Love me, love my shoes.

When Shin arrived home this morning, he opened the door and surveyed the shoes cluttering up the entrance and muttered, "How many people live here?" I peeked my head around the corner to see him balancing on one foot in an attempt to remove his boots, glanced at the sad sight before me and sighed, not bothering to answer.

It used to be that an entrance cluttered with an array of shoes was thing of beauty for me. In those days my cheerful response would have been, "Only the two of us my dear, and every single pair is mine."

But not anymore.

It's not that I've lost my love for footwear. That. Will. Never. Happen. But I seem to have outgrown almost all of my shoes and for the time being I am left with only four pairs that fit.

If you just thought, "Four pairs, what's wrong with that?" you should probably stop reading now.

Before getting pregnant I was well aware of my chances of swelling up like a balloon due to water retention. So, I knew that I might have to give up on a few pairs of my less sensible shoes. As my pregnancy progressed and I started to become a little unsteady, thus I gave up wearing heels. Still there was some variety and I actually had to think about which pair of shoes I would wear each day.

Enter relaxin.

Relaxin is a hormone produced by the placenta that basically helps a mama's body 'loosen up'. I recently learned that my uterus is the size of a basketball (gross) and relaxin not only helped it reach that amazing size, but also helped my pelvis and ligaments expand to make room for The Bean's inflatable house. Relaxin (a well named hormone in my opinion) also relaxes other parts of the body including the arteries in order to accommodate a much higher blood volume, and the musculoskeletal system so that bones don't start snapping during delivery. Unfortunately, relaxin is not specific to certain areas of the body and loosens up joints all over, including the feet.

Although what I am sporting these days are much closer to flippers than feet and I only own four pairs of shoes wide enough to contain them:

1. Running shoes. Yes, I own running shoes.

2. Motorcycle boots. Leftovers from when I actually fit on the back of Shin's bike.

3. Calf length dress boots that only really go with with dresses and skirts.

4. A funky, yet ancient pair of boots I bought in Hong Kong years ago that can't be worn in the rain. 

On most days I opt for the motorcycle boots because they are black and the widest of the four.

sigh

As the countdown to The Bean's arrival gets shorter and shorter (11 weeks and 3 days - eek!) you would think that I wouldn't be so downtrodden. Once The Bean is here the hormones stop and I can return to my well shod days of yore.

double sigh

Sometimes relaxin does such a bang-up job that joints remain in their loosened state forever.

quadruple sigh

The reason for my sadness doesn't stop there. You see I have always felt particularly blessed when it comes to my feet. Even if one foot is bigger than the other and, for the most part, I am unable to buy shoes in Japan, I could be worse off.

I could have my mother's feet.
 
OR, my sister's feet!

In what I believe to be an honest tragedy, my mother has 'man-feet'. She wears a size 10 but only when she can find shoes wide enough to fit. In many cases she either has to buy a size bigger, wear sandals, or horror of horrors buy men's shoes. Most years she is still in sandals while I am sporting a winter coat.

But it wasn't always this way.

I clearly remember playing dress-up in slinky red satin stilettos, fabulous cork wedges, and high heeled clogs that would've caused any member of Charlie's Angels to do a double-take. What I don't remember, is my mom wearing any of those gorgeous creations. They lived in a box in her closet, a memento of her life before relaxin and her two children got the best of her. Ahh the sacrifice.

Thank you mom. xo

And then there are my sister's feet.

Like my mom's they are both long and wide (she's had four children after all). She also suffers from fallen arches and experiences a great deal of pain if she doesn't wear specially ordered insoles.

'Orthopedic shoes' is the worst 4-letter word that I know.

But the real reason that I have counted my size 8 1/2 blessings over the years, is that she has the ugliest feet I have ever seen.

Up until now I am fairly certain that my sister doesn't read my blog. I guess I will find out for sure sometime over the next few days.

It's not her actual feet that are ugly, but her toes that make them so freakish. The big toes, which are normal in shape, are like two hairy sergeants standing in front of their troop of misfits waiting for inspection. Sergeant BT Left (big toe) and Sergeant BT Right are then followed by three corporals, all of them long enough to possess two functioning knuckles.

Are they called knuckles when they are on your feet?

Anyway, picture E.T.'s fingers and you have pretty accurate image of my sister's toes.

Finally, there is a little private at the end line-up. When I say "little" what I really mean is minuscule. And for some reason it sits up on top of her foot rather than in line with the rest. Rather like Napoleon perched on his horse so as not to reveal his true stature.

Let it be known that my sister has always sported her army with pride, mastering feats with her toes straight out of My Left Foot. I have great faith that if she were ever to lose the use of her hands (touch wood) that she wouldn't miss a beat and just carry on life as usual with her freaky feet.

I do not want that life.

I do not want shoe box feet.

I do not want to give up my Jimmy Choos.

BUT my dear little Bean, if that's the way it turns out then so be it. The sacrifice will be well worth it.

And of course there is a whole cabinet full of shoes that will need to be replaced.

犬の日 (Dog Day)

After our visit to Nakayama Temple for 帯祝い (Obi Iwai), Shin and I circled November 21st on our calendar - 犬の日 (Dog Day). 犬の日 is the day we get to bind up my bump in the name of safe delivery and good health for The Bean.

Why the 21st?

Why "Dog Day"?

What's the deal with the obi?

Why the 21st? No idea. Sorry. I asked around but no one could satisfy my curiosity. In November there were two 犬の日, the first on 9th and the second on the 21st. According to the calendar from the temple, the 21st was the more auspicious of the two and that's why we chose that day for our belly binding.

That's the obi all packaged up on the far right.

Why "Dog Day"? I've got this one in the bag. In Japan, the dog is the official mascot of pregnant women which I found rather unusual. Dogs are man's best friend. There's the hair of the dog to sooth a hangover. It's been knows to rain cats and dogs. One can be as sick as a dog. Could that be it? I very clearly remember being as sick as a dog for the first three months of my pregnancy and although it seeed to be a solid connection that's not the reason. Or maybe its the pregnancy hormones that can turn even the kindest of women turn into a bitch. Bingo!?

No.

After listening to all of my wild conjecture, Shin explained that dogs are associated with pregnancy in Japan as they conceive easily, give birth to multiple puppies in good health and labour is relatively short and without incident. Things that every woman hopes for when entering the baby making business.  

Of course. Why didn't I think of that?

Finally, what's the deal with the obi? On 犬の日 we opened up the obi to reveal a blessing and prediction from the Buddhist priest at Nakayama temple.

Ours predicted that we would have a son born The Year of the Dragon. Not bad for someone that we hadn't even met. The Bean is in fact a boy and was conceived in The Year of the Dragon, but will be born in The Year of the Snake.

 

A quick aside - I was born in The Year of the Dragon, our son will be born in Snake and Shin was born in Horse. Those three years appear consecutively in the Chinese calendar. I love the organization of it all!

 

We unfolded the obi and stretched out, it went from the kitchen to our front door. As I was contemplating just spinning in a circle until I met up with Shin in the entrance, he had the clever idea of reading the instructions. We rolled up the obi so that it was easy to manage and then Shin wrapped it around my bump mummy style.

 

 

As The Bean gets bigger it's becoming less comfortable to carry him around, and sleeping is next to impossible. But all bound up in my obi I felt more comfortable that I had in weeks. Perhaps I'll make it a regular part of my wardrobe.

 

11. 12.

Until recently, I didn't realize that traditional anniversary gifts differ depending on where you live. For example, in the US the gift for your fourth anniversary is linen or silk, while in the UK it is fruit and flowers. However, all the big ones are still the same in both countries: silver for the 25th, sapphires for the 45th and diamonds for the big five-oh. I also learned that this tradition is not followed in Japan.

But it is in our house.

Shin likes the idea, especially the gift of leather for your third anniversary. Before you get any funny ideas, he was thinking along the lines of a new motorcycle jacket, nothing kinky (as far as I know - we'll see in two more years). So, for my day of our anniversary weekend, I decided that we would get paper gifts for each other.

Like with many things, Shin is not very timely in his gift giving. He just bought my birthday gift a week ago (my birthday was in October). It was purchased alongside my Christmas gift and they are both being delivered this coming Monday.

I should take a moment and be fair to my loving husband.

He is a very busy guy. He works nights seven days a week, and sleeps during the day. He only ever takes time off when we have something special planned, in fact our anniversary marked his first day off since we moved at the end of March. Needless to say, shopping is not at the top of his 'To Do' list. Taking this into consideration, I decided that part of my anniversary plans would include picking out our paper presents together. And what better place to do that than at a bookstore!

A little while ago, one of my students was describing a bookstore that she had visited in Kyoto called Keibunsha. It sounded so cool and when she showed me a picture of all the goodies she bought I was sold! She also told me about ガケ書房 (Gakegake), another bookstore not far from Keibunsha, that sounded just as good. She mentioned that they have a section specializing in old / discontinued comics which I thought would be right up Shin's alley.

We ate breakfast and set off for Kyoto in the morning on the 12th. We decided to go to Keibunsha first and we were not disappointed. They had lots of great architecture books, cookbooks, stationary and a small gallery in the corner. I'm not sure how long we spent browsing but it was long enough for The Bean to remind me that I hadn't eaten in a couple of hours and we still had one more shop to visit before lunch. Most importantly, I picked out my anniversary present; a book about the life and paintings of my favourite Japanese artist, Yayoi Kusama.

This is me at a Kusama exhibit in Osaka last March.

We then headed to ガケ書房, and again we weren't disappointed.

Shin spent the majority of his time reading through the comics and graffiti art books, while I tried to figure out how they had attached the car to the outside of the building. This shop was quite a bit smaller, but we spent almost as much time inside. Between the two of us, we probably went through every book they have. For his anniversary present, Shin picked out two coffee table books about graffiti art and I found a cookbook specializing in recipes for pancakes. Gifts were bought and we left happy campers.

If you're ever in Kyoto and are looking to do something aside from visiting temples and shrines, I highly recommend both of these bookstores.

Thanks Noriko!

In the afternoon Shin and I headed to Arashiyama where, the year before, we had wedding pictures taken with my family. 

Luckily, it was a Monday so the place wasn't too overrun with tourists, as it often is at this time of year. We bought some ice cream and had a lovely stroll through the bamboo forest and surrounding neighbourhood, enjoying the autumn colours.

Of course, when I say stroll, I mean waddle.

As evening grew closer, the temperature started to drop and we were ready to head back to the heated car; feeling rather exhausted but jubilant after celebrating our paper anniversary.

Happy first anniversary Shin! xo xo xo

2011

2012

11 . 11 .

On November 11th, 2011 Shin and I were married at city hall in Osaka. There was no ceremony, just the two of us filling out paperwork and presenting our identification. We exchanged rings in the back of a taxi on the way home; a friend of ours commented that it was all very "rock star".

Of course that wasn't all we did.

We followed up our rock start visit to city hall by dressing in traditional Japanese kimonos and visiting one of the more famous and beautiful sightseeing spots in Kyoto, Arishiyama.

The next day we celebrated with friends and family with a more traditional reception. We exchanged vows, ate, drank and were merry. It was a fabulous couple of days.

It's now one year later and we are celebrating our first anniversary! What a year it has been. We moved at the end of March, I started a new job at the beginning of April and of course The Bean entered the picture not long after that. 

The Hiranos don't mess around.

When it came to celebrating our first anniversary we figured that, much like our wedding, it should be a two day affair. So Shin made plans for the 11th and I made plans for the 12th.

After working on the morning of the 11th, I headed home and was greeted by the arrival of some maternity clothes I had ordered online. Woo hoo, something to wear for our big weekend! Already off to a good start. After ripping open the box and playing dress-up for a while I noticed that something was missing.

My husband.

Where was Shin?

I knew that he had planned to borrow his parent's car for the weekend but had said that he'd be home by the time I finished work. The pouring rain outside, coupled with his propensity for being late meant that he was probably both stuck in traffic and of course running late. Perfect time for a nap. I woke up an hour  later, still no Shin.

Hmmmm.

He was now about three hours late and in my books that's time enough to warrant a phone call. After about 6 rings Shin groggily answered the phone,

"Where are you!?"

"Sleeping in the car."

Shin's parents live between 45 minutes to an hour away on a normal day. Throw in some rain, and keep in mind that it was Sunday, the time almost doubles. But sleeping in the car...? Apparently, Shin was really tired on the way home and didn't think that he'd make it without a nap. So, he pulled over for a ten minute snooze.

An hour and a half later he was still snoozing.

Shin reassured me that I had no need to worry, and that he would be home in plenty of time to get ready for our evening out. Under my breath I muttered "better late than never" and hung up.

Although the 11th was Shin's day to plan anniversary fun, I had a little surprise up my sleeve.

There were many aspects of our wedding that Shin was happy to let me take care of, but one of the things that he had some very strong opinions on was our wedding cake. He didn't want the usual fruity cream cake that is served at most receptions in Japan, and when I suggested a cupcake tower he was hooked. I realize that cupcake towers are by no means new or unusual in most places, but they are pretty much unheard of in Japan.

What to do?

Of course! Ask the Sugar Fairy, to make our wedding cake. The Sugar Fairy is a  baker and maker extraordinaire, and luckily for us she is also a very good friend. Although it was a monumental task, she churned out the perfect cake!

We had planned to freeze some for our first anniversary, but the Sugar Fairy advised against it and promised to make us an anniversary cake. And, so she did.

While Shin was making his way home I made some coffee and took the cake out of the fridge. Shin had forgotten about the promise of an anniversary cake, so when he (finally) got home he was totally surprised. We sat down and toasted our first year of marriage.

Cake before dinner, why not!







After finishing our dessert we got dressed up and headed out to the restaurant. Shin had reserved us a table at a famous teppanyaki restaurant about an hour drive from our place. I was convinced that we wouldn't make it in time for our reservation, as it had taken Shin so long to get home, but the rain had let up and there was no need to stop for a nap. For once we were actually early!

Then we ate.

And ate.

And ate.

Each table at the restaurant had its own chef, so all of the courses (eight in total) were perfectly timed and the food was cooked exactly as we wanted. The two most exciting courses for me were the seafood course and the steak course.

Delicious!

I had never been to a teppanyaki restaurant before, so this was a big treat for me. On our way home with bellies bursting, Shin pondered where we would go with The Bean for dinner on our second anniversary.

But I was too full to even answer.

みかん (Mikan) .

みかん is our cat. And she is 'special'.

About five years ago I was in the market for a cat and found her on the Internet. She belonged to a family that had gotten her at the same time as their son was born. The family had hoped that the cat and baby would grow up together. Unfortunately (for them), the baby was terribly allergic and she had to go.

This is where I came into the picture.

Arrangements were made for the whens and the wheres of the hand-off, and on a brisk December morning a friend and I set out to get her.

As the family was quite desperate to find みかん a new home, I think they may have exaggerated a tad when they told me about her.

Exaggeration #1: She loves people, especially children.

みかん in no way whatsoever likes children. Whenever friends bring their kids to our house she hides in the closet until they have not only left the building, but are out of the neighborhood and well on their way home. As for big people, that is very much hit and miss. She either loves you or heads to the closet. There is no method to feline madness.

Just ask my mom.

Last year my mom stayed with us for about a week. I think みかん graced us with her presence sometime around the time my mom was getting ready to leave...only to crawl into my sister's lap. A good impression was not made.

Exaggeration #2: みかん never, ever scratches.

Actually, this is more of a full on, slap you in the face lie.

She scratches everything: wallpaper, wood, curtains, the sofa and best of all me. If you have been following along in our little baby making saga, you may remember that I have a thing for white leather sofas. In fact, I used to have one (paired beautifully with my fake teak furniture).

Until the cat destroyed it.

Actually, strike that. Until the cat destroyed THEM. Nail holes up and down the arms of the sofa and teeth marks (revealing the true nature of my "teak" coffee table), is what this non-scratching cat gifted me with during our first year together.

On any given day if you take a quick look at my hands and forearms, you can also find evidence of our cat that "never scratches". These little welts of love, are usually the result of me not wanting to get out of bed at 4 a.m. to feed her royal highness.

Eventually, she gets fed. Every night.

Exaggeration #3: みかん is never noisy.

Liars!

In the summer most people leave their windows open. A fairly normal practice unless you are the owner of one howling cat. I have trained myself, yes myself not the cat, to approach the apartment with ninja silence. If みかん hears my voice, keys or shoes she begins howling in a voice loud enough to set off the neighbor's dogs, make babies cry, and wake the dead.

Trust me, nobody needs to be welcomed home by that symphony.

Aside from these few unforeseen character flaws, みかん settled right in and now I don't know how we'd live without her.

Better rested I suppose.

Anyway, as charming as 'The History of Me and My Cat' must be, it's about time that I get to my point.

みかん and The Bean

みかん clearly loves me more than Shin. This is evident in the welcome home howling (which Shin never gets), the way she wedges herself between us if Shin gets too close on the sofa, and her attacks of bulimia.

Right, I forgot to mention the bulimia.

There are times when a social engagement has kept me out late, maybe all night, and on the rare occasion for the weekend. Let me assure you, this hasn't happened recently. Upon returning home the first thing I do is feed the cat. Then, she promptly eats and vomits up said food. みかん adjusts the volume and location of said vomit in order to correspond with the length of my absence. A weekend away will guarantee Exorcist-style vomit on my pillow. This also never happens to Shin.

Isn't it nice to be loved?

Getting back to my point, what is going to happen when The Bean arrives?! How will we keep the cat out of the crib? What if みかん and The Bean both require an early morning feeding at the same time? How many rolls of paper towel does one need to stock up on, in order to clean up cat and baby vomit? Did I mention the jealousy when people spend too much time in my general vicinity? And of course, みかん doesn't do children.

I have no clue about how this is going to turn out. Part of me thinks that there has to be some sort of bonding that goes on between pets and babies. The other part of me has nightmares of cribs filled with cat vomit.

I suppose only time will tell. 

S#%t people say.

I would like to think that there are times when people say things without really thinking them through. Perhaps they are having a rough day and not focusing. Or they don't realize that what they have just said could be taken the wrong way...by a hormonal pregnant woman.

Who knows.

Whatever the reason, recently there have been a few occasions where I've laughed off comments that in retrospect were probably a little off colour. Unfortunately, as I am not a great judge of my own sensitivity, I think that it's probably better to smile and nod rather than fly off the handle and start throwing things.

I've made a mental note of some of the keepers to share.

S#%t People Say

"Wow! Are you having twins?" - From a total stranger.

"Is that good for the baby?" - I was eating chocolate. Maybe not the best thing for the baby, but damn good for mama.

"Your face is fat." - Sigh.

"You're due in February? I thought it was much sooner." - Enough already!

"You must really like that, you're eating a lot!" - The speakers of the other zingers shall remain anonymous, but interestingly this one was said by my darling husband. You would think that he'd know better by now.


You may notice a trend here, most of these comments are directed at what I'm eating or my size.

Yes, The Bean and I are growing steadily. In fact, it feels like we're expanding as each day goes by. I've had to hang up my last pair of pre-pregnancy pants and just realized that although I am currently able to zip up my winter coat, in a few weeks that will not be the case.

For the first six months I was so careful about everything that passed my lips but recently it's becoming harder and harder. Especially when everything I am about to eat demands to be covered in peanut butter beforehand.

Well...not everything.

Next week we have an appointment with our baby doc. I greatly fear that this will be the time when I am berated for gaining too much weight. Guess I had better start cutting back on the peanut butter.

But first I should finish off these tasty treats.