Sometimes leaving home is not an option – dang plane tickets cost so much, no time off from work, just got back from a trip. The litany of excuses goes on and on. But, often you can “travel” in just a day. What’s your excuse now? We spent a day in “Japan” last weekend. We learned a tremendous amount about Japanese culture, got inspired to grow a bonsai tree, bought some trinkets, and ate great food … all in a few hours and all for about $50.
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We started at Aki Matsuri, the Japanese Fall Festival at Bellevue College. For one weekend, the campus becomes Japan. There is a food court selling boxed sushi, chicken skewers, yakisoba noodles, Japanese
Flying with a baby might seem intimidating, but it’s a lot easier than flying with a toddler. Babies don’t cry particularly loudly, they don’t want to get up and run around, they don’t kick the seat in front of them, grab germy handrails, order sugary drinks, play loud video games, drop their toys, or say embarrassing things about other people very loudly. In exchange for a little milk, they will lie peacefully through the whole ordeal. 
On my first flight alone, breastfeeding was pretty stressful. First, I was seated next to an older woman who asked that I move. I don’t know why exactly but she was clearly not at all interested in observing any feeding or changing activities close up. Not interested at all! I was then re-seated next to a young guy in a fancy business suit. “Great” rattled sarcastically in my head. I started to wiggle around, trying to figure out how I would ever discreetly feed this baby who was now making motions and noises that were definitely not discreet. The man looked at me, smiled, and 
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