Banana Chocolate Chip Muffin on Sunday

Last Sunday we spent the morning at home. I baked banana chocolate chip muffins while Peter played with L in the living room.

Momo is a Photographer and I am not

Momo is a photographer, and she brought a Nikon D300 with her. Within just two days, she has taken so many photos of L, and I just cannot stop admiring how she captures the best moment – natural, real L.

Momo has arrived

We went to the airport to pick up my sister Momo from Boston. While we were waiting at the arrival gate, a lady talked to us….

Indoor Swimming Pool on Rainy Sunday

Almost every Sunday in October is rainy and gloomy this year. But Peter loves to take L to the local indoor swimming pool on such bad-weather days. Here is L and Peter walking towards the Landesmuseum (state museum) near the swimming pool. L can walk steady and fast these days, and she can also run and climb up the staircase by herself. I remember teaching her how to walk in the hotel room in Bangkok and how she always fell on her diaper-cushioned butt after a few steps.

20,000 Kidnapped Children in China

My friend told me recently that when she arrived at the Grand Canary Airport, there was a wall filled with the pictures of missing women and children from everywhere. Apparently they were kidnapped while vacationing there and are sold in the black market in Europe or Africa. After hearing this story, I could not stop shivering.

Then in the recent issue of Nido, I found a very sad and shocking article “Findet Xiang Di!” (page 26) about the child trafficking in China.

Community Center

I have been wanting to upload some photos of the community center near our apartment where L and I come everyday. Here is the mini playground L first sees when we come from the apartment. With the sight of the red slide, L starts to wiggle her feet for excitement. I am also excited to see lots of green and breathe in the fresh air.

Kalorienbombe

On rainy Sunday, we spent the day in the indoor swimming pool and at home. In the evening, Peter stood in the kitchen and cooked the specialty from his hometown – Spätzle pasta with bacon, cheese, vegetables plus beetroot salad as a side dish. Since beetroot is supposedly rich in iron, we came up with Spätzle after we purchased the ready-made salad. If I had not married a German, I would have never known this kind of food. Since everything Peter cooks is very high in calories, I call Peter’s German-style cooking “Kalorienbombe“, meaning “calorie bomb” in German.

Off-Guard Facial Expression

I love to laugh at people’s funny facial expressions but Peter got me here… When I saw this photo, my face froze. I look so STUPID!! I was desperately trying to feed L an iron supplement hidden in sweet Azuki beans. Azuki （小豆）apparently has three times more iron content than spinach. Speaking of rich iron content, I also cook Hijiki (ひじき）often these days and she loves to eat it with rice. I never cooked so much in my life but I enjoy cooking for L everyday. Until now I’ve been labeled as a terrible cook among my family and Japanese friends, but I hope I can convince them as a better cook in the near future.

Shopping List from Boston

My sister is coming to visit us from Boston and here is the shopping list I sent to her:

1. Jell-O (any of these flavors: green apple, lime, orange, wild strawberry, black cherry)
2. Thai tea and coffee mix from Asian grocery store
3. maple syrup grade A
4. Krispy Kreme doughnuts, original glazed
5. Melon Pan at Taiwanese bakery in Chinatown
6. Aspirin (strongest but w/o caffeine)
7. Oreo cookies (if double stuff isn’t available, then anything but Gold)
8. Pepperidge Farm Milano Cookies Mint
9. HERSHEY’S Syrup Genuine (original) or with Calcium
10. hairband

If you think of anything that I should add to this list, please let me know.

Children’s Books

Peter and I love books (like many of you) and bought a small IKEA shelf for children’s books in L’ room. The books are mostly in English, German, and Japanese, but also in Thai.

We started collecting children’s books while we were waiting for L. In every country we traveled to, we always found some children’s books we like and brought back as a future souvenir. In Barcelona, we found a picture book in catalán dialect. In the used bookstore in NYC, we found a classic Moomin book. In Bangkok, we bought Thai children’s books at the bookstore in the Central Department Store.

When we find a book we like at a friend’s house, we always make a note of it and purchase later.