Sunday, April 18, 2010

Sayonara to Sakura...

We spent a lot of time over the past few weeks walking along Meguro River during the Sakura blossom season.....we and thousand of others...but it was a great time! It's even funnier at night when we can see a bunch of happy, drunk people hanging around under the cherry trees while they eat and get even more drunk. I love taking walks and chasing the cherry blossoms as they fall off the branches. Mama and papa don't think they are so tasty but I love eating them.




We had a great view of some Sakura trees from our house...

...but it's always sad towards the end of cherry blossom season when they fall into the river to be carried away until next year. I'd love to be philosophical now but I'd rather leave it at that and let the readers decide how you feel...

As always, a few of papa's creations for dinner lately. Omelet rice (chicken and tomato rice covered in an egg omelet)...

...and a pasta dish of fresh spinach and tomato linguine...

Papa was watching a cooking show the other day hoping to learn a new dish made with asparagus. This is what the TV show cook made. Looked a little over-cooked to papa...he was definitely not impressed. How could anyone televise a TV cooking show that burns asparagus??? It was awful!!! And they were serious about this recipe. It was supposed to be marinaded asparagus but papa called it marinaded carbon. The "chef" should be fired.


And, as always, I've been busy...

I generally break new toys in under 2 minutes so papa found toys made by Orka that I can't break and keep me occupied for hours when papa stuffs food inside...
Papa thinks it is one of the best investment he's ever made. The first time he put beef jerky inside and then wrapped the toy in cloth from his old pants, it took me an hour to get the food out. Papa and mama were so grateful for the hour of peace and quiet.

Mama and papa went to a maternity fair on Saturday. They are 95% decided on the stroller they will buy. They both love the Peg Perego Si. Aprica also makes some pretty good stuff. The biggest disappointment was Maclaren. So many people have Maclaren strollers but mama and papa found them to be inferior. Safety is the most important element of buying a stroller, but in Japan, items must also be compact, easy to use and convenient (i.e. can open and close it with 1 hand). The Maclaren strollers have a strange way of folding up and do not stand by themselves when folded. Anyhow, we only have another million decisions to make for the baby so we're getting there.

4 comments:

SK said...

Roots,
A good asparagus recipe from your Auntie in Oakville,
Cut Asparagus about 2 inches long
Blanch
Slice Top Sirloin in thin slices and marinade in Teriyaki sauce, garlic, ginger & sake for 30 minutes
wrap 3 pieces of asparagus in a slice of beef
Put on a cookie tray to cook just until beef is done (only take a couple of minutes - don't overcook).
I'm not a meat eater but this is one recipe that I always have people commenting on.

Sk said...

Oh, I should mention that the slice of beef is wrapped so the asparagus sticks out end. Beef is in the middle

===Beef====>> (the lines and arrows are the asparagus...good picture, eh)?

Naomi :-) said...

California has the same sort of cement rivers as Japan. How you can call them rivers is beyond me. The sakura were beautiful! In June (now), our Jacaranda trees bloom purple flowers even though they have no leaves. They stand out as you look around the neighborhoods, reminding us how nature can produce phenomenal colors. Well, except in the case of the non-artificially colored Smarties. Thanks for the blog, more please!!!

Anonymous said...

That Orka toy looks like great fun...
- - - - - - -
Jack@PDB
dog beds and more