her she simply said, "You just rest, Mommy. I'll put away my clothes."

Of course, tears started welling up in my eyes, partly because of the hormones, but mostly because she makes me so proud. Over the course of the entire day, she also helped me cook lunch and dinner, cleared toys out of the living room the first time I asked, got snacks and chocolate milk for Moses (with my approval), read books to Moses, and any time she prayed at mealtime, she asked that my back would stopped hurting so much.

After dinner, I put the kids in the bath and hoped that they would be content in there until Joseph got home (it was one of those late days that he couldn't help). I needed the rest and and knew I wouldn't be able to bend over to wash the kids off and lift them up and out when they were done, so all I could do was hope that it was going to be a long playful bath.Then, out of nowhere, with all the luck in the world, my asthma flared up. I kept thinking, "Seriously?" While the day had been pretty stressful for me, the kids were so good and happy, but I knew they were tired by that point and prone to start getting grumpy. Lucky for me, there was only one incident in the tub that I had to intervene with and I didn't even have to get up for it.

I heard a splash, Akiko started crying, another splash, and Moses started crying. I asked what happened (while thinking, "Oh, brother!"). Moses threw a toy at Akiko and she retaliated by doing the same. I keep trying to tell her that that's not how to solve conflict, but I know she will eventually learn. Anyway, I couldn't really get up to go talk to them, so I simply said, "Kids, please stop fighting. I promised your dad he'd have happy kids when he got home from work and he'll be home really soon." (Joseph and I IM while he's on the train, so I knew he was only ten minutes away). Immediately, Akiko stopped crying and said, "Quick, Moses! Daddy's going to be home soon so we have to be happy!" Then I heard them both start laughing. Well, Joseph got home to happy kids and a completely incapacitated, but content wife and the kids ended up in the tub for another hour after that (I think it ended up being nearly two hours they were in there).

So, while yesterday was really hard on me physically, I was able to hang in there mentally, which really counts for something. I dislike the pregnant mood swings, but when I have happy and helpful kids they really help offset that. I also have an amazing husband who is willing to help me out with anything when I just can't get up to do it myself. I am so blessed.

So, there's the story of my amazing Akiko with the supporting roles of my equally awesome husband and son. Really though, Akiko gets a lot of credit for my sanity yesterday. She saw a need and did anything within her means to help. She was a great example of love and service. It's a part of who she is, who she has always been and will continue to be. And that's the segue to my next story about my amazing Akiko.

Way back at the end of September 2007, I was 36 weeks pregnant with Moses when I broke my ankle at a rest stop in Beaver, UT. While that's a funny story in itself, I'm not going to tell it here just yet.

A week after I broke my ankle was General Conference. Joseph had stayed and worked from home all week so he could help take care of Akiko and me. I knew Joseph really wanted to go to Priesthood session, but was nervous about leaving me alone with Akiko (who was only 2.5 at the time) while he was gone because I was still completely bedridden. I assured him that we would be okay because it he was only going to be gone for two hours. He eventually agreed, set up a movie and a snack for Akiko to keep her occupied if the need be, and left.

Well, Akiko laid in bed with me and I read her a couple books, but after a little while my pain medicine started working and I got really drowsy and could go no further. I told Akiko that I needed to rest and she said, "Okay." Now it's important to note that Akiko loved reading books and when she didn't want to quit, she would throw a tantrum (as anyone with a 2.5 year old would know). I knew she wanted to keep reading and braced myself, but she simply let it be. I told her that Daddy had set up a movie for her to watch and that she was welcome to go do that, so off she went. However, before she left me in the room alone, she covered me with my blanket, turned off the light, and closed the door. How thoughtful is that? She was 2.5!

Well, I passed out and know not for how long it was. When I came to, I had only been laying there in the dark for about five minutes when the door opened. I automatically thought it was Joseph, back from Priesthood session, but was surprised to see my little Akiko standing there with a package of Ritz crackers in her hand. I said "Hey" to her and she replied with, "Oh, Mommy. You're awake. I brought you something to eat." She and I spent the next fifteen minutes or so sharing a pack of crackers until Joseph got home.

I seriously do not think there are words in the world that can even come close to describing the love I have for this little girl. She is not perfect. She can be stubborn and strong-willed and there's no denying that she's quite spoiled. But all in all, she is a wonderful daughter, granddaughter, sister, niece and cousin. She loves to learn and in return, teaches her brother about all she knows about the world (she was telling him the other day about how we lose teeth, and how the Tooth Fairy comes and helps us grow new ones). She's spiritual, loves church, loves hearing stories about Jesus, loves memorizing new scriptures and saying prayers. Her prayers are getting more sophisticated to the point that she's not just repeating the same words in every prayer, but asks for blessings and comfort for people she knows need it. She's perceptive to the needs of others and will help them when she can. I am so grateful for this beautiful girl and the wonderful spirit she brings into our home. She's such a good example to me.

I love you to the end of the universe and back, Akiko!!

Attempt Number Two

Technically, I jumped on the blogger bandwagon a couple years ago, and I made a couple posts, but I didn't really have anything on my mind to post and I kept forgetting my login and such. I'm sure I can find the link to the old blog (<--- oh, look, there it is!), just so you can see what life was like for us a few years ago. I think it covered mostly what happened when we lived on Maui and right after that, when our son was born.

So, what makes this attempt any different? I'm still new at this, so things may change a bit before I settle on anything. I don't even know who is going to be interested enough to read this. And while I've included my husband's name in the link, I doubt he'll be making many, if any, contributions to the site.

I suppose most of the posts will have to do with our family and our adventures, especially since I'm a stay-at-home mom and my family is pretty much central to my existence. I may have some posts that are political or religious in nature simply because that's what will be on my mind. That is, indeed, why I named my blog "Ramblings." So, there's the disclaimer.

Oh, another disclaimer: our camera grew old and died a couple weeks ago when we were visiting family on Maui, so until we get a new one, any pictures posted will not necessarily be old, but they definitely won't be the latest.

So, why start now and what should I write about first? Well, I'll answer the first part of the question and hopefully the second part will come to me. I decided to start fresh, with a new blog, rather than continue the old one for a few reasons. I've already stated 1): I can't remember the login. 2): I'm taking a break from my higher education for a bit (again, ugh!). The semester ended last month and I'm suddenly faced with a bunch of free time. 3): We're having a baby in about four weeks (due July 13, this is my official internet announcement for those outside the family and the reason I'm taking a break from school) and I'm sure my family will want updates on how the family is doing because... 4): We live all alone in California while the rest of our family lives in Utah and Maui (along with the small Portland, OR chapter). Those aren't all the reasons, but they're the main ones.

Now, onto the second part...

Hmm... Well, today's inspiration was actually, my little man, Moses. Here's a pretty recent picture of him with his Uncle Jakey at Auntie Emma's wedding on Maui this last May. As you can see, the little guy is really, really cuddly. He's two and a half years old now and he is just an awesome bundle of amazingness. Well, just about every morning, after I wake up, but haven't quite got the umph! to get out of bed (it's really hard to do at 35.5 weeks pregnant), Moses will usually stagger into my bedroom and climb into bed with me to "bug bug" (tr: snuggle bug). I've got to say, that is one of my favorite parts about the day and also about being a mom.

Akiko, also did that when she was around the same age, and sometimes still does. In fact, when Akiko was two, we then lived at the Shores of Maui and we had pergo (sp?) flooring. Her bedroom was at the other end of the apartment from ours, so every morning, Joseph and I literally heard the "pitter-patter" of her little feet as she came across the apartment to climb into bed with us. I love those mornings when I get to cuddle with one or both of my kids first thing. Joseph's usually up and sometimes already gone for work, so there's plenty of room.

There are tons of reasons I love being a mom and they'll get posted one by one, but there you have my inspiration for today's post.

My goal is to do one post a week. Of course, we'll have to see how that pans out about a month from now, but I have had a lot on my mind lately that I don't mind sharing with the world. Until, next time...