Spring Cleaning [春の大掃除]

In Japan many people do their big cleaning at the end of the year. In the US we do it in the springtime.  It feels so wonderful outside, so it's great to open the windows and enjoy the day from indoors and out.

This spring, we've been cleaning out our house, getting rid of things we don't need, so we can enjoy the things we really care about. I can't say we are minimalists, but we are working on moving in that direction. Of course while cleaning up we found things we were looking for, things we forgot we had, and things we never even knew were here!

There's a point of advice Miu keeps repeating, "If even one thing doesn't have a place to be put away, the room will get messy." So we're trying to find a home for all of the things we really want to keep, so our rooms won't get messy (for a while anyway).

単語集
get rid of　処分する、捨てる
work on　取り組む
minimalist　断捨離主義者
direction　方向
put away　片付ける、しまう
messy　散らかした、汚い


わかった？確認しよう！
アメリカで一年の大掃除はいつする？
片付けたらどんなものを見つけた？
言われたアドバイスによると、どうして部屋が汚くなる？

このブログを聞いてみてね！ 

Gardening [畑]

I planted vegetables in my garden this year! I don't have a lot of space, but I think its enough. This year I'm starting out simple, with okra and shiso. I'm going to plant tomatoes in our green house too. In the future I want to grow beans and peanuts too.

When I was a kid we grew corn, tomatoes, and string beans. I remember digging in the dirt and watering the plants in the evening. It's really nice to be growing vegetables again.

単語集
plant　植える・植物
enough　十分
green house　ビニールハウス
bean　豆
string beans　インゲン豆
dig　掘る
dirt　土


わかった？確認しよう！
今年何を畑に植える？
将来的に何を育てたい？
子供の時何を育っていた？

このブログを聞いてみてね！ 

Kochi Castle [高知城]

I visited Kochi Castle the other day for an English guided tour. I learned a lot of facts about the castle from the guides. One of the cherry trees at Kochi castle is the sign for when they start blooming and when they are in full bloom. I was lucky to see the trees in full bloom. There are some interesting points to see when visiting Kochi Castle. Outside the main gate there are some katakana characters hiding in the wall. It's fun to try to find them. Since Kochi gets a lot of rain every year, the castle has special gutters to keep the water moving. You can see the gutters and the stains on the walls from the water that came off them. There are also iron spikes and trick gates to stop attackers. I was interested in the black walls on parts of the castle. I asked if they were painted black, but they are actually burned! This is to stop pests from eating the wood. I had a great time learning about Kochi Castle.

I hope if you visit you get a guided tour too!

単語集
the other day　先日、この間
cherry tree　桜の木
bloom　咲く
in full bloom　満開である
character　文字
gutter　溝
stain　染み
spike　先の鋭くとがったもの
gate　門
burn　焦げる
pest　害虫

分かった？　確認しよう！
カタカナの文字はどこにある？
高知城は雨水からの損害をどのように防いでいた？
高知城に攻撃から守るための物はどんなのがある？

このブログを聞いてみてね！