Little Man, Big Culture

Franklin got a taste of Japanese culture this week:

I wish I had video footage of the women's reaction when we asked if they had a kimono Franklin could try on...

On Friday, Franklin had some fun at Octo Sushi:

Mostly ate the salmon teriyaki, but he was a good sport.


Thanks to Pete for the photos!

And he loved Emily's miso soup:


It's not really related to Japan, but Franklin also had fun showing Grandpa Ray and Grandma Rhonda around the Chihuly glass museum:






But the high point of Saturday must have been the Japanese cultural festival. Awesome Taiko drummers, interesting exhibits, and, of course, the chance to model that kimono:

I Wish I Was a Little Bit Taller

Franklin says, Best stray object on the Miller Park playground yet:


Sure was excited to play with it. And although the big kids we were talking to said goodbye to him when we left, I'm pretty sure he was actually waving goodbye to the ball...

So, now I guess we just sit back and wait for Bill Self to give him a call :)

Meanwhile, the playground at Volunteer Park has been undergoing renovations for a while, but now it's finally open again!

I've been crazy busy finishing a paper for the upcoming West Coast Plato Workshop, but Emily and Franklin went and checked it out over the weekend:

Coolest part is that they have a whole separate area for 2-5 year-olds. So cute. And thoughtful. And fun!

I convinced Franklin to take me up there this morning so I could see it for myself. Lots of great stuff, but so far my favorite is the side-by-side baby slides, so I can go down next to him & keep a close eye on the smile on his face.


Two playgrounds in one day? Well, that's what happens when all of a sudden it's 60 and sunny. Obviously he's now tuckered out in bed, so hopefully I can stay awake long enough to crack the code of this new PBS show I've been reading about:

Watch Preview on PBS. See more from The Bletchley Circle.

Tulips, Poppies, and Other Buds

Franklin and I had a blast picking up these tulips for Emily at Flowers on 15th the other day:

And we found out that even though the shop is tiny, there's a piano... and Franklin is welcome to play it whenever he wants :)

And on Sunday Emily and I had some fun on the town while Franklin hung out with Wendy (thanks again!).
I'd definitely recommend From Up On Poppy Hill:

I'd also recommend this New York Times interview with the director, who talks about some of the ways in which they made things look so amazing; or as they say, "shimmering and bustling with life." The slideshow is super cool too.

Be warned, though: if you see the movie, which is set in the early 60's, you may be unable to avoid getting this awesome song in your head:

Thankfully it's so good, since I've been humming it for three days now...

Back at home, as Franklin is fast on the path to discovering the joys of his dad's favorite condiment:



Next time maybe we'll go ahead & help him open the cap ;)

And on Monday Franklin and I tested the theory that you can't read to a baby too much, as we read through one Seattle Times article together and ten different board books.

In any case, one theory did get confirmed: the kid can rock the togs:

Much Ado About Story Time

Although he was a little tentative about all the excitement, and although he mostly watched the hokey-pokey rather than shaking anything all about, Franklin and I had a nice time at our first visit to Toddle Story Time at the Seattle Public Library's Central Library yesterday:

Can't wait for next week!

And hey, no harm in reading about how great it can be to talk and read out loud to babies, right? (Thanks again for the pointer on that, Magen!)

Meanwhile, few things sound better out loud than Shakespeare, so when we heard that the SIFF Opening Night Gala will feature a new movie version of Much Ado About Nothing, Emily and I started thinking Date Night...

And when we saw that it was directed by Joss Whedon and stars, among others, Nathan Fillion, who helped make one of our favorite TV shows... and that they'd both be there for the party? Well, we really had no choice :)

Anyway, that isn't until mid-May... In the meantime, I think we'd better get to work on the chicken that's in our fridge:

Cheers, reader. Happy Friday!

A Few Pointers

So, first of all, it may be time we stop investing in "baby proofing" and start thinking about college funds:

I mean, seriously. What did that take, like fifteen seconds?

We did have some fun on Wednesday's dad & Franklin day, including a walk through Volunteer Park, complete with time spent pointing out koi in the ponds:

He was even pointing out fish I hadn't spotted. Damn impressive stuff. Not sure how I can really keep up with this... Speaking of, I'd better go. Cheers!

Our Young Master at Work

I love that Franklin gets to express his artistic side so often at daycare.

And I love that I don't have to clean up afterward! ;)

My favorite part about this series, though, is definitely the kids lined up watching/waiting for their turn:


Last weekend Franklin also enjoyed his first visit to the Seattle Aquarium. He was in too much of a hurry to see many fish, or pose for many photos:

But he seemed to enjoy crawling and practicing his walking with Tyler and his parents.



Crazy to see how much he's grown! I mean, just compare this recent lunch with Pete photo to some of the earlier ones:


In fact, as you probably heard, although he still fits in the carrier, on our recent hike to Rattlesnake Ledge he made it clear that he wanted to do some hiking himself. I really can't get enough of that video, so I'm going to go ahead & post it again here:

All right, reader. Hope April's treating you well so far!