How to Entertain Yourself in a 450 Sq. Foot Apartment

It isn't easy to allocate space when four people are sharing a small area, but the kids have found numerous ways to entertain themselves despite the limitations.  

p.s. the kids did not draw the car, it was courtesy of Colin. But the last photo shows one of the funny habits Keenan has acquired since being in Japan.....he puffs his cheeks out and keeps them that way for minutes at a time.  To tell the truth, it has been driving me a little batty!

Children's Castle

The Children's Castle is a pretty good name for the local community center for youngins'.  There is an entire room full of drums, pianos, xylophones and assorted percussion instruments.  Then there is the artist studio complete with whiteboard and a rainbow palette of colors to use.  Rooms full of toys, slides, play equipment and a rooftop deck with numerous trikes.  There is also a pool we didn't get the chance to check out.  All in all, pretty good bang for your buck, or rather 10,000 yen ($10 USD).

Sophia and Numbers

This was Sophia's progression with writing her numbers in a one hour period. The only number she had help with was the number 9, the rest were all Sophia.  Her ear to ear grin made me suspect she was pretty proud of herself. 

Keenan's Pirate Ship

While we were en-route to Japan, I found this cardboard pirate ship at a local San Carlos toy store.  It got my attention because, unassembled, it was only 3" X 6", a perfect travel size.  Keenan was napping while Sophia helped me put it together.  His eyes lit up like a pin ball machine the moment he laid his eyes on it.  He has been playing with for several hours now and just before bed, he was determined to try to draw it on the magna doodle.