Curiosity Stops The Crying...

Over the last month or so Ebi-kun has had an annoying cough, it isn't a deep chesty cough, he sounds like he is continuously cleaning his throat. So we have been going to the doctor and trying out various medications to figure out what it is. Last week I had to take him everyday to go on the nebuliser and the end of the week he ended up having a steroid IV. 

The poor kid has been going to school but hasn't been sleeping well so he was exhausted, the IV does appear to be working, they also took blood to run tests to see if anything showed up. 

We went back yesterday, my husband was back from Germany so we all went. family outing to the doctors, who-hoo. The blood tests didn't show anything odd so the doc decided to give him another IV and some more syrup and tablets. Now, don't be alarmed at this photo, this is Ebi-kun doing his 'I am really poorly' face, I should get him on the TV, little actor! 

I have to say, he is the perfect patient. Didn't even flinch when the nurse took blood and put the IV in, watched everything she was doing and even asked her questions. It reminded me of when he broke his arm, as soon as we went in to get an x-ray, he stopped crying and started asking the technician loads of questions about the x-ray machine. The poor technician was completely bemused!

So, now we wait and see. He has been sleeping better the last couple of nights, maybe the cooler weather has helped too. One funny thing that did happen at the clinic, the doc speaks a bit of English, I always make sure I speak slowly and try to use Japanese if I can. Yesterday, my husband was with us and the doc suddenly came out with perfect English, proper long sentences, not basic sentences and odd words like he had been using all week, couldn't believe it! I still don't understand why he wasn't talking to us in Japanese, very amusing.

***Still time to enter Pin It To Win It and Blog It To Win It***

Inspiration Sunday - With Joanna Byrne

When I started this business course a few months ago, I never dreamt that I would be able to have real life meetings with some of my fellow students. Not only that, they are all lovely too, not a nut-job between them! (not including myself) So, this week we have moved from NY to Tokyo (via Ireland), I'd like you to met a fellow mastermind, Joanna...

Can you tell us a bit about yourself 

Yes! I'm and Irish woman, living in Tokyo. I grew up in Ireland, we moved around a little while I was growing up, so I got to spend a few years in a few different parts of the country - mostly west of the Shannon though, so I must admit, that is where my heart is :) I lived and worked in Dublin for about 9 years before coming to Tokyo. I worked in Senior Management in the Higher Education industry and loved it. Teaching and learning have always been passions of mine. In addition to keeping myself busy with courses over the years, I always had a finger in some training or teaching pie. I love facilitating workshops or classes, and helping people learn new skills. There is nothing more satisfying than seeing a face light up when something clicks with them. As I said, my background is in management too, and was always interested in learning new styles. I trained as a Coach in 2008 to primarily use it in management, but I also kept a small private practice. It's a fantastic tool, both in the management setting and in the personal development setting. 

So, how long have you been in Japan and what bought you to these shores?

I came to Japan in March of this year. I left my job, my friends and family and followed my heart to Tokyo. Himself had been here a while, and we decided to take a leap of faith and move us both here. So far so good! 

What do you like the most about living here?

Convenience! It's an odd one, you might think... but everything is so well set up here. Trains nearly always run on time, it's super easy to get around, there is always a store open close-by no matter what time of day or night, everything is packaged in a super easy to open wrapper and comes complete with straw/chopsticks/spoon or whatever other utensil you might require. The Japanese have convenience down to a T!

Anything you don’t like?

There are a lot of people in Tokyo so space is at a premium. Coming from Ireland, where there is lots of space, and greenery, I find that those are some of the things I miss most. Mind you, conveniently, there are lots of beautiful mountain areas within an hour of Tokyo by train, so I can get my fix when I need it. 

Can you tell us more about your job, what exactly do you do?

I'm a fully accredited Life & Business Coach. I help people with many issues relating to change, success, decision-making and confidence to name a few, whether thats in their professional or their personal lives. I've been doing it since 2008, using it both in my management roles and in private practice. I recently got myself certified in Confidence Coaching, as I found it was something that clients came back to time and time again. Confidence and self-belief are foundation blocks for success in so many aspects of our lives! Since moving to Tokyo, I have put my coaching practice online, and work with clients over Skype. I offer one-time intensives or longer coaching contracts. 

Deciding to take that leap of faith for love was a turning point in my life. I had a successful career in management, but always wanted to do more of the one-to-one coaching work. I love it! Moving to Tokyo provided me with an opportunity to take my part-time practice and grow it online. 

So, who do you usually work with? Who are your usual clients?

Oh that's a big question :) There are no 'usual cleints' in this work! Everyone is unique. Very often, however, I find my clients are those who are dealing with a change in their life, whether that is personal or professional, and are looking for coaching support through that change. For example, I have had clients who have just been promoted and engage in coaching to help them step up, and also clients who want help fighting off the negative self-talk and replacing it with a more confident support thought process. 

And do you do this in person or online or over the phone? How does it all work?

Technology is amazing these days! It's super easy to set up. We can do it via Skype or on the phone, whichever works best for the client. We can both be anywhere in the world and still 'meet' for a powerful coaching session. 

Finally, the special question from Ebi-kun... What is you favourite food in Japan and what is your favourite food from home?

Grrrreat question! I love Okonomiyaki. That stuff is the business! Mmnn... As for Ireland, a good plate of bacon and cabbage is my favourite - yummy!

Thank you Joanna, if you want to know more, you can ask her a question here or go and check out her website etc.

Website: joanna byrne coaching
Facebook: The Coaching Spring
Twitter: joannambyrne

How to make a thunderstorm in your kitchen

And it's not as dangerous as it sounds! It is actually an experiment to see how the warm and cold fronts interact. We have been having some cracking thunderstorms recently so this was a great little experiment to do.

I have written it out as a PDF (below) for you print out. It has the full instructions and I also included a section so you (the child) can record what happens.

Fill a clear container about 2/3 full with lukewarm water. let it sit for a minute or two. Then add a blue ice-cube at one end of the container and a few drops of red food colour at the other end. Watch what happens.

The blue water should sink, pushing the red water up.

Looking from the side of the box gives a better view, the purple, mixed water is where the thunderstorm would take place, the purple shows the unstable air. It is a pretty neat experiment because trying to explain this concept to a child is quite difficult, with the water they can see exactly how the air moves. When you do this though, explain that there is not going to be big bangs and flashes of lightning!

Download the PDF HERE, I have more of these experiments so I will share them as we do them.

***UPDATE*** the full booklet of experiments can be downloaded over on MOC HERE.
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The Secret Cafe...

Where we live really isn't very exciting. We have a small shopping centre with a supermarket, Daiso and a few other smaller shops and that is about it. We have rice paddies, new housing estates, a few factories and old farm houses.

What we do have are a couple of really nice cafes, so I thought I would take you to one today...

Cafe Neh is on a small road and it's not really that obvious it is a cafe at all. You park around the side and then have to follow a small winding path which brings you out at the cafe. The first time I went, I took my bike up this path then convinced myself I was at someones house and did a runner!

Inside they have a small gallery area where they often have handmade goods for sale, they also have a wood burning stove so it is nice and cozy in the winter too. The food is what my husband would describe as 'ladies lunches', not the type of place to go if you are looking to fill up your bloke with a hearty meal, delicious all the same.

On my latest visit, I discovered that they have a new path which takes you to a yurt where they exhibit goods as well, sadly it wasn't open, but do not fear, I will return.

And there is also the farmhouse, this has a couple of tatami rooms which they open to customers if the main part of the cafe is too busy and they often have art and crafts on show or for sale here too.

Sitting out in the autumn is lovely but the heat is just too much at the moment, give it another month or two! The cafe is a real gem and one of my favourite places just to hang out. When I lived in Jerusalem I had several favorite haunts but in Japan they seem to be few and far between. Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of lovely cafes but few that have the right 'atmosphere'.

Do you have a favourite 'haunt', what makes it so special? Share in the comments below.

What I am in love with right now...

My new bag! I made one of these monk style bags a few years ago and sadly the fabric had all started to fray and I had a pen leaking disaster so I thought it was about time I made a new one. It actually took me longer to decide which fabric to use than it did to make it!

It is roughly based on the pattern from the Purl Bee but, I made the strap longer. The way they do the pocket is a right faff so I cut mine the same width as the centre section, hemmed the top, pressed the bottom edge under and sewed it to the centre section. The inside has the same pocket too but I also sewed a vertical line so it would make 2 smaller pockets. When you construct the bag the edges of the pockets are caught in the same seam as the centre sections, so much easier!

The main fabric is by Echino, the pocket is by Auntie Cookie, I only have scraps of it left now :o( and the inside is red polka dot canvas. Now I can happily leave the house again - it is a bit embarrassing when people know that you sew and the bag you are carrying is falling apart!

It was a 3 day holiday weekend here but other than bag making and weather experiments we haven't done anything exciting. Ebi-kun still has a cough and it is wearing him down, back to the doc we go today. I had a dodgy stomach over the weekend and daddy Ebi was away, not much fun all round.

Having a new bag makes up for it!

I am most definitely a across the chest bag carrying type of gal, shoulder bags drive me nuts because they always fall off my shoulder and handbags, you know, ones you have to actually carry in your hand, don't get me started on those!

What kind of bag person are you? Do you have a prefer style or make?

Two Ways To Win...

I know not everyone has the spare money to sign up for the My Organized Chaos e-course so I wanted to offer a way for a couple of people to join for free! First up is blog it to win it, you do need to be a blogger to enter this one the other is pin it to win it all you need to that is a Pinterest account and some imagination!

Pop over to My Organized Chaos blog and have a read of the T&C....

blog it to win it                           pin it to win it

Inspirational Sunday with Alethea Cheng Fitzpatrick

IS BACK!

As you know, I have been doing a business course and I have been meeting some amazing women doing some amazing things. So Inspiration Sunday is back!

This week I want to introduce you to Alethea Cheng Fitzpatrick...

Can you tell us a bit about yourself (name, location, job)

My name is Alethea Cheng Fitzpatrick. I'm a family photographer and photography coach for parents and I'm on a mission to help parents more fully experience the precious fleeting moments of their children's lives through photography. I'm also an entrepreneur, mom of two adorable if rambunctious boys, Liam (aged 3.5 years) and Jack (9 months) and a former architect and interior designer.  Born in the UK, I live in Brooklyn, New York.

How did you go from being an architect and interior designer to being a child photographer?

I worked as an architect and interior designer in NYC for over 12 years, but after having Liam, and going crazy taking photos of him, I decided not to go back to my office job and to instead start my own business as a family photographer. It was not something I had thought about or planned for at all prior to becoming a mom, but I wanted to  have the flexibility to spend some time at home with Liam and to do something that would build on my experience as a mom rather than be in conflict with it.

Can you tell us more about your photography job?

As a family photographer, I start out talking with parents about what they most want to remember about this time in their family's life, and what is most important to them about their photo session.  We'll come up with ideas for the location, time of day, outfits, and how we'll approach the session.  I like to learn a bit about the family as well - the personalities of the kids, and the things they enjoy doing, and that the family enjoys doing together.  

My photo sessions are always very natural and relaxed, and my goal is that not only do we get great photos, but that everyone has a good time as well. After the session, I always show my clients their images live, either in person or online so I can help them put their portrait order together. Otherwise it can be really overwhelming to select images and decide what to do with them!

You are also a mom to two little ones, what does a typical day look like for you?

The day starts early - I have two little alarm clocks so the only unknown is which one will wake up first! Sometimes my husband can join us for breakfast but other days he is already off to work before they wake up. Then there's either a mad rush or the endless passing of time before preschool drop-off!  If we have extra time to fill, we love to stop by the playground before preschool.  Other days we barely make it there on time!  After I drop Liam off, I get Jack home for his nap, and then some days I have a sitter come in while I work. Other days I get to hang out with Jack and we might head to the park or playground before lunch and another nap. 

We pick Liam up from preschool at 4pm and inevitably he and his friends decide which playground they want to go to and inform us parents of the decision. The playground is always a little crazy after school, but much fun is had by all before heading home for dinner and my husband's much anticipated arrival home before bedtime

Not only do you take photos you also teach parents how to take their own photos of their kids, how did this all come around?

As a mom, even as I was starting my family photography business, I was struggling to keep up with the massive number of photos that I was taking, and as I worked on getting it under control, I realized that most other parents were going through the same thing - they were completely overwhelmed and their thousands of photos were gathering dust on their hard drive. 

And as a professional photographer, I started noticing how many parents had fancy DSLR cameras that they probably purchased when their first child was born that they weren't taking advantage of at all because they hadn't learned how to use their camera. As I started meeting and talking to more and more parents, I realized that many of them loved photographing their kids but were frustrated with the results, and I could see how some simple strategies and tips could make a huge difference in their enjoyment not just of photography but of parenting. I wanted parents to experience the same joy and delight that I did in photographing my child!

So, is your course teaching parents how to be a professional photographer?

No, absolutely not!  My workshop is about teaching parents how to get more enjoyment out of photographing their kids - and to take way better photos too. It draws heavily on my experience as a mom photographing my own kids and I make sure what I teach is tailored to the joys and realities of being a parent. It's not the same as training a professional photographer. It's a very different approach. 

Even though I do teach some of the same things as a traditional photography class such as composition, lighting, the exposure triangle etc., I make sure it is specifically applicable to parents, with an emphasis on drawing on your emotions as a parent, and on creating great experiences and documenting memories for yourself, your children and generations to come.

I also talk about organizing and backing up your photos, editing, and sharing, whether it's online, on the walls of your home or in albums. One of the things I love to do is use my interior design background to help parents design a portrait wall gallery using their own photos - many parents are overwhelmed with the thought of selecting the photos and figuring out the size and configuration so I break it down into easy steps.

Do you have a funny photography moment you can share?

One of the reasons my photo tips are so mom-friendly is because I AM a mom. I recently wrote a blog post with tips on back-to-school photos, and I talked about how it's great to take photos not just at drop-off on the very first day, but on the day before, the morning of, and around the general time of back-to-school. Good thing too, because of course, the very next day, on Liam's first day at preschool this year, he had a meltdown that started in our living room and didn't stop until about two seconds before he walked into the classroom. This literally hadn't happened since, well, since last year's back-to-school!  So needless to say, I wasn't able to take a back-to-school photo in the literal sense. It wasn't funny at the time, but if you can't laugh about these things after the fact, you'd go crazy!

Can you tell us what readers can do to find out more about your workshop?

I'm offering a FREE live online workshop called Quickstart your Photosanity next Tuesday September 18th at 9pm EDT. During this workshop, I'll be giving participants tips and strategies they can use right away (including some of my best material yet!) as well as offering a preview to The Photosanity Workshop, my twelve week online workshop. Signups for the paid workshop will open right after the call. I would love to have your readers join me on this call - they can sign up here 

Finally, the special question from Ebi-kun...  What is you favourite food?

Oh my goodness, where do I even start?!  It's very hard for me to pick one favorite food but I would probably have to say chocolate. In fact Liam seems to have inherited this preference, recently declaring that a food is not a "treat" if it doesn't contain chocolate!

Website: nestingNYC and Photosanity

Facebook: http://facebook.com/nestingNYC and http://facebook.com/photosanity

Twitter: http://twitter.com/nestingNYC

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/aletheafitz

Cupcake Mania Reaches Japan...

Yes, I know, red velvet cupcakes are so... last year! And the whole cupcake craze never really took off here. So, I have never tried one and all the recipes I had seen used some ingredient or another that I couldn't get here... until now! I belong to a Facebook group called Japan Friendly Recipes, where we share recipes and cooking ideas specifically for living in Japan, workarounds and cheats or alternatives to traditional recipes where the ingredients are not easily available.

One of the members posted this recipe and shared that you can make buttermilk by adding a tbsp of vinegar to regular milk, who knew? I didn't.

I didn't add as much food colouring as the recipe states, I halved the recipe to make 12 cupcakes and added about 1/3 of a tsp of Wilton food gel, added it to the cocoa with a bit of the water to make the paste but followed the rest of the recipe.

Took a bit longer than usual to make but Ebi-kun helped and the texture of the cake is different to my usual cupcakes. Our final verdict is 9/10.

And look, the cupcakes match my plate!

Lots of creepy crawlies...

Yesterday, Ebi-kun and I went outside to play for a bit after school. I noticed that our next door neighbours cherry blossom tree was looking a bit shabby, on closer inspection I discovered these...

The tree is dripping with hairy caterpillars. I am very cautious about these little critters after a friend had some in her garden, the hairs got into the laundry and she ended up having to get medicine from the doctor to help with rash that resulted from wearing the clothes that the hairs had gotten on to.

I have never seen so many caterpillars in one place, I am both in awe and revolted at the same time! We decide to catch a couple - using a long stick and a bug box, so we could investigate further. After much research we think that they are モンクロシャチホコ. I have no idea what that is in English but it is a type of moth.

Funny how butterflies are considered cuter than moths, we were hoping they were some kind of pretty butterfly, oh well!

How to separate an egg with a PET bottle...

I have to thank gaijinwife for this idea. After she posted a video of her son doing it on Facebook, Ebi-kun decided he wanted a go. Make sure you wash out the bottle well before you try it and you want to use a bottle that you can squeeze and it will pop back into shape when you release the pressure. Some of the PET bottles these days are crushable so they don't work very well.

The video is silly, if you have a 7 year old boy they will probably be amused! enjoy.

Quick reminder that the Early Bird offer only last for a short time, if you want to grab a bargain, sign up quick. Click the button!