Kent Ninomiya - I've been spending a lot of time with my daughter lately. We're hanging out one-on-one. I'm feeding her, playing dolls, watching princess videos, etc. I noticed that she's been calling me "Mommy" quite a bit. She's never done that before so it got me thinking. Remember when you were in kindergarten and you accidentally called the teacher "Mommy?" I imagine it's because the teacher, who was probably a woman, was in the roll of an adult female authority figure. Since that figure... Read Full Story
Kent Ninomiya - Over the past week I have eaten enough junk food to last a lifetime. Combine that with an extreme lack of activity and you get an expanding waistline. Sure, I thought about putting down the pie and getting off the couch, but it never amounted to anything. My holiday gift to myself is to take it easy over the holidays. I indulge in extra food and watch more football. I only make a token effort at exercise. I do this knowing that I earned it. I plan ahead and try to work out... Read Full Story
Kent Ninomiya. My son hates broccoli. I mean he really hates the stuff! However, since everyone else in the family doesn't mind it and it is very good for you, we tend to eat it often. Making him eat his broccoli involves a combination of incentives, cajoling and threats. It always involves a battle. When we went on vacation for a week I told him that he didn't have to eat broccoli for the entire vacation IF he promised not to complain about eating it when we returned. He enjoyed his broccoli... Read Full Story
Kent Ninomiya. As I get older I gain a greater understanding of the importance of Christmas as a family experience. Young adults tend to discard the ritual of family gatherings and togetherness for independence. However, once new children enter the equation the holiday regains it's place. Christmas is all about the children and how their faces light up when they open their gifts. That look is the parents' gift. There are also important lessons in Christmas. Delayed gratification is perhaps... Read Full Story
I challenged my son to a series of foot races. He loves to run. They were from the light post to the trash can then from the car to the playground. I decided to go all out and give him a challenge. So I backed up about 20 feet and told him I was giving him a head start. He looked at me puzzled and said, "why would you do that? You're and old man." Keep in mind this kid is about a third my size and not even in the 2nd grade yet. I burst out laughing and remarked, "sad but true." I said, "ready... Read Full Story
Kent Ninomiya - My daughter is adorable. She knows I love my alma mater, the University of California. She sees me walk around with my "Cal" hat and sweatshirt. I wear them so much she identifies Cal with me. She also knows that Cal is in a big bowl game tomorrow and that her Dad is very excited about it. Since I care about the game she does too. Today she told me she hopes the "Cals" win and that she would be very mad if the "Cals" don't win. It was so cute that I didn't have the heart to... Read Full Story
Kent Ninomiya - One of the most important lessons taught by Asian martial arts is respect for parents. One of the primary beliefs of Bushido is never miss an opportunity to show them respect. The idea being you are already dead and could never have another chance to show your parents respect, so you should do it at all times. This message is often lost in American martial arts studios. Respect for parents translates to respect for all things whether that be teachers, instructors or fellow... Read Full Story
Kent Ninomiya - My son wrote an essay for his 1st grade class. I think it is quite brilliant. Here it is along with a translation to adult english: Last night I got to stay up lat. I got to wosh fotball. It wus osum. Cal won. It is my tem and Kenttuckey won. I love that becus Cal won. It was becaus tayer pos wur biger. (Last night I got to stay up late. I got to watch football. It was awesome. Cal won. It is my team and Kentucky also won. [he likes Kentucky because there's a "Kent" in it] I... Read Full Story
Kent Ninomiya - Well the Cals won today in exciting fashion. They fell behind 21 points early then stormed back with the back up quarterback at the helm. My daughter seemed very concerned about me when the team was down then got very excited as they scored over and over. We did our touchdown dance and I swung her around every time they put up points. Sometime in the second quarter she lost interest and went to change. She went from her Cal sweatshirt to her princess dress to her angel... Read Full Story
Kent Ninomiya - One of the most wonderful things about children is that they can make you smile with just a few words without even meaning to. Take my daughter for instance. Her mother is Polish and goes to great lengths to teach her culture and language to the kids. In the car today my daughter innocently asked if her Mommy was Polish when she was a little girl like her. I burst out laughing leaving my daughter very confused. I assured her that her mother was always Polish and that she is a... Read Full Story
