Hanging out, eating pizza

As we were getting ready to go to Jidokan (the community center), my phone rang.  It was another mom I had met recently at Jidokan.  She was calling to invite us to her house for an impromptu party to celebrate Halloween.  This very nice woman befriended me and has been so nice to introduce me to other moms in her group of friends.  All of our kids are about the same age.  Some have 2 kids, others 3.  I'm the only one with a single child.  All 5 mothers have already given me great tips on life in Hikarigaoka and several have told me about events to attend with my son.

After quickly conferring with my son, we decided to skip going to Jidokan and go to her house for the party instead.  I plugged her address into my phone and we hopped on my bike.  I'm not quite talented enough to ride single handed with a kid on the back just yet, so I tried to balance my phone in the basket.  It was not very secure and I had to stop several times to readjust it so I could see the screen.  Only a couple missed turns, like overshooting the exit from the park, and we made it.  By the time we got there, my son was overcome with excitement.  He knew all the kids that would be there and there would be toys.  Could he ask for anything more?  Oh, candy.  We had that covered, too.

We were the last family to arrive, as we had come the furthest.  The kids were already playing in the other room and my son quickly ran to play with them.  The apartment was warm and welcoming, but very small - typical for a Japanese apartment.  It consisted of a dining room with a table pushed against a wall and 6 chairs squeezed around it; a tiny galley kitchen with less than 3 feet of usable counter space; 1 bedroom: 1 family room with a small couch and a TV; and a tatami room that was being used as a play room.  I would guess it was less than 600 square feet for the family of 4. 

The kids were very focused on playing, and the moms were very focused on talking.  It was so great just sitting around and chatting about a variety of things.  I probably only understood about 1/3 of what was being discussed, but I didn't care.  After a short while, we called the kids to have a little snack - rice and seaweed.  They all quickly gobbled it up and then resumed their playing.  The moms then played a quick game of jan ken pon (rock paper scissors).  The loser had to go buy lunch for everyone (we were splitting the cost, but they had to run the errand).  Luckily I was a winner.  The mom popped out and purchased 2 pizzas and a large tray of karrage (fried chicken pieces). 

I haven't had "authentic Japanese pizza" in years.  Japanese pizza is known for epic toppings like squid, corn, seaweed, mayonnaise, and more very unique toppings.  Today I got to try a new one - teriyaki mochi meat!  Mochi is rice that is pounded into a paste and shaped into a desired shape.  It is sticky and tastes like, well, rice!  I like it toasted, so I thought it was pretty tasty on the pizza.  I do rather enjoy Japanese pizza, even if every time I eat it I think a child was allowed to pick the toppings and decided to play a joke on everyone.  But it all turns out in the form of this interesting, unique experience that I'd never consider ever creating by myself.

Photo curtesy of Pizza-La.co.jp

The kids joined us once again for lunch.  They ate super quick once again, as playing was top priority.  After a bit more talking it was time to wrap things up.  We all stood up and started cleaning up.  One person gathered all the garbage, 2 moms helped the kids put away toys (which they all helped with), 2 moms washed dishes, and the other mom got all the kids through bathroom duties (so they would be ready for the ride home). 

And just like that, our little Halloween party was over.  The kids all exchanged little goody bags and waved goodbye.  It was such a fun time.  I can't wait to do it again.

Sea Lions, and Treats, and Visas! Oh my!

I had an appointment in downtown Tokyo this afternoon, so I ventured out of Hikarigaoka for the first time in over two weeks.  Instead of just going to the appointment, I decided to make a day of it. 

After doing a bit of research, I discovered my son could go trick-or-treating at the mall that Sunshine Aquarium is located.  I normally save trick-or-treating for a one time (on Halloween) event to limit the amount of candy acquired, but Halloween isn't really celebrated by children in Japan.  Halloween is a big commercial holiday - with tons of decorations available for sale in stores and even costumes and Halloween merchandise to be purchased.  Holidays in general seem to have a big build up with everything decorated, special themed pastries/goodies, and reminders everywhere you look.  But when the holiday comes around, it falls flat because the "reason for the season" isn't there.  For Halloween, there are parties for adults, but no trick-or-treating or pumpkin patches or corn mazes or haunted houses (well, there are a few haunted houses in theme parks, but that's it).  For Christmas, it's even more of a divide.  More on that to come.

So, the trick-or-treating activity I found would have to do.  My son donned his favorite fairy costume and we headed out to Sunshine City.  I paid ¥200 ($1.75) for my son to build a little box to collect candy in.  We were then given a map of participating stores where he could trick-or-treat.  He was so excited to be able to collect candy in his little monster box.  There were 15 stores participating, which gave him enough of a thrill and not too much for me to worry about his candy intake.  I feel like I should get major mom points for this!  It was hard to find.

Once he was done trick-or-treating, we headed upstairs to Sunshine Aquarium.  We really are getting our moneys worth with this annual pass!  The aquarium was decorated for Halloween.  My son was thrilled to see the sea lions perform using a yoga ball with a pumpkin face on it and silly masks for their tricks.  There were other decorations and fun throughout the rest of the aquarium, including Halloween lights being projected onto the jellyfish!

After a couple hours at the aquarium, it was time to head off to my appointment.  We hopped onto the train (for the first time in weeks!  We've been taking the bus or bike everywhere!) and rode a few stops to the lawyer's office.  I had received a notice that my COE (certificate of eligibility) had arrived.  I needed to go into the office to sign a few documents and surrender my passport.  Anytime you have to surrender your passport, it is a scary thing.  You are taught to never, NEVER, let anyone take your passport while you're in a foreign country (or any time, frankly), but you have to when they need to affix a visa in it.  I could have done it all via mail, but that just made me too uncomfortable.  At any rate, this means that I am just days (possibly up to two weeks) away from obtaining my spouse visa, meaning I can legally stay beyond the three months allowed on a visitor's visa.  A spouse visa is good for three years.  Getting this visa also means that I can leave the country and come back as much as I want during those three years.  Obtaining this will be a big cause for celebration for my family.*

*Please note that we are doing things a bit backwards in regards to my visa due to timing and other constraints.  All is on the up and up, but it is just not the "normal" procedure.

Once we finished at the lawyer's office, it was time for pie.  There is a pie shop, Pie Holic, that we've passed numerous times in Roppongi, and since we were there I decided today was the day to try it.  All the pies were mini pies.  There were over 20 flavors to choose from savory to sweet.  My son shocked the clerks by telling them he wanted the matcha pie (green tea flavor) while I wanted the strawberry pie.  They were both fantastic.  The crusts were thick, but flaky, and the fillings silky and full of flavor.  It was a great treat to wrap up a sugar-filled day.

Raining electronics

Rain, rain, rain.  It was the theme of today.  It rained all day.  Sometimes lightly.  Other times heavy.  The clouds opened up and poured today.  Another typhoon is expected to arrive at midnight. 

But a little (or a lot) of rain never stopped us.  My son and I went for a walk today in search of a festival.  We passed by several local farms/gardens that were lush and green.  The cabbages, broccoli, onions, and carrots were happily drinking up the rain.  We even saw some kiwis growing on a tree.  You don't see a lot of kiwis in Seattle, so I always feel a bit of a thrill when I spot them growing around here.  But to be fully transparent, seeing almost any food growing gets me excited - especially on a small scale.  When you see someone's garden, it is like looking into their heart.  You must share love and caring in order to be successful at growing food and flowers.  Without tending, things would go haywire.  I find the saying "you reap what you sow" to be very true.

We followed the GPS to the location of the festival, but didn't see the school where we were supposed to be.  So, I asked a woman walking past and she kindly walked us to the entrance.  It was around the block.

The festival was more like 7 tents, each selling something.  It wasn't really a festival.  But we bought some yakisoba and (what I assume to be) local veggies.  I carried the carrots, orange cauliflower, daikon, and cabbage home - in the pouring rain, with an umbrella, and a coaxing a 4 year old to keep up with me. 

Back at home we dried off and made vegetable soup.  A simple mix of onion, carrots, daikon, orange bell peppers, mushrooms, cabbage, ham, chicken broth, and miso were tossed into the pot and simmered.  My son helped by peeling veggies and using the food processor to slice them up.  Just before serving, I added some pasta letters for fun.  There's nothing like a big bowl of soup on a rainy day.

While we ate dinner, our doorbell rang.  The man my husband has been waiting for finally arrived.  His TV was being delivered.  If  I sound less than enthused, you would be right.  We have very different feelings about TVs.  My husband loves to watch TV and thinks of it as an essential item.  He often has it on even when he isn't watching it.  I find it to be an annoying addiction that I get pulled into and waste way too much time with, then feel guilty about not getting more done.  I've never been able to find a balance with it, so I prefer for it to not be in my house.  We haven't had TV since moving in to our house two and a half weeks ago.  For me, it has been refreshing and I love not having the TV fight with my son constantly. 

I suggested we didn't even have to turn it on, which didn't get a very good reception.  So, we agreed to have movie night.  I walked to the convenience store for popcorn and other junk food while my husband set up the TV.  There was a brand of chips without helpful photos on the packaging, so I pulled out my Google Translator.  One said "salt" and another was something else pretty standard.  But another read "cows sum of the enchanting."  What the hell was that supposed to mean?  I was so curious, I bought a bag.  Luckily, my translator at home informed me that I bought grilled Wagyu beef flavored chips.  They actually weren't half bad.  I don't need to buy them again though.

As I checked out, the clerk indicated to pick a card out of a box.  This is very common promotion technique here - thanks for your purchase, pick a card and we'll give you something for free.  Usually I get the dreaded one-ply uber thin tissues.  But today, I got a free beer.  I might not drink the free beer, but it was exciting nonetheless.  And I will use it - just probably in bread and not as a beverage.

When I returned, the boys were ready to start movie night.  The first movie to be played on our new TV was "My Neighbor Totoro," an old favorite.  I was first introduced to the movie in my first really bad bout with homesickness/culture shock the last time I lived in Japan.  I've been a dedicated fan ever since - it makes any day, rainy or otherwise, a bit brighter.  And now that our son has gone to bed, my husband is watching his ultimate feel good movie "Thoroughly Modern Millie."

Hospitals, oh my!

When you get sick in Japan and need to see a doctor, you don't go to a physician's office.  You go to the hospital.  This really threw me for a loop the first time I got sick in Japan.  My boss at the time, who was also a bit of a translator and lifestyle guide, told me I needed to go to the hospital and she would come over to drive me.  I emphatically told her I was not THAT sick.  After all, I didn't want to pay to go to the emergency room.  She kindly explained that she wasn't taking me to the emergency room.  She was taking me to a clinic of sorts where they would triage me and decide if I needed special care or a simple fix.  (I had a sever cold that resulted in loosing my voice.  Just needed some relief from congestion and I was on the mend.)

Why the explanation?  We had to take my son to the hospital this morning.  Yesterday I noticed his ear was red and swollen.  This morning it still looked really bad.  Even though he said it didn't hurt "too much," I decided it needed looked at. 

We gathered his insurance card and walked the couple blocks to the local hospital.  Once there, they explained that his visit would probably be free, but we would need to pay a facility fee.  The facility fee is good for three months, but if he goes there again in the next three months, the clock restarts.  We sat for about 20 minutes until they called our number and told us to go upstairs.  At the upstairs desk, they gave us some forms to fill out and a thermometer.  My husband filled out the forms and I took his temperature.  Then we were instructed to go to door number 47.  We walked down the hall and sat on the bench outside the assigned door.  After about 5 minutes, they told us to go inside where a doctor and nurse were waiting.  They examined my son and decided that it was most likely a spider bite.  "Most likely" because they couldn't find the puncture marks.  They gave him a prescription and sent us back downstairs to pay. 

We then went to a machine where we inserted a ID card that they had given to us when we first arrived.  It told us to pay ¥2,150 ($19) to cover the facility fee.  Once we paid, we went up to the desk and they gave us our son's prescription.  My husband took the prescription to the pharmacy where they filled it for free.  Yep, didn't pay a thing.  Thank you child-centric healthcare!  Kids are free because the government pays for all their basic healthcare needs.

My son's ear looks a lot better already.  It isn't nearly as red and swollen as it was.  Luckily, he isn't touching it.  So, it should clear up in no time. 

We decided to wander through the park as we walked home and walked over to the city pool.  We checked out the facilities and signed my son up for swimming lessons.  Finally, we have a class planned for him.  I'm really looking forward to building some sort of schedule for him that involves a variety of activities.  Normally, I wouldn't feel this way, but I like to have a bit of structure to my week.  Not too much, but some is a good thing.

We continued our walk and stumbled upon a farm stand that was selling broccoli.  The sign said it was selling other things as well, but they only had broccoli left.  You paid via the honor system.  I plan to visit frequently, as it is right around the corner.  Plus, one of the items on the sign was daikon, which this area is known for.  I'd love to enjoy some locally grown daikon!

Carrots and Daikon growing right behind the stand.

The grocery store was next on our list.  We just wanted to pick up a few items from the deli to eat with the rice we were cooking at home.  They had huge fried chicken pieces.  One was big enough to feed the three of us!  We had bought other things as well, and ended up eating everything else for dinner.

This is a 10' plate!

The rest of the day was spent organizing the kitchen (which is still a work in progress).  I boxed up one box of stuff to see if I can live without these items, but they are there in case I need them.  We bought some drawer organizers and I've put them to use.  I should be sort of done tomorrow.  It will take a bit of time to decide if I like where things are.  I finally put things into the floor storage - dry goods that are not open, like pasta, beans, cereal, maple syrup, and the like.  We still have one drawer that is kind of a weird size to me that I haven't figured out how to best use.  I have a couple ideas though...

Getting settled will take time.  I am trying to be patient with it.  But some of us are better patients than others in this household.  I've never been particularly known for my patience.

They came and they delivered

At 9:00 am sharp, my doorbell rang.  My shipment from the US had finally arrived.  The three gentlemen from the shipping company greeted me and explained the process - they would bring in the boxes/items and I would mark them off the list as delivered and tell them where to put it.  46 items - some boxes, some furniture.  One of the moving company guys was from Minnesota.  I was not expecting that!

Within 30 minutes they mostly had the truck unloaded.  As I looked around my house, there were boxes everywhere.  I suddenly felt like I had brought too much.  Before we left, I worked tirelessly to reduce, reduce, reduce!  I gave stuff away left and right.  I had a garage sale and had Northwest Centers pick up loads of donations.  Anyone who came over was most likely going away with something.  I packed away valuables that weren't coming to Japan with us and put it into a tiny storage unit.  I gave away over 1/3 of the items in my kitchen, and packed away 1/3 for storage, leaving only 1/3 to make the journey to Japan.  I donated boxes and boxes of clothes and toys and, well, stuff!

As they unwrapped furniture, they found one broken trunk.  The leg had snapped off at some point.  It can be glued.  But it was unfortunate all the same.  Otherwise, things arrived pretty unscathed. 

The next step was unpacking the boxes and putting together our bed (the only piece of furniture that needed assembly).  As two of the guys disappeared upstairs and one guy started unpacking the boxes in the living room, I started on the kitchen.  As I unwrapped, I gave my son the job of taking the paper and stuffing it into an empty box.  He enjoyed his task and it kept him busy.  I had 2 large boxes and 3 medium sized boxes of kitchen wares.  I wanted to do the kitchen because I wanted to put things away as I unpacked instead of stacking everything on the counters.  But soon, I realized how unrealistic that was.  Although I had a round idea of where things went, it seemed like I was not opening those items.  Instead I was unveiling a vast array of random dishes that I didn't have a plan for.  More and more items were going onto the counter and when I would put stuff away, there was too much of it and I was running out of space super fast.  What was I going to do?  Soon my counters were filled and I still had more to unpack?  The main cabinets were overflowing, not nice and neat like my kitchen in Seattle.  Was it all going to fit?  Why did I decide to bring 12 pint glasses?  How did I accumulate so many bowls and why did I bring them all with?  Why?  Why?  Why?  I don't have an answer.  At this moment, my kitchen is a disaster.  I finally gave up and just started shoving to get everything out of the boxes and send the boxes away.

There were several joyful moments as I unpacked or discovered sitting somewhere certain items that I had been missing quite a bit.  When I unwrapped my plates and bowls,  I couldn't help by think of my grandmother who gave them to me.  Seeing my favorite photo of my husband holding our son for the first time made me so happy.  Getting all the mugs on the shelves made me warm inside thinking of all the tea we drink while sitting around relaxing.  And I happily checked all my baking dishes and confirmed the ones that came to Japan all fit in my oven.  Seeing my son's joy when his toy box was brought inside delighted me.

When I was done in the kitchen, I looked at my living room.  There was stuff everywhere.  The mover had decided the couch was a good place to put everything and my son had dived right into his costume box with a fervor, leaving a huge pile of costumes on the floor as he put one almost every item in the box at least once.  The kitchen table was piled high with personal effects.  Suddenly I was overwhelmed with the house being too full.  I like a bit of space.  I hate clutter.  And right now, my house is cluttered!  Deep breaths.

I went upstairs and saw that there was basically nothing in my bedroom, except the bed and bedside tables.  This made me so relieved because I knew I would sleep better in a sparse room.  Clothes and hangers were in the closet.  The folded clothes were still in a box in the office.  I was fine with that.  Everything was moving too fast.  I'm used to doing things by myself and the speed of these guys doing their job was throwing me off.  The toys were unpacked in my son's room and neatly put in piles in the corner of the room.  The office still had boxes (8, to be exact), but I was fine with them leaving them as it so I could take my time with them. 

That was it.  They were done with their part of my move.  I signed a couple forms and they left.  Part of me is so happy to have my stuff.  But another part feels so far away from the US and home, which makes me so sad.  It seems like everything about this move, this transition, is full of mixed emotions.  The older I get and the more experience I have under my belt, the more gray everything becomes.  Life is no longer filled with black and white, right and wrong.  It is a multi-dimensional mixed bag of gray abstract paintings.

I needed to get some fresh air to process things and my son needed to play in the sunshine.  My neighbor told me that Piyo-Piyo had another activity in the park today.  I quickly heated leftovers and put them into a lunch thermos (that had just been unpacked).  We headed out, looking forward to a break from the craziness of the house.  Piyo-Piyo did not disappoint.  Today there were different toys to play with.  My son really wanted to ride a skateboard down the hill.  Once I convinced him to do it sitting down, he did it again and again and other kids soon joined in the fun.  Before I realized it, 5 skateboards had been located and were rolling down the hill with laughing kids on them.  We sat on the big tarps to eat our lunch and found out that one of the kids we were sitting next to was going to be starting at the same Kindergarten as my son in April.  As soon as he was done eating, he was back rolling down the hill over and over again.  At some point, he switched from the skateboard to a little wagon or cart.  When one of the staff members told the kids it was story time, we joined the group to hear a story and sing a song.  Then Piyo-Piyo time was over.  I loved how everyone just pitched in to clean up the area.  Everything is disassembled and put into one of three storage sheds. 

We returned home and I got the living room cleaned up.  We can now sit on the couch, the table is clear, as is the floor.  I made the beds upstairs and put away some of the bathroom stuff.  I will tackle the kitchen tomorrow.  When my husband got home, we went out for sushi and then stopped and picked up desserts to enjoy at home.  We deserve some celebratory desserts.  Two whole months without our stuff, major transitions going on, and because the desserts here are awesome. 

Now it is time to head to bed.  Our beautiful, comfy, wonderful bed that I have missed so much.  I shall sleep soundly tonight - if not out of pure joy, then at least out of exhaustion.

Stone Soup

As a gardener, who always plants too much and loves to share, I have dreamed of creating stone soup.  You know the old tale, the people come to the village and get the villagers to work together to make enough soup for all to share.  That stone soup.  I always wanted to have people come together with bits of their garden and we put things in a pot to boil and become beautiful soup.  I just thought it was such a novel concept and a wonderful way to bring the community together.

Two weeks ago, a woman I met at the community center invited me to a gathering in the park put on by a "child-raising group."  Unfortunately, the first week it was rained out and they didn't meet.  But this week they did and we were able to join the gathering.  The group, Piyo-Piyo, meets regularly in the park for family activities.  Today's gathering was to make soup!

Each person brought a vegetable to put in the pot, bowls, and ¥200 per family.  When we first arrived, the 2 staff members were putting out some toys.  For example, they stretched out a rope net between trees for the kids to climb on, built a ramp for rolling acorns down, and put some toys in the sand box.  They built a fire pit out of bricks and sticks, and put some wire racks on top along with 2 large pots. 

The leaders welcomed everyone and informed us that we were making pumpkin soup.  They would use smashed pumpkin, soy milk, and dashi (fish broth) as the base.

The children played and enjoyed the beautiful weather we had today.  The shady areas had some mud, which made some children very happy.  My son wanted to run up and down the grassy hills with some newly made friends.  He also really enjoyed climbing on the net and in the trees, as well as rolling the acorns down the shoots.

Once the water boiled, everyone was called over to cut up their vegetable.  There were peelers and knives, as well as cutting boards made from flattened milk cartons, for everyone to use.  It was encouraged to work with your child to cut the vegetable.  Since my son helps in the kitchen regularly, I was happy to let him peel the carrot we brought by himself and then we worked together to cut it up.  Other families brought onions, carrots, eggplant, sweet potato, bell peppers, and more.  I loved seeing the variety!  Once it was diced, we took it over to the pot and tossed it in.  Then we went back to playing. 

After a while, we were told that the soup was ready.  Everybody brought their bowls over and the staff served the soup.  There were large tarps set out to sit on.  Makeshift tables were made with children's chairs and long boards.  We sat with our new friends and enjoyed the soup.  We also brought some onigiri (rice balls) for ourselves to round out our lunch.

When we were all seated, I looked around and saw that there were at least 40-50 families at this gathering.  What a wonderful way to spend the day with our new community!

Later, we came home to receive deliveries of living room shelves and a kitchen cupboard.  Then we received another surprise - one of the Piyo-Piyo staff members from today's activity is our neighbor!  Such a great day for building community and receiving gifts.

Kindergarten Health Check and Temporary Childcare

Japan has universal healthcare.  Children receive all basic healthcare for free.  No co-pays or annual deductibles - FREE.  There are lots of opportunities for children to receive health checks, too.  One of these opportunities is during the school application process.  We were told to bring our son to the school at 1:20 today to get a health check.  When I first heard that we were expected to go, I was confused.  Why would a school be doing a health check?  I asked in my pantomime fashion if they were giving immunizations, and they told me no shots only listening to the heart. 

My husband, bless him, worked from home today so he could attend the health check with my son and me.  I think the teachers were surprised to see him because I kept hearing them exclaim "Oh, you are his dad!"  I have never seen a dad when I have stopped by the school.  As a matter of fact, this school appears to be run by all women, so I haven't seen any adult men there at all!  (In my limited experience, there seems to be a lot more men in the education field than in the US.  But I may be wrong about that.) 

Once we arrived, we took off our shoes to enter the school gym.  We provided a form that my husband had already filled out and they gave my son a name tag.  We were instructed to remove his shirt and go over to the doctor (a male doctor, so now I've seen two men at the school).  The doctor listened to his heart and looked at his throat.  That was it.  Health check over.

As my son was getting dressed the Vice Principal came over and asked my husband if we were able to stay for the interview portion of the application process.  We had time, so we agreed.  They took us to the Principal's office where we sat down and my husband had a conversation with the Principal.  She wrote a couple notes while my husband talked about why we picked their school, our son's educational "experience," and his personality.  She then asked him a few questions, like what food does he like and what is his favorite play equipment.  It was very short, lasting only about 15 minutes.  I was pretty surprised that we had to go through an application process including forms, health check, and interview for a public kindergarten, but that is the process here.

Some of the things that make me excited for his school are the offering of structured activities (a child is not required to participate, they are simply offered as options), the animals they have (turtles and bugs), and the agricultural learning opportunities (the play yard has lots of fruit trees and the kids grow plants like onions and potatoes).

They have wheelbarrows for the kids to play with.

Check out all the sand toys! 

The sandpit has kiwis growing overhead.

The little pool for swimming in the summer.

It's maybe 2 1/2 feet deep.

Lots of "natural" toys.

The little pond. 

There are some citrus trees growing near it.

After returning home, I was looking at my Nerima City Guide for Everyday Living.  I found myself engrossed in the "Childbirth, Children, and Education" section of the book.  I found the sections describing temporary childcare enthralling.  There is affordable childcare options for families who need temporary childcare!  If a stay at home mother has a second child, she can get childcare for her older child or children for up to a month for ¥1,000/day.  She can also use this service if she is sick.  If a working mom has a child who is recovering from an illness, but isn't allowed to go back to daycare yet (no longer contagious, but not 100% recovered), they can get special childcare for ¥2,000/day.  (That is $9 and $18 per day!)  I had to read every detail provided, as this is something so many moms I know have desperately needed.  The services are provided at daycares, nurseries, and hospitals (for the sick kids) in special temporary childcare rooms.  I'm just floored.  There are even opportunities for temporary childcare for "the chance to refresh oneself."  The cost is a sliding scale depending on age, with the highest price for infants at ¥2,000 ($18) for 3 hours.  Finally, a community that understands how hard it is to care for a child 24/7 and the need for support!  The whole thing makes my heart fill with joy just thinking of how lucky these families are to have these services, especially at such affordable prices. 

Once again, I find myself happy that this was the community we chose to live in.