Our son has only met his Swedish grandparents once, last summer when we went to Sweden. We stayed for a few weeks and he got to know them and play with them, and I believe he really came to love them. Fast forward nine months, a long time in the life of a quickly growing …
Finally, after three years of corona and difficulties traveling, my mum and dad could make it to Japan to visit us! For our little family it is a dream come true to have Swedish grandmother and grandfather here, and through the pandemic, while hoping for the day they would arrive, my son and I have …
As the cherry blossoms are the most beautiful, graduation ceremonies are held in schools and daycare facilities all over Japan. The weather is pleasant, students have their spring holiday and many of them enjoy this season having picknicks under the sakura trees and playing in the parks. After a few years of pandemic restrictions, this …
There are many activities for children in Fukuoka. The last month we have been exploring some of them at the same time as enjoying the beauty of Japanese spring and sakura, cherry blossom (more on that next week). There is a toy museum in the new big LaLaport shopping mall, where the children can play …
Whether at home or out and about, my son shares with me what he is seeing in a way that makes me so happy, and I feel so privileged to be able to take part of his worldview. We have a play-at-home day while the rain is pouring down, we find some old boxes and …
It is amazing, the way small children see the world. And the way they express what they see. My son can take me from upset to wonder in a matter of a few words. We sit and have lunch and he decides that he wants to put anything that can fit into his cup with …
What better way to end a beautiful spring Saturday than to, together with my wife and son, enjoy the sun setting over the sea? Well, the only thing I can think of when writing this is watching that sunset while taking photos in a magical place and hearing my son joyfully playing in the sand. …
Since an unfortunate incidence a year and a half ago, my left eye’s vision started to slowly but surely get bad. The eye doctors told me I would need a cataract surgery sooner or later, and I was planning on waiting until our son started kindergarten before doing any surgery. But suddenly, a month or …
Hello Kitty is a popular cartoon character in Japan. She has got her own theme park in Tokyo. And since 2018 there is even a Hello Kitty Shinkansen, running between Fukuoka and Osaka on an almost daily basis. I learned about the existence of the train a year or so ago when my son started …
It is happy when rain is a force of joy and not the opposite. My son cannot wait for the rain to come. And as soon as he sees the raindrops on the ground outside, he wants to put on his rubber boots and play in the puddles. I try to teach him patience, that …
I have been struggling with a persistent case of sinusitis for quite some time. It was the first time in my life to experience sinusitis and I still have the pain below my eyes. My wife had been reading up on what to do at home to make recovery quicker, and one suggestion was to …
A new year and I start talking about zero energy, that does not sound too good. But it is not about my energy or my wife’s or son’s (although we have been a bit low on energy due to all the colds and last year) but rather our house’s energy use that I am talking …