Til Darth Do We Part

Anyone else think there's something funny about this? I guess I never considered the romance of a Darth Vader head.

And while we're at it, take a look at this fortune I got a few months ago.

I'm still wondering what it means. Should I do right...or not? I don't think this is authentic Confucius.

Blog Ketchup

Yes, it's time to update the blog already. But, you say, it's only been 5 months since the last entry! I know, I know but my public's clamoring for more. So this one's dedicated to you, Rochelle.

First of all, Mika's baby doll got a twin sister in November. We call her Rose and we like her an awful lot.

In December, like good Christians and consumers, we celebrated Christmas. Justin's parents and older sis came up to join (create) the festivities and we're so glad they did. Mika's Big Present was her bike and bike hat. She LOVES them (phew!).

And finally, here's a true story.

I thought lotto tickets might make a funny gift so I was at Albertsons standing in front of the ticket machine pondering the options and moral implications, when an unsavory fellow came up. He wasn't the sort I'd normally start a conversation with, but a common interest in the lotto machine created a bond that empowered me to speak. Besides, I wanted information. "So how do these work?" Before I could continue, he started thumbing a wad of cash that I hadn't noticed til then and said in a condescending tone, "Well you put in money and push a button and out it comes at the bottom." He put actions to words, bought a $1 ticket and said, "Here you go!" That was unexpected generosity. I took the ticket, said thank you, and asked what I really wanted to know in the first place. "Do I have to scratch this right away or can I wait a while?" He gave a helpful but incorrect answer and left. I looked down at the ticket he bought me. Triple Latte. Ha! Gambling and coffee - how perfect for a devout Mormon. Couldn't he have spent a buck more and bought me a bingo card? That looked more fun. I was too embarassed to give it away so two months later I finally got around to scratching the ticket myself. I won $2.

Mika Photographer

Actually, we'd rather she become a dentist...

But I suppose a photographer's not bad. Not that she has any special skills at it, but 1 out of 50 of her pictures turns out surprisingly well. That's about the same as my success ratio. Just goes to show, any monkey can do use a point-and-shoot. Her forte is apparently in portraits. Here are my favorites.

It's a Girl!

Shocked me and Justin. We were both convinced it's a boy, but the ultrasound technician was pretty sure. Mika shrugged it off like it was no big deal and went straight back to her Sesame Street video.

For some, the surprise isn't that the baby's a girl, but that I'm pregnant at all. Twenty weeks pregnant with 20 left to go, more or less depending on how lucky I am. So the main reason we thought we were having a boy was because the pregnancy has been so different in nausea intensity. I haven't needed any medication and I've thrown up only 3 times - once on the plane, once right after the plane, and once because I was so hungry I threw up. Didn't know that was possible, but at least there's not much that comes out in that case.

Insistent - Socks & Shoes

1/5/09

Mika and I were trying on clothes in a dressing room and she got the brilliant idea of swapping socks. "Ha ha, why not?" I thought. So she pulled on my black socks and I put her socks on my big toes and we had a good laugh. The she wanted her shoes on. "Well that's gonna feel gross, but whatever." It was all fun and games until she insisted on keeping my socks, like pitch-a-fit insistent. So I gave up and she wore my socks the rest of the day while I went sockless in my black wingtips in cold, wet weather. Talk about feeling gross.

1/13/09

At first glance, just a fun picture of the Meeks. But if you look closer, you'll notice her shoes are on the wrong feet. Ick. As she was putting them on, I tried to gently explain that she needed to switch, but she didn't want to hear that, see?

3/14/09

And finally, one time after her bath, Mika insisted on putting on her red shoes...before ANYTHING else.

Mika with Animals

This is part deux of the blog dedication to Collin, Justin's younger bro. He requested a black and white photo montage of Mika with animals. Unfortunately, this is neither black & white, nor a montage, (nor taxidermy for that matter, so sorry Collin), but it is ... Mika ... With ... Animals! Here we go.

Mika with dog and monkey ballerina blanket.

Mika with dog.

Mika with dog, Mr. Bunny and Ann.

Mika wearing Mr. Bunny's shirt.

Mr. Bunny wearing Mika's jacket.

Helping Mr. Bunny stand up in Mika's jacket and boots.

Not just a hug, that's a wipe on the bear's bumbum.



Mika got a rubber snake from Chad and Lindsay at Christmas. She wasn't much interested in it, until Justin taught her it was a Kissing Snake.

Do inflatable aliens count as animals?

A throwback to the Cincinnati Zoo days, when Mika was 10 months old (with a LIVE animal).

This One Goes Out to Collin!

Strangely enough, after the first post, Justin's youngest brother was the first to request a blog update, so this is dedicated to Collin, rock star professor of the future! (There might have to be a part deux to this, because obviously this post does not contain the black-and-white-photos-of-Mika-with-animals montage that you requested, Collin.)

Believe it or not, we've spent the past four Christmases coast to coast and across the pond, all of them with Collin. Here's the rundown:


2008 - Oceanside, California. True to Lindsay's pregnancy schedule, it was another Rabe reunion. Chad and Lindsay were extremely gracious hosts, even deigning to play "Pass Around the Sick". Mika was 18 months old. The video shows her skill with a bean bag toss (thanks uncle collin).

2007 - Arlington, Virginia. Justin was doing an internship in DC and Collin was in his first year at Johns Hopkins so he joined us at the Haraguchi homestead. Mika was 6 months old.


2006 - Paris, France. (The Meal) Hooray, Ann didn't chicken out and we went to Europe! Collin was in Italy at the time so he joined us in Rome and came along to Paris, probably for the food. Le Odeon was it? Ask for the back room. Mika was a bun in the oven.

2005 - Cleveland, Ohio. (The Deal) A Rabe reunion featuring such highlights as a trip to Niagara Falls and of course the stick that looked like a dog. May May was a bun in Lindsay's oven.


Collin, how bout Seattle for Christmas '09?