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Perfectly Ours

Today was one of those family days that doesn’t go quite as planned but still manages to pack in a lot of little memorable moments.

Kenzo stayed home from school with a fever. Poor guy was pretty hot at over 38°C. Eri took him to the doctor, and thankfully it’s nothing too serious... no flu, no COVID. Just one of those run-of-the-mill bugs that knocks you out for a day or two. He spent most of the day camped out on the couch, drifting between naps and his favorite Netflix shows. He loves this Malaysian animated series called BoBoiBoy, which kept him entertained while his body fought off whatever’s got him down.


Meanwhile, I had my own doctor visit to deal with. I rode my motorcycle across town to see this sleep apnea specialist Dr. Saito. Now, that’s a story for another day (wires, beeping machines, and a lot of awkward breathing tests), but the good news is I’m finally gonna get some treatment.

On the way back, I decided to swing by the Matsuya in Yaotome for lunch. I went for the kimchi mayonnaise donburi and added the chige set to make it extra Korean. Admittedly, I have no idea if mayo on kimchi is remotely authentic, but man it was delicious. The downside was by the time I got home, I smelled like a walking spicy Korean restaurant.


While all this was happening, Osamu was off on a snowy adventure. He had a snow sledding field trip today, and he was beyond excited. Over the weekend he kept saying, "I'm so excited for Monday!" Watching him suit up in his snow gear this morning was like watching a kid on Christmas morning. He couldn’t wait to hit the slopes, and from the way he crashed out so fast tonight after bath time, it seems he had an amazing adventure.


Kenzo wasn’t about to let a fever slow him down completely. He’s been obsessed with Charlotte’s Web, and tonight we read Chapter 10 together. This is our first attempt at serial-reading a novel as a family, and it’s been an interesting experience. Kenzo is totally enthralled. He’s hanging on every word and already rooting for Charlotte to save Wilbur. Osamu, on the other hand, is struggling to keep up. He’s definitely more of a “show me the pictures” kind of boy right now, but we’ll see how it goes. They both have no problem interrupting the story and asking what something means, and I love that.


A day of ups and downs. Fevers and sledding. Mayo kimchi rice bowl and family reading time. Not perfect, but perfectly ours.

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