Tennis, Poker and Retail Therapy

The kids are having a good time but of course so have I. Keiko and I have been shopping every day. She is such a serious shopper, it's like she is Berni's retail biological sister and I'm the odd one out. I did buy out Gymboree and Children's Place on their summer sales. (At least everything that Keiko didn't buy.)

Was invited to poker night at the Baron's. Played tournament style for the first time to my dislike. The boys like heads up play and all that testoterone driven betting. The food was worth more than the $20 I lost. Des made pulled pork sandwiches, a salad with hot mushrooms and a baked vegetable dish with chipotle sauce. I think she's amazing but all her friends are great home entertainers as well. My crowd in Tokyo don't do much fancy home dinners. Kyoko G makes a great pasta dish and peanut butter cookies. Hiroshi and I made three different curries for a party which was a great hit and the party was great fun.

But the biggest highlight was playing tennis for the first time in ten years!! Keiko was an intermediate player in her twenties and we are exactly the same level! We played to a 5-5 tie and didn't have the stamina to play a tie-breaker. I'd love to play again next week but we'll have the girls with us.

Otherwise, I'm watching a little tv, reading books. I'll post photos for this next week. Keiko and I sweating it out at the courts.

Summer camps サマースクール

りおとれいなのサマースクールです。セイント・ジョージという私立の学校です。８０％遊び、２０％勉強ってかんじかな。。。りおはチェスや演劇を学んでいる。れいなはオカリナ（簡単な楽器）や自然科学。親友のジュリとピカははもちろん、新しい友達と遊びのが楽しいです。

Isn't the St. George campus beautiful? This is the kids are going to day camp. Reina, Pika and Juri are posing with Dora popsicles.

Rio is going to camp for three weeks here. The first was creative writing where he made lots of good friends. Rio is walking happily with Jackie and his sister. Jackie taught Rio how to play chess. They were attending different camps the following week so they made a pact to meet at the bathroom at 11 am! How sweet. But they never followed through because neither had a watch...

The next week he did a chess camp which he really adored. He openly expressed his fondness for his teacher which he rarely does. He asked me what "geek" was a while back and he wasn't really satisfied with my answer. But when I said his teacher was well, "a geek," the lightbulb went off and he nodded. He wants to join the chess club at his new school. We even had a game after swimming lessons because the community has open chess outside on Friday nights. I won. But it's not for me. I hate wasting precious brain cells on games...

Reina learned to play the ocarina with Juri and Pika. She was excited to make a friend Rachel. All the girls loved Shingo, their teacher who is cool. The second week the girls attended a camp at the Richmond Nature Park. They had a field trip to Centennial Beach and Reina was shocked at how cold the water was. Remember Canadian waters are for polar bears to swim in!!!

I will post more photos and comments once the lovely and highly organized Keiko ever sends them to me...