Riku in Nikko

Last weekend we went on Riku's first proper trip, to Nikko. The original plan was to stay just the one night but we realised in the afternoon of the second day that it was going to be a long and tiring trip back to Tokyo after quite a full day and that because we were travelling with a baby it was probably better to attempt the trip home the next day when the trains would be less crowded and we were all well-rested. Luckily it was a long weekend so Toru was off the next day as well. It turned out to be a good decision!

Here are some photos:

In front of Toshogu Shrine

A cafe was having a New Zealand festival

Looking at the river above Ryuzu no taki waterfalls

In front of Shinkyo Bridge

Five months! Part One

A few days late, but now we have a quiet afternoon it's time for a 5-month birthday post! We have been busy the last week because Riku's Jiji and Baba (my Dad and stepmum, we are using the Japanese names for grandpa and grandma) are visiting and we have been going out most days. I'm typing and uploading photos with one hand while feeding Riku at the same time which is slow going so I'll split this post into two parts I think.

There have been a lot of firsts in the last month, here are some of them:

First time sitting by himself

We had a mini picnic in the park and he managed to stay like this without toppling for over a minute- he can sit even longer now and stay up without using his hands to balance but it's hard to get a photo of since I have to make sure he doesn't keel over backwards which still happens quite a lot! He looked quite proud of his achievement.

First shirt

I bought him this outfit back in February before he was even born, but last week was his first chance to wear it when we had some cooler weather. He looks like a real little boy!

First rugby game

I tried to get a happier picture but Riku was a bit overwhelmed by the cheering from the other people watching the game and this was the best I could get! It was actually a Japan-France game but Riku showed up in New Zealand colours. Of course he supported the Brave Blossoms in this game though ;)

First time at the sumo

We went to the Kokugikan (National Sumo Stadium) this week with Jiji and Baba to watch the day's bouts. Riku watched some of it, slept through other parts!

First okonomiyaki restaurant

Riku perusing the menu at an okonomiyaki restaurant- he was quite interested and did not want to give the menu back to the waitress!

First pot plant destruction

I looked around while cooking dinner yesterday to find that Riku had pulled over a house plant and ripped off half of one of its leaves. I did an internet search afterwards and found that it is actually poisonous if eaten in large quantities and causes severe mouth pain if chewed anyway so lucky we caught him before he tried that! We are definitely going to have to look for another place for that plant before long.

Edited to add another first:

First time in a shopping cart

This is at the big home centre near us- he's now old enough to use these carts. He looked quite pleased with himself at first, but decided about 15 minutes later that he didn't like it after all and I had to put him back in his carrier (^-^;)

Laughing, ima koso

I was watching the news while changing Riku's nappy the other night and one of the party leader candidates had a very dramatic way of talking so I imitated the way he said "ima koso" ("right now", or "now in particular") and Riku laughed out loud. It took us a while to realise that it was actually my hair that was making him laugh although the "ima koso" seemed to make it even funnier!

We got some of it on video here: