Family jam

Road trip

Last weekend Uta went on a road trip with his grandpa. They drove together, six hours north, to Portland, to see Uncle J sing. They made an extended weekend of it, staying two nights in a hotel, so that they could spend a little time with J when he wasn't singing. This is the longest Uta and I have ever been apart. Some may see it as down right crazy, to go so long without a little break, but I've always thought myself lucky. I have been able to be with Uta every day, day and night, until he was nearly eight years old. This summer he did his first sleepover at a friend's house that broke our marathon of togetherness. This sort of togetherness is not for everyone, but for us it was the right thing. Did he miss me? Only a tiny bit he said, holding his thumb and forefinger a mere millimeter apart from one another. Did I miss him? Not at all! The quiet he left in his wake was heavenly. I love him, of course, but he rarely stops talking. And his presence sometimes feels like it fills every crack and crevice in my brain so densely I dont have adequate space for a thought of my own. Thoughts of my own, what a luxury! Uta enjoyed himself immensely too. He got to eat fruit loops for breakfast (the confession of which left him rolling with laughter on the kitchen floor), watch TV in bed, and go for a swim any time it struck his fancy. Moms are good, but being away from them is pretty good too.

Kabuki-warrior

Uta's costume idea came partly from a creative mind, but mostly from indecision. He wanted to be a ninja, of course, he wants to every year, but he also wanted to be an owl. Thus the ninja with wings, and a bird-like mask was born. When he finished making his costume and put it all together he was certain he looked like some Japanese character that he couldn't remember the name of. With Papa's help they pinpointed the resemblance to a Kabuki-warrior.

Halloween pictures

Above: Uta, as a ninja/mythical bird hybrid, along with Lara Ingalls, a robber, a lion, and a turtle.

 

Is this bench for sitting?

Uta knows enough about contemporary art to know that not all benches are benches. Sometimes if it looks like a bench, and talks like a bench, it may very well be Art, and not a bench at all. Sitting upon the wrong thing in a gallery could be catastrophic. On a recent trip to chelsea to see some shows, Uta asked, in all earnestness, "Is this bench for sitting?" It sounded pretty funny, but I was proud of him for asking. Uta's mind is wide open, and he's got a very objective eye. He's good company to have along when looking at art. But I don't think he likes coming with me as much as I like having him with me. He's just glad when he can find a bench that is meant for sitting. To Uta, all art looks much better when you can put your feet up.

Portrait of Mama

by Uta

Singing in the bath

Sick days

Kizuki just made it through a pretty nasty sick spell. What began with a common childhood virus, fever for a few days and a head to toe speckled rash, transitioned into an 'impressive' (doctor's word choice) ear infection. For a baby that never ever cries, this earache brought her to inconsolable screaming through the night. Hands down, the worst part of being a mother is when your child hurts and there is nothing you can do to make them feel better, worse still when you haven't a clue whats wrong. She is smiling again, and we are all feeling much better.