Catching Up

It's been a long time since we had to manage a baby and the associated equipment.  The other day we took him out for dinner.  Can you guess how many people it takes to put a baby in a car seat?  That was after we had to figure out how to install the car seat.  And yes, that is a puzzled expression on his face.  Apparently Mom and Dad don't take as long to secure him.

When Jeff was the same age, Gayle's mom was in and out of the hospital.  Everyday she would load Jeff up and take him to go visit Grandma Miyoshi in a two door Corolla.   This picture was taken in a mini van with two sliding doors.  Jeff was the miracle baby as every time Grandma saw Jeff, she seemed to rally in strength and spirits.  We now have a deeper understanding of being a Grandparent..

What did we do to celebrate the two year mark of my surgery?  Babysit of course.  I could not think of a better way of remembering my heart attack than spending time with a Grandson I almost didn't meet.

Being Normal

Two years is coming up next week.  I’m not sure what I will do that day to celebrate my survival, but it will probably involve visiting my grandson.  Every time I visit him, I am thankful that I am here to see him.

                                                                     Jeff's birthday

Respect, or Letting go…

With the recent birth of our grandson, some issues have come up as to how to raise the boy Wada.


As last I looked, Gayle and I raised three sons, or I should say Gayle guided the process of caring for the boys and I followed. All three are different, and have different life stories to tell of their upbringing. So why was it a shock to our senses when we were asked to attend a parenting seminar at their church with them. I repeat, didn’t we raise three young men?

Before Camden was born, Gayle and I had discussed the issues of helping to raise the grandchildren. We weren’t just thinking of Cam, but of him and all of his future cousins. Gayle sat down with Tiff and assured her that we would follow their philosophy and methods of raising Cam. Of course she told me this afterwards.

Gayle had anticipated my response of they can’t really control what I do when I am with Cam outside of their presence. A Grand parent’s prerogative is to spoil their grandchildren. But she explained it was more of an issue of letting go, and respect. As Jeff and Tiff chose to marry and start a life on their own, they also decided how they were going to raise their children just as Gayle and I did many years ago.

Now of course this does not mean we always agree with the methodology or web related research. But as I consciously raised my kids in opposition to some aspects as to how I was raised, my sons must do the same.

Gayle has recently been babysitting during the week as Jeff started working full time and Tiff prepares for the new school year, she comes home tired, but happy. She also comes home with a greater understanding of why they chose certain ways of raising Cam. And increased respect for their choices.

But I still have the urge to sneak in a toy or trip to get Ice Cream with Grandpa and Grandma Wada.

What does it feel like to be a Grandpa?

That question comes up a lot lately. Jeff and Tiff invited us to join them at a parenting seminar at their church this past weekend. Gayle and I naturally agreed along with Tiff’s mom. The first thing we noticed was that there were a ton of kids running around and a lot of pregnant mothers. I guess there is no fear of the next generation withering away.

The second most obvious observation was that we were the only grandparents there. All others our age were church members assisting in the running of the program. It didn’t take much for people to figure out we were not parents of young children.

So how does it feel to be a grandparent?

One: the equipment and methods have changed. Cribs with drop down sides are outlawed. Strollers are multifunction (they even have built in cup holders) and multi, multi dollared. There are changing tables in every men’s public restrooms. And don’t even think about using an old car seat from the garage.

Two: You get this urge to purchase all kinds of stuff. I almost bought a Boston Celtic Musical Baby Crib Mobile off of Amazon. I did buy a Batz Maru (Sanrio’s attempt to duplicate the Hello Kitty for boys) stuffed animal when shopping at Marukai. Most of the stuff I would buy is more for when he is older. Little tykes slides, tables, cars, etc. And yes, I did get him his first basketball.

Three: I stare at this kid in wonderment. He amazes me that he exists and that I am alive to see him. He is actually part me. It is verified that he did not inherit the Wada eyebrows, but somewhere buried in Cam’s persona, there is a bit of me. Scary yet exciting.

Four: Whenever I see him, I smile.

Five: I look forward to more grandkids from the three boys, in their time.

Ahhhh

A cousin related the story of her father when her son was born.  He was a man of few words and not that demonstrative in emotions.  But her mom and dad would just drop by unannounced just to hold the baby then leave.  I didn't understand until now.

Day 3 and 4 Deja Vu

Camden was found to have jaundice on his third day.   Cam was able to stay in his bassinet, but with a ultra violet mattress.  Needless to say, he was not happy with the setup and little blindfold.

No, that is not the alien glow, but his home version of the ultra violet blanket .

Uncle Irving just before he leaves for Korea.  He will be Skipping with Cam for the next year in between his English classes.  He has to make sure Cam knows all 4 of his uncles.

 Uncle Jared still trying to find that comfortable position.

 

              

                                                                    Grandma and Grandpa Chu


It took three  of us to change his diaper today (Grandma, Grandpa and Uncle Jared).  And we did it unprotected and escaped with no surprises.  We kind of forgot how to do this. 

Deja vu is because we went through this with Jordan.  Jordan was a little more extreme in that he was once count short of having a transfusion.  He was in one of those plexiglass incubators with an ultra violet light.  Im still trying to find a picture to compare with Cam.

Camden: Day 2

 So I finally figured out how to upload pictures to the Blog.  But not how to rotate the pictures.

Tiff claims it is her nose, and Jeff's eyes, but does he have those famous Wada eyebrows?  There is even a hint of Jared's uptick eyebrow.

Wada eyebrows?

Great Uncle Cliff

 Cliff has decided his title was Great Uncle Cliff vs. Grand Uncle Cliff.  He will claim the title Great before his brother, now Great Uncle Buddy.

Grandma Wada

Grandma and her new #1.  I guess I'm down to #8 behind Gayle, Jeff, Jordan, Jared, Tiff and Jade the dog.   Love at first sight. 

Just Plain Uncle Jordan

 Since Cliff took the Great title, Jordan becomes ?  He was surprised as to how heavy Cam is.  He is no sack of flour.

"uncle" Sean

Sean was the first one there, but patiently waited his turn.  You just need to assist by pushing his glasses up.  Camden sleeps through noise, and eats a lot.  He may never see the floor.

Camden Wada

 We are thrilled to announce the birth of the first grand child in the Howard and Bing Chu and George and Gayle Wada families.  Parents Jeffery and Tiffany Wada, welcomed Camden Nathaniel Wada, Wednesday May 8th 10 pm at Torrance Memorial Hospital .  Cam (all  19" and 7.5 lbs of him) and his mother Tiffany are doing well after entering the world through a C section.

You can now start calling me Gramps, Jichan, Grandpa, etc.

Grandbaby Update

Weds. May 8th, Her water broke and she is in labor as of 8am this morning.
9:20pm,  just got a text that they will perform a C section.

Houston, We Are Currently on Hold.

It is not quite the same as when Jeff was born.  Gayle to this day is not happy about my naps between contractions or the fact her brother brought me food during the process.  Jeff was breached and was born after a long painful back labor.  I can still hear Joyce Miyamoto across the hall going through labor.  At one point the staff were literally throwing the monitoring equipment onto the bed and hauling Gayle out of the room.  Those hospital beds roll pretty fast down those halls.  During the emergency C section I remember Gayle arguing with the anesthesiologist.  The Doctors said when they made the incision, Jeff was facing up and had the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck.  They had a bit of a time prying him out.

Our grandson was due Sat. May 4th.   As you can tell, that date has passed.  Today, Tues. May 7th was the day they were to induce.  The original plan was to check in late afternoon an start the process tonight.  The latest update is they have checked in, they will sleep there over night and start the process in the morning.

This past weekend was our last official FOR basketball tournament.  It;s been about 20 years of basketball the first weekend of May.  It is somewhat of a relief.  But as we complete our cycle, I found myself deeply appreciative of all those who volunteer their time to organize and conduct the tournament.  These are very dedicated folks who contribute their spare time with little recognition.  Asian basketball may be a little obsessive at times down in Southern Cal, but it is deeply tied to the Japanese American Community.  Something our parents established and  felt committed to with great foresight.  Like it or not, Asian basketball helps the JA community survive and thrive.

Waiting Game

OK, we are waiting.

It is a little unsettling that the next phase of our life is dependant on when this little guy decides to enter the world to the joy of his 4 grandparents. 

It is interesting on how perceptions have changed since Jeff was born.  There are new theories on how to position the baby when it sleeps.  One involves a 5K custom mad helmet to help shape the baby's head.
We are relieved that Jeff and Tiff do not subscribe to that theory.

It is amazing how products have changed.  Cribs are now redesigned and the one in my garage that went through 3 boys is now deemed unsafe.  We won't even go into the complexity of the baby car seat.  There are baby mega-stores and more importantly, Amazon (Internet ordering and delivery to your door).  Enough stuff to keep the grandparents enabling the sluggish economy going for some time.

I'm reluctant to publish the name before he is born.  Gayle and I took days and numerous changes to the birth certificate before they left the hospital.  I don't think that is the case, but be sure it won't start with a J and I know there is little chance that there will be a duplicate Wada name. 

I will give you the same hint we got, it is related to baseball and starts with a C.  That's all we got, that's all you get.  I don't think an Internet search will help.  If you guess right, I will send you your complimentary See's sucker of your choice.

Did you know See's now have candy cigars?  I have two boxes of suckers waiting to give out.  The problem will be, not consuming all of them before he is born.  And yes, you have a better chance of guessing the birth date than his name.

Two Eagles and a Drum Major

One constant theme that runs through this blog is that the three sons are unique in their own right.  The main common denominator is that they are all called Wada vs. their first name.  Jared still does not understand this phenomenon.  Tiff married into it.

All three did the same activities as they grew up with different results.  Sansei Baseball, judo, Torrance parks and rec, basketball, scouts, etc.  At most, two of the three will have accomplished something in common.  As of March, Jared was confirmed at the rank of Eagle Scout by the Pacifica District of Los Angeles.  It was a proud moment for us as parents as we know he did it on his own initiative.

His oldest brother Jeff is also an Eagle.  Jordan had decided it was not for him and went on to be selected as the West High Band Drum Major, leading the band thorough one of it's most successful years.  The point is often lost in the purpose of Boy Scouts.  Even though Jordan decided to drop out of scouts, the lesson's learned have been immense.  My ultimate goal was to make sure they had the skills to survive if there was a major earthquake.  The second goal was to have them backpack to experience hiking and camping.  It turns out that Jeff and Jordan are now the experts in camping when they go with their friends.  There has been an unexpected benefit that all three are reluctant to admit.  Leadership skills.

Which brings me to those who volunteer to lead and train these young men.  Jared was lucky,  He was fortunate  to have Ron Taji as his Sscoutmaster.  After years of observing Ron, he would guide them through a process of learning.  He spent 10 years as the Sscoutmaster and I truly believe that each scout that went through the troop irregardless of what rank they achieved, learned from this dedicated leader.

For Jared, he started with a group of kids that he knew from school and went up the ranks with them.  At last count there are seven of them to have reached the rank of Eagle within months of each other.  All have shown a dedication and affection to the Sscoutmaster who led them.

Engineering Seduction

The area network copier is located just outside my cubicle. So I see a high amount of foot traffic of people collecting their printed documents. One of the reasons why I have a noise cancelling headset is to ignore the constant drone of printing documents.

There are a few things that attract engineers. The number one attraction is free food. Like rats they sniff it out from all corners of the building and as soon as the munchies are gone, they disappear. It should be noted that it does not matter what type of food it is as long as it’s free, salad and vegies included, but are usually the last to be consumed. Number two on the list is a broken Xerox machine. Engineers cannot resist trying to fix a copier. It drives the Xerox repair folks crazy. Their first comment is usually “who tried to fix this?” and next comment is “Those *#@$& engineers”.

A normal employee will come by, look at the listed fault, and try to follow the trouble shooting instructions. After a few minutes, they give up and go find another machine. An engineer will come by, open up the copier door and start taking the machine apart. And they will spend from 20 to 40 minutes doing this. If unsuccessful, they will go away, but come back an hour later and try again.

Now at no time will anyone bother to read the numerous signs posted instructing them what to do when the machine malfunctions. And neither will anyone bother calling the posted repair number. It is only when the admin accidentally strolls by and notices the machine is down. The only other person who will call is typically a woman who has a husband that tries to fix things at home. She will mutter something like “my husband does this all the time and I have to call the plumber to fix what he messed up”.

Of course the repair technicians they send out are another story. They tend not to read the reported problem and proceed to tear the machine apart with all its parts spread out in front of my cube entrance. Apparently they get paid by the hour. But at least it all gets put back together and the copier is in working order again.

The correlation here is that I am the same way at home. If something is broken, I proceed to take it apart. And half (?) the time, it does not get fixed. Gayle gave up long time ago and lives with the list of half finished fix it projects. I on the other hand I continue to collect tools to finish the projects.

Which brings me to the general category of men.  Working on numerous Boy Scout Eagle projects over the years, I have observed that men are obsessed with their tools.  We collect tools. And the status of the tool collector is determined by his collection of the brand name tools.  Makita, DeWalt, Craftsman are the top of the line. Ryobi, Black and Decker are in the middle, Harbor Freight is at the bottom.  But as I found out at the last project, there are a lot of closet Harbor Freight junkies out there.  A HF recently opened close by in Torrance.  I confess that I take pride in my Makita tools, but also confess that a good portion of my collection is from HF.  My thought process is that if I’m only going to use it once in a while, why pay four times the price.  In reality, it just works and it’s just cheaper, especially with a coupon.  Did I mention that I love my Makita drills and saws? 

Choices

We all die at one point in our lives, or I should say at the final step in our lives on earth. The mystery of life is how we will die. Most of us don’t choose, but wait for the cause of our fate to be revealed.

Every day, the main surprise in my life is what new ache or pain I will experience and whether to take Tylenol, Advil or Aleve. I looked at our Kitchen table last night and noticed it was cleared of misc. items such as empty containers, cans of food and long missing items (I’ve been looking for that!!).

Gayle had organized it all into neat rows and sections. But it was all medically related, prescriptions, vitamin supplements, weekly pill containers, and a selection of pain relievers. During my excursions at Costco, I used to think how anyone can sonsume that many pills before the expiration date. I now have a wide variety of time released, extra strength and generic vs. brand name items. Cold remedies, allergy and Lactaid are kept in a separate area. Then there is the section for the dog which seems to grow every month.

So which of these ailments that I spend a fortune on will be the one to finally put me to rest? With my luck I will be hit by a bus.

Legacy

There have been many conversations with Gayle recently as we enter that grandparent phase of life. Discussions have centered around what we have passed on to our children. Values, quirks and of course those dreaded “He’s your son” character traits.


Now it has been obvious that I am not perfect or even near perfect (surprised?). OK, mildly put, I am difficult. My saving grace is that I won’t be around to hear what people say about me at my funeral. Gayle’s will be simple,” How did she put up with him for so long?”. I digress. We often discuss our son’s and what we have passed on to them. It invariably comes down to as the father, what I have passed down. The long range view on this is, what have I passed on to my grandson through my son. Yikes.

Phase 3

It has been some time since my last entry.  Time to catch up. I did mention that we are now approaching a new phase in our lives. Well the retirement phase is out as Jared graduates high school and approaches college and Jordan applying to graduate school.


I don’t think it has hit me yet but Jeff and Tiff are expecting their first child on May 4th. I find it somewhat ironic that heir first child will be born around the FOR basketball tournament. It was 3 years ago Jeff had injured his back during the tournament weekend.

How have times have changed in how we celebrate events.  Jeff and Tiff's friends threw an unveiling party. That is in the same category of "Save the Date" postcards. . The perspective parents don’t know the sex of the baby due to the Dr. sealing the sonogram in an envelope.  The parents hand over the sealed envelope to their trusted friends and they bake a cake that is either pink or blue inside.

Tiff’s friends had a chalk board at the entrance so everyone could cast their vote , boy or girl.  To find out the gender, everyone gathers around and  they cut the cake.   By the way, we didn't eat the cake.  Apparently it takes a large quantity of food dye to get it that blue.  They had blue frosted cupcakes and "It's a boy!" decorations in another room.

Now if you are familiar with Wadas, you will have no problem guessing baby boy or girl Wada. Let me preface this with everywhere we go, we see cute pink girly clothes,  toys, etc. We are always extremely tempted to purchase all this stuff (OK, I'm tempted). I already have a car seat picked out at Costco to be permanently installed in Grampa Wada's van. Jared’s seat in back of Gayle has been displaced by his nephew.

Wada boys beget Wada Boys.

Yes it was blue. Only 3 voted for a boy. Gayle, myself and Tiff's dad Howard. Of all the Wada boy cousins, there is only one girl among 10 boys. Include the female cousins it bumps it to 4 girls to 14 boys.   Now comes the hard part.  His name.  Jeff and Tiff will not reveal his chosen name, but it is difficult due to the quantity of boy Wadas out there without duplication.  And Tiff being a teacher eliminates memorable students.  As long as he is not named George.