Author: David Chart
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Life Insurance
Yesterday, I applied for life insurance. Now I have a daughter, this has become rather necessary. As is normal with these traditionally complicated and intimidating things, I had to do it in Japanese. (At some point, I will have to make a will in Japanese as well. The main reason that hasn’t happened yet is…
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Feeding Troubles
You would think that, if anything were instinctive, breast feeding would be. Apparently not, however. We went for another check-up for Mayuki yesterday, and she doesn’t seem to be getting enough to drink. The main problem seems to be that she has been sleeping through times when she should be fed, and hasn’t been attaching…
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These Lungs Were Made For Talking
…but for now they’re going to cry. Yes, Mayuki has truly discovered the wonderful potential of her lungs and throat for making a piercing sound that, if continued for long enough, makes whatever is bothering her go away. Whether her mother appears with the Magic Milk Machines, or her nappy suddenly gets dry and comfortable,…
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Registration, Part One
A couple of days ago, I went to the Ward Office to get Mayuki properly registered in Japan. She now has her Japanese birth certificate, and is, or will soon be, registered on Yuriko’s family record, which proves that she is Japanese. (I don’t get properly registered there; I’m just a footnote.) The next step…
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Noises in the Night
Mayuki woke up and cried last night. Yuriko was right on it, but it still took a while to settle her. Fortunately, because Yuriko was right on it, I didn’t need to wake up properly, so I got back to sleep quickly once Mayuki settled. At the moment, we seem to be working on a…
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New Lifestyle
So Mayuki has been home for a couple of days, and I’m trying to get used to my new lifestyle. I’ve changed a few nappies, helped with a bath, and managed to get a full night’s sleep despite the presence of the baby. This was due to Yuriko keeping Mayuki quiet, and thus getting very…
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Mayuki is Home
Yuriko and Mayuki came home from the hospital today. Mayuki is currently asleep in her cot in the bedroom, and so Yuriko is also taking a nap. Mayuki has been sleeping quite a lot today, which does not bode well for her sleeping a lot tonight… I suppose I have to get used to this.…
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What’s in a Name?
Quite a few people have asked me where Mayuki’s name came from, and Japanese names work a bit differently from Western ones, so I think it might be worth explaining here. Japanese law only allows people to have two names, a given name and a family name. The family name is determined by the name…
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The Happy Event
Last night, our daughter was born. Mayuki (Ma-yu-ki) was about 2800 grammes, and mother and baby are doing well. Yesterday morning, Yuriko’s waters broke. We weren’t sure that that was what it was, because the amount of liquid was fairly small, but after checking the leaflet from the clinic, we decided that it would be…
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A Parents’ and Teachers’ Guide to Bilingualism
I’ve been reading a lot of books about bilingual education, and this is the latest. Actually, I’ve read three, and the other two are both recommended in the back of this one, which is quite encouraging. They all have distinctly different approaches, but they also all agree on two points. First, raising your child bilingual…