J-Gi and Z Mama

My parents came from Japan yesterday and will stay here for 9 days.

Thai style tofu-avocado dip

<Thai-Style Tofu-Avocado Dip>
ingredients:

1 pack of tofu (sliken for fluffy, firm tofu for thick dip)
1 avocado, ripe
2 teaspoons fish sauce
1 teaspoon lime juice
a pinch of salt

preparation:

1. cut tofu and avocado in small pieces.
2. mix in a blender.
3. add salt, fish sauce and lime juice.
4. If you ain’t making this for kids, add chopped cilantro, chili, garlic, pepper — you name it.

I mixed in leftover Mascaopne to add more flavor to the dip, but my Italian friend insisted Mascapone should NEVER go into salty food. Sorry, I did not know!!

No sick day for parents

The weather in Zürich has been mild: sunny, 25℃ and nice breeze. L and I started spending afternoon on the balcony since we are still a little sick to go outside to the park.

Momo’s Hand-Made Card

I got a cold from L and was down with 39℃ fever over the weekend. Now I feel better with the help of antibiotics and I could finally upload this photo.

My sister made this sweet card when she sent L some clothes from Boston. It’s just so cute to image how Momo was making this card with the help of Miffy and Max.

Kid’s Clothing

L wears hand-me-down from our friends and gifts from families and friends. Especially my sister Momo has been showering L with tons of cute baby clothes from USA. This dress is from Baby Gap, but my favorite is RUN DMC tee she bought for L at Old Navy. Many people think baby clothes are cute in Europe, but I also like affordable and cool line of baby clothes from USA and Japan.

Idafest

Last Saturday, we went to Idafest, the annual festival at my favorite piazza in Zürich. L was so excited to hear live music that she was dancing in front of the stage (holding my hands) or in Peter’s arm. Before we left the festival at 8pm, she gave a kiss to Jenny. I don’t know how or when she started kissing her favorite people, but I am honored when she gives me a kiss before she goes to bed at night. It only happens when she is in a good mood. She also like to kiss some figures with face such as Duplo animals and dolls at home.

On another note, lately L suffered from high fever and after the fever receded, she started crying every half an hour at night. Peter and I take turns to console her, but we are all exhausted from sleepless nights. As a result, I got a sty in my eye and Peter got carpal tunnel in his left hand for holding her too long. Welcome to the parenthood!!

B.D. Party

Ahem, please excuse my long absence. I’ve been out of control for this new situation in which Peter is at work and I’m alone with L at home. I realized how much Peter was helping when he was still on vacation. I am also writing an interview article on a Japanese graphic designer Mr. Kouga Hirano for a German typography magazine called “SLATNED.” I hope I can finish them all on time, because it all depends on L’s nappy time.

In the mean while, we were invited to Miriam’s birthday party at her parent’s house last weekend.

Harvesting Edamame

The Edamame on the balcony did not grow well.. Since the weather was getting cooler and I did not want them to turn yellow, I harvested most of them this morning. When I boiled them, it took a long time until the beams got soft but the skin was already melting. My Edamame does not look as green as frozen ones, but hey, I think they grew OK, considering it was the first time and I could not take care of them while we were in Thailand.

Baby Banana

Before we left for Bangkok to meet L for the first time, I did some research on Thai baby food. Many Japanese who gave birth in Thailand wrote in their blogs that the first baby food for Thais is baby banana.

Strandband Mythenquai

August 1st is the Swiss National Day, so all the offices and stores are closed. It was a sunny Saturday, and L took unusually long nap. When she woke up, we packed lunch (leftover pasta from the night before) and headed for the lake of Zürich. There is a lake beach called “Strandband Mythenquai” where you can pay 6 francs p/p and enjoy the full facility such as changing rooms, warm shower, toilet, kid’s swimming pool, and cafeteria. Since it’s in Switzerland, there is no need to mention that everything is kept very clean.