Cubs Game and Starting High School

We had one last summer outing this week as we went to our first Cubs game at Wrigley Field as a family.

It took a while to get over the jet lag after returning from Japan, but we were in good spirits on this afternoon. Kai's constant anxiety with getting sick has finally ended. He did get a very minor cold - certainly nothing worth all the stress he had - and it didn't stop him from enjoying the free time he had the past week and a half.

The first thing we did when we got home from Japan was to schedule appointments with a doctor and a therapist to discuss his anxiety. His medication was increased and there was a lot of discussion with him over all the stress he had (and caused). Not sure how much all of that had to do with his calming down versus just being home and back in his comfortable surroundings, but we're all feeling better now.

Kai and I went to a Cubs game last fall, but that was in Milwaukee when the Cubs played the Brewers. I wanted to take everyone to see a game at Wrigley, and had bought tickets way back in February.

In the days leading up to the ballgame, it looked like it might rain on game day, but we lucked out as there was no rain all day. It was actually a very nice day. At one point when the sun came out, Kai started to complain about it being too hot and said that it was like being back in Japan. We told him that this was nothing like Japan as the temperature was more than 20 degrees cooler.

The other thing that was very different than Japan is that the food selection at the ballpark was all non-healthy, traditional ballpark fare. We all had footlong Chicago hot dogs. I enjoyed it but my wife said later that she felt ill from eating it.

But the ball game was great. The Cubs scored a lot and won 8-4 over their rival Brewers. Kai was very happy!

He said it was the best baseball game he's ever been to. I don't know about that as we have been to several really entertaining games, but I was glad that he had fun, as did we all.

The other big event this week was that Kai started high school. He went for about on hour on Tuesday for Freshman Prep Day, getting his id photo taken, buying his gym shirt and shorts, and doing other administrative things. And then he had his first day of classes on Friday. Actually it was only a half day, and there wasn't much teaching or studying, but he was in the classroom.

So it was an easy day, and happily there were no incidences.

We have told Kai that this is a fresh start for him, and a great opportunity for him to make a good first impression so he should be friendly to other students and to staff. It frustrates me that he doesn't seem to understand.

But anyway, we're off! So far so good, but we'll keep our seatbelts fastened as turbulence can arise without notice. :)

2018 Japan Vacation, Day 6 - Tokyo Dome

Today was all about the Tokyo Dome.

We had a relaxed morning before taking the subway to the Tokyo Dome. We had tickets to the Tokyo Giants baseball game and would be staying the night at the Tokyo Dome Hotel.

We got there around lunchtime as my wife and her mother had a spa appointment near the Dome for the afternoon. But first we had lunch at the MLB Cafe located next to the Dome. There are no MLB Cafes in the US, but the Japanese are big baseball fans and there are a number of Japanese stars who play in the MLB.

Kai and I ordered a Pokemon drink that came with collectors buttons.

We all had pizza for lunch.

There was a big screen tv above us that was showing the LA Angels game live. Japanese sensation Shohei Ohtani was playing for the Angels.

After lunch, us menfolk killed time in the afternoon while the ladies went to the spa.

First we went to a Sega center where Kai looked at Pokemon prizes and took pictures of them.

There is an amusement park next to the Dome. Kai and I rode this water ride.

I got quite drenched but it was fun.

We walked around a nearby mall for a bit before heading to our hotel room to pass the time until it was time to walk over to the Tokyo Dome.

This is now my third Japanese baseball game.

It is always fun to check out the food choices.

The atmosphere at Japanese baseball games is different than at American games. For one thing, they have cheerleaders who perform before the game and during the 7th inning stretch.

We settled into our seats just prior to the start of the game.

I had a sukiyaki bento box. Kai had yakisoba that came in a mini Giants baseball helmet.

My wife is holding Kai's edamame in the previous photo. She had menchikatsu (ground pork) sandwich.

The fans in right field were especially exuberant. They had a band and had special chants and songs for each Giants batter. In the 7th inning stretch, they unfurled a giant banner.

It was a low-scoring game until the bottom of the 8th inning when the Giants bats came alive. Kai loved it.

He really enjoys seeing baseball games live, and had a lot of fun at this game.

The Giants went on to win 5-0. Their starting pitcher went all the way, something you rarely see in the MLB or in Japan as well these days.

EDITED: I belatedly realized that not only did Yamaguchi throw a complete-game shutout, he actually pitched a no hitter! He had walked a batter in the 7th inning and the runner eventually ended up nearly scoring so I hadn't initially noticed that the pitcher was throwing a no hitter. Also, Japanese crowds are so enthusiastic all throughout the game that it wasn't unusually loud at the end. But, anyway, we got to witness a bit of Japanese baseball history that night!

After the game, we went to the amusement park and rode the ferris wheel. We had a nice view of the Dome and our hotel.

In the distance we could also see the Tokyo Skytree and Tokyo Tower (though my photos of those did not come out well).

This being Japan, this was not just an ordinary Ferris wheel - it was a karaoke ferris wheel.

Kai did not like any of the English language song choices (Let It Go, Celine Dion's Titanic song, etc.) but we got him to sing a little bit and we all had a good laugh at our own expense.

And so ended a good, fun, day. It may have been Kai's favorite on the trip so far.

Our Summer, So Far

We've had a fun start to summer.

We had some extremely hot and humid weather so we've had a lot of occasions to make homemade shave ice. Here we're about to have Mom's favorite, ichiban style, just like they make at Matsumoto's Shave Ice in Hawaii.

Besides the ice, you add green tea flavoring, condensed milk, ice cream, mochi, and azuki beans.

With the heat last weekend, it was great pool weather.

We went later in the afternoon when it was less crowded and Kai enjoyed playing splash games with me. My arm was hurting the next day from lifting the buckets of water over and over to splash Kai.

On the 4th of July, my wife made brisket sandwiches.

And a red, white and blue(ish) ice cream cake!

Later that evening we went to watch our community's fireworks.

We went back to our usual spot at the Rec Center parking lot where we are close to the fireworks.

Afterward, Kai enjoyed some sparklers.

This Friday, we enjoyed a nice visit from my nephew Ian and his wife Susan. It was the first time we had seen them since their wedding this spring.

The next day we met them in Milwaukee for a Brewers game.

The racing sausages are a fun part of the experience at Miller Park.

The game wasn't particularly exciting, especially if you were a Brewers fan, but we had good seats and I enjoyed hanging out with Ian. Also, as a Cubs fan, it didn't bother me at all that the Brewers lost. Kai likes live games much better than watching on television and he seemed to have a good time, too. He got a souvenir chorizo sausage plush character.

This weekend was cooler than last so we decided to take advantage with a bike ride this morning. We tried out a new trail near our house.

It isn't very scenic as the trail runs between a railroad and the highway, but it is nicely paved and very straight. As Kai has gotten taller and with his new bike from last fall, he seems to enjoy riding much more than he used to.

Hope you're having a nice summer, too.

Father-and-Son Outing: First Cubs Game

I am a huge baseball fan, and a Cubs fan in particular, but I have not gone to a Cubs game with Kai. Until now.

I rarely watch sports on tv anymore, but whenever I do, Kai shows no interest in watching games with me. He is just not a sports fan, and while I would have liked if he shared one of my strong interests, I have come to accept that we are just different, and that's okay.

But it's not just that he has little interest in baseball. Going to Wrigley Field is bit of a hassle having to come in from the suburbs and park a mile or two away. (It was much easier when I was single and lived in the city.) Tickets are hard to come by, not to mention being expensive. Would it be worth it when Kai's behavior could be unpredictable? I still recall when we went to spend an afternoon of watching horse racing at Arlington Park and had to leave after the first race because Kai had had enough.

But the Cubs have been playing well in the second half of this season, and there was a big series against the second place Milwaukee Brewers. The weather was unusually summer-like, and I found out that there were still tickets available for the games to be played in Milwaukee, which is less than an hour and a half from our house in the northern suburbs of Chicago.

We had dogs this weekend and my wife could not leave them for the afternoon, so I asked Kai if he wanted to go to the game with just me. We do most of our outings as a threesome, and Kai loves to have Mom present for everything, so I was a bit surprised when he said that he wanted to go.

So we drove up to Miller Park on a hot Sunday afternoon.

We got to our seats just as the game was starting. It was steaming hot and Kai told me he was distracted from paying attention to the game because it was too hot.

But we sat for a while and got less hot, and then got some big cold drinks and tacos to eat. Sorry, no pictures of the food as the tacos were tasty but very messy to eat.

Anyway, after that, Kai settled in nicely and enjoyed the game.

It was a low scoring game and the most excitement through six innings might have been the traditional sausage race, won this time by Chorizo.

But we had excitement in the 7th inning when Ben Zobrist of the Cubs hit a home run that put the Cubs ahead 3-0. Kai was thrilled!

During the 7th inning stretch, I had him respectfully remove his cap for the singing of God Bless America.

I don't know that Kai completely followed all the little nuances that baseball fans love about the game, but he had fun. He loved looking at the electronic scoreboard that showed fans dancing between innings, and cheered when the Cubs did something well. There is something about a live sporting event that is much more exciting than watching on television. And so, just like the baseball games we saw in Japan in Hiroshima and Yokohama, and the one at Fenway Park two summers ago, Kai had a great time.

When the final out was made, and the Cubs had won 5-0, Kai gave a big cheer and flashed two thumbs up as I took his picture.

That evening, at bedtime, I told him that I was very happy that he went to the game with me and that I had a lot of fun with him. Unprompted, he thanked me for taking him and said he had fun, too. More than Zobrist's home run, or Jose Quintana's shutout, that was the biggest highlight of my day.

New England Vacation – Day 15: Portland Lighthouse, and Kai’s Happiest Time

The day started off quietly and ended with a roar, but in a good way (mostly) this time.

Maine is said to have a lot of lighthouses, but we hadn’t seen too many of them, perhaps partly because of the fog that was present during most of our stay.

But on our last day there, the fog finally lifted. So, on our way out of Portland, we went to see the Portland Head Light.

This lighthouse is Maine’s oldest, and one of its most photographed. After seeing it, I understand why.

The park surrounding the lighthouse is beautiful. And on this day, we were finally able to get a clear view of the shoreline, and of the islands nearby.

And then we were off, stopping briefly in Kennebunkport to get one last look at Maine’s rocky shores.

Once back in Massachusetts, we visited Salem, famous for its Witch Trials in the late 17th century.

We went to the visitor center and saw a film that described the events of the day, where hysteria reigned and people were hanged on the flimsiest of evidence. We then walked through a memorial that honors the victims.

We made it to our hotel in Cambridge around 3PM which left plenty of time to hit the pool and then leave for our final major activity of the vacation – taking in a baseball game at Fenway Park.

Being a big baseball fan, this was the one activity on the trip that was mostly for me. I had never seen the venerable old ballpark and it was on my bucket list. Kai did have a good time last summer at a baseball game in Japan, so I was hoping he would tolerate this okay,

When we found our seats and sat down, I was a bit disappointed. We had seats in the last row of the lower deck grandstand, and while we could see the playing field fine, our views of the rest of the park were obstructed by the upper deck hanging over us. Plus, as my wife pointed out, the seats themselves were very small and uncomfortable. And with Boston not scoring any runs early in the game, the crowd was somewhat subdued. It did not compare at all to the fabulous experience we had at the baseball game in Hiroshima.

But just as I was resigned to leaving the park early, Kai started to get really into the game.

From the time we were in the car earlier, he was making comments about how awful Boston was, primarily because of all the walking he had to do when we were here at the start of the vacation, and how crowded the city was. (He seems to have forgotten that we had some good times in the city as well including visits to the aquarium and science museum). And so, he would be cheering for the opposing team, the Kansas City Royals, just because he wanted to root against Boston.

Kai wasn’t paying too much attention to the game at first, but when the Royals jumped out to a 5-0 lead, he started to get excited. I was happy that he was enjoying himself, but was concerned about him disturbing the fans around us as he was cheering for KC (or more accurately, cheering against the Red Sox) quite loudly.

He did pause his cheering of the opposing team to join me and the crowd in the traditional singing of Sweet Caroline.

With Kansas City leading 6-2 late in the game, Kai was very loud on every pitch.

“Get him out! Get him out!” he exhorted when Boston was batting.

“Dad, I’m finally having fun in Boston!”

He thought the game was won.

In the bottom of the ninth inning, the Red Sox loaded the bases and brought the winning run to the plate. If the Red Sox were to miraculously come back and win the game, we’d have a very angry boy on our hands.

So, though I was cheering for the Sox the whole game, I was very relieved when they made the final out.

Kai was thrilled. It was the happiest he had been the entire vacation.

The only thing that made him even happier is what we are doing tomorrow.

“Dad, we’re going home tomorrow! Woo hoo!”

Are You Ready for Some Kai Ball?

The turning of the calendar reminds me that we are entering that special time of year – prime sports season!  When I was single, October was one of my favorite months.  My two favorite sports are in high gear.  Baseball season comes to an exciting finish with the playoffs and World Series while football is ramping up into mid-season.  As an avid sports fan, you can’t do better than that.

As a father though, I haven’t had time to watch many games.  My attempts to interest my son in sports have been met with only limited success.  In fact, the most success I had actually happened by chance. 

In June, while Kai was getting probes attached to his head for his 48-hour EEG, we turned on the television to keep him distracted.  A baseball game was on.  Although he previously had not shown much interest, this game caught his attention when it went into extra innings.  With his love of numbers, the discovery that a game could go to two-digits was positively thrilling for Kai.  It took quite a long time for the technician to attach all the probes and I was concerned that the game would end and so would Kai’s patience with the getting the probes put on.  But, we were lucky that the game lasted long enough for the technician to finish up.

For the next several weeks, Kai wanted to watch baseball at dinnertime instead of his usual videos.  It was my good fortune that his interest coincided with the White Sox’ best hot streak of the season.  I actually was able to watch several games as the Sox moved into first place.  But, as the summer went on, Kai’s interest in baseball faded, as did the Sox’ winning ways.

Kai’s interest in playing sports is, so far, only mildly more than in watching it on television.  We recently had the bad, and then good experience with soccer.  But, overall, he just has not been too interested in playing.

So, it’s been my pleasant surprise lately that he has asked me to go play baseball with him in the front yard.  Now, playing baseball with Kai is not like playing baseball with other kids.  In fact, it’s not really baseball at all.  I call it Kai Ball.

The only part that resembles baseball is that a ball is pitched and the batter hits it.  What happens after that is more a combination of tag and football.  The batter, usually Kai, runs around while the pitcher, usually me, grabs the ball and chases him.  There are no bases, just a lot of running all over the yard.  For a little guy, he runs really fast.  But, eventually I’ll chase him down and grab him.  If I’m not too exhausted, I’ll spin him around before gently “tackling” and tickling him.  Between the running and spinning, I’m usually dizzy and ready to pass out, but he sure loves it.  The best part for me is hearing him laugh and laugh throughout all the chasing and tackling. 

This October, I am not sure how many football games I will watch.  I probably won’t see too much of the World Series.  But, if I get in a few more games of Kai Ball, I will be happy.  After all, it’s now my new favorite sport.